Five minute Friday-On forgetting

Every Friday The Gypsy Mama gives a prompt and you are supposed to write about it in 5 minutes.


She says: I remember how powerful the written word is. To encourage, to laugh, to cheer, to pray, to listen, and love. Sometimes all it takes is five minutes. Five minutes to just write, and not worry if it’s just right or not.
Kind of like how friendship should be.
Got five minutes? Join us, and share what you have to say as well, whether in the comments or in your own blog.

Let's begin!

On forgetting...

The month of May has turned into the month of May-be: May-be the rain will stop, May-be we will have a sunny day again, May-be the difficulties and problems in my life will all magically iron themselves out.

Whatever my circumstances, wherever I am, however, I must not forget that I must, as 2 Corinthians 5:7 tells me, to “live by faith, not by sight”.

God has equipped me in wonderful ways for a marvelous purpose in this life, and much like a saw or a chisel, sometimes I need to be sharpened to be at my best. He will never give me more than I can bear and is always there for me.

It is I who sometimes wanders off the path, and wonders why He has forsaken me, or why He is challenging me so.

Then I remember, that I am the one who left, that I am imperfect, and that I am a work in progress, that I am only human, after all, and sometimes that can be both a painful and wonderfully fruitful process.

I just have to remember to keep the faith.

Morning in the Garden

 Just an additional note here: The dark, wet weather of the last couple of weeks has abated for now, so I joyfully took the opportunity to sit on my front steps this morning to pray. I shot the image above of the view from my porch to share with you. I was reminded that without the rain-and the loving, tending hand of my mom-this garden would not be the absolutely gorgeous space that it is.

Did she just say what I think I heard?

There is always a lot of laughter in our house, as everyone shares a delightful, often offbeat, sense of humor.

I can say that I have my own special kind of contribution, although often unintentional, always spontaneous, that my family has nicknamed “Kimisms”.

You see, once in a while my command of the English language becomes, well, less than commanding, and the unusual mix of words and phrases brings on plenty of laughter.

Allow me to share my latest example with you…

My parents, my husband, my older brother and I were enjoying dinner together this past weekend when the conversation turned to the widely publicized dire prediction that the world would end that very evening.

I asked if anyone had seen our niece’s Facebook post in which Chelsea had commented-tongue firmly in cheek-that she and a friend were going to be getting their hibachi fix before the world ended.

Now, that may seem like a simple statement to repeat, but here is where the conversation quickly went south. I couldn’t pull the word “hibachi” out of my mental file drawer. For some reason, the only word that came up was brazier, which is pretty much the same thing as a hibachi.

What I thought I said was that Chelsea was going to be getting out her brazier for a last barbeque. However, that cooking implement is pronounced “brey zher”, with the emphasis on the first syllable. What actually came out of my mouth was that Chelsea was going to be getting out her “bruh zeer” (emphasis on the last syllable) for a final barbeque. Yes, I said that my niece was going to get out a brassiere to cook her last meal.

Well, you can imagine what ensued: looks of puzzlement, corners of mouths trying to stave off the beginnings of giggles, eyes looking to one another to confirm if they had heard what they think they heard, and then the dam broke. Everyone at the table dissolved into side-splitting, tear-inducing laughter they were so greatly amused. I, too, joined in, once they pointed out to me what I had actually said.

You have to admit, the mental image of grilling over a charcoal filled “bruh zeer” is pretty darn funny.

So, dear readers, I invite you to laugh with-and at-me this morning, and remember to take yourselves lightly today.

It's Monday-Woohoo!

Ocean Sunrise © K. Hall

I will shout with joy this morning-Woohoo, it’s Monday!

So many possibilities, a fresh new week in which to discover new strengths, acquire deeper wisdom, accomplish written goals, laugh more often and love more deeply.

That’s what Monday and every other day of the week is for.

Every sunrise is a fresh start, an opportunity to begin again, to right wrongs, ask forgiveness and extend grace with faith, moment by moment, to each person you encounter today, especially yourself.

Remember, it’s not about what gets in your way or who gets in your face or under your skin, it’s about how you choose to respond each time that will bring you to a more joyful, satisfying place, where the sky is bluer, air is clearer, and yes, the ocean is warmer.

Come on in, the water’s fine!

Tell me how you will view your day through a different perspective today.

Who knew...about Dayspring?

Who Knew Wordle © K. Hall

Today I am introducing a new feature that will appear randomly as I discover new and interesting resources, ideas and things that I think may be useful to you, dear readers.

So, welcome to the premier post of "Who knew?"!

Who knew that Hallmark has a Christian division called Dayspring whose mission is to “connect people with the heart of God through messages of hope and encouragement”?

They have lots of beautiful cards and gifts for the loved ones in your lives, or even for yourself. You can shop at their store, not just for the cards, but also for journals, books, art, decor, and graduation and Father's Day gifts, and much, much more, including a sales and clearance area.

Use the link below to click on over, and at least check them out, even if you are not in the market for anything right now. At the very least, take a few moments to send a free e-card-Yes, I said FREE-to someone that needs to hear an encouraging word today.

Who knew? Now you do.

Five minute Friday-When seasons change...

 Every Friday The Gypsy Mama gives a prompt and you are supposed to write about it in 5 minutes.  Only 5 minutes!  Also, no edits!  Just write.  So here goes . . .

