A Free Vacation For You!

" Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.]"   ... Matthew 11:28


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Did you really look at that photo? I wasn't going to tell you, but ... It was taken in Florida and that's where I currently am. 

Yes! I'm sitting right there in the yard, staring at the gorgeous trees, green grass and back meadow, recuperating from this long, frozen winter. Oh, the gentle breeze here, the silence, the healing as I brush the grass with my fingers and lean back and let the sun warm my face.

Okay, okay. My body is actually still here in this ice tray called Buffalo. :)

But my heart! My heart can be anywhere it wants and today it wants to be inside this photo of Kim's former yard which she shared at Facebook.

After all, even the Bible says,


"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."      ... Luke 12:34  ...


... and I treasure beautiful places like the one, above. Dreamy places where Life feels Good and you just know fairies hide behind trees and God sits beside you, watching your face as you drink it all in, smiling at your joy.

Today you can go anywhere you wish! For free. For relaxation, rest and peace.

Today. Tomorrow. Next week. Your vacation will begin the moment you set down your suitcases of burdens, leave them with God and keep on walking. 

Jesus never meant for us to carry our own burdens--we must leave them behind, otherwise we'll be too heavy to fly.  We'll bog down before we get to where we're longing to go.









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"Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”   ... Matthew 11:29,30

"Oh, give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endures forever.a'   ... Psalm 136:1


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Do be sure to click and enlarge Kim's heavenly photo!


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Long winters don't have to be burdens if you've taught your heart to take you on journeys. 

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Oh wow. If you enjoyed the first Jeff Gordon "test drive ad" you'll especially love this. 

(Tom and I find this kind of thing hilarious. Your results may be different. heh.)

Messy? Okay. But Do We Camp There?

"Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other presidents and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom."   ... Daniel 6:3

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So as I'm visiting lots of Christian blogs the past 6 months, I keep seeing the word, messy. Messy, messy, messy.

Messy rooms.
Messy hearts.
Messy lives.
Messy relationships.

I'm being told that messy is okay and that it's real life and God understands.

And yes--to a point--I agree. I mean, hey, if God doesn't understand our messes, who does?

But. (You saw that coming, right?) Does He want us to park, forever, at The Messy Campground? Should we still be settled there in our messy tents after He's worked with us for years?

I mean, families have children and children make messes. Granted. But why should moms be the ones at night cleaning-up the Play-Dough, the Lego's, the little pink socks? What has happened to teaching, "You were able to pull these toys out this morning so you're also able to put them away tonight?" 

Teaching personal responsibility habits. It's a parent's job.

And seeking to make Jesus-led decisions (financial and relational and otherwise) so we stop reaping messes from the bad ones--that's every Christian's job. And forgiving others so that we'll stop unnecessary depression, stress and sickness messes. And asking for help with our ill-chosen words so we cease living in the messy pits they dig for us.

And looking unto Jesus, our author and finisher, allowing Him to finish this work He began. That, too--our responsibility. Day by day we should resemble Him a little bit more ... not the mess we were when He found us.

All I'm saying?

Messy. It's a great place to start.
But as for me? I'm sorry, but I can't pat myself (or my readers) on the head and say, "Just keep doin' what you're doin'. God gets you. Messy is fine." (But oh, the temptation to pull in more readers that way!)

Yet, no. I'll keep asking God for Grace who gives the enjoyment of creating a clean, healthy, sweet home for my husband, our cats and myself. And for the desire to honor God in all I do and am.

I long for a better place than The Messy Campground and I'd rather have Grace than the personal messes that would trap me there forever.

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"What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?"   ... Romans 6:1,2

" ... as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."   ... Romans 6:4

“Excellence - Take what you have and do the BEST with it.”     ― Joyce Meyer

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Here's a post from years ago where I spoke more about balance between housecleaning and playing with children.


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Oh wow. Did you read this article about the couple who found buried cans of treasure on their own property? Amazing. And I can totally understand why they'd wish to remain anonymous ... can't you just imagine all the people with flashlights, shovels and metal detectors sneaking around their yard at night? :)


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Interested in brushing-up on some writing basics? I enjoyed reading this free, short Kindle book yesterday.

My Twitter Tales

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."   ... Ephesians 6:12

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So I never told you this, but, awhile ago, I joined Twitter. 

