Soul Carving

   With the many voices being raised today, we can feel bombarded with conflicting opinions, uncertain what to believe as the many voices clamor for our attention. When I start to feel this panic and confusion welling up in me, I turn to the scriptures for clarity. Helaman 5:30 of the Book of Mormon says:  "And it came to pass when they heard this voice, and beheld that it was not a voice of thunder, neither was it a voice of a great tumultuous noise, but behold, it was a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it did pierce even to the very soul"    I've been privileged to share my voice on a website specifically for women of faith. You can read my previous contributions here and here .    Today, you can find the final installment of Embracing Grace featured on A Voice of Gladness. I hope my voice brings you some needed clarity and peace in this tumultuous world. Share the link with others you think may benefi...

Reflections on Wisdom Sits in Places by Keith H. Basso In Western Apache culture, places bear the names given to them by the ancestors. These names are often straight forward in their descriptions, but always imbued with deep meaning. The elders of Apache society instruct their youth to drink deeply from the wisdom of these places. Wisdom is like water. As one apache said, "You can't live long without water and you can't live a long time without wisdom. You need to drink both." Certain places then, are like oases of knowledge from which each generation may quench their thirst. Often, the sacredness of these place-worlds is not recognized until after repeated experience with them. It takes great faith to act with reverence even when one's surrounding seem not to merit such actions. We must beleive that simple tasks, when repeated in an intentional, ceremonial fashion, can hallow even the the most derelect environments. This is the process we r...

Since I last posted: We've discovered we're going to have another little one join our family. I've spent 2 months enduring grueling morning sickness and effectively hiding from the world until emerging relieved and thankful at the start of my second trimester. I've taken part in a world-wide conference where I obtained inspiration on how to find happiness and fulfill my own, unique destiny. (As a result of the conference, I've also discovered a latent super-power which I'm learning to hone!) I've started a Women's Scripture Study group in my community which meets weekly to discuss truths learned from God's word. My sweetheart and I have celebrated 16 years of marriage. We've driven nearly 3,400 miles across seven states to visit family.  I've published another article at A Voice of Gladness detailing my personal experiences learning about God's grace.  I've also done about 100 loads of laundry, ch...

       . . . But I hope you're not too busy to read! For, while I have not posted in the last 3 months (yikes!) that doesn't mean I haven't been writing. Now that I've reached the end of another semester, as well as the end of the calendar year, I thought you might like to see what it is that's been taking up so much of my time. You can go to the new page I've created, "My Words"  to see.        Also coming soon, monarch butterflies, fine art exhibits and some inspiration from civil rights activist, Ruby Bridges!        It's been a while. How you been? I'm looking forward to catching up!