It’s the morning following Labour Day weekend, and I’ve spent the last 20 minutes perusing Facebook, adoringly spammed with back to school photos of littles and their backpacks, and colleagues and their bulletin boards. I’m trying to sort out my feelings about all of this. For the first time in TWENTY-THREE years, I didn’t buy ANY back to school notebooks.…
I’m pretty sure that it’s a requirement to look back on your liberal arts degree and wonder how on earth it was supposed to prepare you for “the Real World”… particularly those with English and History majors. But in the last 6 months, it’s suddenly become very clear to me – it turns out my 5 years in post-secondary attributed…
Yes, this is personal. No, it’s not just about me. 1. My Smile isn’t everything Yes, some days, things are wonderful. I’m tired, but I’m happy… so very happy, and my heart is full. Those are the days that you see me, and I go to church, I take a walk, I stop by and say, ‘hello’. But those days…
I know what you’re thinking. It’s about time. I mean, seriously, it’s been five weeks already… But Guys, this is a Big Deal. I’ve progressively become more introverted since my college days, so I’m already more content to stay at home on the acreage by myself with our daughter, rather than make trips to town every day. And in my…
When you raise your daughter away from family, you’re suddenly reminded of how far away the distance is. A plane ride is no longer “just a plane ride”, and six months is no longer “just six months”. When you raise your daughter away from family, you take advantage of the family you do have. Dinner with in-laws become intentional, and…
Some stories are painful and beautiful, all at once. After all, that’s how mountains move. Last May, I faced the end of a job contract, a painful monthly cycle, and yet another birthday marking one more month on the calendar spent wishing for things that weren’t. And it was very hard not to be afraid. Even though I know so…
For years, I was determined that I would never become a teacher. Most likely, in my childish way, because so many people said that’s what I should do. And it made sense. I spent my Saturdays teaching teddy bears the alphabet on an old chalkboard… I clipped the corners of my Math books and gave a giant, flourishing checkmark… and…
Yesterday. Yesterday, as my childhood hero Anne Shirley would say, was my proverbial Jonah Day. Yesterday, the sunshine made me feel empty. The clouds were moving past me. The moments were evading me. Yesterday my morning coffee tasted bitter. It didn’t matter that I was able to sleep in until the sunrise. It wasn’t satisfying. Yesterday I was disgusted with…
I used to hate Tuesdays. Truly. I even wrote a short story about it once (and no, it really wasn’t that good). But it isn’t a day that exactly lends itself to excitement or new beginnings. Here we are, one day into the week, where you can’t even say that you’re halfway through, nor are you starting fresh. Monday, after…
Admittedly, I’ve never been a huge fan of Mary. I have nothing against her specifically, but after 25 + years of hearing the Christmas story each December, I think my heart grew numb to her role in bringing our Emmanuel into the world. The verses in the gospel of Luke just seem to roll over the tongue in oh-so-familiar tones,…