writing when inspired about the often overlooked
Happy birthday to Brenda Jane. August 28, 1959 — August 28, 1959 ********** August 28th, fifty-seven years ago: I am 11 years old. A baby is coming, but the Doctor has been saying there is probably something wrong with the baby, and if Mother “miscarries” it will be “God’s way of taking care of it.”…
My husband and I were alone on Thanksgiving. “It’s all good,” I told someone yesterday. “Our children and grandchildren are with their other families. Well, one is still in Ethiopia. We expect to have her here with us soon.” I missed my mom and my dad. They are gone now, as are my siblings, taken…
(Carol and Gordon, April 5, 2005) On this, the 10th anniversary of her husband’s death, my sister-in-law, Carol, has agreed to share an excerpt here from her recently written series of reflections on the first year of being a widow. Yeah, it gets confusing, both of us being Carol and all. Her excellent booklet, “Checking…
First, you pursue us with blood maples and tease us with your decadent, hazy light. Then you weave through the woods like the scent of decay that surrounds us with every step. Light bathes from above, so plentiful that not even the blood maples or the honey oaks can soak it all up before it…
There is something profound about being the only one left in one’s biological family of origin. Some years I think about it more than others, but this past week I have been very aware that nine years ago my brother and I spent our last day together. It was August 5, 2005 – three months…
Losing an elderly parent “when it’s time” . . . a strange unpredictable mix of feelings It’s hard to file these feelings into folders marked Grief Gladness Relief Sadness It’s more like the “curious blend” I referenced here on this blog a couple of weeks ago the day after my dad died. Confusing at best,…
Across this valley, on an old logging road, my brother lost his life, his body giving into the effects of deadly hypothermian before he was found. This scripture speaks of the comfort God’s presence brings to the deep grief that comes from deep loss and the compassion he has toward us. At his memorial service…
Psalm 32:8 I will guide and teach you the way you should go. I will give you good advice and watch over you. (written FebrUary 2009) It’s been 3 1/2 years since my brother GORDON got lost in the mountains and died of hypothermia before he was found. I have been going through a period…
My friend always told me “God doesn’t waste suffering . . . if we cooperate.” To Cooperate with God: to struggle, to keep an open, honest communication with Him about all that concerns me and the ones I love. I wrote the following letter to God five years after my brother got lost in the…
What do we do with our suffering? Last week Diana opened the door to a series-within-the-series, a set of questions that touch on the Big Topic of suffering. This week’s question jumps in a little deeper: It reminded me of something really important I learned from my mentor/spiritual director friend, Shirley. It was about grief…