Made in China
I used to think that I wasn’t a person who was so attached to “place.” When I went away to college my horizons were broadened and a wanderlust was planted...
The Shadow of Death
I rushed home as soon as I heard the news. My brain still woozy with jet-lag and reverse culture-shock, I stood with my siblings and cousin in front of my...
Permission to Feel
I find wisdom in the pages of a children’s book. A simple picture book about a dog losing a ball. Each page a watercolor masterpiece of a simple story of...
My Christmas Mom
As our twenty-fourth Christmas overseas approached, an overwhelming sadness shrouded me. Shouldn’t it get easier with time? We arrived to Central America on December 28, 1991 with a babe in...
For They Shall Be Comforted
If it’s all right with you I would like to tell you a story. A story that I have, as of yet, never been able to tell anyone face to...
Homesickness Feels Uncannily Like Grief
Like something has been taken. Like life is not in your control. The first time I felt gut-wrenching homesickness was in Guatemala. Desperate for change, physically, financially,...
Keeping Track of Sorrows
Let’s acknowledge that it hurts. At times it is a searing, sharp pain and other times it’s an underlying throb. Either way, something is missing. There was a Sunday before...
A Letter to the One Returning Home
Seven years ago, with all my earthly belongings bundled into two 50 pound suitcases, I flagged my last taxi to the airport. I dozed on the 13 hour flight arcing...
Why I Should Be a Pillar of Salt and Other Thoughts on Remembering
There are sensations that stick with you for life. When I recall my earliest memories it is of the blue/brown/green mix of shag carpet in our living room. I would...
Just Get Over It Already {The Grove: Forgive }
I thought I was over it. At a women’s retreat with our organization, I shared some of my most recent struggles with a member care counselor....
