Color of the week: purple.
Letter of the week: P.
Miss Joanne sometimes amuses herself above what the kids can ever appreciate. Sigh.
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Things I learned in 2013
This feels like deja vu. I literally just did a "What I learned in 2012" post, but, as we all know, that was a whole year late, so... I'll just do this, and maybe my "What I learned in 2014" post will seem normal, presuming I do it in 12 months instead of waiting till 2015 is over with.
Yikes. 2015 sounds frighteningly close. It's a good thing I know the Lord is coming soon! I won't have to worry about silly things like "What I learned" lists. Especially when my lists are as subjective and vague as mine typically are.
As always, this list is in no particular order.
1) Rice bags can catch on fire in the microwave. In other news, microwaves still function even with holes melted into the side of them. That is truly something I didn't used to know.
2) People can still surprise you. I'm not that old, but I have a habit of thinking that nothing is unexpected. Well, it's not true. Unexpected things can (and do) happen.
3) God is a lot more gracious than I am. I knew that, but I was reminded again this past year.
4) I'm kind of emotional. I used to mock my friends who teared up at the slightest provocation, but I'm not much better these days. I don't know if it's age or event related, but I cry a lot more often than I want to.
5) When I look around I realize that the Lord has a way of using substitution in my life. In a good way. For instance, there are things I think I want but instead of giving those to me, He gives to me things that feed the need perfectly for where I am in life. That probably doesn't make sense, so I'll elaborate. All I ever wanted to be from my youth up was to be a mom. I never had career aspirations or even life aspirations, truth be told, outside of marriage and family. And I still would love to be a mother, but at the current, that's not in the cards for me. But what I do have is a passel of Sunday School kids, and a job at a daycare. Almost every day of my life is filled with sticky smiles and heads of hair to braid. So it might seem like a silly something (and I'm not trying to say that what I do is mothering, because you mothers out there know that it's way more than just making sure kids aren't choking on plastic bags or whatever), but I have been so thankful this past year to realize that the Lord knows my heart and keeps my lap filled with children who want to listen to me read story books. It's a gift. And I'm thankful for it.
6) I should never be so dogmatic when I say that certain things won't happen. Turns out #2 on my list applies to all kinds of areas. Sometimes things that seem like they'll never happen do.
7) Life is made of moments, not milestones. I mean, some people get milestones, and I obviously have milestone-ish things in my life, but I've been learning not to look to milestones for contentment. Life passes me by when I'm constantly looking ahead for events over which I hold no control. Life is the every day, the mundane, the mealtimes and conversations and friendships and the shared memories. Life isn't always about moments that are scrapbook-able.
I could go on. But 2014 has already been overwhelming with with things and I'm afraid that if I finish this list (which I started a few weeks ago, but, as per usual, left in draft format for a while) it'll be subtly influenced by 2014. And then what would I put on my list next year? If the Lord doesn't come, that is.
Yikes. 2015 sounds frighteningly close. It's a good thing I know the Lord is coming soon! I won't have to worry about silly things like "What I learned" lists. Especially when my lists are as subjective and vague as mine typically are.
As always, this list is in no particular order.
1) Rice bags can catch on fire in the microwave. In other news, microwaves still function even with holes melted into the side of them. That is truly something I didn't used to know.
2) People can still surprise you. I'm not that old, but I have a habit of thinking that nothing is unexpected. Well, it's not true. Unexpected things can (and do) happen.
3) God is a lot more gracious than I am. I knew that, but I was reminded again this past year.
4) I'm kind of emotional. I used to mock my friends who teared up at the slightest provocation, but I'm not much better these days. I don't know if it's age or event related, but I cry a lot more often than I want to.
