Inspired to Take it Slower

The other day I was driving to an appointment. While I was on my way, I began to notice some people walking down the road. There was a mother and her small child, an older man and his crippled wife and a young lady obviously in a hurry. The mother was walking very slowly to help her little one take steps and move forward. The older man had his arm around the older woman and was helping her walk along. The young lady had a soda in her hand and was power walking past the others.

It struck me that I was seeing the various stages of life. As a young woman, I had only myself to worry about. I typically walked very fast and kept a tight schedule. When my baby came along, I had to take things slower and help my little one learn the ropes. I hope when I am older, my husband is there to hold my hand and help me walk along.

Taking it slower requires one to lose their own agenda and focus on someone else. This is difficult for anyone as we are born the center of our own universe. I saw a lot of love exchanged between those who were taking it slow to ensure the other did not lose their step along the way.

So while my life does not clip along at the pace it once did, there is more love in my life than ever before. I enjoy serving my family and doing things for them, even if I am tired. The love I feel in return more than makes up for it.

Inspired to Clean My House

We recently found out we are going to have another baby and are very excited about the new addition to our family. Since Ian arrived, our home has transformed itself from being our home to our son's home. The toys have taken over the living room and every piece of furniture deemed unsafe has been donated or sold. Strangely, our home has also become smaller. With the promise of a new baby comes the realization that space is no longer ample.

I listen to Joyce Meyer preach on a pretty regular basis. As I was wondering what to do about our space problem, she started to talk about how God will give you what you need if you take care of what you have. He will not promote you if you are not ready and able to take on more responsibility. He will not give you a bigger home if you can't take care of the one bedroom apartment you currently have. Hmmm.

Now, I am not saying I am the best housekeeper, but things are not a total disaster. As I look around, I realize that sometimes I don't make the effort to keep it tidy every day. Yes, I have a 10 month old but that really is no excuse. I can make the bed, I can do the dishes, I can thoroughly clean one room. While I can't do it all in one day, I can do something. If I show God that I can take care of what I have, he will make that bigger home a reality.

So, off to cleaning the house I go!

Inspired by Giving Away Pain

Every once in a while, I get these notices in the mail from non-profit organizations announcing their arrival in my neighborhood on a certain day to pick up anything I wish to donate. This is very convenient but I tend to forget and miss those pick-up days. Then it became apparent that my back room was filling up fast with things I intended to donate someday. Some non-profits are very particular about what they will and will not accept as donations. Not the Veterans group that came by, their flyer basically read: “don’t throw it away - give it to us!”

To be honest, this has always been a dilemma for me. Is this acceptable? Should I throw this away or donate it? Sometimes, it is too overwhelming. With this stress off my plate, I felt free to go through and donate everything I hadn’t used or didn’t want anymore. I started opening boxes in the garage and realized another reason why I had been putting this off. Pain. Inside those old boxes held memories which were very painful to revisit. I imagine this was most of my problem, avoiding dealing with the pain.

As I built my pile on the sidewalk in front of my house, I began to get filled with energy. After each trip to the sidewalk, I almost felt lighter. These items still held value but to me they were taking up space and reminding me of years best forgotten. When the truck pulled up, I was so excited. I knew these items were gone forever. As the truck left, I never felt so free. I smile as all that pain now gets to be a tax write-off next year. It’s about time that pain started paying me back!

Pray for Gabrielle Giffords

Today I am not inspired but I am praying. Sometimes there are no apparent reasons for why violence happens. One must believe that God can bring the good out of every bad situation.

For those unfamiliar, today Giffords and others near her were shot. She and her team were greeting the customers of Safeway this morning when a young man fired many shots at her and those near her. She is in surgery.

One can only speculate the reasons this man had for taking a gun and forever changing the lives of everyone involved. Violence is never the answer. I pray today for everyone who was injured, their family and friends, those who witnessed the shooting, and the shooter and his family. Sadly, it is the family who will likely pay the most for his crime.

