Morning Coffee

Big, puffy, white clouds float above.
Little Thomas feet pitter patter below.
A lukewarm cup of raspberry delight coffee rests by my side.
Seems like a perfect place for a little writing.

I think I will always remember this summer as the summer I fell in love with the great outdoors. I hope that this summer is the beginning of a transformation. I hope that years from now I will look back at pictures pre-2010 and be able to say, “I don’t even look like the same person.” Physically, I never want to return to where I am right now. I’ve been running and cycling this summer and I feel young and alive. I feel like a kid again. I don’t want to lose that feeling. I want to enjoy life. Enjoy being outside. Enjoy being active. Enjoy my family. Enjoy my work. Just enjoy. Mentally, I want to continue to grow and change. When I think about the person I was 10 years ago, I am amazed at how much different I am. I’ve changed for the better and I hope to continue to become a better human being.

Scattering Light

I loved reading about Nancy Teaches’s(did I punctuate that correctly?) horrible case of BPA (Blog Posting Anxiety) today. I think I might have a form of BPA myself. When I look at the little calendar in the upper right hand corner of my blog and notice that today’s date is not highlighted, I begin to feel anxious. I begin to panic as I realize that I haven’t blogged today. I wonder what will happen if I let one day go without blogging. Will that one day of silence lead to a second day? If I miss two days in a row, will that lead to three? How many days will it take before I start to doubt my ability to blog? I feel anxious. I’m not sure I have anything meaningful to share with the world today. But I have this voice inside me that keeps telling me I need to post something every day just for the sake of practice. So that I can develop my skills as a writer.

Once again, I find myself very thankful for Nancy’s words of wisdom. Today, she reminded me that regardless of its value to others, my blog gives me an opportunity for creativity.

It was a blessing to hear Laurie Halse Anderson speak at the ALAN breakfast in Philadelphia. In her speech she gave this definition of light. “Light = the divine spark that we all carry” and went on to say, “Creative expressions are manifestations of that light.” Her words come to mind tonight as I realize that my blog is a place for me to express creativity. Even if I don’t have anything to say, by being creative I am scattering light into the world. When I think of blogging that way, my anxiety melts away.

Beautiful Inside and Out

I just got around to reading CEAI‘s Online Devotional from yesterday. The scripture verse for the day was Luke 11:39-40.

Then the Lord said to him, ‘Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness. Foolish ones! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?’

Many times, Kathy Branzell ends her devotionals with a question or two. The questions for this devotional are, “What do we need to do to make sure we are beautiful on the inside?” and “How can each of us carry out the attribute of living from the inside-out in our daily environment (classroom, hallways, meetings, cafeteria, office, etc.)?

I realize as I read this that, even though it I don’t do it aloud, I quickly begin to point a finger and shout “Pharisee.” My human desire is to label others ‘Pharisee’ and jump on a pedestal above them; however, I realize that as soon as I do I have become a ‘pharisee’ myself.

I think an important step we need to take toward being beautiful on the inside is stopping long enough to realize that our insides are just as ugly as anyone else’s. If I want to truly be beautiful on the inside, I need to focus on myself. I need to end stop pointing fingers and jumping on pedestals–even if I am doing it silently.

Herkimer, The Fish We Left Behind

The summer after kindergarten and before first grade my family moved from Naples, Florida to Dickson, Tennessee. It wasn’t long after the move that I remember hearing stories about Herkimer, the fish we left behind. I don’t really remember much about Herkimer. I’m not even sure that I ever actually saw him myself, but I do remember his funny name and the laughter that always filled the room when Mom and Dad talked about him.

A few years ago I asked Mom to tell me more about Herkimer, our “pet” fish that had “lived” in the deep freeze. I wanted to know what happened to him when we moved to Dickson. In my mind, I had always figured Herkimer to be a large fish waiting to be taken to the taxidermist for mounting– waiting to fulfill every fishes dream of becoming wall art. I always knew that Herkimer would have been breathtaking on any living room wall. 1 1/2 feet of snook perfection arched in a graceful curve. Little did I know Herkimer was never destined to hang above anyone’s couch or mantle. His residency in our deep freeze was the result of something else entirely. Herkimer was just a fish who never made it to the frying pan. Dad didn’t have time to clean him when he got home from his fishing trip so he put him in the freezer so that he could get him out later. Later turned into years and Herkimer just became part of the family. Mom got used to moving him out of the way when she needed something out of the deep freeze, and Dad gave him a name. When we moved to Tennessee, there was actually a conversation about what to do with Herkimer and my parents may have even considered bringing him to Tennessee. He was left in Florida, but he is still part of my life. To me Herkimer is a symbol of the love my mom must have had for my dad. I think about how easy it would have been for her to get mad at him for leaving that nasty fish in her deep freeze. I wonder how many times she thought about cursing him for leaving it in her deep freeze. Instead, she chose to laugh. Because she chose to laugh, my brother and I have this funny story to tell about Herkimer, the fish we left behind.

My Favorite Things About Humphreys County

This post has been saved as a draft since November of 2007.  I almost deleted it, but decided I’d just finish it up and post it instead. 

