I started counting during my morning walk today. I was enjoying the impressive neighborhood "garden show" along my favorite walking route, and suddenly, it wasn't enough just to look and savor; I had to know just how many kinds of plants I was seeing. I needed to quantify this. (Don't ask me why, it's just how my brain works!)
And so I counted.
60.
60 types of cultivated plants in the space of one-half city block.
60 shapes. 60 textures. 60 shades of green. 60 trees, shrubs, grasses and flowering things of all kinds. 60 didn't even include different varieties of the same plant.
I was genuinely astounded.
To think that the wonderful climate of the Northwest can sustain such a variety of flora in one small space amazed me. But I was even more amazed at the mind and power of the loving God who created these, not only to be useful contributors to our environment, but to be a feast for the human eye and signposts pointing us to Him. I was humbled in pondering that this is but one MINISCULE demonstration of His ingenuity, creativity, resourcefulness and wisdom.
I finished the rest of my walk looking differently at the beautiful morning around me. I heard the birds more. Enjoyed the blue sky more. Took note of the many shades of hydrangeas more. Pardon me for sounding extremely corny, but it's exactly what I did. And later this afternoon, Psalm 100 completed the happy contemplation of my 60 morning glimpses of God:
"Shout for joy to the Lord all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
Come before Him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
IT IS HE WHO MADE US, AND WE ARE HIS..."
Amen and amen. :)
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Learning
Thanks to those of you who responded to my last post by sharing what you're learning. There's some pretty big stuff there.
To be honest, I've been dragging my feet a little about sharing what I'm learning. My sandwich recipe (thanks to Sue) is not so hard to pass along (wheat or whole-grain toast, dijon or regular mustard, avocado slices, turkey, fresh spinach, cheese of your choice, tomato, salt and pepper, and serve open-faced). Yummmmm. I can also easily tell you that "abseil" is pronounced "ob-zile" (go figure) and is a mountain-climbing term meaning "a method of descending a very steep cliff by means of a rope secured at the summit". And without too much trouble, I can share a challenging verse from my study of the biblical Book of Proverbs (chapter 20:5 "The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out").
But that's where the simple part ends.
All the things mentioned in the comments resonate with me right now: living without fear of regrets, extending grace, waiting with patience and perseverance, and getting to know God because He's God. Yet, I'm realizing that so much of my "summer school" this year has been intensely personal and not fit for consumption in such a public forum as this. It will suffice to say, however, that I have no doubt about the graciousness of my God and His unfathomable love for me. A love immense enough to mold and shape and trim and start again when necessary. He never gives up, even when there is oh, so much for me to learn.
A number of years ago, I came across the following poem in a fantastic book that I think every Christian should read. The book is entitled "Spiritual Leadership", author J. Oswald Sanders. The poem itself is untitled and the author is unknown. Too bad that he or she doesn't get credit for this gem. I've returned to this literary piece many times to help bring perspective on the learning God is facilitating in my life and what He has ahead for me. I know this little poem can't explain everything, but it sure makes me think and hope it does the same for you.
When God wants to drill a man
And thrill a man
And skill a man,
When God wants to mold a man
To play the noblest part;
When He yearns with all His heart
To create so great and bold a man
That all the world should be amazed,
Watch His methods, watch His ways!
How He ruthlessly perfects
Whom He royally elects!
How He hammers him and hurts him,
And with mighty blows converts him
Into trial shapes of clay which
Only God understands;
While his tortured heart is crying
And he lifts beseeching hands!
How He bends but never breaks
When his good He undertakes;
How He uses whom He chooses
And with every purpose fuses him;
By every act induces him
To try His splendor out -
God knows what He's about!
