by Emily Wierenga | Nov 26, 2012 | birth, body image, children, christmas, diet, eating, eating disorders, food, happiness, mothers, pregnancy, skinny, weight
i was eating key-lime pie and commenting on how good she looked, on her new shade of hair, and i mentioned that she’d lost weight, that she looked slimmer, and she glowed. the way mothers do when they’re told they’re beautiful, even as her teenage daughter walked by,... by Emily Wierenga | Sep 7, 2012 | children, fighting, forgiveness, guns, mothers, play, satan, soul, violence
“sometimes when people get mad at me, i come in here and stand on my bed and look out the window to see if mommy is coming to get me,” joey says. he’s standing on his bed as he says this, the trees turning color through the window.he’s a... by Emily Wierenga | May 2, 2012 | belly buttons, children, church, community, family, God, humanity, imperfect prose on thursdays, Jesus, mothers
(guest host today: tara pohlkotte)”mama, why do we have these?” my son asks lifting his shirt and running a fingerover his belly button.i explained that through it mama was able to keep him fed, keep him growing,sustained life deep within.”but why do... by Emily Wierenga | Mar 17, 2012 | bravery, children, courage, faith, fathers, fear, God, hope, love, mothers
my palms are rough and i don’t feel very brave, sobbing into them.trent has hurt my feelings because we’re both tired, and there are four pairs of eyes watching and it’s too much sometimes. so i go to my room and sit on our feather tick and cry. ask... by Emily Wierenga | Feb 20, 2012 | children, desert, fostering, God, mothers, prayer, song, st. francis
“it will get harder,” i heard, bending over the rails of the crib, the crucified stance of the mother who feeds life in the dead of night. but i shook my head. it couldn’t. it was hard enough. and then, “there will be victory,” even as my...