Tag Archives: love

Feb23

Let’s give it up for Lent!

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Let’s give it up for Lent!

Ok.. I am sitting here enjoying a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon so I guess I am not giving up red wine for Lent.  Do I really have to give something up?  Why not add something significant.  Why not do something out of my comfort zone.  Something that matters.  Something that makes me uncomfortable or that makes me stray from my neurotic daily routine.

I’ve been toying with the idea of living life with more awareness and intention.  Not multitasking.  Not flitting from here to there.  Not changing the subject mid-conversation.

Living with intention.

So cooking a meal is just cooking a meal.  It’s not talking on the phone and cooking a meal.  It’s not checking my email and cooking.  It’s just cooking.

And reaching for my seat belt after getting into my car is not reaching with one hand and turning on the radio with the other one and checking to see if I have gas and wondering if I need my oil changed.  It’s just reaching for my seat belt.

Calling my step mother and asking how she is doing is not just a task that I can check off my list of things to do but actually a loving and intimate communication with a woman who stepped in and decided to love me and my family even though we aren’t really related.

Are you giving something up for Lent?

Or are you adding something that challenges you, stretches you, makes you stop and think?

 

 

Dec29

Christmas Gifts… Graced Moments

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Christmas Gifts… Graced Moments

 

Patrick

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Christmas morning my sons and Brianna wrenched me out of the kitchen in order to take a walk with the pups.  I was torn- feeling like I had so much to do before the 16 guests came for Christmas dinner at 4pm.  Then I stopped and asked myself.  What is the important thing right now?

It was a beautiful crisp morning and we went to the corner park so that Willow and Lua could get their wiggles out and Robert and Peter could play on the equipment.

 

Peter

 

Rob

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I couldn’t have planned it better myself.  No Christmas card picture would have come out better than this one.  Perhaps the unstaged is the most representative.  If this is true, I feel especially blessed.

It was a graced moment.  An unplanned trip to the park with cups of coffee and a chill in the air and the people who mean everything to me.  Much more than a perfectly cooked and served turkey.

Patrick, Peter, Robert, Brianna, Lua and Willow

Dec3

What would you like for Christmas?

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What would you like for Christmas?

Madonna and Child

I’ve always thought of the Christmas holiday preparation and grand finale similar to taking up an additional part time job in December.  The question of what would I like for Christmas seems to be the last thing on my mind.  I’m thinking more in terms of how the heck I’m going to get my Christmas shopping, decorating, and baking done with the final push being the full sit down dinner with turkey and clean sparkling glassware.  All the while showing up for my full time job and being a positive presence for students who are stressed out studying for finals!  (Well.. at least I don’t have 7 finals to study for!)

Yesterday one of my students came in to chat with me about a project she’s been working on.  She has a blog that has taken on a life of its own and has become quite popular internationally.  www.justlittlethings.net is a daily reminder of things we should appreciate in life.  She is coming up on the one year anniversary of her blog and gets thousands of hits a day.  If you take a look you will see why she has attracted so many followers.

The things she appreciates are all free.  Free for the taking.

Unfolding a paper snowflake.

Getting a compliment you’ve never received before.

Remembering there are good leftovers from the day before.

Getting your hair brushed.

Glancing over at someone and he/she is already looking at you.

Logging on to Facebook on your birthday!

As of today there are 537 things to appreciate.  All realized by a 16 year old girl.  That’s a gift in itself.

My meeting with Nancy made me think about the gifts of Christmas that are free for the taking.  Gifts that make a significant difference in our lives.  Forgiveness, faith, love, hope, kindness, mercy, grace, joy, peace, countenance, patience, piety, discipline, integrity, courage, acceptance, knowledge, fortitude.  There are too many to list.  All available to us.  All free.

Perhaps these are the real gifts of Christmas.

If a 16 year old girl knows what’s most important in life, shouldn’t we?