Today i walked a dark alleyway, laughing and dragging a suitcase, running to make sure she caught her plane. Parked in a spot as far as possible--by accident. no elevator to the outer realms.
But it was fun and an adventure. "go on, get in line! i'll get there in time!" Found the the counter, got the pass, got a cup of coffee and ran to the security check with about 15 minutes to spare. She went through, Iwound my way back through the airport. Thought I'd take a closer elevator. Nope,there's not one. Only the one with the winding dark alleyway. Alone. Flickering lights. Dingy. And I realized that that's what it means to be the friend of God. Just like a friend on earth, He makes the difficult places smooth and keeps our eyes focussed on the good parts of life. That even the darkness is as light to Him and that as I walk with Him, my path is lighted. Joy is present. Life is meant to be a walk with a friend. That's why David could say so confidently "though i walk through the valley.....even there you are with me." He could rejoice. and sing. In our walk with Jesus, there will be dark alleyways, but if we walk with our Friend, we will experience joy, laughter and peace in the midst of them. And it's really wonderful how He throws in friends with skin on to be with us and comfort us as well. Walk with a friend, you will be stronger, braver and more able to be who you were made to be.
blessings,
rhonda
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Beauty from Ashes
How can beauty come from ashes? I mean, I've cleaned out my fireplace and it is not beautiful, nor am I after the job. Messy. Insidious. Ash is fine and dusty and gets everywhere. It makes a huge mess if you spill it..........black soot. It just doesn't even seem possible that anyone could say that beauty could come from ashes. It's just not possible. Or is it? I use ash in my garden. It has something good for plants. And I remember years ago when Mt. St. Helens erupted. We had ash all the way down here in Colorado. I went out in the morning and my car was all dusty and covered in ash. I was shocked. Ash can certainly travel a long way. But after time, all of the dust and ash settled and created a great soil for growth. A place for new plants. What had previously been burned away and annihilated, was also healed by the ash that was left. So be brave. Though right now all you can see is the mess. Though it feels like all you ever do is clean up the ash. One day you will wake up and see the beginnings of new growth. You will experience new hope. Beauty will come from the ashes.........in time. Do not give up. You will be held. It will not be forever. blessings, rhonda
New skills
I am so very enamored with this new way of expressing myself. I can include photos. Come back often because soon I plan on having a local artists work...........
blessings,
rhonda
Goodness Gracious
What exactly does "goodness gracious" mean? It is used as a form of expletive to express shock or surprise. It is such a good phrase though. Don't you wish people would use it talking about others? When talking about you. She is full of goodness and graciousness. But, alas, the two words have been put together to mean something totally different.
I know about words changing meaning. My great grandma's name was Gayrite.......Grandma Gay. I go to church on Gay Street. At Christmas I sing a song about donning my gay apparel. My kids never fail to note the word. "Grandma Gay.......hahahhahahahahha." "We go to church on Gay Street, get it???" As if I am too slow to understand the pun. And well, you can imagine the discussion about gay apparel in a house of kids.
What about thongs? I mean, didn't everyone in the eighties wear thongs? You know, those shoes that have a little thing that goes between your toes? A type of sandal, right? No no no. Do not say thongs anymore. And do not say, if you are in your forties, that you wear them or that you like them or that they are comfy. No. Because now it refers to the wedgie producing variety of undies that, like thongs of the past, have only a little strip to hold them together. My kids are mortified when I make this mistake.
Lanuage evolves and changes. The problem is that sometimes we are speaking to someone who speaks a language not of our own.........though we are all speaking English. Sometimes we fail to communicate because we are using the wrong word for the generation.
For instance, when I was younger, hooking up meant making a date or appointment to meet up with someone somewhere. Now it has a sexual connotation. Again, don't say this unless you are sure of what the other person is thinking. Or if you are speaking to your spouse.
And kids laugh at us. I laughed at my grandparents. It was New Years Eve and I did not want to be in Nashville with them but in Colorado with my friends. I was in high school, after all. I wanted to "go out". I had a date in other words. In their language, we could go out there.......like, on a drive. I think, to my shame, that I laughed outloud. So, I totally deserve it when I miss the boat when speaking with my teens.
