Apr. 14, 2008
This and That
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Yep, I'm definitely in Indiana. Still playing peek-a-boo with spring. We've had highs in the forties this week. The newspaper says the high will be 70 degrees on Wednesday though. I hope that it manages to stay in the 60s and 70s until fall this time. I don't mind cooler weather, but going back and forth makes it seem cooler than it actually is. I've been colder in these forty degree temperatures than I was all winter in much cooler temperatures. I'm in vacation mode. That's a good thing right? Well, I suppose it's a good thing if you are planning a vacation. Me? I'm just wishing I could get away with my family and enjoy just being together with them without all of the chores of life calling my name. I'm having to remind myself,constantly, that it's not a good time for a vacation. My husband has another business trip in a couple of weeks and the boys and I still have some school stuff that needs tending to, and we're paying off our 2nd vehicle next month so we want to have every extra penny available to put toward that early pay-off. But.... But, my heart is not buying it all. My heart wants uninterrupted time with my husband and children. It often competes with the chores and the "have-to's" in life....and it knows, all to well, how often those things tend to win out in terms of time and energy. So, in lieu of getting away from home and away from those tasks altogether....I need to be creative. I can do that. I think. My problem is that I'm sort of feeling exhausted right now and I just want the ease of getting away from it all rather than putting energy into being creative. I'm normally very creative when it comes to our family life. I guess it's time that I dust off the cobwebs and get some creativity back, for we need a little something extra right now. Don't you just hate it when you realize that, once again, you've found yourself in this trap of missing what's really important? Isn't it so easy to get caught up in the fact that the dishes haven't been done today and the laundry is behind and the lessons need to be completed and the bills need to be paid, etc.? Do you ever say to yourself that once you get XYZ done then you'll sit down with the kids? I'm guilty of saying that to myself on more than one occasion. Some days we just break out a game and gather the family and block out the white noise of life. I'm preaching to the choir here when I say that all of these things that we allow to distract us.....they're not worth it. I really believe in my heart that we are living the best years of our lives right now. At no other season in my life will I have what I have right here, right now, in this season. My children are all young and under my care. That's a hard thing, but that's a good thing. I don't have to worry about where they are or if they are safe, or if they are eating well or if they're happy in their careers, etc. They are here with me. I can know the details of their lives. I can protect them and I can train them and I can enjoy them. I don't have to call them and ask them how they are doing or if I can come to visit. They're here with me now. This is a blessed time in life......and how......sad.....how sad that I don't always appreciate this time for what it is. I want to blame the chores and the mundane "musts" of life....but truly, it's simply a matter of knowing the best and making a conscience choice to live out that knowledge. I won't let life happen to my family. I am not okay with looking back one day and saying that I didn't do all that I could to make this family unit a strong one. We are a strong family and that is not by chance. We work hard and we play hard and we love hard. And there will never be a dish that is clean enough to compete with that. |
Mar. 20, 2008
Out Came the Sun and Dried Up All the Rain
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Ya know, even the southern girl that I am (although finding myself quite at home here in the midwest), I love the season of winter. I love it's peacefulness. It's quietness. Some of the other seasons seem to shout, but winter...winter whispers. I love winter. You have to listen hard for winter's secrets, otherwise, you might just miss them. But, if you listen, she has such beautiful things to share. But, God sure had a good idea when it came to this whole 'four seasons' thing. The months between January and March are, typically, the homeschooling family's challenge. They are those months that tend to fall into the category of drudgery. But, finally, one day, the air warms....just enough to open the windows. We tend to have a few days of nice, warm air followed by another week or two of cold air....and repeat the cycle a few times.....before we truly get to that place where we can open up the house and sit on the porch and do our assignments outside and take walks, and watch flowers bloom and listen to birds sing. Spring is bashful around these parts. It doesn't jump out and and scream "I'm here! Did ya miss me?!" ....it kind of woos you with a little here and a little more there, until one day, you realize -- it's no longer winter. Something tells me that this year will whisk by even faster than the last. Seems to be the way of life. I find it hard to believe that it's Springtime already. My front porch has been patiently waiting for me though. It's good like that. The cool air takes this, displaced, Floridian indoors for months at a time, but that trusty porch of mine just confidently saves me a seat. It knows that the sun will implore me out again soon enough. It's almost like we've done this dance before. I'm reminded of that hymn that we can all recite blindly. "This is My Father's World". It was written by Maltbie Babcock in 1901. Those spring blossoms and that clean spring air; those chirping birds and the warmth of that welcoming sunshine....these things are not afterthoughts. These and so many other things, I believe, God hand-crafted as characteristics stemming from His ideal of Springtime. "This is my Father's world, and to my listening ears All nature sings and round me rings, the music of the spheres. This is my Father's world: I rest me in the thought Of rocks and trees; of skies and seas; His hand the wonders wrought. "This is my Father's world, the birds their carols raise, The morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker's praise. This is my Father's world; He shines in all that's fair; In the rustling grass, I hear Him pass; He speaks to me everywhere." | |
Mar. 6, 2008
Is It 2009 Yet?
