When I was a child, I always had my nose in a book. My mother never had a hard time finding me! I was running through the forests of Narnia with the Pevensey children and Prince Caspian. I was on board the pirate ship having adventures on … Read more

It was thrilling to watch the last two baby robins fledge, or leave their nest. That morning, we had arisen early to turn on the video recorder in anticipation of the big moment. For a while, the fledglings teetered precariously on the … Read more

As any parent can tell you, when your child has a high fever, it is pretty scary, especially when it will not come down. The last thing in the world any parent wants to do is to put a hot child in a cool bath to take their temperature … Read more

A year ago, I wrote about Zoe, my son's Labradoodle, stealing — and quickly eating — a frozen pizza that was setting on the kitchen counter. Well, she's at it again. On Thanksgiving Day in 2022, … Read more

One night, I had a dream. I was at a resort in the Caribbean with a friend, and there were some people asking about their luggage, which had not arrived. The clerk at the desk said that they would find it, and one of the people responded, … Read more

My little horse Frank had never taken a journey in the horse trailer before. Therefore, I was very concerned about the 2000-kilometre trip to our new home that lay ahead of us. The first step in preparing Frank for this ride was to … Read more

In 1991, when my husband, Terry, our three boys, and I went to Slovakia on a short-term educational mission, we were foreigners in the land. Needing groceries, we explored the little hole-in-the-wall shops in our new neighbourhood. There … Read more

I remember it as the one time in my life when I openly grieved and experienced good grief. I don't come from a crying family. If we shed tears, we did so in private, and then, only for brief episodes. But for me, grieving changed when my … Read more

We all leave an inheritance to those who follow us, particularly if we have children. I had four older brothers, and we were especially fortunate in inheriting godly examples of Christian living from our parents. We were also shown how … Read more

While I believe Jesus' words that God does feed the birds of the air, I love to watch them flutter around my bird feeders as they chow down for the trip ahead every spring and fall, or if it's summer, to furiously fly off to feed hungry … Read more

I love to read, and I especially enjoy reading biographies. These accounts give me a real sense of connection with people of the past, and help me to see how history unfolded during their lifetimes. So many people with fascinating lives … Read more

Sharon Lundquist and I married brothers and have been dear friends for most of our adult lives. I sometimes say that we are sisters-in-love as well as sisters-in-law. For many years, we have lived in the same greater metropolitan area, but … Read more

One of the hardest things for parents to do is to watch helplessly as their babies are hurting. When my daughter Missy and her husband took Jenna, my granddaughter, for her baby shots, she was bubbly and smiling, but then, it happened. … Read more

I still remember my great-aunt from the hills of Kentucky, USA. Aunt Anise had an old, covered water well in her backyard, which was absolutely amazing for a city boy like me. She also wrung chickens by the neck, plucked their feathers, … Read more

When I was a child, I had a heart disease, and I was bedridden for a number of years. It was a difficult and lonely time for me, and I am sure that this was also a challenging time for my parents as they cared for me, to keep me busily … Read more

Amidst our recent preparations and travels, as my family and I relocated from the far north of British Columbia, Canada, to the next province, Alberta, I found myself humming or singing the wonderful song *`The Family of … Read more

I've been thinking and reading a lot about forgiveness recently. I guess the older that we get, the more that we realize how many mistakes that we've committed, foolish choices that we've made, and careless words that we've said, and end … Read more

I was telling myself a big one — lying to myself — and the trouble was that I believed it. My lie began about the time I turned fourteen. It went something like this: "You don't need school." If I didn't need school, I didn't need to … Read more

It's the first day of an eleven-day tour of Israel and I'm sitting on the steps of the pool of Siloam near the city of David, in Jerusalem. Our guide is explaining how Jewish people ritually cleansed themselves here before the long walk up … Read more

Recently, one of our leaders led the church community's "all-age spot". She held up a piece of string as a visual aid and asked some children to come up and help her to hold it as a representation of time. They stretched it out across the … Read more

My mother taught me the basic stitches of embroidery when I was young, and I have continued doing this needlework all my life. It is an enjoyable and rewarding hobby, and I glory in the colourful threads and the canvas slowly revealing the … Read more

"Would you be available to sub today?" It was a text message early one morning recently from the principal of the school where I used to teach. I arrived at the school to find that my assignment included three different grade levels — … Read more

When Larry and I were younger, we used to go canoeing on the Current River. Usually, we had others to enjoy the ride with us. On one of our trips, we came upon a cave with a spring of water that fed the river. Several of us went in to take … Read more

In high school, my teachers often told us about what they called "the Black Book". They would say that if our names were entered in the book for any atrocious activity, it would stop us from getting good jobs later in life. How we dreaded … Read more

Since the rain has stopped, I am able to see Mt. Topo from my porch. I dried off a chair to sit and enjoy the beauty. Near the middle of Mt. Topo is a section of dense fog, and as I watch, some arms of the fog slowly break away in … Read more

Simon, my dachshund, is a thief. Every morning and evening after he gobbles up his bowl of food, he races over to an older, very patient dog and helps himself to her food as well. He edges in to the far side of her bowl and begins … Read more

The word "ritual" often carries an aura of mysticism, conjuring up a negative vibe. But a ritual can be simply defined as an action repeatedly done in the same way. A ritual needn't require hocus-pocus or incantations, but can simply be a … Read more

One was large and the other small, but they both needed to be on a leash. I once owned an Eskimo Spitz. My family owned a much larger dog that I inherited when they moved away. Since I lived in the country, I didn't have to abide by … Read more

Our daughter is a horse lover. When she was 13 years old, she got her very own horse, Jewel. She had been present at the birth of this horse and spent time with her for her first three months. Then the owner asked us if she could have the … Read more

I am a novice kayaker, and the last time when I was out with a kayaking group, I upset my kayak and fell into the water — not once, but twice! I was safe, though, because I was wearing a lifejacket and because the kayakers support each … Read more