It’s been so cold out the past few days, we’ve made some attempts to keep a fire going. It’s everything I love about the bleak cold– we get to wrap ourselves in warmth, inside the comfort of home. When the boys went down for a nap, I started on the tiny remaining pieces of wood, hoping to get a little fire for myself, in the quiet. I found an old phonebook in the recycling bin and used its pages to... Read more
For the past week, I’ve been trying to carefully and prayerfully decide what to give up for Lent. And I can’t figure out what it is, what I need to let go of for six weeks to focus deeper in on the cross. So, I jump to extremes, because I’m awful with the middle-of-the-road. I’ll give up music! All of it. No more movies! I’ll sacrifice sleep– and wake up before the boys. And the truth is, I’ve done some... Read more
It takes time to come to that vulnerable and often cracked place that asks, What am I to do? What are my gifts? And it’s especially hard to ask them in the presence of others. But when you’re thrust into an especially generous, abundantly encouraging group of people, it’s salve, and opening that place becomes simpler. Yesterday at church, Randall gave me a kind, Randall-sized hug, and told me he was proud of me in his kind, Randall-way. Later in Sunday School,... Read more
If I could tell you something about the relationship between myself and this particular holiday, I’d say this: We’re not close. I don’t necessarily appreciate the consumerism that makes a profit by reminding men everywhere to make their partner feel special with a bouquet and teddy. But Travis came home with presents for each of us yesterday– a balloon & blackberries for Isaiah; wasabi almonds for Eliot (I KNOW.); and tulips, chocolate & a bottle of wine for me. I... Read more
I’ve been feeling a lot like a well lately. The other night I lay wide awake, trying to figure out why sleep wasn’t grasping me as quickly as it always does. It was either the 10:00 sweet tea, our neighbor’s music, or Jesus. I suspect a combination of all three is likely possible, too. It was sometime between one and three that I still tossed and turned, wide awake, and began the descent inward, the slow settle down into the... Read more
I drove to worship practice last night, my mind wandering to another reality as I pressed forward. I listened to a famous pop singer and wondered how many cups of vanilla latte she can buy in a week. One a day? More, maybe? Then, for that second, I thought, That’d be so nice. But then I remembered the day. I remembered the gift given in a big black box with ONYX Coffee inside, a birthday present from my parents and our... Read more
If you’re not a parent to a toddler, you may not know Daniel Tiger, the friendly neighborhood Mister-Rogers-Turned-Friendly-Feline. He sings songs. He expresses feelings. He imagines. So, I channeled Daniel’s power of imagination. After a week of tough days, of long stretches of time and battles against our flesh-and-blood-selves, I needed to just imagine some things. During the boys’ nap, I escaped to the quiet of the living room and began to dream. I browsed pictures of potted plants on balconies, asked how... Read more
“Come, ye thankful people, come Raise the song of harvest home All is safely gathered in Ere the winter storms begin…” -Henry Alford We’ve been here six months. Half a year is gone, and we’ve spent it under the Georgia sunlight. When fall came, she was welcomed in, as she always is in our home. The holidays brought forth blessings, and we rested, thankful. Now, it’s almost February, and it’s barely felt like winter. But still, we’re in the dead of... Read more
This morning, my world had a sorbet orange glow, spreading from the clouds over my apartment building to the construction site across the road. It was the tender kiss of the sun, who had already risen out of the darkened hills to greet me. But there, we embraced for a moment, for the few seconds before I got into my car and drove away. This week, I felt empty. I craved God and sometimes sought Him; I fell to impatience and sighing, and... Read more
When semesters get going, we feel the tension like a ton of bricks piled atop our lungs. And because the boys are of jabbering age now, and progressing in vocabulary every moment, our time to really see each other is limited. You sat there at the table, eating your leek soup with heavy eyelids– I could see them, because your glasses came off the minute you stepped in the door and rubbed your brow. I shut off Gilmore Girls and... Read more
Stories - with Kaitlin B. Curtice
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