>There are times in my life when God's providence is so obvious it makes me feel as if he reaches down, wraps his arms around me, and whispers in my ear, "See how much I love you, Glenda!"This past weekend was one of those times. In between a couple of time-consuming projects for Mid-America Reformed … Continue reading >Providence, Pentecost and Babel Reversed

>Contemplation is crucial for creativity.

>On Saturday I walked across the stage of Carver Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City and crossed the finish line of my thirteen-year bachelor degree marathon. After the ceremony, my family and I celebrated with a family-style meal and great fellowship in an Amana restaurant. Never before have I had a day when I thanked the … Continue reading >Graduation Day

>My daughter, Bethany, is my hero. She's in Nashville at sales training school before beginning her summer of 80-hour weeks selling books door-to-door for Southwestern. (If you're wondering why Southwestern is so named when it's headquartered in Nashville, it's because when the company began over 150 years ago, that was the southwestern part of the … Continue reading >Hero

>RedbudUpraised handCupped for blessing Fingers Splayed in praise © Glenda Mathes, 2006My many readers may wish to note that I've replaced Dulce Ridens, Dulce Loquens (the cento in the sidebar) with Vespers.

>My friend Angela and I met on Friday and discussed, among other things, creativity. Angela and I met in the creative writing class that became the first step in my bachelor degree marathon. A marathon that will end, the good Lord willing, when I graduate from the University of Iowa on May 13.In the nearly … Continue reading >Creativity

>Bits of hymns often fill my mind. This morning it’s:Teach me to love Thee as Thine angels love,One holy passion, filling all my frame—,The baptism of the heaven-descended Dove;My heart an altar, and Thy love the flame.After spending some time looking through the Blue Psalter Hymnal this morning, I finally did a Google search and … Continue reading >My Heart an Altar

>The pelicans are back.On Saturday afternoon, they were soaring in spirals like synchronized swimmers above the dam, and on Sunday morning they were crowding the sand bar and bobbing in the churning water below the dam.Seeing them return is one of the joys of spring, just like seeing the first color of the season in … Continue reading >Pelicans

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>There are frequent references in my journal to the “votive silence.”That phrase, along with “sacred hush,” became engrained in my mind about a year ago when I began genuinely journaling as an assignment for a writing course. I had always journaled sporadically, but found myself wasting pages on getting an imaginary reader up to date … Continue reading >Votive Silence