Do you remember what it’s like to be seven? I don’t. I’m not sure what age I figured out that Santa wasn’t real. I don’t think we left cookies and milk out for him. My niece was so excited tonight. Even though she got gifts from her grandparents and aunts and uncle, she’s still looking forward to what Santa will put in her stocking tonight.

Before she went to bed, she had to make sure that Santa would be able to make it from the fireplace to where the cookies were waiting for him. Here’s what she did…

There is one thing that this little girl is really good at…

Giving directions.

A number of bad things that have happened this year started weighing down on me, starting with the experience with my Heiddog and ending somewhere around the funeral I attended last Friday or the graveside service dh attended yesterday.

I started crying last night and could not stop.

I cried for the loss of my good dog, who would’ve been smart and loyal like my cousins’ – whom I visited yesterday – dogs seem to be. I cried because of all of the effort put forth, all of the time lost in trying to get her well, all of the lost sleep, frustration and expense, and for the misery experienced during and after having her put down.

I cried for my husband’s lost job and the unfairness of his former employer.

I have cried more than once over the realization that my husband is not immortal; it could’ve just as easily been a fatal coronary artery blockage. Thank God it wasn’t!

I cried for the children and spouses we know of who have lost a parent/partner in what should’ve been his and her prime of life, one who was so distraught over circumstances that he felt he only had one option, and the other who was taken suddenly and unexpectedly in her sleep, both leaving their spouses and children reeling in their grief.

I cried for situations that seem unbearable to those involved, for the things not easily resolved, and for the hearts so deeply wounded.

It isn’t that God isn’t faithful. Some things in life just plain hurt.

In the midst of the seemingly never ending tears, I am reminded of Revelation 21:3-5 which says,

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’ Then He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’ Then He said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’”

What a comfort to know that God is aware of our pain and will one day wipe away our tears, and those things which cause us grief and pain will no longer be an issue!

Thank You, God, for being in all of these situations and for working these bad things out for Your glory and for the good of those who love You and are called according to Your purpose.

What if there were no presents under the tree this year – or no tree even, to stack presents under? What if your loved one can’t make it home for Christmas because they are incarcerated or fighting a war many, many miles away? What if there’s no turkey or mistletoe to help to make the season bright? What if Santa Claus didn’t come to your town?

 This year, more than others, I have been listening more intently to the words of Christmas carols. What, for you, would make this a merry Christmas? For me, it’s having my family together. My son has been away in college and has not been home since July, but will be here this Christmas. The other day, my youngest child told me that she didn’t care if there were no presents under the tree this year, as long as we could have a family dinner together on Christmas day. That brought tears to my eyes, especially coming from a 12 year old!

 My husband and I have been burdened lately by people facing personal tragedies, especially at this “most wonderful time of the year.” From celebrities in the midst of pain, divorce and tragedy, to everyday people who have lost hope and are struggling under the formidable weight of adverse circumstances.

This Christmas, please spare a thought for those around you for whom Christmas is not a happy time. You may not have the means to give financially to someone in need, but some of the best gifts have little or no monetary value anyway: a prayer, a hug, a phone call, a couple of hours volunteering at a local charity, church, hospital or retirement home. The possibilities are endless – all it takes is a phone call or quick search on the internet. For all you know, you might be someone’s ‘Merry Christmas’ this year!

 So whatever dire circumstances you may be facing right now, take your focus off what you don’t have and put it on what you do have, however small it may seem to you – family, friends, health, time… If  nothing else, enjoy this fleeting season when people are in a good mood because of “Christmas cheer,” whatever the heck that is! Before you know it, it will be gone beginning January 2^nd, when the credit card bills start to arrive

 Whatever you do and wherever you are, don’t just wish, make it a MERRY CHRISTMAS, for yourself and at least one other person.

There shall be showers of blessing:
This is the promise of love;
There shall be seasons refreshing,
Sent from the Savior above.
(There Shall Be Showers of Blessing by Daniel Whittle)

Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heav’n and home,
When Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He:
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
(His Eye Is On The Sparrow by Civilla D. Martin)

God is faithful to meet our needs. Dh has been unemployed since July and we have never gone hungry, our bills are paid – mostly, we have clothes, shelter, and transportation. He has not had one call for an interview in 5 months which is of some concern, but God has provided in a variety of ways. This has been a somewhat stressful time, and yet God has met us at our point of need every time!

