He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I'm holding out a treat out for our six-month old puppy who sits with great expectation. (Did you know there are "high stakes treats"? For Lena, it's a morsel of smoked chicken.) But then comes the challenge. "STAAAAY!!" I back away and stare her down while counting slowly. Our goal is five. But Lena loses... Continue Reading →
"Where's the Big Love?" Lena, our new puppy, responds to this prompt with kisses and the occasional love bite. She is gradually learning to restrain her puppy teeth and lick our outstretched hands, in exchange for more petting and loving on our part. (Each day there is more of her to love, as groomer appointments... Continue Reading →
I can't sing. Really, I can't. Some people say that and then belt out Happy Birthday on key and pitch perfect (whatever those phrases mean). I on the other hand open my mouth and something other than singing comes out. I first became aware of not being a music prodigy when my fourth grade class... Continue Reading →
Sludging through the snowy street under a gray sky, I tried to conjure up something to be grateful for. A squirrel scurried on a branch above. Thank you, God, for that reminder of your creativity. A leftover leaf clung to the bare branch, a vestige of the prior season, unwilling to let go. Thank you,... Continue Reading →
"Don't be like the other nine!" Mr. Olchesi used to say that repeatedly to the first graders in our Sunday School class as they stared at him, tilting their bewildered heads as my dog does, clearly annoyed that their snack time was delayed. Mr. Olchesi would then bow his head and say a prayer of... Continue Reading →
When I was 17 I hitchhiked through Europe with my brother. It was the 1970s and, as strange as it sounds, my parents seemed OK with this. My brother's hair was well past his shoulders and I was doing my best to look like Peggy Lipton from the Mod Squad or Susan Day from the... Continue Reading →
"Every day my mother would name out loud 3 things she was grateful for. Toward the end of her life, it became increasingly difficult to identify her 3 ... but in the midst of tubes and pain, she still managed to give thanks to the God she had followed all her days." Grace (pseudonym) shared... Continue Reading →
In the words of many a Bachelorette or Bachelor, I am "in my head" WAY too much. If seven positive comments are voiced - sandwiching in a single halfway negative comment - guess where my brain will go? The Bible says, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Proverbs 23:7. Well I... Continue Reading →
When I was 10 we moved to Florida. My father, newly retired, was in charge of carpooling - and when Dad was at the wheel you knew we were going to stop at Dairy Queen for swirrly ice cream cones dipped in chocolate. But better than even chocolate dipped cones was the fact that after... Continue Reading →
Things I try to avoid -- public speaking, mingling at a work-related social gathering, introducing people to each another (when the name of your best friend of 30 years inexplicably flees from your brain). Team building, role-playing, and of course, karaoke. I admit it. I want an Easy Life. A fulfilling job with moderate stress.... Continue Reading →
In our younger years we imagine Big Things. Publishing a book - followed by a book tour. Securing promotions and sizable salaries. Becoming competent in a field with initials after our name. Alleviating poverty, improving literacy, advocating for the downtrodden. Magnificent marriages and perfect parenting -- our children "rising up and calling us blessed" (a... Continue Reading →
Mine is the woulda-coulda-shoulda variety that blares its voice at 4AM, revisiting the previous day. And it's not congratulatory. You should have handled that conversation better. You should have spoken up at that meeting. Remember that Ben & Jerry's you devoured at 10pm? Your arm flab has a life of its own. (Your accommodating narrative provides... Continue Reading →
I'm sitting on the edge of the examination table, waiting for the doctor's knock, trying in vain to spread out the paper cover-up now giving way to a generous rip, sweat induced I'm pretty sure. Today I will find out test results. I try to picture Jesus sitting on the adjacent stool, but that visualization... Continue Reading →
Shadows and Shelters 