It's been WAY too long since my last post and I've been missing the time I spend mulling/writing oh so much. Life has just been really full. The delightfully good kind of full.
In my last post, I vowed to spend more time contemplating, philosophizing and writing. Well, we all know how THAT turned out! So I guess I'll just take it a day at a time and see what happens. Getting a blog post out on a regular basis happens to be one of the least of my "worries", even though it's most often a highly enjoyable proposition for me.
I'm very excited about a special focus at church this month that we're calling "30 Days of Gratefulness". I HOPE to pass along some thoughts that come out of this emphasis.
Thanks for not giving up on my blog, although you've had every reason to do so. Hopefully we'll be keeping in touch, blog-style, really soon.
Monday, November 5, 2007
Monday, October 1, 2007
A Lot of Living (and not much writing)
I can't believe my calendar.
Every day since school started, my calendar has had SOMETHING on it. At least one item, but more often two, three, or even FIVE.
I'm not a fan of this kind of busyness. And our family has A LOT LESS going on than most. How ever do people do it?
Needless to say, I feel like I've been doing a lot of living and not a lot of writing. It's OK - I know it's a phase of life and I don't regret or resent it at all. A lack of writing, for me, though, is representative of a lack of time to think and process...my writing tends to flow from my musing. I guess that writing is a bit of a healthy hobby for me: what golf or scrapbooking or tinkering with cars may provide for someone else, musing and writing provides for me.
So I guess I've just talked myself into leaving a little time for pondering, for "doodling" with my words, so to speak. Maybe in cutting short the "living", I'm really making time for the kind of living I need to do. The kind that keeps me fresh and contemplative and grateful.
Thanks. I feel much better now.
Every day since school started, my calendar has had SOMETHING on it. At least one item, but more often two, three, or even FIVE.
I'm not a fan of this kind of busyness. And our family has A LOT LESS going on than most. How ever do people do it?
Needless to say, I feel like I've been doing a lot of living and not a lot of writing. It's OK - I know it's a phase of life and I don't regret or resent it at all. A lack of writing, for me, though, is representative of a lack of time to think and process...my writing tends to flow from my musing. I guess that writing is a bit of a healthy hobby for me: what golf or scrapbooking or tinkering with cars may provide for someone else, musing and writing provides for me.
So I guess I've just talked myself into leaving a little time for pondering, for "doodling" with my words, so to speak. Maybe in cutting short the "living", I'm really making time for the kind of living I need to do. The kind that keeps me fresh and contemplative and grateful.
Thanks. I feel much better now.
Friday, September 14, 2007
Let's Talk Football
Please excuse the inconsequentiality of what I'm about to write, but I just HAVE to say it.
I LOVE FOOTBALL.
If I could be a wide receiver, I would. But because it's not generally accepted practice for thirty-something females to play this position, let alone this sport, I'm relegated to watching. And what a glorious relegation it is!
The imprints of games, plays and players are burned on my retinas (only my kids will know what I'm referring to): Kellen Winslow's block, 5 laterals by the Golden Bears, Dwight Clark's catch against the dreaded Cowboys, Boise State's 07 Bowl win, the Super Bowl in which the zebras defeated my beloved Hawks, Doug Flutie's Hail Mary for Boston College, Mack Strong's thirty plus yard ramble in the 06 playoffs, my nephew running for 160-some yards in a high school game...ahhhhh. I just love it.
I think that, as a group, the linebackers are my favorites. Mike Singletary. Lawrence Taylor. Junior Seau. And now Lofa Tatupu of the Seahawks. These guys are amazing. Athletic. Fast. Sneaky and strong, not to mention authoritative. If anybody thinks football is a sport for fat, dumb guys, guess again. These guys have to be smart and in unbelievable shape.
So, last weekend couldn't have been better for football in the Northwest. The sun was shining and all our teams played in one city in a span of two days with awesome results.
