Friends – Seashell Nell

Friend Poem No. 5

I have a friend Named Tim Whom I met Over a cubicle wall– Me telling him too many stories Me laughing too loud Me making people think HE was the trouble-maker Me “volunteering” him for more, frantic life. I would send him notes Through a crack In the wall. He would send the paper backContinueContinue reading “Friend Poem No. 5”

Friend poem No. 4

I have a friend Named Hanna. One of my oldest friendships, A cousin. On Friday she wore stripes And I said– “Like a raccoon” And she twisted her head like a raccoon, Pranced a dance to the table Her hands pulled Chest-ward Like paws. We went camping in August, Hanna and I. Five days ofContinueContinue reading “Friend poem No. 4”

Friend Poem No. 3

I have a friend Named Julia. She sometimes writes me letters– Snail mail– In cards she has designed herself, Her practiced hand switching from script to CAPS. She writes of saints, Flowers, Love, Friendship. She picks flowers, Sketches heaven, Buys dark chocolate. She cuts her hair short, Announces to her office that They will beContinueContinue reading “Friend Poem No. 3”

My SIL says

“Lean into the Holy Spirit,” she says, over coffee, My sister-in-law of the flawless style. She’s the kind of woman who says things and you want to listen– Because of what? Compassion? Wisdom? A will to hard-love, if necessary? Yes, yes to these and more. Because she buys me gluten-free baked goods sometimes, too. “WhatContinueContinue reading “My SIL says”

The Wedding Feast: an extroverted dream of heaven

When I was young and without a driver’s license, Lauren’s mom would sometimes carpool me to my house from classes. We would talk about all kinds of things–classes, memories, God. Probably colleges, too. Being in high school has its own set of stressors. One day Lauren’s mom started talking about her wedding. Maybe we wereContinueContinue reading “The Wedding Feast: an extroverted dream of heaven”

Eucalyptus

Two hundred years ago, in 2011, I walked a bit of the Camino de Santiago. Sometimes life has a way of surprising you, you who show up with skeletal “plans” or maybe “visions.” Ha. Hahahahaha. Almost a year before I walked the Camino, my brother had sent me a link to the Wikipedia article aboutContinueContinue reading “Eucalyptus”

Your wellness is worth it

I have a few friends who are coming to the realization that, hey, maybe the foods they’ve been eating for years (looking at you, gluten) might be harming their bodies instead of helping them; tearing their bodies apart instead of nourishing them; leading their bodies to lonely places like late-nite drugstore aisles and toilets-at-parties* insteadContinueContinue reading “Your wellness is worth it”

You can take the girls away from the Camino…

…but you just can’t take the Camino away from the girls. A few weeks ago I wrote to my cousin and my Juli-YEAH, “Camping?” and they said, “YES.” so we tossed around dates and places and settled, quickly, on the one that worked for all of us. And then I made the reservation and tuckedContinueContinue reading “You can take the girls away from the Camino…”

I met some missionaries!

On Monday a crew of people showed up at my little-church for noon:fifteen mass and I was like, “Hey.” And they were like, “We’re from Colorado on mission to Detroit.” So I was like, “Cool story, bro, I’m going to sit over here and pray.” Not really, but kind of. Then I saw them againContinueContinue reading “I met some missionaries!”

On teapots

It struck me last night, as I washed all the dishes, how needlessly wonderful it is that teapots exist. I mean, they have a purpose, sure. They’re supposed to hold hot water as the tea leaves steep and stain the liquid for us. But, when I was a kid, my mom would sometimes brew teaContinueContinue reading “On teapots”