Letting Go...To Grasp What Really Matters
When I was pregnant with my daughter Natalie, I shifted from a long-time role in special education to teach a classroom of precious first graders. Oh, how I loved those children – especially after lunch and recess when I sat down in the rocking chair and read picture books out loud to calm and settle them. On Fridays, as a…
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“To dare is to lose one’s footing; To not dare is to lose one’s self.” Soren Kierkegaard I’ve always thought I was someone who doesn’t like to leave her two-mile radius. I’ve always believed I was happier when close to what’s familiar. But as I looked through the 2018/2019 photo albums my mom made our family for Christmas, I realized…
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I noticed it immediately. Exactly four weeks ago, three massive letters appeared next to the road near the round-about that I travel multiple times a day. The three letters were: J-O-Y, and each letter lit up for about three seconds, until all at once, the whole word lit up. The first time I drove by, I only got to see…
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“Because everyone that I know,Every place that I go,Every story that I’m told,It’s loveIt’s loveIt’s love That we’re looking for.” -Mat Kearney While staying at my in-law’s house over the Thanksgiving holiday, my 16-year-old daughter suggested we look at old photos. My mother-in-law pulled out a big plastic bin of albums and photos, many showcasing my husband and his siblings…
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“I am not the same having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world.” ― mary anne radmacher Dear friend, I am writing you today with a special invitation. At this time last year, you joined with fifteen-year-old Natalie to become part of a spontaneous hope-filled team of people. Together you raised funds for a special community-wide celebration in…
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“Have you given Banjo his breathing treatment?” my daughters ask. No one wants to miss it. Everyone gathers ‘round. Seven breaths never looked so peaceful, so captivating…. so fluffy. After suffering from a severe episode of respiratory distress this fall, Banjo’s lungs never returned to normal. The specialist took a look at his latest chest X-ray, and declared, “Well, the…
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