Three Risen Loaves

Three Risen Loaves

What does it mean when the bread rises higher than it ever has on the day we celebrate the greatest rising? I made three loaves and didn’t think of the significance of number until later. I scored the dough right before baking. It was then that I saw the marks and remembered… So here I [...]

The wild and rolling summer

The wild and rolling summer

Give me all the wild, rolling storm clouds colliding with giant tufts of cotton candy in the sky. I will hold a cold mason jar of tea to my flushed face while early afternoon glides down my neck. But I know that, like a train chugging up to the station, the storm will come. It [...]

He never fails.

Just after 1:00 o’clock in the morning, a three year old boy cried out in the dark. Flailing and shouting that he was scared. He was frantic and kicking and pleading to be held. I tried my best to contain his fear. Then I heard the cry of a baby who could only feel nearby [...]

Turn for the Tide

Part One: The Glow . Our leader quickly explains what I will need to hurriedly write down. As scribe, I will listen for tag numbers, latitude, longitude, measurements, physical descriptors, and military time. I nod, hoping I won’t forget my instructions or fall behind. How quickly will this all happen? The tag, medical pack, a [...]

Only Connect

“Only connect.”- E.M. Forster. I heard Shauna Niequist speaking about that quote recently. She pointed out that it was helpful to her as she had a tendency to want to hide or be private. Especially when she is hurting or afraid. And I can relate to that. But she also spoke of the many other [...]

Soak

Soak. Rest. Breathe. The water was rushing out, the bubbles were rising. Stepping into the warmth; I tried to remember the last time I had felt this. Nothing came to mind. . I peeled open a book. In the steam, the words seem to rise off the page. I seemed to drift with them. One [...]

Goodness

“Some day these will be the good ol’ days.”, someone says. . These are the good ol’ days. Now. Right now. They are good now. . But I forget. . Tires spinning in mud. I’m spinning another bedtime story. Quietly, rubbing my eyes, I creep out of the room. . Now where was I? Folding. [...]

Clutching sand

I don’t want to hear only the fringes of what you say. I don’t want to see only the specks of light that my eyes favor. I want to hear and see and feel it all. Because it is fleeting. We are clutching sand. . He cups his hands and stares intently at the swiftly [...]

Stitched up

I tell a six year old who says things like, “I’m very interested in surgery.” that he’s going to stitch up some organs and then watch his eyes light up. . I explain that he will stitch the pieces together and fill them up. Plush organs we will use for another project. . And I [...]