Back to Reality
I’m sitting on an airplane. I don’t want my flight to end because I don’t want what comes next. Reality. I miss the snow. I miss the grand sights. I miss my people. I miss...
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Little Me
I came across this old photo of me and my dad. I always had long, unruly hair. And I still wake up some mornings looking like that wild little girl. Well, a much older version....
The Timing of it All
Feelings are invisible. Passing time has no visual. But have you ever noticed how certain things in life have a way of putting the passing of time on display? Like the growth of gray hairs...
Stupid Little Toothache
It felt like an electrical current sparked in my jaw. I imagined a hand yanking my chin and squeezing. Clenching. Where did the pain come from? My bottom teeth started throbbing a few days ago,...
Foot of the Cross
I imagine the foot of the cross to be a messy place. Piles of shame. Mounds of guilt. Pieces of worry, shards of anxiety, and endless scraps of suffering. Bring them to the feet of...
Chasing the Wind
“It is all meaningless, like chasing the wind.” Ecclesiastes 1:14 I feel this. More and more these days. After years of being a Christian, I’ve always had a relationship with God as far back as...
Where do I belong?
Where do I belong? A little deep. Maybe a tad dramatic, but hey, what’s a writer if she doesn’t have a touch of drama. Today I read a quote about belonging. If I could go...
Two Hands to Hold
I often say the town I’m from has long winding roads that are home to both clunky pickup trucks and shiny new cars. A place where a beat-up Chevy revs its engine next to a...
Every Crack
I hate losing things and breaking things. I really do. It feels foolish. A waste of money. Another trip to the store to buy a replacement. I actually pride myself on never losing things, not...
Little Souvenirs of Life
I look at this tiny scar on my leg and remember that evening running through the sprinklers in the church’s front yard. I get a whiff of the soggy summer grass with every recollection of...
Guilty
Guilt swallows me. Why did I do that? I wish I could try again. It eats at my soul, nibbling slowly, painfully. Never a satisfying bite, but always a slow chipping—something that can be felt...
Hiding From God
You can hide anything if you really want to. You can hide your pain, and you can hide your sorrow. Gulp down the tears and press up a smile. But hiding joy, why would we...
A New Year
Dim bulbs and plastic icicle strands cling to roof corners, holding on for a few final moments of joy. Christmas wreaths hang from doors, soggy with morning dew. The first day of the new year....
Finding Gratitude in the Good and Bad
A friend recently asked me a question. It came out of nowhere, making me pause and, at the same time, sending my memory down a path that seemingly had only two possibilities. You see, my...
Imagine
Words. They say they cut like a knife, but some of them slip by, almost unnoticed, slicing like a tiny paper cut. At first, barely noticeable, and then the cool air hits. It burns. You...
Prayer Full Circle
Let me start by saying you’re probably a much better person than I am. I’m sure you’ve never had these thoughts. And if you had a view into my mind, you’d probably question how I...
The Gifting
A gift. It’s wrapped and then given. The receiver takes and does what she pleases with it. I met with two close friends recently. We contemplated the act of worship. Is it only singing,...
You Get What You (don’t) Deserve
Deserve. A word that pulls my face to the center. Sour. Its sound pounding like a hammer. A gavel coming down attached to an invisible hand. I think my disdain for the word birthed somewhere...
El Roi
To the girl who feels like she lives in the spaces of the unseen… falling into the cracks of the sidewalk, blending into the pattern of the walls and walking as if a vapor in...
A True Friend
“Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep.” NLT -Romans 12:15 The verse that marks the delicate page of my tattered Bible in a perfectly tiny font surrounded by dancing...
The Most Wonderful Time?
I drove down the dark highway, the mist of rain tapping my windshield, softly enough that I pretended it was snow in my little nook of Florida. It was Christmas time, after all. Angelic tunes...
I Feel So Used
There are certain things in life that you simply want to know, “has this been used?” A dish. A towel. A car. A t-shirt. A book. Myself. That sloppy feeling in my gut that says...
Sullen Sunflowers
She drove down the country road, windows sliced, fall breeze slipping in. The slight crisp in the air told her it might be too late. But still, she drove. A sight to see, the field...
Bad News
“They do not fear bad news; they confidently trust the Lord to care for them.” Psalm 112:7 I remember the way the phone hugged my ear and grew hot against my skin as the...
How Can I Even Pray?
I stood in the kitchen, damp hair against my back, forming a soggy imprint in my pajama shirt. The skin around my eyes still tight and warm from an evening shower after tennis. I filled...
What?
You’re not allowed to say “what.” A house rule of mine that started as a joke with my sister is now ingrained in me to where the word won’t roll off my tongue without sticking...
Cherry Coke
The day I spilled my cherry coke. It wasn’t the worst thing that had happened to me that day, but it’s a moment I’ll cherish with a tight embrace of hatred. It was dark. A...
Limitless
I watch the eyes glaze as I go deeper into my story. I notice body language slouch as I continue to talk. I pour out the emotions of my day, but I know there’s a...
Ready, Set, Go
Everyone has to start somewhere. That’s what they say. Those are words I’ve heard sung like an old song to an old problem. Do you ever feel like you’re stuck at the starting line? Your...
The Author
The author of life. Thats always been my favorite description of God. Not the Hebrew words that might make me seem much deeper and smarter but the simplicity of a writer. It’s a way I...