Musing

It's been a while since I've posted anything here.

Wonderful Husband and I were talking and he said that he figured my blog was about my thoughts. I didn't tell him I hadn't blogged in months but it got me thinking. Does that mean I haven't had any thoughts in months? Ha!

We've been living intergenerationally since April of 2014. I thought it would be harder than it has been. But it isn't easy either. Our daughter lives here full-time. Our granddaughter lives here 1/2 time.

Holidays are more fun with a young one in the house. She is three and brings excitement and humor into our lives, as well as more toys than we've had in our family room in many years.

In December, I celebrated my four year anniversary at work.

I've been reading more and thought I'd list the books I read in 2014:

 1. The Land Between: Finding God in Difficult Transitions - Jeff Manion
 2. A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet: Southern Stories of Faith, Family and Fifteen Pounds of Bacon - Sophie Hudson
 3. Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples - Francis Chan
 4. An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess - Jen Hatmaker
 5. Discerning the Voice of God: How to Recognize when He Speaks - Priscilla Shirer
 6. Appointments in Heaven - Dr. Reggie Anderson
 7. Fearless Daughters of the Bible: What We Can Learn from 22 Women Who Challenged Tradition, Fought Injustice and Dared to Lead - J.Lee Grady, Margaret Feinberg
 8. This Is Where I Leave You: A Novel - Jonathan Tropper
 9. Anything: The Prayer That Unlocked My God and My Soul - Jennie Allen
10. Miracle in the Museum of Broken Hearts - Talli Roland
11. What Women Fear: Walking in Faith that Transforms - Angie Smith
12. I Need Some Help Here: Hope for When Your Kids Don't Go According to Plan - Kathi Lipp
13. The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League - Jeff Hobbs
14. Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer - Max Lucado
15. Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World - Bob Goff

Snow and cold weather hit Pennsylvania but the good news is that we've dodged some huge storms so far! Hooray!

Wonderful Husband and I are planning another warm weather March getaway. Last year was Puerto Rico and I think it saved my sanity. This year is the Grand Cayman Island. I applied for a passport for the first time in my life. (Now you know that I am not usually a world traveler.)

I still read The One Year Chronological Bible and visit Wendy Pope's blog for her daily video vlogs. She is writing a book and I am a member of her feedback group.

My Bible Study group is currently doing Beth Moore's "Children of the Day: 1 & 2 Thessalonians" study.

My One Word is the same as last year's: Trust. I believe I have more to learn about trusting God in every aspect of my life so an encore is necessary.

And that's about it for an update for now.

Kindness from a Stranger

2013 has been a tough year for our daughter (Young Sweetie). She's in the midst of signing a custody agreement regarding her daughter (Youngest Sweetie) and faces divorce in her future.

Life. has. been. hard.

Imagine my surprise when she brought Youngest Sweetie over for our weekly Sunday dinner and said, "I have story for your blog."

(Young Sweetie knows that I like to write about real life but life has been "a bit too real" this year.)

*******

Young Sweetie was shopping with Youngest Sweetie at our local K-Mart finishing up their Christmas shopping and picking up the basics of diapers and wipes when a woman approached them and struck up a conversation.

The woman praised Youngest Sweetie for being so cute (I liked this woman already!) and asked if she'd seen Santa yet. She asked Young Sweetie how her holidays were going and Young Sweetie said she gave her the standard answer of "Everything is going ok."

The woman explained that her employer had sent out their employees to spread some holiday spirit and asked Young Sweetie if she could give her some money to buy something "for yourself, your daughter and others for Christmas."

Then the woman handed her a $100 bill.

Young Sweetie's eyes welled-up with tears and asked if she could give the woman a hug.

Which she did.

She thanked the woman and while she was still mentally processing the gift....she realized she didn't ask the woman's name or what company she worked for and the woman had walked away.

She looked for the woman and never saw her again.

*******

I believe that God places all people in our lives for His purpose(s).

Thank you Lord for your hand in this gift. Thank you for the woman who was sent out by her employer to pass on some holiday spirit. And thank you for her employer who gave the incentive to the employees.

