All posts by Sarah Kirsten

Act One: A Failure in Kindness One time I had to ask the local sheep shearer to come to shear my family’s flock. He is notoriously difficult to work with. Several experiences with him in the past led to me not look forward to making this phone call. Mother and I were so anxious to…

It seems like this time of extra isolation provides an opportunity for creating extra amounts of fun. With lots of places being closed, I’ve started creating adventure events for people! I put one together last weekend. Each team had to trudge through the woods to find and decode a series of clues. One clue had…

Have you ever had a major crisis come up in your life or a big door closed on something you were putting a lot of hope in? Maybe in a career or relationship or something else you hold dearly? It is devastating when a dream, a hope, a plan goes careening off a cliff edge….

Have you seen images of a plant seed germinating? A condensed version of the germination story is the seed first soaks up water, then the roots start growing, growing, and then the first leaves break through the soil surface to be greeted by warm rays of sunshine. Throughout the process to maturity, a plant grows…

This summer I walked out my back door and groaned. The mulberry tree dropped a plethora of berries on the patio. There was a berry every two inches in each direction. Some berries get mercifully eaten by wildlife. Most just seem to await their fate of returning to soil. I’m tempted to be annoyed because…

“Queen to b4, knight to F7, bishop to H5…” I couldn’t help but overhear an older man talking to himself as he replayed one of the great chess games of history. He held an orange book with tattered corners in one hand while swiftly moving the pieces on the board in front of him with…

Do you ever think about how no one chose to be here? No one submitted an application to exist. Our existence was chosen for us. Therefore, no one has more or less right to be here than you. You have a right to take up space. You are enough, the very essence of who you…

Every once in a while, your ship will sail right into the dreaded Doldrums of Creativity. Have you been there recently? What I’ve found in my life is that usually when I am in the Doldrums of Creativity, it’s not that I don’t have ideas, it’s that I don’t have faith in my ideas. It’s…

Growing up I was bombarded with ideologies about not finding happiness in worldly measures of success. Things like, making a lot of money, getting promotions – all external measures of generally doing well in life, so to speak. The intent of these ideologies was noble – they were meant to reinforce the idea that external…

One of my favorite lines in the Anne of Green Gables series is when Anne is walking home one day with a kind man carrying a lamp. She describes how the light created by the lamp makes the darkness feel like the enemy. The contrast between light and dark is stark, making it difficult to…

First off, can I give you a hug? I’ll make us a pot of your favorite tea, switch on the floor lamp, and we can talk while the cicadas chorus their summer song in the cool evening air breezing through the open windows. I want to sit and listen to what is heavy on your…

Have you ever walked by someone famous? When I was flying back from saying goodbye to my grandmother who was passing away, I saw a young man at the Denver International Airport. I didn’t know who he was. I still don’t, actually. But when I saw him, I did a double take. There was something…

Have you ever wondered what to do with a hobby or skill that you love? One time when I was on a solo bicycle trip down the Mississippi, I stayed the night at the parents of one of my friends, who happened to live near my route. As we washed the dishes together after supper,…

As a young 15-year-old, I approached my parents and petitioned them to grant me permission to shave my head. There was a growing nagging feeling inside me that I needed to see myself without hair to really understand who I was, what I looked like. This was a step further than my previous petition regarding…

For some reason or another, our body seems to be of particular interest for attack from mean voices within. The mean voice is surprisingly convincing. It starts early in our lives. It is not invited inside, but it finds a way in. It cleverly twists things you hear or experience into unhealthy comparisons with girls…