A blog about travel, culture and finding joy in the journey!

One of the hardest things you can do is to watch a loved one make a shipwreck of their lives and not say anything. My pastor often talks about the wisdom it takes to know what to say and when to say it, because you may know exactly what they need to hear, but they may not be ready or able to receive it. Just think about how gracious the Lord is with us. He gently leads us along, never giving us more than He knows we can bear. Of course, this is never an excuse to say nothing

Do you know what drowning looks like? Most people would assume, as I did, that the person in danger would be thrashing around, calling desperately for help. I read an interesting article where a lifeguard and water rescue expert, Francesco Pia, PhD. explains what drowning actually looks like. - Silent: There's no spare breath to call for help. - Bobbing up and down: their mouth sinks below the water's surface, pops up just enough to breathe and sinks back down. - Stiff-armed:

When we first moved here, several things seemed different to me. One of them was the village mentality. Parents actively watched other people’s children. When this first happened, I felt slightly offended. Did they not think I was doing a good job watching my son? I knew he could play in a specific part of the playground by himself. Why did they feel the need to jump in and help him? How differently I view this now, as I sat in a shady area of the playground holding my infan