This year, our family Thanksgiving will be different. This year, we’ll have an empty chair at our table. This year, a beloved family member, my aunt Marilyn, our “Chinkie,” who graduated to heaven in July, will be absent from our Thanksgiving table. All my life, she was present at every Thanksgiving. During my childhood, and […]
Lessons Gleaned from Old Photos
In the process of cleaning out my aunt’s house, I’ve discovered a treasure trove of old photos, some I’ve never seen before. I’ve always loved vintage photographs. They send my mind spiraling to a different time and place. Both my parents enjoyed photography. In fact, my mother was the photographer for the local newspaper during […]
Harnessing Hope
A few weeks ago, I posted information on social media about my new book, Life on Pause: Learning to Wait Well. Someone commented, “Life gone…not on pause.” Since I didn’t know the situation that prompted the comment, I waited to answer until I had time to think. As I pondered, I sensed “hopelessness” was the […]
Remembrance, Sacrifice, and Freedom
In the mid-1950s, before I was born, my parents went to Europe. My Uncle Wesley was stationed in Germany as part of the post-WWII Allied presence and my parents visited him and Aunt Jean. But my parents also went to Switzerland to see the place where my father was held prisoner after his plane was […]