Good morning... Yesterday, we celebrated our friend's birthday in her beautiful, newly-built abode. Her welcoming home has been a two and a half year building project, a complete labor of love. Our fabulous friendship has been a nearly twenty year building project, a complete gift of God's love. We have journeyed beside Jennifer DeShelter (top left corner) as [...]
Good morning... On Saturday afternoon, I received his email. A tried and true friend, his words always boost me. "Hi, Sue," he wrote. "I encourage you to read Patricia Holbrook’s column on page C2 of today’s AJC, entitled 'When grief teaches us to live without regret.' I particularly like these words: 'For those of us left behind, though, [...]
Good morning... Wow! Yesterday was an incredible day. I started out at Mend Coffee with thirty friends from Northside's Morning Mission Circle. I took notes in the back of my Hope Heals book, as author Katherine Wolf told her life-changing story of narrowly surviving a massive brain stem stroke at age twenty-six. Forty days in the ICU. Disfiguring [...]
Good morning... Amid the chaos of this world, we are invited to experience the calm of God. Those who know Love will rejoice as the nations learn to cooperate, as the peoples of the earth recover their true heritage. The people say, "The time has come to dwell in peace and [...]
Good morning... Whenever I think of July 2025, two words will always come to mind. Grief and Galapagos. In June, the daughter of my dear friend, Audrey DeShetler, went to heaven the day before her twentieth birthday. Then, within the same week, our family put to sleep our beloved dog, Tate. Both Audrey and Tate battled cancer. Both [...]
Good morning... Please savor with me this delicious summer poem. ****** "Tomatoes" by Joy Sullivan I waited so long for love and suddenly, here it is standing in the garden, hands full of heirlooms hot from the sun. Soon we’ll make a supper of them. Salted slabs between slices of bread. Your beard silvers. My hips ripen. The [...]
Good morning... This unique 4th of July, I truly believe there's room on the porch for everyone. Come on up! Lingering as we wake is a portion of our prayer from yesterday's post: May we find ourselves reminded that we belong to one another. Neighbors. Strangers. Friends. All wrapped up together in this web of beautiful, terrible inter-dependence. [...]
Good morning... Month after month, day by day, our written word community prayed diligently for Elizabeth, a creative mom of three, an incredible wife, and a kind friend to so many. One year ago today, Elizabeth's cancer journey invited her into her heavenly home. Revisiting her beautiful obituary helps us to remember Elizabeth's vibrant life and her bottomless [...]
Good morning... Snapping this interesting photo on our hike yesterday, I thought "Creativity bonds us." Then, I thought back on an email I received earlier in the morning. "Hi," wrote a friend. "I enjoyed the video about the 87 year old woman who composed a piano piece while grieving the loss of her husband. Before opening your message [...]
Good morning... After her husband dies, 87 year old Diana composes a new dream. May He grant the dreams of your heart and see your plans through to the end (Psalm 20:4, VOICE). ...Sue...
