by Lisa-Jo | Sep 26, 2010 | Compassion, Faith, Family, Kids, Motherhood
I go to Guatemala and a secret goes with me. So new, so delicate, so unexpected I barely even whisper it to myself. I unwrap it on my birthday. On the day I mourn half a lifetime lived without my mother, I hear Jesus whisper, “Life!” Always He remakes....
by Lisa-Jo | Sep 23, 2010 | Kids, Motherhood
I stand over a sink of dirty dishes washing pasta sauce off the blue and white plates we’ve had since we got married. I scrape at left over noodles and rinse hot water and soap bubbles over my hands, cups, and this difficult day. Before we owned these plates,...
by Lisa-Jo | Sep 21, 2010 | Kids, Motherhood
It’s used in condescension. The name for sissies and weaklings who haven’t outgrown their mother’s skirts. It resents the boy that clings longer, harder, tighter than he should. It is a label, sticky and hard to peel off. But sometimes the boy is...
by Lisa-Jo | Aug 9, 2010 | Faith, Kids, Motherhood, Raising Boys
There’s a question I keep turning over and over in my mind. For weeks now I have held it in my hands. I flip it over, I turn it this way and that, I rub away at its edges. I feel it growing smoother and more well worn with time. Like the pebble stuck in a shoe. It is...
![The treasure buried in a mama’s heart]()
by Lisa-Jo | Jul 30, 2010 | Family, Kids, MOB, Raising Boys
Tucked between the layers of sand, dirt, mud, and sweat. Hidden deep down where he might forget, but you never would. Stashed in the corners of a conversation dominated by a whole lot of “no.” Jammed into his gym bag, under sweaty T-shirts and knee pads....
by Lisa-Jo | Jul 20, 2010 | Family, Kids, Raising Boys
Unattended two-and-a-half year olds will climb couches in the church foyer when your back is turned and grab onto the fire alarm for leverage. The alarm will ring a long, loud time. The Pastor you were shaking hands with minutes before will flee to get the...