Yet wait! Many are my disclaimers.

1.) I only do Twitter on my computer since I'm radically cell phone challenged and know only enough to, after mild aggravation, make a phone call.

2.) I never send messages (tweet?) because a.) It's complicated for me and I barely understand what's going on there, b.) I can't think of clever things to say in so few characters (and oh, the pressure to sound clever there), c.) For whatever reason, I feel Twitter-shy (probably because of a. and b.) and prefer to be just a Twitter stalker watcher.

I know, why even join? So to follow a few Christian actors. That's it, (well, not counting a couple Christian teachers). I learn much from their reactions to both personal affronts and political ones affecting our freedoms.

One actor who I follow, earlier (before I joined), mentioned simply that he is a Christian and lost hundreds of followers that day. Yet his friend, another Christian actor, backed him up, supported him openly on Twitter and gained his friend more followers than he'd lost.

Viewing courage in action, even on Twitter? I thrive on that. It's nearly like watching Braveheart again, especially when actors--super easy targets in today's We Own You world--confess their faith aloud knowing (but not the full extent) that the backlash will affect them professionally and personally in ways we 'common folks' will never understand.

Anyway.

So while these actors on Twitter stand-up for God's principles, I watch and feel a new sort of bravery seep into my bones. And that's good.

Yet, there's one thing that bugs me. It's when these folks forget just who is behind all the evil in this world and they begin naming names, instead. And poking sarcastic fun at those people whose god is not, well, God. 

People who need Him.

People who cluelessly, blindly, have believed a lie.

People who will land in hell unless they find Jesus.

Oh, in this Life there is black and white, yes! But there are also fine lines we mistake in crossing and balance and compassion and remembering that sin began in a long ago garden, not in Today's deceived politicians or actors or others.

There is standing tall for Truth! And there is also living that truth, ourselves, humbly, and with the compassion Jesus died to give us, so we could spread that powerful love everywhere. Yes, even on Twitter.

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“Through You we will push down our enemies; through Your name we will trample those who rise up against us. For I will not trust in my bow, nor shall my sword save me. But You have saved us from our enemies, and have put to shame those who hated us. In God we boast all day long, and praise Your name forever.” Psalm 44:5

“This is the word of the Lord ...  ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of Hosts. Zechariah 4:6


Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 
—Ephesians 6:14–15 

Oh, The Consequences!

"For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life."   ...  Galations 6:8

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Remember the old show Bob Barker hosted, the one called Truth or Consequences?

I'd watch at 6-years-old, laying in front of the tv, my elbows upon a pillow and enjoy the shenanigans, but when they'd show reunions between wives and their servicemen husbands or family members separated by time and distance? I'd lower my face to my pillow to hide my tears from all the non-criers in the room.Those reunions! They'd catch in my throat, hurt and bring tears, but oh. They were my favorite part.

Yes, me in the 1st grade. Goofy, I know.

Well, now there's a show on TNT all about reunions and early each Saturday morning from The Red Couch I watch with my mandatory kleenex and feel like that 6-year-old all over again. This one's called APB and stars Troy Dunn whose passion/calling is to reunite families and friends.

I. Love. This. Show.

For the reunion portions? Well, yes, of course, but also because we're shown every week the (scary!) power and consequences of our choices. How they can mightily be rippling decades later, still hurting or helping long after we made them.

Like the choices to engage in premarital sex or affairs while married ... and babies which resulted and were given away sometimes to good families, other times to bad ... 

... and then children wondering why they were cast away, feeling incomplete, inadequate, tempted to childishly imagine "Life As It Could Have Been," rather than accepting "Life As It Is" and determining to make Life better today.

Or children snatched away because parents chose to dabble in drugs or liquor, which swept them down river, causing them to waste all money and to neglect their kids inside horrible homes and circumstances. Young siblings torn apart emotionally and then physically into separate homes, missing out on what God planned--childhoods spent together amongst stable parents.

And then these grown-up children spending years and money searching for the sisters and brothers they lost, sometimes finding them in time, sometimes not.

And other cases where rashly-chosen words caused loved ones to flee for decades, choosing to accept what happened, but hurting, still. Some choosing to move on and love another, some choosing walls, instead, and living alone.

