Welcome to the month of hopeless romanticism and hapless heartbreak. The retail world blushes all shades of pink, red, and lavender in an urge to sell us passion in packages. Singles resent the reminders of their isolation. Couples stress over how to avoid disappointing their beloved ones. Moms sigh over…
I'm a book-hoarder, often found walled inside mountains of literature while pecking away at new manuscripts. The stuff of writing may seem like an isolating factor. Yet, reading can connect us to others. Some works serve to improve our relationships. Today's video highlights the following ways we can read to…
Born Hungry for Stories Before she can speak, an infant's cry expresses her yearning. A loving voice swaddles the new soul. The words may come with music or the mere sound of turning pages, but they capture her heart and mind either way. The child quiets, listens, grows calm. As if…
Chocolates bulge from store shelves this month. Sale ads urge us to procure these sweet pounds to show our love ... or adopt as our own. After all, who would leave a lonely velvet heart to languish in the clearance bin next week? The pressure to sprinkle sugar, flower petals,…
Our hearts and souls pulse and flow with blessings, unique energy in rhythm with the flow of our individual design. A torso carries this majestic purpose from birth to end, but most containers also include limbs. Legs to walk the distance between souls. Feet, whose toes wriggle and grip the earth…
My employee twisted the phone receiver away from her ear. From three feet away, I heard the machine-gun sounds of our area supervisor's voice. After the call ended, I patted the case worker's shoulder. "I'll talk to her." For the past three months, I had started each work day by convincing…
I open my messages. Again. The text I sent four hours ago glares back at me. I check my inbox. Four new junk emails since my last examination. Nothing from my sons. Scrutinizing my phone has become a compulsion. In the two weeks, four days, and twenty minutes since…
Toothpaste rollers grate their teeth at the mid-tube squeezers. Confrontational people chase the withdrawn away. We self-protect, only to cause more harm in the end. Fear and conflict weave barbs into interpersonal dynamics throughout the world. It's amazing relationships have not dwindled to extinction altogether. Yet, even prisoners balk at solitary…
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7 Afternoon rays highlighted splatter-spots dappling my kitchen window.…