“What’s your last name?” He asked it abruptly, somewhere in between his story of revival in the South Pacific during the last years of The War, and his story of planting a church in Salem in 1957. “Hey now, wait a second. I think…I think I feel a nudge to ask you this. What’s your […]
The Things That Make Up A Life (a goodbye to Oklahoma)
3-8-16 It’s been a hard two weeks. We’re moving west and leaving the military, and this whole transition has left me flailing emotionally. I feel as if I am losing touch with what anchors and as though I am flinging about for something to which I might secure. We’ve done a lot of transition in our […]
Transitions, Goodbyes
Goodbyes We’ve been in the preparation stage of exiting the army for about 8 months now, and here we are, finally coming down to the wire. All the decisions, all the prayers, all the worry and peace and questions. But here we are, and there’s no turning back. David has a few months left on […]
Earthed In Jesus (survivor songs #9)
If you haven’t read Rachel Kathrine’s post “The Widow,” well, it really is very good. I think perhaps I’m enamored with her peek at Jesus and the Widow because writing Survivor Songs has so far been for me an exercise in sacrifice. I perceive poverty; I feel as though I have so little to give. In a temple filled with rich writers […]
Jealous For The Children
I am up early with the sunrise. The baby has been pushing her night-time wakeup further and further into the A.M. hours until this morning her cries are heard at the first blush before dawn. It is good. Sometimes the rest I hunger for on this last and sabbath day of the week is not sleep, but […]
Living Bravely: the mosaic is wrought through pain
What if Jesus doesn’t want to keep us from pain? What if the Hard Things and Broken Places are where we come to know the Lord? What if he is growing within us a heart full of courage? What if he wants to grow this within our children as well? On April first, just before I […]
A Whole Year Has Passed
We had family visiting for eight days, and then we landed on Easter weekend. Easter, and with it Grace’s first birthday; tomorrow, Easter Monday with Judah turning nine. Nine. Who is this child, nine years old, and too big for Thomas the Train? I stood picking through birthday decorations in an over-lit Walmart with tears dripping […]
A Shot For The Field Artillery
Christmas came like a blur, left like a blur, and before I very happily tuck the last of the nativity figurines into tissue paper and coil up the lights, I find that I must record one little story. Here’s what you first should know: I grew up in a family that Did All The Things at Christmastime. You […]
Saving The World On A Saturday Night
You know that scene in “The Incredibles” where the ice dude shouts out “Honey, where’s my super suit?”– yeah. Welcome to the life of an EOD family. There’s my husband, happily lounging in his sweats and a hoodie, when a call comes in. Somebody somewhere has something that may or may not blow up and […]
When The Husband Leaves
When the husband leaves I think, “this means a whole night of writing!” and immediately begin forming blog posts in my head. But that’s when I’m shaping meat into patties. By the time I’m putting a lid on the salad, I’m onto a third blog post, which will meet a timely and catchy conclusion as the last […]