Good morning... Thirty-nine years ago, on Memorial Day weekend, Steve and I were married in my hometown of Berea, Ohio. This anniversary morning, we wake in Athens, Georgia, new grandparents to Charlie, who is a week and two days old. Our youngest daughter could not come to meet Charlie at the hospital, since she woke that day with [...]
Good morning... When one odd word repeats itself, my keen awareness perks up. Yesterday, I reworked our post entitled Life Is A Patchwork. Then I climbed back in bed for my second sleep. When I woke again, I immediately read the following poem. Do you see what unusual word repeats itself? ****** "Rain Light" by W.S. Merwin All [...]
Good morning... At Scott's Antique Market, I found this Mother's Day gift for my mom. I sent it with a card for her to hang on a doorknob in their senior living community in Ohio. The cross stitched treasure reminds me of the many handmade creations my mom made as gifts over the years. The words share a [...]
Good morning... Walking beside the muddy banks of the Chattahoochee river, I was reminded of a quote from our final book of the semester, Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer. On page 79, Parker writes about the season of spring. "...before spring becomes beautiful, it is plug ugly, nothing but mud and muck. I have walked in [...]
Good morning... On Thursday around noontime, we snapped the final picture of the semester. This week, our classes finished up Parker Palmer's beloved book Let Your Life Speak. Out loud, we read these words from page 76 of the last chapter: "In retrospect, I can see in my own life what I could not see at the time [...]
Good morning... "After hours of careful listening, my therapist offered an image that helped me eventually reclaim my life," writes Parker Palmer on page 50 of Let Your Life Speak. "You seem to look upon depression as the hand of an enemy trying to crush you," he said. "Do you think you could see it instead as the [...]
Good morning... This short poem reminds me of two things. A recent walk in the woods with a dear friend. The final line from the obituary of our friend Tom McLain: "...carry on Tom's legacy: say yes to everything!" ****** "Yes, That’s When" by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer I like my body when I’m in the woods and I [...]
Good morning... During our final spiritual growth group of the semester, we opened our sacred time together by reading aloud the prayer of St. Francis. One woman was drawn to the Ralph Waldo Emerson quote, "What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what [...]
Good morning... Bursting on bare branches and decorating brown decay, vibrant green is everywhere! After weeks of thick yellow pollen and before the return of those pesky mosquitos, this weekend is perfectly positioned to exude joy and new life. Amidst blooming azaleas, towering pines and flowering dogwoods, the first full week of April always ushers in the Masters [...]
Good morning... Just one week ago today, our blog post on my 63rd birthday invited everyone to join us in creating "birthday cake boxes" for thirty senior citizens who live in the Grove Park neighborhood of our city. We were hoping for 30 boxes, 30 boxes filled with a cake mix, frosting, oil and birthday candles. What we [...]