Game 2 of the Jake Locker era for the Dawgs - another impressive win, breaking Boise State's 14 or so game winning streak. Reality check tomorrow, however...#10 ranked Ohio State. Hmmm. Guess we'll find out if UW is for real or not.
Cougs at Qwest Field and I WAS THERE for a resounding win over San Diego State. Not only resounding, but record-setting. Cougs QB Alex Brink had a school record 38 completions for 469 yards. I'm not kidding you. And we got to see a whole bunch of TD's in the end zone where we were sitting, in addition to a stellar trombone performance by my nephew in the marching band.
Last but not least, the Hawks over Tampa Bay on Sunday. After a rather questionable start, the offense and defense finally got going. Shawn Alexander finally cranked it up and started heading UP the field instead of across it...now if only he could do that EVERY time!!! Lofa and company never seemed to tire out and laid a punishing string of hits on the Bucs. After the game, I wanted to write a post entitled "Things That Make Me Happy, vol. 2" with exactly one item in it - SEAHAWKS DEFENSE.
So if you didn't know it before, you know it now, I'm a dyed-in-the-wool football fan. If you really need to call to me on Saturday or Sunday afternoon between 1 and 4 PM, please do it only on commercial breaks or at halftime. :) Other than that I'm happy to talk football with you ANY TIME. (I especially love analyzing Holmgren's 3rd down play calling).
Are you ready for some football?
I LOVE FOOTBALL.
If I could be a wide receiver, I would. But because it's not generally accepted practice for thirty-something females to play this position, let alone this sport, I'm relegated to watching. And what a glorious relegation it is!
The imprints of games, plays and players are burned on my retinas (only my kids will know what I'm referring to): Kellen Winslow's block, 5 laterals by the Golden Bears, Dwight Clark's catch against the dreaded Cowboys, Boise State's 07 Bowl win, the Super Bowl in which the zebras defeated my beloved Hawks, Doug Flutie's Hail Mary for Boston College, Mack Strong's thirty plus yard ramble in the 06 playoffs, my nephew running for 160-some yards in a high school game...ahhhhh. I just love it.
I think that, as a group, the linebackers are my favorites. Mike Singletary. Lawrence Taylor. Junior Seau. And now Lofa Tatupu of the Seahawks. These guys are amazing. Athletic. Fast. Sneaky and strong, not to mention authoritative. If anybody thinks football is a sport for fat, dumb guys, guess again. These guys have to be smart and in unbelievable shape.
So, last weekend couldn't have been better for football in the Northwest. The sun was shining and all our teams played in one city in a span of two days with awesome results.
Game 2 of the Jake Locker era for the Dawgs - another impressive win, breaking Boise State's 14 or so game winning streak. Reality check tomorrow, however...#10 ranked Ohio State. Hmmm. Guess we'll find out if UW is for real or not.
Cougs at Qwest Field and I WAS THERE for a resounding win over San Diego State. Not only resounding, but record-setting. Cougs QB Alex Brink had a school record 38 completions for 469 yards. I'm not kidding you. And we got to see a whole bunch of TD's in the end zone where we were sitting, in addition to a stellar trombone performance by my nephew in the marching band.
Last but not least, the Hawks over Tampa Bay on Sunday. After a rather questionable start, the offense and defense finally got going. Shawn Alexander finally cranked it up and started heading UP the field instead of across it...now if only he could do that EVERY time!!! Lofa and company never seemed to tire out and laid a punishing string of hits on the Bucs. After the game, I wanted to write a post entitled "Things That Make Me Happy, vol. 2" with exactly one item in it - SEAHAWKS DEFENSE.
So if you didn't know it before, you know it now, I'm a dyed-in-the-wool football fan. If you really need to call to me on Saturday or Sunday afternoon between 1 and 4 PM, please do it only on commercial breaks or at halftime. :) Other than that I'm happy to talk football with you ANY TIME. (I especially love analyzing Holmgren's 3rd down play calling).