Although some may find these words to be cruel or discouraging, I have lived them, and understand. The "trial shapes of clay that only God understands"...it's true. So often we're in transition, can't fathom the finished product, and hope that this "trial shape" isn't it. How awesome to know that God does know the next stage as well as the necessity of the transitional one(s). The idea of God inducing us to "try His splendor out" - a truly inspired picture. He does invite us or put us in positions that compel us to do so. So often I think my Lord is crying out for me to let Him show His splendor. And He does. And I am never disappointed.
I know this has been a long, long post. So good for you if you've made it this far. My daughter said yesterday "We should keep learning and growing until we die." May her tribe increase! Keep learning, keep growing. Keep enjoying the sandwich recipes and other incidental moments of learning that add color to the tapestry of life. Keep letting the Lord have His way with you, or try His splendor out for the first time, if you haven't already.
Happy learning.
To be honest, I've been dragging my feet a little about sharing what I'm learning. My sandwich recipe (thanks to Sue) is not so hard to pass along (wheat or whole-grain toast, dijon or regular mustard, avocado slices, turkey, fresh spinach, cheese of your choice, tomato, salt and pepper, and serve open-faced). Yummmmm. I can also easily tell you that "abseil" is pronounced "ob-zile" (go figure) and is a mountain-climbing term meaning "a method of descending a very steep cliff by means of a rope secured at the summit". And without too much trouble, I can share a challenging verse from my study of the biblical Book of Proverbs (chapter 20:5 "The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out").
But that's where the simple part ends.
All the things mentioned in the comments resonate with me right now: living without fear of regrets, extending grace, waiting with patience and perseverance, and getting to know God because He's God. Yet, I'm realizing that so much of my "summer school" this year has been intensely personal and not fit for consumption in such a public forum as this. It will suffice to say, however, that I have no doubt about the graciousness of my God and His unfathomable love for me. A love immense enough to mold and shape and trim and start again when necessary. He never gives up, even when there is oh, so much for me to learn.
A number of years ago, I came across the following poem in a fantastic book that I think every Christian should read. The book is entitled "Spiritual Leadership", author J. Oswald Sanders. The poem itself is untitled and the author is unknown. Too bad that he or she doesn't get credit for this gem. I've returned to this literary piece many times to help bring perspective on the learning God is facilitating in my life and what He has ahead for me. I know this little poem can't explain everything, but it sure makes me think and hope it does the same for you.
When God wants to drill a man
And thrill a man
And skill a man,
When God wants to mold a man
To play the noblest part;
When He yearns with all His heart
To create so great and bold a man
That all the world should be amazed,
Watch His methods, watch His ways!
How He ruthlessly perfects
Whom He royally elects!
How He hammers him and hurts him,
And with mighty blows converts him
Into trial shapes of clay which
Only God understands;
While his tortured heart is crying
And he lifts beseeching hands!
How He bends but never breaks
When his good He undertakes;
How He uses whom He chooses
And with every purpose fuses him;
By every act induces him
To try His splendor out -
God knows what He's about!
Although some may find these words to be cruel or discouraging, I have lived them, and understand. The "trial shapes of clay that only God understands"...it's true. So often we're in transition, can't fathom the finished product, and hope that this "trial shape" isn't it. How awesome to know that God does know the next stage as well as the necessity of the transitional one(s). The idea of God inducing us to "try His splendor out" - a truly inspired picture. He does invite us or put us in positions that compel us to do so. So often I think my Lord is crying out for me to let Him show His splendor. And He does. And I am never disappointed.
I know this has been a long, long post. So good for you if you've made it this far. My daughter said yesterday "We should keep learning and growing until we die." May her tribe increase! Keep learning, keep growing. Keep enjoying the sandwich recipes and other incidental moments of learning that add color to the tapestry of life. Keep letting the Lord have His way with you, or try His splendor out for the first time, if you haven't already.
Happy learning.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
What Have You Been Learning?
When I was out for this morning's walk, a question came to mind that I wanted to pose: "What Have You Been Learning?". I'm eager to hear your responses to this.
