Let me start with a story about how not to listen. When our son Matthew was eight, I traveled to London on business, accompanied by him and my husband. The plan: they would play while I worked. Before I showed up at my client’s corporate headquarters, I blew it with my son in the hotel…
I am a mental health therapist by training. In this role, I’ve had all kinds of difficult conversations because they come with the territory. However, in my personal life, I haven’t had many opportunities (or maybe I’ve just been too scared?) to engage in intense confrontation with a friend. I don’t mean the type of…
“I want to be a wise woman and use my words to help, heal, honor, benefit, and build up those who listen.” ~Wendy Pope Being an adult is hard sometimes—really really hard. A multitude of “standards” and opinions swirl around us daily, trying to define us on their terms, often leaving us in a wake…
I still own the sewing machine that belonged to my grandmother and great-grandmother. The small, black Singer assisted me in making childhood clothes, my wedding dress, and curtains that hang in my house to this day. In the past, when people saw my machine, they often asked, “Is it a toy?” No, it’s a sentimental…
I’m sitting in my bedroom this evening—Kansas summers are surprisingly sticky, and I’m thankful for air conditioning and to have all of my babies tucked in for the night. There’s a peace in knowing we’re all here and accounted for. I can rest in knowing that all of my ducklings are in the nest. I…
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other and hoped no one would answer my knock. As the door opened in front of me, my heart beat faster. “Uh,” I said as I looked up into the eyes of the adult before me. I was in fourth grade. Every year, my Christian school…