• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Ruth Everhart

Author, Pastor, Speaker

  • Home
  • About
  • All Books
    • The #MeToo Reckoning
      • #MeToo Course
      • Available in Korean
    • Ruined
      • Buy RUINED direct from the author
      • An Unpublished Chapter to RUINED
    • Chasing the Divine in the Holy Land
  • Shop
    • Cart
    • Checkout
    • My Account
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
  • #MeToo Course
  • Blog
  • Lent Devotional
  • Free Resources
    • Articles
    • Audio/Podcasts
    • Videos
  • Contact

Pausing in the Swirl of Life

April 16, 2016 By Ruth Everhart 2 Comments

Have you ever looked forward to an event, only to have your plans crumble? “Life intrudes” we say. Or “God laughs when we make plans.” Responding quickly to change can be difficult. At least it is for me. If you know people of Dutch descent, you will understand. We are not known for our flexibility! We are known for our tenacity, which is also a virtue, but quite a different one.

Right now I’m in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I came for the Festival of Faith & Writing at Calvin College, which I’ve been attending every-other-year since 1996. There is no other gathering that I attend with such regularity. FFW pulls together many threads of my life: 1) As a former member of the Christian Reformed denomination, Calvin is my alma mater; 2) As a pastor, I have found lots of fodder for preaching and ministry; 3) As a reader, I have been bathed in words, and the ways that words evoke meaning; 4) As a budding writer, I have met editors, publishers and agents over the years; and 5) I can do all this and simultaneously visit my parents, who moved to Grand Rapids in retirement.

In fact, my favorite festival events have been the ones my parents attended with me. In 2006 I even convinced them to register for the whole festival. That was the aerobic FFW. I fondly remember pushing my mother’s wheelchair across campus at high speed — whirring her to one event, then running off to attend a different one myself! My parents are 87 and 90 now, and the festival events are too difficult for them logistically. The crowds are hard to navigate and they have difficulty hearing. Recently my father has slowed down quite drastically. His breathing has become labored.

Months ago I registered for this year’s festival and bought my plane tickets. Then my father’s doctors scheduled an elective heart catheterization right in the middle of FFW. I was concerned about the changes in my father’s health, grateful that I would be in town, and disappointed to miss hearing the authors.

How the days worked out has been a gift, a different configuration of the threads of my life. I had already set up a number of appointments related to my books, and was able to honor those. I was even able to attend the opening lecture by Tobias Wolff, whose writing I especially appreciate. On the day of my dad’s heart procedure I was at the hospital with my mother, sister, and niece. The medical care that my father received may be considered “routine,” but it is truly amazing. What a privilege to pray over my father’s bed, hands joined with family members.

Today will be a similar patchwork of events, including picking up my father from the hospital and attending a lecture by Nadia Bolz Weber. At least, that is the plan! We shall see what transpires.

I’m pausing to write this as I begin another busy day — a day that feels complicated, messy, and beautiful! I know your days often feel the same way. There are unwelcome adjustments, but also unexpected blessings. Perhaps these messy days are when God’s activity becomes most apparent to us — in a swirl of events that the finest planning could not have orchestrated.

Breakfast with my parents the day before the cardiac catheterization.
Breakfast with my parents the day before the cardiac catheterization.
Front and center at the Tobias Wolff lecture.
Front and center at the Tobias Wolff lecture.

Aging,  My Dad, Nicholas J. Huizenga FFW,  Tobias Wolff,  when plans change

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Cindy Cole says

    April 17, 2016 at 7:41 am

    I call those events “God things”. When we “happen” to be some where for a totally different reason but are needed by family or friend. He’s an awesome God!

