This has been a quiet week in my neighborhood. Families must be gone, celebrating the Fourth at the beach, or a lake, or maybe somewhere far away. It continues to feel like a season of waiting, as I wrote about in my post two weeks ago Season of Waiting. I have no travel plans, no … Continue reading Summertime Moments
being present
Being Present for the Bluebirds
A few weeks ago, my brother-in-law, Winslow, put up two bluebird houses for me. Hearing him talk about the enjoyment he's had of watching the birds in his houses, I wanted to give them a try. While my life is very full, I know that I want to slow down and make the space to … Continue reading Being Present for the Bluebirds
Three Great Gifts
One of the surprises for me of Going Social are the connections I've made with people and organizations around the world. After one of my post concerning my journey with breast cancer, an organization in the United Kingdom, Cancer Care Parcel messaged me and invited me to do a guest blog post. Looking at their … Continue reading Three Great Gifts
Gather Yourself: Lessons in Scotland
"After all the dreaming, planning, and praying, I'm now at the threshold of Iona," I wrote in my journal a year ago as I looked across the white-capped-waters of the sound toward the stone buildings of the Abbey. I'd made it to the village of Fionnphort in the Inner Hebrides, where I'd booked a room … Continue reading Gather Yourself: Lessons in Scotland
Moving Question
I followed the blue heron along the shoreline of Coquina Beach, amazed that the large bird would allow me to trail so close behind. I’d seen many of them flying over Jordan Lake in central North Carolina during my years of living in that area, but never had I walked within feet of one. He … Continue reading Moving Question
Be Present Now
The last week of that school year, I was standing in the grocery check-out, making my final purchase of health room supplies when I received a call from my younger sister. Our almost ninety-year-old mother was in the Emergency Room of our hometown hospital, being admitted for an acute illness. We’d never seen Mama so … Continue reading Be Present Now
Then Sings My Soul
I lost myself in our conversation, feeling it was more important to be present in that moment than to be on time for the service. When I finally pushed open the Iona chapel door, I heard the piano playing, the congregants singing a song that was familiar from another place. Tears splashed my eyes as … Continue reading Then Sings My Soul
Paris Can’t Wait
Paris Can't Wait. That's what my friend, Jennifer, named the Pinterest board she created for me. Madame Sparrow has been my friend for sixteen years since I met her at our middle school. She had lived in France for twelve years and taught French to our middle schoolers. Over the past months she's been educating … Continue reading Paris Can’t Wait
Chicken Man of Chincoteague
I wanted a picture of the sign by the road, my final snapshot from my journey to Chincoteague Island, Virginia. It would be a gift for my chicken-loving-friend in Baltimore. Pulling out my camera, a man came over to me. "Mind if I take a picture of your sign?" "It'll cost you some silver," he … Continue reading Chicken Man of Chincoteague
