As I set up my calendar for the month, I select a quote I’ve found that speaks to me. I write it in my planner and leave space below it to capture phrases I hear or read that speak to me and relate to the quote. I found this practice centers me throughout the month, and helps me be more present in my conversations, meetings, and readings. For November 2025, my quote was: “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for in doing so, some have entertained angels without knowing it.”  

This quote comes from the Bible, Hebrews 13:2. It found me as I stood in my friend’s farmhouse kitchen. A friend who decades ago became family and now faced the black hole of the sudden death of her mother. The pastor picked the passage for the funeral. For hours over an October weekend, I stood in the well-used farm kitchen as loved ones came by to not simply show their respects, but to soak up the lingering presence of a woman who welcomed, fed, and resorted hundreds of people with her faith-filled cooking. Using this quote seemed only fitting for my focus throughout November, a month of gratitude and hospitality.

Here are the quotes, lyrics, and phrases that that caught the attention of my head and heart this month regarding “show hospitality to strangers”:

• To be concerned, grieving, furious—and still be present and grateful to the quicksilver whimsey of a chipmunk darting under the porch… that’s you winning
• The process of letting go makes room for something new
• We’re all just walking each other home
• This is the baptism of true feeling:  The deeper we go, the slower the world; the slower the world, the softer our way
• To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord
• You’re always becoming more yourself

It’s pitch black at 4:30am as I sit to write this. Unable to sleep. Toes cold. Body cozy in a favorite lime green fleece.

As I read and reread these few quotes – a bit lost for what to write about them – I notice it.

Stillness.

No sound. No movement.

Stillness.

Darkness pushed back by the glow of my monitor.

Stillness

A sense of being held. Emersed in a tranquil moment muffled from the external chaos of the world and internal clutter of my mind.

Just quiet stillness except for my large exhale.

I close my eyes. Relax in my chair. And simply notice my breath, in and out.

A small grin as I thought beyond the moment, to the month.

So many everyday events. Mindless habits, routine activities, detached encounters. Noise. Bricks laid building a life. Moving forward yet not really going anywhere.

Between them the mortar.

Another sigh exhaled

Oh, the mortar.

The space between.

The hug. The check-in. The encouragement. The card filled with love. The soul bearing phone call. The cardinal. The humorous meme. The compliment. The tears. The prayers. The sunrise. The text. The car. The outburst of laughter. The thank you. The acceptance. The dog. The walk. The colored leaves swirling. The meal at the kitchen table.

Another sigh exhaled.

So many angels.