Emptiness in Heaven
I wrote this Advent reflection two years ago. My daughter is twelve now, but she still asks difficult questions. I still have no easy answers. * When I began writing these Advent reflections, I had a very general structure in mind. The whole series would move, I thought, from dark to light, from ordinary to extraordinary, from dust and dirt to...
The Candle of Peace and the Gun in My Yard
On Friday night, we sat in a high school auditorium beneath the flutter of paper doves and peace signs dangling on strings. The theme of my children’s annual holiday show was peace on earth. There were musical performances from around the world. I was glad the first-graders were assigned the United States, though somehow my little boy and I...
These Farmhouse Bookshelves (Advent 2)
The weather here in our corner of Pennsylvania is soggy rather than snowy, but our stack of Christmas books is helping to set the mood. If you're looking to start your own collection, or maybe writing a list for the library, here are a few of our favorites. (this post contains affiliate links) Christmas Day in the Morning by Pearl Buck is a...
Be Not Conformed
I wrote a version of this post last year for the website Deeper Story. It feels even more true this year. / I am standing in the yard with a rake in my hands when I feel the circle of the year begin to tie itself up with a neatly finished knot. Since moving to this old farmhouse on the hill, my late November chores are always the same....
These Farmhouse Bookshelves (Advent 1)
Books are a year-round pleasure in this house. I always have a bedside pile (okay, tower) of books I am currently reading, and I read aloud to my children (yes, even my twelve-year-old) nearly every day. But something happens to my book love when we feed the last of the porch pumpkins to the chickens and go in search of our Advent wreath. It...
We All Want to Go Home
I didn't plan to talk to my children about terrorism or the Syrian refugees, but my children are older now and I have less control. Sometimes, I thank God I have less control. When my daughter said her school had held a moment of silence to remember or pray for Paris, my older son asked why. I spoke a few words about the terrorists and those...