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Okay, so....did you think that I didn't have more 'stuff' running through my mind after all of those days off being sick??? (See previous entry). I can't decide if I like this political 'season' or if I hate it. I guess it depends on which day you ask me. I have quite a bevy of thoughts accumulating on the subject though! (Not unlike most of America, I'm sure.) And those thoughts seem to change from day to day. So, I'm just gonna dive right into "Miss know-it-all" mode...... Here's a thought.....So, John McCain is 71 years old??? And??? I don't know about y'all but the last time I looked at the man -- He didn't look like Orville Redenbocker. Come on, folks, he's not about to keel over, I don't think. In this 'new-agey' world that we live in, we're so quick to point out that "Forty is the new thirty" and "Fifty is the new forty". So, why can't "Seventy be the new sixty"? Okay, so seriously, I do get where folks are coming from. I do. But, I'm not thinking that we'll revert back to Europe, by default, should our president pass away at any point in his term(s). Surely, because of this "handicap", he'll choose someone a touch younger as a running mate. And speaking of this so-called, handicap.....since when is age not something to respect? Given the choice between older aged and experienced, versus younger aged and inexperienced.....when it comes to my president.....I'll take age and experience thankyouverymuch. As far as Mrs. Clinton is concerned, I'm less concerned about the age/experience connection than I am when it comes to Mr. Obama. Forty-seven? I mean, he's been qualified age-wise for the presidency for some 12 years now, but -- I'm not buying that his experiences leading up to the age of forty-seven have qualified him enough in my book. Political experience....hmmmm ??? I'm not feeling secure enough in his abilities, from what I've seen so far. And this is probably neither here nor there, but -- I'm just not all that impressed with his wife....so far anyway. Really, that is just me being petty. I don't care for Bill Clinton either. Not waiting in line for Nancy Reagan's signature, but.... Okay, I'll jump off of that soap box and move on to another..... If it were me (and for the sake of us all, lets thank the good Lord that it's not), I would take this whole "I never voted for the war" stuff and put Mr. Obama's feet to the fire a bit with it. Okay....so hear me out.... So, yes, we could write a whole boatload about the whole "WMDs" thing by now. Indeed there are those who have. Believe me....I'm not denying that things could have, maybe should have been different, but... Way back when.... When we had reliable sources telling us that we needed to protect ourselves from this threat. This threat that could make 9/11/2001 look like child's play...... And history supported this reasoning (come on now, Hussein and his history in this department is well known by most).... Can someone explain to me, why, exactly, Mr. Obama, held to his continued "nay" votes regarding the war? Now, I'm not talking about what we know now (or think that we know anyway). For the sake of this argument lets leave hindsight out of the picture here. At that particular point in time, we had every reason to believe that it was in the best interests of America to err on the side of safety and to err on the side of protecting our own --- and yet, this particular senator, continually rejected the notion that we should, in fact, protect our own against this known threat. And, say what you want, but Hussein and the like - were, are and will more than likely always be a very real threat to all that America stands for. Oh Mr. Obama likes to tout that his "vote never changed" He "never wavered". To that, I say -- Shame on you. Yes, that's an easy argument for him to say now...but, at that particular time....all I can see is a man who is unwilling to put the safety of our country in a place of highest import. At any point in time, but right now, especially, the last thing that we need, as a country, for a Commander-in-Chief, is someone who is allergic to national protection. National protection cannot be solely of a reactive nature, we have to be able to show some amount of proactive defense. I just don't get where he's coming from. And that's really okay....I don't have to get his reasoning...hard as I try. But, luckily for me, I happen to have a vote in the upcoming election. Can you tell that I have some pretty passionate views on the subject? Now, I realize that I am taking a small risk here.....but.....I like John McCain for president. I always have. He's been my favorite since day one. I really don't understand the reasoning behind disliking McCain for president because he knows how to compromise. Seriously folks....is this about ME or YOU or is it about our country as a whole? I don't decide who I vote for based on who makes me happy 100% of the time. The world doesn't revolve around me,me,me. Since