–by Sara Zarr When I was a child, I prayed like a child. I chattered to God while walking to and from school, in the hours alone as a latchkey kid and when going to sleep at night. Often these prayers sprang from joy, or at least the kind of good mood one seems to […]
—by Karen G. Bockelman My favorite photo of my father was taken more than 20 years ago. There he is, staring straight at the camera, his nearly bald head rising above a fringe of faintly visible hair. His round, German face beams. His eyes sparkle behind gold-rimmed glasses. It is not a professional photograph, taken […]
—by Elizabeth Hunter The questions and demands for quantification from my youngest son can be so numerous they overlap and tangle. His persistence can tire me out, yet I appreciate it. I’m grateful for opportunities to communicate everything from the fact that jumping off of the garage roof is not a good idea, to the […]
by Meghan Johnston Aelabouni— In the last few weeks of my grandmother’s life, while she was still alert enough to talk with us, she started recalling old memories: her childhood in New Jersey, seeing the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall and a certain snowy night she spent during World War II decorating the church […]
by Sojourner White— Growing up with the name “Sojourner” is a lifelong ice-breaker. People say: “What a beautiful name! What does it mean?” Or “I love your name. Where have I heard it before?” I’ve come to embrace their questions. I’ll tell you what I tell them. My namesake, Sojourner Truth, was a U.S. abolitionist […]
by Susan K. Olson— I spend a lot of time watching my daughter skate. In summer and winter alike, I shiver in the bleachers while she glides over the ice, silver blades flashing. She twirls, she spirals and she jumps. I tend to close my eyes when she jumps. She’s been at this for three […]
by Liv Larson Andrews— A wolf killed my uncle’s favorite llama. She was old and weak, with dark brown hair and kind eyes that would follow his truck up the dirt driveway. For many years my uncle has kept eight or nine llamas on his plot of Montana hillside. One winter, this wolf, large and […]
by Sarah Carson— Recently I needed to clean out my medicine cabinet. On one shelf were prescriptions from ailments past—pain medications, antibiotics, several jars of cranberry capsules (there must have been some sale at the pharmacy when I needed those!). On another shelf I found a half-used bottle of anti-nausea syrup, a travel-sized tin of […]
by Angela Khabeb— When I was eight, my father took my older sister, Chrystal, and me to an Andraé Crouch concert. Often called “the father of modern Gospel music,” Crouch was playing at the historic Orpheum Theater in my hometown of Omaha, Nebraska. The experience carried me into the sacred reality of the beloved community. […]
by Sarah Carson — When I went in for my check-up at 31 weeks pregnant, I had no idea anything was wrong inside my body. The nurse said my blood pressure was high, and I was sure it was a fluke. When the doctor announced, “You’ve just won yourself a trip to the hospital,” I remained […]
