13 Hours of Rain

in·teg·ri·ty : the quality of being honest and having strong principles; moral uprightness. group·think : the practice of thinking or making decisions as a group in a way that discourages creativity or individual responsibility. e·mo·tion·al in·tel·li·gence : the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically. There are times I wonder if institutions or organizations (or dare I say churches) even ponder on what kind of leaders they are hiring. Sometimes it seems like a particular person attained a position of power because of three interconnected reasons: (1) personal connections, (2) the ability to perform well in an interview, and (3) the assurance that the prospective employee will be in sync with the status quo. Of course, qualifications and experience are definitely considered. But even the resume items of education, previous places of employment, prestigious awards, skills and d...

For my 40th birthday, I asked family to contribute funds toward a new DSLR camera instead of gifting me something else. After receiving generous donations to my camera fund (thank you!) and saving for a few extra months, I purchased a brand new Canon EOS Rebel T5 with an additional zoom lens packaged with the price. Yay! I am definitely not a brilliant photographer. But I am above average, I think. At one point in my life, I aspired to be a professional photographer, where I would capture wedding bliss. But then I realized the steps to be really awesome would require much time and investment (and a lot of summer weekends). That's a commitment and goal I am just not ready for yet. Maybe one day. Or not. In the meanwhile, I want discover my new camera, and determine what it can and cannot do. I'd like to refine the art and science my skill and build an informal portfolio. Maybe I'll take a class or two to learn something new. For now, I aim to just play and click and prac...

This Fall, it will be four years since we moved to this small prairie city. And I realize I am not chasing church anymore. Chasing church? Sounds strange, doesn't it? Let me explain. I am expending less energy on trying to fit in at my place of worship. Instead, I am allowing God to bring people along my path that fit with me and our family's passions and interests. At the Family Camp we were recently at, your Daddy and I had an opportunity to connect with a woman who attends our church with her husband. Because of their ministry, they attend sporadically. As a result, they don't feel like they are building relationships within our church. Your Daddy and I shared with her how we often felt the same, that we didn't fit into the existing groups that comprised our congregation, in spite of our church's overall welcoming spirit. Our collective struggle encouraged us and this woman to pursue relationships with people like us. After all, there are probably more people i...

My experiences of camp have been mixed. I remember the first time I was at camp. It was with my family. My Dad was the program director and us little kids, along with Mom, tagged along for the experience. I recall the female teen campers gushing over the program director's cute brown kids. And I enjoyed making a blue paper mache doll during craft time. My next camp experience was as a young pre-teen. I attended a Pentecostal camp with one of my sisters and a cousin. My memories included a slug filled slough-of-a-lake, plain macaroni with ketchup (yuck!) and awesome chapel services. At the end of this camp, I was prayed over to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (i.e. the ability to speak in tongues). I didn't receive it. I was okay with that. Years later, I participated in Teen Camp at the camp I attended with my Dad. The food was fabulous. Almost everything else was a BIG disappointment. I was an awkward, chubby, not-so-trendy young girl who didn't catch the eye of ...