My first church taught me an important gardening lesson
This August, it will be sixteen years since I was ordained and began serving in a pretty little church in Strathroy, Ontario. This year they […]
The Blooming Reverend
My oatmeal picnic
Often on my desk at the church there is an empty bowl, ringed with cinnamon, that once held my breakfast oatmeal. Sometimes there is one […]
The dirt on hope
I have been thinking about dirt lately. Because if you drive near my house you will see a lot of it. Just north of our […]
Sometimes even in the springtime hope is hard to find
A woman from our neighbourhood died. For ten years our families have shared an unremarkable friendship, really. We chatted in the doorway at birthday parties, […]
Banging my chair on the ceiling: take that, squirrel!
I may not have bats in the belfry, but I do have a squirrel in the attic. At least, I hope it’s only one. Good […]
Ashes to ashes, parent to child
Ash Wednesday is an ancient holy day in the Christian church calendar. It marks the beginning of the season of Lent, which is traditionally a […]
Snow day in high def. With 3D and surround sound, too.
It was a snow day. The best kind, too. Not only were the school buses cancelled, but schools were closed and the roads were too […]
You don’t have to win the lottery to have an endless vacation
Putting my kids to bed on Sunday nights is always a little difficult. My youngest in particular hates to see the weekend come to a […]
Don’t you hate getting stuck behind slow people?
For as long as I can remember, I have been in a hurry. When I was a kid, my teachers hassled me because my slap-dash […]
The tree was beautiful before it fell down
On Friday night, all six of us set up our fresh, fragrant Christmas tree in the living room. First, we hung the white lights, and […]
Five tips for a soul-satisfying vacation
My husband’s family decided to take a trip together at an all-inclusive resort in Cuba. After a year of illness (and recovery) they hoped for […]
On the outside looking in
I can’t bear to drive by my old house. My husband tells me they have replaced the front door and painted the garage door white, […]
The lost art of walking (in suburbia)
It all started with a new pair of shoes. I had an appointment in the south end of town, which means paying for parking. I […]
Six life lessons I learned in the garden
I lived in our last house for ten years–longer than I have lived anywhere in my entire life. During that time I learned some important […]
Every hospital needs a garden
Most pastors have reason to visit the hospital with fair regularity, but last week my visit was different. Wearing street clothes instead of a collar, […]
St. Francis came out of the closet but now he’s homeless
Inspired by another blogger who decided to add a “Saint of the Week” feature to her blog (I didn’t include a link because it looks […]
Seasons change and so does a bunch of other stuff
A fresh new school year has arrived and at our house we are all about new pencils, filling out school forms and a return to […]
My friend Joe
This winter, after we renovated our house, we put it on the market expecting that it would sell quickly. After a week or so, our real estate agent was disappointed. Why hasn’t it sold? we kept asking ourselves. It looked great, we were getting lots of traffic, and we thought it was well priced. We were stumped.
Purple haze: a farming tradition
If you drive past the city limits of many Ontario towns, you will see lilac bushes. Some of them are in lovely gardens of course, […]
Ta da! Our new community garden is now blessed and open!
On Sunday our congregation began a new ministry! After the service was over, we all went outside to gather near our new garden boxes that […]