I am grateful that at the end of a tough year our family experienced this miracle of love and kindness from a stranger.

Amen.

*******

Have you received kindness from a stranger this year?

Too Much Technology?

I read the following essay from Tiffany Shlain entitled "Tech's Best Feature: The Off Switch."

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/03/techs_best_feature_the_off_swi.html

Tiffany wrote:

"Just as we discover -- the hard way -- what constitutes too much sugar or too much alcohol, I believe we are only beginning to truly understand the effects of too much technological stimulation on the brain. As we rush into this era of hyperconnected human evolution, we need to evolve and adapt to be mindful of what we are doing online and when we should get off."

I've been pondering where technology is leading the younger....and older generations too.

I remember working on a computer for the first time and how it seemed to make my world spin like a top. All this technology was rushing toward me at a lickety-split pace.

Now I have days when my computer at work seems to move in slowwww motionnnnn. My brain has been re-trained to expect fast results and sometimes technology doesn't seem quick enough.

That also carries over into other parts of my life as I rush into and through the grocery store...then need to "re-program myself" to stand patiently in line, pay for my items...then I walk quickly toward my car.

I live a life of fast and slow and only during the slow do I have the time to see God, His blessings, and have relationships with others.

Have you ever made the decision to turn off technology for a specific amount of time?

Trusting Him

Continuing my journey beyond one thousand gifts....

Every day is a gift,
every moment is a blessing,
every life holds a beauty of its own.

Last Monday, a co-worker's daughter tried to commit suicide.

I say "tried to" because she didn't die.

And I am thankful.

The daughter has struggled with life ever since beginning college two years ago. This was her loudest cry for help and she called her mom after swallowing a handful of pills.

I watched my co-worker shaking with fear and frustration and offered to drive her to the Philadelphia hospital while her daughter was being transported by ambulance.

Confession: I have fear while driving to places outside of my immediate area and called Wonderful Husband but had to leave a voicemail explaining what had happened and where I was traveling.

I started saying The Jesus Prayer. Have you heard of it?

Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.

I silently prayed this prayer over and over and felt the calming presence of Christ as I started driving us toward Philadelphia.

We found the hospital and she went in to assess the situation. Her daughter was conscious and my co-worker came out and said her husband was on his way. I asked if she wanted me to wait for his arrival but she told me I could leave. I asked if she had money for food and she said yes. I told her that I'd be praying for her and her daughter and their family and pulled away from the hospital.

When I left the hospital I turned on my CD and the song "Beautiful" began playing by MercyMe.

(Please click the link below to hear the song.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7C2o0jHNRuU

How I wish the daughter could have heard these words.

Words of love: how she is treasured, and sacred, and His.

She is more than this moment of her life.

You see, I have compassion for young women struggling through life.

A few years ago our daughter imploded while attending college and living away from home. She layered bad decision on top of bad decision and we couldn't stop her or help her.

Only God can save. And He did.

Yet in the midst of the turmoil, God prepared me because He knew what was coming.

My Word for 2010 was Hope and what it took a year for me to learn was that I couldn't place my hope in a place, different circumstances, or a new situation.

I can only place my hope in the Lord.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13

I have empathy for mothers whose children struggle with life.

Because another lesson I've learned is that I don't have control over my (adult) children. I pray for them and pray that they turn toward God because they can place their hope and trust in Him.


Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.
Isaiah 26:4

My Word for 2011 was Grace. God showers me with His grace, I in turn show His grace toward others and because of living the word Grace for that year, my daughter and I have a good relationship today.

Only God could have worked the mess into the goodness we live today.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose.
Romans 8:28

# 1089 - 1096 on my list beyond One Thousand Gifts. I'm thankful for:

1089. the daughter making it to the hospital and living

1090. driving my co-worker to the hospital

1091. Christ's calming presence during our drive to Philadelphia

1092. safe travel to and from the hospital

1093. Wonderful Husband's calm (Blue Tooth) conversation when I began driving home alone

1094. feeling God's comfort through music

1095. our daughter and where she is in life now

1096. God, and my hope and trust in Him

Please pray for people who struggle with living. Their lives are precious to Him.

