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Relishing Thanksgiving
BY DAWN REED The difference between a Northern cook and a Southern one is often revealed during the holidays. I married a man from the South. He was living in Sidney at the time, but he had roots in Georgia and Florida. He came from a place of black-eyed peas, savory ham, and cornbread dressing
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Telling the Story: Remembering our veterans
BY DAWN REED Forgetting things is a pet peeve of mine. Oh, it’s not a big deal to me if you forget stuff. It’s when I forget stuff that it drives me bonkers. I’ve said for years that I wouldn’t have been able to play sports because I so hate it when I drop the
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Telling the story: One small thing
BY DAWN REED Several years ago, I started having chest pains-not terrible, but consistent. It concerned me, but I kept it to myself. Just before that, totally unsolicited, my pharmacist friend mentioned that heart disease is a leading cause of death in women over 50. Yay. I was over 50. After a few weeks of
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Telling the Story: A good dose of vitamin sea
BY DAWN REED Genesis tells the magnificent story of creation. “God called the dry ground ‘land’ and the gathered waters He called ‘seas.’ And God saw that it was good” (1:10). And it WAS. Looking at the ocean this week, “good” is a small word that describes an indescribably wonderful thing. It all takes my
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Telling the Story: Evaluating on a big day
BY DAWN REED In early 2019, someone in a Bible study encouraged me to write a mission statement. (It might have been Craig Groeschel or Lysa Terkeurst.) A mission statement is typically for a business, church or ministry. It might sound silly that an individual would have one but it was a great idea for
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Telling the Story: What lies beneath
BY DAWN REED Life had been hard for Miss Slone before the flood. Before July 28, she had been going through chemo for cancer. Due to missing work for her treatments, she was let go. She has already lost her mother, father and four siblings to brain or colon cancer. Meanwhile, she has pressed on,
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Telling the Story: Seeing Clearly
BY DAWN REED It was the strangest thing: All of a sudden, she looked older. Much older. Her face was all wrinkly. She saw it every time she looked in the mirror. And her legs…they had varicose veins! Everywhere. Why, she’d never noticed those. Something strange must have happened during the surgery. She would need
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Telling the Story: Mr. Goodson’s Apples
BY DAWN REED Mr. Goodson thought his apples were poison. Hold that thought. A few weeks ago, my friend and neighbor, Paige, spotted beautiful apples on our other neighbor’s tree. Since we both love the delicious fruit, she encouraged me to ask if we could pick some. She had company that evening and couldn’t go.
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Telling the Story: God Working in Esther
BY DAWN REED My beloved gifted me with The Women of the Bible Speak by Shannon Bream. I’ve been digging into the lives and stories of 16 Bible girls, applying their wisdom to life today. When I began the chapter on Esther, I wondered what new things God would show me. (I will never, ever
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Telling the Story: In sickness and in health
BY DAWN REED In October 1980, my beloved and I raced to the state line and got married — against my mother’s wishes. We were 18 and madly in love. She thought we were crazy. Standing in the belfry of the Wise County (Va.) Courthouse, we repeated vows that sealed us in matrimony: “to have
