Good morning... "The whole person is involved when we give thanks from our hearts," says Br. David Steindl-Rast. As I wake early this Thanksgiving morn, my heart is saturated with gratitude. I am grateful for small, simple pleasures - a furry blanket and cozy socks that hug my feet just right. I am grateful for my husband and [...]
Good morning... Our Friday group finished the fall semester last week, yet we have remained connected through a lively email string. Regularly we share words of encouragement as we pray for Elizabeth, the 37-year-old daughter-in-law of our classmate, who began her first round of chemo on Monday for advanced colon cancer. "I want to tell you all how [...]
Good morning... When I walk and talk with one dear friend, she often notices stray worms inching aimlessly across the surface of the sidewalk. Gently, consistently she picks up every lost worm she sees, placing each in the familiarity of the soil beneath the soft green grass. "I know you love caring for stray worms," I wrote her [...]
Good morning... In good times and in bad, "soul friends" surround us. We are God-with-skin-on to one another. It's as if the Holy Spirit-in-me and the Holy Spirit-in- you enjoy life-giving conversations. Yesterday in our final Friday morning class, we revisited a favorite quote about what it means to be a "soul friend." ****** Excerpt from Simple Faith [...]
Good morning... Last month, she sent me gorgeous photos from her visit to Gibbs Gardens. Breathtaking are the blending colors, shapes, and textures. Grass and sky. Water and trees. Real and reflections. Not one. Not two. Now slowly scrolling through, I sip and share the beauty. After reading our post from yesterday, My [...]
Good morning... Like the red, hard blueberry in the plastic pail above, my day began with a bitter mistake, an error in judgement, a disrespectful choice. I did what I could to remedy the situation, but the damage had already been done. Hurt had happened. I was wrong. I felt so bad. I genuinely apologized. Disappointed in myself, [...]
Good morning... Light and shadow are inseparable. Joy and sorrow so often hold hands. Highs and lows are quite the pair. Ebbing and flowing cannot be stopped. I read a poem out loud in our Monday class highlighting the two-way street nature of our oneness with God. "For the joy set before him Christ endured the [...]
Good morning... Yesterday afternoon we had our final Monday class of the fall semester. To keep our attendance high, we have learned to end classes before the week of Thanksgiving. After reading a poem about effortless unity with God, sharing the details of some very important prayer concerns, and fleshing out a Spirit-led giving opportunity, together we read [...]
Good morning... As I wake in gratitude for these early morning hours, I envision myself quietly living my favorite Mother Teresa quote: "I am a little pencil in the hand of writing God who is sending a love letter to the world." As I invest two or three hours prayerfully pondering, writing, and editing words during the wee [...]
Good morning... On this hazy Saturday morning, my husband and I debriefed from yesterday over coffee. Much like we did during our long season of parenting four active kids born six years apart, we needed to divide and conquer to cover our important Friday commitments. Steve went to the memorial service of Sarah French while I went to [...]
