Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Life”
Fear likes to tell us no. No, you can’t (fill in the blank). No, you can’t learn to dance — you’re not coordinated enough. No, you can’t sing well enough to try out for school chorus. No, you can’t try out for that sports team. What makes you think you’re good enough to compete with those other kids? No, you …
Helen Keller was an amazing woman. Born in 1880, an illness left her deaf and blind when she was all of 19 months old. Helen had limited communication with her family until she was 7 years old — when Annie Sullivan arrived and worked with her to teach her sign language. Fast forward to 1904, when Helen was 24 years …
Truth be told, I do most of my singing in the car, not the shower. One of my favorite memories of years gone by is driving around town doing errands and singing with my two daughters, Katie Beth and Amy. In the very early years we sang along to the radio or cassette tapes (yes, yes, we did!) and then …
One of these days I’m going to catalogue my quotes and tally how many posts I’ve written that deal with facing — and overcomng — defeat. Quite a few, I’m thinking. Sometimes when I find a quote about overcoming defeat and then I blog about it, I’m writing myself out of a funk. And then there are times I’m …
I select a quote for various reasons. A quote may: make me laugh. make me pause and realize, “Now there’s a new way to think about (fill in the blank).” challenge my “I’ve got this all figured out” preconceived idea. give me some practical ways to approach life. Today’s quote is a bit of practical wisdom that, if heeded, …
I keep a basket on one of the shelves in my office closet. In that basket I keep cards I’ve received from friends or readers or other writers. Words of encouragement that have blessed me, sometimes at just the right moment, when doubt pressed in on my dream or my sense of self. People took the time to say something …
I’ve come back to this quote time and time again. Read Harriet Beecher Stowe’s words so many times that I’ve lost count. And then I always close down the blog post without writing a single word. I’m conflicted about this idea of truth being kind. And I’m well aware of the admonition to speak the truth in love. (Ephesians 4:15 NIV) …
I’m writing this blog post early. Come Friday — today — I’ll be in Wichita, Kansas, visiting my “safe harbor” friend, Fran. Technically, I’m going to meet with Fran’s book club to discuss Somebody Like You, my lastest novel. But after that, well, it’s all about time with Fran. I’ve known Fran for decades. Yes, decades. And I have so …
I’ve heard the “One day at a time” phrase until it’s so worn down it’s easily ignored. Abraham Lincoln’s take on the “One day” adage made me stop and think. All those days? They add up to the future. Yep, that’s true. But I can only take ’em — I can only live them — one at a time. The …
Sometimes loving someone means not saying anything. Sometimes silence is sacrificial … you give up all your right answers for the sake of someone else’s need to be valued. You choose not to stifle their pain with words, words, and more words. Love should always be safe. When you tell someone you love them, in a very real sense you are …
