"This was the fun part. I reminded myself of that. At least, it used to be the fun part. Mazes gave me all the chances I needed to get where I was going." - from "The Fodder Shock Maze" Do you have a favorite part of autumn? I have trouble narrowing it down to one thing, myself. I'm a... Continue Reading →
The Book Accident: On Absence, Presence, and Grief
"I’m tempted to call it a mystery the way a person can be gone and yet not be. Perhaps it’s one of those things a person makes peace with never fully figuring out." - "The Book Accident" I'm pleased to share my recent essay The Book Accident," which appeared in the Gals Guide Anthology: Female... Continue Reading →
All Those Who Wander: The Spiritual Practice of Walking
I could have driven to the coffee shop. I'd have stayed warmer and drier. But that wasn't the point. The point was that it was time for a walk. So, inside heavy wool coat, hat, scarf, and mittens, I set out on foot into the swirl of damp snowflakes. They stuck everywhere: on my nose,... Continue Reading →
On Joy and Summer Trees
Are there memories whose goodness has surprised you? Though not a poet, I took a workshop earlier this year which involved writing a poem that explored the divine through joy. Inspired by the vividness of Li-Young Lee’s sense-awakening poem “From Blossoms”, I tried writing about a kind of remembering moment that has taken me by surprise,... Continue Reading →
Silly Things We Do That Keep Us Sane II
What do you do that keeps you sane? In my first “Silly Things We Do” essay, I speculated that many of us have these things we do that would appear impractical and odd were it not for the good they do us. Funny how writing about that one habit of resting in winter sunshine has... Continue Reading →
Inviting Our Demons in for Tea (Kat’s Dreams)
Sometimes it helps to spend time with the difficult things in our lives using a grace-filled lens and a lot of imagination about what God might actually be redeeming even now.