"...As the days on which the Jews got relief from the enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending gifts of food to one another and gifts to the … Continue reading Gray Skies & a Good Feast
My Aunt Andi flew down from Alaska last weekend for a visit, and she told us how the snow outside her window in Wasilla is already inching down the mountains. The closer it falls to tree line, the sooner the long winter will settle in, when sun will set at three in the afternoon. They’ve … Continue reading Ember
Sometimes, I'll forget whether it’s Dad’s Sunday to preach or not, but as soon as I feel my way down the hallway toward the coffee pot, I know. If he isn’t reading in the armchair by the window, then his black dress shoes wait on the floor next to it. I like to see him … Continue reading The Minister, As I Know Him
Hey, Mom. Thanks for being here, and for reading these things I write every Sunday. But really, thanks for all the times when you aren't here in front of this screen because you're too busy working in the real spaces around you, planning our meals and wiping down the highchairs after the kids have gone (and also … Continue reading Hey, Mom
Someone gave me a composition notebook for my fourteenth birthday and told me to write blessings in it, to number them. I think the goal was 10,000, but I lost count after awhile, and the “thanksgivings” turned into little observations of the world around me: The house is quiet this morning. Elsie learned to roll … Continue reading The Things I’ve Seen
"Thank an artist today," someone said on Instagram last week, and I happened to be walking through the booths at the entrance to Silver Dollar City--- little closets of handmade brooms and paintings and pottery and baskets and woven rugs. The makers of each were dressed in their aprons and smocks, watching us and waiting. … Continue reading Thank the Artist
I made a list of foods over the weekend (and made myself hungry doing it): Cucumbers and crackers and cheeses and grapes and tea and butter for scones. If I couldn’t remember something, I tried to imagine Bilbo’s pantry and the Dwarves’ feast as they ravaged it. After all, Hutchmoot is a place for eating … Continue reading A Taste of the Feast & A Prayer for Hutchmoot
March 22 Today’s been strange. I didn’t go to church, didn’t talk to my friends or take notes or play on worship team. I didn’t leave my house. I’m tired of hearing about the coronavirus, but it isn’t something I can ignore. Or should. But that also doesn’t make it my focus. God is. And … Continue reading Two Reasons to Thank God Today
October 6 My friend asked a question last week that got me thinking: “Bethany, if you weren’t a Christian, where do you think you’d be today?” The more thought I gave it, the more sobering the question became. I started sensing just how much my faith infiltrates and informs me. I tried wrapping my mind … Continue reading A Serious Question
Two months ago, a friend emailed me for advice on finding a solid church. I wanted to respond that I was the wrong person to ask. I’ve never “church hopped” or “church shopped.” I’ve never had to hunt down a healthy congregation. My Dad became a pastor in 2001, the year I was born. Not … Continue reading 10 Things I Love About My Church
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