The train rounds a bend.The rest of the cars appear one by one,all tied to one anotherfar into the distanceIt comes as a surpriseto be tied to things so far backNazım Hikmet,Human Landscapes from My Country Recently I was thinking about an event in my childhood. It took place at the time of the Indo-Pak … Continue reading Siblings and the Third Culture Kid Journey
There is nothing ambiguous about Lent in the Orthodox tradition. No one contemplates what to give up, or how to spend more time in prayer and repentance. Everyone pretty much knows that you’re going vegan for the next seven plus weeks. Orthodox countries pull out their “Fasting” menus and we, sometimes reluctantly, get rid of … Continue reading Muted Colors – Lenten Journey
On my work space shelf, I have a box of instant oatmeal. It’s relatively healthy, full of fiber, and low in the bad stuff. I have it on hand for those days when I rush off to work, my tummy empty since the night before, my blood sugar low, and nary a minute to sit … Continue reading Lenten Journey: Instant Gratification or Slow Process
Palm fronds await us as we enter into our parish. It is Palm Sunday – that joyous day before Holy Week, where all of life makes sense as Jesus rides into Jerusalem, greeted by masses of people proclaiming him king. Unlike those crowds who gathered that day so long ago, we know what is coming. … Continue reading Lenten Journey: Palm Fronds and Hosannas
This piece was originally posted in May 2014. What a difficult season that was! Lent represents another type of season and calls for another type of endurance. I’m out of the country just now–but this struck me as an appropriate reminder to my own soul to hold steady and endure. “For the joy set before … Continue reading Lenten Journey: On Endurance
“You can cut branches of forsythia before they bloom and bring them inside and they will bloom quicker.” It was Western Easter a few years ago and we were at my mom and dad’s. Large branches of forsythia were in a vase on the windowsill, bright with yellow blossoms that defied the remains of winter outside. I … Continue reading Lenten Journey – On Forsythia and Hope
I wrote this years ago for a dark spring day. It seems appropriate again. Truth be told, my Christ candle has been burning every day since January 20. The candle has been a faithful reminder this Lenten season too. Advent is the season of waiting for the Christ. It’s typically celebrated during the month of … Continue reading Lenten Journey: The Christ Candle
Over my personal church history, I wasn’t really exposed to Lent as a practice. As a young girl we attended a Baptist church, and later I went to an interdenominational boarding school and a Bible college of the same variety. There was a brief season at St John’s Shaughnessy, an Anglican church in Vancouver, before … Continue reading Lenten Journey: A Lenten Vent
What is our first reaction, our spontaneous response, when we meet the stranger? “Who let’s these people in here anyway?” asked the man. He was agitated, shaking his head in complete dismay. “I mean” he paused “The woman who served me coffee the other day was Moroccan!” His voice was raised in incredulity at the … Continue reading Lenten Journey – “I was a Stranger”
“WHAT an extraordinary place!” cried Lucy. “All those stone animals – and people too! It’s – it’s like a museum.” “Hush,” said Susan, “Aslan’s doing something.” …..Everywhere the statues were coming to life. The courtyard looked no longer like a museum; it looked more like a zoo. Creatures were running after Aslan and dancing round … Continue reading Lenten Journey: Waiting for Aslan
Around six years ago, an eye doctor named Tom Little was killed in a massacre of 10 international aid workers in Nuristan province in the country of Afghanistan. The story made international headlines as the largest massacre of aid workers during the entire Afghan conflict. Many who didn’t even know this man paused to take inventory of … Continue reading Lenten Journey – Turn the Whole World Upside Down
It’s a Sunday afternoon, and I just received this video from my sister-in-law who lives in Istanbul. I’m posting it because I think it is worth the 17 minutes it will take you to watch it! Thank you for caring.
“The settled happiness and security which we all desire, God withholds from us by the very nature of the world: but joy, pleasure, and merriment He has scattered broadcast. We are never safe, but we have plenty of fun, and some ecstasy. It is not hard to see why. The security we crave would teach … Continue reading Refreshment on the Journey
Enjoy the Journey – by Robynn I know it’s a horribly cliché title….but it came to mean something very significant the other day when I was on my way somewhere….! Tuesday, September 23, I spent the entire day traveling. Departing from Manhattan, Kansas I made my way to Prince Edward Island on the far eastern … Continue reading Enjoy the Journey
How to Give Yourself Grace: Advice to someone returning from a long journey! by Robynn We arrived back in Kansas, on January 4th at 3:00am, after having been away for 5 weeks. The morning after Thanksgiving, while it was yet dark, we drove to Kansas City to begin our grand adventure! And what an adventure it … Continue reading How to Give Yourself Grace: Advice to someone returning from a long journey!
A Blessing for those who Journey by Robynn. Last week I got a sweet facebook message from an old friend. This friend, Jen, used to work with us in India. She knows the life we lived. She’s lived it. She also has made return trips back to visit. Jen understands full well that a return … Continue reading A Blessing For Those Who Journey
Today’s post By Robynn was originally published in 2011. Today we offer it to you again as there are far more readers than Communicating Across Boundaries had at that time – Enjoy! One of my ridiculous claims to fame is that I’ve had my hair cut in 9 countries. It may seem a silly thing to say … Continue reading Taper, Trim & Snip – A Journey Around the World Through Haircuts