This post is linked to the Faith Barista Jam with the writing prompt of "Trust"



and

September - October 2012

September 2012

I discovered my love of candy corn

Found a giant spider living outside our home.

And viewed a rainbow from our backyard.

October 2012

Happy yellow mums

Strolling with our granddaughter

Beautiful fall foliage

Superstorm Sandy brought gray and rain

And trees branches split and fell

Yet the month ended with our granddaughter in her hatching chick costume.

A Happy Halloween indeed!

July - August 2012

July 2012

I began writing a series called "Finding Church." Wonderful Husband and I began visiting different churches and I must admit that I haven't finished the final post of this series. (I guess I had to leave something to write about in the new year!)

I was searching for life application from sermons, stronger leadership, more Christ, and a need/desire to be a part of a new (to me) faith community.

Meanwhile the month looked like this....

Wonderful Husband assisting our neighbor in
balloon removal from his tree.

The family Pig Roast.

A hot air balloon traveling over our home.
(Not the balloons that were stuck in our neighbor's tree.)

August 2012

I felt surrounded by blogs, books, and sermons speaking to me about church. A spiritual month filled with stretching and growing in my faith. 

The Teacher read to his niece.

Had to include her sweet "Fishy Face."

On August 24th, I began reading The One Year Chronological Bible (again). 

Yes, I realize I said August.

"Better late than never" is an encouraging old saying.

It seems very forgiving too.

May - June 2012

May 2012

A month of pondering what tithing means to me, celebrations with mostly cards for nine birthdays, attending a bridal shower for our future niece-in-law, and my sister got married.

I notice a trend in my taking pictures of
chocolate while attending our
niece-to-be's bridal shower!

June 2012

A month in which we attended a wedding of my friend Terri's son,

Sweetest Wedding Favors Ever:
Pretzel rods dipped in white or dark chocolate!

I read One Perfect Word: One Perfect Word Can Make All the Difference by Debbie Macomber.

We vacationed in South Carolina

and enjoyed days full of sunshine, blue skies, ocean breezes and beach time. Golf for the men. My time spent at the pool, reading Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus by Kyle Idleman, highlighting, contemplative thinking, and relaxing. Thank you South Carolina!

March - April 2012

March 2012

While reading through my journal, I realized that I was living with and leaning more closely toward God. I focused on sending cards to whomever God placed on my heart and most were easy to recognize.

March was a month filled with sending 27 cards and adding to my list of One Thousand Gifts. A month when I was a part of one of the Growth Groups at our church, the ladybugs once again invaded our master bathroom, and our sweet granddaughter slept like a baby.

April 2012

The remaining six cards were mailed during Lent. Yes, some days were a challenge but at the end of 40 days it was a blessing. Hopefully for others, definitely for me, and a tradition to be continued in 2013.

I was definitely enthralled with everything either beginning to bloom or already blooming....

Phlox from our yard

Daffodils from a neighbor's yard

I saw God leading me through my word for 2012 (Fellowship) using scripture, blogs and books. It was a wonderful month of God showing me connections and my sharing time with my Growth Group, breakfasts with former Bible Study Buddies, and the (in)RL 2012 webcast.

2012 In Review

Last year I read Mary Elizabeth's 2011 Year in Review and asked to borrow her idea. She gave me her blessing so here I go...

January 2012

Began with my almost having a heart attack from a mistake on our water bill. Previous quarter was $221.26. The following quarter was $9,769.32! Ack!

The problem? The township installed a new water meter and it was running backward. The problem was resolved but I still don't know how many years were "flushed from my life" from receiving this bill! Ha!

The good news was that after a deer ran into my van in November....

I brought LaVania home all undented and pretty in January. I guess I could have included a picture but you know what an undented van should look like, right?

February 2012

A month filled with love....

Our daughter was married at the courthouse.

Our granddaughter was baptized.

