Receiving Gifts Well
I sometimes notice the pattern in how badly adults receive gifts. Normally, the person receiving the gift will say these strange things like: I feel terrible because I don’t have a gift for you. You shouldn’t have! I didn’t know we were exchanging gifts! Why did you do this? Each of these statements make the gift-giver feel […]
More Than We Imagine
I’m sitting at the kitchen table as I glance at a stockpile of unshelled peanuts I placed on the deck a week ago. The peanuts, half-covered in snow, haven’t attracted all the winter birds and animals I had heard they might. But today, and what seemed like all at once, bluebirds and cardinals find the […]
Counting Down to Caramel Cake
As my daughters count down to Christmas, I discover yesterday that this countdown isn’t simply for presents or family or all the Christmas activities. No. It’s more specifically for Aunt Kathy’s Caramel Cake. Certain things–at least in the minds of my children–make Christmas so special. I love finding out what they remember from year to year and […]
In the Manner of God’s Arrival
During the Christmas season, I can’t stop thinking about how Jesus chose to come as a baby. He chose to dwell within a woman’s body. Why a pregnancy? Could the incarnation have come about in another way—like God simply speaking himself into existence as a man? I understand, and rejoice in, a prophecy fulfilled (Isaiah […]
Caring Like the Italian Mama
Whenever I gather with the Italian Mamas, it’s always been about how much I’m learning and still need to learn. I’m the youngest and newest, and I’m really only half Italian. But today I hosted a few Italian Mamas for lunch, and this time–and for the first time–I felt like an expert, like a legitimate […]
Little Christmas Tree Fruit Platter
Taking What Comes
I have a winter stomach bug, and I do nothing but rest all day long. It’s what this day brings, and for once in my life, I don’t resist the rest. I cancel a party, forget about cleaning, work, and meal preparation, and I snuggle under blankets to warm my chills and aches. I […]
A Fun Presentation: Teaching High School Students What I Wish They Knew As Incoming Freshmen
Today I return to high school to teach a writing course of graduating seniors what I wish they would know as incoming freshmen. I loved it! What excellent students at State High! I talked about the five things I wish every college student writer already knew: how to create a written voice using advanced grammar […]
Missing the Window (Italian Mama Wisdom)
Years ago, the Italian Mama told me to do much less work when my children became teenagers. We were walking around the neighborhood, and she said: “You’ll think you’ll have all this time when they’re teens. But you won’t. They need you more. And you won’t know when they’ll need you. So you just have […]
When You Pray to Increase
This morning, I consider the concept of “increase” in scripture. So many times, we pray that God would increase our wealth, fruitfulness, influence, families, or any other category. We want to increase! We think of influence and material resources more often than not. But as I look at the transformation of this verb increase throughout scripture, […]