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# kerritracht.com

finding God's hand in the everyday

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## Posts

- [Why She Writes](https://kerritracht.com/why-she-writes/) - What makes someone become a writer?What makes someone become a writer? I have wondered that throughout my life. Are they born with a certain fire that drives them to put pen to paper, so to speak, or are they developed into these creative beings over a process of learning and experiences in their lifetime?I seem
- [Aunt Charlotte’s Birthday](https://kerritracht.com/aunt-charlottes-birthday/) - (written sometime in 2011)I remember when my Uncle Jerry had a birthday celebration for my Aunt Charlotte. A celebration of her first birthday, anyway. I’m not entirely sure of when her second birthday was, her spiritual birthday. At this point in her life, in the merciless clutch of Parkinson’s Disease, I’m not sure that she
- [New Beginnings](https://kerritracht.com/new-beginnings/) - I’ve recently completed my first novel. I say first because I have every intention of it not being a one and done. I do believe I have more in me. How do I know that? Because I didn’t put the first one in me and I have faith in the One who did put it
- [Well Done…..](https://kerritracht.com/well-done/) - No…that is not a reference to how I like my steak. In fact if you serve me a steak that is not soft to the touch, pink all the way through with a bright red center, (otherwise known as medium-rare), I am a bit disappointed. Even if I am the one on the grill. The
- [On Being a Nonni](https://kerritracht.com/on-being-nonni/) - I heard it said that grandchildren were God’s reward to you for staying in the game through the teen years. I have my own theory. I believe that it is His reward for not pushing your teens out of a moving car. Not that it ever crossed my mind. Okay, maybe it crossed my mind,
- [Dreams and Regrets](https://kerritracht.com/dreams-and-regrets/) - I’m a dreamer. Not the type that sits and has crazy visions and pictures of a new tomorrow. No. I literally dream pretty much every night and remember my dreams. The other day while not feeling great, I took a nap on the couch and dreamt then. I have a sister who tells me she
- [Hindsight and Farsightsedness](https://kerritracht.com/hindsight-and-farsightsedness/) - I very vividly remember the first time I did it. You know…the ‘pull your arm far away to read something’ move? I was at my sister’s house and was watching my niece apply lipstick. I told her I really liked the color and picked the tube up to note the name of it. I tried
- [Perfect Spring](https://kerritracht.com/perfect-spring/) - It finally stopped raining this morning. It was probably last night, but all I know is that when I opened the blinds this morning, the sun was shining. That made me very happy. I live in Florida although I lived in the Pacific Northwest for just over 30 years of my life where innumerable days of
- [A Tangled Mess](https://kerritracht.com/a-tangled-mess/) - We bought several of our granddaughters waterfall lights for Christmas. They are quite stunning when they are hung on the wall. Strings of fairy lights covering a span of about nine feet, hanging in multiple strings from the ceiling to the floor. With
- [The Importance of the Why](https://kerritracht.com/the-importance-of-why/) - It was a week ago my very first experience with a writer's conference was wrapping up. It was an amazing experience and was more than I could have hoped for. I went with two prayers on my heart. First of all, that God would validate for me that this was what I was supposed to
- [What Obstacles?](https://kerritracht.com/what-obstacles/) - Several years ago, I made the medal and ribbon display you see in the picture here for my husband, John. My daughter and I had run a couple of obstacle races, and he decided to join us. Now, I need to set the stage here for you. Amber and I were working out on a
- [Keeping Up With Time](https://kerritracht.com/keeping-up-with-time/) - We just came off of time change weekend, and all over the country people are still adjusting. Pets are off kilter, babies are off schedule and people who forgot to set their clocks ahead on Saturday night and aren't church going people, may or may not have been late to work on Monday. Yes, we
- [Revisions](https://kerritracht.com/revisions/) - For those of you who have been keeping up, I am in the process of pursuing getting my first novel published. Yes, I know that there is a direct route through self-publishing, and I could have had it out there already. For reasons that I will not go into here and now, I chose a
- [Why is Everybody Turning 40?](https://kerritracht.com/why-is-everybody-turning-40/) - I remember my 40th birthday vividly. The reason is that it was the year my first son graduated from high school. I was a homeschool mom, and so it was a very strange time. There was a graduating class of ...one. We were taking him on various trips throughout the year to
- [Do You Know Who I Am?](https://kerritracht.com/do-you-know-who-i-am/) - Occasionally I do something kind of dumb. I know, shocking, isn't it? Now what I am referring to here is I got caught in a rabbit hole of sorts while scrolling through a news site. I generally can ignore click-bait. But this time, for some bizarre reason, a little story caught my eye, and I
- [Fighting the Natural](https://kerritracht.com/fighting-natural/) - I have had a love-hate relationship with my hair most of my life. Okay, to be honest, mostly hate, but I think that is not unusual for us women. If we have straight hair, we want curly, if we have curly hair we wish it were straight. Blondes want to be redheads, brunettes go blonde.
