I love to read. And memoirs are at the top of my list. My favorites are typically written by a not-so-young woman whose story reads something like this... Her life was filled with hope-filled dreams. Exciting expectations. Blue skies and sun-filled days. She had energy that made skipping in her summer slip-ons easy-peasy. Then life happened. Her skies got cloudy. Disappointment replaced those dreams. Skipping was totally out of the question. Frankly, some days putting on the slip-ons felt like enough. The next section of her memoir Continue Reading
☀️ Saving My Summer
“The summer is almost over!" (Exclaimed with a bit of tension and surprise.) Have you been hearing that lately? Me too. And every time I hear it, a tiny panic button goes off in my heart. Wait. Did I miss it? Am I behind on summer? Which is a ridiculous sentence, really. But it can still feel true, right? Because suddenly there's this pressure to fill every waking moment with something summery. Get to the lake. Have the picnic. Float down the river. Attend the outdoor concert. Soak it all in before fall comes marching in with Continue Reading
A New Place to Meet Me
I've been praying about another way to tuck a little encouragement into your day. Another place where we could meet up for a few minutes and remember that God is still at work in our real, everyday lives. Well...I finally pushed past my comfort zone and did it. I've started a YouTube channel. (Cue the confetti and a picture of my very nervous face!) When I sit down to record these videos, I picture you. The woman who's hanging in there through a hard season. The woman who's celebrating a good one. The woman who's trying to figure Continue Reading
Age Doesn’t Disqualify Us
A grocery store helper called me a “little old lady.” I'm sorry... WHAT? 😄 The young guy helping me with my groceries was feeling a bit chatty as we walked towards my car parked beside one of those trucks that could probably pull my entire neighborhood behind it. I opened the trunk of my car and he exclaimed with quite surprise, "Oh, I thought we were going to that truck. But then I thought, "I can’t imagine this little old lady driving a big truck like that." Let’s just pause right there. Little old lady? I laughed in that moment, Continue Reading
Your Paper. Your Colors.
There’s something about sitting on a balcony watching ocean waves that invites you to contemplate life. Do you know what I mean? Something about the rhythm of the water makes you think about choices and dreams and next steps… while also wondering if the young girl on the beach realizes she desperately needs more material in that swimsuit. My sisters and I are on our annual beach trip, celebrating Mom’s birthday and remembering her life while we’re here. And today, while staring at the waves and thinking about how I want to create Continue Reading
Time For a Zip Code Change?
Well, hi there! I’ve got an idea for you, so … Slip off those slippers and slide into something a little more fun. (And no, removing your slippers is not required. But stay with me here.) YOU have this one big, beautiful life. It’s filled with habits and moments and celebrations… and a whole lot of same-old. We like comfortable. We live in comfortable. (If comfortable had a zip code, we’d all have mail there.) But… What if this spring, we switched things up a bit? What if we slipped off the slippers and stepped into Continue Reading
The Kind of Famous That Matters
The movie credits splash the names of the stars across the screen. We know who they are. They are the people who producers depend on to get us into the theaters. The big names. But you know, I’m more intrigued by the names in smaller fonts. The actors whose parents lean forward in their red-cushioned theater seats, squinting their eyes to catch their son’s or daughter’s name as it scrolls by, long after everyone else has left the theater. Sally Jones…Townsperson #1 Ruth Peterson…Bystander #2 Mary Monson…Pedestrian #2 The friends and Continue Reading
Some Days Just Don’t Play in Sync
My sister Lori once performed a piano piece in two completely different tempos at the same time. Her right hand raced ahead. Her left hand lagged behind. It was…remarkable. The event was the annual piano recital. Here’s a little set-up to the important performance ... His glasses were always perched on his forehead, and his legs were always crossed. Mr. Anderson was an extremely gifted piano teacher who reminded us that music was more than notes and that any God-given talent was intended to be developed. He would bang out our weekly Continue Reading
I May Not Win Gold, but I Showed Up
It’s Winter Olympics season, and watching fearless skiers do what they do makes me wonder, “What kind of human are you?” They clearly think differently about snow, speed, and risk than I do. You will never hear these comments leave the lips of Olympic skiers: “Do these ski pants make my butt look big?” “Who’s bringing donuts to warm-ups tomorrow?” “Gonna’ have me a big ol’ bowl of Haagen-Dazs tonight to celebrate the prelims!” Can you even imagine those thoughts being seriously considered by an Olympian? No. These athletes are Continue Reading
Bulky Pillow, Broken Suitcase, and Stuff
So I had a dream a few nights ago … My friend Lori and I were competing on The Amazing Race. (Good grief. Any show that combines the words race and you will need to read maps in any country of the world should automatically disqualify me. Yet … there I was.) Anyway. Lori and I had just finished our first leg and were running into a building where we’d need to complete a difficult task. I was almost to the competition area when I turned around and noticed Lori was still coming through the door. (Please imagine me sharing this Continue Reading