This One's For the Girls
Celebrating International Women's Day
“Oh my gosh, it’s a girl!” I said in shock as I moved the umbilical cord out of the way to see whether I had a son or daughter. The labor and birthing of my daughter shaped me in ways that can’t be described.
Almost two years later, I reread my first blog post postpartum, and I’m still in awe I get to raise a fierce and funny daughter.
“You might want to get your little girl,” a little kid kindly informed me at the library today, and I looked up to find that my girl had climbed to the top of the children’s book display rack, grinning. “That’s what happens when you give your kid a name meaning ‘wild mountain goat!’” I semi-self-consciously chuckle at the librarians.
Women astound me with their strength, wisdom, and intuition. They nurture the world with their gutsy-ness, laughter, and creativity.
Here’s to us, ladies! May we stay rooted in our identity as women created by God to do great and mighty things! Let’s be tender, vulnerable, and shameless in our pursuit to love those around us.
A Poem on Rahab
I was reading the story of Rahab this week (Joshua 2), and this poem practically wrote itself. I think she is an incredible Biblical example of the difference a woman can make.
The Deliberate Grasp of Freedom
Did Rahab know when the two men came
That they would offer freedom
Instead of bondage
to her body & spirit?
What was the clue that they were different
from the men who usually visited her?
And what was the draw to Rahab's home
when they were spying out the land?
Rahab perceived who the Lord had given the land to.
She had heard the wild stories of
The Red Sea drying up for a safe crossing
And the demolishing of the Amorite kings.
Her heart melted
with fear of the Lord,
God of the Israelites,
And faith filled her.
Audacity in her heart
Towards the two men
"Deal kindly with me,
Spare my family."
She deliberately grasped the rope
As the men lowered through her window,
Just as she deliberately grasped their words
Promising liberation from destruction.
As her hands wove the scarlet cord on the window,
Did she understand the symbolism
Of the blood red promise
Of her own personal Passover?
When the clamor of trumpets rang,
And the tremor of stomping feet
Surround her city,
Did she shiver or smile at what awaited?
Were her bags as packed and ready,
As the family gathered in her home?
What possessions did she leave behind,
As the escort was escorted to safety?
Did the scarlet cord burn
As the flames fell on the city?
Or was it tucked away in her pocket,
As a treasured remembrance?
Did Rahab know that her stratagem against the King of Jericho
Would lead to an earthly king, David
And an eternal king, Jesus
From her lineage?
Wisdom from Some of My Favorite Queens
"I do not at all understand the mystery of grace - only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us." - Anne Lamott
"You must not ever stop being whimsical. And you must not, ever, give anyone else the responsibility for your life." - Mary Oliver
"I would like to be known as an intelligent woman, a courageous woman, a loving woman, a woman who teaches by being.” -Maya Angelou
"Do you often feel like parched ground, unable to produce anything worthwhile? I do. When I am in need of refreshment, it isn't easy to think of the needs of others. But I have found that if, instead of praying for my own comfort and satisfaction, I ask the Lord to enable me to give to others, an amazing thing often happens - I find my own needs wonderfully met. Refreshment comes in ways I would never have thought of, both for others, and then, incidentally, for myself." - Elisabeth Elliot
“Vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, courage, empathy, and creativity. It is the source of hope, empathy, accountability, and authenticity. If we want greater clarity in our purpose or deeper and more meaningful spiritual lives, vulnerability is the path.” - Brené Brown
And last, but not least, Morgan Harper Nichols
The Good List
Jet Girl: My Life in War, Peace, and the Cockpit of the Navy's Most Lethal Aircraft, the F/A-18 Super Hornet by Caroline Johnson and Hof Williams. Jet Girl was the perfect book to read this week. Caroline Johnson was the first woman to drop bombs on ISIS and tells her story of aviation training in the Navy, the aggressions she dealt with as a woman in a male-dominated field, and how she is working with the Navy now to create a more equal field for women.
The sweetest children’s book Song in the City. (Click the link to watch it being read on YouTube).
Date night to Riverdance’s 25th Anniversary show. Luis surprised me with tickets to see Riverdance and it was such an emotive performance - the music, the dancing, the set, the costumes - I loved it all!
“Girls Afternoon In” Zoom with author Claire Swinarski thanks to my creative community Exhale Creativity.
Watching my girl ride her scooter. In the words of an innocent bystander, “That’s the cutest thing I’ve seen all day!!”
Conversations with mom friends. We are all figuring this out, one day at a time, and some days it’s really just holding on for dear life!
This bread recipe - no fuss, and few ingredients!
Plough Quarterly Magazine’s Spring 2023 edition - Pain & Passion
