This morning I needed to tackle dirty dishes and cluttered kitchen countertops. After an overindulgence in Christmas music, I chose to return to a favorite podcast instead to fill the silence. In less busy times, I love making podcasts the soundtrack to my work, as long as that work does not demand much mental capacity…
Category: Self Help
Not Full of Christmas Cheer
My first year working for a large church in Arlington, Virginia, my husband and I ate Christmas lunch off the rollers at a 7-Eleven. Tradition dictated that the newest priest on staff lead the Christmas morning service and I had started working at the church that November. My first Christmas celebrated outside of my home…
Learning Not to Forgive My Younger Self
I would go back and do things differently. If I could advise my younger self, I would tell her to avoid some things or choose a different path. My younger self didn’t know any better. We should be gracious with our younger selves and forgive them their bad or impetuous decisions. I’m working on forgiving…
#NotThatMom
“Do you have the right shapewear for this one?” “Oh! I’ve always loved Spanx but did you hear about Skims by Kim Kardashian? I just bought my first body suit from her and I love it! You should try it.” “Honey, if you choose this one, we’ll have to find a new pushup bra for…
The Stories We Tell
Each of us is a storyteller. Inside of us stories swirl in a stew of past and present, bumping into one another, forming and reforming. Favorites stay at the surface, evolving only slightly due to the number of times we share them. Our neural pathways somehow hold this collection of regulars together, finding consistent and…
Facing Down Flying Fears
I sit on a plane for the first time in 17 years. I last flew to my brother’s second wedding on Sea Island, GA. We lived in Arlington, VA at the time where I served a large church as their Associate Rector for Youth and Young Adults. Within a year, my boss added “Families with…
All the Noises…Still Discovering
A grandfather clock stands in the entryway of my parents home. It’s the first thing guests see when they’re all through the door. When it arrived, my dad showed my brother and me how it works, telling us to be mindful never to overwind it. We were fascinated by the mechanisms and I looked forward…
The Life You Choose Summary
This is a matrix for making life decisions that I’ve been working on for seven years. I lead workshops and retreats to share it with others, sometimes for organizations and church groups but sometimes I host my own events. My upcoming workshop on April 22 is filled for in-person participants but there is still room…
Don’t “Should” on Yourself!: The Life You Should Have, The Life You Choose series
My friend Jim had the kind of smile you could warm yourself by. The wrinkles around his eyes testified to the years he spent cultivating joy and expressing it openly. He had an effortless peace to him that put everyone at ease, a good trait since he was an Episcopal priest. When I knew him,…
I can’t wear that!The Life You Choose, Introduction
A granddaughter goes shopping with her grandmother and finds a cute jacket in the junior’s section of the department store. The granddaughter loves the color on her grandmother and knows the grandmother is small enough to fit into the jacket. But the grandmother takes one look at the style and says, “I can’t wear that!”…
Prayerful Kitchen 