Lessons from 2012

A Gentile and a guillotine are NOT the same thing, no matter what the 11 year old says.

New doors keep the house sealed tight, so you don't waste so much energy. What are you letting in?

Elementary theory of relativity: Ms. Wells, you're huge! ... when standing next to someone who is 5 foot.

The amount of time and effort invested in someone is not directly correlated with the change in a life or the amount of gratitude evidenced. Relax - people are not my job.

One day, the sunset wasn't that pretty, but the world - the hills, the sky, the barn, the houses -was rose-colored - and the world was beautiful. Do we see the world through the light of Jesus, even when we can't see Him in all His glory?

One fussy child can spoil a whole class. Especially if the teacher gets fussy, too.

Your sin will find you out. "I'm not cheating! ....anymore."

"I have bad news... I'm going to live in a hotel," may mean a night in Albuquerque. This, too, shall pass...

Sleep changes one's entire outlook on the world. For this, Jesus says, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light," just as He says we "enter into His rest."

2nd graders don't remember an offense an hour later. Love keeps no record of wrong.

Driving in too much mud throws the tires on your car off balance. Where do I travel?

Rules should be taken seriously. Are you violating copyright by using the word, "the?"

When planning to lock keys in car, one should leave the computer inside as well. Without a vision, the people perish.

7-12 year olds are better friends than adults. They are unashamed to proclaim their delight in your company regardless of the situation.

Life is not about me. I am waiting for an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled.

new year musings

It is 2012. This year I will be 32.

When I was 10, 32 sounded old. Even my mom wasn’t 32. She was 30. I thought she was so unfashionable. Since I was so fashionable myself in turquoise shirts and purple pants. She made me change for the family reunion.

Anyway. When I was 10, I had a vague idea of who I’d be when I grew up. My imagination was limited to being about 25ish. I think that’s how old Kristi Howe was. At the time I thought she was the prettiest, coolest adult I knew. I was going to be married to a cowboy and have some little kids running around and always be comfortable in jeans and a t-shirt and have lots of energy and talk to shy little girls and make them feel important.

Life didn’t come that way easily. I was rather awkward. And not fashionable. Even though I tried. I didn’t marry a cowboy. And 25 passed with no semblance of coolness or prettiness.

Then I hit almost-32. I look around my house. There are signs of kids. There’s a plastic shovel and hoe and a jenga game that were used by a 6 and 7 year old, a mancalla game from championships with a 12 year old, and cards for a crowd of teenage boys. These signs have been here for a few years. I thought when I left Eagles’ Wings, my kid stuff might sit unused but - thankfully - God always sends someone. I don’t really have any shy little girls to talk with, but I have a few random kids to whom I can give a few moments of my time - and they feel important.

I’ve finally realized that fashionable isn’t going to describe me. Still, for the most part, I understand how to weed my wardrobe down to clothes in which I am comfortable. I’ve learned to take care of my skin and do my hair so I can feel pretty. It isn’t f the makeup and hairdo that make the difference really; it's more that I’ve learned to appreciate what God has given and be thankful for WHO He’s made me.

It isn’t a dream come true. And I can’t say it thrills me when my coworkers convey a vague idea that they think I’m a nun. Nevertheless, I really believe that at 31 I have a better sense of who I am than ever before. Maybe soon I can quote, “I once was young, but now am old -” but I can already proclaim the second half, “I have never seen the righteous forsaken.”