when is having the ability to compromise and to build bridges a detriment? Please can someone explain this to me? So, every last detail of his senatorial record isn't in perfect alignment with what I might have preferred. Well, okay. And?? This is a bad thing? I'm supposed to be looking for a president who made enemies and prohibited progress, but by golly he stuck to his guns and he didn't compromise one iota....didn't accomplish diddly, but hey, he never wavered. Ummm???? Folks, their jobs aren't to go to Washington and to stick to their guns. Their jobs are to go to Washington and, to the best of their capabilities, be productive and work toward common ground in order to come together for the good of the country. Please tell me how encouraging divisiveness is for the good of our country? I want a president who knows how to compromise. Now, of course, I have my limits. I want my senators, presidents, etc. to stand firm on the non-negotiabes. Those particular non-negotiables are different for different folks, and I do realize that. I am very passionate about those particular non-negotiable issues that I hold near and dear. But, speaking generally....we NEED a president who is able to have enough diplomacy to find common ground and to find resolutions that can work toward good for all, not for one specific minority. Now, y'all know me....I'm as conservative as them come (as far as I'm concerned anyway), but I don't want a president who, come hell or high water, is only going to represent the desires of the conservative at heart. We are more than that. We want more than that. At least I do. I want a president who can work together with all in order to make this country all that it should be for the majority of folks in all walks of life and who hold strong to a variety of beliefs. And I believe that there is plenty that can be done toward that end that hasn't been done in years. And, for the most part, none of it has to offend anyone's sense of morality. There is plenty out there that needs to be done that has nothing to do with those moral issues on which most of us are proudly unwavering. Can't we at least begin there? Can't that be a healthy start? And, in my opinion, John McCain stands for a lot that I am unwavering on as well, so ---- again, I just don't get why everyone is so disconcerted with his candidacy. Now, I realize that my passions are quite vulnerable here, but -- show me one person who doesn't have some degree of passion when it comes to this election. Any election really. I do hope that I don't have any bones turning over in graves when I say this.....but, If I had only to choose between Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama.....if those were the only two who I had to chose from - period. Of any party line. Just those two. I'd have to vote for Hillary. Never dreamed I'd ever have reason to say that. Never say never huh? And it has nothing...nothing....to do with race or gender. It has everything to do with having a known enigma versus an unknown enigma. So far, as of today, I just have a very uneasy feeling about Mr. Obama as president. And, don't get me wrong. I'm sure he's a nice, charming gentleman. I just don't have a good reason to feel secure enough to purposefully chose him for my president at this particular time in history. I must say that I'm thankful that I have another choice, and it is a choice that I wholeheartedly believe in. I may be in a conservative minority but I'm a McCain fan....I've had no reason, to date, to feel otherwise, personally. Now, I can't let the whole Hillary comment above end on that note....that would be so....unlike me. :) Here's one of my biggest qualms with Mrs. Clinton. The other day I saw a television clip where she made the comment to someone: "It's never too late to convert a Republican". Huh? Ugh! Being very transparent here....I really don't care if our president is Republican, Democrat, Independent, or a melting pot of them all. Seriously, what is this...high school? Why should I care? Yeah, yeah, I know that, typically, republicans are a good bit more conservative. And, I am a registered republican. I'm not trying to be a hypocrite here. But, I don't need a republican to be the president of the United States. I need someone who is committed to doing what is in the best interest of my country. Period. Yes, I typically, vote republican, and yes, I typically believe that what is in the best interest of my country, often falls into a more conservative class. But, honest to goodness, folks....I don't dislike Hillary Clinton for president because she is a democrat. I just found this comment of hers to be a bit shallow. And it confirms my belief that she would continue to divide us as a country rather than bring us together. We, as a country, are more than our political party preferences. And we need someone who wants more for us than that. |
Mar. 6, 2008
Babies Don't Keep
