I find myself spending much time reflecting upon the nature and power of words. My own tiny sliver of existence combined with my living as part of the collective provides ample inspiration to do so. As a writer, I understand the influence and the potential for words to convey and to create; to create narratives, to create meaning and understanding, to create healing and bonds, to create imaginative landscapes that inspire purpose, creativity, beauty and joy. Yet, words also have the ability...

God is like the spring bird, whom we don't always see but recognize his presence by his song. A song that immediately uplifts and refreshes the heart and mind, and encourages us to look around our environment for evidence of his existence. Indeed, the sun radiates with growing strength, the light is lengthened, the snow melts, the warmth is felt, and new life is witnessed in the green shoot. Yes, the spring bird has arrived, the spring bird is surely here. For me this serves as an inspiring...

"Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a town and spend a year there, doing business and making money.' Yet you do not even know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead what you ought to say, 'If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that.' " - James 4: 13-15 As I slow down to welcome in another year the quiet space created for this time of reflection effortlessly summons...