- [A Beautiful Body](https://kerritracht.com/a-beautiful-body/) - I am not a fan of pictures of myself. There is a division between females who love to have their pictures taken, and those who hide when there is a group picture. I mean some actually leave the vicinity when the cameras or phones come out. Then when it is unavoidable, they will hide behind
- [Is This an Injury, Or Am I Just Old?](https://kerritracht.com/is-this-injury-or-am-i-just-old/) - Once you have celebrated a certain number of birthdays, there is a phrase that you begin to hear more and more often. It is not comforting nor uplifting. It does
- [The Beauty in Pressure](https://kerritracht.com/the-beauty-in-pressure/) - I love the results of pressure washing. Some people refer to it as power washing, but from where I come from it has always been called pressure washing. Tomato, tomahto. Although, to be frank, I've never heard anyone call it that. Though, on certain cooking shows I'm a fan of, they do have a strange
- [Purpose in a World of Clicks, Likes and Follows](https://kerritracht.com/purpose-in-world-of-clicks-likes-and/) - I took my oldest granddaughter shoe shopping along with one of her best friends last week. It was not as frightening as it may sound. We had a good time. We went to dinner afterwards and had a very special time of conversation, laughter and even got a free dessert for her when the waiter
- [The Last Time for The Last Time](https://kerritracht.com/the-last-time-for-last-time/) - Social media is a two-edged sword. Meaning it cuts both ways. Like the word bittersweet. This past week I was reminded of that vividly by a post of an old friend of mine.26 years ago I gave the devotion at her baby shower. In case that is a foreign concept to you, let me explain.
- [Ode to Bettye Sue-Love Personified](https://kerritracht.com/ode-to-bettye-sue-love-personified/) - I am assuming that most writers have a ritual of sorts that they go through before they sit down to write. Mine goes something like this to prepare: Bed is made, kitchen is clean, coffee cup full as well as water. Check. Laptop battery full. Check. House empty of distractions. Check. Essential oil diffuser emitting
- [Of Empty Nest, Phone Calls and Needy Moms](https://kerritracht.com/of-empty-nest-phone-calls-and-needy-moms/) - If you have grown children, or anywhere close to what you would call grown, you have entered into a phase of life that is what is referred to as the 'empty nest' stage. Well, that is what is the expected stage, and I say expected because in today's economy the nest often gets an extension
- [Live Life Like a Little League Baseball Kid](https://kerritracht.com/live-life-like-little-league-baseball/) - This past weekend was the final games of our grandkids' baseball season. Now, to lay the groundwork, you need to realize that there are different levels of kids' baseball. There is what I would call rec-league. Then official Little League. Then, for the hard-core folks, we have Travel Ball. Each level has its own dynamic,
- [Trust Issues](https://kerritracht.com/trust-issues/) - I remember vividly the first presidential election that I voted in. It was 1980, I was 20 years old, and we elected Ronald Reagan. It was a landslide victory against Jimmy Carter. I have not missed voting in a presidential election since and have voted in pretty much most off year elections as well as
- [Quitters Never Win](https://kerritracht.com/quitters-never-win/) - "44 years? Tell me your secret. Neither of my marriages lasted more than five years." That was a literal comment my husband and I heard when we casually mentioned that we were celebrating our 44th anniversary last week. And while there was a bit of humor in that exchange, it also was more than a
- [There's No Place Like Home](https://kerritracht.com/theres-no-place-like-home/) - Ahhh, vacation! Doesn't everyone love the idea of a vacation? I have been fortunate enough to have had a couple of weeks of wonderful family time. My husband and I were able to spend eight days with our daughter and her family at our time-share in Orlando. Then she, my granddaughter and I took our
- [Wave upon Wave--of Panic](https://kerritracht.com/wave-upon-wave-of-panic/) - We had a wonderful family vacation recently with four of our grandchildren. We visited theme parks, and spent a week at our time-share. We had a great week making memories and having fun. The best money we spent, however, was at the water park. Summer in Florida is best spent in water, trust me. We
- [Life is Ducky](https://kerritracht.com/life-is-ducky/) - We’ve been traveling for a substantial amount of time, as is evident by my absence from my blog site. My husband and I spent nearly a month in our home state of Washington working on a rental property and visiting with family. While that is both needful and enjoyable, that also means that we were
