Shade Tree Stories
musings and memories rooted in faith and family
Latest stories from Under the shade trees
- We’re Not Going AwayI can’t believe that it’s been 4 years this month since I had the honor and privilege of speaking at our nation’s capitol on behalf of nursing home residents in…
- Where the Gospel Slows DownOn my last visit to the nursing home, I had two separate encounters that spoke to my heart about how we use our most valuable resource: time. The first experience…
- Wave WatcherI just got back from the beach. It was a quick, five day trip to Florida. As usual, I went prepared with a book, my journal, and my laptop. I…
- Comparison; Thief of Joy…Sometimes“Comparison is the thief of joy.” I had to look that up to see who is credited with saying that. Apparently, President Theodore Roosevelt was a smart guy. He said…
- Connecting The Dots and A Happy BreakthroughI’ve been doing a lot of work lately. Hard work. And I don’t mean manual labor. I mean the difficult work of sitting with your feelings, examining them, and processing…
- Hailstones in BattleA few weeks ago, on a Friday night, we were sleeping in our basement because the weather forecast was predicting strong storms for our area overnight. Around 5am, I was…

Welcome to my blog!
I’m a life-long Kentuckian from a family of life-long Kentuckians who can trace our land back to Daniel Boone. I’m a wife, a daughter, a sister, mom of two young adults, a teacher by nature and by training, mom of three Boston Terriers, lover of good food, travel, and proper English grammar (though I may not always use it on this site). Most importantly, I’m a child of God– a work in progress striving to follow Him faithfully and love others fiercely.
Learn more about me

Marla and Pa, 1978
Subscribe for Updates!
If you’d like to be notified when I post new stories, sign up below.
I promise I will not flood your inbox with emails.
We’re Not Going Away
I can’t believe that it’s been 4 years this month since I had the honor and privilege of speaking at our nation’s capitol on behalf of nursing home residents in…