Valentine's Day gifts from Wonderful Husband.

I finally began reading my Kindle Fire and really appreciate the compactness of it all.

Karen Ehman inspired me while I read her post entitled, "Don't Give Up Something For Lent." The idea was to send a card of thanks or encouragement every day during Lent. Seven cards were mailed this month.

An Ordinary Tuesday

I arrived to work early, read my devotional and was waiting for 8:28, when an SUV pulled into the parking lot. I heard a woman's voice say, "We'll ask this lady," then I saw her and maybe a six year old boy walking toward me.

She had a piece of paper in her hand and I asked, "Are you looking for CHOP?" (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia)

She looked surprised and said, "Yes. How did you know?"

I told her that the GPS directs people here all the time and then gave her my standard directions, "Make a right out of the parking lot. At the light, made a left. Go down 6 lights and make a left."

She started to repeat it back to me incorrectly so I said, "No," and repeated the directions which she then understood.

She said, "Thank you. You are an angel!" She looked down to her son and said, "That lady is an angel!"

As she walked away I said, "You're welcome and good luck!"

I said a prayer as they left the parking lot asking for God's guidance to CHOP and His healing for her son. I gave Him thanks for my being in the parking lot to assist them with directions and thanked Him for the blessing of being called an angel on an ordinary Tuesday morning.

Yet what started out as ordinary for me became extraordinary. I don't think I've ever been called an angel. And thinking about the mother being lost, probably running close to the appointment time, worried about her son's health, I'm sure she would have said it was not an ordinary Tuesday morning for her either.

Because I can remember 25 years ago, driving our son to Children's Hospital in Washington, DC for doctor's appointments and surgeries. I remember the nurse carrying our son to surgery and him smiling at us over her shoulder. I remember sitting in a waiting room filled with anxious parents and sometimes when their doctor arrived, he would lead them away to tell them that their child had died.

When I begin to think that my day is ordinary, God shows me that it isn't and I'm surrounded by others who aren't living ordinary days either.

What's the nicest name you've been called lately?

Vacation Recap 2012

Deep Thought: Does having a water feature in a pond encourage cooling thoughts?

New Vocabulary: "The Grand Strand." It was on billboards, mentioned in the news, etc. and I had to look it up on Wikipedia to learn that the term Grand Strand "was coined by The Myrtle Beach Sun columnist Claude Dunnagan in 1949 and 'Strand' itself derives from the German, meaning beach." The primary city in The Grand Strand is Myrtle Beach. South Carolina has approximately 60 miles of beaches.

I Wish I Could Forget: Riding past an accident scene where someone inside the car hit the windshield. Seat belts people! Prayer for the injured person already taken away by ambulance.

At The Beach: Seeing a girl (12ish) running to retrieve her younger sibling. She ran with confidence, and no self-conscious movement. May she always feel secure in her body!

What I Forgot to Pack: Chip clips, my visor, and the power cord for transferring digital pictures from camera to computer. Darn.

Does Anyone Remember?: The show "Room by Room" with Shari Hiller and Matt Fox on HGTV? I caught an episode of their new (to me) show "Around the House" on a South Carolina channel. Love those two!

A Bit Disappointing: A broken dishwasher. The frustrating part was the owner knew it and didn't have it repaired before we arrived for vacation.

Better News: Dishwasher was fixed on Thursday.

Too Much TV thought: We stayed in a lovely gated community. I'm assuming the gates keep bad people out (probably also people who shouldn't use the swimming pool). Does that mean there are no bad people inside the gates? I've watched too many TV shows that start with the line, "It was a quiet, crime-free community....until one day...crime made a visit..." Da, da, dummmmm.....

Longest Running Joke: On our way south and also every time we were looking for a restaurant to eat dinner while on vacation, "Hey Mom/Cindy, there's a Cracker Barrel!" (You see....I don't like Cracker Barrel and they are everywhere!!)

Best Book I Read: Not a Fan. Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus by Kyle Idleman.

Weird Questions: If you live in South Carolina do you go on vacation? If so, where?

