Hey there, Today, February 2nd, marks the midway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. Here in Michigan, it feels like we’ve only made it halfway through winter, not exactly early-spring behavior. A cold front has been moving through many parts of the U.S., and everything seems frozen in time. Today, following the Catholic tradition, it’s Candlemas (Mariä Lichtmess). In pre-Christian times, this day was also known as a “feast of lights” celebrating the returning strength of the...
11 days ago • 1 min read
Hey there, We are in deep winter.And I mean deep. Minus 20 degrees Celsius last night.(I’m a Celsius girl, but when Fahrenheit goes into the minus, even I understand it. 😏) It’s quiet out there right now.Here in Michigan, the ground is frozen.The inland lakes are frozen too, and ice fishing has become a perfectly normal weekend activity.Everything above ground has paused. Standing on the ice, Lake St. Clair And yet, this is the part that always humbles me. Beneath the surface, life is not...
19 days ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, You can find something nice in most people. Sometimes you just need to have a good look. This is a quote from the fun Norwegian Christmas Netflix series Home for Christmas.And I’d even go further and say: You can find something nice in everyone. I do. 🤗 I always look for what’s behind the mask of the person in front of me. That doesn’t mean I need to be friends with everyone. But we are often very quick to judge based on what we see at first glance. A recent example: for two...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Dear Reader, Tend to What Matters In your final moments, as you look back on your life,what will you wish you had done more of? Whatever that isthat is what you should be doing more of now. My friend Paulette asked this question on Facebook on Christmas Day.It stayed with me. It struck me deeply. I wondered whether Dieter ever had time to think about a question like that.Or did he? He was gone in the blink of an eye. I don’t know. What I do know is this:I am deeply grateful that I had time...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Dear friend, Today, on December 21st, we meet the winter solstice — the longest night and the shortest day of the year. It’s the moment when the sun appears to stand still. And then, quietly, almost unnoticed, the light begins to return. I experience this time as an invitation to pause. To stand still with life. To listen more deeply. Today, I was reminded how much I love lighthouses.Standing tall.Shining their light so others don’t lose their way.So they don’t get stranded. And I see myself...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Hey there, Recently, I listened to an episode of the On Being podcast with Krista Tippett, where she interviews Brother David Steindl-Rast, a 99-year-old Benedictine monk.He was born in Austria and has lived in the U.S. since the 1950s. There is something deeply touching about listening to him.His voice.His presence.That gentle Austrian accent. 🤗 And I smiled, because I realized—that’s probably what I sound like when people hear my voice. Which then made me think: maybe I should use my voice...
2 months ago • 1 min read
Hey there, I watched the new Frankenstein movie last weekend, and I was completely mesmerized. If you haven’t seen it, I genuinely recommend it — especially with Thanksgiving weekend coming up, when you might have a little extra space to sit with a story that goes deeper than expected. I almost didn’t watch it at all. When my daughter suggested it, my first reaction was,“Nah… I don’t watch horror.”I never do. I don’t like inviting those images into my mind.I’m like a child in that way. If you...
3 months ago • 2 min read
Hey there, Let me begin with something simple. Think of something as ordinary as driving. You can sit in traffic yelling at every red light, gripping the wheel, feeling your whole body tighten… And what do you notice?More reasons to be tense.More things that “go wrong.”More frustration mirrored back to you. Or you cantake a breath,soften your shoulders,and choose to go with the flow. Suddenly, the same traffic feels different.Your body relaxes.Your mind clears.You start catching green...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Hey there, I woke up at 3 a.m. this morning.Instead of turning from left to right, frustrated that I couldn’t sleep, I got up. I took Dieter and a white candle with me into the living room.I lit the candle and sat down on the sofa.Closing my eyes, I listened to my breath for a while. Dieter, taking a break somewhere along the road — the only selfie he ever took.A cigarillo in his mouth, enjoying the moment. He was my rock. Then I looked at Dieter and started telling him — out loud and in my...
3 months ago • 2 min read