The Faith of her Friends

(This is a little glimpse into my life this past year, when I started going to regular appointments with the greatest counselor ever.) I hold my hot cup of tea between my hands, letting the warmth relax the feeble muscles in my fingers and wrists until they tingle. (Friends tell me that my weird superpower is that I can tolerate extremely hot temperatures.) I let the steam gather moisture on my cheeks and the end of my nose and close my eyes to breathe in the scent of lavender and bergamot and vanilla.  "It's just that I have all these dear friends who I see throughout the day, and caring family members who are just a phone call away, and yet I don't feel like I have anyone I can talk to, at least not about this..." I've been talking out loud, but with my eyes shut, focused on the comfort of the tea, but now I open my eyes and look at the chair sitting on the opposite side of my dining room table.  (Before you think I am delusional, I'll clarify that I do know...

Lately, people have been asking me what was my favorite part of my trip to England. I have a hard time answering that, because I had favorite aspects of everything we did! My snarky response is: "England. My favorite part was England. Just all of it." But if you were to ask me what the most impactful thing was, I would say Westminster Abbey. So far, there hasn't been a day that has gone by since I returned when I have not thought about that remarkable place.  I mean, first of all, it was visually stunning, more so than I could have imagined. The architecture was breathtaking, the colors and light were inspiring, and the height of the vaulted ceiling just made me want to look up and up and up... The artistry of the vivid stained glass, icons, furniture, and chandeliers... and then the detailed and preserved sculptures and sepulchers and sarcophagi... things that required a lot of time and attention and care to create! It felt like each piece was an act of worship, an artis...

While in London, we took a river boat tour down the Thames. Even though the captain told us he was not a professional tour guide, he did share some interesting anecdotes, clever jokes, and entertaining stories along the way, which he said he had just collected from years of living in the city. Near the end of the ride, the captain announced (in his heavy cockney accent) that after the tour, he and his first mate would be going to the local pub, "strictly for research." There are a dozen places in the world that I have wanted to visit for years (Buenos Aires, Cyprus, Paris, Seoul, and Venice, just to name a few), and part of the reason I haven't yet is because I couldn't decide where to begin. But about five years ago, something started to happen in my life that set me on this trajectory to make Scarborough, England, my first overseas destination.  I love Jane Austen books. I can't tell you how many times I've read Pride and Prejudice and giggled at Mr. Bennet...

  I’m a Harry Potter fan. Not in a crazy, wizardry fangirl kind of way, but more in a mature, deep-appreciation-for-great-literature kind of way. So when I got the chance to visit England, I wanted to see all the notable sites, including Platform 9 ¾ at London Kings Cross train station.  I wasn’t really sure how the Brits feel about Harry Potter and his worldwide popularity, but I was surprised to find that they were quite favorable toward him and proudly pointed out Goathland train depot and the Millennium Bridge , both made famous by being featured in the Harry Potter movies. So when we got off the train at Kings Cross and were rushing along to meet our cab driver, the train employee who was assisting us was more than happy to indulge our desire for a quick photo at the renowned platform. “But there will be quite a queue, so I’ll take you by way of a short cut,” he said, and in true Disney World fashion , he whisked us through a door and led us down some hidden hallways an...

 Well, clearly I did not blog while I was in England! Sorry about that, if you were hoping for a play-by-play. It was a whirlwind of amazing moments and precious gifts from the Lord that I still am having a hard time believing were real. It's taking me a while to get settled back in at home to my normal routine, and I don't think it's because of jet-lag, but probably because I left a little piece of my heart there.  Traveling wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. Oh, it wasn't delightful or especially comfortable, but I don't think it is for anyone, and I don't think any of us really expect it to be. I didn't get hurt and my chair was not seriously damaged, so I say it was a win. The weather was surprisingly clear and sunny and beautiful, and we all stayed healthy and safe, praise Jesus.   If you have access to Instagram, you can see all my photos there (courtesy of my dad, who was our faithful and surprisingly skilled photographer all week). And if yo...

Welcome back! I made it through another long Indiana winter, by the power and faithfulness of God!  I got to enjoy family time in Memphis for six weeks, and then did my best to make the Salt Life Cottage warm and cozy during hibernation. I did get pneumonia in January but managed not to land in hospital; my friends helped me fight that good fight for ten days and we conquered it. Speaking of fights, Medicaid battles have been brutal lately, but I am doing all I can and learning (over and over) to trust the Lord to provide.  Spring was slow in coming, and summer has been even slower. We've had a handful of beautiful, warm, sunny days so far, but even today is cool and overcast with a forecast of rain. But it feels to me like preparation for my newest experiment...  Guys, THIS SUNDAY I am leavin' on a jet plane bound for England! It's my first overseas trip and the longest flight I've ever taken. It will be an experiment in airplane travel, accessible tourism, public tran...