It's HERE! Menopause Moments |
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If the pandemic taught us anything, it was to be flexible. So here are the early details about a couple of events. Watch my website for updates.
- The morning of Friday, June 18, I hope you'll join me real time at Trinity House Cafe in Leesburg, VA, where we can share stories of the challenges and gifts (yes, there are gifts!) of menopause--and where we see God's love for us. I'll buy the scones and muffins!
- At 7 p.m. Friday, June 25, join me; my dear friend MEG Gilroy; and One More Page Books owner Eileen McGervey in an online discussion about why change is so hard for us (desire for control, anybody?). It should be a fun, spirited evening, with giveaways and more! This online event is free, but please register.
In between the events, I'll be treating myself to a do-it-yourself silent retreat at my happy place, the Trappist retreat center in Berryville, VA.
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Friends in Faith: Deborah Elliott-Upton |
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It was a hot west Texas day in Amarillo, and I was going to be teaching at a writers' conference. I came in a day earlier to "play" with a writer friend, Deborah Elliott-Upton, who I'd met a couple years earlier at the same conference. We had hit it off right away the first time, and I was looking forward to seeing Deborah's Amarillo. Of course the nearby Cadillac Ranch was on the list!
But Deborah also stepped out in faith, and asked if I'd want to see the 190-foot-tall cross and life-sized Stations of the Cross figures not far away in Groom. Now, she knew I had left my husband, and hadn't been churched for decades. Yet moved by the Holy Spirit, she asked anyway. I didn't know why, but I said yes. There was something profoundly spiritual about being in that space, so quiet and so beautiful in its spareness. It wasn't long after that that I began feeling the rekindling of faith in my heart and soul.
Time and distance have kept Deborah and me apart physically (something I hope changes in the coming year!) but she will always be an important part of my spiritual journey. She reminds me to extend Christ's invitation, whether or not it's immediately accepted.
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On the Nightstand: Be Bold in the Broken
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Mary Lenaburg's had a journey few of us would envy, but one that definitely inspires: twenty-two years of caring for her daughter Courtney, who as an infant suffered a series of seizures from which she never fully recovered. Mary's got a gift of transparency when it comes to sharing her story and struggles.... and how her family and faith sustain her.
I'm looking forward to reading her new book, in which Mary reminds us that God uses our brokenness for His purpose--if we're open to trust and to being bold.
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Everything Old Is New Again |
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I took my daily 30-minute post-work walk last Thursday, then stopped by the local farmers market and picked up a few things. It was something I used to do every Thursday on the way home. The weather was beautiful, so I stopped a couple blocks away at my favorite local restaurant, and had a flight of spring wines outside, then decided to stay for dinner. It was so unusual... and yet so normal. It was a lot like 2019, but I didn't take a second of it for granted.
I hope that as things are eased in your area, you remember to hold on to the good things we've all learned about the world and ourselves in the past 16 months. Drink them in! Blessings, Melanie
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Other ways to keep the conversation going: |
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