by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea The other night I was jolted out of bed by one of those monstrous thunder cracks. I think you can still see the fingernail marks on the ceiling over my bed. It was one of those rattle-the-windows, race-the-heart, vibrate-you-right-down-to-the-spirit kind of thunder explosions. I sensed people all…

by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea She swallowed them. Swallowed ‘em right down. My daughter Kaley and I were working on a book together. I traveled the four hours to her place, and on day two of hunkering down in her apartment for a week of writing, I came down with an ick…

by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea I already felt a little uneasy about the day. Then I heard myself say to a family member, “Oh, that train wreck has already left the station,” and I realized it might be worse than I thought. It was early so I figured the angsty, disconnected feeling…

by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea I’ll just crawl under the pew now, thanks. Has it happened to you? Right at the pastor’s most dramatically silent pause: your hideously loud stomach-growl. I say growl, but remember those old movies when Tarzan yodel-yelled and in response elephants stampeded? That.  You put your hand over…

by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea How many batteries does it take to power the average American post-Christmas playtime? If I were to make a joke out of that question, it would probably include a clever play on words—maybe something about lithium ion versus lead oxide. No doubt we’d all get a big…

by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea I remember trying to cook up something new for dinner for my family now and then when my children were growing up. Everybody knows I’m not a cook. No one knows better than my kids. Our family’s reminiscing often goes like this: “Hey Mom. Remember that time…