On Patience

On Patience

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 (NIV) Last Saturday, while blowing leaves from ditches along the driveway and mountain road in preparation for winter, I noticed the bulbs I’d planted last month on the...

Optimism, my 2020 Resolution

“Happy New Year!” I said to a member of our writing community. “How are things? How are you doing?” I asked, knowing she is primary caretaker for several of her family members. “Okay,” she said, “though nothing has really changed. I drive them to doctors’ appointments...

Two Daughters

Last Friday afternoon, I stopped by our local grocery store to pick up a baguette and tomatoes—grape, slicing, and canned—for a soup-and-salad lunch I planned to make on Sunday after church. The checkout girl excused herself, saying she needed to run to the bank for...

New Year’s Do-Over

Smells of gingerbread and sugar cookies no longer waft from kitchens. Sweaters with reindeer flying across their chests tuck away in bureau drawers. Red, green and white decorations return to boxes and bags stored under basement stairs. The Christmas holiday has...