October 24, 2025

Earlier this week, when I was taking my daily "church walk" down Charlton Road, I remembered I wanted to call my brother to chat about my niece's upcoming birthday. As I was waiting for the call to go through, I passed by my favorite tree on Charlton. As one does, I stopped to say hello to the tree and tell her how pretty she looked in the October sunshine. Not realizing my brother's voicemail had picked up the call by that time, I accidentally left him a voicemail that said in a very sing-songy voice, "Well, hello, don't you look soooo pretty today!". The voicemail may or may not have (it did) gone on about smelling good, and something about thank you for being so welcoming to birds and squirrels. It may or may not (it did) end with a very sing-songy "I looooveeee you!" before realizing I was leaving a voicemail.

I then had to call my brother back and leave another voicemail to say, "Sorry about that, I was talking to a tree."

I definitely felt silly, but was also relieved - if I’m going to embarrass myself by leaving unintended voicemails, at least I wasn't grouching at traffic, or swearing at the state of the world, or crabbing about any of the things I could be crabby about. Thank God for trees and birds and sunshine!

Truly, I thank God for these things. I also thank God for the ability to take a long walk, for a brother to call, for my niece's birthday (Harlow will be seven years old, and she is healthy and happy and our gratitude is endless!), for the good work there is for us to do together (see below for all the opportunities to love our neighbors right now), and for so many things. Including each of you. I really do thank God for each of you, each and every day. You inspire me, and laugh with me, and challenge me, and plot and plan with me, and you offer me endless grace. Thank you, for being you. And if you ever get a voicemail from me, sing-songing about birds and squirrels, well, that's what the delete button is for, right?!

My prayer this week is for all we do, intentional or not, to be done through the lens of gratitude for all that is, and all that can be. We may have some work to do right now to shape this ol' world into the realm of God, but we also have the ability to do it. And each other to do it with. Thanks be.