The humidity greets me with a sticky embrace as I step outside onto my back porch in Austin. I question whether to turn and walk back into my office. No, I need to breathe something other than air-conditioned air this morning.
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All articles filed in Monthly Themes
The Red Tent
The door opens. A home screen. A blank document. A blinking cursor. A vast red tent. An expansive table. A seat for me. “Friendship” reads the place card. The host invites me, “Tell us a story.” And so I do.
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Always, We Begin Again
Endings can feel like death, but they also hold so much hope if you remain present in the tension of the liminal space they create. My son moved out of our home last week. He spent a year with us after his college graduation, which was a gift of unexpected time. As I headed home…
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A Merciful Disruption
Stretching my legs in the gas station parking lot somewhere along I-70 East, I had never felt so lost in my entire life. Not lost in terms of directions. Lost on a deeper level. Age 24 and along for the ride as my parents headed to a week on the Atlantic Ocean with both of…
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Rise Up
As I consider my final Red Tent essay, I remember the distinct feeling of writing my first piece. It came flowing out of my heart in a hospital room, and it “had to be” shared. In the midst of my processing and growth, the tent has felt like a protected space that holds my historic…
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Honoring Tears
I lay on the table in my surgeon’s office, the cape draped around my shoulders open, exposing the breast that is being biopsied today. As my doctor enters the room with her characteristic warm greeting, I feel a rush of gratitude for both the expertise and kindness I have experienced in her care over the…
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The One Where We Say Goodbye
An outdated Chromebook sits atop my lap. A warning appears just before the screen turns black. Jiggling the charger, I turn it slightly counterclockwise, hoping for enough connection to power the laptop on once again. For years, this laptop has required a power cord to operate, as it’s unable to function on battery alone. Seated…
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A Seat at the Table
I wrote for Red Tent Living for almost exactly eight years before ever meeting Tracy Johnson in person. We had, of course, communicated via email, but I did not have the opportunity to spend time with her in “real life” until I attended the Sacred Interruption retreat in Knoxville last October. I was deep in…
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Guests of Honor
I’ve not yet had the opportunity to go dress shopping and choose “the perfect dress” or plan a celebration of love and commitment to the wild and kind man whom I will one day call my best friend. These are hopes and longings of mine that have been threaded into the deep tapestry of my…
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Honoring Life: Moments of Grace
About a year ago, my literary soulmate, Bridget, who had moved away, was struggling. A close friend of ours, Julie, was facing a cancer recurrence, and the prognosis was grim. Torn about returning for a visit, she recalled a quiche she had once made that Julie had loved—it was the only thing Julie could eat…
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