One thing has struck me as I look around my backyard, thinking about a new year: nature cares nothing for the issues that got us so riled up in 2020. The steller’s jay screeching in the fruit trees doesn’t give a rip about who filed what lawsuits. The spruce trees waving in the wind couldn’t…
As the year of our Lord 2020 drew to a close, I kept thinking, This is it; it’s almost over; we’re almost to the finish line. I knew in my head that the clock wouldn’t reset at the stroke of midnight on December 31, and 2021 would magically be a return to “normal,” but in…
My life changed in late July 2016. It was high summer in Minnesota, the payoff for living through the winters here. My husband and I had plans for a trip to Nashville during the third weekend of August. A writer’s organization to which I belong was having its annual conference and awards gala, and I…
“But, Mom, do I have to?” Boy, did my kids utter those words hundreds of times over the years! Whether it was when I announced it was time to do their schoolwork, tidy up their bedrooms, or pile in the Buick to go somewhere, they sometimes pushed back, testing whether what I had just instructed…
I recently heard a sermon wherein the pastor stated that John 8 makes it clear Jesus did not engage in political issues. He went on to present a story of how Jesus was minding his own business when the Pharisees confronted him regarding a woman caught in adultery. His point was that otherwise, Jesus intentionally…
A year ago, we made an unplanned local move. It was stressful, but we knew that in the long run, there would be a lot of benefits to our new rental house. We had to make such a quick decision that we didn’t even have time to think about our new neighbors; however since we’d…