Cynthia Anderson's Blog, page 2

Built From Broken

Covid was the last straw. It had been a relentless three years full of the trials that “make you stronger.” Only I wasn’t stronger. A few months after I had been able to go without supplemental oxygen, I was sitting in the exam room of my doctor’s office. Slow, sorrowful music played, and I felt my soul sink further with every note. I looked out the window at the building next door and saw a large crack hiding behind the store’s sign where the walls met the roof. I was depressed. We are both bro...

Live a Creative Life

While doing some Christmas shopping at Hobby Lobby I came across a sign that read,

“Live a Creative Life.”

I took a minute to stop and stare. Threads of thought formed like a spider spinning its web.

Thought: I live a creative life. I smiled at the certainty of it. As quickly as my smile formed, it fell. Do I?

Doubts: I mean there are creative parts to my life. I’m sure that’s what that means. It’s not like you can shut life out and do nothing but create things. My brow began to furrow and I...

"We Always..."

You can have them during the year but the holidays are known for it. What am I talking about? In the words of Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof, “TRADITIONS!”

(Fiddler on the Roof music by ,Jerry Bock, ,lyrics by ,Sheldon Harnick, ,book by ,Joseph Stein)

“You may ask, how did this tradition start? I'll tell you - I don't know. But it's a tradition...”Tevye-Fiddler on the Roof

In the song, Traditions from the musical Fiddler on the Roof, Tevye asks the question, “How do traditions start?” He tells...

Christmas Crazy!

It is only the first week of December, and I have entered into an unbreakable vow with myself. I have vowed to never step into Walmart again until 2023. It is crazy out there. I don’t like crowds on any given day, but crowds during the holidays? No thank you.

Everyone is bustling around. In the stores, presents are being purchased. On the home front, elves are being put up on shelves, trees are being decorated, and parents are agonizing over where to hide the gifts THIS year. At the same tim...

Look Up And Keep Moving

The North Pacific Coast is known for its icy cold waves that crash into rock formations of various sizes that litter the shore. When Rich and I were newlyweds, we lived about an hour northeast of San Francisco and its beautiful coastline. We decided for our 3rd anniversary that we would take a trip down to the coast. We found a beautiful spot and were soon climbing up and down the rocks along the beach. Looking for adventure, we chose to climb a rather tall rock with waves pounding it on one si...

Look Up and Keep Moving

The North Pacific Coast is known for its icy cold waves that crash into rock formations of various sizes that litter the shore. When Rich and I were newlyweds, we lived about an hour northeast of San Francisco and its beautiful coastline. We decided for our 3rd anniversary that we would take a trip down to the coast. We found a beautiful spot and were soon climbing up and down the rocks along the beach. Looking for adventure, we chose to climb a rather tall rock with waves pounding it on one si...

By Small and Simple Things

I love old recipe books - the way the women used words like lard and sugar with such abandon. You find recipes on how to pickle your cucumbers or cook brain (yes, not a typo) side by side with a recipe for raisin frosting. Raisin frosting? Why hasn’t Betty Crocker put that into a can by now?

I enjoy working through the worn pages of a recipe book that served a family and their needs well. My cookbooks are full of family memories - some meals that went very well, and some that sparked a rebellio...

My Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

My Favorite Rolls

Pauline Broadbent was in my church congregation growing up and anytime she brought food to anything, it was gone quickly and recipes were written down. I have used her roll recipe every Thanksgiving since I have been married. My children love “my” rolls. (Sorry Pauline) and always ask for them when they come home for the holidays. I have doubled and tripled this recipe and it always comes out just fine.

I will also say, that this may seem like a complicated recipe. It’s not- th...

Finding Joy in Motherhood

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/fae46c_6bdd6759605d46758651119073954c74/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

I was preparing for a class at a women's conference about Finding Joy in Motherhood. I decided to make a video and four of my girls, daughters Stephanie and Caroline, and daughters-in-law, Michelle and Anna helped me out. I asked them four questions and this video is a sampling of the answers.

Once again I was struck with the truth that it is in the small and simple moments that we bond with our childre...

Packing Up

I lean my face lower and lower over the opened Bible until I can feel the thin pages on my skin. From deep in my lungs, I draw breath. In that breath, I smell my mother, my childhood. I see my mother reading her mother’s Bible in bed while waiting for me to come home. I see my mother teaching me to sew and Christmases I loved, not the ones I hated. I see mom teaching me ballet. I hear her playing the piano through my bedroom wall, my own lullaby that puts me to sleep. I remember rainy days and ...