On a silver Colorado day, white tree arms tease a dove grey sky and chill settles in my bones. I gaze out my window. Everything is blue, the color of cold. But, I am dreaming. In my mind I am far away: remembering a shoreline with scattered boats, whipped by wind, weathered by salt. On…Read more Longing for Courage
travel
Song of the Galahs
I walked the streets of my dusty, middle-of-nowhere town buried in the heart and heat of Australia. For a year and a half, Alice Springs cradled my adolescence. Her far-flung small town ethos taught me lessons to savor for a lifetime –concern for neighbor, freedom from pretense. Aboriginal songs in the surrounding buttes carved a…Read more Song of the Galahs
Prophetic Art
“Art is the language of the soul.” With these words, one of my lifelong friends exhorted me as I wrestled for years with an insatiable need to express myself visually. For decades I tried to suppress this language, feeling it could not urgently or adequately address the evils I witnessed in the world. It felt…Read more Prophetic Art
Colorado Magic
From the intricate details of a Columbine wildflower to skies soaring over mountain peaks, Colorado is truly a magic place. I am prone to sudden and frequent exclamations to my children, "Do you realize how blessed we are to live here!?" As I roam my home state, chasing after my kids' baseball games this summer, wonder and gratitude…Read more Colorado Magic
Still Thinking about Haiti
When I visit another country, it is the terrain of the heart I most long to explore. What do people value, fear, hope? It is the majesty of the human soul in its myriad global expressions that captivates me. The first time I visited a culture far from home, I felt like I was watching shadows…Read more Still Thinking about Haiti
A Journey Through the Dust of Haiti
Remembering a Conversation in Haiti Amber-diffused light ignites the dusty air with tender touch of setting sun. Beads of sweat and sighs of labor sift back to earth as day seeps away. Meandering people speak in a lilting language I do not know, mingled with children’s playful giggles. Suddenly, conversation shifts, from easy walking-camaraderie to…Read more A Journey Through the Dust of Haiti
Canopy of Hope
Day by day Haiti seeps into the sea. Deprived of any other reliable energy source, her citizens harvest what they can find. Food today or soil tomorrow? When a belly roils with hunger pangs, the tree is felled. Peasants charcoal the wood in shallow covered pits, then bag and sell it. Experts say Haiti is…Read more Canopy of Hope
A Prayer for Haiti 2
Haiti snuck in as a most unexpected visitor. My heart cracked to make space for it. Vulnerable and achingly beautiful, its vivid colors play in my mind, dancing in the brilliant sun on naked hills. Before and after I visited early this year, I read everything I could to try to understand how such crushing…Read more A Prayer for Haiti 2
Injustice
I hope that the writing of Bonnie Wellensiek will challenge and inspire you as much as it does me. She is currently serving in South Asia with International Justice Mission: http://www.ijm.org.
Freedom Sunday
During a raid two months ago in India, rescuers invaded a room crowded with 36 women enslaved in the sex industry. Within moments of entering, they heard strange noises just on the other side of a wall. They searched for an opening, but there were no windows or doors. Finally they tore down a section…Read more Freedom Sunday
Colleen Briggs Images & Writing 