We have felt especially blessed these past couple of weeks, and we were blessed in different ways from seemingly every direction today.   That is so cool! Thank You, God, and thank you to all who have met our needs and even some wants these past months!

Psalm 138

Of David.

¹ I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart;
before the “gods” I will sing your praise.

² I will bow down toward your holy temple
and will praise your name
for your love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word.

³ When I called, you answered me;
you made me bold and stouthearted.

⁴ May all the kings of the earth praise you, O LORD,
when they hear the words of your mouth.

⁵ May they sing of the ways of the LORD,
for the glory of the LORD is great.

⁶ Though the LORD is on high, he looks upon the lowly,
but the proud he knows from afar.

⁷ Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes,
with your right hand you save me.

⁸ The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;
your love, O LORD, endures forever—
do not abandon the works of your hands.

With the big day quickly approaching most are running around frantically trying to check off their list of gifts,  buy groceries and prepare food, lots of food both traditional and family favorites. And we can’t forget the decorating that needs to be done. Each year we promise ourselves we’ll begin this process earlier, but somehow that really doesn’t happen  and we feel the holidays have come too soon.

The reality is all of that really doesn’t matter, spending time with our loved ones does. Forget about buying crap that people don’t want, can’t use or don’t need.  Why not donate gently used or new things to your local charities instead. Spend time helping others. Help a neighbor, a coworker or a stranger. We all need help at some time or another and Christmas always seems to be the time when challenges tend to hit hardest . It is not too late to make a difference.

I arrived back home for the holidays yesterday. Seeing my mother, daughter, son-in-law and 22-month-old grandson is what the holidays are all about for me. Not the crap I use to buy. Spending time with them is the greatest gift. We will be eating, drinking and making merry. I will see more family before it’s all over and I so look forward to that as well.  We enjoy each other and leave all drama behind; that’s what the holidays are all about. We will reminisce, tease, cajole. We will marvel how much the children have grown in the last year. The reason for the season is being with your loved ones, giving thanks and connecting with Spirit. . Time is short and not promised to any of us. Take this time to make lasting memories; these are the gifts that are cherished and last a lifetime.

Peace, love and blessings to each and every one of you and may the new year offer you all that you desire.

Merry Christmas and Namaste’

I threw a wrench into the Mister’s plans and he does not appreciate it.

I don’t know if anyone else deals with this, but I tend to disagree  quietly [with him, to all of my LL@H friends who are wondering, "What???"], i.e. silently, and try to find a better time to bring up my disagreement, but most of the time, there isn’t a better time, so  in the case of time sensitive things, I don’t say anything until the last minute.  It’s the last minute, I just said something, and he is not happy.

I don’t mean to be disagreeable or difficult, but I’m busy, he’s really busy and there’s never a good time.

Well, off I go to juice these lemons I’ve snagged and to ask God for some sugar.

YEAH, you are one great pal for sure.

And yeah, we have had umpteen fights.

So it’s about time to say HELLO to a brand new Year 2010 and bid farewell to an old year of strife, learning and bliss.

Every ENDING heralds a new BEGINNING.

Shall we leave our hurts behind us?

You had always emphasized that LIFE IS A JOURNEY, a pilgrimage,

even more so ….. a sacred adventure.

That within each and everyone of us, there’s this inner solitude,

a bright and warm hearth where the spirit dwells waiting to be roused.

I am soaking all these in intently, you know?

Your attention to details is always unpretentious and stupendous.

You’ve brought to mind, that, from time to time, the human element in us will experience crises from different life’s ever changing events and transitions,

these unpredictable moments arriving and intruding into our otherwise mundane lives.

We came into this world from our mother’s womb

naked, screaming and full of untainted innocence,

In LIFE we will always experience roadblocks, dead ends and detours,

There will be thresholds

and there will be exits,

There will be comings

There will be goings,

There will always be devious back stabbers trying hard to sap your blood,

There will be self-imposed pundits trying to tear you apart with their superficial ramblings,

Are we to let them to disrupt our sense of stability ….

our integriy?

Yet we often choose to ignore our inner callings.

You insisted that there’s this inner voice that’s urging us to take heed before it’s too late,

That we need to pay attention and ask ourselves what is it we are being summoned to learn?

Has the time arrived to push past our comfort zone and begin the slow process of transformation?

Many of us have learned to be afraid of the feelings inside of ourselves.

We tend to bury or ignore them.

Perhaps even run from them pretending they don’t exist.

