moving day
This past January marked my tenth move in ten years. Among those temporary abodes in the past decade was the furnished home of some missionaries who went on furlough for a year. Our family had the privilege of looking after their belongings and their dogs while they were away. Prior to this twelve-month arrangement, we had spent four months in a different rental nearby. Shortly after we had moved in, my husband’s back started to give him problems, so we decided to try a mattress with firmer springs. The day the new mattress was to be delivered, we hauled the old one from the master...
the pursuit of home, part 2
Let's face it. We pursue a lot of things in this world. Too many things. We pursue happiness. A future spouse. Parenthood. We pursue attention. Titles. Qualifications. We pursue money. Status. Comfort. We pursue peace. Health. Equality. The United States Declaration of Independence states that we are entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Will Smith starred in a movie about it. Many of these are admirable goals to desire and seek to attain. But what ought to be our ultimate pursuit? Others may phrase the same question this way: "What are we here for?" Isaiah 43:7...
the pursuit of home, part 1
In an introduction to the classic, Anne of Green Gables, Jack Zipes writes this: “Of course, the personage of Anne, the fictional Anne-girl, is more than anyone can imagine. Depending on who reads or has read Anne of Green Gables, she is a saint, sister, daughter or celebrity. Montgomery has touched our imaginations with her creation of Anne, just as Anne touches everyone with whom she comes into contact in the idyllic community of Avonlea. Once touched, we shall keep on reaching out to her because she keeps alive something that we sorely need if we are to move forward in the pursuit...
a place prepared
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me ...." John 14:1-3a Let us cling to this promise of a place prepared. This is Day 6 of 'Defining Home in 31 Days.' If you missed any of the first five posts, click...
the house that built me
Have you ever felt this way? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQYNM6SjD_o The House that Built Me - Miranda Lambert I know they say you can't go home again I just had to come back one last time Ma'am, I know you don't know me from Adam But these hand prints on the front steps are mine Up those stairs in that little back bedroom Is where I did my homework and I learned to play guitar And I bet you didn't know under that live oak My favorite dog is buried in the yard I thought if I could touch this place or feel it This brokenness inside me might start healing Out here it's like I'm someone...
in which i deviate from the plan
Last night, I had a nice, compact, neatly packaged blog post all wrapped up with a pretty bow on top, ready and waiting for you to unwrap today. But that was last night. This morning I woke up, logged in to Facebook, and saw pictures of two of my sisters embarking on a 60-mile journey to fight breast cancer. They say "Home is where the heart is." If that's true, then Philadelphia is my home this weekend, though I've yet to set foot on its soil. Yesterday I wrote about how my mom died two years ago. She was 59. It was breast cancer. A year ago, two of my sisters set their minds and hearts...
heading home
I settled down into seat 34G, disappointed that I didn’t get the aisle. Well, I guess it was to be expected, considering I had only booked my flights from South Africa to the United States that same morning. The 50-something woman who had scored the aisle seat next to me waited until she heard the click of the seatbelt between my fingers before she tried to break the ice. “So, are you headed home?” she asked innocently. Little did she know just how loaded those five words really were. I paused. The hesitation was just a little too long. But I genuinely did not know what to say. “Well, I …...
my personal definition
Home. Not just any feather pillow, but my feather pillow. The one that lulled me to sleep each night on the bottom bunk, body wrapped in a cocoon of untucked flannel sheets. The feather pillow that was subjected to many an argument between my sister and me, always over the same thing: “I want the door open.” “Well, I want it closed.” “I want the radio on.” “Too bad, I want it off.” “You had it off last night.” Home. Not just any dining room table, but our dining room table. The polished mahogany table that was annually blanketed with snowy flour and massaged year after year by...
defining home
Ask twelve people to define ‘home,’ and you will get twelve very different answers. Shucks, I probably even have twelve different definitions of my own when it comes to my personal perception of home. There are my childhood memories of home, my attempts to establish a home away from home as a new bride, the current state of chaos that my kids refer to as home … No two brushstrokes are painted the same on the canvas of my mind when considering the meaning packed into this four-letter word. It’s relative, isn’t it? This notion of ‘home.’ So what ‘defines’ home for you? Is it a specific...
31 days :: the kick-off
So, today's the day ... Here I am, kicking off my first-ever blog post series: Defining Home in 31 Days I do, however, feel the need to preface this particular topic, and perhaps even offer a bit of a disclaimer. Obviously, my 'definition' of home is biased. I don't seek in this series to define home for the reader, but rather to share how my own personal reflections of home have changed and developed over the years as a result of various experiences and circumstances. As I shared in a previous post, over the course of the next month, I plan to share: reflections on my experiences...
Hi! I'm Kate, and I'm so glad you've stopped by! Click here
Join the Five Minute Friday Writing Community:
Featured on:
