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With Love from Your Single Friend in the Church
This feels like a really delicate thing to write about. These words let you see inside the world of Kate in a way that feels exposing and scary and deeply vulnerable. But I don’t think I’m alone here, so, dear friend, if you’ll give me the space, I’ll try to tell my...
Why a Café in Mae Sot, Thailand Matters to You
I look back at pictures and feel as if I had been there, but I wasn’t. In fact, in 2016, I was 9,000 miles away and very much absorbed in my own little world. The happenings of a brand new café in Mae Sot, Thailand honestly wasn’t on my mind. Three years ago...
Why We Need to have the Courage to Look our Neighbor in the Eye
I was 14 years old when I first remember looking pain and injustice in the eye. I was staring into the face of a girl laying in a Romanian orphanage crib. She had a mop of curly brown hair on her head and tiny bones. Her deep brown eyes seemed vacant until she heard...
Stumbling into Holy Ground Moments Around the Table of Refugees
Last week I was invited to a space I had no business being in. It was an honor.It was a privilege. It was humbling. I made sure to take off my shoes before I walked into the friend of my friend’s home partly because of culture and partly because of...
![The Simple Practice that Changes [Almost] Everything](https://kateberkey.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/sam-headland-3-EgtVw-6uk-unsplash-1.jpg)
The Simple Practice that Changes [Almost] Everything
I like to think of myself as a pretty joyful person—quick to point out beauty even in the mess, to see hope even when reality is bleak, to notice Jesus even in our splintered stories. But somedays, joy isn’t quick to come. Somedays, it seems to hide in the shadows. On...
The Ripples I see in a Single Photograph and Why it Should Matter to You Too
I’m a little afraid to tell this story. It feels like the kind of moment we experience after vacation. We have pictures and stories of moments we love. All too eager, we sit down with friends or family and begin to relive these memories, and about two seconds...
It’s not You Who Makes the Trees Grow
I can’t work my way out of this. “This” seems to change in every season. Sometimes “this” is some kind of problem. It’s a situation that’s out of my control. It’s a sticky relational battle. Sometimes “this” is a goal or a vision for the way I think things should be....
Finding Joy Even When Something Feels Missing
This place is oddly quiet. I’ve grown used to the sound of fans, air con units, dogs barking halfway across town, birds chirping loudly by 5 AM. I’ve grown used to the sound of the water pump outside of my window, my neighbor’s incessant coughing and high...
It’s Time for the Seasons to Change
My time in Mae Sot is coming to a close, and this keeps me up at night more times than I would like to admit. I moved here for a specific project. I knew this would be for just a season, but somehow, it feels like it lasted only a few days rather than the almost year...
When Interruptions Become Moments of Doing Life Together
I relished the silence. On this particular day, business in Braverly was slow. A few customers trickled in and left with drinks to go which meant my only distraction was the smell of freshly baked bread coming from the kitchen. Outside, thunder rumbled in the distance...