Awesome Idea: In North Carolina we stopped for lunch at Chick-fil-a. There was a purple sign by the drive-thru that I made sure to read on my way out. It said, "Mom's Valet." Instead of me explaining it, I thought I'd give you a link that's kind of cute and is 4+ minutes long: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tav4q6A56l0  AWESOME idea for anyone with small kids and no energy or patience to stand in line to order and keep the kids occupied/out of trouble. Way to go Chick-fil-a! I wish Mom's Valet was around when my kids were young!

Have you been to South Carolina?


If not, where do you go for vacation?

Lack of Words

It strikes me as funny that after we return from a wonderful week of vacation in South Carolina, I have one simple thing I must do on Sunday, and I can't do it.

I find a nice card from my stationery collection and I have no grateful words to weave together in a note while returning the key to the condo owner.

My thoughts ramble around in my head while I think, "Is there a nice way to suggest that in the future they send two keys?" Because really there were only three adults there but if Wonderful Husband and The Teacher went to play golf what if I wanted to go to the pool or something? I would need the key to lock the place up.

And if you advertise that it rents to up to 8.....one key would be a disaster.

No.

What kind of thank you note would that be to include "constructive criticism?"

And by the way, they still have our deposit.

Do not criticize.

OK.

The dishwasher didn't work until the repairman came to fix it on Thursday. We rented the place from Saturday to Saturday. Once again, there were only three of us. We ate simple breakfasts and lunches and usually went out for dinner. No big deal, yet I have to admit that around Tuesday I thought that if someone else was in charge of washing dishes, they would have "felt my pain." (Or should I say adopted my bad-ish attitude.)

Stop me now!

So instead of writing the note and inserting the key on Sunday and mailing it off on Monday: I went to work for eight hours, visited my hairdresser and got my hair colored and cut (it had been 10 weeks since my last appointment!), and came home to write the note on Monday night.

I write the note telling them I'm glad we rented their condo for our vacation. The fellas played golf to their hearts' content. We swam in the pool, went to Garden City Beach (a mere 10 minute drive, and can I begin to tell you that Wonderful Husband found FREE parking and was in his element), and had the best pizza we've had in years at Milardo's Pizzeria and Sports Pub.

View of the pool from the condo

Garden City Beach
The woman is on a surfboard with a oar or a long paddle?
This reminded me of Hawaii. They have great skills there!

Awesome pizza!

I enclosed the key....and now wait for our deposit to be returned.

I didn't really have a lack of words.


I just had to readjust my thinking and writing toward kind and thankful words because we really did have a delightful vacation. 


I guess I just have "a bit of a problem" with transitioning from vacation back to reality.


Do you struggle with transitioning back from vacation?

2011 in Review

Happy New Year's Eve!

I arrived at work on Wednesday, backed my daughter's car into a parking space, and looked up to see this magnificient, swirling, cloud-laden sky.

Just lovely.

As I sit in the quiet on this last day of 2011, I am tired. I'm sleeping well but think that too much sugar, not enough veggies, not enough movement (read: treadmill), and a year of fulltime employment have exhausted me. My thoughts have been swirling around much like the clouds pictured above.

New Thing

I am 50 years old and have braces.

I've had crooked lower teeth for years and noticed in the past couple years that I was experiencing pain in one of my upper front teeth. It was shifting into my other front tooth and soooooo I "treated myself" to a visit to the orthodontist who gave me the options of Invisalign or regular braces. The reason I chose regular braces is I will have them for a shorter period of time (estimate from 10-14 months) and the orthodontist said that I would have better success with braces.

At my last appointment, he asked what I wanted for Christmas....I told him straight teeth in the new year.

No pressure! :)

New Experience

I am a grandmother.

The old saying is true, "If I had known grandchildren were gonna be this much fun, I would have had them first!”

Our granddaughter (Youngest Sweetie) is 7 weeks old and I think of her as my "free entertainment." She is amazing and becoming more alert. She loves looking at the lights on the Christmas tree, the Nutcrackers, and a framed picture of herself. She is a blessing!

