Sometimes you just come across speeches in Shakespeare’s works that astound you – that cause you to simply be still and marvel at the beauty of the language. There’s no questioning why Shakespeare is an enduring classic – because with words like these, he captures what most men could never hope to articulate. Which is… Continue reading Lessons on How to Speak to a Lover – by Shakespeare
Some days are just hard. Some days the tears slip down over my morning mug of tea as my heart struggles, and I wonder – why? What’s the purpose? Why must I have temptations to fight against, why must I ward off loneliness and old memories and dead dreams and lack of compassion, why must… Continue reading In the Struggle, There is Holiness
Well. That was a first. Spending the night in the airport … waiting for the re-assigned flight at 7:30am, shivering on a cold, vinyl chair, knowing sleep would never come to me till I got home. Of course I was bitterly disappointed to know that I’d be spending my 14-hour layover on the East Coast… Continue reading Airport Renderings at 4:30am
Some of the greatest theology is most beautifully demonstrated through hymns. I love our church’s weekly singing of hymns, some modern, some ancient, and I have quite the collection of the song word sheets from over the years. As we prepare our hearts for worship tomorrow morning, I hope that these words will encourage your… Continue reading Hymns of a Saturday: Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery
If you know me even just a little bit, you know that I am a reader. In fact, I don’t just “read” books – I love them, I devour them, I marvel at the beauty of the stories and the words within their pages. I have always been a reader. I don’t remember learning how… Continue reading Why a Reading Mind is a Vibrant Mind
Recently at our annual student leadership conference for CYT, we had a Q & A panel on issues relating to HYPE, leadership, and teen struggles in general. One topic that came up multiple times (and always does when working with student leaders) is that of cliques and how to break them down. Specifically, how does… Continue reading Having an Attitude of Inclusiveness
I’ve been to worlds of madness – silliness, foolishness – yet the heart of life at the same time. I’ve been to secret obsessions and silent pleas to be rid of said obsessions. I’ve been to lonely nights grieved with teardrops. I’ve been through building up – and breaking down – – the breaking down… Continue reading This is Where I’ve Been
Flags waving at every house, red-white-and-blue shirts and shorts, barbecues, independence-themed hashtags, parades, fireworks – these are the signs of a country with close to 319 million people celebrating their independence. It’s tradition, it’s meaningful, it’s patriotic – it’s what Americans know as the 4th of July. Two hundred and forty years ago, our forefathers… Continue reading The Ache for Freedom
My mind, as I have discovered recently, has the most difficult time being still. It is constantly active, constantly looking for something to “work on.” Perhaps I’m running through a list of things that need to get done, flinching at the stack of grading I’m avoiding, trying not to forget all that I need to… Continue reading Discovering the Pause
I am a writer. I love words and I love arranging them on paper and on a computer screen. I delight in making sentences dance and paragraphs sing and stories whisper. I have a lot of things to say and sometimes they don’t always come out right. Yet I must keep on writing no matter… Continue reading Blog 365
The Vintage Girl 