“Where did all this come from?” my husband, Gareth, said. He pulled off at the next exit.
I glanced at our sons in the back seat. Colin, seven, and Aidan, five, looked disappointed. We were in Michigan, in the middle of nowhere, on our way to Mackinaw Island. From there we planned to visit the Badlands of South Dakota and Mount Rushmore, then Yellowstone, Grand Teton and Glacier National Parks. It would be a grand tour! But so far the kids hadn’t seen anything but the road, and our Honda Odyssey didn’t seem up for the adventure.
Maybe I wasn’t either. Life had been rough lately. My best friend had died from breast cancer. We’d been roommates in nursing school. I knew cancer patients who survived, and I was angry at God that she wasn’t one of them.
A few months later, Gareth had lost his job. I took on more hours at work to compensate for our loss of income. When Gareth filled in as an independent contractor, he had to travel for weeks at a time. Colin and Aidan missed him tremendously, and I was stretched thin. Then our two beloved boxers passed away within weeks of each other. I wasn’t sure our family could withstand any more heartbreak.
That’s it,” I announced one day. “We need some good family time. We are taking a road trip.”
Of course, I didn’t intend for our car to break down after two days.
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Ivy Dishes
“My mom found a house for us to look at,” said my fiancé, Jon. “It’s in Richfield, not far from where I grew up.”
The Duet
“Can you perform a hymn for us next week?” my pastor asked me after Sunday service.
The Girl in the Dream
Was this a church? The high, vaulted ceilings made it seem like one—almost but not exactly.
News From Around Our Wonderful World
Liverpool, England Joanne Carr is hailing her son, Dougie McInerney, as her guardian angel.
A Light in the Blizzard
I stepped on the gas and shifted into drive, then reverse, then back into drive again.
Straight From the Fish's Mouth
Florence, Italy. I’d been there before on one of those scruffy five-dollar-a-day youth-hostel jaunts through Europe, but now, just graduated from college, I was wondering what to do with my life.
Divine Callings
Have you ever felt called to a purpose?
Dad's Voice
As I reached to turn off the lamp on my bedside table, my eyes fell on the card my brother Isaac had given each of us siblings on what would have been Dad’s sixty-eighth birthday.
Ben's Answer
It was midafternoon, and I was already curled up on the couch in the living room with no plans to move.
A Doll's Hat
My fears around the surgery built all day.... God, please let me be as strong as my young patients are.
The Edge of a Story
One a master of jubilant color, the other of dramatic lights and darks, the works of artists Colin Page and Kim English build each other up, telling stories through brushstrokes.
Warming Up
Making new friends is easy at Heron Creek Golf & Country Club.
Scarlett & Colin's - BIG BABY NEWS
Scarlett Johansson’s pregnant! The Black Widow star, 36, is expecting her first child with husband Colin Jost, a source confirms to Star after the newlyweds shared the happy news with their close friends and family.
Inside ScarJo & Colin's: LOW-KEY WEDDING
Like many planning their vows during the pandemic, Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost had to get strategic when it came to their big day.
A Grizzly Encounter
On a trail near a mountain named for his grandfather, a lone hiker crosses paths with a bear three times his size—and with one enormous appetite
‘SUPERNOVA' IS A QUIET BURNING STAR OF A LOVE STORY
The actors Stanley Tucci and Colin Firth have been friends for 20 years and that is plainly evident watching them play longtime lovers in the wrenchingly beautiful film “Supernova.”
READY-SET-GO ANZA-BORREGO!
FROM THE OCEAN TO THE DESERT ON A YAMAHA TW200
STUCK IN THE MUD
DIRT 5 ventures down a well-travelled track.
STILL LIVES
In times of darkness we all need light, and that’s just what Camel bassist Colin Bass is hoping to bring with his meditative new album, Still...
WHAT WE'RE WEARING NOW
The coronavirus pandemic has influenced how people think about getting dressed for the day. For many, relaxed comfortable clothes have taken on greater importance, whereas others have maintained preCOVID wardrobes in an effort to foster a sense of normalcy and hope. We photographed eight men and women from a variety of backgrounds and spoke to them about their style and shopping habits. For each, clothes provide a sense of continuity in unsettled times.