“You will never know real love,” intoned the preacher, “Never experience the full extent of God’s love, until you have your own child.” I was a teenager then: young, passive and impressionable. The preacher’s words certainly made an impression on me that day. Gee, non-parents must miss out big time. These days, I am not […]
Forced Choice
I had been married for two years when I was diagnosed with lupus. I was thirty-one years old at the time. My husband and I had decided to enjoy our time together before making any hurried decisions about family. Our deadline was to make a decision by the time I turned thirty-five. We were not […]
One Divine Breadcrumb
Last week I shared about how writing, and any other act of faith, is a little like following the trail of breadcrumbs through the forest in the manner of the fairytale Hansel and Gretel. Today I would like to share a recent breadcrumb experience. It was a Sunday night at church. The preacher had just […]
Breadcrumbs
From time to time, I get asked about writing and songwriting. People want to know how I keep coming up with ideas for blogs, songs and books in a series. Sometimes I wonder where all the ideas come from and if I will ever run out. Every writer is different. They may source their inspiration […]
What Not To Say
One thing people ask me about is how to talk to childless people. Specifically, people who are parents tell me they worry about saying the wrong thing to those who are childless. Such conversations can be a tricky bridge to cross. I can understand this. I have been the recipient of a few “wrong things” […]
To My Friends With Children
You may not believe this. I have friends who are parents. Here I am, a childless thirty-something, friends with other people who have children. It’s true. But how can this happen, I hear you ask? Don’t childless people get put off by parents and vice versa? Not all of us. Some of us are very […]
Lamenting Childlessness
“It’s God’s will.” “Maybe God doesn’t want you to be a parent.” “You need to get on with your life.” Society is good at handing out advice to childless people. It tells people how they ought to feel and for how long. Those of us who are grieving do not need a pat answer or […]
Start Again
Like so many of my songs, “Start Again” began with an honest moment of prayer. I had been repenting of some hidden sins suddenly thrust into the light, when the words seemed to form musical phrases in my mind. Before I knew it, I was writing down this song. There are many songs out there […]
Lamenting Singledom
Single and 29. It does not sound very old, does it? And yet I felt ancient. Surrounded by 21-year-old marrieds, I was beginning to feel like life had passed me by. Fellow 29-year-olds were trying to decide whether or not to have a third child. Meanwhile, my prayers for a husband seemed to be falling […]
Angry with God
“Oh God, You have rejected us and cast us off, Broken down our defenses, and scattered us. You have been angry – O restore us And turn Yourself to us again! You have made the land to quake and tremble, You have rent it open; Repair its breaches, for it shakes and totters. You have […]