Posts by Natasha

What would the world be like without mothers? What if we were born into a world without a constant, steady, nurturing figure? What if we had no one to kiss us goodnight, to clean our scraped knees, to hug us close, and to believe in us? It would be a sad world, indeed—a world where we might be oblivious to the fact that such warmth and nurturance is possible. Without my mother’s patience for me, I would not have realized that I can keep on trying even if I fail. Without my mother’s storytelling, I would not have learned about our wonderful and loving God from an early age. Without my mother’s encouragement, I would not have believed that I could achieve that which seemed impossible. Without my mother’s love, I would not know that unconditional love among...

Our first date began disastrously. The rain was pouring, and as I waited in my very cold car I couldn’t help but notice that Paul was 12 minutes late (which felt like an eternity). That in itself kicked my frustration off. It was February 2011, and just a few days earlier I had finally decided to give this guy a chance. There were so many things about him that struck me—his steady character, his integrity, his knowledge of politics and current events, and the fact that we had so many things in common, from a shared desire to love and serve Jesus to speaking Spanish, having close-knit families, and loving music, tennis, and traveling—and although I was somewhat ambivalent towards him, part of me felt that a relationship with this man was inevitable should he...

A few weeks ago I had the wonderful opportunity of having dinner with my family and an elderly couple from my former church congregation. As we sat around the dinner table, I noticed that we had three different generations represented within the span of 40 years. How wonderful it was to hear firsthand stories about World War II, about how God had guided each person’s life, and about the various experiences we all had! It was a beautiful moment for me, learning from others who are further along in life and drawing from their wisdom. Every week, I get more chances to learn from others when I meet up with my wonderful friends at 360Church and do life together, whether we’re practicing a worship set, planning an event, celebrating a birthday, or gathering just to...

Part of my research and academic work has focused on the importance of sleep and on promoting healthy sleep habits, particularly with teenagers. One finding I find fascinating that keeps popping up over and over again is that most teenagers are aware that they don’t get enough sleep, and yet they do nothing to change it. Psychologists have tried to do interventions in schools, from Sleep Hygiene Week[1] to a 4-week program focused on increasing motivation to have better sleep habits[2], but most of these interventions only improved teenager’s knowledge about sleep without any corresponding change in behavior.   This phenomenon of knowing but not doing is not uncommon. Even psychology graduate students who are learning about how to manage stress and live...

This week I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a women’s tea where two missionary women shared their stories and were honored for their service to the Lord. As they told the tale of how they came upon that work, I began to think how many of us Christians view ourselves as missionaries. For most of us, our schema of “missionary” consists of someone living abroad, possibly in sub-par conditions, and working with individuals who are vastly different from them in terms of culture, language, and many other factors. When we talk to missionaries, we ask about the moment they knew they were called to the mission field. What I found interesting about the two women I heard from this week is that for them there wasn’t necessarily a defining moment where they...

February 14th is an interesting day. Red and pink become the only colors you can see, the card section at Target is covered with hearts, musical cards with love songs, and “I love you!” written everywhere, and chocolate and heart-shaped candies flood each store. On one hand, the holiday seems to be focused on romantic love, but then you have CareBears Valentines that say, “I love you beary much!” being handed out in elementary school classrooms and people saying we should celebrate anyone we love, from our family and friends to our pets. Then there are those who have renamed this holiday as SAD Day (aka Single Awareness Day) and boycott the whole thing or spend it surrounded by tissues while they watch a romantic comedy alone on their couch. It’s a...

My grandparents are one of my favorite couples of all time. They married at the ripe old age of 20, and 50 years later they are still together. Last December I had the wonderful opportunity of traveling back to Uruguay (my native land) and celebrating my grandparent’s golden anniversary, and throughout my stay I was able to witness what a beautiful relationship they have. I can’t yet offer marriage advice from my own personal experience, but in talking to my grandparents and observing them I noticed several patterns. Consider these some of the ingredients for staying married for 50+ years—and if you have some advice you have picked up along the way, either from your own or someone else’s experience, feel free to comment below! 1. Be companions to...

Driving home earlier this week, “Night Fever” by the Bee Gees came on. Instantly I was transported to my undergrad days as a music major, and in my mind I was no longer driving but rather sitting in a class listening to a professor lecture about the Disco influences on Caribbean music. Pretty soon I was having flashbacks of doing a rendition of Stevie Wonder’s “Sir Duke” for a musicianship class, hearing classmates perform their version of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and having to listen to hours and hours of atonal 20th century music that I would have to recognize in my final exams.   I suddenly started to miss those days when I spent day after day examining, listening, discovering, and enjoying beautiful music. I remembered my amusement at...