It started with the butterflies. A dozen of them, all sizes, showed up on the front of our house the day Marrett got sick. These butterflies hatch in our neighborhood every year, but usually down the street near a neighbor's house. But Thursday last, they took up residence at Broady Grund Hollow, alighting on our... Continue Reading →
Sliver
I lay in the bed I used to share with my husband, the toddler's tiny form tucked in beside me, listening as her breathing settles into sleep. My eyes are open, but I cannot see, save for the sliver of light coming from the hall. The darkness feels like a metaphor. Marrett's death is exactly... Continue Reading →
The Discipline of Joy
The sun is shining with a warmth that can only mean spring this morning, and as I came out of my favorite coffee place with my favorite chai latte in hand, I was literally stopped in my tracks by joy. It's a Monday, which is my day off each week, and I started it with... Continue Reading →
White Lady Learnings: I am not Cherokee
As part of personal project, and one my bishop is encouraging all the clergy in our area to undergo, this is the first in a series of posts where I examine my own white privilege and begin dismantling the white supremacy that is part of who I am. Hearing the news about Elizabeth Warren's DNA... Continue Reading →
The Power of a Self-Correcting Son
It was a long week, for so many women including myself, one in which it was hard to not get thoroughly discouraged about the state of the world. Thankfully, within the walls of my own house, things looked a little brighter. My husband, God bless him, was an constant encouragement and said so many of... Continue Reading →
Hard Hearts and the Liberation of God’s People
A sermon on Exodus 7-12, the 10 Plagues This week in Faith Formation programming, we’re doing an Exodus event based on the story of the 10 plagues, so we switched our reading from Joseph to the text that was just read. That switch was my choice, and I regret it immensely. Like the Noah story... Continue Reading →
Asking for Directions
When we were in Chicago over Memorial Day, we let the girls go on their own to the Bean one evening. We wondered briefly whether it would be safe, whether they would get lost, especially since our oldest is not known for her navigational skills. They're not city kids either, and the streets would be... Continue Reading →
Quenching my Thirst
It's 11 am and already eighty degrees. Inside. We're home from a beautiful weekend in Chicago, where I became godmother to my best friend's baby. And as inevitably happens, we returned to find repairs needed, the AC having failed in yesterday's record heat. So, I sit here sweating at my kitchen table, waiting for a... Continue Reading →
3 Weeks, 3 Gleanings
It's week three of my sabbatical, and after lots of sleep, Hulu, and time in the woods, I'm finally feeling ready to share some reflections. So, here are three brief gleanings from these first three weeks. You don't know how fast you've been moving until you stop. In the 12 months preceding sabbatical, I did the... Continue Reading →
Long Days of Small Things: A Book Review
Saturday night in a pastor's house, especially when that pastor is also a mama, is guaranteed to be the worst night of sleep for said person of God. The last minute details of the sermon keep me awake sometimes, but more often it is the children who seem to need me most exactly when I... Continue Reading →
Collette Broady Grund 