Just Jesus
An Open Letter to Evangelical Christians: Shut Up
When I was about 9 we moved to a new town in Southern New Mexico. It was miserably hot and we hadn’t found a house yet. My parents, myself, my younger sister and brother were living in a hotel and the air conditioner was unable to keep up with the heat. It was miserable. In…
Read MoreReclaimed Riches
Some other day I’ll get into the craziness of this move. Three enormous families playing musical houses. But, no matter the chaos I never stop decorating. My brain never shuts off. And when I first saw the funky, retro, yellow chair on-line, I bought it. My husband came home and said, “Did you see that…
Read MoreBiting, Lying, and Biggest Fans
When our oldest, Maggie was nearly four, and John was one, there was an incident in Maggie’s closet. John was crying hysterically. Maggie came out and said, “the baby bited himsewf.” The cherub boy had teeth marks in his fleshy forearm, he was devastated to have met with such violence. I was furious. I…
Read MoreScare-Me-Up-Jesus
When our oldest, Maggie, was a toddler my parents had this toy that Maggie called “the scare me up bunny.” It was essentially a Jack-in-the-box only it was a bunny. She would bring it to one of us and say “Open da scare-me-up-bunny.” And then she would put her chubby toddler hands over her…
Read MoreThe Third Person Point of View
Our four-year-old son, leader of the vandals, Sam has been referring to himself in the third person. Furthermore, he calls himself “Sammy.” Y’all, no one calls him Sammy but himself. “Sammy wants to go outside.” “Sammy doesn’t like dat kind of cheese.” “Sammy wants to get naked and eat cake.” I find this odd. And…
Read MoreMe and My Stuff…
When we were moving back to the ranch, I got rid of a lot of stuff. I don’t like to move, although I am pretty much a pro. When I was growing up, my dad got transferred all over the country, and that man could pack a U-haul like a Cuban artisan can roll a…
Read MorePrincess School Dropout
I have just returned from the Magic Kingdom. I wish my brain would shut off sometimes. It never does. My first clue that I wasn’t a real Princess was the amount of sweat I produced in the “happiest place on earth.” It is beyond the Princess protocoled “glisten.” It is a downpour. And the sweat…
Read MorePlaying Nice in the Rain
Yesterday it rained. When I say it rained, I really meant stormed. And when I say it stormed, trees and power lines were down, trash cans and toys blew about the neighborhood. Cats and dogs were falling. Around here it is a welcomed sight to see. My husband texted me pictures of his interrupted rounds.…
Read MoreThe Cliff from Whence I Tumble… Don’t Follow Me
Yesterday was stressful, like cliff diving. You know, I could delete that, pretty much in my world that goes without saying. For now, I will leave it. There is one aspect of my life where it would seem only other writers would glean from my current stressor but, at 1:00 am I realized that I…
Read More“Don’t Worry Shoog… God’s got this.”
“Don’t Worry Shoog… God’s got this.” I was exhausted. And discouraged. My wallet with my cell phone was gone. $478.00 worth of groceries sat neatly bagged in my cart. The strategic purchases, intended to nourish and bless, were now the bane of some minimum wage cashier’s existence. If I felt debauched about the hard work…
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