A place of life exploration, sailing journeys, and piece of thought
Saturday, November 1, 2025
We won an orchid at a missions fair at our church from the Singapore table. Several blossoms started dying so I thought maybe we had killed it, but then this beauty opened up. Life sometimes springs from what appeared dying.
Monday, November 3, 2025
Feeling alone with someone is sometimes more difficult than feeling alone by oneself.
Thursday, November 6, 2025
A sandpiper pecked proudly at the ground, outrunning the waves as she found hidden food under the wet sand. He was just like every other sandpiper on this peaceful morning… except for one key difference. He had but one leg. Whether born with just one leg or due to an accident, this bird had healed and overcome the appendage anomaly. And he was living his best life snagging food among the bubbles in the sand.
November 7, 2025
The art of listening
Ted talk Julian Treasure
Is it a disappearing art?
Focused attention on patterns of sound
Brings connection to physical surroundings
Deepens spiritual grounding
And strengthens trust within relationships
Pretty important bits of life
That trail away if not intentionally pursued
Saturday, November 8, 2025
Family game nights teach us so much about ourselves. Tonight was Taboo. One of my sons got stuck on one word and repeated the same one word clue five times. I think he may need to work on flexibility. I found myself providing a lot of words but not as salient to my audience so they had trouble figuring it out. I love games. They help clarify problems in real life if we choose to see the connection.
Sunday, November 9, 2025
Five years ago, a man named John McDaniels greeted us at our church in Hawaii. He was undergoing treatments for cancer and seemed quite exhausted from the treatments. He didn’t always make it to church because of the pain and weariness but when able, he and his wife faithfully attended, despite the COVID threat. The second time he saw our family, he said he wanted to give us his jewelry making kit, as he would not have need of it very soon. Jewelry making, he said, was something he got interested in years ago and had brought him much joy. We accepted his kind gift but were blown away by the extent of his craft. The two boxes he provided held an unending treasure trove of beautiful beads, multiple tools, and more twine and wire and string than we knew what to do with.
Through the past five years those boxes have been brought out and put away as interest from our children has waxed and waned. Little did I know that five years later, I would be pulling out John McDaniels’ treasure box with a desire to work with the beauty of God’s creation to shape shells into jewelry. And yet, as I read through John’s memorial program, I am encouraged by his life and lasting legacy that he shared with his church and family. John’s treasure did not lie in that jewelry box, no matter how many shiny beads or fancy pendants he collected. His faith in Jesus Christ was his treasure, and now he is in the most glorious, shiny place of all beside his Savior and Lord Jesus Christ.
I think I have found a new hobby. There are some gorgeous shells that wash up on our beaches!! Thank you, John.
Monday, November 10, 2025
One by one they fall
Summoned to the throne
On their knees they fall
Fetal positions they assume
And lay prostrate on their backs.
Time it takes to recover,
Slow, deliberate time.
Waiting and resting
With water a must to rehydrate
To ensure through the pain and discomfort
And settle out the bad from the good
Wash and drink
Sip and munch
Gentle, taking time
Allowing what must happen work its way through
Until finally a corner is turned.
Finally life feels alive again
Taste and flavor return
With energy abounding for the good things of life.
Tuesday, November 11, 2025
This was quite the way to end a weekend of crazy sickness and destroyed travel plans. To be able to peer outside and catch a glimpse of such a colorful display of God’s creation restores life in my soul. And to share this sight with my husband, after he toiled alongside me caring for our sick children, was indeed a sweet blessing.
A sandpiper pecked proudly at the ground, outrunning the waves as he found hidden food under the wet sand. He was just like every other sandpiper on this peaceful morning… except for one key difference. He had but one leg. Whether born with just one leg or due to an accident, this bird had healed and overcome the appendage anomaly. And he was living his best life snagging food among the bubbles in the sand.
swooping from the sky,
the crane floated onto the splintered wooden rail,
his beady eye kindly nodding my direction. “Peace to you, best wishes, and happiness,” his long, curved neck silently chortled. With graceful ease he brushed his beak by his feet and resumed his debonair posture. I gazed at his beauty, his seeming wisdom, and praised my Creator for such a bird to admire.
Leader
Will you lead through the fire?
What when the fire dies?
Who are you leading and do you know your why?
Do you promote yourself above others?
Or do you look and see others, weaving talents together to yield a cloth of multiplied strength?
Deceptive is the idea that the best leader is one most skilled in his craft (be it flying a plane, designing technology, etc).
Perhaps leading others is a skill in itself.
Look just below the highest performing worker… for the one who watches, observes, encourages, challenges the team to grow.
Can an intrinsically skilled leader of people lead in multiple contexts, regardless of his/her specific job training?
Leader, lead people and know why you lead.
Life is Sailing 