rebelling against low expectations
Everybody has a different way of mourning. Some stay quiet and to themselves, blocking out the world. Some try to brush it off and hang out with friends, so they don’t feel the pain so strongly. Some laugh it off, pretending they don’t care. Yet still others take you into their confidence and tell you all that they are thinking. There is no “one-size-fits-all” when it comes to comforting your...
If you have been a Christian for a long time, I’m sure you have heard the Christmas Story a dozen times. We hear it so much that we’ve become blind to the goodness of it. We forget to take in what it really means. The Christmas story about God becoming man to build His kingdom here on Earth is very intriguing, but I think we miss the reason Christmas is such a sweet time. God was unable to be...
I used to hate music. I never listened to it and didn’t like it when people played it around me. It wasn’t until I got older, I realized why. Music evokes and awakens emotions. Strong emotions. Often unpleasant emotions. What I really hated were emotions, not music. Looking back, I understand why. The little girl and young teenager was hurting. She felt she had to keep her emotions in check. She...
On August 8th, 2021, around nine in the evening, I received the call I had been dreading. My mom’s voice was shaky and quiet at the other end as she broke the news. Mema was gone. Our family had been waiting for her to pass away—we knew the end was near—for eight days. We said our goodbyes during visits to the hospice house where she was staying. My grief is still raw. It hurts to think about her...
She just couldn’t bring herself to do it. Her mother and siblings were urging her to join them as they were leaving for a trip–but Elizabeth felt panic rushing over her body, and she couldn’t explain why. As the panic attack stole Elizabeth’s control over her body, she passed out on the ground, cancelling her family’s trip as they rushed to help her. Dark episodes like these continued throughout...
rebelling against low expectations
