Open Door to the World

Open Door to the World

Many years ago as we were seeing a missionary friend off on a bus trip, another friend turned to me on the terminal platform. “Is there anything more typical of missionary life than traveling?” she remarked. How on-the-nose she was, because Jesus’ “go ye” gives us an open door, a travel ticket to the world….

Around the World in 80 Tins

Around the World in 80 Tins

Although during nearly 40 years as a missionary I’ve visited 12 American countries, I’ve only once traveled outside the Western Hemisphere. A trip around the world—or at least to a few places on the other side of the globe—definitely has a spot near the top of my Bucket List. Along the way in my travels,…

Behind My Mask

Behind My Mask

Can I share a secret? Hiding behind my mask, I’ve saved a bundle this year on face cream, lipstick, and even (gasp!) toothpaste. What I’ll look like when I finally emerge from the cocoon may alarm the neighbors.   We so often leave unattended what nobody else can see, where no outsider will notice. You…

6 Educational Secrets

6 Educational Secrets

“I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry,” says the Apostle Paul (Phil. 4:12). That pretty much sums up my educational secrets: Abundance and hunger. Fullness and need. Prosperity, humility. We stuff our minds with new facts and ideas, and still we know, there’s always more to learn. A good story always…

This Homesick World

This Homesick World

Among the many themes in my books, the motif of HOME—or perhaps more precisely, houses—surprises me most with its broad-spectrum presence. I never planned to weave those ideas into the writing, was hardly even aware of them. But in this homesick world, maybe that’s not unexpected at all. Recently I suffered an attack…of nostalgia. Did…

Mountain Music

Mountain Music

We’re familiar with many of the precious names of God, such as El Elyon (Most High God) and Adonai (Lord), because of their use in some contemporary Christian songs. El Shaddai–All-Sufficient God–is another of these, and in its complex Hebrew meanings of both “mountain” and “breast,” we discover the majestic protection and tender provision of…

Picnic Paradise

Picnic Paradise

It’s official. For one of the few times in 210 years, Fiestas Patrias, Chile’s patriotic celebration beginning on September 18th, is canceled in our city. What only the military coup of 1973 could accomplish before, the Covid-19 pandemic has now put into effect. We won’t miss the 3-day Booze Bash, but we’ll long for the…

Art Therapy

Art Therapy

The stories that turn up in The Quarantine Tales have highlighted many of the themes threaded through my work. I’ve discovered that one of my favorite topics is ART (as July’s posts indicate). Art therapy touches our hearts. Even my books are purposed to tease beauty out of barren places and broken people. “The earth…

Keeping the Windows Clean

Keeping the Windows Clean

My mother-in-law (AKA Mrs. Cleanhouse) has always had an obsession with washing windows. Smudges and fingerprints I never would have noticed, she attacked with more than a vengeance—a passion. No wonder her solarium grew lush and verdant. The secret lay in keeping those huge windows clean. Last week I talked of stained clothes, today it’s…

Swan Island Secrets

Swan Island Secrets

Day 5, take 3. Today’s story highlights the climax of our Patagonian Journey in search of Swan Island Secrets. And though I’m the author, the plot twist is: Even I’m not sure how it’s all going to turn out. “The best stories are the ones with the unexpected plot twists that no one would have…

In Search of a Story

In Search of a Story

From here on, I’m completely in search of a story. As we drive over a daunting mountain pass from Queulat National Park to the seaside village of Puerto Cisnes, I lay aside my role as a tourist in the magnificent Chilean Patagonia…and become the writer bent on research. I drag my notebook out of my…