- [Disillusionment and Illusions](https://kerritracht.com/disillusionment-and-illusions/) - There is a beauty and a danger in this world of social media. I am old enough to remember a world without the internet. Well, without the internet in everyone's orbit. The more I learn, the more I am aware that things were in the development process well before most of us were aware of
- [New Focus](https://kerritracht.com/new-focus/) - “I can’t see the menu board.” As I uttered these words to my husband at our local barbecue joint, I realized that I was going to have to make an appointment with the optometrist very soon. Clearly my contact prescription needed updating. If I was having trouble reading a sign a mere five feet away,
- [When We Lose Our Purpose, or Our Purse](https://kerritracht.com/when-we-lose-our-purpose-or-our-purse/) - Odd things can take place when you decide to clean out a closet. People have their own method of getting it done. For some strange reason, my oldest son's method involved sitting in the middle of his floor, surrounded by piles of debris, reading books. My daughter's was rearranging what was in her closet in
- [Purpose to Love: The Greatest Commandment](https://kerritracht.com/purpose-to-love-greatest-commandment/) - One of the most unromantic things I've ever heard in a marriage seminar was in a session about husbands being commanded to love their wives. The speaker spent way too much time on the word 'commanded'. His point was that God pretty much ordered men to love their wives, even if they didn't feel like
- [The Power of the Personal Relationship](https://kerritracht.com/the-power-of-personal-relationship/) - Several years ago we happened upon a television show called Alone. Simple title for a simple concept. Contestants are survival experts who are dropped off in harrowing conditions, like extreme remote parts of British Columbia, Patagonia, and Northern Vancouver Island for example, and left to survive on their own with the barest of survival equipment.
- [Ready for the Fall....](https://kerritracht.com/ready-for-fall/) - According to the calendar, and multiple social media posts, yesterday was the first day of fall. According to the kids playing in my pool yesterday, it is still summer. That is the quandary of living in Northeast Florida. The popular meme that is recycled year after year asks the question, "It's Fall in Florida! Know
- [The Seasons for Storms](https://kerritracht.com/the-seasons-for-storms/) - A storm is headed our way. Again. A real one, not just the proverbial kind. In the interests of transparency, I will state that Helene snubbed her nose at us here in the northeast corner of Florida, leaving us wet and dazed and picking up debris and fallen trees in her wake. Nothing like our
- [Healing From The Storms](https://kerritracht.com/healing-from-storms/) - The day that a major hurricane was making its way across central Florida, I left Jacksonville and headed north to Ohio. I wasn't exactly evacuating. The people who had done so had intelligently done so quite earlier than that. No, I was headed to my son's home to help them out as my daughter-in-law was
- [Dark Clouds, Silver Linings and Zooms](https://kerritracht.com/dark-clouds-silver-linings-and-zooms/) - Today has been a busy day packed with back-to-back appointments. I had a 10:00 a.m. appointment with my healthcare provider, then an 11:00 with my hairdresser. At 1:00 in the afternoon I have a small group meeting to discuss a short course I recently finished. I will try to squeeze a quick lunch in the
- [Redeeming the Time](https://kerritracht.com/redeeming-time/) - She stood at the top of the steps of the porch of the ante-bellum house, shading her eyes from the sun, peering over the crowd of party-goers. She scanned the crowd for her husband of nearly 45 years, listening intently for his laugh, his voice, anything to give her an indication of where he could
- [The Influence of Church Ladies](https://kerritracht.com/the-influence-of-church-ladies/) - Call it Serendipity, Fate, Luck, Chance . . . I prefer to call it Providence. When we just happen to be in the right place at the right time, meet a person who will change our lives, re-direct our futures, or impact our thinking and help us in infinitesimal ways. I've had a couple of those,
- [Choosing to Becoming an Old Married Couple](https://kerritracht.com/choosing-to-becoming-old-married-couple/) - The majority of marriages start the same way. Not all, I understand that. A nervous groom, an excited bride, or perhaps the roles are reversed. Someone is nervous, someone is excited, oft a mixture of both. Trust me that there are nerves and excitement. There is hope. There are dreams. There is blind trust that this
