Mother-Son Summer Book Club
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Reading Classics with your children doesn’t have to be painful.
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Preparing for a Big Trip
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I did not grow up traveling. We were poor and did not have time or the means for travel. Our vacations were usually a weekend camping trip to a site close enough that our beat-up car could make it there and back.
So in 2018 when my husband told me he had a two month Sabbatical and we were going to take our children out of school and spend it in Italy—I was shocked. Since that Sabbatical, we have done quite a bit more, each time becoming more efficient and streamlined so we can just enjoy the experience, instead of stressing.
Friends often ask me for pointers, so I thought I’d put them all in one place.
Read MoreMy Most Anticipated Reads for 2024
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Here are a few books I am looking forward to reading……and a few are available for pre-order!
Read MoreWord for the New Year: LOVE
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Do you choose a word for the new year? My word this year is LOVE.
Check out my latest for Ignatian Spirituality
Read MoreAnnunciation
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San Fermo Maggiore Church in Verona, Italy, features foundation stones from the fifth century, so I was quite surprised to find, tucked behind one of the central pillars bearing the weight of the upper church, an exquisite modern sculpture of the Annunciation. Sometimes modern art in ancient places is jarring. It doesn’t fit quite right. Yet this piece took my breath away.
Read MoreBest Reads of 2023
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I read over 50 books a year so many ask “what were your favorites?” I decided to make a list to share.
Read MoreReview: Notes on the Poet: A Little Book of Criticism by John Poc
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This book is a companion, not merely something to read.
Read MoreEvening Magic Podcast
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I’ve always wanted to chat with Robert McCready since I met him on X. I finally got to as a guest on his podcast Evening Magic.
Read MoreFaith-filled Books for Under the Tree
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Perhaps because I write for Christian publications or perhaps it is because I have a million books of my own, people are often asking me for Christian book recommendations for children.
These are some of my favorites. I have picked up a few for my favorite little people and I hope you will too.
Read MoreThe Scandal of Reading Podcast
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Honored to talk to Jessica Hooten Wilson on The Scandal of Reading Podcast. We spoke about joy and Christian Wiman's collection of Joy Poetry. I would have talked to Jessica if no one listens to this podcast. She is that special of a woman.
Read MorePerformance Anxiety Podcast
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Pleased to share this conversation I had with Marc Shea of Performance Anxiety Podcast. We chat about writing, God, being included in Pope Francis’ Sharing the Wisdom of Time by Loyola Press, staying at monasteries and an Abbot’s questions about the Night Stalker, happiness vs joy, depression and my fear of capybaras. Basically, just a regular conversation with me.
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Waiting in Liminal Space
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Liminal space, a place of transition, is the moment in time caught between then and now, the past and the not yet. These places can make you feel uncomfortable, like airports or waiting rooms. Or, as an engaged couple or a pregnant woman, they remind you that you are not who you have been and neither are you who you will become.
Read MoreThe Annunciation
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The splash of paint begins to take form and I make out wings. No, this is not an abstract painting or ink blot test. I am standing before an angel.
Read MoreAttuning to God's Voice Within
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Among the many questions that surface is, “How will I know which voice is God?” This is not an easy question to answer.
Read MoreReview: Katy Carl's Fragile Objects
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It has been a while since I read a collection of short stories as captivating as Fragile Objects by Katy Carl.
Read MoreReview: Jody L. Collins Mining the Bright Birds: Poems of Longing for Home.
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In Mining the Bright Birds: Poems of Longing for Home, Jody L. Collins invites the reader into a moment, a minute of quotidian life, to witness. These poems reflect both in outward revelation of God’s glory in creation but also inward, the secret space within a heart attuned to His love.
Read MoreAndrew Wyeth's Snow Hill and the Subjects of Art
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At first glance, it’s a peculiar scene: a maypole in the middle of winter.
Read MoreZoom: Poetry of Faith and Doubt
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Like David called out to the Lord in Psalms, so too, modern psalmists wrestle with doubt and faith in the language of poetry. From Pádraig Ó Tuama’s popular podcast Poetry Unbound to Douglas Murray’s weekend poetry reflection Things Worth Remembering for The Free Press, there has been a resurgence in finding meaning and solace through the doorway of poetry. Spend three luscious hours reading and discussing 20th and 21st century poetry and how these words can hold us as we struggle with faith and doubt.
Read MoreFirst Art Love: Van Gogh's Mulberry Tree
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I don’t think any of us had grown up feeling like art was something we could approach. Graffiti, silkscreen and maybe Disney were for the likes of us. But the stuff in museums, that was for kids in John Hughes movies or people who lived in New York. Not us.
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I always come to this prayer time with auspicious expectations. I know God is going to show up. I just don’t know how. I am always surprised how he does.