Parents Passing on the Sidewalks of Life
My four-year-old daughter and I were walking on the sidewalk when a parade of motorcycles started roaring by. With each one, she cried, “Wow!” At first, I smiled, loving her enthusiasm, but after thirty or so motorcycles, it wasn't as
Mothers & Daughters
My husband and I went on a family trip to South Carolina when our firstborn daughter was only three weeks old. I remember walking the beach for miles as my mother-in-law stayed with my newborn back at the condo. I was
We Don’t Have a Whole Lot in Common (and That’s Okay)
Our daughters were whining; the back of the van was filled with groceries; a cardboard box was on the floorboard, containing three leftover slices of mushroom pizza. My husband turned on the radio to drown out the noise or to
I’m Going to Cherish Every Moment (Even If It Kills Me)
I became one of those moms last night, with the toddler throwing herself down across the entryway to the store, causing patrons to pause as they looked from her to me and then back down at her, unsure if they
God’s Perspective on Pain
After I received the email, I walked outside in the pulsing dark. I went halfway down the driveway and lay on the asphalt. I could feel the warmth, from the day’s relentless sun, radiating against my back. The night sky
Watching the World Go By
“Hey, Honey,” the cashier said. “Got any plans for the weekend?” I was so caught off-guard, I almost laughed. “This is my second weekend here.” She smiled. “Oh, you like it?” I explained that I was actually returning to Tennessee after living in
Life’s Non-linear Adventure
It’s 9:37 on a Saturday night, and I’m confined to my toddler’s bedside, which is actually my bedside, because she declares she is scared of the new nursery. Whenever I glance over at her by the light of the computer screen,
Finding the Magic Wherever You Are
My best friend Misty’s idyllic farmstead, next to the Red River, flooded a few weeks ago. I called her home, and the line beeped as if her phone was off the hook. I tried her cell phone and left a
Going the Distance
Barn swallows are writing invisible calligraphy in the azure sky, and the unglaciered hills in the distance are brilliant, summer green. Hummingbirds are sipping nectar from the purple flower baskets hanging from the eaves. An abandoned windmill, in the next
Setting Our Broken World Right
This afternoon, as we waited for the results of my husband’s MRI and CAT scan, I looked around at the light flooding through Mayo Clinic’s wall of windows, at the pigeons pecking the flat roof of the building below, at