Putting the ‘friend’ into cyber friendships

On her blog a few years ago, author Jody Hedlund questioned if our modern cyber world is distorting the meaning of the word ‘friend’. She asked, “How would you define a true friend and can you find that kind of friendship in the cyber world?” I’ve often thought about that question but never really come

Life Lessons from the Garden

Two varieties of daisies grace the flowerpots on our deck. One plant puts up buds on tall stems. When they open they make a lovely show well above the greenery, smiling in the sunshine. Unfortunately we haven’t had much sunshine lately, except for the liquid kind, and yesterday I noticed how the sodden flowers sagged,

The value of supportive friendships

Last May I blogged about the importance of support in our writing endeavours. (If you missed it you can check it out here.) Today, on The Pastor’s Wife Speaks blog I’m sharing the dilemma of ministers’ families who need to display impartiality in their relationships and thus often forego the support of close personal friendships. (I’m

Feathers and Friends: a Comparison

. . . Feathery bursts of colour, delicate clouds of white, pink and red, punctuate the mostly green garden beds in our back yard. Whether you call it false spirea, meadowsweet, false goat’s beard or astilbe, this hardy perennial is one of my favourites. The plumes rise above lacy, fern-like leaves and last for several