How To Be “Best-Dressed” This Christmas
Fifty-four years ago, a little girl with reddish curls sat beside the Christmas tree. She wore a blue corduroy robe with white piping her grandmother had made. A poodle with hair curly as hers smiled for the camera. Then, ripping the wrapping off a certain package, her blue eyes grew wide. Inside, she found her […]
The Presence of Peace in the Midst of Grief
The second week of Advent, we light that second candle. The peace candle. Peace. I want that flame to touch every wicked thing around the world this Christmas. I want peace on earth and goodwill to spread towards all. This is what we sing this season, isn’t it? Peace? Goodwill? And yet, Aleppo’s without water […]
To Have and Hold Hope
“How can you sit and listen to people in pain all day long?” People often asked me this question when I worked as a therapist. Truth is, I viewed my job as a privilege to sit face-to-face with people in great inner pain, holding hope for them when they could not hold hope for themselves. […]
Christmas Joy in the Splash of a Cross
Two days before Christmas, I pull my hiking boots on and crisscross the laces, tying tightly. Misted sky is cold, dripping. No wished-for snow. I choose a different path today, the one to the east. Normally, I head west but the evergreens in the forest look so lovely in the mist. I will start there. As […]
On Peace and the Puppy
I never thought a little Yorkshire terrier puppy named Baker could bring me a spiritual gift. Granted, he’s the most adorable dog I’ve ever seen, especially when he’s wearing his red, fur-lined coat with Velcro tummy strap and two elastic drawstrings personalizing his fit at the hip. But . . . He’s a d-o-g. Nevertheless, this […]
Finding Peace in the Mess
In this second week of Advent, the theme is peace. Where is peace these days? I walk into the barn in early morning. After feeding our four horses, I grab a rake and roll the wheelbarrow into the first of four stalls—spaces where our horses find refuge from freezing winter wind, hot summer sun and […]