What is Joy anyway? Really? There are song lyrics. Joy to the World. . . . I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. . . Joyful, joyful, We Adore thee. . . Almond Joy. Joy-a feeling of great pleasure and happiness. Rick Warren adds his own definition: “Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.” While I agree with most of those definitions. I don't find that everything is going to be 'all right.' In ... View Post
She’s Still So Missed
It was the week before Christmas. The presents were wrapped. Plans were made. Life was in full swing. There was a High School concert to attend. Kids to dress, dinner to eat. I still remember; I had made chicken and biscuits. I had teens that I mentored over. My great niece was playing with the kids. I needed to return the teens to their home. It was time to get ready for the concert. I couldn't reach my Mother in law to retrieve the bundle of energy, I called my great niece. I had too many kids to fit in the van. My farmer came down to take the youngest farm boy with him. I ... View Post
It’s Christmas
It's quiet. There is a noticeable hush over the farmhouse. Morning milking is still in progress. Such a slow process. The cows are dirty and wet from being outside. My farmer works so hard. This added burden- hard. The Christmas mornings of glee and boundless energy. . . gone. All but memories now. Instead, there is a comfortable quiet. Deep remembering. Much joy. It's still a different kind of Christmas. But that's ok. Heaven came down and touched earth. The greatest gift ever given. Today we rejoice in that gift. We receive; that which we do not deserve. Merry Christmas ... View Post
She’s Growing Up And I Am Powerless to Stop It
She flashes those baby blues. She is beautiful. She has grown inches over the past year. All the kids have. Death and cancer have that effect. Her tender heart still unsure. Her writing reflecting her struggle. She turns 12 today. Her last year before the teens. And I marvel at how she has grown. How this little baby born on one of the holiest of nights, has turned into a lovely young woman. Her smile lights up a room. She is the first to snuggle of all our kids. Her ... View Post
He Made Me Laugh
He made me laugh. That second born son. The one who shoulders the weight. The future. He made me laugh. He loves Christmas. Always has. Little sleep. So excited. A bundle of joy. Energy. Complying with my request, for a cup of coffee, before presents, on Christmas morning; he will have one waiting. . . long before it is time to be awake. Energy. Sheer joy. Over presents. Over a babe in a manger. Wonder. Contagious. And at 15 that joy is still there. I walk into the dining ... View Post
Grace That Visits Your Door, When Your Heart Is Breaking On Christmas Day
I don't want to say we made it through the day. But we did. How do you celebrate Christmas with your 17 year old son buried deep beneath the winter snow? How do you breathe in and out missing a part of you? How do you look at stockings and open presents; when your heart is shattered into a millions fragments. My boy is gone. And I miss him so much. But he has gone where Angels trod. The same Angels that proclaimed the birth of the Most High, The same Angels that declared that He is Risen. His work finished, here on this ... View Post