Life’s passages can mystify and overwhelm, causing us pain and grief.

It is frightening to veer off the well-worn path, better known as our “comfort zone.”

You urge that we should take time to acknowledge and reflect on each passage,

because they can bestow wisdom and knowledge expanding our vision of our authenticity.

Celebrating, mourning or wrestling with a life’s passage can be an extraordinary act.

Shall we slow down and be in touch with our feelings?

Hello 2010.  Goodbye 2009.

Every ending heralds a new beginning.

Of course we need to be kind and loving to ourselves,

If we do not love ourselves,

How are we to love others?

Shall we speak and act from our spirit and heart?

For sure,

We shall go for our usual morning stroll,

We shall embrace the sunrise

and savor the sweet smell of the morning glories,

We shall not forget to breathe!

And LIFE therefore goes on ….. and on.

My 20-month old grandson is an Elmo nut. The sun rises and sets on everything Elmo. He was Elmo for Halloween and loved his costume, keeping it on when usually he’s trying to strip down to the skin, including his diaper. He wears Elmo diapers, has a Elmo blanket and Elmo DVDs. Apparently there is a Chicken Dance Elmo at his daycare that he covets. He  jumps out of my daughter’s arms when he arrives at daycare to claim it, and cries every day when he has to leave Elmo in the evening.

My daughter did some research on Chicken Dance Elmo and found out he was the hottest Elmo item in 2001. When she found lots of used one’s for sell on-line she decided the new Elmo his great-grandmother is giving him will have to do.

Now, I’ve only been a grandmother for 20 months, but I know if my baby boy wants a Chicken Dance Elmo, damn it I’m going to find it. That was my entry into eBay.

I know many people who live on eBay, purchasing all kinds of stuff from widget to what nots. If my baby wants this Elmo, I’m going to exhaust every avenue.  Did you know they sell EVERYTHING on eBay? And guess what?? Yes, there were new Chicken Dance Elmos, still in the box for sell. No problem, I’ll just bid on one and get it in plenty of time before Christmas.

The first Elmo was lost because I, didn’t stay on top of the bidding,  but no matter there where others, and I was determined to win the second one. The bid started out at $5 and some change. My goal, not to spend more than $30; then $33, $35, $40, $45. Had I lost my mind? Apparently! I didn’t know the bidding could be so competitive.

Daughter calls last evening and I say distractedly, “Someone keeps outbidding me”. Her response, “Mama, oh no, don’t tell me, are you kidding me? Are you bidding against me?” Yeap, she was in a bidding war for Chicken Elmo too. “OMG are we bidding against each other?” Fortunately, we weren’t and I stopped bidding because she had only minutes left on her Elmo and her’s was $10 less than mine. She won the bid and we can’t wait to see the face of our baby boy on Christmas morning. That will be magic.

All of that to say, Christmas has lost a lot of the magic that I experienced as a child. We were naive, not having the mass media of today, growing us up way too soon. Santa was magic, and my parents did their part to allow us to keep the magic going for as long as possible. To this day, I remember my family returning home late one Christmas Eve evening. The snow was falling in Youngstown, Ohio and I remember it being cold and crisp. My younger brother urged our father to drive faster because sitting on our knees looking out the back window, this was long before safety belts, we were so sure we saw Santa’s sleigh in the sky and he couldn’t find us still awake.

Is Christmas too commercial? Yeap, in my opinion it is; however, it’s up to us to keep the magic going. The lights on houses; decorating trees; sitting on Santa’s lap at the mall; writing letters to the North Pole are ways to keep the anticipation going.  It’s not about going further into debt to buy gifts, but a time of year that we are allowed to be kinder, more generous and appreciative of all that we have. Presents shouldn’t be given based on expense, but on something thoughtful that really touches another’s heart. Christmas is a time for loved ones; sharing and caring.  I can’t wait to see our little man’s face come Christmas morning, that will be my bit of magic.  Regardless if you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanza keep the magic alive and enjoy the most wonderful time of the year.

Namaste’

This is a neat craft that I have made several times.

How to make 3d stars

They recommend using card stock, but I have only had printer paper and construction paper, so I made do with what I had just to get some practice in.  I’ve got card stock around here somewhere; I just need to find it. It looks like it could be made into a snowflake with a few alterations with the scissors.  I keep meaning to try that but haven’t yet.

The second one I made, which I gave to Daisy*, a little friend from the neighborhood:

The star I made using blue printer paper.