Human nature. It fascinates me.

I remember one girl on APB with the world's weight etched into her face who'd come to reunite with her older sister (a lovely woman who'd healed and was a true light), but twice she said, "I can't do this," and nearly walked out before the reunion. I almost heard the lies taunting her, urging her to run rather than stay for help, the help her sister promised. Satan loves to see us run back to our pits and avoid the teachers who can help set us free.

Anyway. I love shows which God uses to teach me lessons about people and myself and I want to continue learning forever, veering from possible mistakes. I desire more wisdom. More light. And then to show more love from those lessons taught me upon the screen or anyplace where God points me.

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 "Do not forsake Wisdom, and she will keep you; love her, and she will guard you."   ... Proverbs 4:6

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many."   ... Matthew 7:13


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Tom arrived home safely on Saturday..... yay! We shared a wonderful reunion weekend together and we thank you for your prayers for Tom's safe travel!


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Did you miss those two weeks of Olympic action like I did? Never fear. You can get caught up on it all in just two minutes here! 

Ha! Now, that's my idea of saving time!  :)

Oh, Our Words!

"Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear."   ... Ephesians 4:29


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I don't know how this happened. Really I don't. 

But somehow I watched every single episode of Chuck again! 

I know, I know. But remember how I wasn't ready to let go? Well, immediately I re-watched the 1st episode just to ease my separation anxiety, my sense of loss of Chuck's dearly-loved characters. Then I thought, "Okay, just one more episode ... then one more ... then-- (you know how that goes...). Then one night I came to myself at the end of episode 91 and wondered how did that happen again? 

Yes, Chuck is that good. (And ok, in my defense, I did fast-forward through many stressful scenes, listened to some while in the kitchen, cooking, and fell asleep late at night during a couple others. Alas.)

And what did I do for fun last night at Netflix? I read through 16 pages of glowing, passionate reviews by my fellow Chucksters.

Oh, how I crave positive words! After typical weeks of sneaking peeks at message boards for varieties of topics ("keeping my fingers on the pulse of this sad world for the sake of relevancy in my blog" as I prefer to call it), how refreshing to see people gushing, overflowing with positivity. 

I can't remember where I even last saw such a thing.

At least 99% of the all-across-the-board-in-age reviewers raved about Chuck as I have, choosing words I've spoken, expressing my same thoughts and heart-felt reactions.

If only ... If only kind, uplifting, encouraging words flowed like this everywhere. How different our world would look!

In fact, this experience made me recall the public library in the tiny log cabin of our tiny mountain town where I moved to my senior year of high school. The librarian was a classmate's  mom and she used to show me his baby photos, much to Ben's horror. heh. Anyway, she was a hoot to speak with and when three years went by, I saw her at a community function where she, sitting beside her friend, told me, "Ben said you'd gotten married and are living over on Cedar Street now. I told him, "I'm sure Debra's decorated her house to look just like Springtime."'

Then she turned to her friend and told her, "She has such a sunny disposition and I can just picture her rooms reflecting sunshine."

Now, the thing was, my house had lots of dark earth colors (this was 1979, after all) and I'd not felt satisfied with them. And you know? Ben's mom's words made me want rooms that reflected Springtime. Suddenly the clouds cleared and I knew surrounding myself with bright, golden colors would make me feel happier. 

And when I returned home that day I rearranged my living room. I replaced some dark items with colorful ones hidden inside my cupboards and I made plans. I asked myself, "How can I bring more color into our home?"

Yes, all that from kind, uplifting words. Words remembered, still close to my heart all these 32 years later.

Never, ever dismiss the importance of speaking positive, encouraging words into peoples' lives. And never take good words for granted, even if you find them in a message board, for nowadays, positive words are becoming altogether too rare.

