Ready and Waiting
For 5 years, I worked as a nurse in a neonatal intensive care unit. Most of the babies I took care of were born prematurely. When we think of a few months over the course of our lives, it doesn’t seem like much. But to a child in the womb, that time is crucial. Even when it looks like the baby has fully developed, growth is still happening and the lungs are maturing...all in preparation for what is to come. To remove them from that environment early puts the baby at risk. They can get back on track but the
Bruises and Wounds
Not so long ago I found myself on my knees after taking a nasty fall. There were scrapes, but I dusted myself off as quickly as possible and went on with my day. I smiled and nodded my way through each conversation afterwards. As far as I could tell, no one around me could detect that I was sore or in pain. This event made me wonder how often I encounter someone who has an emotional bruise or wound that I am unaware of. Maybe it’s someone who feels hurt after an awful argument with their spouse. Maybe it’s someone
Life Mimicking My Kid’s Books… Again
Welcome to another episode of "Life Mimicking My Children's Books"! Come in, sit down and stay for a while! In this week's episode, we will be discussing the book Pete the Cat and His Magic Sunglasses by Kimberly Dean. Here's the book report: Pete the cat wakes up one morning and is grumpy for no reason. Pete is NEVER grumpy (I know!), so this is a big shock to his system. As he begins to go through his day, a friend gives him a pair of "cool, blue sunglasses" that help him "see things in a whole new way." Now all
Purposefully Planned
Years ago, if someone asked me where I was from, I would just say “Dallas” but then I’d always get the follow-up question…“No. Where are you REALLY from?” So, to avoid that conversation, I now give everyone who asks a brief but all-encompassing bio…“I am Indian but I was born in the United States.” On the flip side, when I visited India, the people there could take one look at me and know I was not REALLY from there either. Once I opened my mouth and attempted to speak our native language, their suspicions were confirmed. I am proud to
Labor of Love
Yesterday we were invited to the celebration of new love at a sweet engagement party. Then, we had the honor of celebrating seasoned love at a beautiful 50th anniversary party. These events helped my husband and I recall our own early days with fondness and we were inspired to look at the years ahead with hope. Presently we find ourselves almost in the middle of this spectrum as we approach our 19th anniversary tomorrow. We openly share with the couples we work with that our ideals of love faded fairly quickly as my husband had to adjust to a pretty
When I Pray
When you pray for something, what is your motivation? To be honest, many of my prayer requests have to do with me or my family. I’m sure I try to spiritualize it somehow, but at the core they can be pretty self-serving. It made me wonder what types of prayer get God’s attention? I stumbled onto something when I read one of the prayers of King Solomon. When Solomon succeeded his father David as king of Israel, he was young and very inexperienced. Scholars say he was somewhere between 20 and 30 years old. But Solomon did not
Filtered
Indian chai is my drink of choice. In fact, I just had a cup of it, and it was delightful. The blend of cardamom and ginger mixed in with tea leaves evolves into a taste and aroma that is unmatched, in my opinion. Take a sip and the calm slowly creeps into an otherwise chaotic day. I have realized over time that there are several ways to concoct chai, using any variety of natural spices. However, unless you are using a simple tea bag, you need a strainer. Without that filter, your cup of tea is just a grainy, lumpy,
Chloral Hydrate
Chloral hydrate. Just the mention of the word makes me cringe. When my son was nine months old, his body was affected by what doctors believed to be a virus. This virus caused him to experience a high fever, red eyes, red lips and it affected his heart. After his initial hospitalization stay, we were advised that our son would need to have an echocardiogram performed every few months to ensure his heart was healing properly. The echocardiogram visit required that our son lay still. Try telling that to an eleven month old! And that’s where chloral hydrate comes into
Just Cry Out to God
Recently when I taught on worship, it brought to light what I have felt for years. Worship is giving extravagant honor to the Lord. The amount of love God has demonstrated is unfathomable and He alone is worthy of all praise. I don’t know about you, but it seems completely natural to do such when all is well in your world, right? You are blessed beyond belief and enjoying His presence and you can’t help but praise Him. But what is our response when our world seems to come to a halt? Unexpected news or circumstances appear out
Always Cold? …. We don’t have to Be
If you’re a woman over the age of forty, then you know, the struggle is real. Those annual physicals and everything else that goes with it. Well, it was that time of year again and there I was, standing by the door in the corner of the room as the technician adjusted the large X-Ray machine . She looked over at me, “Oh honey, you look cold. Can I get you a warm robe?” I wonder what gave it away? Perhaps she noticed my lifted shoulders or my crossed arms or that the gown I was wearing offered me