I love being exposed to learning and learners, and especially to a category of people I call "voracious learners". I had one such exposure last night at a gathering of my husband's family. This gal is quite possibly one of the best conversationalists of the voracious learner ilk that I know. She asks lots of questions and can then quickly process that information and connect it to life (she must have a VERY orderly "sock drawer"!). She's 40- or 50-something in age and has a wonderfully adventuresome spirit. After retiring from teaching 6 years ago, she attended classes at the vo-tech to learn some new skills - just for the fun of it. Before sustaining a severe leg injury while snow-skiing, she kayaked regularly. And she still dreams of trekking to Base Camp at Mt. Everest. What a hoot! If her leg gets healthy, I don't doubt that she'll give it a try. But the biggest thing I took away from the time with her last night was her true passion for discovery and learning of the kind that makes life just a little bit richer.
So, on my walk I started pondering what I've been learning lately. The items on this list ranged from some deep spiritual truths to something as simple as a delicious sandwich recipe. (This morning, I also learned the meanings of the words "overweening" and "abseil". I love my dictionary!) If you have a chance, please share some things that you're learning, and in a day or two, I'll share some of mine.
Happy Wednesday.
I love being exposed to learning and learners, and especially to a category of people I call "voracious learners". I had one such exposure last night at a gathering of my husband's family. This gal is quite possibly one of the best conversationalists of the voracious learner ilk that I know. She asks lots of questions and can then quickly process that information and connect it to life (she must have a VERY orderly "sock drawer"!). She's 40- or 50-something in age and has a wonderfully adventuresome spirit. After retiring from teaching 6 years ago, she attended classes at the vo-tech to learn some new skills - just for the fun of it. Before sustaining a severe leg injury while snow-skiing, she kayaked regularly. And she still dreams of trekking to Base Camp at Mt. Everest. What a hoot! If her leg gets healthy, I don't doubt that she'll give it a try. But the biggest thing I took away from the time with her last night was her true passion for discovery and learning of the kind that makes life just a little bit richer.
So, on my walk I started pondering what I've been learning lately. The items on this list ranged from some deep spiritual truths to something as simple as a delicious sandwich recipe. (This morning, I also learned the meanings of the words "overweening" and "abseil". I love my dictionary!) If you have a chance, please share some things that you're learning, and in a day or two, I'll share some of mine.
Happy Wednesday.
Monday, July 9, 2007
The Sock Drawer
The time has come to explain “The Sock Drawer”…
One day a few years ago, my precocious teenage nieces, nephews and daughter were mercilessly, if good-naturedly, harassing us older folks (me in particular) whose minds seem to no longer be as quick as theirs. The youngsters firmly believed that age had left the oldsters forgetful, and quite possibly, empty-headed, with the accompanying inability to concoct witty, intelligent and speedy responses. The wisdom I was about to pour forth to explain this misperception was, in my estimation, a truly inspired moment. I do believe that my teenaged antagonists, however, saw it as a timely demonstration of their point. Regardless of the perspective, the infamous Sock Drawer analogy was born.
I’d like to take a brief time-out here for a disclaimer. Please keep in mind that the Sock Drawer is an ANALOGY; it is not a representation of my ACTUAL SOCK DRAWER. Thank you.
“Our brains are like sock drawers,” I began. (I can only imagine what the youngsters were thinking at this point.) “When you’re young, like you, not a whole lot has gone into the sock drawer yet. It’s not THAT hard to reach in and come out with a matched pair. When you’re older, like me, A LOT of socks have gone in that drawer and it’s MUCH HARDER to find the two that go together.”
Considering the blank stares and smirks I was receiving in response to this brilliant dissertation, I assumed further explanation was in order.
