Bracket Fungi, Conks, and Other Things I’ve Never Heard Of
I wander the yard more carefully after nearly colliding with a garden groundhog who seems to brag in my face that he’s fattened himself on my berries and basil. I gingerly step around a spotted frog the size of my palm. It’s a day after a heavy rain, so I notice the mushrooms and fungi, […]
As Though For the First Time
In college, I read Frederick Buechner’s Longing for Home and underlined these words he uses to describe a wonderful preacher: “His passion was in his oddly ragged eloquence and in the way he could take words you had heard your whole life and make you hear them and the holiness in them as though for […]
Back to the School Routine and the Bittersweet Truth
The first week of school ended, and we found ourselves at the high school football game to cheer on the Marching Band. And then, we slept well. We survived the week! What a week! We purchased the correct school supplies; we made pasta salad for their lunch boxes; we ushered everyone out the door on […]
Cultivating an Awareness of God’s Presence
Today for the Friday “The Verb” podcast (Listen here), I talk about worshiping God as our “full time occupation” (Tozer). Wherever you find yourself today, you can stop and cultivate an awareness of God’s presence by thanking Him for three things: His provision, His providential care for you, and the eternal perspective this situation brings […]
The Verb that Describes What You Do Best
As a professional development exercise, I ask students to choose a few verbs to describe what they do best. I love what I hear around the room: inspire, rehabilitate, invigorate, adapt, synthesize, comfort, and design. I think of myself as encouraging and teaching or even enlivening. It’s a fun activity!
Write the Book Only You Can Write
Today I woke up thinking that I have to write the book only I can write, not the book someone else would write. I know that sounds obvious, but when you want to write your book—whatever your topic is—you’ll immediately think it should be more of this or that. More research! More literary devices! More […]
Return to the Gratitude List
If you feel out of sorts, remember the gratitude list that helps boost your mood and reminds you of all your blessings large and small. As a mental health practice, the gratitude list adds to your toolbox of daily rituals. Try just 5-10. This morning, I note how good the new coffee tastes (West African […]
Forward Movement
A wise friend of mine who once wrote about horses shares with me a paraphrase of a quote she once discovered about horses that speaks to life: “A stumbling horse finds his footing by continuing to gallop on his course.” When stumbling around as we write, we just keep going. We’ll find our footing eventually. […]
Better Late Than Never
I love the late August harvest of berries that somehow always seems late. I remember that in every season of life, I’ll find unexpected fruit.
Catch Yourself
Today I met a woman named Helga who talked about doing certain things to “catch yourself” when you fall back into old habits or even ways of thinking. The phrase made me picture myself free-falling out of the sky and somehow also down below to “catch myself.” And it was a comforting thought. It’s a […]