Many were angry over her stance on many recent controversial issues. I do hope Republicans and Democrats can stand together and denounce the wrong that was done today. Nobody deserves to be harmed.  

My family recently became personally familiar with her work ethic and compassion for the Veterans. My father has been fighting for full disability and her office called regularly to update my Mom on the status. Until Giffords got involved, our family was struggling with the run around.

Gabrielle Giffords is an amazing woman with much energy and charisma. I hope she wins this fight for her life.

Inspired by Second Chances

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTysXITBCmk&feature=player_embedded

It isn’t everyday you read about a homeless man who uses his 15 minutes of fame to drastically change his life. He had been hanging out on a street corner with a unique sign that offered to demonstrate his “god-given gift of voice.” You see this guy and he looks rough and out comes the most amazing voice. I was shocked and moved to tears. What moves me more than his voice or his story is his humbleness. He is so gracious for the opportunity to tell his story and maybe have the chance to get off the streets. He made some mistakes and lost his way with drugs and alcohol. He found his way back by the grace of God.

The fact that he has been sober for two years AND living on the streets says something beyond words. Many use substances to escape from reality, I imagine there is nothing more real than what he lives every day. I wish I could shake his hand and give him the biggest hug.

I believe if you make mistakes but really learn from them, you always are given a second chance. It may not happen in the time you think it should or in the form you expected, but it will arrive. I pray that Ted Williams enjoys his new life and uses it to inspire others.

The YouTube user who originally posted the video made the following statement: “Well everyone, you can give yourselves and Ted a high-five. He’s being given offers hand-over-fist over the air. He’ll be set for life. My request to all: Whenever you run across a story such as this, don’t assume it’ll take a life of its own, on its own. It won’t. It can’t. There are too many other stories that drown out the one before it. You need to spend time to get that story and its word out to many. If you care, you’ll do it. Keep the faith, pay forward and always lend a hand; even if you’re the one who needs it. God bless Mr. Williams. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of him for some time to come.”

What a beautiful story!

Inspired by a Fussy Baby

Usually my son takes a good nap in the morning and afternoon. Yesterday he did not want to nap at all. I tried three times to put him down in the morning only to have him cry, cry, cry. He maybe had a 20 minute nap. I thought for sure by the afternoon, he would be down for the count. Not so fast Momma. He was super fussy and cried every time I put him down. I knew he couldn’t go without two naps, so I decided to put him in the stroller and take a walk.

It had been a while since I had been outside for a walk. Since the weather turned cold, I have been too wimpy to get out in the elements. But I bundled up my baby and we left for a nice hour walk. True to form, he fell asleep after the first 10 minutes. We continued to walk for an hour and I realized it had been too long since I had exercised last.

There was a spring in my step and a smile on my face. By the time we got home both Mom and baby were in a spectacular mood. I had so much energy and began to fix dinner. I thought, we should eat healthy tonight. Okay, so that didn’t really happen, I fixed home fries. (But we did have grilled chicken and salad to go along with it!) I had been putting off a few projects but with my new found enthusiasm, I tackled them without delay.

It was late by the time I got to sleep. I still had energy pulsing through my veins but I was delightfully tired, instead of my usual exhaustion. I woke up today refreshed and ready to go. I am so happy that my baby was fussy yesterday or I might not have gone for my walk. While exercising more regularly is on my New Year’s resolution list, I was not looking forward to it. That is until now, I got to get more this!

Inspired by the New Year

New Years day is here! This magical time of year has always been my favorite holiday. It is the day when wishes come true and lives are changed. Okay, so that never really happens but it is a day of hope. Hope that a resolution is kept and bad habits are left behind. For many, this morning greets them a new and better life. Marriage proposals were made, babies were born and cigarettes found their way to the trash. Today is a day of new beginnings, but if you happen to fall short there is always tomorrow! That is beauty of life.