But the best part about all of this is it allows a chance to grow and learn to really communicate. Instead of just listening, nodding and assuming, real communication requires repeating back what you understood someone to have said. For instance, if I said, I am putting on my thongs and going out on the beach, my kids would want me to explain myself.
We can always wish for the good old days. Or we can keep growing and learning and thinking about what someone else, whether older or younger, might be hearing when we speak.
Goodness gracious, we might even find that we actually communicate. I surely hope so.
blessings,
rhonda
I know about words changing meaning. My great grandma's name was Gayrite.......Grandma Gay. I go to church on Gay Street. At Christmas I sing a song about donning my gay apparel. My kids never fail to note the word. "Grandma Gay.......hahahhahahahahha." "We go to church on Gay Street, get it???" As if I am too slow to understand the pun. And well, you can imagine the discussion about gay apparel in a house of kids.
What about thongs? I mean, didn't everyone in the eighties wear thongs? You know, those shoes that have a little thing that goes between your toes? A type of sandal, right? No no no. Do not say thongs anymore. And do not say, if you are in your forties, that you wear them or that you like them or that they are comfy. No. Because now it refers to the wedgie producing variety of undies that, like thongs of the past, have only a little strip to hold them together. My kids are mortified when I make this mistake.
Lanuage evolves and changes. The problem is that sometimes we are speaking to someone who speaks a language not of our own.........though we are all speaking English. Sometimes we fail to communicate because we are using the wrong word for the generation.
For instance, when I was younger, hooking up meant making a date or appointment to meet up with someone somewhere. Now it has a sexual connotation. Again, don't say this unless you are sure of what the other person is thinking. Or if you are speaking to your spouse.
And kids laugh at us. I laughed at my grandparents. It was New Years Eve and I did not want to be in Nashville with them but in Colorado with my friends. I was in high school, after all. I wanted to "go out". I had a date in other words. In their language, we could go out there.......like, on a drive. I think, to my shame, that I laughed outloud. So, I totally deserve it when I miss the boat when speaking with my teens.
But the best part about all of this is it allows a chance to grow and learn to really communicate. Instead of just listening, nodding and assuming, real communication requires repeating back what you understood someone to have said. For instance, if I said, I am putting on my thongs and going out on the beach, my kids would want me to explain myself.
We can always wish for the good old days. Or we can keep growing and learning and thinking about what someone else, whether older or younger, might be hearing when we speak.
Goodness gracious, we might even find that we actually communicate. I surely hope so.
blessings,
rhonda
Live and Learn
Once upon a time, a long time ago, a very very long time ago, I thought that I was all grown up. I was eighteen years old and heading off to college. It felt good. I had been waiting a long time to be grown up. I was an adult. I could vote. I could decide for myself. It didn't take me long to figure out that there were things that I didn't yet know. I didn't know how to rent a house. Or how to fix the toilet. I didn't know how to set up the electric, and when I got sick, I had to figure out how to get admitted into the hospital and how to pay for it.
But, I made it into my twenties and I knew that I had finally grown up. I had a good job. I had graduated from a good university with a rather decent g.p.a. I had good friends. Spiritually I was well veresed in the Bible, went to church every Sunday and had a daily quiet time. I was glad that I had finally grown up. I was even thankful to those people from the past who had contributed to my getting to where I was.
Fast forward to now.........my forties. And I know for certain that I have never grown up. I have no idea how to be mom of the year. I don't know what it takes to be the perfect wife. I used to think I knew what those things looked like. I certainly don't know how to be a good friend, it's just as confusing as it was when I was in elementary school and the fear of rejection is even more scary.
