One thing that I think most of us have learned by the time we reach “a certain age” is that there are no guarantees in this life. Thus, we should take nothing for granted, not the big things and not the small things. Our lives can be turned upside down in an instant. Over the weekend, I was out-of-town visiting a friend and participating in a bowling fundraiser. Despite cold, sleet, ice, and snow, it was a great weekend. This…
I was out of town last weekend at Click Away, a photography conference primarily for woman, but there were a few brave men who attended, Weber being one of them. We met several of my Capture Your 365 photography friends in Amelia Island, Florida for some fellowship and some sessions to hopefully help our grow our photography skills. As I was packing to go, I realized that I was excited about the photography element of the trip, but I might…
Today’s Capture Your 365 photo prompt was Be Thankful for Who You Are. We were urged to take a self-portrait that shows who we are. This is my photo. For many years, I tried to achieve perfection in everything that I did – from school, to relationships, to parenting. I thought that I had to be perfect in the eyes of everyone around me to be worthy of being be loved. Needless to say, I fell way short of my goal….
I was standing in the closet looking for a t-shirt to match my workout capris. We all know that time on the treadmill feels much better when your clothes match. Since tomorrow is laundry day and I’ve done my time on the treadmill 7 out of the last eight days, my clothing choices were limited…as in I had one pair of clean capris. And as it turned out, my choice of a matching t-shirt was equally limited. I pulled out my Human…
My world has always revolved around the academic calendar. I calculate every day and date around the start and finish of my semesters. I know what day of the week it is based on my MW or TR Thursday schedule. For the past several summers, I have taught summer school so my reference points have remained in tact all year long. This summer, however, I am not teaching and I realize that half the time I have no clue what…
In the eleven years or so that I have been blogging, I have written this same post countless times…the one about having gone missing for months and now being back. They always come with a promise to do better. And countless times I have failed, but I keep coming back and trying again. Before writing this tonight, I have given some serious thought to why I keep falling short with regular posts lately. It is easy to blame a busy…
It hurts my heart to admit that I have not written a single post here this year. I have been writing, just not here. One of the places where I do write almost daily is in my Morning Pages Journal. This is a discipline that I have had for many years, one that fuels me creatively, intellectually, and spiritually. Though this writing is not fit for public consumption, it is was inspires me to write in other places. Over the…
So the worst thing that some folks have to worry about these days is the fact that Starbucks has removed any “Christmas” symbols, like snowflakes and reindeer, from their holiday cups. One militant Christian posted a viral video online saying that this is because Starbucks “hates Jesus.” I’m fairly sure that snowflakes and reindeer are not signs of Jesus. And even if they were, why does it matter what is on your coffee cup? My understanding of Christianity is that…
Sunday began November and the season of Thanksgiving. I love this time of year – the falling leaves, the cooler temperatures, big pots of warm soup, and the flannel sheets back on my bed. I also like the idea of being intentional about giving thanks, but, it’s confession time, I don’t really like the Thanksgiving holiday. It always seems like way too much work resulting in way too much food for way too little enjoyment. By the time we…
A year ago today was my dad’s memorial service. The readings, the hymns, and the day for that celebration were all details that I carefully orchestrated. What better day for a memorial service than All Saints Day? As today, November 1, 2015, comes to an end, I have now passed the year mark of life without my dad. Every anniversary date that comes along from now on will no longer be “the first.” I was blessed to have had the…