I feared having a tooth extracted, but the tooth was cracked and could not be saved. I had it pulled two weeks ago, and I am still dealing with a dry socket. I may have to change dentists because, after seeing me for the dry socket once, the dentist now tells me to use dry... Continue Reading →
Peace Comes When the Beat of the Music and the Beats of My Heart Become One
I spent many a day trying to find peace in a chaotic world. The way it was described to me was that peace was the absence of noise, a quiet time of contemplation and reflection. But I found that not to be so. Peace is like beauty, in the eye of the beholder, meaning it... Continue Reading →
I Used to Think I was Ordinary, But No More!
Paris, France, May 2024 As a black woman raised in the South in Tennessee, I thought that I was an ordinary person, nothing special about me. I was told that I would probably live my whole life in the South, never going beyond the boundary of my hometown. I was also someone who loved books... Continue Reading →
Unsolicited Advice or Opinions Get My Goat
One thing that bothers me is unsolicited opinions on my behavior. Social media is packed with it, and the ability to remain anonymous has increased the rate of unsolicited opinions given in such hateful and unloving ways to people they don't even know. I don't like it when people think they have the right to... Continue Reading →
Having It All Depends on How You Define “All”
Daily writing promptWhat does "having it all" mean to you? Is it attainable?View all responses What is considered all for me may be different from how my husband defines all. For instance, we are traveling right now, and in Vienna and Budapest, I was content with two attractions a day with a day of rest... Continue Reading →
Half Way to Graduation: Hanging in There, But Tired!
Garden of Santa Barbara in Braga, Portugal, September 2024 The official records have been corrected, and I am officially certified to graduate in May. I have about eight more weeks of assignments and attending classes, and then I will have sweet freedom. I love learning, but it takes me longer now at age 73 to... Continue Reading →
The Fear of Being Invisible Never Seems to Leave Us
Daily writing promptWhat’s something most people don’t know about you?View all responses I have written before of my nickname in high school, from grade seven until I graduated. I marveled, even as I cringed and tried to quickly move through the halls as fast as possible, that people who viewed themselves as human beings could... Continue Reading →
Our Bodies Know What They Need: Listen to Them!
Daily writing promptDo lazy days make you feel rested or unproductive?View all responses Sunday, I asked one of my fellow church members about his wife's absence because I had never seen them separate during church. He leaned into my ear and whispered with no small amount of shame that she was playing hooky. I told... Continue Reading →
Seeking the Power that Emanates from Jesus: A Devotional
Amsterdam, May 2023 Mark 8:30-34 Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my robe?”His disciples said to him, “Look at this crowd pressing around you. How can you ask, ‘Who touched me?’”n But he kept on looking around to see... Continue Reading →
Life Lessons for the Journey Ahead
Douglas at The Eiffel Tower, Paris, France, May 27, 2023 Lesson One: Do not allow others to define who you are or what you can be or accomplish. Learn to define yourself as valuable and of great worth. Lesson Two: A little insanity in our lives is not a bad thing. Insanity refers to the... Continue Reading →
Help from Heaven 