As I was write this from the balcony of the condo where we're staying in Gulf Shores, Alabama, the new year is just days away. Below us, waves are crashing onto the shore with gusto, and it's easy to get mesmerized by the motion. For every wave, there is an action and reaction - the thrust forward and the retreat back to sea. Again, and again, and again. And every time, the forward action creates far more energy than the retreating action. I am not a great believer in New Year's Continue Reading
From Here to Divinity
Every December, my mother led the cookie and candy-making brigade in our kitchen so we’d end up with plates of chocolate and butter flavored glee to enjoy and share for Christmas. Who remembers pulling taffy? Using a cookie press? Patiently watching the temperature rise in a candy thermometer? Warm, childhood memories for me. Last week, I swung into final preparations for a neighborhood get-together we were hosting Saturday afternoon. Nothing fancy, just a drop-in for cookies and Continue Reading
Feeling Alone? You’ve Got Company
The holidays can be a paralyzing time for lots of people. It's easy to feel alone, even when you’re surrounded by others. Guess what? You’re not the only one who feels this way. Look around, at work, among your friends, other family members, in other circles of your life, and you will discover you've got company. Death of loved ones, divorce and custody arrangements, geographic distances, and singleness can make it a challenge with the expectations Christmas can bring. I struggled with it for Continue Reading
An Open Mind – What took me so long?
A couple of years ago, my friend, Kathy, and I were exchanging ideas about artists or entertainers we’d each like to see. She responded quickly – Michael W. Smith. I gulped a little. Now, if you don’t know him, he is a composer, musician and singer of Christian songs (not to be confused with the Christian hymns I grew up with); more specifically “praise” music – the kind that really lights a fire under many of his listeners. I heard quite a bit of this music when I attended the small Continue Reading