Tag: connection

Elmer Sparks, Part 2: Spreading Happiness through Bluegrass Music

Elmer Sparks, Part 2: Spreading Happiness through Bluegrass Music

Posted on by Laura
Tuesday nights at the Muckwanago Library must be the happiest in all of Wisconsin. It’s the night of the monthly Bluegrass Jam. Even before I stepped foot in the room (April 9, 2018), the twangs, strums, and picking of banjos, guitars, and string bass wafted out to the corridor, compelling...Read More
Elmer Sparks, Part 1: Spreading Happiness through Photography

Elmer Sparks, Part 1: Spreading Happiness through Photography

Posted on by Laura
Only one photographer ever got my husband to smile for a portrait. Just one. And a genuine smile, not a fake smile-through-your-teeth “can we get this over with?” kind of smile. That man is Elmer Sparks. That was the year he took portraits of every family in our church for...Read More
Monday Metaphor Musings #3

Monday Metaphor Musings #3

Posted on by Laura
What do you think of when you hear the word door? Or when you see a picture of a door? Does it make a difference which kind of door? Time for another word-association exercise. You did this before by brainstorming the word web and by finding the right metaphor to describe...Read More
Lisa Doyle–Beauty in the world, Part 1: Leaving people better than you find them

Lisa Doyle–Beauty in the world, Part 1: Leaving people better than you find them

Posted on by Laura
Lisa Doyle embraces a mantra she’s had since age twelve. She found this quote on a decoupaged piece of cardboard in 1983: ******* “One day I would like to teach a few people many and beautiful things that will help them teach a few people.” --unknown, A Teacher’s Prayer ******...Read More
The Compulsion to Tell A Story: The Dog Ate My Glasses

The Compulsion to Tell A Story: The Dog Ate My Glasses

Posted on by Laura
My husband Tim tells the story of when he was in 4th grade playing baseball with the neighbors. He had brand new glasses and was afraid of breaking them. He set them in a “safe place” in the grass nearby. A dog was snooping around. After he got up to...Read More
Interior Designer Kaysie Strickland: Home as a Haven of Healing, Part 2

Interior Designer Kaysie Strickland: Home as a Haven of Healing, Part 2

Posted on by Laura
How has your home or your art been a healing place for you? Kaysie Strickland, founder and president of Homes & Havens, is an interior designer who has mastered the art of creating healing home environments for wounded women. Last time, she shared her philosophy of home as a healing...Read More
Interior Designer Kaysie Strickland: Home as a Haven of Healing, Part 1

Interior Designer Kaysie Strickland: Home as a Haven of Healing, Part 1

Posted on by Laura
Have you ever thought about the most healing features of your home? What in your environment brings you comfort and peace and reminds you to focus on the right things? These are questions that interior designer Kaysie Strickland might ask if you hired her. My daughter Kaia introduced me to...Read More