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Well, as much as I'd like to claim super-woman status....I'm not thinking that Super-woman is phased by the flu. It's a bit humbling for me to be sick for any length of time though, because I am a bit of a health fanatic. But, hey, whatever. I'm on the mend and -- I gotta be grateful for that! One thing about being down-and-out for several days, though, is that you really are forced to just stop everything. Of course, that's not an easy thing for adults who have families to raise and have a laundry-list of things to do running through our minds all day, every day. The result of all of that is that I've had more time than usual to think about all sorts of things. Bless my poor family's heart! I have more opinions running through my mind on every imaginable subject..... Can I just say that there is so much junk on television these days!? I've watched more television in the last few days than I have in a long time. Occasionally, I'd come upon some interesting things though. One show, that I watched, with some interest, but slightly more boredom was this, apparently, new show called "The Secret Life of a Soccer Mom". My oldest son will be 13 in a few months, so I've obviously been a full-time mom for quite a few years. The show itself was just something to wile away the time, but it got me to thinking.... Now, seriously, y'all know I'd grow a pinocchio nose if I tried to say that I'd be doing anything other than writing. I'm too much of an open book for anyone to have been caught off-guard there. But, this show seems to pose the question -- 'Was it worth the trade off?' -- For me, well, I never had a promising career in writing prior to having children...heck, I was only eight days shy of 24 years old when my first child was born. But, this got me to thinking (over-thinking, as usual), doesn't everyone sort of incorporate their passions into their lives in some way? Can I not have more than one thing that drives me to get up every morning? For me, I have no misgivings about my choice to be home with my children. It's the hardest job on earth, no doubt, but -- I'm not one to let that stand in my way. "Hard" = "challenge" to me, and challenge is a good thing for me. I'm too easily bored without challenge. I am of that, annoying, variety who when told that I can't do something....I say, -- "Watch me". I don't always succeed to my own satisfaction with everything that I try to do, but hey, that just goes back to not being Super woman again..... Ohhh, there are those days when I'd like to drive my children up to the nearest school house and drop them off at the door.....but, well, honestly, who doesn't have days like that? I feel lucky....more appropriately, blessed, to be able to do what I do. I feel, sometimes, like I have the best of both worlds. I can write and bore my friends and family to tears right here in blog-land and, yet, still be able to do what I feel called to do. Which for me, for such a time in my life as this, that calling is being home with my sweet, loud, beautiful, active, LOUD (ask me about my morning!) children. So, this question of ---Is it worth the trade-off? --- I dunno. Good grief....I'm not gonna go looking a gift horse in the mouth. I will tell ya that, had I missed those giggles, and those first steps and all of the many milestones of my children's lives....I'd look back with regret. Will I regret not finding my niche in the world of media -- maybe? On the bad days, probably. But, friends, in my estimation, the only significant similarity between apples and oranges -- is that they are both fruits. Beyond that....why compare two, very obviously, different things? There can be, and are, many facets that are the making of - me. I can enjoy writing 'till the cows come home.....but, that's not my biggest passion. I've got a family to raise and to love and to enjoy. And, so there ya go, --- my confession of the secret life of a homeschooling mother. It's just not all about me. Hallelujah. There are those who aren't called to the whole 24/7 motherhood gig....and I don't begrudge them that at all! Who am I that I should tell others what is in their own hearts? Nope, I'm not going there. The fact of the matter is that being a mom, no matter what else we do, is not easy for any of us. Why is it that folks can get so caught up in the nonsense of making comparisons and making judgments that we miss so much along the way? I want my mom-friends to follow their own passions. I want them to be whoever it is that God made them to be. And, I'm not arrogant enough to assume that God made them all to be like me! God's got a way to giving us all of the guidance that we need, and all of the support that we need to do what He desires for each of us to do. I've got enough difficult things to wade through in life without thinking that I need to set the bar for all of my mommy-friends. Boy, I sure wouldn't make a good god. I think that I'll leave that all to Him and I'll just be a friend to my friends. In this diverse world where some of us are at home, and some of us are also working outside of the home, -- I think that the biggest thing that we can all agree on is that --- Babies don't keep. Simple as that.....no secret to navigate. We all just want to enjoy our babies and treasure these moments in time that we'll never be able to revisit. And we all just want to do what the Lord has put in our hearts to do. So, I don't think that I'll be watching this particular program again. It's not a bad program. Just, to me, a bit irrelevant. As moms....we do what we do out of the outpouring of our hearts, and that, goes back to our grandmothers and their grandmothers -- it's a primitive thing -- it's not about our heads...it's about our hearts. |
