My goodbyes with my new friends in Iona were heart-warming and full of hugs and kisses as we celebrated our time together and went our separate ways. Now that I've been gone for a few days, I'm looking back with affection at the opportunities I had to get to know and worship with people from …
It’s Always Sunny in Scotland
Scotland has been experiencing an extraordinary stretch of wonderful weather while I've been here, and I've been joking that when I go home I'll have to tell everyone that Scotland is always sunny and 70 degrees. I'm told this isn't typical, but I have yet to see the frequent wind and rain. I leave Iona …
Glasgow and Iona
After a smooth couple of flights to Glasgow (stopping over in Rekjavik), I arrived in Glasgow last Thursday afternoon. It's a bustling city with stunning architecture and a down-to-earth feel. I spent Friday resting and touring the city. The picture above is of George Square, a beautiful spot in the city center where people gather. …
New
Sabbatical has begun: final details are wrapped up, my email auto-reply is active, my office door is closed. I spent a whirlwind weekend in New Jersey at a dear friend's wedding, and the plane takeoff provided me with a marker of separation. Yet now I'm home and beginning to live into the sabbatical reality. Final …
19 Days to Sabbatical
I don't remember when I uploaded my top picture for this blog, but it's one I took while vacationing with friends on the New Jersey shore in May a couple of years ago. It wasn't tourist season yet so the beaches were quiet and the only people on the sand were set up for fishing. …
Needs of a Compassionate Parent
My 5-year-old daughter picks out her own clothes every day. I’m always impressed with the way she chooses appropriate clothing for the weather, even if she hasn’t looked outside before getting dressed. I often mention her amazing dressing ability to my husband–who doesn’t find it nearly as remarkable as I do–and I continue to marvel …
20 Years
This is me with my childhood friend at our 20-year high school reunion a couple of weekends ago. We grew up down the street from one another and spent countless nights staying at one another's houses and playing Barbies. We endured the teenage years together, sharing the angst of rising and plummeting hormones and obsessing …
A Both/And Family Life
As I write this, I’m missing my daughter’s gymnastics practice. She left the house before I did this morning with a chipper goodbye, her chest puffing proudly in her sparkly bright red leotard as she gave me a noisy kiss from my husband’s arms. This morning, he’s the one sitting on the gym sidelines and …
Building a Balanced Life
My husband and I bought our first home six years ago. It needed work. The brass light fixtures hung crookedly, the deck railings spread dangerously far apart, the cracks in the windows spewed cold air and the bathroom started dripping water into the basement the second week after we moved in. Yet we were optimistic …
Come, Holy Spirit
I endured four excruciatingly cold winters as a college student in Moorhead, MN. I was convinced Moorhead was the most frigid place on earth as I grumpily trudged across campus early in the mornings—even when all public schools were closed due to cold, Concordia was still open. It didn’t help that the only way to …
Narrating Grace 