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"There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."   ... Proverbs 12:18

"For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit ..."   1 Peter 3:10



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Of the many (many!) Chuck reviews, this was my favorite. I nodded wildly in agreement, laughed, and thought it nearly said it all:



"WARNING - THIS SHOW IS HIGHLY ADDICTIVE! DO NOT ATTEMPT TO WATCH THIS WHEN ANY DEADLINES IN YOUR CAREER, RELATIONSHIP OR FAMILY LIFE ARE EMINENT. Seriously, I've recommended this show to five of my friends since I found it on Netflix. Everyone's experience has been the same as mine... dragging into work after being up half the night, knowing it will be hell to pay in the morning but.... "maybe just one more episode". Every character is explored over the five year run and its difficult not to fall in love with all of them. Of course the twists and turns of the two main characters, Sarah and Chuck (beauty and the nerd), is the stuff of romantic comedy legend. The writing is the best I've experienced in many years as the plot switches seamlessly back and forth between the world of super spies and their villainous adversaries, and the daily grind of life at the "Buy More" (a take-off on a certain consumer electronics chain) with each of these parallel universes swinging wildly from madcap zany to deeply heartfelt. The performances from every actor are rock solid and consistently, exuberantly believable (a difficult feat over a five year stretch for any actor). Hard to single anyone out but I found Adam Baldwin's take of "John Casey" especially delicious! Finally, there's guest appearances from some really terrific actors to add to the mix. I have completed four seasons in nearly as many weeks and already feel the onset of withdrawal with only thirteen episodes left in season five. These characters have become so real it's difficult to let go of them. It sounds ridiculous, I know, but I might need a "Chuck" support group when it's all over."

Almost Home!

"Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us."   ... Isaiah 26:12

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Big Adventurer Tom arrives home tomorrow! Yay! Finally I'll be able to call in falsetto to the cats, "Daddy's home! Daddy's home!" and we'll see if they recall what that means.

Six weeks home-alone-but-not-alone has made me an adventurer, as well. These weeks! An ultimate vacation where Grace invigorated me, surrounded me, glowing off the mirrors and windows, making the air so heavy with gratitude that it eased me upon my couch to relax and meditate and learn from quiet thinking, music and tv. Often.

I needed this winding-down time. Tom needed his South African journey (for many reasons) and we both felt Grace bathing every moment in liquid-like peace.

This was incredible. God-designed. And I think we saw in deeper ways why letting God empty your trash and replace it with His treasure, instead, leads to incredible days 'whether apparent or not',  and whether others ever understand or agree.

Tom's planning another long trip in May, though we've learned at our advancing ages never to grip our plans by their necks, but rather, to hold them upon opened palms, for that is wiser. Yet if he goes? All will be even better next time, for I'll have Springtime and all outdoors rather than, primarily, the walls of our home and snow and ice and shivering sparrows out the windows. 

I'll have gardening. Walks around the block and to the river park. Green everywhere instead of grey and oh, warmth ... blessed Springtime warmth.

But in the meantime, is it back to the daily grind? No, in God, there's no going back, no coming away unchanged, no labeling precious days that way. There's much to glean and learn and create and--with God beside you--Life feels a whole other way than the majority perceive it. So what is left is to share.

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I  let the radio play when I leave the house and this week when I opened the door, gripping my plastic grocery bags, the song, 99 Miles From LA--a song I'd loved but not heard in decades--wafted down the kitchen stairs, stinging my eyes instantly with grateful tears. 

One more gift during this time of enchantment from the lover of my soul.


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 "For let him who wants to enjoy life and see good days [good—whether apparent or not] keep his tongue free from evil and his lips from guile (treachery, deceit)."   ... 1 Peter 3:10

Longer, Harsher Winters On The Way? Yikes!

"The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)."   ... John 10:10

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Have you seen articles (like this one) which predict longer, harsher winters will become the norm for the Northern Hemisphere? I've heard Christians whisper this for years and now it's wild that the secular media is catching up.

And I'll be bold (hey, it's my blog) and say I believe these crazier winters are related to this:

Luke 21:7 “Teacher,” they asked, “when will all this happen? What sign will show us that these things are about to take place?” Luke 21:11 "There will be great earthquakes, and there will be famines and epidemics in many lands, and there will be terrifying things (that which strikes terror), and great miraculous signs in the heavens."


... and I believe crops and food prices will be affected even more than already.

But anyway. While Tom's gone during this record-setting dead of winter, I am grateful to an amazing God who knew my future and put clueless me through years of (not easy) daily preparation for this job of Tom's with international travel and many weeks away.

The afterward has been worth it (afterwards, if we can make it there, usually are). Dream-like. 

