Helping Women Move From Fear into Faith
I stepped outside into a beautiful April morning and did a little trimming in our mini-yard. Compared to the acre we lived on earlier, this one is on the tiny side. I happened along into a small spot in between our house and Debbie’s. There, hidden away, is the most beautiful profuse light blush colored rose bush. I was reminded again that I’m reaping things I didn’t sow.
A funny thing happened recently. I looked in the mirror two days after my eye surgery and saw an unfamiliar face looking back at me. I studied my skin with all its splotchiness and thought, “The sedation meds must’ve had some weird effect!” I couldn’t imagine why my skin had taken on a different color and older look.
“Our house was not unsentient matter — it had a heart and a soul, and eyes to see with…. We never came home from an absence that its face did not light up and speak out its eloquent welcome — and we could not enter it unmoved.” Mark Twain
One Saturday morning years ago, I was cooking breakfast for a table full of ravenous teenage boys. A thought came to my mind, “You don’t even know who you’re serving.” It reminded me that all acts of love are done without our awareness of the ultimate outcome. Who knew the character and accomplishments that would be present in the lives of those boys? God did.
We just celebrated Eliza Jo’s first birthday with a “pool party” in our back yard. All the cool kids were there.
The grandparent hype is true. Full heart; big feelings.
“If today were your last, would you do what you’re doing? Or would you love more, give more, forgive more? Forgive and give as if it were your last opportunity. Love like there’s no tomorrow, and if tomorrow comes, love again.”
Max Lucado
My friend and I imagined that theoretically we could have a tidy clean house with everything in order. But what benefit would there be to an empty house? We wanted to learn to embrace or at least accept the poopy diapers,never ending laundry, the continual spills. One day we’d miss those little rug rats.
I’m glad I was there. I was privileged to be a stay at home mom for many years. I thank my husband for that. Today he thanks me for investing myself so fully in our four precious children.
I really do believe in setting goals. With hands wide open. What I mean is this: “We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.” (Proverbs 16:9)
“Aging is an extraordinary process where you become the person you always should have been.” -David Bowie A weird idea came to…
What if you suddenly walked out of your home, never to return? What would your loved ones find? I’m regularly speaking to baby boomer clients about all their stuff, and what in the world to do with it? We were endowed with rare treasures from our parents and grandparents. Chosen to be caretakers of priceless antiques. “Keep these pieces in our family,” they said. I’m constantly saying to my clients and to myself, “Stuff is only (monetarily) worth what someone is willing to pay for it.”
I came close to giving up; I dreamed of doing my writing on a yellow ledger pad and talking on the phone instead of emailing. Could I survive without a computer?