The Broad Place

July 21, 2026

My Imaginary Audience

Lately, I'm a bit dry trying to conjure words and story. This brief, wordless dessert has lasted for a few months after two years of bringing my second book to publication. Today my brain is rested, and in a good place to engage in some thoughts and stories, and to touch your world. 

I imagine a new friend, let’s name her Sam, sitting in my office; she seems distracted by her own thoughts or simply bored in my company. Sam clears her throat and takes a drink of the soda I offered her. She looks around my office at various items on the walls and shelves: a new doll from the artisan festival, my framed pictures from Kodiak, Alaska Writing Retreat and the latest quilting project on my design board. 

"Sam, what's up today?" I lead with an open question because she’s fidgety and young, about my granddaughter's age, 20-something. 

"I got your message and had nothing better to do, so why not come and see what you are doing?" Ouch, I'm way down on her list of people to visit. But I proceed.

"If you could ask me anything, what would your question be?" I look her in the eyes, and she glances away, becoming still. Her eyes focus on a colorful poly clay picture.

"What's with the 3D picture with a woman and a jar? Is that some kind of poly art?"

"It's a long story. You sure you want to hear it? I can give you the Cliff Notes."  I chuckle at my humor. Sam's face is blank. Does she know what Cliff Notes are? Relatability has left the room, but I’m not giving up. I appreciate her patience with someone her grandmother’s age. 

She interrupts my side trip to Unrelatable Land. "Where did you get the woman and jar picture? In Alaska?"

"No, in Grapevine, Texas." 

"My husband and I drove our RV to vacation in the Dallas-Ft Worth area years ago." A silence falls softy. I wait a few moments as Sam settles in to listen, then begin.

"Grapevine, Texas, a small artsy town north of Dallas-Fort Worth, was our home base to explore an area we were not familiar with. Coming from a wintry Wisconsin February, we enjoyed the freedom of 70-degree days to explore. Walking in the small downtown, we passed by an art gallery, which we love to explore. Inside, many different expressions of art were on display. The woman owner was delighted to tell us about the newest artist on the back wall. Sara Joseph is from Dallas and a well-known artist who creates works in a variety of media: oil, pastel, watercolor, and polymer clay. 

A pink, rose, purple and blue-green rendering of a woman bent over a jar titled The Alabastar Offering drew me in. As I took in the movement of her richly colored garments and the clay jar with a rope coiled down the side, I remembered the bible story from Matthew 26:6-13. A woman came to Simon, the leper's house, carrying, possibly on her head, an alabaster jar full of costly ointment. She poured it on Jesus's head, eliciting outrage from His disciples. 'Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.' " 

Jesus firmly responded, "Why do you trouble the woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me...she has prepared me for burial." This event was days before his arrest, trial and crucifixion. 

I continued my story about the impact of this work of art. “I stood with tears running down my cheeks, deeply moved by Sarah’s interpretation. I felt God speak to me, not audibly, but in His still small voice of the passionless life I was comfortable in. Sam, I wanted to own the woman’s bravery to march past all those men with questioning eyes and mouth-covered whispers to reach Jesus with my priceless offering. I wanted to serve Jesus with an outrageous love. Standing in front of the brightly colored picture of a woman throwing all caution to the wind, I asked God to help me to care less about what people thought about me, and more about what Jesus saw me to be."

"Have you ever had an experience with art similar to mine, Sam?" The tears were there, but she was fighting hard not to show her emotions. 

"When I was a kid, this art teacher came to my class and brought all the colors in the rainbow. He told us we could draw anything we wanted. I drew my black cat, Sassy. When the teacher came up the row, I flipped the picture over. Not everyone likes black cats as much as me. 

My teacher asked quietly, 'Sam, would you please show me what you drew?' 'It's just my black cat.' He reached out gently, turned the page over carefully and smiled. ‘I like it very much, Sam.’ I remember his acceptance and smile. Sassy died one night soon after I drew that picture. I loved that kitty, and I never drew again.”

"I am so sorry to hear about Sassy, Sam. The woman in the Bible story with the jar had something precious that was worth a lot to her. You had a black cat you loved, and it suddenly died. You still have a precious gift: the ability to draw and your teacher's smile. And you have the memory of Sassy. If I give you a sketch pad and colored pencils, would you draw me a picture?"

"I would like to." She watched me cross the room to my closet, bring the pad and pencils to a workspace. She smiled at me, then bent her head to draw. My hope was that she was drawing her black cat, Sassy. I prayed silently that her latent creativity would pour out without fear of ridicule or loss.

My imaginary conversation with a composite of young people I know helps me picture my readers as I write. No matter our age, we all desire to be known and seen and heard. Like Sam, I may not know you. You are nonetheless known and seen and heard by God. And me, in my imagination.

Nancy

June 22, 2026

I was dwelling on a difficult couple of months recently. The hard parts were resolved but there is a residual feeling of shame and guilt over my part. A nagging sense of squeezing into a less-than mind frame creeps in at night. The middle of the night.

Have you been there? During the day activity keeps mistakes in a room marked shame guilt and blame. The midnight hours allow the negatives to emerge onto prime hunting ground.

The Psalms comfort me with David’s balm of words.

“He brought me forth also into a broad place; He rescued me, because He delighted in me.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭18‬:‭19‬ ‭

Let’s seek out the broad places where our souls feel God’s delight in who we are, not who we’re not. We can run free leaving shame and guilt in that stinky closet!

Would you join me in this freedom venture? In this seeking God’s goodness in the broad places?