Are you ready for some football?
Sunday, August 19, 2007
A Good Day
I'm working to redefine my understanding of "a good day".
I'm accustomed to thinking that a good day is an easy day. A conflict-free day. A day without stress or heavy decision-making or tears (mine or others'). A day with happy people, happy events, and a happy feeling inside of me. A day when I "feel blessed".
Oh, there's nothing wrong with these kind of days. They are good days, indeed. But I've been realizing that there are a lot of other kinds of "good days" - a lot of which don't look and feel so obviously GOOD. I don't want to defer to a blind "Pollyanna" outlook on life - I know well the reality of days that pierce your heart and mind, of days that seem to drain the very life out of you. But I also know that in the midst of those FEELINGS, I often miss the very real "goodness" that's happening. For instance...
Kids quarrel and fight when they're learning how to relate to others and how to assert themselves. While the fighting is tiresome to all, my kids are learning how NOT to be doormats. They're learning to eliminate some unhealthy ways of relating to others. So when we walk through this together, it's a good day.
Teenagers want to go out with their friends and while the decision-making and boundary-setting is taxing to the parents, my kids are taking steps toward being independent of us, as we want them to be one day. They're learning why we have boundaries and how to set them. Baby steps toward healthy independence make a good day (even if three of those steps are forward and two are back!).
People in all kinds of settings from marriage to work to extended families have misunderstandings and differing opinions that lead to difficult conversations. But when those conversations occur, though stretching and even painful, we're gaining knowledge of another. We're learning the value of OUR experiences and opinions, as well as the value of THEIRS. Knowing myself and knowing another, and extending grace to both, is part of a good day.
All of these, and more, are truly GOOD days. They may be hard days, but they're good. They're good as we stretch and are stretched, as we mold and are molded, more and more into the image of our Creator. People grow; people change. People learn and develop - more often than not by trial and error. What makes me think that this process will be "happy", linear, and effortless?! The process is none of the aforementioned, at least not all the time, but it is still good.
Have a GOOD day.
I'm accustomed to thinking that a good day is an easy day. A conflict-free day. A day without stress or heavy decision-making or tears (mine or others'). A day with happy people, happy events, and a happy feeling inside of me. A day when I "feel blessed".
Oh, there's nothing wrong with these kind of days. They are good days, indeed. But I've been realizing that there are a lot of other kinds of "good days" - a lot of which don't look and feel so obviously GOOD. I don't want to defer to a blind "Pollyanna" outlook on life - I know well the reality of days that pierce your heart and mind, of days that seem to drain the very life out of you. But I also know that in the midst of those FEELINGS, I often miss the very real "goodness" that's happening. For instance...
Kids quarrel and fight when they're learning how to relate to others and how to assert themselves. While the fighting is tiresome to all, my kids are learning how NOT to be doormats. They're learning to eliminate some unhealthy ways of relating to others. So when we walk through this together, it's a good day.
Teenagers want to go out with their friends and while the decision-making and boundary-setting is taxing to the parents, my kids are taking steps toward being independent of us, as we want them to be one day. They're learning why we have boundaries and how to set them. Baby steps toward healthy independence make a good day (even if three of those steps are forward and two are back!).
People in all kinds of settings from marriage to work to extended families have misunderstandings and differing opinions that lead to difficult conversations. But when those conversations occur, though stretching and even painful, we're gaining knowledge of another. We're learning the value of OUR experiences and opinions, as well as the value of THEIRS. Knowing myself and knowing another, and extending grace to both, is part of a good day.
All of these, and more, are truly GOOD days. They may be hard days, but they're good. They're good as we stretch and are stretched, as we mold and are molded, more and more into the image of our Creator. People grow; people change. People learn and develop - more often than not by trial and error. What makes me think that this process will be "happy", linear, and effortless?! The process is none of the aforementioned, at least not all the time, but it is still good.
Have a GOOD day.
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