Author Archives: sherryvycitalyork

The loudest voice I heard directing what path I should take after high school graduation was, “Go to college!” It echoed down the halls of each school I attended, by teachers, counselors, parents. It was the shining goal all students were to run towards; the natural procession of things; the next breath to take. One’sContinue reading “Above False Gods”

Do some choose chaos to run and hide Into the maddening frenzied frayTo avoid that awful nakedness When hurts and sins before them lay?Takes courage to walk the humble roadTo be stripped bare of all pretense Of works and glory, self-righteousness Things we hold in our defensePiercing deep beneath outer shell That shields from worldContinue reading “Run To Peace”

“Oh my goodness!” the mother lamented as she listened to her adult children share their feelings about the home-style haircuts she had so carefully given them when they were young. Her memories reran to about 35 years earlier when the busyness of life precluded even the thought of taking the children for a professional haircut.Continue reading “It’s All In The Cut”

Peeking out the walled in frame Fearful took a mighty step To lean forward just a bit To look outside The walls were built there brick by brick Over time, or hurriedly Thoughts a fortress tightly made To keep inside Years of dwelling in that place Brought want of fresh air and new view PurposeContinue reading “Becoming Valiant”

Through tangled vines the light shines forth It matters not from where I seeThe light is dancing midst the leavesPast twists and turns, it reaches me The vines and trees in Czechy land Filter light as do the treesOutside my door, or down the streetOr wherever in the shade we meet In Germany we foundContinue reading “Tangled Vines”

I needed this word today, germinated from Maggie Smith’s quote, posted by my Noom group coach: Even when, especially when, Life feels cloudy, do your best to see yourself clearly. Try to articulate what inspires you versus what shuts you down, what excites you, what scares you. When you think about what you want andContinue reading “Inspiration”

Where comes this stiff-necked attitudeA veil in which to shield myself Predicting voices I will hearWhen ‘round certain loved ones dear?Confusing ‘tis for all of us How to navigate this trough Is bitterness inside of me The reason for my short rebuff?LORD, help me please to understand Why I act this toilsome way Where inContinue reading “Unveiling An Attitude”

Is dying to self an awful thing? Nay! ‘Tis but the process that ultimately bringsThe best of us grown out I shudder and cling to that that I know My familiar rut, behaviors that flow Naturally from me Around and around in the same old trackGetting stuck deeper, so much that I lack Would IContinue reading “Dying To Self”

Would You whisper in her earA word, to let her know You’re nearThat You are truly real To be a place that she can dwellTo flee the strife that ‘round her swells To be her place of refuge I cannot reach her, LORD, from hereI’m bound by space, how she believes Yet for her myContinue reading “Whisper Please”

When asked recently if there was someone in my life I needed to forgive, the long buried memory of a craft store owner (who unbeknownst to me was most likely a pedophile, or trafficker of child pornography) came to mind. Looking for a job as a clerk in his store, I was nearly reeled intoContinue reading “Keys To Unpacking One’s Soul”

It was a glorious snowy day. Snow had fallen through the night before, surprising the children of the farm with a glistening white wonderland as they peered out frosty windows that bright morn. Their day started early, for on the farm they had chores to do before school. The family had always risen with orContinue reading “Duck Duck! Quack Quack!”

How will it feel to suddenly be lifted up? Will there be a rush of changing barometric pressure, a need for oxygen? I suspect that when the LORD returns all those details will be already addressed, no baggage preparation or TSA checks for flight necessary. Only the readiness of one’s spirit to fly away toContinue reading “Rapture Dreams”

Driving up Idaho’s Highway 55, I am always heartened by the stalwart greeting of old barns. Some dilapidated, some fallen down, some still standing proud, they are weather-worn grey or faded red, or green, some more newly painted. Metal roofs seem the standard covering in this part of snow country. For these higher mountain meadowsContinue reading “Old Barns”

The procedure was necessary and would only take a few minutes. Outpatient. In-office. Not a big deal. Yes, it will be uncomfortable, but not for long. “You must hold still. Sit on the table on your knees, your rear in the air, head down in your arms.” Humiliation has a name. Mortification. Though a medicalContinue reading “Healing The First Colonoscopy”

Contemplating how to explain to our grandchildren the reality of God, whether or not one believes in His existence, the picture that came to mind was a fish tank, bubbling away, as fish of various kinds swam freely through the water. Or a school of fish, swimming deeper in the ocean. Some were older, someContinue reading “In Him We Live”

She sat stunned, unsure how to receive the news. The thought of it, how he had been taught, was beyond her comprehension. His grandfather had lived that way, finding “great return on his investment” by diversifying his wealth and allegiances among many. Little did she know this included his affections. “How many?” she inquired. “IContinue reading “Home Within The Sanctuary”

Have you noticed how consistent are the laws of nature? Nature has been carefully and thoughtfully constructed, not a willy-nilly whirly gig that randomly spins. Even the changeable things, like the weather, volcanoes, earthquakes, are somewhat predictable in their presentation, though cloaked in uncertainty. Most things do remain conventional. Gravity persists in its properties. DayContinue reading “Black Holes”

Gray truly has been given a bum rap. Touted as the signature color of depression, or loss of sunshine on a cloudy day, it carries the accumulations of assigned characteristics that over the years have built up to a resounding “yuk!” It has been cast as something to avoid; the mess that’s made with tooContinue reading “Love of Gray”

Some days it feels like “Incoming! Take cover!” is the clarion call in our lives. We are battle worn and weary, yet have no choice but to go on, one step at a time. “When will it end?” we wonder. “When will peace and tranquility come again? When will the infighting and division stop? HowContinue reading “When Shimei Is Throwing Clods”

The boys had settled their energy down, after a silly made-up song sung directly to their toes, then to knees, legs, body, nose . . . the final refrain, “and the nose knows it’s time to settle down!” Who can guess where these spontaneous silly songs come from to fill the moment in a funContinue reading “Couch Potato Time”

The phone thrummed on the dresser awakening me to another of my friend’s “oops!” video chat dials. Becoming rather infamous in this communication phenomenon, she wears the mantle with good humor. And I know I can roll over and go back to sleep if need be. Scrunching my pillow while burrowing back under the coversContinue reading “A Gentle Heart Beat”

Some days I feel like my pocket is filled with woe. Perhaps an imbalance in my brain contributes to a propensity towards depression, the cup half empty, rather than half full. Although I do not set out to choose woefulness, it certainly is a deep and fertile soil to plow, to unearth and bring toContinue reading “The Light In My Pocket”

I recently received word that a dear childhood friend “passed away in her sleep last night.” Have you ever wondered how the dying experience will be? What one’s living spirit actually encounters as the body expires, letting go of this part of life? Will it be a wrestling match of sorts, a release finally ofContinue reading “This Thing Called Dying”

Looking back through my kaleidoscope of memories I see myself gazing out the west window of our former home, where we lived for about thirty-five years, raising children, a garden, dogs, cats, a horse, quail, raccoons, owls, deer, the neighbor’s chickens, frogs, a huge toad, and our very own Canadian goose. On a three-quarter acreContinue reading “Finding Green Pastures”

Quietly it slipped inside the minds of those who would bend to its tantalizing thoughts. Words of eloquence that sounded like truth, but as they were formed by man, for his purposes, they were not. Yet the masses did not know the difference, for the words sounded sweet. And as long as the words tickledContinue reading “Indoctrination”