Forget Not His Benefits
This morning, after I find myself elbow deep in a strawberry patch, I spend some time reading Psalm 103. No matter how many times I read this Psalm, I’m struck by the simplicity, truth, and joy of it. Other than Psalm 16, I can claim Psalm 103 as a favorite. Just the first five verses […]
Fresh From the Nest
On the walk home from dropping the children off at school, the neighbors and I see a baby robin leave the nest. He stands there ready to start really living. Baby Robin, Fresh from the Nest He tries his wings out, and the neighbors lean in and begin cheering for him. “You can do it! […]
All the Things You Didn’t Even Know Were Here
The winning pie at the Boalsburg Memorial Day Fair is something I haven’t even imagined in my mind before. Coconut Key Lime. You know my problem with coconut. I didn’t get the recipe or try this winning pie, but I immediately come home and proclaim, “I have to make that pie!” So I do. I […]
The Smallest Things Pay Tribute
On Memorial Day, I pause with the kind of awareness that brings tears to my eyes. I’m aware of my particular freedoms–the smallest ones that I always take for granted–that were secured for me by the sacrifice of others. It’s amazing. It’s humbling. It makes these little blueberries in the bowl, this warm cup of […]
Our Sabbath Almond Kringle
Our is the word you should remember. This isn’t authentic Scandinavian pastry. I’m not even Scandinavian (I don’t think), but I did, as a little girl, have a Scandinavian neighbor who delivered Almond Kringle every Christmas. For my wedding gift, this sweet neighbor sent me the ingredients, recipe, and tools needed to make her Almond […]
Well Worth the Waiting
Do you remember exactly two years ago my huge gardening mistake? I put my strawberry plants in the ground, and I bragged about all the glorious berries I’d have that summer. Remember how the older, wiser folks told me that I had to pinch off every blossom and not, under any circumstances, let that plant […]
Finally Accepting God’s Boundary Lines for Your Life
All week, I’ve considered how beautiful it is to finally surrender to the limits of your own life. You stop resisting. You stop wishing for a different life. You stop living in an imaginary future. Instead, you look at all the perfect boundary lines in your life. You thank God for the places He never […]
I Refuse
A stranger comments to me this morning at the gym that I’m just so positive. After a few minutes of conversation, she couldn’t believe that I would find good and hope and joy even in a hard day. I just smiled and moved on, but I wanted to tell her this: Complaining is easy. It’s […]
A Better Purpose
I notice that my glorious peonies no longer hold the same beauty today. They seem too big for themselves. They collapse onto the grass and dirt. Even when coaxed by a cage to stand tall and firm, they outgrow it and fall. I’m standing in front of this bush, and I think about the weight […]
I’m Not Gonna Wait Around All Day For It
I place the fresh nectar in the feeder for my hummingbirds, and I decide to position myself in the backyard to take the perfect photo of a glorious hummingbird. I wait. I wait some more. Normally, the hummingbirds arrive immediately after I hang the feeder. I wait. I know they’re coming. I wait. I […]