Although it is not my intention to be annoying, I recognize that some people may become frustrated by the delays they experience when communicating with me digitally. Perhaps there are times when I go too far in my attempts to tame the distractions of the digital world, yet I find myself continually searching for harmony: …
Category: Defining Moments
Big Forks, Little Forks
Take a moment and reflect: when you think back to your childhood, can you picture the dishes or flatware your family used every day? Until Hannah Brencher planted the seed of Big Forks, Little Forks in her book The Unplugged Hours, I'm not sure I could have described my parents' silverware pattern, despite nearly fifty …
Blue Zones
There are times that I wish that I didn’t find correlating messages so frequently, because it generally means there is more reading ahead. And as much as I love reading and learning, I had really expected an Expiration Date for this flourishing topic; instead, it keeps going and going like that one battery company’s mascot! …
Expiration Dates
When teaching about food safety in nutrition, it is not uncommon for me to educate students on the differences between “buy by,” “use by,” or Expiration Dates. Although I do not advise it, the reality is that sometimes I allow these to be mere suggestions, not necessarily a hard line. There are exceptions though, most …
For Good
On a drive through south-central Kentucky, it’s not uncommon to lose a radio signal while passing through a holler tucked between rocky cliffs. Yes, I still sometimes listen to that now-archaic format of music sent across the airwaves. And for younger generations, losing a radio signal often means losing a cellphone signal too. For that …
Cognitive Closure
When a season ends painfully or unexpectedly, the mind naturally searches for Cognitive Closure—a firm explanation that will quiet uncertainty and restore a sense of stability. Psychologically, this is understandable. When a story feels unresolved, we long for clarity, coherence, and a verdict about what happened and what it means. For faculty, whose vocation is …
Isaiah 43
It seems hard to believe, but it has now been more than five years since Isaiah 43 first nudged its way into my life. And here we are—still waiting for that Something New. Yes, much has changed. And yet, in many ways, I feel as though I am still sitting in a Waiting Room, watching …
BOLO
Perhaps this offers a bit too much insight into my reading—and viewing—preferences, but this week, while reading Jesus Calling, a single word flashed through my mind: BOLO. Sarah Young writes: “Knowing that your future is absolutely assured can free you to live abundantly today… Instead of approaching the day as a blank page that you …
Climate Change
As an educator who teaches environmental health, I could easily present statistics and expert opinions about the physical well‑being of our planet. But that’s not the Climate Change I want to talk about today. Instead, I want to invite you to consider a shift far more urgent than melting ice caps or receding glaciers: the …
Troublesome Women
In my earlier post Here Comes Trouble, I talked about the good kind of trouble—the kind that might even have you humming along to that 1990s country classic, “T‑R‑O‑U‑B‑L‑E.” But when we look at Jesus and His disciples, “trouble” takes on a deeper meaning. It isn’t distress or anxiety; it’s a holy disruption—an interruption that …
Flourishing @ Life 