Update from the Quad Cities: Rock Island Days
We’ve moved to Rock Island. Here’s what we’ve been up to for the last couple of months as we’ve explored our new surroundings on the Mississippi River in the Quad Cities.
A Letter to Immigrants To Thank You For Teaching Me The Best Things
A Letter to Immigrants Dear friends who are far from home, My friends for whom English is not your “heart” language, I am so thankful for the many ways you have taught me to think differently about life, and I am writing this letter to share a few of the places where you have widened …
Snapshots of Assisi, Italy
A Visit to The Home of The Beloved Saint Francis of Assisi What can I say about Assisi? I hardly know where to begin. Maybe it’s best to start with the ending. As I left the convent in Assisi, the same nun who welcomed me in, took hold of my face and kissed me twice, …
Snapshots of Orvieto, Italy
Snapshots of Orvieto, Italy I WISH you could have heard me in the car when I got my first glimpses of Orvieto coming into view! “OH MY LORD, you have got to be kidding me!” I actually pulled the car over. (Because it’s just me and I can do that if I want.) The whole …
Snapshots of Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy
Snapshots of a A Walk to Civita di Bagnoregio, an ancient hilltown in Italy reachable only by a pedestrian bridge. So 2500 years ago, some very ingenious folks (Etruscans) built this city on top of a hill. Hill towns are a common theme in my travels around Italy, but Civita is special because you can …
Snapshots of Lake Bolsena, Italy (Lago di Bolsena)
Lake Bolsena: Driving tour around the lake from Montefiascone After enjoying the view of Lago di Bolsena (Lake Bolsena) from our hilltop town of Montefiascone, we decided to take a day to get closer to the water. We could not have had a more gorgeous day, so we took our time driving all the way …
Snapshots of Montefiascone, Italy
Snapshots of Montefiascone a hilltop town in Italy overlooking Lago de Bolsena (Lake Bolsena). Here are a few highlights from my first days in Italy: Squeals of delight upon seeing dear friends. A room in a hilltop monastery with a view of the valley below. Wisteria-lined roads. The ancient town fortress of Montefiascone. Following cobblestone …
Chino House Moments: Spring 2019
News from the Chino House Here are a few things I’ve been loving this month: wisteria and tulips playing with sourdough starter imagining a world without prisons walking with friends on Arkansas trails and around the lake eating dinner in the backyard at a table and chairs that someone gave to us teaching yoga at …
10 Easy Things You Could Do On MLK Day To Honor the Life of Martin Luther King, Jr.
10 Easy Things You Could Do On MLK Day To Honor the Life of Martin Luther King, Jr. 1. Listen to a whole MLK speech. When we only see the popular quotes pulled from his speeches, we are in danger of consuming a sanitized version of Dr. King that makes us comfortable. Listening to Dr. …
Favorites of 2018
Favorites of 2018 Hello 2019. I’m grateful you’re here. There are so many things I am already hoping and praying for in the year ahead. But before I get ahead of myself, I want to take a minute to be grateful for what 2018 brought into my life. So here are some of the books, …
The Color of Compromise: The Truth About The American Church’s Complicity in Racism by Jemar Tisby
Thoughts on reading: The Color of Compromise: The Truth About The American Church’s Complicity in Racism A new book by Jemar Tisby I have been following Jemar Tisby’s work for a couple of years now and have been eagerly anticipating the release of his new book The Color of Compromise, so when calls went out …
Cauliflower, Chickpea, Sweet Potato and Kale Curry
Cauliflower, Chickpea, Sweet Potato and Kale Curry Here are all the reasons I have made this curry three times in the last two weeks: The temperatures have finally dropped. I bought 40 pounds of sweet potatoes from a farmer. It’s a fulfilling vegetarian meal option! All the colors make it so pretty. Curry leftovers for …
Return to Switzerland
Hiking in Switzerland: Before we moved back to the US, we spent two weeks hiking in Switzerland together as a way to wrap up our four years in Europe.
Be Still
Be Still and Know: A Restorative Yoga Class Sequence + Spiritual Practice Back in June, as part of my Yoga Teacher Training, I taught a yoga class that is hosted by area churches called Be Still and Know. Be Still and Know is a restorative yoga class that is both gentle movement and spiritual practice. …
Vegetarian Pad Thai with Tofu and Vegetables
I’ve been making this Vegetarian Pad Thai for several months now. I use whatever green vegetables I happen to have. Sometimes I add fish or mushrooms. It’s super versatile. This week I made it with broccoli but, snow peas and sugar snap peas work well. It’s a win in our house because everyone will eat …
Books + Links Loved Lately
Y’all, I’ve been walking in the early mornings and I found a red UK phone booth in a yard in my neighborhood. Right here in North Little Rock, Arkansas. Isn’t that crazy? I painted it as part of trying to stretch my creative muscles in a new way for Candace’s Moment Sketchers project. So fun. I …
Snapshots of Poland: Gdańsk and Chełmno
The overnight bus left Berlin at around 9pm and arrived in Gdańsk, Poland at 4:45am. It was one of those nights you think will never end. Ben and I pushed against one another on the sticky hot bus, trying to get some sleep. I spent way too much time lamenting my unwillingness to pay for …
Curried Red Lentils and Rice
Curried Red Lentils (Daal) and Rice When I first moved to a new house in Aberdeen, my friend Claire made these curried red lentils out of what I happened to have in my pantry after we had unpacked it. I watched in amazement as she produced this gorgeous dish for dinner from what I had …
Links Loved Lately
2 favorite salad dressings, 4 favorite essays, 2 books and 1 song. Happy Friday friends. I’ve made several jars of my two favorite salad dressings (Goddess and Ginger) so I’ve been eating salads for days. Ben: Let me guess what’s for dinner? Salad again? It’s been a minute since I did any kind of life …
A Walk in the Black Forest
A Walk in the Black Forest in Germany Last summer, we knew our time in Germany was winding down, at least for a while, so we spent our Saturdays finding new trails even though we were perfectly happy to walk the same gorgeous trails around Tübingen over and over again. The boys had gone camping …