Prisoner of Hopes

Category: Uncategorized

  • The agony and ecstasy of air travel: Travel Goals

    I have a love hate relationship with airlines. I love to travel. There is nothing that can beat the feeling of being on a jet that is taking off and knowing that your next stop will be halfway around the world. I love having the time to watch multiple movies that I somehow never got…

  • Friends Old and New

    I am sitting in my pajamas after just talking to a friend on the other side of the world. In seconds, we were connected and speaking as if we were sitting right next to each other. A pleasant conversation to end her day and to begin mine. Meanwhile, I received a social media text from…

  • When the Rope Breaks

    After a very long day, I came out to the yard to sit in my hammock. It has been an exhausting day. I sat down and kicked back into the recesses of the netted hammock that is usually a great comfort. Seconds later as I was slamming derrière first into the asphalt, I realized that…

  • Peace be still

    The words sound simple and joyful. Peace be still. It is peaceful here. The birds are singing. The sun is shining. I am sitting by a campfire and in the stillness of the morning, I am thinking of my beautiful aunts. They are all with the Lord. But today, they are also vivid in my…

  • Life is hard. God is good.

    The last few weeks have been difficult; not because there is anything wrong in my life, only because I feel unsettled. Call it a physiological response or existential angst. Maybe it is the summer blahs. Perhaps it is living in what I like to call “the age of anxiety.“ It doesn’t really matter what it…

  • You Called

    Last night, just as I was getting ready for bed, you called. I was tired and I had to get up really early this morning. I didn’t mention any of that, because you called. Since you have grown and flown, these moments of insight into your life are rarified. Yes, I could call you and…

  • Christmas Magic

    As long as I can remember, in the few days before Christmas I am consumed by an unbearable desire to have everyone I love under one roof as soon as possible. I know that the family togetherness is imminent. But can’t come fast enough. I love the rituals of Christmas. I love the trees and…

  • There is not a “right way” to camp

    There is no right way to enjoy the outdoors. I could walk forever with a pack on my back listening to the sounds of wildlife. It is nice to have our RV parked nearby to provide a dry place to sleep and storage for clothes and food. Backpacking, tent camping, rv life, a cabin or…

  • Making Do

    There is a game I play on a regular basis. Perhaps challenge is the better word. I look in the pantry and refrigerator to figure out how random and abandoned items can be turned into a meal. This purging of the remnants is cathartic. This Easter we took our first camping trip of the season.…

  • In Search of the Order of Christ: Travel Goals

    Templar knights…the very words evoke images of adventure and piety. The warrior priests who vow to take back and defend the holy land against the infidels are the stuff of legends. With my head full of images from books and film, we took the train to Tomar. Tomar was a city built as a Templar…