“Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it.”  Helen Keller I attended Wheaton Bible Church this morning, where Dr. Andrew Schmutzer continued a series on “Present help in present trouble.”  Today’s topic was sexual abuse—a daring and perhaps uncomfortable choice for a Sunday morning service.  There was a sense […]

(All photos are of the places that define me.) There’s no denying it.  The most prized possession of MKs is their multifaceted background.  It can occasionally feel like a burden, but as we grow older, it becomes the banner we hold high, the anthem we proclaim and the identity we profess.  “I am multi-cultural.”  “I […]

After sending out a request for prayer last week, mentioning that I was still weak and “out of sorts” as I prepared to speak at a conference on MK Care, I received this all-caps note from a Texan friend:  YA THINK YA MIGHT BE OUT OF SORTS BECAUSE YOU WERE UP AND MOVING FIVE MIN […]

It’s day three. I’m post-op, pre-shrink and peri-pain. The learning curve thus far has been sometimes entertaining, sometimes challenging, sometimes surprising and always stimulating. Just a handful of the conclusions I’ve reached since strolling into the hospital on Wednesday and waddling back out on Thursday. 1. Note to self: That which you fear the most […]

There is a saying in the Christian community that makes me angry, and hearing it again a few days ago has rekindled my dislike for it.  Whoever first coined the phrase was probably well-intentioned, but its implications are murky at best—misleading at worst.  With just three days remaining before my surgery, I’d like to address […]

He was a brooding, intense and honest young man who had been in my life for two years, participating in various performances and hanging out at my place with his friends.  He had held starring roles in plays, outreach events, and several different sports, bringing home all-European MVP trophies twice.  He was loved and respected […]

(We’ll get back to our “regular programming” next week…promise!) I was in a pretty bubbly mood, this morning, as I headed off to the doctor’s office again.  I was prepared to discuss surgery and anxious to get this ball rolling.  For the past couple of weeks, when people have asked me what I’m giving up […]

It’s called The Balancing Rock.  An astounding natural phenomenon found in the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs.  When I saw it a few days ago, I wanted to rename it.  It looked more like a Teetering Rock.  An About-to-Fall-Off Rock.  A Wounded and Toppling Rock.  As I photographed it a dozen times, I […]

When I was little, I’d snuggle up to my mom in the evenings and listen to her reading “Are You My Mother?” to me, attracted to the melancholy plight of the children’s book character in a way I’d never been to Snow White or Babar. In the story, the baby bird, a rather pathetic figure […]

The usual disclaimer: though what I describe here is certainly true of a majority of the MKs I’ve known, it is not necessarily true of all of them.  When it comes to “money,” experiences will vary according to location, mission organization, support structure, parental example and cultural opinion. If you’re from Malaysia, money might grow […]