We think we'll be grown up. Have the answers. Kids are confused. Kids make mistakes. Kids question. Kids are afraid. Kids fail. But we are grown ups. But finally I've seen that there is no grown up......there is only growing. If we don't want to stagnate, we have to still question and grapple with the big questions. We have to make mistakes because we are trying new things. We have to fail if we go for something that is spectacular. We still get confused because so many times good things end up bad and the bad things turn out to be good..........a blessing even. Life becomes not less confusing, but more. How to be a friend in the crises of life is absolutely scary. How to be a wife through the growing pains of life and through the many years requires continual change and learning.
Growing and learning. Not achieving and arriving. We don't really ever grow up. No matter how long we live........we are just growing. Not getting there. Ever. That means that each day is exciting. A chance to be and do more. A chance to fail. And it's ok to fail. It's ok to mess up. It's ok to say you are sorry. And it's ok to be wildly successful. It's ok to not settle for anything.
That's the bottom line, most of us think that growing up means settling. Settling in. Settling for the same old stuff. But really, that's just something we've made up. We were created for so much more. To live. To learn. To grow. Until the very last breath.
Take some chances. Take a walk. Learn something new. Treat yourself like you would your kids......like life is a challenge. Each day is wonderful if you are full of wonder.
blessings,
rhonda
But, I made it into my twenties and I knew that I had finally grown up. I had a good job. I had graduated from a good university with a rather decent g.p.a. I had good friends. Spiritually I was well veresed in the Bible, went to church every Sunday and had a daily quiet time. I was glad that I had finally grown up. I was even thankful to those people from the past who had contributed to my getting to where I was.
Fast forward to now.........my forties. And I know for certain that I have never grown up. I have no idea how to be mom of the year. I don't know what it takes to be the perfect wife. I used to think I knew what those things looked like. I certainly don't know how to be a good friend, it's just as confusing as it was when I was in elementary school and the fear of rejection is even more scary.
We think we'll be grown up. Have the answers. Kids are confused. Kids make mistakes. Kids question. Kids are afraid. Kids fail. But we are grown ups. But finally I've seen that there is no grown up......there is only growing. If we don't want to stagnate, we have to still question and grapple with the big questions. We have to make mistakes because we are trying new things. We have to fail if we go for something that is spectacular. We still get confused because so many times good things end up bad and the bad things turn out to be good..........a blessing even. Life becomes not less confusing, but more. How to be a friend in the crises of life is absolutely scary. How to be a wife through the growing pains of life and through the many years requires continual change and learning.
Growing and learning. Not achieving and arriving. We don't really ever grow up. No matter how long we live........we are just growing. Not getting there. Ever. That means that each day is exciting. A chance to be and do more. A chance to fail. And it's ok to fail. It's ok to mess up. It's ok to say you are sorry. And it's ok to be wildly successful. It's ok to not settle for anything.
That's the bottom line, most of us think that growing up means settling. Settling in. Settling for the same old stuff. But really, that's just something we've made up. We were created for so much more. To live. To learn. To grow. Until the very last breath.
Take some chances. Take a walk. Learn something new. Treat yourself like you would your kids......like life is a challenge. Each day is wonderful if you are full of wonder.
blessings,
rhonda
Monday, August 31, 2009
The Gift
Today, riding in the car with my tweeners and teens, I reminded them of how unique each of them is. Each one with different gifts and talents. And I reminded them to listen to the part inside of them that is WHO they are. I don't mean what they will do when they grow up to make money. Although, it's great if those things can work together. I mean the thing inside that makes them unique. The thing that if they did not do it, they would be lost. They need to know WHO they are. Not just what they do. Sure, go to school. Get good grades. Play sports. Play chess. DO stuff. That's good and healthy.
But we seem to live in a culture that is so busy doing, so busy keeping busy, that we miss out on knowing ourselves. We miss out on finding that little nugget that is ours alone to share with the world. It's fun to get to tell my kids that they are the only person who will ever be them. They might not compete at any event and come out with the blue ribbon. But hands down, every day, they are the best them. They are the only them.
