19 Comments

Your mama's stories never fail to make me smile. There is so much joy and courage in that woman. She reminds me of the woman in Proverbs 31:28-29

Her children rise up and bless her;

Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

“Many daughters have done nobly,

But you excel them all.”

Your family is so blessed!

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Wow. This is so beautiful. Thank you Cindy.

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Jan 29·edited Jan 29Liked by Karena

I love how much stories you're able to hear from your family members. That comes from curiosity, openness, and a lot of love. Thanks for sharing that!

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You are too generous towards me, Becky. The stories are sitting there is plain sight!

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Jan 27Liked by Karena

What a beautiful and powerful story of your mother's courageous journey to a marriage that would yield such great children and a good life.

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I am constantly amazed at, and inspired by, her faith. In God. In herself. In others to assist, and the collective good.

It isn't a "blind faith" (except for God!), but she leans towards goodness constantly.

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Your mother must be proud to have world traveling grandchildren. Such a wonderful gift for them to be connected to where they came from. Lovely stories and fabulous photo of your mom.

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Some traveled to visit new places. All traveled to be with her over Christmas! She was grateful for that Miche

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Wonderful storytelling, Karena. Thank you

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Thank you Julie. I'm sure my mother has influenced me greatly!

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Karena, so much goodness in here. I loved your ending: "Through our shared storytelling - and story-listening - we continue to weave new threads into the blanket of possibility that makes our collective tomorrows more plausible."

Story-listening - what a wonderful perspective - it's the oxygen for story-telling.

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James, take a bow! Your editing reflection inspired those words, so credit goes to you for seeing beyond and getting me to express how important it is to continue these traditions.

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Karena, I wonder if “story-listening” isn’t the beginning/introduction to Dekera’s essay to share, as you “listened” to it by reading it and it’s now part of your story-sharing. It seems like a wonderful connection to the end of this piece :)

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I loved reading your mother’s wedding travel story - so inspiring and brave! Thanks for sharing it

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Thanks for the editing help, Brooke. Your ahas helped me move paragraphs around.

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Your mother's wedding story feels like time travel back to a period when life was actually lived, without buffers and backups, falling into the unknown with a sense of trust and adventure. Even without all the detail being shared in this telling there is a whole world that unfolds. I just loved hearing about it.

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"Falling into the unknown" !! What a visual! And on all fronts in this story, so true. In all aspects of my mother's trust. She knew no one in Africa. She hoped to make it to Kampala for her wedding. She embraces uncertainty and hopes for the best.

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totally inspiring

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Karena, you know what I'm going to say.

I WANT you to weave some of the stuff/themes from this post into your book.

Period.

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