In Advance
Are you someone who thanks God in advance for what is about to happen? Last night, the youth pastor tells us how Jesus thanks God in advance of the miraculous feeding of the five thousand. I remember years ago listening to a woman pray. When she began to ask God for something, she always thanked […]
The Element of Fun
This morning, I hear Mary Poppins declare: “In every job that must be done, there is an element of fun. Find the fun and–snap!–the job’s a game.” http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/HrnoR9cBP3o&source=uds I immediately remember the “Fun Theory” Volkswagen initiative that attempted to change people’s behavior by making what you wanted them to do fun. Here, people choose to […]
No One Else Can Say It
Why write a memoir? For their last assignment in my writing course, students compose a single-event memoir. We talk about all the kinds of experiences they’ve had in their lives. We talk about travel, after-school jobs, illness, encounters with wild animals or famous people, existential questions, romance, turning point moments, transitions to adulthood, and even […]
I Finished My Novel, So Now What?
I finished my young adult novel! It feels so great to finish. Now, I send it to my agent, and we make a proposal to send to publishers. This sounds a lot easier than it is. This takes a long time, and it’s very frustrating. I’ve written four other novels that have been heartily rejected. […]
Two Strange But Fun Expressions
Today my youngest asks me why people yell Shotgun! when they want to sit in the front passenger seat. It’s because that seat was the armed defense of the messenger on a stagecoach. The person driving the horses needed protection, so the passenger held the shotgun to protect him. This, therefore, was the shotgun seat. […]
3 Little Signs Winter’s On the Way
We’ve tossed the pumpkins and mums into the compost bin; we’ve accepted the winterberries’ arrival; we’ve raked every fallen leaf. Welcome winter.
Go Ahead and Let Yourself
A former student arrives to my office with a book of J.R.R Tolkien’s collected letters. She shares with me something so inspiring. On March 2, 1916, Tolkien composed a letter to his girlfriend during his senior year of college. He writes, “This miserable drizzling afternoon I have been reading up old military lecture-notes again:–and getting […]
The Trap Set for You
Today I read in Proverbs 13:14 that “the teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning a person from deadly traps.” I think about the wise teachers in my life who turned me away, at just the right time, from traps of all forms: bad relationships, risky behaviors, poor business decisions, or any […]
In All Things at All Times
Today my friend reminds me that there are graces each day. In the midst of difficult, exhausting, or disappointing circumstances, there are graces. I thought about my own day and the little graces God sent to care for me. I remember 2 Corinthians 9:8: “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, […]
There’s Always Beauty
I’m trudging along in my snow boots to attend my office hours with my head down, sighing. It’s one of those days! I’m tired and moody. I need a nap. I notice the snow melting on the fallen leaves. In the early afternoon sun, the snowflakes transform into perfect droplets on a leaf. It’s so […]