Transitions Can be Challenging
We know it has been quite a while since our last blog. One of the reasons our lives became quite hectic over the last several weeks is that we moved! We moved from our family home of 20+ years where we raised our 3 children (and a dog) into a much smaller (and hopefully easier to take care of) home. So, all the sport’s equipment, children’s artwork, important files/papers, furniture, clothes, even paper clips had to be either, given (or sold) away, thrown away or packed in a box! We found moving this time around to be much more physically [...]
“I was wrong”
Recently, Brian sent me this cartoon. We both found it funny --- probably because it hit a little too close to home. Why is it so hard for both of us to say “I was wrong?” More importantly, why is it so necessary to say it when you have done or said something that is wrong? In a previous blog, we talked about the power of forgiveness. Forgiveness not only brings healing to the one receiving the forgiveness, but also to the one offering it. “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and to realize that prisoner is you” [...]
Collateral Damage
I remember the day my husband and I sat in the doctor’s office in Washington DC’s Children’s Hospital and received the news that the concerns we had over Mary’s lack of development were indeed due to brain damage. Trying to absorb the full implication of the doctor’s words was overwhelming. So, we took in what we could process and started on a lifelong journey to absorb the rest (Brian and I absorbing things at different rates). When we heard the news, I thought of the shattered dreams I had for my daughter: our daughter would possibly not talk or walk, [...]
Happy Anniversary!
Earlier this month we celebrated our 34th wedding anniversary! We have to admit that there were days early in our marriage that neither one of us thought we would make it this far. But by God’s grace, and hard-work and commitment to make it work on our part, we were able to celebrate this milestone … happily! Anniversaries often allow you to stop and reflect on where you’ve been and where you are headed. Also, in the month of June, we celebrated another anniversary. It has been one year since we launched our blog! One year and 40 blogs later, [...]
Listening Well
Recently, we went out to dinner with a group of people we were just getting to know. The group was an eclectic mix, for sure; a businessman, educator, person in the medical field, someone from retail, a counselor (Laurie) and a software entrepreneur (Brian). It was interesting to us that we were able to land on a topic that seemed to be crucial in each one of these diverse areas. The conversation centered on how “listening” was vital in any relationship (business or personal) and how we, as a society, have kind of lost the ability to listen well. The [...]
Thin Places: Seeing the Divine in Every Day Life
I was introduced to the notion of thin places several years ago by a dear Christian friend of mine from Ireland. The concept of thin places has its origins in Celtic spiritualism and later in the Christian movement in Ireland. Thin places are points in time where the distance between the heavenly and earthly realms grows thin and you encounter the sacred. Thin places can occur in the midst of everyday conversation and happenings or in experiencing God’s beautiful creation in the outdoors – a sunset, a mountain vista, an expansive ocean view --- all places for powerful reflection. Since [...]