Sisterhood of Traveling Redbuds
All those hours in front of a blank screen leave our thoughts whirling in a cyclone, twisting out of control until our words find a place to touch down.
Deconstructing a Foundation
I crawl underneath a 100-year-old house to inspect its sinking foundation. Built on post and pier a century ago, its footings are settling into the sand. Beneath the floorboards the foreman points out the rotting posts and the unstable footings. Already afraid, with my chin to the damp dirt and remains of vermin and creature…
Purpose
His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace. Ephesians 2:15 Two broken entities. Colors shouting back and forth to each other: You are one. I am the other. He has already made us One. He has broken down the wall of partition. He made peace out…
Free
A winter tomb. A cavern womb. A lodge for pain. Grief branches into limbs and sinew and marrow. Ache lingers there. Warm brown arms envelope this tomb. Breath buries into her bosom. “Release that pain!” Her prayer over me unfurls its rooted hold. Tendrils of freedom now seed that womb. There is room for Spring….
Closet Confession
I confess. I love shoes. They were the last thing I bought before the pandemic hit. But they were bought in secret. With a credit card. An expensive pair of sandals I had been eyeing for a while. While on vacation in a city with my favorite store, I caved in. It was the last pair…
Wrapped in the Weight of Glory
…to be loved by God, not merely pitied, but delighted in as an artist delights in his work or a father in a son—it seems impossible, a weight or burden of glory which our thoughts can hardly sustain. But so it is. (C.S. Lewis) I experienced the impossible in the twilight of a morning….
The Enduring Flavors of Family Culture
Someone may see me in passing, take a glance, and ask, “Where do you come from?” Depending on my mood, I may answer, “I’m from Seattle,” then walk away. Or, if I feel like disclosing more information, I may answer, “My parents are from the Philippines, but I was born here.” It used to bother…
Amusement Ride
Our hearts are restless, looking for connection in the most casual of places: a People magazine in the grocery store line or the trailer of an upcoming movie. In this entertainment saturated culture of ours, we spend hundreds of hours and dollars seeking diversion and amusement from the daily grind of life, searching for a way…
Listing
I was stuck. In the most giving season of my life—raising teenage children, caring for my mother with Alzheimer’s in my home—I was stuck. Wedged in a pit of self. Patience wore like a thin wall. Anger ignited like a wildfire. Sleep eluded like a shadow. My teenage children labeled it “The Dark Ages.” The…