5) When I look around I realize that the Lord has a way of using substitution in my life. In a good way. For instance, there are things I think I want but instead of giving those to me, He gives to me things that feed the need perfectly for where I am in life. That probably doesn't make sense, so I'll elaborate. All I ever wanted to be from my youth up was to be a mom. I never had career aspirations or even life aspirations, truth be told, outside of marriage and family. And I still would love to be a mother, but at the current, that's not in the cards for me. But what I do have is a passel of Sunday School kids, and a job at a daycare. Almost every day of my life is filled with sticky smiles and heads of hair to braid. So it might seem like a silly something (and I'm not trying to say that what I do is mothering, because you mothers out there know that it's way more than just making sure kids aren't choking on plastic bags or whatever), but I have been so thankful this past year to realize that the Lord knows my heart and keeps my lap filled with children who want to listen to me read story books. It's a gift. And I'm thankful for it.
6) I should never be so dogmatic when I say that certain things won't happen. Turns out #2 on my list applies to all kinds of areas. Sometimes things that seem like they'll never happen do.
7) Life is made of moments, not milestones. I mean, some people get milestones, and I obviously have milestone-ish things in my life, but I've been learning not to look to milestones for contentment. Life passes me by when I'm constantly looking ahead for events over which I hold no control. Life is the every day, the mundane, the mealtimes and conversations and friendships and the shared memories. Life isn't always about moments that are scrapbook-able.
I could go on. But 2014 has already been overwhelming with with things and I'm afraid that if I finish this list (which I started a few weeks ago, but, as per usual, left in draft format for a while) it'll be subtly influenced by 2014. And then what would I put on my list next year? If the Lord doesn't come, that is.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Habit, I am thy creature
I like to think that I'm above stuff like habits. I mean, brushing teeth and reading the Bible is good, but I've always had this vague opinion about myself that I could mix things up in my life and it would be no big deal.
Then I either got older or realized my habits for what they are: habits.
This is super deep, I know.
There's an intersection I go through fairly often. From that intersection there are two ways I could get home. I could turn left, or go straight. Both ways are probably comparable in time, though I guess I don't know exactly. Anyhow, if I'm at that intersection coming home from the nursing home, I turn right. If I'm there coming home from one of my Sunday school drop-offs, I go straight.
And I have no idea why. I just do.
The same reason, probably, that there are some streets where I always drive in the left lane, even though I traditionally believe in driving in the right lane unless I'm passing someone. It's a weird habit thing.
But it's interesting to think about habits at this point in the year. People keep asking me what resolutions I made this year.
Resolutions? Haha, ain't nobody got time for that.
But seriously, maybe I should be re-patterning parts of my life. Because clearly, somewhere in the back portion of my brain, I love being a habitual person. Regardless of whether or not I think I need habits or not, I make habits, and stick with them. Imagine how awesome it would be if I made and kept good habits throughout my whole life!
Now I just have to decide if turning right is the good habit, or if going straight is.
It feels like a hard decision, actually.
Then I either got older or realized my habits for what they are: habits.
This is super deep, I know.
There's an intersection I go through fairly often. From that intersection there are two ways I could get home. I could turn left, or go straight. Both ways are probably comparable in time, though I guess I don't know exactly. Anyhow, if I'm at that intersection coming home from the nursing home, I turn right. If I'm there coming home from one of my Sunday school drop-offs, I go straight.
And I have no idea why. I just do.
The same reason, probably, that there are some streets where I always drive in the left lane, even though I traditionally believe in driving in the right lane unless I'm passing someone. It's a weird habit thing.
But it's interesting to think about habits at this point in the year. People keep asking me what resolutions I made this year.
Resolutions? Haha, ain't nobody got time for that.
But seriously, maybe I should be re-patterning parts of my life. Because clearly, somewhere in the back portion of my brain, I love being a habitual person. Regardless of whether or not I think I need habits or not, I make habits, and stick with them. Imagine how awesome it would be if I made and kept good habits throughout my whole life!
Now I just have to decide if turning right is the good habit, or if going straight is.
It feels like a hard decision, actually.
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| I should probably eat less cookies. Particularly when they're cute. |
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