I guess I do a lot of self talk when talking to my kids. I say that because I realized that I loved writing when I was only a small girl. Loved it with all of my heart. Journals. Scrapbooks. Stories. Essays. It was all good. I was a Language Arts teacher's dream. And yet, somehow nobody ever looked and said, "write all of your life. It might not bring you money nor fame nor any interest at all, but write because it is who you are and it will bring you joy. It will help you be who you are meant to be." But I realize it for myself now. I don't expect to get rich off of my ramblings. Hey, I don't expect to get anything. But what I do hope is to touch lives. Maybe someday it'll be the lives of my children and grandchildren who go back and read about who I was and how I lived. Maybe it will encourage some young mom. Maybe it will inspire someone to do whatever it is that brings them joy just for the sake of doing it. And yes, I mean doing it every single day. Like eating.
For the gift inside is like food. It feeds your soul. It nourishes your body. It makes you feel complete. It takes away the troubles that nag at you. Without it, you are just one of the many. But with it, you are the only you ever. If you don't know what it is that rocks your boat, then spend some time alone. Think about what it is that really makes your heart well up and you can't hardly wait until you can do it again. Realize, it may have been years and years since you squelched it out in order to grow up and be "mature". But find that place. Be that person. Every day. For the thing about that gift inside is that it's not for you.......it's for you to share with the world. And the world needs it. Though you may never even know who needed it, I guarantee it. YOU are needed. YOU are unique. YOU have a special purpose.
blessings,
rhonda
But we seem to live in a culture that is so busy doing, so busy keeping busy, that we miss out on knowing ourselves. We miss out on finding that little nugget that is ours alone to share with the world. It's fun to get to tell my kids that they are the only person who will ever be them. They might not compete at any event and come out with the blue ribbon. But hands down, every day, they are the best them. They are the only them.
I guess I do a lot of self talk when talking to my kids. I say that because I realized that I loved writing when I was only a small girl. Loved it with all of my heart. Journals. Scrapbooks. Stories. Essays. It was all good. I was a Language Arts teacher's dream. And yet, somehow nobody ever looked and said, "write all of your life. It might not bring you money nor fame nor any interest at all, but write because it is who you are and it will bring you joy. It will help you be who you are meant to be." But I realize it for myself now. I don't expect to get rich off of my ramblings. Hey, I don't expect to get anything. But what I do hope is to touch lives. Maybe someday it'll be the lives of my children and grandchildren who go back and read about who I was and how I lived. Maybe it will encourage some young mom. Maybe it will inspire someone to do whatever it is that brings them joy just for the sake of doing it. And yes, I mean doing it every single day. Like eating.
For the gift inside is like food. It feeds your soul. It nourishes your body. It makes you feel complete. It takes away the troubles that nag at you. Without it, you are just one of the many. But with it, you are the only you ever. If you don't know what it is that rocks your boat, then spend some time alone. Think about what it is that really makes your heart well up and you can't hardly wait until you can do it again. Realize, it may have been years and years since you squelched it out in order to grow up and be "mature". But find that place. Be that person. Every day. For the thing about that gift inside is that it's not for you.......it's for you to share with the world. And the world needs it. Though you may never even know who needed it, I guarantee it. YOU are needed. YOU are unique. YOU have a special purpose.
blessings,
rhonda
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Life and Changes
Recently it has become necessary to close down a business that I absolutely love. I don't love it because I make money at it nor because I'm particularly good at being a business woman. I love it because of its purpose. It has been all about getting people to connect. It has been a place of refuge for many and a place for women to get to know other women and feel like they have people that care about them. It's simply a vintage store with games and classes and tables to sit at and visit. It was a dream come true, literally. Amazingly. It is a privilege to go there on any day. But life changes. The economy changes. And so we move on and walk a new path. But the paths connect and continue. They are not disjointed. So while I am sad. Deeply and profoundly sad. I am also excited. For I knwo that I enjoyed this time of life immensely though I never knew that I would like having a business. So now, I look forward to a new surprise. I look forward to seeing what I become as I grow up. I know that I'll have to keep growing. I'll have to keep praying. I'll have to keep believing. But I know that every little stage will be an exciting adventure. Hope you walk along with me. Blessings.
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