No, not like a nightmare! heh. But rather, a sweet, golden time which has shocked surprised me by its contented pleasantness:

The ability to see Tom's face each day by way of Skype from far-off South Africa.
The cold, but clear days that I drive safely to the supermarket.
Being stocked-up on groceries for the mornings it's not safe out there.
Wonderful books upon my shelves, some still new to me.
My Secret, Invisible Library here at Hobbit Cottage: the nearly 600 free books(!) in my free Kindle Cloud Reader.
The help from Neighbor Mike to shovel our snow and the funds with which to pay (and bless) him.
The golden yellow curtains I ordered easily online for my dining room windows. The bright colors in my living room which cheeringly contrast the white and greys outside.
The funds with which to buy birdseed and the happiness from watching their feasts from windows more often sunny than dark (we get most of our snow at night and our days are clear). Again, mostly.
Gratitude at never having lost our electricity.
The ability to print coupons here in my home(!) Facebook coupon groups alerting me to deals I'd never have found alone.
Housekeeping tasks. Retro radio music flooding my rooms with memories.
Blogging. Sharing my days, my life with you all. Facebook. Being like an encouragement stalker there, waiting to pounce with uplifting words for the depressed or those just having a rotten day. Friends' emails.
Decaf. Hot chocolate. Chicken finger delivery.
Netflix! The video store here in my living room (rather than one across icy roads) and one of the best choices Tom and I ever made.
Chuck. Dual Survival. Crossing Jordan. Voyage of the Dawn Treader.
Valentines in my mailbox and online.
Our car tucked safely, snow-free, in a real-live garage.
Daniel and Sammy The Cats snuggling with me on the couch each night as I drift off to sleep.
And mostly? This incredible Presence of Jesus. My first love who never flies away anywhere, but who's constantly with me, cheering me, meeting my deepest needs.

Oh, what a Life He has helped me create within these walls and within my heart! To many it sounds boring, but oh! We become free when we stop expecting others to understand and agree with everything about us. God knows me best and that's what counts.

But of course, I could have had nightmare weeks, instead. I could have chosen not to cooperate with God's years of lessons and done things my own way and thought my own (limited, silly) thoughts. And I could have chosen complaining over gratitude, as well, spent my energy these weeks, moaning ... and ruined/crushed/spoiled everything.

I could have been caught unprepared.

But why? Why choose bad and foolish when Jesus stands there holding good? Why reap unnecessary and stressful consequences when we could have chosen Life, instead, and reaped better? Why complain about the weather when we can be invigorated, strengthened, by the challenges of it, instead? 

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" Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining and [b]questioning and doubting ..."   ... Philippians 2:14



God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with him.

    Author: Jim Elliot


Every choice you make has an end result.
    Author: Zig Ziglar

I'm currently enjoying this free kindle book: Strawberry Acres. It's a an old-fashioned story about a family and an old country house which needs remodeling.

More Curious Than Offended

"Mercy triumphs over judgment."   ... James 2:13

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Oh, I discovered a fourth special blog(!) this week and you'll find it here:

Mama Monk: Micha Boyett


These two sentences from a blog post there, An Invitation to Curiosity, continue my last post (in a way). This stuff brought whole carloads of peace to my head beginning in the 90's:


"What if I were curious about the rude waiter or the angry driver? What if I asked myself who is there underneath their actions, instead of how I’ve been slighted?"



Yes! What if, indeed? 

I have found there is no peace for the easily-offended, the grudge holders and that open-wounded healers can only aid others to the extent of their own healing. Held-onto offences seep from cuts for years and inhibit healing for all.

Yet there's much calm (and renewed healing) for those who plunge the spade deeper, for people genuinely interested in understanding where the rants and bitterness and snippiness came from. And then after discovery, extending the same mercy which God, Himself, handed them, a set-free-forever type which gushes and heals all it touches.

Because it is real. It came unobstructed from The Source.

It's time to stop being mad at the weak and preaching that we are always justified in running, screaming from them, leaving them in their misery. The time to forgive, to long to understand is here and then comes asking God where to go from that changed-by-holy-ground place. 

He knows best! Without His word, His whispers, we never do. And that's why we run when He meant us to stay, stay when He meant us to leave and seldom find ourselves in the perfect learning places for such a time as this. Places where, if we don't throw ourselves upon God, we drown in our own unforgiveness rather than grow in amazing grace.

