This month’s tenet states, “We are empowered by our feminine nature and biology, and we honor our procreative power.” I have been thinking about the strength of women and their feminine nature lately. As a friend was relating to me recently the extreme trials her daughter went through during the pregnancy and birth of her…
Check back for more updates and follow our Facebook page! We have been so happy to find willing volunteers and helpful partners in our continued efforts to help the people of Ukraine. You can donate HERE. May Update Mid April, Big Ocean Women board member, Vilma, went with two volunteers, Valerie VanLeuven Ockey and Jarrod…
Whether or not we choose or are able to bear children, each of us is born with the potential to create human life, and this is of monumental importance. We understand the significant responsibilities connected to procreative power. We seek to create a culture where women and girls, as well as men and boys, respect…
In the early morning hours of September 9, 1996, fierce contractions gripped my abdomen again and again, drawing my whole body, mind, and soul into the experience of becoming a mother. Though I had been warned it would come, I could not have fully understood the agony until I felt it for myself. These unrelenting birthing…
(Trigger Warning: Premature Birth Experience) “We’ll need to transfer you to another hospital. We aren’t equipped for a preemie this small.” Those were the words that drove home the reality of the situation I was in. I had gone in for a routine 30-week check, pregnant with my first baby, and my blood pressure was…
When my children were small I would tell them, “we are going on a scavenger hunt,” because they were busy and curious, and endlessly in need of being entertained, and we would set off, hunting for rocks or snails, or spiders, or stars in the sky up above. “Find me something strange,” I would say,…
It’s been a few months since I’ve written to the women of Big Ocean; oh how blessed it is to be back home with this loving sisterhood. In December, I almost lost my life. It was the Monday after Christmas, and we had just finished celebrating at my engagement dinner. Hopes and dreams for my…
My friend’s farm in New Zealand is just tucking in for the winter, while my northern-hemisphere garden is just waking up to spring (most days). The ever-changing turn of natural force on our planet is astonishing. Consider some of the elements that allow Mother Nature to work in her way: wind, weather patterns, precipitation, temperature…
Choosing to be a mother is something that can happen with hope and joy, trepidation and resolve, introspection or surprise. Sometimes it’s a mixture of all of those feelings and everything in between. Some women face that choice with a loving partner, and some face it alone. Some have that desire burning inside and choose…
One of my passions is doing genealogy research. I can spend hours going through stacks of old books in libraries or trying to decipher centuries-old and faded handwriting in online images of documents. One of the document types I consult frequently is census records. In the United States, census records began in 1790 but only…
Visit to the Orphanage 12/2021 The South Sudan Juba Orphanage was established in 1960, making it the oldest orphanage in the country. Currently, it is the home of over 60 children. The orphanage is under the Central Equatoria State Ministry of Gender and Social Welfare. The orphanage does not have funders, so support to provide…
The Houston cottage understands and promotes individual worth, especially the worth of girls and women. This past year the cottage, led by Nikki Brown, has served in very sweet and personal ways. Families transitioning out of homelessness have many challenges. Working with a local non-profit organization, the Houston cottage members prepared and delivered meals for…
One of the realities for me of being a writing teacher is that I spend my life reading: reading books, reading craft theory, reading student drafts, reading the work of my writing group. I find myself frequently in a place to discuss with others their ideas and their opinions and their storytelling—whether they are writing…
We begin the new year with this powerful tenet: “We believe in God and are women of faith.” This is a common theme about which we speak and write. But it is more than words and ideas. It is most powerful when modeled by the examples of women who live it. We invited such women…
I met Dr. Ugochi Ohajuruka the first time I went to the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women in 2017. As I filmed her, I was so taken by her desire to lift women out of poverty and give girls the correct maturation knowledge and tools to build a good foundation for the future.…
Last night I finished reading a memoir that left me reeling. I lay in bed for several hours afterward pondering my place in the world. I evaluated the way I spend my time, my abilities (or my perception of my abilities), my dreams, my circumstances, and I prayed solemn prayers for direction. My mind felt…
