My war with the mirror
My body and I have been at war for as long as I can remember. “Voluptuous” was in vogue when I was a teen, but back then, I was as skinny as a bean pole. But by the time... »
Personal Accounts
Marriage is hard
Valentine’s Day is coming up and I’m browsing the card aisle looking for the right card to give my husband on this, our 20th Valentine’s Day together. I’m looking for the... »
Five word plan
At any point in time, there’s always someone looking to revitalize their life or turn over a new leaf. If that’s you right now, here’s a simple plan that I found to be in... »
Renewing your mind
I once talked with a woman who said she tried very hard to think only positive thoughts, but she was never able to keep it up for long. Even when she managed to appear op... »
The bathtub principle
It looks like the bathtub is finally getting fixed! So I thought when I arrived back at our mission center to find a man respraying the bathtub in our front bathroom. Our... »
Something out of very little
The saying, “Necessity is the mother of Invention,” certainly took on greater meaning lately, with the increased challenges due to the pandemic and people needing to find... »
A different take on goals
As the 2020 new year began, I had a long list of goals and plans. I had high expectations and hoped to reach at least half of the items on my list. The year started off w... »
Where is hope?
I didn’t like my mood. It wasn’t exactly cold—more like chilly with a chance of thunderstorms. Exactly like the weather that day. I knew why I was feeling that way, and i... »
The faith way
Like a lot of people, as each new year approaches, I try to reflect on the past year and set goals for the coming one. As I was about to do that this year, a friend sent... »
Best-laid plans
Ever since our family moved to southeast Texas, we’ve been experiencing frequent hurricanes, floods, sweltering heat in the summer, and freezing temperatures in the winte... »
Dandelions and green scallions
Nature is amazingly resilient. The temperature had dropped to freezing, and though I had carefully covered my plants, I was sad to discover that the frost killed quite a... »
A living sacrifice
“Dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find... »