When seasons change...

When seasons change, we are given a glorious opportunity to experience something new, to revel in everything that is a part of that new time.

Often, however, we choose to grumble, to be angry, to be hurt that this change has been thrust upon us without our consent.

We turn 30, or 40, or 50, and fret that we no longer have the shape we had when we were younger.

Our faces show lines, and-gasp!-wrinkles, and we are horrified at how we look, and wonder if our husbands will still love us.

Rather than being joyful at the possibilities available to us with each age, we look back with regret at the woman we thought was the best we could be.

Delight in each season, and focus on what is most important.

Enjoy your children while they are young, and embrace their energy and curiosity, even if you are still carrying that extra “baby weight”.

Love your teens, especially if you don’t like them all the time, even if you have dark circles under your eyes from lack of sleep and worry.

Like yourself for who you are, for that wise woman you have become, for all that you have accomplished, for all the challenges you have faced, for all the growing you have done, for the aging that has created the fine vintage that you are.

Disclaimer-I took about 15 minutes to write today. Just was really slow coming to me this morning!

Extending grace

Pussy willow © K. Hall

We are so blessed to have some pretty exciting things going on with our family at this time, and recently I was up way, way past my bedtime chatting with one of my daughters about this happenings. When I finally went to bed, I laid awake, just so supercharged about the positive turns and tremendous possibilities that have presented themselves in all of our lives.

Morning came at its regular time, however, and I found myself facing the day with minimal rest. I realized I had a choice about how to conduct myself, and so when I prayed, I asked to be absolutely overflowing with grace. As I noted in an earlier post, I do this daily, but today it was especially important, as I felt my well of tolerance was as shallow as my sleep had been.

That prayer was answered for me so incredibly abundantly, and grace was extended to me, as it always is, in spite of all of my faults and shortcomings. I sailed through my day, with true joy, effortlessly sharing and extending that grace to everyone who crossed my path.

You see, what I realized is that it is when we are feeling at our lowest and are more inclined to be hurtful in our behavior is the very time that we need to request and extend grace for ourselves and to others.

How will you choose to spend your day today, and where will you share and extend your grace?

Telling Miss Jealousy goodbye

Rainy Day © K. Hall

Jealousy. Such an ugly, unnecessary, counterproductive emotion that pushes us to behave in such foolish and hurtful ways.

I always imagine that She (yes, I see jealousy as a “she”) is standing behind me, poking me in the back, egging me on to do and say stupid things, while whispering in my ear, “Oh, yeah? You going to let her get away with that? She thinks she’s better than you. Look at how she’s turning the bosses head, taking your credit, stealing your friends.” Sometimes, it’s more like kicking me when I’m down, when Jealousy says, “Oh, of course he got the job/has the friends/can accomplish that task in a far better way than you could ever hope for. After all, you are lacking. There is just so much that you don’t have going for you. Let's count all the ways in which you just don't measure up.

Ouch.

Yes, Miss Jealousy is a nasty piece of work indeed, and I have fought against her often, and lost more times than I care to admit, as I allow her to rain all over my parade. Recently, though, I had an insight that has allowed me to not even feel or hear many of her taunts, and I want to share it with you in the hopes that you can benefit as I did.

First, every day I pray, among many other things to be full of grace for myself and others, and I also pray for the words from my tongue to be kind and thoughtful. I highly recommend prayer to everyone, even if and especially if you think God certainly wouldn't listen to little old you.

I have been doing a lot of reading lately-positive, uplifting books-and one of my most recent is Max Lucado's "Cure for the Common Life", in which he talks about living in our sweet spot, living the lives for which God designed us. I wrote a post in response to my reading, entitled, “Where’s my ticket, Lord, and whose luggage is this?”, if you'd like to learn about finding your sweet spot in life.

As I reflected later on this same book, I realized that I believe that we covet what others have or are jealous because we are not seeing the gifts God has given us. Instead, we are paying too much attention to the gifts he gave to others.

It is truly that simple. 

Remember Christmas Day when we were young children, and how much attention we paid to what all our siblings got, and we went into private or public accounting of how much more everybody else got, and how they all got much more of what they wanted? Oh, yeah. those embarrassing memories can provide such great teachable moments for us.

To give you an actual current example, I have to admit that I had always been envious of certain traits that my husband possesses, and thought that if I could be more like him, then I would be....happier, be more productive at work, etc.

After I read Lucado's book, though, it hit me like a freight train. God didn't gift me with those traits because they weren't necessary for what he designed me to do.

He packed my bags. For me.

Just. For. Me.

It took my breath and my jealousy away.

Today, I am just grateful for, not envious of, my dear hubbie’s ability to streamline a process like nobody’s business, and to be incredibly creatively efficient and organized at anything he tackles. His skills complement mine, and are part of what I love about him.

I have not completely shut Miss Jealousy out of my life, and I still have to work at ignoring her any time that I realize I am going green-eyed over something or someone. However, that awareness of my own special gifts, of the skills that I share that I just can't not do, keep me more grounded these days.

Baby steps, baby steps, every day, and I have to remember to extend the same grace and forgiveness to myself that I extend to others.

What have you been jealous of that you can finally let go of today?