- [You're Going to be Okay](https://kerritracht.com/youre-going-to-be-okay/) - "You're going to be okay." I think all of us have had times when we needed to hear these words. My grandson, Evan, needed to hear them about three months ago. He was lying in the E.R. hearing that there was something wrong with his heart. The cardiologist was using words quite unfamiliar to a fifteen-year-old,
- [An Uncomfortable Gospel](https://kerritracht.com/an-uncomfortable-gospel/) - Everywhere we look today, someone is offended. They are seeking safety from the offense, or the offender. They hurl accusations at the one who theoretically caused the offense. Or cry. There are the criers as well. I heard a wonderful sermon recently. The topic was extraordinary ministry. Since I have come to the place in my
- [Inspiration Comes in Tiny Packages](https://kerritracht.com/inspiration-comes-in-tiny-packages/) - Do you remember that teacher? The one who drove you the hardest, but who also brought out the best in you? She, (or he) saw something in you that perhaps no one else did, or brought it to your attention for the first time. Maybe you suspected it, hoped for it, but didn't quite dare
- [I Will Do Anything For You…With A Few Exceptions](https://kerritracht.com/i-will-do-anything-for-youwith-few/) - "I will be there for you. Just let me know what you need, anything at all." I said to a friend in a text. I meant it. Mostly. She is facing surgery in a few weeks, and I wanted her to know that I am thinking of her and want to be supportive. If she
- [Weights, Medals and Races](https://kerritracht.com/weights-medals-and-races/) - John and I attended the Girls' Weightlifting District Meet last week to watch our granddaughter, Madison, compete. This is her senior year, so her last year on her high school team. She has already been to Regionals, and has her eyes set on going to State this year and has worked hard toward this goal. She
- [When Everything Says Go For It](https://kerritracht.com/when-everything-says-go-for-it/) - He always stood in the back row, center. The biggest smile, bright eyes. Not sure if his was the best voice in the choir, it didn't matter. It was a choir. He contributed every week with his spirit, his joy, his obvious love for not just his God, but music. I miss him.Oh, nothing happened
- [Reaching for the Peanut Butter](https://kerritracht.com/reaching-for-peanut-butter/) - "Mama, why don't you let me move that peanut butter down to a lower shelf for you so you don't have to reach so high." My dad sat watching my grandmother reaching her short little arms up to grab the jar for her daily sandwich of peanut butter and banana. A sacred family tradition."Don't you
- [Fifteen Minutes Alone With Jesus](https://kerritracht.com/fifteen-minutes-alone-with-jesus/) - "What would you ask Jesus if you were riding in the car with Him? Just you and Him?" I asked this question of my eleven-year-old grandson while driving alone with him. I have always liked to ask random questions of my kids and now my grandchildren while they were held captive in the passenger seat. You
- [Time, Choices, and Soft Hearted Biker Dudes](https://kerritracht.com/time-choices-and-soft-hearted-biker/) - "I ain't never getting married." John and I were sitting at our local barbecue joint (yes, joint is the appropriate term here) waiting for our order to be delivered to our table. I heard the employees talking behind the counter and the youngest of them, probably late teens to early twenties, was emphatic while stating her
- ["Just Plant Your Feet and Pull"](https://kerritracht.com/just-plant-your-feet-and-pull/) - We put a stupid amount of money into sod to cover the drain field for our upcoming house that we are building. It's a requirement of the county we live in. I suppose there is a good reason for it--something like not letting all that dirt we also paid a lot of money for wash
- [Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire](https://kerritracht.com/liar-liar-pants-on-fire/) - I have trust issues.I say this a lot. It comes up when I'm driving, for instance. Especially on the interstate. Here where I live people have an aversion to turn signals. As if alerting people to their intention to suddenly dart into your lane at 75-80 mph is an invasion of their privacy. They don't
- [Unchanging Truth of Change](https://kerritracht.com/unchanging-truth-of-change/) - I was given this article that I wrote for our church newspaper in November of 2002. Over 22 years later, it is interesting to look back and see where God has brought us, and yes, the changes that have been wrought in our lives. The truths remain, however the situations have changed. Changes I was a child
- [A Veteran, A Hat, and the Loneliness of Memories](https://kerritracht.com/youre-wearing-my-favorite-hat/) - "You're wearing my favorite hat." The elderly gentleman to whom I addressed this comment reached up and touched the brim of his Vietnam Veteran's cap and gave me a nod as he placed his slightly shaking hands on the handle of his Costco shopping cart. "My dad had one just like it. If he wasn't wearing