Life Happens

A deer ran into the side of my van the night before Thanksgiving. The damage was a big dent in the passenger side door and a crinkle down the slider door. (I don't know the damage to the deer but am hopeful that it was stunned and now lives in an open meadow not near a road.)

The day before dropping my van off to be repaired, I hit the garage with my passenger side view mirror. Wonderful Husband immediately went and found the duct tape and off we went to run an errand.

If people were avoiding driving near me because of the dent, I think they really gave me a lot of space after seeing the duct tape!

2011 was my year of van body work. And P.S. I dropped the van off on December 19 and it might be ready on January 6. Fingers crossed!

God Spoke/I Listened

The One Year Chronological Bible - reading the Bible and following Wendy Pope's blog/vlog. A blessing! New in 2012, Wendy is teaching through the Psalms and you can check out her plan here.

One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp. I spoke about my experience from reading the book to my Bible Study buddies and how I began counting toward 1,000 gifts this year.

The Fitting Room: Putting on the Character of Christ by Kelly Minter. Terri and I continued our weekly phone calls and after catching up on life, we'd talk about a chapter or two. I love this book based on Colossians 3:12, "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience."

Jesus Calling A 365-Day Journaling Devotional by Sarah Young.

Some Books I've Read

A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth

Good Hope Road by Lisa Wingate

Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace and Learning the Hard Way by Shauna Niequist

The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

Words of Wisdom

"Hope comes in more concentrated doses if you are getting it from someone IN the moment, versus in the memory." Quoted from Annie at Annie Blogs. You can read her entire post here.

After reading Annie's post about writing more about her life in this season of single-hood, I wonder if I should write more about my life in the moment of emptynester-hood and grandmother-hood. I struggle with how much my story intersects with my family and the fine line that I need to walk in protecting their privacy when including them in my writing.

And then my mind turns to silly technology issues like how to post two pictures side-by-side on this blog. My thoughts continue to swirl like the clouds. Ha!

Won a prize

An e-book called Notes to Aspiring Writers: Your Dream, God's Plan by Brooke L. McGlothlin.

Do you have a New Year's Resolution(s)?

Mine is the same one I've kept for the past four years. I am a card sender. I will continue to send cards of encouragement, sympathy, hope, etc., to people who I see in need of reminding that they are thought of and prayed for. (I love that my Bible Study buddy, Charlotte, calls it my Card Ministry.)

2010 was the year of hope for me.
I learned to place my hope in God.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13

2011 was the year of grace for me.
God covers me with grace, and I made great strides in sharing grace with others.
So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.
Ephesians 1:6 (NLT)

I'm not sure what word to focus on in 2012. I'll have to let you know.

I pray you have a Happy New Year and pray personally for less swirling thoughts in 2012!

Blessings!

I Live

in Bucks County. An interesting name for a county and there is a reason for the specificity of my location in this post.

Here's the official story:
"Founded in 1682 by William Penn, Bucks County has had a long and distinguished history. Penn named the county after Buckinghamshire, the Penn family home in Englandpost." BucksCounty.org

Here's my unofficial story:
Named because we have lots of deer. I mean even one of our local high schools' mascot is Bucks (meaning deer, not money;)

We've lived in Bucks County for 16 years. We have seen a lot of deer running through fields, standing along roadways, and unfortunately dead along roadways too.

-------------

It was a long week leading up to Thanksgiving. I'd been a bit weepy, sad, numb, and couldn't come up with an update to my list of counting toward one thousand gifts. I was in a spiritual / emotional slump. Gray days with rain from drizzle to downpours obviously hadn't improved my mental state.

After a long eight hours of work on Wednesday, my excitement started to build toward: Thanksgiving and four days off, only being responsible for a sidedish at my sister-in-law's house, and our son already being at our house. I wished everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and left work with a bit of a bounce in my step.

I had two errands to run and while driving 40 miles an hour on a busy road, with cars in front of me and behind me and oncoming traffic just as steady, something hit my passenger door and actually rocked my van!

