Learning to Savor
Savor the moment Enjoy the journey Stop and smell the roses Capture the fluffy moments These are simple phrases that are not always so simple to live out in our day-to-day lives. I find myself in a season of constant change, transition and growth. We are home on furlough, living stateside for only one year. […]
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 over the North Pole to return back to the U.S. after living in China for five years. I was returning home. If you are preparing […]
Hooked on Change
A couple of weeks ago I was sitting next to my 10-year-old daughter on the couch. She was still wearing the pajamas she had worn the night before, even though it was already 4pm. She was reading her favorite book series and I was lazing on my computer. In the middle of that quiet moment […]
The Defining Power of Memory
Last summer my family met up for a vacation in Thailand. It is a rare opportunity to have all of us in the same country let alone in the same house for an entire week. Most days we just sat around the table or on the couches recalling our favorite Mongolian memories. Do you remember […]
The Blind Will Receive Sight
And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” […]
High Speed Waiting
“High speed waiting.” This sign above the entrance to a waiting room in a bus station in China made me smile. It was attempting to describe the room where one waits for the high speed bus. But, isn’t this how we often feel about waiting: fly through it, and get it over quick? One time […]
Just Get Over It Already
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. Memories from long-ago seemed to rear their ugly little heads and as I shredded a box of tissues with my snotty tears in that bright and airy Athenian hotel […]
Admit It . . .
Ten months ago I felt a slight pain in my left shoulder. I ignored it as I figured with time it would eventually get better. It did improve over the summer, but this fall it started hurting. Again, I just ignored it, but after two months it was worse. Christmas season was in full swing, […]
I Am Not Superwoman
As I write this, my husband and I are in the process of moving to a new apartment. Our small living room is a maze of boxes and packing material. Chaos reigns in our home at the moment. All of our belongings spread all over the apartment make me feel completely and utterly out of […]
I’m Done with Self Care
Dog-tired and bone-weary, I slipped into Seat 33A. Loose ends tied up. Last minute details checked off. Hugs hugged. Home assignment begun. What kept me moving in the weeks prior was the hope of a few days in a quiet cabin in the woods. A little stream providing rhythm for birds’ melodies outside the window. […]
Stone Piles
Four years ago, we moved our family to SE Asia. With kids aged nine, six and three, we boarded a snow covered plane in Raleigh, North Carolina and landed twenty-four hours later in the equatorial heat of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. While our luggage took a detour to Geneva, our courage arrived intact and our overseas […]
The Two Dreams that Taught Me the Invitational Heart of God
I was casually walking down the aisle of a bookstore in Asia when a picture leapt off the cover of a book. It was my own children! I instantly understood: I had misunderstood the invitation. I thought we had been invited to help the small local photo studio make a brochure. Then, days later, someone […]