- [Approaching With Boldness](https://kerritracht.com/approaching-with-boldness/) - "Excuse me, do you have any spare money, change, anything?" It's not the first time I've heard that. We get it all the time, outside grocery stores, at intersections written on signs, and at gas stations. What was odd was the location this time.Between a visit to a physician's office and a stop in at the
- [Tick Tock, the Clock Won't Stop](https://kerritracht.com/tick-tock-clock-wont-stop/) - “I feel very melancholy. And I can’t shake it.”These words from my friend came over the phone as we were discussing the memorial service we both had attended earlier in the day. The service was for a 96-year-old man who had been our pastor years before when we were both much younger. Neither of us
- [FOMO, FONE, And Things That Never Change](https://kerritracht.com/fomo-fone-and-things-that-never-change/) - "Hey Mom! What are you chewing?!" My 10-year-old grandson shouted the length of the resort pool to my daughter-in-law who sat in the shade of an umbrella next to me. "Gum." She replied. I laughed. We had crashed their beach vacation and were watching the kids play in the pool while we rested from the heat."Did you bring
- [Dirty Feet and Clean Souls](https://kerritracht.com/dirty-feet-and-clean-souls/) - "Wash your feet before you get into bed."If your childhood was anything like mine, you heard these words many times. We didn't get baths every night. And in the summertime when we swam and played in the sprinkler right up until sunset, I suppose my grandmother, then my mother, may have thought our little
- [When We Lose Our Voice in the Presence of Grief](https://kerritracht.com/when-we-lose-our-voice-in-presence-of/) - July has been a month, y'all. We were at a very popular amusement park here in Florida for the 4th of July. It was quite extraordinary that half of the nation's population was not. We were expecting them, frankly. So we spent the first half of the day at one of the attractions that focuses on
- [To Capture Memories Without A Single Picture](https://kerritracht.com/to-capture-memories-without-single/) - I forget to take pictures. And that annoys me. Not all the time, mind you. But at times that will make me look back and say to myself, "I can't believe I didn't take any pictures!"Case in point: I just spent a couple of days with an old friend. Not that she is old, but
- [Stumbling, Standing, Seeking; The Pursuit of True Wisdom](https://kerritracht.com/stumbling-standing-seeking-pursuit-of/) - Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Nothing pains some people more than having to think."Okay, that was not his most relevant nor most repeated piece of wisdom. But it is true.I have reached the stage of life where I am purported to have gained a certain level of wisdom. After all, I have walked this earth
- [My Mother's Hands](https://kerritracht.com/my-mothers-hands/) - I did something yesterday I haven't done in years. I had my nails done. It was done on a whim after getting my hair cut. A treat, I suppose. But I noticed something as the lady filed, buffed, then polished my nails.My hands looked more like my mother's than ever.My mom had beautiful nails. She
- [Running on a Healed Heart](https://kerritracht.com/running-on-healed-heart/) - "I just want to finish." My grandson told my daughter and son-in-law as he prepared to run his first 5K since he had his open heart surgery last November. (see November 20, 2024 post)It was a year ago, on that very course, that he was unable to complete even a mile of his first cross-country
- [Finding Grace While Staring in the Eyes of Hatred](https://kerritracht.com/finding-grace-while-staring-in-eyes-of/) - 'Tis grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.These words are staring at me from a poster on the wall of the guest room where I am currently staying as I search for words. Well, in searching for words, there they are right in front of me. The last twenty-four hours
- [Little Habits That Shape a Life](https://kerritracht.com/little-habits-that-shape-life/) - Is Your Bed Made?"Is your bed made?" I heard this many mornings at the breakfast table, or before I left for school. Cue the eye roll. If it wasn't done, I had to go back and make it.My parents insisted our beds were made before the day started. My mom liked a tidy house, and
- [Tears, Questions, and the Truth About History](https://kerritracht.com/tears-questions-and-truth-about-history/) - A sweet exchange in a third-grade classroomI recently read about the cutest exchange between a teacher and her classroom. My young friend, Sarah, teaches third grade. They had just finished an amazing history lesson on George Washington. They had talked about his life, his home, and his presidency.She said the whole class was excited. Near
