So this is sort of a combination vent session/actual blog post. Anyone who has read my blog by now knows that I have Crohn’s Disease and knows the complications that come with it. (If you don’t know these things, you’ll have to read the old posts and catch up on your own. I’m too busy venting to give you a recap.) So, with the Crohn’s my “normal” is about 80%…if I’m lucky. That means, I have to go through my day and exert the same amount of mental and physical energy as my coworkers and seminary colleagues despite coming into Read More
Blog
30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know
Apparently, Invisible Illness Awareness Week was September 11th-18th. During this week, “prominent” bloggers were asked to post their responses to the following questions. Though I am nowhere near prominent when it comes to blogging, I wanted to do my part to raise awareness of these issues. 30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know 1. The illness I live with is: Crohn’s+ (Crohn’s is known to come with “extraintestinal” complications such as inflammatory arthritis, which I also have). 2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: 1993. 3. But I had symptoms since: around 1980ish. 4. The Read More
Pain
The other day, I accidentally scraped the bottom of my leg on my bed. It was a tiny scrape, but it hurt like the dickens! At first, I wasn’t going to put a Band-Aid on it. However, I realized that if I didn’t cover it, it would aggravate me every time it rubbed against fabric. I tried and tried to visually locate the scrape, but couldn’t really see it. So I took a wild guess and put the Band-Aid on the area that seemed to hurt the most. This morning, I noticed the scar. I wasn’t wearing a Band-Aid anymore, Read More
“Do the dew…”
Last week – almost a week to the day – I took a walk through some of the most beautiful land in the northwest at a place called The Lord’s Land in northern California. I was there for a leadership retreat and ventured out around 7 a.m. on a Thursday. Though we’d only been there about a day and half at that point, our group had come to realize that the area is often foggy – especially in the morning (and because we were on a mountain). I expected to encounter morning dew on the trees and plants, but the Read More
Class Reunion
My 20th class reunion is coming up, and it’s hard not to reflect on the ol’ high school years in light of something like that. Perhaps one of the things that stands out the most to me is the fact that I was voted the “most unique” girl in my senior class. I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty sure that most people were thinking “weird” instead of unique when they voted. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t bother me – back then. But I’ve gotten to a point in my life – and my faith walk Read More
The Soulful Bunny Hop
Just a few hours ago, I returned from something called The Sankofa Journey. Each week, I participate in a weekly creative arts challenge on the Facebook page of my sister’s company. This week’s theme was “bunnies,” so I wrote the following piece as one way to begin processing my Sankofa experience: The Soulful Bunny Hop Started in Chicago, hopped down to Birmingham Four little girls, God rest their souls Saw the park where young people stood up for Right Hopped down to Montgomery Saw the site of the voter’s right march Saw Dexter Avenue Baptist Church Saw a list of Read More
My Life with Crohn’s
Last year, I committed to sharing more about my life with Crohn’s, in an effort to raise awareness. I decided that today was as good a time as any. The thought for this post came about as I was thinking about how I’m going to survive this particular semester. So here are some random peeks into my life with Crohn’s: My day has to begin at least two hours before my first appointment. This is so I can give my body time to decide how it’s going to respond to waking up and to breakfast. This semester, I have an Read More
Sometimes, I don’t like to share…
There’s a Honey Nut Cheerios commercial that promotes the fact that they’re not just good for you but taste good, too. The commercial is set in a restaurant, and the waitress brings the order to a table of about six people. Everyone’s getting a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios, but they’ve ordered either “the yummy cereal” or “the heart-healthy cereal.” (I had to paraphrase because I couldn’t find the video online.) After everyone digs in and praises their food choice, one patron looks at one of his companions and says, “Can I try yours?” This is a favorite question of Read More
Free stuff!
“Disclaimer” – This is not a product review. Today, I got a free pen while on an errand at Office Depot. Being the lover of pens/pen snob that I am, I could barely contain my excitement. My day was so busy that I didn’t even get a chance to daydream about what I would write first. I actually had forgotten that the pen was in my purse until late in the evening. So I grabbed my journal, got comfortable and eagerly pulled the pen from my purse. I spent a few minutes reading through the informational card that it was Read More
The Dreamer’s Toolbox
For years, I’ve been drawn to the story of Joseph (told in Genesis 37, 39-46) because he was a Dreamer. I was recently re-reading his story in preparation for writing a theological reflection, and was reminded of some important points. So I’d like to share with you four things that should be in every Dreamer’s toolbox: Endurance. Even in the lowest points of his life, Joseph ended up in positions of leadership. Little did he know, this was preparing him for something greater. Instead of being upset that we aren’t where we think we should be in life, we should Read More