Feb. 11, 2008
Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
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A lot of folks that I know will tell me that they don't always find the Old Testament relevant, or don't get a lot out of reading it, etc. On some level I totally get this frame of thought. And, once upon a time, I have felt the same way. But, for me, the Old Testament is beautiful. There is so much about the character of God and the love of God for His people in the Old Testament. For, at least, the last several years, I have found myself more drawn to the Old Testament books and have a deep appreciation for these records of a time that have been preserved for someone (me) (and you) in the year 2008 to learn about our God and the history of His people. Recently, I was reading and thinking about the miracles that were a regular part of life for the Hebrews. I was thinking about how awesome it must have been to have God speak, audibly, to you. This happened often in the Old Testament. How, humbling it must have been to see miracle after miracle, and, for some, to even have played a part in those miracles. Of course, I believe that miracles are just as much a part of God in 2008 as they were in Old Testament times. But, what is it about us today that we don' t expect His miracles? Or don't recognize them? Or, too often, define them as 'coincidence'? It's kinda sad to me. He hasn't changed. I was reading recently in Exodus about how the Lord told Moses to go to the Pharaoh and tell him that God said to allow His people to leave Egypt. Throughout this reading, you often, come across verses, such as this one in chapter seven verse three, ..."but, I will harden the Pharaoh's heart, and though I multiply my miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you." Of course, we all have read this over the years, and thought about this "hardening of the Pharaoh's heart" that the Lord caused. It wasn't coincidence that God was able to send plague after plague into Egypt while attempting to free his people from the bondage of slavery in Egypt. It's easy to wonder why God would allow this to go on and on.... I love in chapter nine where, God is telling Moses what to say to the Pharaoh and, there is the normal, 'Let my people go...', but then God goes on to say, in verses 15 and 16, "For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth. But, I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." We might not always understand God's ways and reasonings, but, He always has something good at heart. Earlier in chapter three, verse seven, He says to Moses, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of the slave drivers and I am concerned about their suffering." Do you think that the Hebrews were more than ready for God to set them free already? Enough of the plagues....lets just put the Pharaoh in his place and move on with this thing already? I'm sure. But, as always, like it was then and as it is now, it's not about us. It's all about Him and we know that in trusting Him, we'll be well cared for. I think that there are a lot of us who can relate to the Israelites, in that, we have or have had some plight that is, seemingly, unending. I think that this passage from the pages of history can bring comfort to us in such times. He heard His people crying, He was concerned about them. He had every intention of bringing them into the land that He'd promised their forefathers. But, all of that was second to His desire to have His name "proclaimed in all the earth". I don't understand why a neighbor would sue another? It makes no good sense to me. But, I have this sneaking suspicion that it has more to do with Him, than it will ever have to do with me. I pray that I can be the example that He desires for me to be, so that, even in this 'bondage', He is able to be proclaimed and recognized to all the world around me. His influence in our lives is just as real as it was in the Old Testament times. Maybe we are more wrapped up in ourselves and in our 'things' that we have a harder time finding God in things.....but, again, it isn't He who has changed. Take heart, not only is He the God of the New Testament who was born to die for us, but He is also the God of the Old Testament who has loved us from the beginning of time. |