by Shannon Popkin | Jul 31, 2015 | Analogy, Compassion
“Oh! Do you live in the house with the white picket fence?” she asked, after I explained where I live in the neighborhood. “I LOVE that house!” she exclaimed, with new admiration in her eyes. I smiled and said, “You mean the white picket...
by Shannon Popkin | Jul 19, 2013 | Analogy, Faith, God, Humility, Mistakes, Parenting, Talents
In my hands, I hold the strings of the three kite-like kids whom God has blessed me with. I have a lot to juggle with three–wanting each one to soar high in the sky. It’s so fun to have the other people around me tilt their heads back and admire the...
by Shannon Popkin | Mar 7, 2013 | Analogy, Nasty, Pain, Sin
Our dog, Theo, loved trash. It was his greatest delight in life. He loved nothing more than a large, heaping garbage can and a peaceful afternoon with no one home. He savored the opportunity to scatter drippy bean cans and chewed paper towels covered in bacon grease...
by Shannon Popkin | Jan 10, 2013 | Analogy, Change, Housekeeping, Parenting
I love the story my friend Lora recently posted on facebook. She said that it was past her seven-year-old’s bedtime, but rather than drifting off to sleep, she heard him up, throwing an absolute fit.When she ran in to find the cause for his hysterics, she...
by Shannon Popkin | Nov 13, 2012 | Analogy, Communication, Hospitality, Leadership, Mistakes
One Sunday afternoon, I was shuffling through the stack of papers that had accumulated on my kitchen counter.One paper–obviously a letter–caught my eye. I glanced to see who it was from, but the ink at the bottom of the page had faded into oblivion. This...
by Shannon Popkin | Oct 17, 2012 | Analogy, Funny, Jesus, Teens
My daughter and her friend—both freshmen in high school–did this mayonnaise prank. They emptied a mayo jar, washed it out, and filled it with a mixture of vanilla pudding and cool whip. They created just the right combination so that it looked like...