Good morning... The dead looking amaryllis bulb I planted in my pot before Thanksgiving has grown two two-foot stems, each with four six-inch flowers. Over the last ten weeks, it has been fascinating to watch the bulb gradually sprout, grow, and bloom. Yesterday, my amaryllis plant toppled over, top-heavy. It felt so symbolically perfect for the day I was [...]

Good morning... On January 2nd, my post "Thirty day lessons," spoke of wisdom gleaned after facing the first days of extreme loss. Many of us resonated with the truth and forwarded the message on to loved ones groping through grief. I instantly thought of a friend who nearly lost her middle aged husband to a heart attack several months [...]

Good morning... One of my favorite books is Sue Monk Kidd's When the Heart Waits: Spiritual Direction for Life's Sacred Questions. A question arises as I read Sue's words: “Back in the autumn I had awakened to a growing darkness and cacophony, as if something in the depths were crying out. A whole chorus of voices. Orphaned voices. They [...]

Good morning... She is struggling through a major depression. Therapy. Medication. An inner circle of family and friends lean in to support her shuffle down this pitch black hallway. They can not carry her. They can not walk for her. They can not flip on a light switch to bring her relief. God whispers from somewhere: “I see what [...]

Good morning... Fellow Atlanta residents Dustin and Genevieve Ahkuoi posted this hilarious YouTube video on December 19th, and it enjoyed 20 million views in its first 24 hours. Since then, the video has gone viral precisely because it taps into the cravings of the human nature we all battle. Enjoy a chuckle! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/adele-hello-parody-junk-food_5676869ae4b0b958f656fdd4 They ate and had their fill; [...]

Good morning… Responding to my daughter's request, I went to my first hot yoga class. I set up my mat right next to hers. Lots of fit, agile bodies filed into the tiny, warm room. Their familiar comfort zone was foreign to me. As the crowded roomful began to breathe deep, we were asked to set an intention for [...]

Good morning... I can promise you, 2016 is not going to be the year of my best body. The year of my best body may have occurred in 1984 when, age at twenty-one, I was trying to impress my first real boyfriend. The year of my best body may have been in 1987 when I worked extremely hard to [...]

Good morning... 2015 was a hard year for many. Loved ones leaving earth for heaven. Health issues plaguing, paralyzing. Affairs, divorces, accidents altering life. Facing "firsts" is difficult, the first night alone, the first holiday without, the first anniversary pain; each "first" marks movement away from an old beloved normal. In May of 2015, Facebook exec Sheryl Sandberg lost [...]

Good morning... I remember when my faith became more deeply my own. I was a new mom who had moved from the north down to the south, and I joined my first Bible study with other young moms. We were studying a book by a popular Christian writer, and her first teaching point was that we are children of [...]

Good morning... The trouble with troubles is that they glob together. One new hurt connects to a past hurt. One fresh insult joins forces with old ones. One fear adds into the growing sum of fears. Before we are fully aware, within us exists a hardened conglomerate of anger, pain, and anxiety. As a noun, "conglomerate" means a number [...]