Spend It Offering Light: Week 1
Today is the day: our new series, “Spend It Offering Light” (#OfferLight) starts now, with essays from Brooke Adams Law and Abby Norman! This recent post inspired the idea, and the stories I’ve received have been breathtaking. “Spend It Offering Light” features real people turning their fears into something that helps others, into light. …
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Contentment is NOT a Foreign Land. (Plus, the Trailer!!!)
One morning, I sat down to write feeling crazy and desperate. I was deep in the midst of a waiting season, and -- much as I'd like to think otherwise -- I'm not the most patient person. (Maybe you can relate?) I wrote: “It's all hopeless. So many times I've put my heart out on the line – in a post, a proposal – and received no response. Hearing nothing is worse than hearing no. Ask any writer, any artist. You can move on from a 'no.' But a 'nothing' can eat you alive. I hate the uncertainty of it...
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Tempted to Throw in the Towel? Read This.
I love hearing about the times they almost gave up. Field of Dream(ers), 2013 And by 'they,' I mean our heroes. You have your own examples: how Albert Einstein was considered a slow learner in grade school, how Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team. As a writer, I take heart every time I hear about a literary great who almost threw in the towel. I love reading about how the Bronte sisters almost didn't submit their novels for publication (or claim authorship after they were published under male pseudonyms), or how Madeleine L'Engle tried...
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The Work That’s Never Done
There's one item in our house that always catches people's eyes. The item in question? A photo collage that my husband Jonathan received when we moved away from the L'Arche community where we met. Farewell collages are a tradition at L'Arche DC; they feature the faces of every person that was a part of L'Arche during the years one lived there. In Jonathan's case, that means five years of faces, five years of relationships. When we first moved, I hesitated to display the collage. The goodbye was still raw; there were (are) so many people we love and miss. And...
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That Whole Gorgeous and Terrible Pageant
Watching people's professionally-produced videos can be ... challenging. Back & forth, back & forth ... Even though I know better, I usually think, Dang, that person really has their life together! They glide through their days with a soft glow surrounding them ... no zits, pit stains, or problems! That is so not my life ... As you've probably guessed, A Wish Come Clear has a new video in the works, thanks to the talented team at Armosa Studios. But excited as I am about sharing the video with you, the behind-the-scenes story comes first. Why? Because I...
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Baby, Have I Got News for You … Good News.
I'm having a hard time is a tough place to start. Walking a peaceful path. Photo Credit: Summer McCreless But alas, it was true for me a while back. I'd been trying to walk a path of love and trust, but my (metaphorical) feet kept slipping. Do you know the feeling? That feeling you get when you want to snap out of a critical mindset, but it's just really, really hard? The way you know better than to judge yourself and others, but you keep doing it anyway? It was like walking along an icy street in winter....
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It’s Time to Tell the Truth: Guest Post at The BridgeMaker
Hello & happy Friday! First, I have a new guest post up at The BridgeMaker! The BridgeMaker connects people who are looking to find faith, share inspiration and celebrate personal change. (Sound familiar?) Photo Credit: Ashley Baker Haselton As author Alex Blackwell writes, "On the brink of divorce several years ago, I needed to make a few changes within myself before my life could change. Knowing creating positive change was necessary, I started down the path of learning how to appreciate exactly what I have." Today’s post is here: It's Time to Tell the Truth (My Letter to...
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Have You Been Imagining Those Prison Bars? (Or, Don’t Re-Enroll In High School)
I had this dream one night. In the dream, I was in my twenties. I was living with my parents in New Jersey, in the house where I grew up. Since my career had apparently stalled, a faceless, intimidating authority figure strongly recommended that I re-enroll in high school, to 'get back to basics' or something like that. Good news: you've already graduated! The thought of re-enrolling filled me with dread, but I did it anyway. I didn't think I had a choice. For weeks, I struggled to re-learn my old routines, fumbling through locker combinations, math tests,...
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To See Beauty First: A Video
Hello and Happy Monday! Since I'm traveling this week, I'd like to share a video with you in lieu of the usual post. It's a 10 minute talk I gave as part of the Faith Inclusion Network's March 2013 "That All May Worship" conference. (I thank Karen Jackson for her wonderful work in organizing the event, and for sending me the recording as well.) A Wish Come Clear readers who receive posts via email may recall the story I sent out about my experience speaking at the conference two months ago; it's reprinted below. To make sure you don't miss...
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For You, If You Don’t Want to Get Out of Bed in the Morning
It's a bright, beautiful day, but I'm not really seeing it. The world looks bleak. A bombing at the Boston Marathon, a city-wide manhunt, ongoing violence and terrorism the world over ... the hate seems very heavy, and the love feather-light. Part of me wishes I could be a small child again, blessedly unaware of all this. And what is the deepest wish of a child but to be safe, held, home? *** Photo Credit: Brian A. Taylor Photography And that calls a story to mind. To begin, I should tell you that I co-led the opening of...
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