Pause. Breathe. Expand.
Good morning... In our therapeutic community group downtown, the leader shared a quote from Victor Frankl, the author of the book we are discussing on Sunday afternoons, Man's Search for Meaning. "Between stimulus and response," she quoted Frankl, "there is a space." "Expand that space and invite the Holy Spirit into it," she encouraged us. "Pause. Breathe. Expand." This we can do, my friends, any time of day or night. When we are [...]
Drawn To The Ocean
Good morning... On Saturday at noon, two young men from our community were laid to final rest, following two touching memorial services in two different parts of town. Josh Patrick lived twenty-three vibrant years on this earth, and Christopher Rascoe was twenty-four years old when he took his final breath. Our youngest son is twenty-three, soon turning twenty-four, so the sorrow of these grieving families and friends weighs heavy on my heart. Then, by [...]
Mom Is Teaching Me
Good morning... Before I leaving my parents' villa to visit my mom in the hospital, I looked down on their table to see two simple items. A small wooden reminder, "In all things give thanks." And a card with a butterfly, black and white, yellow and orange. I did not know if my mom, unresponsive in the ICU for three days, would go on to her forever home that day or wake up [...]
Burying Her Son
Good morning... Today, my friend will bury her son. Dying an untimely death at age 23, Josh was her only child, the love of her life. Her Josh and our Jeremiah were on the same wrestling team in high school, so the thought of burying her son today hits very close to home for me. Josh's obituary chronicles his vibrant life, and, still waiting on the autopsy report, they don't know why he [...]
Audrey’s Divine Healing
Good morning... We have been praying through the cancer journey of Audrey DeShetler for the past fourteen and a half years. Now, with her at nineteen years old, we have arrived at her father's powerful Facebook post from yesterday. ****** Back home / healing from above by Ben DeShetler So much has happened since I last posted and it’s hard to know where to start. In mid January, Audrey's oncologist told us the [...]
My Mom’s Big Smile
Good morning... One long day in the ER. A short night in a regular room. Two exhausting days in the ICU. Suffering seizures and diagnosed with RSV, my mom was unresponsive for three full days. We did not know what we would find when we went to the hospital on day four. We got into the ICU around 9:00 am, and the nurse met us outside my mom’s room. We were told that [...]
My Wish For You
Good morning... As we fell sleep at the crossroads of life and death, we had no idea if my mom would wake up in the ICU or if the path before us would veer in a different direction. The two words joining us at this crossroads were "gracious acceptance." We prayed that our family would graciously accept whatever pathway God might open before us. Early in the morning, before heading to the ICU, [...]
Mom In The ICU
Good morning... After a really happy Valentine's Day in Ohio with my parents, my siblings, our Norwegian exchange student and her young adult son, my mom's cough spiked a fever of 102. Filled with doses of cough medicine and Tylenol, we tucked her into bed. Later, from the guest room in my parents' villa, I heard the click, click, click of my mom's walker as she went to the bathroom in the middle [...]
My Mom’s Cough
Good morning... After climbing in the back seat and exchanging happy hellos at the airport, the first thing I noticed was my mom's cough. Pesky and persistent, her cough was concerning, still our natural conversation took on its own life. We enjoyed a yummy Olive Garden take-out dinner and a relaxing evening together, but my mom's cough was consistently present. Periodically throughout the night, from the comfort of my guest room bed, I [...]
My Parents’ Attitude
Good morning... Last Sunday, our class discussed Man's Search For Meaning by Victor Frankl. On Monday, I blogged about the beloved book in our morning message, We Suffer and Survive. On Tuesday, I got two emails, back to back, highlighting Frankl's wisdom again, encouraging us to Savor Life's Soup from the bottom of our soul. Then, on Wednesday night in our class, we happened upon Victor's words again in Margaret Silf's The Other [...]
Love Is Messy
Happy Valentine's Day... We all love love, but love is messy. In a week that began with our niece going into early labor, from childbirth on life is filled with messy moments. In the after-school enrichment program at PAWkids, the kids collaged their response to the question, "What does love feel like to you?" We also made spin-art Valentines, a marvelously messy endeavor, indeed. As art and life collided this week, I captured [...]
Savor Life’s Soup
Good morning... On Tuesday morning, I received two emails, back to back. ****** Good morning, Sue, It has been a while since I have reached out to you, but know that I am a faithful reader who finds a link to God every morning within your thoughts. However, yesterday was particularly meaningful, truly God sent, as I slipped last week, dislocated my ankle and fractured several bones in my left foot. Facing surgery [...]