We're alive! We made it! The holidays didn't kill us!
Actually, this year the holidays, for me, was one of the least stressful, chaotic in years. I tried to embrace every second and remember to enjoy the journey. I didn't always hit the bull's eye -- but at least I was aiming for something and once in awhile I even hit the target!
I have some video of my little granddaughter who took her first steps on Christmas Eve at the candlelight service at church! Isn't that awesome? What a precious gift to this grandma to get to see her first steps! You can see some grandma footage where she started walking with a toy I bought her here: Grandma's Brag Blog
Now it's time to try and get things packed up and stowed away for another year. (My least favorite part of anything is cleaning up the mess!) But the adrenaline I had going for me to prepare for the holidays has bottomed out and I'm pooped. Am I the only one?
I do have some "mantras" for the new year:
1. "An easy task becomes difficult when you do it with reluctance." -- Publius Terentius Afer (Terence)
2 "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." -- Old Chinese Proverb
The two above sayings are at the top of my prayer list for myself. The older I get, the more I find myself dreading the same old same old. I don't know if I'm going through a kind of depression or what, but I need to rekindle joy in simple day to day chores and determine not to put them off. I need to learn to take things one bite at a time, one step at a time. I am not good at that. I tend to focus too much on the big picture and not enough on the task at hand. That makes me feel overwhelmed and I actually get afraid to even try. It's so ridiculous!
3. "Don't be afraid to fail. Be afraid not to try."
4. "Prove you exist."
5. "Remember, Jesus loves the people you hate." (I don't hate anyone, but there are some people who do rub me the wrong way that I need to remember this about!)
Those are just a few of the things I want to remember this year. If I can remember those things, then any goals I set can be accomplished with the grace of God.
And how I do depend on His grace to get me through each day! Each moment. Each teeny, tiny, hesitant step. If it weren't for His grace -- I would just curl up and give up. Life is too hard to do alone. I don't know why anyone would want to!
You're not the only one, Karla. But it's temporary. You'll get your second wind for life as soon as the holiday stuff is put away and your house is clean. At least I'm counting on that happening with me. I planned to clean house today but I got bogged down with a long overdue office clean out so the rest of the house is as bad as ever. It's somehow comforting to hear you express your frustration because I can identify.
Posted by Anonymous
