It was the lightest hue of lilac. The perfect marriage of romantic and playful. Tulle and ruffles, with a hint of a corset. Victorian roots, but with a modern and youthful twist. It was, she knew right away, meant to be hers. My daughter, Kendall, picked out this year’s Homecoming dress back in the spring. […]
Category: Perseverance
The God Who (still) redeems
I was in third grade when I discovered the magic of glasses. It was as if I went into the optometrist’s office as one person, and I walked out as another. Of course, I hadn’t changed intrinsically, but I had been given a new lens (or in this case, corrective lenses) through which I could […]
Running with Dad
Part 1: Running (an essay I wrote in college) The loudest noise is the sound of my own breathing. I kick against the rocks in my way. “There’s Mrs. Gordon’s house,” my dad points out as he jogs backwards so I can keep up with him. We grow silent as we pass the house where […]
Sometimes our job is not to figure it out, but to follow
It was one of those moments. You may know the kind – where you were going along just fine, and all of a sudden, you come up against an obstacle that seems insurmountable. And you are shaken to the core. I was a little girl, playing at the park with my sisters and cousins. I […]
Lessons from an amusement park
It’s coming. If it hasn’t happened yet, it will soon. It happens every Christmas season. You’ve shopped and wrapped and decorated and baked. You’ve been holly jolly and rocked around the Christmas tree until your head is spinning. You’ve made every effort to capture the spirit of the season and be present for every sweet […]
All I want for Christmas is to love well
Growing up, Christmas was magical for me on an almost fairytale level. As someone whose love language is giving and receiving gifts, having that bent really ratchets the holidays up a notch. But now that I’m all grown up, I know the secret of my wonderful childhood holidays, and her moniker begins and ends with […]
On free returns and redemption
A couple weeks ago, I ordered my first pair of Doc Martens. A 90s teen to the core, I always adored Docs, but alas! I never owned a pair. And now, at age 44 with very flat feet, I find that I need some extra arch support. So I figured, why not cushion my aging […]
Lessons from a daisy
She won it in an art contest at school: a packet of daisy seeds. Disregarding the fact that her mother is an inadvertent plant killer, my daughter was determined to nurture these seeds into full growth. So she followed the directions on how to plant the seeds in a small cup, which she painted to […]
Under construction
My daughter’s room has been through nearly as many changes as she has over the years. From a darling ladybug/bee/butterfly nursery to a pink princess theme to a transitional stage where she began to despise pink and love mint green. It was then, when she was in seventh grade, that we repainted her walls a […]
When it’s just not your season
Growing up in Virginia, I was always loathe to declare one season my favorite. After all, each season has a beauty all its own: winter houses Christmas, spring boasts color after the bleakness of winter, summer brings beach vacation, and fall – well, I am finally ready to conclude that fall is my very favorite. […]
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