When Billy Graham passed on recently, I felt bereft. Our country has lost a great man of God. Our older saints are passing away, and so many of the young are leaving church and faith, lost and worshipping the things of the world. What will happen to America in the days ahead as we deny …
When I am comfortable and happy, and feeling life couldn’t be any better, I know the Lord is about to shake me up. It can be a major disaster such as a firestorm that puts thousands out of their homes, or an unexpected health problem. It can be friends or loved ones moving to another …
When I became a Christian, I thought all my problems would magically go away. God would take care of everything with a snap of His fingers. The truth is my life fell apart within weeks of being baptized. I’ve shared this story before, so suffice it to say accepting Jesus and asking Him to be …
One might think that after forty-eight years of marriage, a couple would know all about how to have a good and long-lasting marriage. Rick and I have been through good times and bad, mostly good, and know more will be coming as we grow old together. It doesn’t matter how long a couple has been …
Every few years, I attend the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference as a participant. Set in the beautiful Santa Cruz Mountains south of San Francisco, You can’t help but feel inspired in the beautiful Santa Cruz Mountains with towering redwoods and blooming dogwoods. And it’s a short drive to the Pacific Coast. The atmosphere is …
I love wildlife, all kinds, even rats. Our children had a menagerie over the years: fish, turtles, possums, birds, dogs and rats. No cats, though. Rick is allergic, and they seem to love him and want to be on his lap. We could use a good cat right now. While two handymen were putting in …
Many of us work hard in our gardens, designing, digging, dedicating our spare time to creating a beautiful space to enjoy and share with others. If you’re like me, you go to a nursery and wander along the rows of starter plants, checking to see which plants will thrive in the soil composition in our …
This has been an interesting few months for me and Rick. Not long ago, we went on a two-week southern states road trip with friends. We were a day ahead of a hurricane, then a tornado and major flooding. One place we visited was four feet under water the next day. When we made our …
I always thought of graffiti as vandalism until Rick and I visited some Eastern European countries and I saw it along walls as our train passed by. It was often stunning, beautiful, vibrant with colors, shape, and form, even if I couldn’t understand the words. This graffiti wasn’t a letter and numbers spray-painted in haste, …
It helps me to see my characters when I’m writing a story. So, often, at the very beginning of a project, I’m on the search for faces that fit the person developing in my mind. I’ll cut out or print out pictures of people and pin them to a bulletin board or have an album …