The image of the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe in Berlin, Germany (cover photo) is a place of contemplation, a place of remembrance and warning. It is close to the Brandenburg Gate in the heart of Berlin. If you understand what it represents, it can be haunting. If not, it seems almost restful. Continue reading Remembering
This morning, I read Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and my whole spirit calmed down. He lived and was martyred during one of the most awful periods for the church. And yet, his words are like a balm and a reminder of what community is supposed to be like for believers. I do not think we are called to be shaking our fists and screaming our frustrations. … Continue reading Today I Choose Love and Light
Another bad thing in a world of bad things. I have not become numb, that is not what has happened. I crumble with each new attack, with each new assault – foreign or domestic. And then I disconnect, and block out the media, and become absorbed in my kids’ interests and the activities we can do together to fill our world with joy. I didn’t take … Continue reading We could Hug More!
My husband and I were solving all the problems of the world this morning over coffee, and again, the discussion of violence in our nation was at the forefront of our thoughts. We were acknowledging that it is difficult to have a conversation about how to solve the problems without people getting heated, and divided. Even here. Even in this very small circle of … Continue reading If a Genie Could Grant us Wholeheartedness
#blacklivesmatter Continue reading She Thought Perhaps Azalea
Earlier this week, we were having a dinner table conversation led by my husband about Not Judging a Book by its Cover – not judging people – understanding that everyone has a story. We may not ever know what drives a person, but we have to give space, give grace, and give a level of tolerance knowing that people are acting out their experience. Sometimes … Continue reading I Do Not Tug at their Hearts for No Reason
Dustin Hoffman is in a video that will most likely go viral. It is about the moment he realized how many amazing women he had missed out on meeting or interacting with in his life because they didn’t fit the image he had in his head of how women should look. He breaks down crying in the video as he’s talking about his part in … Continue reading Dustin Hoffman on Appreciating Women
This was the phrase floating through my head all morning as I cleaned my house. I cleaned everything. My house has not been this spotless in a long time. I cleaned with joy. I cleaned with a spring in my step. Bean helped me with the more fun parts, like the duster dealie-ma-thingie. The other day I read an article about being a good wife … Continue reading Where there are no Oxen, the Stalls are Clean
This morning, in the moments before anything else happened, before anyone needed me, or the morning ritual of hugs all around began, I imagined being there yesterday, in Boston. I imagined the sounds and all I really know of anything this scary, is seeing blood on one of my kids from a bicycle accident. When they are in full swing of play and whooping with … Continue reading With Everything I am, I Thank You
On Monday morning of this week, after the horrific shooting in Connecticut, I woke up wanting the NRA to pay for armed security in our schools. And now, it seems, that is exactly what they are proposing to do amid a frenzied national outrage. I feel like a heel. In the moment, it seemed like a great idea. One of the most pointed responses was … Continue reading The NRA and Guns and Schools: A Balancing Act Not Completely Thought Through
There they stood, in all their Christmas Cheer. The girls, that is. Many of the girls wore fancy dresses. Even a couple of boys were dressed in suits and ties. Most of the boys were dressed like my son, in sweatshirts and jeans. Ben sported a Harley Davidson t-shirt, and his ever-present baseball hat. They started out strong with Jingle Bells and plowed through the … Continue reading Jingle Bells: The Third-Grade Christmas Sing and Shuffle
If there is anything we have learned from the last week, it is that life can be tiny and fragile and precious and dear. There is no guarantee that we will get our Someday. Perhaps the greatest monument we can build to the lives that have been senselessly lost, is to live our best and biggest dreams now. Let’s not wait for the Someday around … Continue reading Tiny and Fragile and Precious and Dear
The first thought in my head this morning was, “What if we didn’t have to be afraid?” It’s Monday morning. Already, back East, parents are sending their children to school, putting them on buses, or walking with them across crosswalks, holding hands. Today, across America, we will be literally sending our children into harms way. It feels that way. We don’t want to think of … Continue reading What if the NRA put their Money where we Hurt the Most?
It was the worst night in recent history. It was the night the world reeled to learn that 20 first-graders and 6 adults at an Elementary School had been gunned down. It had been a day of tears and outrage, along with confusion and sorrow. It was also the day we had been given the news that we need to have my 8-year old go … Continue reading Icebergs & Invercargill – What we did Friday Night
Scott and I watched the CBS Special on the Sandy Hook Massacre on television last night after the kids went to bed. We have not talked to the boys yet. We didn’t have the facts. We are still wrestling with what to say and to whom. Some of the advice I have heard is that for children five years old and younger, we should simply … Continue reading Robert Parker, dad of Sandy Hook Victim, Emily Parker, on Compassion
In my own way, I revered the children lost today by holding my children tonight and laughing together at dinner. At some point during the weekend, I will have to introduce them to the idea of the tragedy that happened today in Connecticut, just not yet. Not yet. For tonight, they are sleeping soundly without sadness. Before Ben returns to school on Monday, we will have … Continue reading Bittersweet: The Thud of Pulsing Grief in My Mommy Heart
My head is a mess of ideas this morning, a big compilation of heavy thoughts and wrenching, reaching motives. First Google searches this morning were: Rule of Law Rule of Etiquette Rule of Debate Principles of Warfare The idea that the conquering army goes in immediately to tend to the enemy wounded In all the reading I did yesterday, it seemed that the Olive Branches … Continue reading Sorting through Winners and Losers, Love and Not
Let’s be clear. We are talking about an actual pig named SweetPea, and the eight babies my husband helped deliver last night. The boys and I stayed home and watched Election Results for a little bit, had dinner, and read stories. Bean fell asleep. He’d had a big day. Then a text alert from Facebook popped up on my phone saying that my candidate had … Continue reading Election Night, Civil Dialogue and a Mess of Pigs
The last thing you hear on the audio version of this recording is someone saying into the microphone, while the crowd is going crazy, “The Blues Does Not Get Better Than That!” This is Part 2 of the Video of about 12 minutes of performance for a 70th Birthday Bash for John Mayall. This was playing on Pandora while I chopped onions for a stew … Continue reading I Chop Onions and Get Lost in Melancholy for a Moment
What does it mean to have Free Speech? The first thing that comes to mind is that we should be able to say what we need to say, within reason. That’s the little editor in my brain telling me that we don’t just Say Anything! That could be Anarchy! That could mean a bunch of opposing views screamed at each other from rooftops and that … Continue reading Hear No – See No – Speak No
