On Grief

Rob Bell, in his Book What is the Bible, says that the most effective stories are the most memorable. He likens this to dreams too - that the most memorable dreams are the ones with the wackiest details. I think this too about grief. If I hadn't loved that person so much, I wouldn't feel …

Imperfectly Performed Promises

I'm running the Philadelphia Half Marathon this weekend. I am the least prepared I have ever been for a race. This is my fifth Half. Other times, when training for fulls or halves, where I've hit training delays (sickness, work chaos, life chaos) I've stepped out of the race. So why this one? Why subject …

Decisions, Decisions…

I have a whole other blog on yoga & yoga theory over at http://www.balanceflowyoga.weebly.com. And lately, I've been thinking about combining all my "things" into one spot. So this little here blog might morph into a couple new things. It might start including playlists, like Balance Flow Yoga has, and it might drift a little …

Last Thoughts Before Moving On: Trust, Faith and Spirituality

I love hearing about different people's experiences of grace. In fact, I love it so much I started this blog to have a place to write down all the experiences of grace that I could find, that I could research and that I could unearth. And while I did that, my own faith changed. My …

Tailspin

"Are you really living your best life?" In the middle of a cute plan to "stop by after drinks with my family" the guy I was dating lit into me about my life and my failings after I mentioned staying in touch with someone, an ex-someone. He went on about how shallow my past relationships …

Into love

The day before my dog died, I was at a dinner with youth from my church. "What happens when you die" was one conversation starter. You know, the light stuff. Some said nothing, others mentioned heaven. On that day I talked about nirvana or samadhi. Yes, I know the difference. Nirvana is perfect bliss, in …

Unbearable

The vet called to tell me her ashes are in. I wasn't expecting the call, and to be honest, I had finally been able to start concentrating on work again after a week of feeling numb. Wait, after a day or two of feeling like I could slip off the earth if I didn't hold …

Mercy

We are born small

You are not enough. That doesn't mean you aren't loved. Or that you aren't whole or meaningful. Instead, what I mean is that you aren't enough to do all of it on your own. You, as a human, aren't enough to balance a checkbook, supply a family with nourishing meals, contribute to society in a …

Half-Assing the God Stuff

Right after I wrote about Faith, Bourbon and Swearing, I happened to read this amazing piece by Nadia Bolz-Weber, where she mentions "it’s intellectually suspicious to admit to believing such fantastical stuff" when talking about god being embodied in human form. And it hit me hard, again, that liberal intellectuals aren't supposed to talk about …