Positively (Im)perfect

It's been a rough, tough patch lately in an already barren desert of a season. My body has all but quit. So many hard situations plague the surrounding world. So many loved ones seem trapped in a slow downhill shift toward another long, dark valley. Today, I felt the sigh of reality escape my lips as I gingerly washed some day-old strawberries that were already headed past their prime, hoping to pump some vitamin C into my sweet boy who'd just spiked a fever. He glanced at them and a smile lit up his flushed little face. "Soon," he said, his tired but bright eyes widening with delight, "we won't have to buy them from the store anymore. We'll pick them from our garden!" I'd forgotten how, a few weeks ago, I'd excitedly led the kids out back to show them the first, almost hidden surprises of spring. The green baubles of new buds clinging to dry skeletons of branches. The ruddy stubs of rhubarb and sharp green edges of bulbs, peeking o

I've actually gotten through a decent number of books since the start of the New Year. I immediately chased after a few new titles from my favorite genre of World War II memoirs/historical fiction before reeling it back in; since then, I've tried to stick with books already downloaded in my Kindle "stack" before getting any more. For the most part, this meant finishing a few series of classics; those well-written, but more relaxed, meandering reads that sometimes take a little longer. It's been a good departure from more intriguing but sometimes less substantial page-turners I often reach for. Here's the list so far... Finished Reading Kiss Every Step |  Doris Martin An incredible memoir of a Jewish family in Poland that managed to all survive the Holocaust, even though they were separated; one even ended up at a camp, and virtually all the remaining Jews from their village were wiped out. I found out about this book from a friend who met the a

Today I'm over on the Blessed is She Blog sharing 10 Things You Might Not Know about Saint Patrick as well as some fun, faithful ways to celebrate his day in a more authentic way. I had a good deal of fun researching and writing this piece. Some of the 10 facts were definitely things I didn't know before, and a few facts I thought I knew were actually not very accurate! So whether you have a million Saint Patrick's Day traditions or none, you might be just as surprised as me to learn another thing or two about the Great Saint of Ireland. So Happy Saint Patrick's Day, friends, and no need to pinch me if I'm wearing blue and skipping the alcohol, for I've got lots of Scottish blood just like our Saint of honor. Now go and read if you're confused -- wink -- and see how good you are at your Saint Patrick's Day trivia!

Lent. Sweet, dear, long-awaited Lent. Oh, it's here--loud and clear. A few days ago, I wrote a nicely-packaged little sentiment about my Lenten goals before logging off social media for the season. It went something like this: I'm giving up social media for the first time! I'm hoping to be back for the Alleluia chorus with: • better time management   • a more vibrant prayer life   • renewed effort in nourishing one-on-one relationships   • & better discipline in first serving the people in front of my face who need me before I dive in to connect with those on my screen. I then came here and started this little ditty of a post to expand upon those points - so I could tell you that even though Facebook is officially meh, I knew it would still challenge me because social media has led me to some incredible community and amazing relationships, some even turning into real-life local friends. But then I was going to concede that I don't need to furth