When God Spoke to Me Through Martin Sheen
It's an unlikely title, isn't it? Martin Sheen, well-known actor, head of a Hollywood dynasty...and God's mouthpiece? Yes. At least, for me. I've found that God talks to me from any and everything, any and everyONE, and this time, it happened to be Martin Sheen. You may remember when I saw the movie, The Way. It deeply resonated with me, to the point that I couldn't stop thinking about it. It was only a couple of days after seeing the movie, when I passed the book aisle at Target and saw Along The Way: The Journey of a Father and Son. I stood there, polarized by the sight of it, knowing that I was supposed to read it. Truly, it was like a command. I immediately downloaded it to my iPad...
An Artisan Life
"Artisan Breads." "Artisan Lettuces." "Artisan Pizza Crust." I started noticing the term "artisan" EVERYWHERE in the grocery store Saturday morning. You know how it is. You see a word somewhere that strikes you as uncommon or unusual, and suddenly you start seeing it everywhere you look. What I discovered was that it's apparently not uncommon at all! It appears to be the new label in the food industry, and I found myself wondering if it was losing some of its meaning from the apparent overuse. Truly, can that many items really be handmade by highly skilled craftsmen? In the grocery store?? Because my mind works in mysterious ways, this experience brought to its forefront popular...
Mimmie’s Heart: Letters to Lilli #4
My darling Lilli…when you get to be as old as your Mimmie, you might start to realize there are things you wish you’d said more intentionally to your own kids, a long time ago; or, at the very least, had just said them better. I heard once that grandchildren can be a kind of “do-over.” I don’t agree with that entirely, for you are not mine to raise, day in and day out. However, because I am removed from the constancy of your daily care, I think those things that need saying can rise more easily, and with greater clarity, to the top of my heart. It’s my hope that this letter (and the ones to follow in years to come) will help make your life’s road a little easier to travel. Well...
The Shift in Perspective
I watched the movie The Way last night. And I wept. The movie follows a man who, estranged from his only son, receives the shocking news that his son has died. And not only died, but died after only one day of his walk on the Camino de Santiago or The Way of St. James, for which he'd long dreamed and prepared, and over which he and his father had argued. The father flies to Spain to bring his son home, and instead, ends up finishing the walk his son had started, his son's remains in tow. During their only on-screen exchange, the father is angry and confused that his son is not choosing the life that seems best to his way of thinking. Their differences pique in this pivotal statement from...
For the Young Mommies
This originally ran in 2007, but in honor of Mother's Day this weekend, I'm rerunning a few old posts on the topic of motherhood. ______________________________________________________________________________________ I just read the latest post on a friend's blog, about her oldest child's early ventures into kindergarten. I love reading her thoughts because, like me, she has two girls and, like I did, she stays home with them. It brings back a lot of memories. Earlier this week, I also became a part of the Christian Women Online (CWO) Blog Ring. I've enjoyed perusing those blogs, and have found so many stories of other young moms who are in the throes of raising their young...