Hidden Grace

Reading the news these days,

I get a headache

and a stomachache

and a heartache.

Hidden Grace

My given name meant grace, so grace has always been a part of me, but I could never quite find it 'til clouds of shame cleared.

One rainy day I left the courthouse with a new name. Clouds parted; sun shone thru sprinkling rain.

I once was grace, hidden. Now I'm Grace out in the open.

Link for the story: "The Voice that Would Not be Silenced"

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Public domain image of Mahalia Jackson lifting her voice in song.

The Voice that Would Not be Silenced: a story of repentance and hope

"Yet in all the echoes of my childhood memories, beyond all the other carols performed by full choirs and 100-piece orchestras... one phrase rang out more clearly in my memory than all the rest."

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a woman says " we 're in the good place " while wearing a pink sweater Alt: Eleanor saying, "we're in the good place"

Hi! Good to see you guys over here!

Picture of three unique heart-shaped boxes in different colors, made of different materials, with varying levels of simplicity or intricacy, to symbolize love for all different kinds of people.

Linked is an edited version of something I wrote when “Faith over Fear” became popular in Christian circles. It always bothered me because while it might sound good, it’s misleading. What overcomes fear? Not faith. Love. (1 Jn 4:18)

Love over Fear > Faith over Fear

www.instagram.com/p/DE2tN03Rh_E/

You're not the child I birthed and raised! the mother said,

implying a daughter of hers
would never “restrict her freedom”
by asking not to discuss certain things

I’ve been disowned, thought the daughter, feeling:

grief at being rejected again
relief in letting go
and a most surprising freedom

You’re restricting my freedom! said a mom to her daughter, who asked not to discuss politics and religion

How ironic, thought the daughter, remembering how her mom:

demanded to know her inner thoughts
policed her facial expressions
used religion to exert control
banned fantasy books
and much more

I've been hanging out at the library a lot lately. I love it there, and appreciate librarians so much.

*These are real-life examples that have happened to real, live women.

Isn’t freedom great? said the patriotic Christian man to his daughter, who:

wasn’t allowed to wear pants or cut her hair
had to remain under his authority until marriage
couldn’t pursue a career except wife & mom
would soon be given away in marriage

If only I knew what it felt like, she whispered

Image of dramatic, fiery orange and yellow clouds in a darkening blue sky, stretching over a black silhouette of mountains to form a breathtaking sunset scene.

E-pocalypse 2/2

“Maybe I can still print – oh. Oh no. The data center that stores our photos must’ve been hit already. All those memories… gone.”

“Not gone, babe. We still have the actual memories, and each other. Come outside with me. Isn’t it the most gorgeous sunset you’ve ever seen?”

Image of dramatic, fiery orange and yellow clouds.

E-pocalypse 1/2 #microfiction #dialogue-only #eightywords

“This is it, babe. It just hit the coast.”

“Nooo! I'm not ready. I need more time!”

“It’s the end of *electronics*, not the world. Humans lived without all that for millenniums.”

#microfiction #dialogue-only #fiftywords

The whole remaining month of November felt like a continuing string of variations on those same themes: grief interrupted by toilets needing cleaning and writing contests needing entering. Mourning punctuated by celebratory traditions. Existential dread accompanied by laundry.

Like I said, surreal.

November 2024. What a wild, surreal month.

Less than a week in, I cried almost non-stop for more than a day, filled with grief for our country and the direction we’re headed. Days later, I was cleaning the house, then hosting a birthday celebration for one of my kids.

And that was just the start.

Love it! Saw one of these in my backyard the other day.

Oops, there's a pronoun on their sign.

Two poems (linked below) -

1. Not Doing This For You: on trying to serve God but realizing I was in a show where not everyone was welcome

2. Doing This For You: on discovering what Jesus meant by “As you did it to one of my brothers and sisters, you did it to me."

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