Probably no one is more surprised about my recent spike in physical activity than I am or maybe perhaps my trainer since he was privy to my falling out on the floor every time he asked me to lift a weight in our early days training together. It all started with an email. Last September, … Continue reading Fit, Fitter, Fittest: Fence-sitter No More
I never ran. The PE department learned the hard way that running wasn’t for me. I would, without fail, end up in the nurse’s office laid out taking my inhaler, sitting on the floor with my head between my knees drinking coke, or wheezing into my school nebulizer (as distinct from the one I had … Continue reading The Longest Mile
In many ways, the past year and a half has felt like being an expat in a developing country. Friends and families’ lives move on at a regular pace—vacations, marriages, pregnancies, new jobs, new relationships—while yours seems to stand still by comparison. You’re being changed by the new and oftentimes uncomfortable realities of living … Continue reading Poor in Spirit in the Land of Plenty
I had a whole city block wondering who died as I wailed uncontrollably unable to find any privacy. After failing to stem my tears at my desk this afternoon, I ran outside to call my mom. At first when she asked what was wrong I offered only an earful of sobs, sniffs, and barely-caught breaths. … Continue reading He Can Also Give Us Bread
Lately, my journal has been filled more with admissions that I don't know how to pray than with prayers themselves when it comes to the boy. So, I ask God to teach me. I've been lamenting that here I am, once again, desiring someone who doesn't desire me, feeling overly emotionally invested in something so … Continue reading That Intended Joy: God’s Goodness Wrapped in a Man Who Doesn’t Return My Affection
He arrived two minutes early, blazered and buttoned up, with shoulders, as he put it, as wide as my hips. Finding our table, we exchanged compliments on how improved the date versions of ourselves were over our post-workout versions who had met the Saturday before on the edge of Chinatown. Had I not chosen the … Continue reading Searching for Mr. Sharpie
You know the story. High wall. Fragile man. Great fall. Irreparable damage. There were many moments where it felt like that was my year. Shortly after turning 33, someone told me it was my Jesus year. Listen, I don’t know what that means but if it means growing acquainted with the cross, not having … Continue reading 34 Eve: My Humpty Dumpty Year in Review
A few weeks back, I was describing to a friend this new class I've been taking and when I reached the end she asked who was teaching it. I said I am. "Well, where'd you get the syllabus?" she asked. I made it. She was surprised and asked if I'd ever considered becoming a teacher … Continue reading My Christian Nonfiction Writing “Class”
Upon receiving my first debit card 16 years ago when I started college, I promptly began to spend and spend big. With movie scenes depicting cards being declined at fancy restaurants in the back of my mind, I thought that once its balance reached zero, my card would stop letting me make purchases. I soon … Continue reading Pride, Prejudice, Pressure and Pain: Becoming a Skeptical Receiver
It wasn’t just a job I wanted as I hoped for the end to this season of waiting, but all that came with it: To wake up and not find 10 job search emails to sift through reminding me of my work status each morning. To stop being micromanaged by a 22 year old at … Continue reading On Contentment
Feet Cry Mercy 