tir-age tahy-rehyj | noun the act of being so tired that you're angry at whoever is sleeping closest to you, usually your spouse, and you wake them up by yelling at them the sound a baby makes when getting three teeth at the same time, while also trying to drag/crawl across the room to a … Continue reading Tirage: On the Importance of Being Angry
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In my first semester of college, when I still believed my music major would lead to a singing career, I took music theory. The professor was a jolly imp who couldn't have been taller than five feet and had more musical talent in his ivory-tinkling pinky than my entire class combined. His favorite part of … Continue reading 39
How Long, O God? A sermon on lament
“I can’t pray right now,” I told my spiritual director a few years ago. I had words for lots of things, like anger and sorrow, custody battling and trash talking. But when it came to prayer, I had no words. Maybe it was because I was protesting the God who I thought had treated me … Continue reading How Long, O God? A sermon on lament
Resisting until Redemption Comes
January 25, 2012: My first husband moves out, beginning the process of getting divorced. January 25, 2017: My second husband and I welcome a baby girl into our blended family. It cannot be a coincidence, these events book-ending the most difficult and life-giving five years of my life. I could not have imagined today from … Continue reading Resisting until Redemption Comes
Surprise Visitors
Christmas Day 2016 I recently filled out the hospital pre-admission form for this baby due one month for today, and was careful to check one particular box. “Do you want to listed on the patient roster?” The form noted that if I wasn’t listed, my religious leader might not be notified I was in … Continue reading Surprise Visitors
Jeremiah: When the word of the Lord is hard to hear
Sermon from Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Mankato, MN November 20, 2016 Two weeks ago, we talked about Isaiah, and I told you that the northern kingdom was being threatened at that time by the Assyrian empire. In 721, the kingdom of Israel fell. Now in Jeremiah’s time, the situation looks even worse for Israel, who has … Continue reading Jeremiah: When the word of the Lord is hard to hear
Labor Pains
Just as I was ready to check out of this day, to not talk about the election at all because I’m feeling so confused and helpless and hopeless, my colleague Regina messaged me. “Today I am simply trying to breathe. Thank you for helping me remember that.” It’s always ironic when your own advice comes … Continue reading Labor Pains
