Gretchen Louise

expectation

Father, forgive me.  Too often, my expectations focus only on the negative.  I fear, I doubt, I dread.  And I pray.  But are my pleas against the things I fear or for the things I know You can do? I know how much my thoughts guide my attitude.  So shouldn’t I be watching with eager…

rain

I listened to it as I fell asleep last night.  And each time I woke up, it was still coming down. The gentle thud of each drop on the rooftop was music to my ears, lulling the little ones to sleep, helping my farmer hubby rest a bit more easily. The girls had cried on…

see

When I look at my son, I see his daddy.  When I see my son’s smile, it’s my brothers all over again. When I look at my husband’s profile, I see the profile of his dad and his grandfather.  When my husband smiles, it’s his grandpa’s military picture smiling back at me. When I look…

married to a writer

Dearest, Did you know what you were getting into, my love, when you married a writer? Did you know it would mean oft coming home to dishes only half finished because inspiration struck in the midst of the soap suds? Did you know how often I’d nearly burn your dinner—or forget to get it started…

opportunity

I’m faced with the opportunity so many times a day.  And too often, I ignore it.  The moment slips through my fingers due to my own impatience. It’s not a book deal or a speaking engagement.  No, it’s bigger than that. But I brush it aside and think I’ll tend to it later.  I pretend…

perspective

She talks of how moms need perspective and I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.  How can one maintain perspective in the midst of the up-all-night, wiping-noses-all-day, clingy-sick-babies kind of week we’ve had? Another speaks of visionary motherhood and the tears well so I can’t even see.  How am I supposed to be a…

identity

“And when you believed in Christ, He identified you as His own…” –Ephesians 1:13, NLT Twenty-five years ago today, I took His identity for my own. With the simple faith of a child, I knelt and prayed. I gave Him my heart, my life.  I decided to follow Jesus, no turning back. But it was…

Papa’s Barn
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Papa’s Barn

My maternal grandfather’s birthday is today.  It seemed a fitting time to share this piece I wrote ten years ago for a college writing class.  Happy Birthday, Papa!  Thanks for your example and all the memories. I love you. Stepping lightly over the hot wire fence alongside my cousin Melissa, I recall the day not…

The End.

The End.