I drove about 100 feet and pulled into a convenience store parking lot to survey the damage. The traffic pattern never changed, cars weren't stopping, no dodging or weaving, and I noticed the truck that was behind me just zoomed on by where I was parked. I felt confusion, fear, and after seeing the damage, sadness.

I drove back to where it had happend. Nothing in the road or near the road. Traffic moving as usual.

Darn deer.

I'm hopeful that it was just stunned and ran off with a slight hangover. I don't know.

Yet after a week of a blah and weary attitude, I realized that during the hard eucharisteo of a damaged vehicle: My van was still drive-able and I wasn't physically injured. Pretty amazing once I started thinking about it.

I am thankful that the damage is what it is and thank God for his protection.

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we  know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Romans 5:3-6 (NLT)


What do you think?

Beach Thoughts

Wonderful Husband and I are on vacation in North Carolina.

We went to Sunset Beach on a coldish (66 degrees) and windy day. I wore flip flops since I couldn't imagine getting sand in my sneakers and I wanted to feel the sand on the soles of my feet. I was thankful for my sweat jacket. Brrrr!

While walking into the wind, I started thinking about how the beach and ocean make me sentimental. Or do I mean nostalgic? Or retrospective? Or introspective? Or all of the above?

The ocean seemed wild, wave upon wave crashing toward the shore. Life feels like that to me sometimes. Wave upon wave crashing on me. I'm feeling overwhelmed.

I saw the signs saying 'No Lifeguard On Duty.' Ah, but God is always on duty isn't He? I'm thankful for that knowledge.

The wind was blowing the sand. I remember being on a beach in Wildwood, New Jersey where the sand felt like it was pelting my skin it was blowing so hard. It was a bit painful. Life can be that way sometimes too.

Wonderful Husband and I walked a while into the wind. The sand was cold on my feet, the sun was warming the rest of me. A sand piper would run toward the waves, then run away when the waves came too close. I do that sometimes. Run toward something then veer away when danger/change comes too close, too fast.

When we turned back with the wind at our backs, I watched my shadow and my hair was blowing wild. It felt wonderful with the wind at my back. It pushed me gently forward. I felt like I could do anything. Accomplish anything. Be anything.

We exited the beach and instead of washing our feet in the cold faucet, we sat in the gazebo and brushed the sand from our feet before stepping back into our flip flops. Beach time was over for the day. It was time to pull my head out of the clouds or was it the sand?

Praying for:
Renewal physically, mentally and spiritually while on vacation,
asking God to turn my thoughts toward grace and blessings,
today and when we return to reality/home.
Amen.

A Cold Front in September

Thursday morning began with high humidity and bright sunshine on my way to work.

Later the gray clouds came loaded with rain sweeping through with a cold front.

Winds whipped through the trees.

After a quick stop at the grocery store, I arrived home in time for more rain.

Our daughter called to tell us to look outside at a rainbow. (It was very light or I would have tried to capture it with my camera.)

I noticed a pink tinge while sitting in the study in the front of the house.

I stepped outside and saw this:

Wow!

We'll be in the 40s overnight, yet this beauty warms my soul...along with the heat that I turned on before bed.

Pondering

I checked the weather forecast to see if Saturday was supposed to be sunny.

And the answer is...Yes. Yes it is. (Keeping my fingers crossed!)

I want to lay out and add to my slight tan and later travel with Wonderful Husband to Solebury Orchards to choose/purchase some peaches. I see a peach cobbler in our future and hope to share it with some neighbors with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. Yum.

I am also realizing how many young(er) mom blogs I read. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of good ones out there but I was reading about one that is having a scripture study and they determined that morning wasn't great for everyone because of "nursing mamas and mamas of bed wetters."

I don't fit into that category.

Remember? I have adult children.

I figure there must be empty nester blogs that I haven't found yet and think I'll do a little research to try and find them.

Any suggestions?

A Work in Progress Through Conflict

On February 13, I was thinking about conflict.

Why are there problems and heartbreak in life?

What can I learn from experiencing conflict?

