A PEN IN MY HAND

"I never know what I think about something until I read what I have written about it." - William Faulkner

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SORRY; NOT SORRY.

a disclaimer

If there was an Overthinkers Anonymous group, I'd be in it. Overthinking has hobbled every blog I have ever attempted to start. I worry too much about my audience. My various readers. My eclectic blend of precious friends. The liberals and the conservatives, the atheists and the devout. But you know what? I'm just me. I love you all. And I'm a tangle of contradictions with no label that can really stick to this skin. So, I'm going to write what I write. Read it or don't. But if you do, I hope it blesses you. I hope it stretches you. I hope it touches you in some way that matters. That is all.

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Growing Up Girl

Last year, I was asked to write a series of blogs promoting a mother/daughter retreat dealing with the theme “Unloved.” The blogs went out anonymously, which was fine; but it’s been nagging at me thinking of them out there on the internet, like little orphans alone and unclaimed. I’ve compiled an abridged version of them here because I think they are sad and true. They do not reflect the way things should be, but they do reflect the way things often are. And this is what I kn

Wild With Me

“Batter my heart… for you as yet but knock…” – John Donne You can be wild with me. I am not afraid. You don’t have to dampen your flames, Temper your passion, Curb your strength, Dim your light. I want it all. Consume me, Overwhelm me, Overpower me, Illuminate me. Only let me do the same. Let me be my whole self with you. And do not turn away. You can be fierce with me. I am not afraid. You don’t have to tone down your fury, Explain your paradoxes, Sanitize your metaphors, Hi

Cocoon

It is time, you say, For the metamorphosis. Then you stitch me in. You wrap me in silk, Completely isolated, And you unmake me. I wait in the dark To see what I will become: Crucible of trust. I digest myself, Feeding on the solitude, Waiting to emerge.

On Being Known

You have searched me, and you know me… You understand my thoughts from far away… Before a word is on my tongue, you know it… You have encircled me; You have placed Your hand on me. This extraordinary knowledge is beyond me; I am unable to reach it.… when I wake up, I am still with You. (Psalm 139) I see you, perceive your details, read your eyes like a poem. When you speak, I gather up the subtext sprinkled between your words. When you are silent, I can still hear you. When y

I Wouldn’t Want to Know: An honest look at a woman’s fear

When I was seven years old, my favorite album (and by album, I mean vinyl) was “Helen Reddy’s Greatest Hits.” I knew all the lyrics to “I am Woman”, and I belted them out with gusto. I had no idea it was a feminist rallying cry. Maybe my mother didn’t either, wrapped up as she was in her new-found Christian faith and finding her role as homemaker to be a calling both sacred and satisfying. I’m sure my father knew. Regardless, it wasn’t that song that I played over and over. I

2017 in Review: A Collage of Reflections & Words

This past year has been a momentous journey physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. I think the best way I can launch this blog is to dive into the deep end and share excerpts of many pieces I have written. I've arranged them chronologically. My hope is these words give words to the true things my readers might feel but struggle to express for themselves. That is why I write. The Rabbit Hole. A place I have entered by descending to an unnatural depth, going down, down

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