Category Archives: Childhood

The Love Mischief of Tears

“Find your pitch and hum it,” Donna said on the first morning of the seventh annual SoulStream Partner Gathering at Sorrento Centre. We hummed in harmony and in unison following her instructions. Then she stopped and remarked how beautiful we … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, community, Prayer, Reflections, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Having Tea with My Rage

I knew I needed to forgive, so my friend loaned me the book Women Who Run With the Wolves. I turned to the chapter on forgiveness. Near the end of it, Clarissa Pinkola Estés outlines the stages of forgiveness. But before I … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Lent, Reflections, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Truth and Reconciliation

For an hour and a half last Sunday afternoon, I was not myself. I was an indigenous woman who lived in Canada on Turtle Island (North America) when the settlers first came to our land. My life was short. I … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Creation, Reflections, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sardines in the Dark

Our grandson called out our names in the dark. But there was no answer. The silence confirmed his deduction: his cousin had found our hiding place. He was on his own. Our grandchildren love to play Sardines in the Dark. … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Shame’s Spell

Jesus pushes me out of uncomfortable places and pulls me into them. –Steve Garnaas-Holmes I almost said no to co-facilitating Living from the Heart next year because it makes me uncomfortable at times. I’ve told you how it tosses me … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Mindfulness, Reflections, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Living Out of Our Stories: Part 2

You either walk inside your own story and own it or stand outside your story and hustle for your worthiness. –Brené Brown I don’t have to do anything to find a story from my past that has me hustling. These … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Prayer, Praying with the Imagination, Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

God Inclined His Ear to Me

I love the Lord, because he has heard     my voice and my supplications. Because he inclined his ear to me,     therefore I will call on him as long as I live. –Psalm 116:1,2 I imagine God inclining his/her ear to … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Helpful Images, Reflections, Spiritual Direction | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Here Be Tigers

People in authority can make me nervous. I’m always afraid they’ll turn into a tiger, pin me in a corner, and pounce on me for doing something wrong. It doesn’t make a lot of sense. For the most part, the leaders I … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Reflections, Songs, Spiritual Direction, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What I Knew Then

I tell my spiritual director about my panic and the memory of being shamed by the principal when I was twelve. “I still see the anger on his face and feel my back against the wall.” I recall that moment and am that … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Praying with the Imagination, Reflections, Spiritual Direction, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Bruised

“Pull in your horns,” the principal said and scowled at me. He held up two fingers on either side of his head to mimic his words. Suddenly I was not like any other twelve-year-old lined up in the hallway. I … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood, Reflections, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments