One summer I planted a backyard garden with tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini and eggplant. A friend helped me construct a raised wooden box for our plants. The kids and I watched the baby plants push through the soil and stretch toward the sky. We enlisted my dad to help us water the garden while we were gone on a trip. After two weeks away, we [...] Keep Reading
death
Book Review: Grace Like Scarlett: Grieving with Hope After Miscarriage and Loss
The texts were pecked out late into the night. I could read the desperation and grief between the short lines she wrote. My dear friend had endured another miscarriage. Her body had betrayed her again. I cried out to God on her behalf. Honestly, I didn’t know exactly how or what to pray, but I wanted to support. I learned to listen and groan [...] Keep Reading
10 meaningful sympathy gift ideas for widows and families
I am a gift giver. The challenge of finding just the right gift for someone brings me great delight. In the past few years, I’ve had many people ask me what kinds of gifts to give to a widow or family who has experienced loss. This is often the hardest kind of gift to find. After my husband died, we received many practical and personal gifts [...] Keep Reading
Book review: Rooted
A few months ago, I took my kids on a day trip to Sequoia National Park with friends. The park is full of sequoia redwood trees, which are some of the largest trees in the world. With their ruddy, giant trunks and branches extending toward Heaven, these trees are truly majestic. I learned the General Sherman tree is the largest known single stem [...] Keep Reading
Resurrection rising: How to wait through the winter of grief
All winter she waited, wondered, rested until one day in the deep soil of anticipation and grief she felt the ground around her warming. She felt her strength rising, pushing through the transition. The pain was acute there, but the shadow was lifted. And now, fully-rooted, well-nourished she extended her arms in abandon toward the light. She burst [...] Keep Reading
Italian Easter Bread: Anticipating the resurrection
When I was a little girl, I used to love to go to my Grandma Sara's house for Easter. When you walked in her kitchen anytime during Holy Week, you were greeted by the intoxicating aroma of fresh bread. Grandma would make a little braided loaf for each of us kids. Yep, that's right. A personal loaf for each of us. The best part was I didn't have [...] Keep Reading
