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The little boy walked out of his dad’s office and wandered through the empty church. Even though his father was a pastor, he had never been in that building during a weekday when the lights were out and stillness crept down the narrow hallways and stairwells.

He went down into the basement. This was the lively heart of the church, at least on Wednesday nights when all the kids had activities and the adults vanished off into rooms or the upstairs auditorium. It was almost creepy, the activity and noise traded for dim light, shadows, and the hum of the refrigerator in the corner.
Continue reading “A Boy Finds God in an Empty Church”

I grew up on Legos. There may or may not have been a time in my life when I actually believed most structures consisted of plastic blocks hooked together by raised, round dots. I still sometimes check the top of my head for a circular band on which to attach my baseball cap with the over-sized brim.

Now, at the age of eight, my son is obsessed. Most Christmases and birthdays involve Legos – he’s constantly taking things apart, building his own stuff, then digging the old instruction manuals out of the closet and reconstructing the original (something which requires even greater patience, since by that time all the pieces have ended up in the large plastic, central storage container which contains the remnants of every set he’s ever owned).

I noticed something interesting in the last year: both of my daughters have become very interested in Legos. Continue reading “A Knee-Jerk Reaction to “Legos for Girls””

Over 10,000 miles. 31 states. 115 days.

I want to leave tomorrow.

For years, Maile and I have dreamed of hitting the road for an extended period of time. We’ve always enjoyed road trips and exploring new places. When I started writing full time just over two years ago, this idea began percolating: What if I could line up enough writing work to pay the bills while we traveled the country? Continue reading “How a Harebrained Idea is Turning Into a Cross-Country Trip”

Forgetfulness gets a bad rap. Don’t believe me? Try forgetting your spouse’s birthday, forgetting to switch your license over to the new state where you live, or forgetting to set your alarm for a final exam. You’ll quickly discover that forgetfulness is not appreciated or esteemed.

But for many people, forgetting isn’t the thing that’s ruining their lives or chaining them to emotional pain. Forgetfulness isn’t withering their relationships or enslaving them to past failures. Forgetfulness isn’t the problem.

Remembering is the problem.
Continue reading “Why Having a Terrible Memory Can be a Really Good Thing”