 

The Two Writing Teachers Stacey and Ruth were inspired by Reflections from the Rockies, and I am inspired by them. Here are my favorite things about the county I live in.

1. Driving down Main Street. I keep thinking I am going to see Wally and the Beav walking home from school.

2. Eating at Michael’s Pizzeria where they let you eat and trust you to run to the ATM and back when you have forgetten your checkbook.

3. Going to the ‘walk-in’ to see movies. The Mi-De-Ga theatre is just as nice as those fancy ones in the city for half the price.

4. Going to the ‘drive-in’ to see movies. They have yummy food at the concession stand. The joy of wrapping up in a blanket under the stars on a cool fall evening to watch a good movie can’t be beat.

5. The walking trails and sidewalks. There are two great walking trails in town. One of them is at the park so the kids can play while I run. The other is on a very peaceful road with three lakes. The trail circles around one lake and has benches along the way that are great for resting and throwing rocks into the water. When Will has Boy Scout meetings downtown, I can have a great run along Main Street where the sidewalks are wide and the scenery is quaint.

6. Being close enough to the river that I can go whenever I want and sit next to the water.

7.  Waverly Cafe.  I love the food and the atmosphere is perfect.  It is a great place to meet a friend or group of friends for lunch or to take a book and read while you eat. 

8.  My neighbors.  Being able to call and know that someone will lend a helping hand when my car battery is dead or when I don’t want to drag the baby out of the house to pick the older kids up from school is wonderful.

9.  Safety.  I feel safe in Waverly. 

10.  Happy kids.  Last year was the first year that my kids went to school in the town they live in.  They are much happier having friends who live close enough to visit.  Having happy kids makes me a happy mom.

It’s bed time, but I have one thing to say.

I love my job!!!

I love my family!!!!

I love my life!!!

Motivation Monday!

It’s Monday morning which means it is time to get back into the groove. My motivation this morning comes from a book my parents gave me for Christmas. The Time is Now, The Person is You by Nido Qubein. This book is just full of quotes on different topics like work, success, change, etc. This one stood out to me this morning.

Success rarely comes to those who expect failure.

I say let’s go into this week expecting success.

Have a great Monday!

Merry Christmas!

I know, I’m a little late in wishing you all a Merry Christmas. It has been too long since I sat down and added words to my blog. I’ve been busy enjoying time with my family. Tobi spent a week with a pretty intense case of chickenpox causing us to miss the last few days of school before Christmas break. Our shopping was easy this year, one day in Nashville took care of everything. The kids were excited, but I think we were as excited as them because we knew that they were going to love everything we got them. Every year on Christmas Eve Will and Tobi spend the night together. They take turns. This year they slept on Will’s bunk beds. When their footsteps came down the hall and into our room to wake us up, it was only 6:15. We rolled out of bed and follwed them into the living room to see what Santa had left under the Christmas tree. Will was surprised to find a Nintendo DS waiting for him. Daddy had him convinced that Santa wouldn’t bring one because he already had a Gameboy. Tobi was equally happy to find a fully accessorized iDog. They opened the presents we had wrapped for them and were excited with most of them. There was the disappointment of a box full of underwear and socks. Why I wrap those every year I’m not sure, but it has become a tradition. It wouldn’t be Christmas if they didn’t get underclothes. I put the turkey in the oven and began preparing everything to go with it. It was wonderful to know that we didn’t have to worry about being anywhere at anytime. Nobody was coming with plans of eating with us, so I didn’t have to worry about when the food was ready. It was great. When Bill’s parents and grandmother and my parents arrived, we were ready to visit with them and enjoyed every minute of it. It was a peace filled day spent with family. I hope you and yours enjoyed an equally wonderful peace filled day. Let’s all have a peace filled year.

Poetry Friday

This beautiful book of blessings by Cynthia Rylant has a blessing for each month of the year. Here is the blessing for November.

November
Bless the beans,
bless the bread,

Bless the puppies
being fed,

Bless all those
so dear to us,

Keep them safe
and near to us.

Which inspired me to write my own.

PEACE

Bless the coffee,
bless the tea,

Bless the people
surrounding me.

Bless those who love
and those who hate,

Bring them safely
to peace’s gate.

Writer’s Notebook Wednesday!

I visited a 5th grade classroom earlier this year. The teacher was talking to her students about peace. I had the students write their thoughts about peace as I guided them with a few questions. Like any good Writing Project teacher, I pulled out my journal and wrote along with them. Peace is a topic that has been heavy on my mind lately, so as I flipped through my journal to find something to share for WNW this entry jumped out at me.

When I hear the word peace I think of Christmas. I think of quiet. I think of beauty pageant contestants.

I think it is always peaceful when the weather is nice and you are near water. Water is peaceful.

I don’t know if world peace is possible, but I sure would like to see it. I think heaven is a place of peace. Maybe we should be trying to make the world heavenly. To create world peace we must have peace in all the people. To have peace in all the people, we must start with peace within ourselves. It is easy to say that we believe in peace, but we don’t really live it.