simply me

As this day has been approaching I've thought about the anniversaries of death that affect me. "Everyday," I've thought to myself, "someone is struggling through the death of a loved one." I have certain days, and weeks, of the year during which I bitterly remember those I once knew. They're often just another day to those around me. Sometimes I feel that way, too. Other times I'm paralyzed by the memories. I reckon that each of these days is also a day of relief for others. They are anniversaries of a close call, the near miss of catastrophe. I met a young man on a plane this summer who's aunt was mean't to be on one of those flights, 18 years ago. She made a last minute choice to change her plans. Damn. How does that change the way you grieve such an event? I have found that the best way to grieve days like this one is to do just that, grieve.  Explore the way it affects me.  Write it out.  Share it.  Think about it.  D...

Longer still, I wait for you. Oh, come and show yourself! Not withholding truth, Go the lengths to speak Everything true. Remind me what we await! Something kicks my gut, Truth, conviction, repentance. Inside is turmoil and tension, Tension I must bring to the Lord. The Lord alone can resolve this now. I come to you, Lord! Without you, O Lord, Anxiety wins and terror rages. In your house, Lord, there is peace. This temple is yours, dwell here!

One of my courses this semester is about developing family and community partnerships as a teacher. Our first assignment was to write a poem about our family using a letter of our last name as the beginning of each line. We are bringing these poems and a photo of our families to class so we can post them in our classroom and celebrate our families together. I felt very restricted by having a short last name, but it gets the gist across... In true Horner fashion, we have been all over the world the past few months. Above is a photo we took a bit ago during 1 of 2 occurrences this year that our family was all in the same place! A sweet reunion it was, I look forward to many more in the times to come.  H ome is where family is O urs is all over! R ound the world we wander, N omads, some may say! E arth has been kind to us. Though R eunions are sweet, they’re all too few. -Jacqueline Ann