- [The Long Road Home: A Novel](https://kerritracht.com/the-long-road-home-novel/) - A first-day letdownI came home from my very first day of school disappointed because I could not read. I spent the whole day there and came home and couldn't read. That felt like a complete waste of time to my six-year-old mind. (This was before kindergarten was a big deal. We jumped right into first
- [You Can't Control The Seasons or GPS](https://kerritracht.com/you-cant-control-seasons-or-gps/) - The Appeal of Transition SeasonsMy favorite season is Fall. I think I enjoy the transition seasons the best, the change. This is odd, because I am not a person who welcomes change easily.Expected Change vs. SurprisesThat is not entirely true. I am okay with change if I know it is coming. It is the abrupt,
- [What To Do When Your Kids Don't Want Your Stuff](https://kerritracht.com/what-to-do-when-your-kids-dont-want/) - Saving for What We WantedWhen my husband and I were young, just a short time ago, we saved our money to buy things. Archaic concept, I realize, but we didn’t have the luxury of unlimited spending on credit cards. So we shopped intentionally for the things we wanted and put money aside until we had
- [Why Just Change the Clock When We Can Change Our Lives](https://kerritracht.com/why-just-change-clock-when-we-can/) - The Return to Standard TimeThis weekend is the return to standard time. On the upside, we all get an extra hour of sleep.On the downside, it will be dark an hour earlier, and we have to change all our clocks again. Do not forget the one on the coffee maker. Or the car.For me, there
- [Who We Run Alongside Matters](https://kerritracht.com/who-we-run-alongside-matters/) - .Tuesdays MatterTuesdays are strange days. For some reason they were picked as the day America votes. We choose everything from our local school board to our mayor. We elect our county officials, state representatives, and every four years our president. Tuesdays matter.The District MeetThey matter in smaller but significant ways, too. Tuesday of this week
- [What I Learned From A Lifetime of Goodbyes (And Why It Matters)](https://kerritracht.com/what-i-learned-from-lifetime-of/) - Childhood GoodbyesAll my biggest hurts have come from goodbyes.They started in childhood. When I was three years old, my two sisters and I went to live with our paternal grandparents. Our mom was unable to care for us, and our dad was active military. We lived with them for three and a half years, after
- [Goodbye Doubt, Hello Faith--A Christmas Series](https://kerritracht.com/goodbye-doubt-hello-faith-christmas/) - Hello, FaithElizabeth was not a young woman. She had bade farewell to youth and to dreams of motherhood years ago.Now, as her age-spotted hands caressed her swollen belly, she chuckled softly. Never doubt what the Almighty will do to bring His plans to fruition.Zechariah in the TempleSix months earlier, her husband Zechariah had been chosen
- [Goodbye Anxiety, Hello Peace; Hello Christmas Part Two](https://kerritracht.com/goodbye-anxiety-hello-peace-hello/) - If anxiety has edged into your Advent, Mary’s path points the way to peace. Here is Part 2 of Hello Christmas.Hello Christmas, Part 2 Goodbye Anxiety, Hello PeaceWhat Mary WitnessedMary stayed with Elizabeth for three months, just enough time, it seems, to see John born. What must she have witnessed?She would have seen her older cousin’s
- [Goodbye Fear, Hello Joy](https://kerritracht.com/goodbye-fear-hello-joy/) - Not Wanting To Be A ShepherdBoy: "I don't want to be a shepherd. I always have to be a dumb old shepherd."The little boy hung his head and scuffed his foot in the dirt before he climbed into the car."I want to be a wise man for once. They were the cool guys. Shepherds are
- [Goodbye Seeking, Hello Guidance. Hello Christmas Part 4](https://kerritracht.com/goodbye-seeking-hello-guidance-hello/) - The Mystery of the Magi“We three kings of Orient are…”We have all sung the song, played the roles in a Christmas pageant, or placed the characters in the Nativity scene in our home. The three wise men, the Magi. They have many names. Tradition has even given each of them an individual name.But truth be
- [Goodbye Wondering, Hello Promise; Hello Christmas Part 5](https://kerritracht.com/goodbye-wondering-hello-promise-hello/) - The prophecy that pointed to Bethlehem“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.” Micah 5:2The prophecy had been repeated for generations. It
- [Choosing Hope for 2026: A Grateful Look Back at 2025](https://kerritracht.com/choosing-hope-for-2026-grateful-look/) - Hope for 2026, and a Grateful Look Back at 2025I slept through the New Year. That says a lot about where I am in life right now. It also says a lot about what I’m carrying into 2026.Sleeping Through New Year’s, and a West Coast “Cheat”I slept through the New Year. That’s not a shocker.

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