I love a full, silvery winter moon against an icy-cold, inky-blue, clear sky. Its radiance sparkling upon freshly falling snow makes me want to stop–urgently–to “watch the meadow fill” just like my old friend, Robert Frost… and to gaze upon the moonlight sparkle-play upon the “downy frost.” There is dancing when the nighttime skylight shines…
Tag: light
Language
Lofty thoughts, which become ideals and hopefully–actions like forgiveness, freedom, liberty, holiness, purity, redemption, atonement, justice, retribution, love, kindness, patience, or equality begin as seeds planted in the souls of mankind by the Spirit of God hovering upon the treasure of the universe. As we mature to grapple–chew and swallow these, they break through concrete barriers with rapid force and power like…
Across the Kitchen Table
I turn 75 tomorrow. I don’t feel old or irrelevant, although my culture may tell me otherwise. Older, more savvy friends and pastoral mentors shared with Wayne and me in our early 40’s that life doesn’t even get really fun and rich until your fifties. That was a bit of experiential advice that I put…
A Road Map to Joy
A ROAD MAP TO JOYPoems and StoriesFind Your Way in a World of Discontent Step into a world where faith and poetry intertwine—where the flicker of hope leads you down a path toward lasting joy. In “A Road Map to Joy,” Bonnie Saul Wilks gathers luminous poems and reflective stories that capture the ache and…
Terror and Beauty
I pause with reverence on the balcony of my hotel room in the Holy City. Across from me stands the New Gate, and my eyes follow Jerusalem’s ancient walls as far as I can see. The golden Dome of the Rock faintly gleams as dawn peaks its way up and over the horizon and walls….
Elk Crossing the Lake
Sunrise broke a couple of large marble pots leaning against the walls of heaven and sky. Did you know that the colors of dawn and dusk are stored in these magnificent stone jars? They stand waiting in the wings of aurora and twilight, ready to be broken open and slathered across the horizon. Freshly released,…
Connection
Sheltered between two Rocky Mountain canyon walls, my husband and I ascend the steep hair-pinned road. A deep sense of belonging settles as we view the beauty in silence. We have left the city behind in hopes of the serenity of clear blue mountain lakes, pristine heights and slopes of evergreens and aspen, and most…
Incandescent Grief
For me, Christmas light shines brighter each year; and it is so important to every aspect of my life as I move on from this annualized celebration and illumination into the cold and sometimes dark realities of a new year, 2025. I am simply pausing for light—to soak in it, see it in reality and…
Life and Light
Writers, especially poets, often endeavor to incorporate the magic of falling or slanting light into their musings—the way it reflects off the water, shines through the trees, or forms shadows on the wall. They are occasionally criticized for their feeble attempts—metaphors too worn out with over-usage and too prosaic. How do you capture and bend…
The next time you want to shake your fist at God…
It is essential in our walk with God to understand him as a consuming fire. Most consider our Creator and his acts toward humankind to center around judgment or discipline. That he is ever-watching from heaven to smash our plans or even our lives. But the consuming fire of the Holy One of Israel and…