At the start of 2017, one of the goals I set out for myself was to read. Don’t get me wrong: I read all the time, but my goal was to intentionally read books. This goal was about quality reading not quantity. I found in this fast-paced, social media-driven world that I was too-often reading lines and posts and headlines, but seldom reading [...] Keep Reading
friendship
An Unexpected Feast: When Grief Meets Gratitude
We dipped into hearty bowls of butternut squash soup garnished with sprigs of fresh parsley. We passed platters of golden roasted turkey, Nana’s green bean casserole, and homemade crescent rolls. My dear friend added a plate of her family’s special Salvadoran pupusas to the mix, while my famous pumpkin tiramisu chilled in the refrigerator for our [...] Keep Reading
The Hard Work of Building Bridges
The original version of this essay was published on May 16, 2016 in Self Talk the Gospel. I’m fascinated by bridges. I live in California so you can imagine the first bridge that comes to mind is the Golden Gate Bridge. Regal. Majestic. Glorious. Poppy red-by-day and glowing-with-lights by night. Iconic to the San Francisco skyline. The [...] Keep Reading
Learning the language of goodbyes with kids
The original version of this article was published on my ministry blog, Gilmores for His Glory, on August 8, 2012. We have said a lot of goodbyes in our lifetime. Sometimes it feels like too many for my heart to bear. This is one of the sacrifices of building a life in two different countries and befriending people from around the [...] Keep Reading
Book Review: At Home in the World
My first real venture out of the United States was a study abroad program in Central America during my senior year of college. Our home base was San Jose, Costa Rica, but we also spent time sojourning through Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. I still remember that moment. I was sitting around a rugged wooden table with a diverse group [...] Keep Reading
Journey of the heart: Haiti is calling me home
It’s been more than two years since I’ve tasted Haitian fried chicken with plantains cooked over a charcoal burner. It’s been more than two years since I’ve hugged the necks of the children in the orphanage who are now careening into their teen years. It’s been more than two years since we have seen those goats on spindly legs grazing in the [...] Keep Reading
