“When St. Paul says to “pray without ceasing,” I think to myself, “That’s all well and good for you, St. Paul, but I am just a regular person.” I have carpool and Costco and an overflowing calendar. “
Read More“You once said that if you didn’t write, you’d wash your hands all day. This is true for me too, though it manifests itself in other ways: list-making, organizing, cleaning until I see disorder in every inch of my house. Writing becomes a compulsive behavior too, a way of finding clarity, of moving through the pain into something beautiful.”
Read MoreThe "Adoration of the Child" is depicted in this 17th-century painting by Dutch artist Gerard van Honthorst. In "Adoration of the Child," light is reflected off the faces of those gazing at the Christ Child.
Read my reflection on this art piece for Catholic News Service’s Faith Alive series
Read MoreHold on to your hats and glasses, cause this essay is going to be a bumpy ride.
This isn't like what you have read from me thus far.
“A few years ago, when my elder son was newly able to write his name and a few other scribblings of words, my family started a tradition called “Our Happy Jar.” I cleaned out a large Mason jar and filled it with colorful scraps of paper. “
Read MoreYou speak to us in dreams. Sometimes it is the only occasion you find us still and quiet. Quiet enough to hear your voice. Still enough to grab our attention.
You whisper to us throughout the day, reminding us you are present and that you delight in us. But we cannot hear you.
Read MoreI was driving home on a major street in downtown Seattle when a middle-aged man riding his bike to work slipped on a light-rail track. He, along with his bike, tumbled across the double yellow line and into oncoming traffic — specifically, my car.
Read MoreMy heart always sinks at the line in the Prayer for Generosity, “to give and not to count the cost,” because if I am truly honest with myself, I know I am always calculating the cost.
Read MoreRead how families can create sacred moments at Thanksgiving. Read my article for Loyola Press here.
Read MoreOctober 2 is the Feast of the Guardian Angels. Read my reflection on Guardian Angels and how I’ve experienced my own in this essay for Catholic News Service’s Faith Alive series.
Read MoreEntering Westminster Abbey on vacation with my 10-year-old son, I overheard a man with an American accent ask, “Can we take photos?”
“No, sorry, sir,” the docent apologized.
I remembered being disappointed my last visit when I realized no photos were allowed.
Read MoreI was interviewed for United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Made For Love podcast after my essay on vacations in Busted Halo. Host Sara Perla did an amazing job editing me. I sound like a lovable neurotic which is exactly me. Listen and Enjoy here.
Read MoreDelighted to have my writing published in Relief Journal for the first time. “Shemaiah Gonzalez paints a Eucharistic portrait of the tenuous first steps to human connection.”
Read MoreI can't be the only one who stresses out on vacation, right?
Read MoreIn my practice of looking for God, it’s rarely in the spotlight moments that I find him. It’s in the small, hidden places that God chooses to reveal himself. Here are a few I noticed.
Read MoreThe first time I sensed the presence of the Holy Spirit, I was four years old.
Read MoreThere is no way to prepare for the visceral images of six life-sized terracotta sculptures mourning over Christ’s body. The grief is palpable as viewers find themselves nearly frightened of the masterpiece. This grief is not quiet.
Read MoreHoly Week invites us to walk through the sufferings of Christ. Christ said very little when he was betrayed. He did not attempt to defend himself, but “humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross”
Read MoreLoneliness pulled me outside, to the streets. Buttoning my peacoat tight around me, I flipped the collar up to brace against the wind. Walking among the Saturday night crowds of Portand’s NW 23rd, I saw myself from above, as in a sad montage in a film.
Read More“There have been times where liminal space became more like a burial shroud than a cocoon. I stayed in a relationship, friendship, or in bad habits, waiting in this space for as long as I could, never pushing forward, until I grew used to my surroundings in languish. Even in its awkwardness, there is a sacredness in liminal space."
Read MoreThrives on moments where storytelling, art and faith collide.