Have you made cool paper Christmas decorations?  Let’s see!

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I made a confession to my students this week. I’m hooked on the Twilight stuff. I had never read any of the books or seen any of the movies. I was wondering what all the fuss was about, so I put Twilight on my Netflix queue. Over Thanksgiving weekend, I popped it in the DVD player. I was expecting to just be rolling my eyes at the whole thing. Vampires? C’mon. Let’s get real.

So I watched the movie.

I completely understand why teenagers are hooked. It’s got the good vs evil with the lines sort of blurred. There’s a typically forbidden romance. The characters are high school students and have to sit through boring classes just like they do. The characters are ones that they can relate to (minus the vampire qualities).

Once I understood the draw, I went further. I saw New Moon. Then I got the first book. I read almost the whole thing on Sunday. Monday, I started book two. I finished that one Thursday night. They are complete fluff reading. Escapism. Entertainment. For a long time I’ve been on a non-fiction kick. So I haven’t read any fluff in ages. Honestly, it’s nice to just escape into a book and not think about other stuff.

When I made my confession I had a variety of reactions. Mostly disbelief. How could their teacher be reading something they read? And like it. We joked around quite a bit throughout the week. I had one girl ask me if I’m “Team Jacob” or “Team Edward.” I confessed… Edward.

I’m almost kind of embarrassed to admit that I’m enjoying reading the fluff. But in telling my students, I became more human to them. Ms. B likes to read the same books I do. We have something in common. How could that be?

I have one boy who is asking if he can borrow the first book. It’s close to 500 pages. I’d bet that Herman has never read a book that long. We all know the statistics about how people who read for pleasure have higher test scores, etc. I’ll be loaning the book to Herman. I’m just amazed that he wants to read it. Did you hear that? He wants to read. I guess I’m promoting literacy to top it off!

Dh has been working on improving his health for months.  Today he came home from his Army Nat’l Guard gig and mentioned that he had read about Quinoa and wants to give it a try.  Quinoa is supposed to be the most complete vegetable protein out there thus far.  I have tried it before and it was icky, but  that was quite a while ago, and I don’t remember how I tried it, so I’ve been reading up to get some ideas that will help him, and maybe all of us.  I hope to try this Warm and Nutty Cinnamon Quinoa Recipe.  It looks good to me, and all of the comments of people who have tried it are favorable.
We’ll see …

Stephen Clawson, a valued friend of mine, turned me on to the works of Neil Postman some time ago.  Today I ran across a new (at least new to me) blog of Robert Talbert, who I have followed for some time via his Casting Out Nines blog.  He had the following quote from Postman posted    Postman, as usual is incredibly insightful and clear, yet this only serves to raise the question — What do we do with this insight?  Do we simply accept it and deal with it somehow? Do we seek to make societal changes and if so, how in the world do we begin to turn the tide?   Do most folks even see this as a problem, or is it just those, like me, who came of age in a seemingly different world, who are troubled?

http://rtalbert.tumblr.com/post/265498253/how-television-stages-the-world-becomes-the-model

“How television stages the world becomes the model for how the world is properly to be staged. It is not merely that on the television screen entertainment is the metaphor for all discourse. It is that off the screen the same metaphor prevails. As typography once dictated the style of conducting politics, religion, business, education, law and other important social matters, television now takes command. In courtrooms, classrooms, operating rooms, board rooms, churches, and even airplanes, Americans no longer talk to each other, they entertain each other. They do not exchange ideas; they exchange images. They do not argue with propositions; they argue with good looks, celebrities and commercials.” -Neil Postman”

— http://artofmanliness.com/2009/12/01/amusing-ourselves-out-of-our-manhood/

This is Spring Cleaning Week at my house.  I never got around to it in the spring, so I’m doing it now.  Better late than never!

I’ve done a lot of cleaning and rearranging in my kitchen since Heidi …  *sniff* … *pausing for a moment of silence* …

[/pfamos]

… so it has looked pretty good for the most part.  You would not believe how inspiring that it is to the people who live here!  Wow!   I had no idea!  I knew I had to take this week to  make large forward strides in making this house more like home than a storage container for people and all their stuff!  Though I still have a lot left on my list, I would not be very disappointed if I awake tomorrow and discover that it is Monday and that I have to work every day this week, which is what next week looks like for me, though Tuesday is iffy because of the looming question of jury duty that day.

Well, I’m headed to bed and am thankful that there’s still another weekday left in this week.