Good morning... On this day when we celebrate the non-violent movement of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I am trying to process the violent death of a beloved woman in the Grove Park neighborhood of our city. The last time I gathered with our therapeutic community group at PAWkids, we sent flowers home with Mike Mike, the group [...]
Good morning... After a crazy ten hour travel day for my seventy-five minute flight, my sister battled airport traffic to pick me up in Cleveland, Ohio. Happy to be together, we arrived around 11:00 pm at our parents' independent living villa in their senior living community. With their teeth out and their jammies on, our parents hugged us [...]
Good morning... "Full moon rising," a friend wrote from California at 5:00 pm her time, 8:00 pm my time. Her photo was soft and pastel, filled with layers of lush. She forwarded from a friend an encouragement she received. ****** ✨ Bring on the Cold Moon! 🌕 TONIGHT • Stillness • Reflection • Release • Intention • Manifestation [...]
Good morning... All week last week, Steve visited with his 94 year old mom in rural Pennsylvania. Cold. Windy. Harsh. He experienced a different kind of beauty found in our family's favorite summertime spot. Also last week, as my sister was preparing the traditional family Christmas calendar for [...]
Good morning... Last Friday night, I received this text from a friend. "At a Rally Foundation event," she wrote. "The DeShetlers just won a trip!! God's handiwork!" (As you likely remember, Audrey DeShetler's fifteen year cancer journey took her to heaven in June, ten hours shy of her twentieth birthday). Texting with Jennifer and our Fab Five friend [...]
Good morning... Last Monday night, we had dinner with our small group, a group we've been meeting with regularly for several years now. Each time we've gathered, we've shared a meal and talked about faith and kids, weddings and grandkids, aging parents and life's highs and lows. One man asked, "Throughout your lifetime, what life phase has been [...]
Good morning... As the light of tonight's full moon peeks through our window, the hopes for our first grandbaby grow big in my heart. On Saturday, our whole immediate family gathered to learn the gender of this precious new family member, who is due on May 15th, our daughter-in-law's birthday. With our eyes closed shut, an Henri's cookie [...]
Good morning... "Steve and I have had a good time of connecting about our day," I texted my friend at 9:02 yesterday morning. "Here is what we have come up with." "Steve is leading communion at Kairos at 10:00 am, the vibrant little Presbyterian church off 285 on Riverside Dr.," I explained. "After that service, we plan to [...]
Good morning... This week, I have watched footage of the final living Israeli hostages returning to the tearful embrace of their loved ones. On the news, I saw a Palestinian man finally returned to the grounds of his home in Gaza. What was once his special place, a place where he had raised his grown children, was now [...]
Good morning... On Sunday afternoon, I picked up our new golden retriever puppy, and brought her home to meet our family. My husband Steve is walking the Camino in Spain, (and the Camino was the first trip we shared as a couple as he started his new job leading adult trips), so we have decided to name our [...]