“You see, the socks are the pieces of information that come into your brain. When you’re young, you haven’t stored up a lot of these. Therefore, when you want to retrieve the appropriate information, it’s no harder than reaching into a relatively empty sock drawer, matching up the pertinent pieces and coming up with a “pair”; a witty, intelligent, or somewhat speedy response. As you get older, the number of pieces of information increases dramatically, making the retrieval MUCH more difficult, and making those of us in this position look dull, slow, or possibly hard-of-hearing, when that is not really the case at all. What may appear to you as an empty brain is actually the result of a VERY FULL brain. Really.”
Of course the first response to this was from one of my very organized nieces, who asked incredulously, “You don’t match up your socks when you put them in the drawer?!”
This is why I made my disclaimer early on - like I said, the sock drawer is an ANALOGY. Of course I pair up my real socks when I put them in the drawer. Life, however, rarely gives us our information in such a tidy fashion. We don’t open up the dryer of ideas, pair them off and stack them neatly in the drawer. Our information comes at different times, gets ceremoniously or unceremoniously dumped into the drawer, and then may need to be retrieved at the most inopportune moment. 40 or 60 or 80 years of accumulated “socks” tends to make that retrieval more and more difficult, right?
Eventually, the teens got the picture, although, to this day, I’m not sure they’ve embraced it the way I have. I guess they’ll have to reserve judgment for another 15 years or so. :) Regardless, since the day that The Sock Drawer was born, many, many comments, observations and experiences have been deemed “Sock Drawer Moments” by my family members. I’ve never been sure how to interpret their smiles as they make that declaration, however.
I still stand by my analogy, unusual though it may be, perhaps mostly for the connection that this silly moment has brought me with my children, nieces and nephews over the years. When it came time to create my blog of musings and random thoughts on life, my daughter and I agreed that “Notes from the Sock Drawer” would be a very fitting name indeed. And maybe, just maybe, my ramblings will add a few memorable socks to your drawer along the way.
One day a few years ago, my precocious teenage nieces, nephews and daughter were mercilessly, if good-naturedly, harassing us older folks (me in particular) whose minds seem to no longer be as quick as theirs. The youngsters firmly believed that age had left the oldsters forgetful, and quite possibly, empty-headed, with the accompanying inability to concoct witty, intelligent and speedy responses. The wisdom I was about to pour forth to explain this misperception was, in my estimation, a truly inspired moment. I do believe that my teenaged antagonists, however, saw it as a timely demonstration of their point. Regardless of the perspective, the infamous Sock Drawer analogy was born.
I’d like to take a brief time-out here for a disclaimer. Please keep in mind that the Sock Drawer is an ANALOGY; it is not a representation of my ACTUAL SOCK DRAWER. Thank you.
“Our brains are like sock drawers,” I began. (I can only imagine what the youngsters were thinking at this point.) “When you’re young, like you, not a whole lot has gone into the sock drawer yet. It’s not THAT hard to reach in and come out with a matched pair. When you’re older, like me, A LOT of socks have gone in that drawer and it’s MUCH HARDER to find the two that go together.”
Considering the blank stares and smirks I was receiving in response to this brilliant dissertation, I assumed further explanation was in order.
“You see, the socks are the pieces of information that come into your brain. When you’re young, you haven’t stored up a lot of these. Therefore, when you want to retrieve the appropriate information, it’s no harder than reaching into a relatively empty sock drawer, matching up the pertinent pieces and coming up with a “pair”; a witty, intelligent, or somewhat speedy response. As you get older, the number of pieces of information increases dramatically, making the retrieval MUCH more difficult, and making those of us in this position look dull, slow, or possibly hard-of-hearing, when that is not really the case at all. What may appear to you as an empty brain is actually the result of a VERY FULL brain. Really.”
Of course the first response to this was from one of my very organized nieces, who asked incredulously, “You don’t match up your socks when you put them in the drawer?!”