It occurred to me that through conflict, change will happen.
Only by identifying that there is a problem can a solution be found.
Only through experiencing hurt can healing happen.

Change occurs through conflict.

When life is speeding along, happy-go-lucky, there is no change. No need for change. Yet when a problem (read: speed bump in life happens) life slows down and my attention is focused on looking for a solution.

It's a realization that a change needs to happen.

I've joked for years that "Change...is good." There was a time in my life when I was surrounded by people who were being buried alive in conflict and some were in positions of authority to make changes.

Sometimes I adapted well to change...sometimes I struggled with change.

Many times I wanted to have a vote whether the change was a good solution to the conflict.

I realized that my frustration would boil over when others made changes that affected me, but I had no say in the matter.

Then my sarcasm gene would explode and I'd say, "Change...is good." (Read: Not!)

1 Corinthians 10:23-24 says, "Everything is permissable --but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissable but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others."

I accept change more easily when I can determine it is beneficial and constructive not just for the one person in authority...but beneficial and constructive for the group as a whole.

I know you can't make all of the people happy/satisfied all of the time.

But after a situation arises, I try not to react in a thoughtless, knee-jerk, half-cocked way.

I.Need.To.Stop.

Think the conflict through, surround myself with wise people (not "yes" people).

And pray.

Pray hard. Because if I'm listening with my heart, God will provide His wisdom.

Because when I work through conflict, I learn from it and grow stronger in my faith.

Then I can take action in a calm manner which will lead to a beneficial/constructive solution.

I am working on this in my professional and personal life.

I am a work in progress.

How do you see conflict at work in your life? Is it beneficial?

A Long Winter

The electricity went out at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday. Everything outside was encased in ice. Tree limbs down? Car accident? I don't know. The complete silence was awesome and eery.

From outside, I heard occasional popping. Ice was falling off tree limbs that were bent low. A neighbor's tree lost two large limbs that broke off and were lying across the ice encased snow.

I looked at the limbs on trees, bent heavy with their burden of ice and compared them to the heaviness of my spirit during this long winter of ice storms after snow storms.

It reminded me of 15 years ago moving into this house during a drought. So many weeks of no measurable rain and unbearable heat. Feeling my skin (my soul) shrivel from lack of moisture. Finally rain came. Refreshment. The grass survived and greened again. My skin and soul were refreshed and even my lungs felt moistened. I was thankful for the rain.

Today I'm thankful for days having more light. Darkness is shortened bit by bit. Ice crackling off limbs, trees losing their burden. Temperature above freezing. Snow melting. Puddles on roads. Liquid moisture again.

I am still striving to hand over my heavy ice encased burdens to God who is strong enough to carry them.

Thankful for Him and His continuous grace that saturates my soul with hope during shriveling drought and numbing winter seasons of life.

Thankful for a journal received as a gift from Sue and although there was no electric power; pen and paper and natural light worked well to record thoughts to be blogged later.

How has your winter been? This morning's temperature is 10 degrees....

A New Tradition

This past December was a strange month to experience in our home. It was the first time that neither of our children were around since our son lives in Virginia and our daughter lives in a nearby town.

I was starting my new job on December 1st, so my goal was to have the inside Christmas decorating finished before that day. Score!

I hung our traditional Advent Calendar that we've had for about 20 years. In the past, one kid would take odd numbered days, the other even. Of course the odd numbers were more popular since the baby Jesus was in the 25th pocket.

I bet you didn't think of that. *smile*

This year I was the only one keeping track of the days. I counted down the odd and even days until the "kids" came home for their Christmas break, then I turned the responsibility over to them.


I had ordered The Way of Light Wreath and it arrived a few days in to December. I moved the votive candle each day and really appreciated the workmanship as well as the quiet, and calm new tradition. It made me start thinking that someday my "kids" will begin their own family traditions and I will probably retire the older, more kid-friendly Advent Calendar and carry on with The Way of Light Wreath.

Do you have a favorite Christmas tradition?

Do have a tradition that might change in the future?