Rhubarb & Rubbish

Summer is a time when we think of hot days, short nights, being outside most of the day, picnics, and mosquitoes buzzing. I remember summer days filled with the activities of going to grandma and grandpa’s house hanging out.  We would help with house cleaning, cooking and baking, and gardening. One of my fondest memories was sitting outside with family. While sitting outside we would cut and eat huge watermelon slices while trying to see how far we could spit the seeds. With all the seeds we spit I’m surprised grandma and grandpa didn’t have a watermelon patch growing.   In today’s day and age, summertime for kids is very different.…

No worries….I do not have any strange health concerns and haven’t had a run-in with poison ivy. My fingers are fine medically, but they are filled with anticipation to start digging in the dirt!  I love to garden! Yes, it is rewarding to see the garden grow, the beauty of the plants, and of course eating and cooking with the beautiful produce. However, the greatest reason I find to plan, design, and sow my garden each year is it renews my soul. Ecclesiastes 3:1 states “for everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven…” and continues on from there that there is a time for…

I love spring! The earth is coming back to life after a season of rest. Families are planning summer vacations and kids are looking forward to sleeping in and no homework. Amid all these plans, spring also boasts a host of celebrations: Easter, graduations, confirmations, Mother’s day, and more. I have worked my entire adult life in higher education, and, as a result, experience graduation every year. In fact, in my previous role, I planned the graduation ceremony for my university. I loved it! To celebrate the accomplishment of hard work is amazing, but it always made me super excited to celebrate young people commencing another phase of life. My…

Sometimes the best way to grow is to learn from our struggles. Rest is one of mine, and that includes sleeping. As a woman in my mid-40s, you would think this wouldn’t be such a struggle, but honestly, I have gotten worse at it over my life. Why? First, I have failed to recognize rest as a component of humility. Psalm 4:8 states, “In peace, I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” Imagine the absolute trust a believer in the ancient world must have had to rest in peace knowing that their heavenly Father would care for them as they…

I read an article in the Summer 2020 women’s magazine Just Between Us entitled Journaling as a Spiritual Practice: Tracking God’s Faithfulness in Your Life. In the article, author Helen Cipero outlines life using the compass directions. North is God. East is what is emerging in your life. South is your calling or passion. And, West is what is setting or changing in your life. While a simple exercise, looking at the compass of my life clarified that my two most important priorities in my life are God and family. However, when I looked at how I had been spending my time, it was obvious that something was out of…

Typically, when we hear the word frozen we automatically think of the various states of frozen water. For example, we are all familiar with the various frozen states of water such as an ice cube or when snow becomes sleet. But what about applying the term frozen to a mental or physical state? Let’s discuss that further. For some of us, our endless to-do lists and the seemingly never-ending list of activities may produce a mental or physical state of being frozen. We may lay awake at night trying to get to sleep feeling frozen in place thinking about what did and didn’t get done that day and what is…

I have always thought that you had to wear green on St. Patrick’s Day and look out for pots of gold and leprechauns. It might surprise you to know the real reason behind this interesting day.  As you might have guessed it does have to do with the Irish, but it is actually a religious holiday. St. Patrick was born in Britain to a Christian family but growing up St. Patrick was an atheist. He was captured by pirates and taken to Ireland when he was 16 years old. While in Ireland he worked as a shepherd. He escaped six years later by walking almost 200 miles and convincing a…