The cold weather has finally arrived. As I write, I am looking out the window and it is not quite dark but there is the sense of an absence of light. The hammering winds of late November seem to tunnel deeply through the walls of our home. The penetrating wind hisses and howls, and at…
I once heard the sacrament of marriage compared to a tree. At first glance, I barely took notice of this because the concept of a “family tree” is familiar to most of us. Upon reflection, however, I discovered a depth and richness to this analogy that surpassed any notion of ancestral lineage. I’d like to…
In a few days our homeschool year will begin, and I am ready for the return to this daily routine. As absurd as this sounds, we have enjoyed enough lazy days, popsicles, and water play. My husband, a police detective, wasn’t able to take any vacation over July or August and he doesn’t get any…
While you lay sleeping, I sat in the hallway and folded the laundry. I pulled warm clothing from the pile and as I folded it, I delighted in small t-shirts emblazoned with cartoon characters. I marvelled over toddler sundresses, I grinned at tiny pairs of socks. I folded your dad’s white t-shirts and noticed the…
“Water is going to be the death of me,” I said to my husband. “What do you mean? Like a water sport accident?” “No, not like that. I mean pouring glasses of water and I am certain that if I clean up one more spilled glass of water then I will surely die.” The minute,…
I looked down at her sleeping. She had just finished nursing and was still holding onto me with her little hands and her mouth. Her silky, dark blonde curls were resplendent in the mid-afternoon, early August light. The warm pink of her cheeks was soft against the crisp, white sheets of our bed. This was…
Two weeks ago, I went into our closet to pull out the pieces of my husband’s police uniform in order to make sure that everything was ironed and ready and that all of the components were there so that he could work his paid duty that evening. If you aren’t familiar with what paid duties…
