by Elaine Olsen | Jan 9, 2013 | alicia chole, family fun, living God's truth, out of the mouths of babes, pilgrimage, the seventh year
I gently reached down and touched her chapped hands. Tenderly they rested on the pew in front of us as we chorused our way through five verses of “We Three Kings.” Her hands have grown over the years, no longer balled into tiny fists; no longer reaching outward to...
by Elaine Olsen | Oct 24, 2012 | conviction, dad, election, family fun
If they could be like him, then I’d be feeling better about casting my vote in a couple of weeks. If President Obama and Governor Romney would spend a day with him, they would learn a lot about life, about truth, and about how to walk humbly through this world with...
by Elaine Olsen | Oct 2, 2012 | family fun, out of the mouths of babes, parenting, prayer
“When you come to the door, kiss me on the cheek so that I know I am safe.” So wrote my daughter on a slip of paper last week. She placed the note in the hallway, next to her bedroom door, so I would see it on my way to bed. At first glance, I thought these might be...
by Elaine Olsen | Sep 3, 2012 | Beyond Cancer's Scars (the story behind the story), cancer volume 4, faith, family fun, freedom, Lessons from the Lunchroom, parenting
It’s Sunday evening. A table usually reserved for meal times has, instead, become a makeshift teacher’s desk. Lesson plans strewn about, books, DVD’s, grade books, red pens, and unsharpened pencils litter the oak top, alongside my tiredness. I put my head down,...
by Elaine Olsen | Aug 20, 2012 | a quick word, family fun, Lessons from the Lunchroom, parenting, surrender, trust
“Hey, Lunch Lady, can I have another slice of pizza?” So said my son last Friday around noon. It’s only in hindsight that I can laugh about it. In the moment, my emotions were otherwise occupied with thoughts of escape, retreat, and getting out of Dodge...
by Elaine Olsen | May 28, 2012 | church life, family fun, love, marriage, pain, pilgrimage
“. . . the word of the LORD tested him.” –Psalm 105:19 Sometimes he tells me. Sometimes keeping it inside pins him down . . . pushes him down where the pain hurts deeply and the tears flow easily. Sometimes the world slams cruelly and unfairly into him, moving him to...