    Reply
    • Ruth Everhart says

      April 18, 2016 at 7:30 am

      Absolutely. Thanks, Cindy.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Ruth Everhart Author

Let’s connect on social media!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn

Subscribe for Occasional Updates

* indicates required


Contact
Loading

Find a Blog Topic Here

  • Church & Sexuality (26)
    • A Christian Feminist on Abortion (1)
    • Egalitarianism (4)
    • Healthy Boundaries (1)
    • LGBT & Christianity (2)
    • Marriage & Vocation (3)
    • Planned Parenthood (1)
    • Podcasts #MeToo (1)
    • Reviews #MeToo (1)
    • Sexual Abuse & Church (10)
  • Exploring Washington DC (3)
    • Embassy Tour 2022 (2)
    • Library of Congress (1)
  • Ministry Leadership (62)
    • Advent/Christmas (3)
    • Ascension/Pentecost (3)
    • Church Clutter (1)
    • Church Hospitality (6)
    • Churches & Money (2)
    • Handcrafted Communion Boxes (1)
    • Leading the Small Church (10)
    • Learning as an Air Bnb Host (4)
    • Lectionary Study (6)
    • Lent/Easter (7)
    • Liturgical Leadership (2)
    • Ordained as a Clergywoman (9)
    • Presbyterian Church (USA) (5)
    • Rock Creek Presbyterian Church (1)
    • Transforming Congregations (5)
  • My Family (45)
    • My Dad, Nicholas J. Huizenga (13)
    • My Sister's Kidney Donation (3)
    • Raising Our Daughters (18)
    • Why I Still Love My Husband (9)
  • My Writing (35)
    • Awards (4)
    • Korean Translation (1)
    • My Writing Journey (13)
    • Published in Christian Century (12)
    • Reviews of My Books (3)
    • Writing A Rape Memoir (2)
  • People I Learn From (38)
    • Abraham Lincoln (7)
    • Conversations with Strangers (15)
    • Gordon Lightfoot (2)
    • Harriet Tubman (1)
    • Lectures by Smart People (8)
    • Nelson Mandela (1)
    • U2 (4)
  • Pilgrimage to the Holy Land (65)
    • Be a Virtual Pilgrim (3)
    • Interfaith Issues (1)
    • Israel & Palestine (13)
    • Lent Devotional about pilgrimage (47)
  • Spiritual Reflection (50)
    • 2022 (1)
    • Aging (8)
    • Birds (1)
    • Bread (1)
    • Ending Gun Violence (5)
    • Finding Happiness (3)
    • Grief & Grieving (8)
    • Prayer (2)
    • Sabbath & Snow (4)
    • Silence at a Monastery (2)
    • Uncluttering as a Spiritual Practice (14)
  • Travel (30)
    • Belize (1)
    • Big Blue Adventures (1)
    • Chesapeake Bay (4)
    • Dominican Republic (1)
    • Michigan (3)
    • New Mexico Pilgrimage as a Family (1)
    • New York City (1)
    • Newfoundland (1)
    • Prince Edward Island PEI (8)
    • Shenandoah (2)
    • Washington DC (7)
  • Words & Writing (71)
    • Book Reviews (12)
    • Lyrics & Music (11)
    • Nourishing Creativity (4)
    • Writer with Kitty Cat (2)
    • Writers on Writing (6)
  • Working with Holidays in Church (11)
    • 9/11 September 11, 2001 (1)
    • All Saints Day (1)
    • Memorial Day (2)
    • Mothers Day (2)
    • New Years (4)
    • Valentines Day (1)

Footer

  • Home
  • About
  • All Books
    • The #MeToo Reckoning
      • #MeToo Course
      • Available in Korean
    • Ruined
      • Buy RUINED direct from the author
      • An Unpublished Chapter to RUINED
    • Chasing the Divine in the Holy Land
  • Shop
    • Cart
    • Checkout
    • My Account
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
  • #MeToo Course
  • Blog
  • Lent Devotional
  • Free Resources
    • Articles
    • Audio/Podcasts
    • Videos
  • Contact
Log in
Recent Blogposts:
  • Leading Ideas Talks
  • PCUSA Ordination Exam on Judges 19
  • NYC Weekend: Celebrating a Milestone Birthday
  • Greetings to the Rock Creek Presbyterian Church (Tallula, IL) on their 200th Anniversary!
  • Lady Gaga in Concert, DC Aug 2022