Always, He has Better for us, even when that Better doesn't, at first, appear, well, better. Usually Better comes when we walk through, not around.


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The rest of Micha's post:

An Invitation to Curiosity


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"For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you."   ... Psalm 86:5


 "... be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."   ... Romans 12:2

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I watched another fascinating documentary this week: Moving Midway. 

If you like Southern history, old plantations, old movies, family history, dynamics and genealogy, you'll quite likely enjoy this. (I found it by way of instant Netflix.)

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Would you like to receive three free teabags with flavors of your choosing? Go here.

C.S. Lewis On My Brain

"The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way..."   ... Psalm 37:23

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Gracious! How did I miss the 3rd Chronicles of Narnia movie, The Dawn Treader, from 2010? What rock did I crawl under?   

Hmm. Perhaps this was a God-thing, one of those "I'll wait for a more perfect time for you," things. For today, yes, proved the perfect time for me to receive this disc in my mailbox.

I came away with so much more than from Prince Caspian (too many battle scenes, perhaps?). And as with The Lord of the Ring films, Dawn Treader surged new Courage Blood through my sluggish veins. 

The choicest film for such a time as this. (Don't ask. Just trust me.)

Since God designed each of us uniquely, He also created different ways for us to receive inspiration and you know? That is why I try never to laugh, to pish-posh on anyone's hobbies/habits/uses of their time.

We just never know what keeps anybody going. What inspires someone, what makes anyone stronger.

I mean, hey:

"A man's steps are determined by the Lord, so how can anyone understand his own way?"  ... Proverbs 20:24

... so if we don't even comprehend our own way, why would we criticize others' paths? (Control issues, perhaps? Cluelessness to creativity? Stuffing God in too tiny of a box?)

Really, Heaven help us if we believe our uses of time are the only ones of worth. Books inspire some people, for others it's tv series. Or movies. Or video games, comic books or watching football, jogging, fishing, traveling, etc.

Lesson here? Sometimes we need to, like Mary, just ponder these things in our hearts and ask for deeper empathy for others. And my oh my... carefully watch our words.






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What appears like a waste of time to us, might be holding someone else together. For now.


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Speaking of C.S. Lewis, I watched an interesting documentary about him last week through Netflix:  C.S. Lewis And The Chronicles of Narnia.

Enjoyed it much.



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"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."   ... Isaiah 43:19

Valentine's Day(!)

"The greatest of these is love..."

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Happy Valentine's Day to all my readers!

The sun sparkled across our glass-top table while I filled out my Valentine's last week and I smiled and felt ten-years-old all over again. And who doesn't love that?

All the Valentine's Day bah-humbugs out there! How sad to lose their childlike wonder and delight at simple things and to instead, just spread crabbiness around.

Oh dear. You have my permission to just shoot me if I ever go there, ok?

I mean, Tom is thousands of miles away and may not be able to Skype with me today at all, due to a field trip he's taking with co-workers to an animal park. (Update: he did call. The trip will be tomorrow.) He did wish me a happy Valentine's Day yesterday, though, and that will probably be it. 

Yet am I bummed-out? No way! Life is too short to be bummed-out and living with God is far too incredible and precious and adventurous to sit around whining about what wasn't perfect.

This is what I did instead:

I taped favorite Valentine's from over the years (and two that arrived this week) to my refrigerator, then stepped back and smiled. And felt even more loved than I normally do by You Know Who.

And later I'll order delivery from a nearby pizza place for chicken fingers (my favorite) and give a big tip to the sweet delivery girl and I'll watch Flying Wild Alaska episodes again. Probably I'll read awhile after that(I'm crossing my fingers that the sun will shine across the table this afternoon, for it's snowing now).


And of course, I'll feed the birds. It's what I do.

Most of all on this special day? I'll count my friendship blessings, for there are many, and I'll celebrate the One who fills my normal days with such great love.

Life with Him grows sweeter by the day. Indeed.

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"For God is love."


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Darn. The trailer for Winter's Tale looked deliciously promising, but today I've seen two reviews which called the movie a confusing mishmash and a mess, one of those reviews giving so many details that, yes, even without seeing it, I'd call it a big mess, also. Oh well. There'll be other movies.


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