A framed photo of Ben Lam is displayed on an easel next to a large multicoloured floral arrangement displayed on a white table.

An Example of Dying Well: My Dad’s Final Gift to Me

In the morning on Tuesday, March 19, 2019, after a relatively uneventful night where I fell asleep to the sound of my dad’s steady breathing in his palliative care hospital room, I suddenly noticed his breathing sharply slow. I hurried over to his bedside and gently caressed his head, watching intently. His inhales and exhales were irregular and drawn out. Inhale. Long pause. Exhale. Another long pause. Inhale. Even longer pause. Exhale.

“Is this the end?” I asked him. “Is Jesus coming for you?”  A small tear glistened from the corner of his eye. Here we are, at the edge of eternity. As I watched, a change occurred in his irises and I saw his spirit leave. “I love you, dad,” I whispered. I looked at the clock. 7:51am.

I leaned my head on his chest.

All was still.

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Olive’s Top 5 Reads for 2019

For the past few years, we’ve kept a sticky note on our fridge to track which books we’ve read throughout the year. This year, I set myself a goal of reading two books per month. Thanks to both kids being in school as well as discovering audio books from our local library, I managed to exceed my goal and read 30 books! Here are my top 5 picks, listed in the order of which I read them:

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"Watch for the light: Readings for Advent and Christmas" book cover against a Christmas tree background

Why I’m Not Doing Advent Photos This Year and What I’m Doing Instead

“What will you be doing for Advent this year?” a friend asked me. She knew that for the past three years, I have engaged in an Advent Photo-a-Day practice, reflecting on a prompt word each day and capturing it in a picture.

“I don’t know,” I replied. “It hurts too much. My heart is still tender from the grief of my dad’s passing.”

In previous years, the season of Advent had been a source of joy and consolation for me. I looked forward to the anticipation and the gentle, dark time of waiting. Advent had always been a time of finding hidden beauty. This year, however. This year was different. I couldn’t even think about Advent without tears welling up and my chest feeling like it had exploded. Or maybe imploded. Oh, what a raw place.

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Close up of child holding a pencil writing in her allowance ledger. Also on the desk are three containers marked "Saving," "Spending," and "Giving".

How We Do Allowance With Our Kids

Once in a while, while chatting with friends with school-aged kids, the topic of allowance comes up. “How do you guys do it?” we’re asked. We aren’t financial gurus by any means but we do have a little system in place that will hopefully instill some basic financial sense in our children.

Our system is based partly on how Tim’s dad (former accountant) taught Tim, and partly on a short, practical book called, Money-Smart Kids: Teach Your Children Financial Confidence and Control (affiliate link). Each family needs to tailor the way they approach the subject to their context, but today we’ll share what we do. Hopefully it can give you a starting point.

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A Time of Change

Hello dear readers,
Spring is a season where change often happens and Tim and I have two developments we wanted to let you in on. This post will be more of a personal update from us and less of the reflective type of article we usually post.

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