By NANCY PATRICK As a young mother with a thirteen-month-old baby boy, I lived in northern Illinois with my pastor-husband and our infant son. Other than the first five years of my life spent in my birthplace of Arkansas, I had never lived outside Texas, my adopted home state. Adjusting to my role as a new mother, a first-time pastor’s
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK Weird! Weird! Weird! That word describes my world during this pandemic. I thank God that danger, exhaustion, sacrifice, and life-threatening do not describe my daily life. This period of COVID-19 isolation, illness, shortage, and death has invaded my life in an unprecedented way. The closest similarities, World War II and the Great Depression, differed greatly from the
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK In 1624, British poet John Donne wrote “Meditation 17” as part of a larger collection of devotional pieces. The theme of the meditation relates to the interconnectedness of humankind. The first part delineates how people—regardless of location, race, social status, or religion—connect to one another as parts of humanity even if the individuals know nothing of the
Read more
Editor’s Note: March is Women’s History Month. Nancy Patrick writes about a woman she met when helping her son move to Virginia to begin a position as pastor of a historic church. Send stories or suggestions for stories about women to feature during Women’s History Month to editor@spiritofabilene.com By NANCY PATRICK My son’s position as a pastor in a historic
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK In the old Forest Gump movie, Forest tells people that his Mama always said, “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” I wonder how much truth that statement contains. Some of its veracity depends on whether or not the chocolate box has labels in the lid. Some boxes say simply
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK I have always loved language. I like saying some words, writing others, thinking others, reading many more. I guess my love of language led me to choose an English major in college. I earned both my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English with the goal of teaching it to high school students. Some of my public school
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK I did not experience the weight and burden of grief until I was an adult. Although one of my uncles and a grandfather died during my childhood, their deaths did not directly affect me because they did not play an active role in my life. My family had experienced generally good health and few accidents, so surprise
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK I know many people favor fall—the end of long, hot summers and return of cooler weather and beautiful, colorful foliage. Although I do enjoy the brief autumns we have in West Texas, I do not happily anticipate the imminent winter. It’s not the cold weather I dislike but rather the absence of green leaves, blooms, sunshiny days,
Read more
By NANCY PATRICK For many Americans, Christmas celebration has begun. Sometimes people begin their preparations well before Thanksgiving. Although I’ve never done that, I have always tried to get into the spirit immediately after Thanksgiving. Years ago, I found it easier than I do now. At the age of five, my family moved to Texas from Arkansas. We began a
Read more
Spirit Of Abilene 