Laurie Klein, Scribe

immerse in God, emerge refreshed

Learn to Sing out on a Limb

by 14 Chiming In

I should have packed better clothes for the conference. Everyone else looked so . . . classic. Even the tables outshone me, gleaming with pristine linens, the flicker of candles. Luscious peonies.

perfect peony

With a raised hand, our keynoter invoked silence. Then, with an almost double-dog-dare-ya glint in her eye, she invited us out on a limb. She asked us to hear God speak to each of us, personally . . . in the stillness.

Oh, the pressure. Chairs creaked as we uncrossed our legs, settled our clothing. Eased back.

I felt shy, but so hopeful. [Read more…]

Zoom

by 2 Chiming In

butterfly legsButterfly Riff #2:

Six jointed legs, fine as an eyelash, taste with their feet, prick the skin of the wrist, hunting sweetness.

You forget how old your open hand looks, how lined with stories, can only marvel that you’ve been sampled, tattooed by wonder.

And so you welcome the sting of Beauty: wild, arresting. Evanescent.

I will show them my wonders . . . (Micah 7:15)

For more on this subject, click Exposed to Truth, Its Beautiful Sting

Bite, or Flight? 4 Gifts of Attentiveness

by 2 Chiming In

Mystery Bug

Ah, the siren call of the backyard rhododendron. Thick leaves gleam in the morning sun. I grab my camera, wedge my feet into black garden clogs, and squelch across lawn still bright with dew.

To my squeamish delight, this weird little bug appears, bright as a split lemon.

Will it bite? Does it fly?

I snap shot after shot, serenely transfixed. Spider or bug? What is it?

Two words swim up: Pay Attention. An order. A plea. A guiding phrase.

[Read more…]