Felicia Alvarez

Prayer is like cocoa Around Christmas time, I made a batch of cocoa cookies. I had made this family recipe many times, so I was quite surprised when I bit into the finished product and it tasted like burnt play-​​​​dough. What had gone wrong? Why had …

How often do you hear someone say that? Personally, I’ve never heard it. I’ve certainly never said it, either. I think every human being on earth wants to be successful. Even little kids don’t want to fail. One of my friends, a first grade …

My shirt stuck to my lower back, damp with perspiration. I took a break from pedaling and looked back to check the trailer attached to my bike. Four-​​​​year-​​​​old Johnny looked fine. The cool breeze played in his hair as he sat there …

“Let’s play car. You drive, okay?” Three-​​​​year-​​​​old Bella handed me the plastic keys, and I revved up our “couch car” engine. She climbed into the “passenger seat” next to me, pulled an invisible seatbelt across her lap, and firmly buckled it. After we …

Peter and Leila were good friends — to onlookers, even more than good friends. They played tennis together, jogged together, attended the same Bible study, and frequently went to dinner together. Leila assumed that with all the time they spent with each …

“Make a list of everything you want in a future husband.” Today, this is a common recommendation. Rather than a list, however, many of us create an entire album of checklists, safeguards, and tests to determine who would be our perfect match. But I’ve …