I’m the Preacher’s Kid
My soul is so full. I am coming down from the high after hanging out at the Southern Festival of Books for three days. No, not a vacation, not a retreat, but three days that were for me. Poet me, writer me, reader me. There is so much to reflect on, so I’ll have to [...]
Joy Comes In The Morning
Today would have been my brother’s 30th birthday. A year after Will’s death, my mom and I traveled to Sewanee to attend a day conference on Centering Prayer. We learned that Centering Prayer is a meditation-like prayer time in which you let go of conscious thoughts and focus on a word or a phrase that [...]
Writing Creative Non-Fiction = Insanity
So you probably read this post about how I’m writing more creative non-fiction than poetry now. I’m finding that working with a CNF manuscript is like – well shoot it’s 8 PM and I can’t think of a metaphor. Anyway, it’s harder and more confusing than I expected. I have this amalgam of essays that [...]
How I Want to Defy Gravity and Touch the Stars
Today I grumped and griped. I do everything around here. No one ever tells me thank you. No one ever offers to help. I wouldn’t have to get on to all of you if you’d pick up your stuff once in a while. Then I sadly sulked. I wish my life were more than dishes [...]
From Snoop Lion to Saint Nonna: A Look at Spiritual Transformations
Have you heard about Snoop Dogg’s spiritual experience and resulting name change? The story goes that he went to Jamaica, studied reggae and Rastafarianism, and was told by a Rastafarian priest, “You are the light. You are the lion.” Must be a pretty tame lion, because Mr. Snoop appears to want to spread peace, harmony, [...]
Chick-Fil-A, A Rights-Based Culture, and Jesus
So, the Chick-Fil-A controversy. Yeah, that. What do we Christians do with that? Many of my friends flocked to Chick-Fil-A yesterday in support of their CEO taking a stand for traditional marriage. Many of my friends didn’t. Don’t think the first sentence was about my Christian friends and the latter was about my non-Christian friends. [...]
Book Month Challenge Day 26: Favorite Non-Fiction Book
To be honest I don’t read a lot of nonfiction because I can’t get into it like I can get into a story. It takes me weeks, sometimes months, to finish a nonfiction book, while I can read a really good novel in a couple of days. A novel takes me out of my world [...]
Book Month Challenge Day 17: Favorite Spiritual Book
This one has been very difficult for me. Like Karla, I’ve read a lot of different types of spiritual books (although she’s got me beat on theology books!) and I find it hard to narrow it down to just one. I’m going to take it back to college days on this one. During my senior [...]
Book Month Challenge Day 11: Book From Your Favorite Author
So . . . to be honest I’m not exactly sure what today’s challenge is supposed to mean. I’ve already listed one book my favorite author . . . because it’s one of my favorite books. And I think I’ve picked another book by her for a later day’s topic. So I guess this post [...]
Book Month Challenge Day 10: Book That Changed Your Life
At the Corner of East and Now by Frederica Mathewes-Green. One day early in our marriage, Steven and I were on one of our used bookstore dates, and I came across this book in the Spirituality section of the store. I read the description on the back and the first couple of pages, and the [...]
