I had washed all the dishes that don’t fit into the dishwasher, vacuumed, and even had wiped down the stove underneath the burner grates. But when two of my guests, a small collection of the women pastors in the area, walked through the front door of my home, I realized one flaw in my plan of … [Read more…]
There’s a little patch of grass on the southwest corner of the church property, just south of a row of Bradford pear trees, but just north of the ravine. It’s mostly an innocuous piece of the property, certainly not as visited as the sanctuary, or as quaint as the gazebo, or as functional as the … [Read more…]
I had such high hopes at the start of this quarantine. I was going to write prolifically and create and take advantage of this isolation that has been thrust upon us. I was going to clean and organize and sort. Do all the things! And then I realized how heavy this pandemic had hit me, … [Read more…]
I’ve been joking that I’m not sure if I’m depressed, bored, or exhausted. I don’t know the exact diagnosis, except to call it a malaise of mind, body, and spirit. (Don’t worry, I have a doctor’s appointment next week for a full workup just in case it’s physiological.) Up until the last week, I’ve kept … [Read more…]
Today is my first Sabbath day as an ordained minister. And finally, I feel like I can rest. And breathe. And reflect. And celebrate. And search. To mark the occasion, I’m writing a bit about it. And updating my blog. For starters, my home page on my blog for the past four years has listed … [Read more…]
The idea for the pitstop for lunch went like this: “So I don’t know how I feel about this idea, but I am just going to throw it out there —“ I said timidly. “—go ahead,” my carpool friend Emrie Smith encouraged. “— but it looks like Dexter Avenue Baptist Church isn’t far off the … [Read more…]
I tried taking a full day for Sabbath two weeks ago. It didn’t work out. I haven’t had an entire day of rest and to myself in…well. I don’t remember the last time. I had planned for a day away from both of my jobs, a day with no church obligations, no travel, and no … [Read more…]
I took on a challenge, and came out victorious! Picture me, standing atop an Olympic medal stand, holding on to my piece of precious metal, beaming and happy. Just kidding. In reality, it’s much more anti-climatic. There’s no award, no certificate of merit, no orange slices or juice boxes. I signed up for, paid for, … [Read more…]
I didn’t want to be there. I was outright sulking as we started singing for the vespers service Tuesday night that my classmates and I mistakenly thought we were supposed to attend as part of our class requirement that night. My peers and colleagues had decided to have an impromptu worship service anyway — despite … [Read more…]
I’m engaging in a new endeavor beginning today: Inktober. Inktober (you can read more about it here) is the 31-day span throughout October where artists commit to using ink to create a daily offering of art. It’s kind of like NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) in November, but for visual artists. It’s my dream someday … [Read more…]