This is why I made my disclaimer early on - like I said, the sock drawer is an ANALOGY. Of course I pair up my real socks when I put them in the drawer. Life, however, rarely gives us our information in such a tidy fashion. We don’t open up the dryer of ideas, pair them off and stack them neatly in the drawer. Our information comes at different times, gets ceremoniously or unceremoniously dumped into the drawer, and then may need to be retrieved at the most inopportune moment. 40 or 60 or 80 years of accumulated “socks” tends to make that retrieval more and more difficult, right?
Eventually, the teens got the picture, although, to this day, I’m not sure they’ve embraced it the way I have. I guess they’ll have to reserve judgment for another 15 years or so. :) Regardless, since the day that The Sock Drawer was born, many, many comments, observations and experiences have been deemed “Sock Drawer Moments” by my family members. I’ve never been sure how to interpret their smiles as they make that declaration, however.
I still stand by my analogy, unusual though it may be, perhaps mostly for the connection that this silly moment has brought me with my children, nieces and nephews over the years. When it came time to create my blog of musings and random thoughts on life, my daughter and I agreed that “Notes from the Sock Drawer” would be a very fitting name indeed. And maybe, just maybe, my ramblings will add a few memorable socks to your drawer along the way.
Monday, July 2, 2007
Normalcy
OK, so I promised you an explanation of the sock drawer, but it will just have to wait temporarily. I wanted instead to comment on a much-needed dose of normalcy I had today.
My friend/cousin-in-law and I got together today. Our friendship has really been forged as we've walked and talked with each other through some significant challenges over this last year.
But today, all the challenges (and our propensity to analyze them) were set aside for what I would consider an interlude of glorious normalcy. We chatted and managed our teens and tweens kids. I showed her my latest batch of homemade cards. She showed me how to cook a really delicious dish for lunch. I shared with her a book of gorgeous mountaineering photos I'd been enjoying. She filled me in on her book club's long-awaited Chinese dinner. We compared notes on nail polish, where our newly teenage boys might be employed next summer, and much more.
Ahhhhhh.
Like it says on my profile, I'm a dyed-in-the-wool introvert...a thinker and philosophizer who is most naturally revived in complete silence. And yet the Lord has brought people into my life, each with their own special niche, who draw me into the richness and joyousness of sharing together. Today made me realize how blessed I am to have been drawn into this world, and to realize that I also have something to contribute.
We really aren't meant to be islands. We need the normalcy of interacting with others over everyday things as well as philosophy and analyses. I feel today as if I've drawn in a very deep breath of pristine air.
If life is pressing in on you, I encourage you to find some moments of glorious, joyful normalcy too. Stop mulling over the difficulties for a few minutes or hours - do something, however small, that helps you "breathe". And the next time you see me drawn or weary, please return this advice. :)
My friend/cousin-in-law and I got together today. Our friendship has really been forged as we've walked and talked with each other through some significant challenges over this last year.
But today, all the challenges (and our propensity to analyze them) were set aside for what I would consider an interlude of glorious normalcy. We chatted and managed our teens and tweens kids. I showed her my latest batch of homemade cards. She showed me how to cook a really delicious dish for lunch. I shared with her a book of gorgeous mountaineering photos I'd been enjoying. She filled me in on her book club's long-awaited Chinese dinner. We compared notes on nail polish, where our newly teenage boys might be employed next summer, and much more.
Ahhhhhh.
Like it says on my profile, I'm a dyed-in-the-wool introvert...a thinker and philosophizer who is most naturally revived in complete silence. And yet the Lord has brought people into my life, each with their own special niche, who draw me into the richness and joyousness of sharing together. Today made me realize how blessed I am to have been drawn into this world, and to realize that I also have something to contribute.
We really aren't meant to be islands. We need the normalcy of interacting with others over everyday things as well as philosophy and analyses. I feel today as if I've drawn in a very deep breath of pristine air.
If life is pressing in on you, I encourage you to find some moments of glorious, joyful normalcy too. Stop mulling over the difficulties for a few minutes or hours - do something, however small, that helps you "breathe". And the next time you see me drawn or weary, please return this advice. :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)