God, you are my rock and refuge.
(Of course, sometimes I forget to lean on you and attempt to take control…)

Ever-present God, you are with me all the time.
(Sometimes it doesn’t feel like you are with me. Sometimes I forget to talk to you…)

Forgiving God, I’m sorry I was so judgmental yesterday.
(But those people made me so mad! How can they possibly believe what they say?)

Nurturing God, thank you for my family.
(Is it really necessary that the teenage years be so traumatic…for everyone?)

This summer I am growing the garden of neglect. The garden got off to a late start. I was sick for six weeks, just at prime garden-planting time. I almost abandoned the idea of a garden, opting to let the beds lie fallow for the season. But the thought of fresh tomatoes, tasting as no store-bought tomato ever could, spurred me on. Mid-June I finally had the energy to plant the garden, with the help of my family. The advantage of waiting until later to start your garden, is that the plants are on sale. And so the garden was planted.

Yesterday I returned home to the land of rich soil, gentle rolling hills, and fields of corn (i.e. Iowa) after a family “holiday” to the mountainous and rocky country of Scotland. It was a trip we’ve been planning, saving for, and dreaming about for a long time, and I had an amazing experience.

One can’t visit Scotland without being utterly aware of rocks. Essentially, the country is one long series of rock formations, some of which contain a type of rock that is among earth’s oldest kinds. I suspect Scottish children must have to spend a lot more time than I ever did learning about geology, since most of the museums we visited had display after display of rock-related items. In fact, the lower floor of the national museum was almost entirely filled with displays about rocks and items made from or carved into rocks!

The highlight of the trip was a late-night visit to the Standing Stones of Callinish (photo above), a famous site containing human-made rock formations which are possibly older (though smaller) than the ones at Stonehenge. Some 4000 years ago, ancient peoples set up roughly 50 massive flat stones in a circular and cross-like pattern, for reasons that are unknown. Whether they were in some way connected with astrological observations, memorial purposes, battle protection, or religious rituals may never be completely clear. But what was certain to me as I stood there alone, looking out at the surrounding fields, mountains, and loch (lake), was that I was having a profound experience of connection with something much larger than myself. Clearly, those who created and lived in that site considered it to be a place of memory.

A few weeks ago, I was exploring the website of Mary Anne Radmacher. In doing so, I came upon a poster that read, “in every journey may you ask…what is it you will be…a tourist or an explorer?” The words seemed to leap off the page (or the monitor, in this instance) and lodge themselves in my brain. They have been rattling around up there (exploring, I think!) and emerging once in awhile to get me thinking…

Last week, I joined 15,000 or so other cyclists from around the world for a very long bike ride. RAGBRAI®, or the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa, is one of those traditions with which Iowans are well-acquain

ted. We started in Council Bluffs on the west side of the state, and 442 miles and 7 days later ended our ride with a dip of our front tire in the Mississippi in Burlington, Iowa. Describing RAGBRAI in just a few words to someone who has never seen it is quite difficult, but imagine a 60 mile stretch of busy highway traffic in which the cars range from a 1920 Ford to a brand new souped up hybrid and the drivers wear anything from TuTus and feather boas to spandex, and you'll sort-of get the idea.

Unexpectedly, I had the opportunity to cover RAGBRAI for my local newspaper. It was my first real effort in journalism, and it was great fun interviewing dozens of people along the ride. If you're interested in getting more of a feel for the ride, you can read my columns here, and the official RAGBRAI website is here.

It was a wonderful day when I realized that I did not have to answer every question my children asked me immediately. This was a major parenting discovery for me, as I figured out that immediacy on their end did not have to translate to immediacy in my decision making. Yes, my kids always want to know the answer to whether or not they can sleep over at their friend’s house tonight or whether they can purchase the latest computer game right now! But as a parent, I am allowed to take time to make decisions. It is okay to say, “I’ll think about it.” “I will check the calendar and get back to you.” or “Your father and I will discuss it and let you know.” It took awhile for my children to view “maybe” as an acceptable answer, but when the alternative was, “If I have to answer right now, the answer is no,” they learned to view maybe as a hopeful answer.

The writer of the third chapter of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 reminds us that there is a season and a time for everything. When I was younger, half of these verses did not make sense to me. I understood the part about there being a time for those things in the list which seemed positive; for being born, healing, building up, laughing, dancing, throwing away stones, embracing, seeking, keeping, sewing, speaking, loving and being peaceful.

It has taken me longer to appreciate that the remainder of the actions in these verses can also be positives.

I have a couple of t-shirts that say, “YES!!!!” on the front of them. They happen to be from my church, which has a history of saying, “YES!!!!” Whenever I wear one of these shirts, it is not uncommon for someone who is not familiar with its origin to ask me what I am saying “YES!!!!” to. In a world that often seems to me to be increasingly filled with negativity and complaining, I am reminded that there are still plenty of reasons to say, “YES!!!!”

Every year on July 4th, the residents of the neighborhood I live in gather together for a day-long celebration that includes a potluck lunch, a parade, a water balloon toss, and several other events. It's a huge deal—everyone looks forward to this long-standing tradition, and our block party is by far the largest in town.

The event always includes the requisite brief speech by one of the residents from the neighborhood on freedom, independence, citizenship, or some similar theme. I have never been the master of ceremonies (and probably never will be, since I seem to have been born without the gene for patriotism), but each year I do think a bit about what I wish would be said in that speech. 

This year, I wish I could talk about resistance.

When I worked as a youth director, I quickly learned that it’s always helpful to have a few games and activities that I could pull out at a moment’s notice to use when youth are bored. (This skill literally got me a job at one church, because I was able to turn a chaotic and unstructured Superbowl party into a time of community-building.) One of the tricks I’ve developed over the years is being able to describe an individual’s personality by looking at a picture of a house that they have drawn for me. It’s not an exact science by any means, but after seeing several hundred house drawings over the years, I’ve discovered a lot of patterns.

One of the first things I look at is the person’s orientation toward life: are they a “(P)ast,” “(N)ow,” or “(F)uture” person. “Pasts” or Ps are people who spend a great deal of time thinking about the past, often because of guilt or shame about something that happened to them years ago. “Futures” or Fs are people who are always planning, dreaming about things to come, and wishing something in their future would happen right now (like getting a driver’s license or leaving home for college). Among youth, the largest group are “Nows” or Ns, people who—for the most part—live for today and focus on immediate interests and concerns.