Category: Leadership
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The cocoon
We met Ivy two weeks before the pandemic hit Romania. Who knew the first two weeks would be so precious, and out of the current ordinary. We treasure those times of kisses and snuggles without reserve or masks. I have faith that much will still change around the world. And Ivy will adapt, as this…
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Where are you?
It’s the question God asks of Adam and Eve before things went south. It’s a rhetorical question. Because God knows everything. What did you do? I asked Jackie what happened. She stared at me, unmovable. I know her stoicism. I didn’t even get upset deep down. Nor disappointed. So I told her the story of…
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“My foster mom didn’t sing”
I stop humming. I look at her. I take a deep breath and ask: “would you prefer I stopped singing?” “Yes” she answered slightly embarrassed, quietly. It’s not the first time she tells me to stop singing. Ever since I met her. I blatantly disregarded her request when I used to drive her back to the…
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Working the land
At the beginning of this year we bought an orchard. I signed the papers on the last day before the lockdown started. Those two months of cleaning dry shrubbery and tending to the garden were a heavenly gift. I would have paid someone to let me work outside. The money we invested seemed like a…
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Risk
I’m not a risk taker. This is why I’m not the most proficient business developer. I like to serve, and I lead by necessity. As a kid, as the youngest and as a girl, I assumed complete contentment and happiness with less. Less than my brother. Hand-me-downs. I’m not competitive. But I’ve made many good…
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When we are so worn out we don’t see the cuteness
Everything is irritating. I started dreading certain moments of the day. But tonight I had a persuasive talk with the girls. I told them like this: Mommy and daddy are the responsible adults who love them and want what’s best for them. We will do everything in our power to keep them safe, loved and…
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Obedience
When I am exhausted and I chose the lazy way, in the moment seems more patient and loving. Except it isn’t. We were cooking dinner. The girls wanted to help. They put in the pasta. And they wanted to cut the bell pepper. I split it in two and they both got to chopping. I…
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Creativity nurtured in routine
I was utterly impressed by Mate’s coherent talk from the heart. So much wisdom packed into a personal story. His heart tenderized by pain early on, his mind able to see clearer, and be ready to adapt and to immerse in pure grace. His influence and power and skill, they all amount to something because…
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Hope
“The difference between shallow happiness and a deep, sustaining joy is sorrow. Happiness lives where sorrow is not. When sorrow arrives, happiness dies. It can’t stand pain. Joy, on the other hand, rises from sorrow and therefore can withstand all grief. Joy, by the grace of God, is the transfiguration of suffering into endurance, and…
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Decisions
It was almost easier when everyone was ordered to follow the same rules. The uncertainty and confusion at every level is mentally exhausting. 25 out of 27 parents attended the parent-teacher conference for the beginning of the school year. Our 3 year old kids are entering the the kindergarten system and it is terrifying. Our…
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“That’s not true!”
Miss candor here, Jaclyn “Speak-her-mind” Altmann, contradicted me when I told the bride at her wedding that she was happy to attend her bridal shower. She said outright: “it was so boring, I didn’t enjoy it.” Well, it was a zoom party for a bride to be. Neither girl had ever attended a themed party,…