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Everyday Life

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Everyday Life

Becoming a registered nurse fulfills childhood dream

black graduation hat with scroll

I’m happy to tell you Emilie graduated from Schoolcraft College’s nursing program in May and passed her state licensing boards three weeks later. She is officially a Registered Nurse. Cue the applause! I don’t even know how to explain adequately what I feel about her achievement. I am proud, happy and, frankly, relieved. Getting into and surviving a nursing program is not easy. There’s the minimum grade point average requirement and the wait for your turn to begin the program. Emilie is smart as a whip, but she had to up her game to get the grades. She took pharmacology twice to get a passing grade, requiring her to wait a full year to get back into the program’s rotation of classes, which turned out to be just two weeks after her dad died. The volume of material covered is daunting. Study time leaves little room for much else and…

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Everyday Life

Women writer’s workshop leads to meeting with God

winter scene

Some years ago, I attended a women writer’s workshop over a weekend in January. It was held in a rustic lodge nestled in the woods along the shores of the Grand River just north of Lansing, Michigan. It was a memorable experience, with a good mix of challenge – stretching me beyond my comfort zone as a writer – and encouragement from a diverse group of affirming and inspiring women. Even better was the self-directed retreat that followed. I had five days all to myself to practice writing in a cozy guest room at the front of the lodge. With only one other woman staying for the retreat, we had the whole place to ourselves. It was the perfect setting for connecting with God and nature and for fueling my creativity. An unexpected meeting One afternoon, in need of a change of scenery, I stepped out from the warmth of…

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Everyday Life

Design Mom published my story!

lamp on table

I am so excited about this event that I had to share it with you all as soon as I could. I’ve been reading the blog Design Mom for a couple of years now. It’s packed with great information for women who are raising young children and who appreciate design. I love how Gabrielle Blair

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Everyday Life

I am a literary worm!

I am not brilliant; not a genius. I’ve not read all the classics of literature; not even close. I couldn’t quote one sentence, let alone a lengthy passage from any of the ones I have read. How can I possibly think I could be a successful writer? I am a literary worm! Those were my thoughts as I walked away from one of the workshops I attended last month at the Writing for Your Life Conference in Holland, Michigan. I spent the next hour talking myself off the ledge. Don’t get me wrong. This was an excellent conference for spiritual writers. From the intimately sized Advanced Writers Retreat held on Monday at Western Theological Seminary to the larger conference at Hope College with a dozen or so presenters on Tuesday and Wednesday, it was equal parts empowering and challenging. At the advanced retreat, Sarah Arthur helped me to nail down my mission…

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Everyday Life

Signed, sealed and delivered

I have always looked forward to getting the mail each day. (Is it any wonder I married a mail man?) Rarely is there anything more than bills or marketing offers addressed to “current resident.” But every now and then there is an envelope with my name hand-written on it, and I can hardly wait to open it to see what’s inside. This was especially true after Paul died. I received dozens of cards from friends wanting to express their condolences. Every one of them evoked my emotions. Some made me cry because of the verse or the personal words they wrote. Others inspired me to stay strong through this difficult time. And still others overwhelmed me because they were from people I didn’t even know telling me how much my husband had meant to them. I keep four of those cards in the pocket of my journal so that…

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Everyday Life

Why I Write

I’m beginning to define and explore the difficult question of why I write and why I want to become a better writer. Here are some of my initial and incomplete thoughts: Writing is my response to God’s direction. God keeps telling me to write. I know that sounds pretty mystical, or overly religious or downright arrogant. I mean, if God said it, who’s to argue the point, right? But it’s true in the sense that, despite trying a number of different degree programs and work roles, I have always sensed God’s finger pointing me back to writing. I think it’s safe to say I feel compelled to write, as in, if God gave me the ability, provided the training and gave me the tools to write well, then I should write. Writing is the fruit of my spiritual life. In high school, much of my writing was focused on searching for…

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Everyday Life

What I’ve Learned From Playing Panda Pop

Last year I wandered into a jungle of multi-colored bubbles to rescue baby pandas kidnapped by an evil baboon. I’ve managed to free enough pandas to make it through the Spooky Forest, around the Great Statue and past the Zen Garden to the doorstep of the Panda Kings. For all this adventure, I’ve only had to pick up my phone to play the game, Panda Pop. My daughters laugh at me when they catch me playing it, as if I’m too old for such folly (and I probably am). My husband just shakes his head. I don’t mind, though. I’ve found the game to be challenging enough to keep my attention, but not so much that I have wanted to quit. In fact, one day as I was winding my way past a few tough levels in a row, I thought of the valuable life lessons I was scoring along…

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Everyday Life

Veteran’s Day

I am blessed to be married to a Vietnam veteran who served his tour of duty during the Tet Offensive. He wasn’t wounded physically (though he now suffers from a number of illnesses as a result of exposure to Agent Orange), but the memories of that time still haunt him. He was drafted at 19. Fleeing to Canada wasn’t an option. Initially he feared for his own life, he says, but when the mortars were lighting up the sky, his focus was on protecting his fellow soldiers, defending his country. Patriotism born on the battlefield. His faith was birthed there as well. Not faith in a country or government, but faith in the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob. The one who protected him time and again, saved him from being blown up in his barracks and burned in a hotel fire. He was one of the lucky ones. It…

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Everyday Life

Escape Route

(originally published November 22, 2013 at meditationsandmuses.blogspot.com) Where do you go when you need a break from the everyday pattern of your life? Is there a place in this world that you run to where you feel safe and secure, inspired, more alive? I go west along the eastern shores of Lake Michigan to Holland, one of many picturesque towns along the western coast of Michigan. Interestingly, it was named the most secure mid-sized city in the U.S. I like walking the downtown corridor with its Victorian-era architecture, unique shops and restaurants and brick-paved streets. Founded by the Dutch, and with visitors from all over the world, it’s easy to feel like I’ve traveled much further than the three hours it takes me to drive there. In no time, I am transported to a quaint European village with not a care in the world. But what really calls me to…

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Everyday Life

Welcome to my world

I created this blog over a year ago and have yet to create a single post. Now, after some very valuable help from Michelle Rogers at the Heritage Community Media Lab, I have been empowered with the tools to begin this journey. Much like my recent career move, when circumstances compelled me to jump off the cliff of secure employment, I am stepping off my perch of anonymity to share my thoughts and reflections with the rest of the world. And so it is with a fair amount of apprehension and a good dose of anticipation, I offer this window on my world.

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