Happy # 107: God keeps His promises.

The other morning I was on a run and had started up the hill in the graveyard when all the sprinklers turned on. Within minutes there were multiple rainbows from the water streams shooting out under the sunshine.

It was beautiful, powerful, and peaceful. Naturally, I took a picture. :)

When I was looking at the photos later that evening, I noticed something interesting. In several of the images, a large rainbow had spanned a section of the tombstones.

And then it hit me. There it was--the symbol of God's promises--stretched out like a landmark over the symbols of death, as a reminder of eternal life.

It gave me peace.

God keeps his promises.

Period.

Happy #106: Disregard the distractions.

Ok, I know this is a ridiculous image in all the cheesy ways light up, sparkly, (and I love things that sparkle, but not these) online cut and paste sparkly images can be. But when I googled "cheerleader" and hit images, all that turned up were cheerleaders in short shorts with their chests busting out of their skimpy tops. Google it. You'll see what I mean. Or not.

I was trying to find an image to convey a sentiment I've been feeling strongly about--that we ought to say with less reserve the words of kindness which would express the loving thoughts we have of each other. Simply because we have the power to uplift one another. This is real and no small thing...

Recently, two men in my life--good friends, both happily married--have said loving things to me and I have been honestly, truly uplifted and edified by them.

My friend Rob, a friend from high school, reminded me at a critical moment that I've always been everyone's cheerleader. It was a simple thing for him to say. But it had profound impact on me because I had forgotten how true it is about my nature. By helping me remember something very positive about who I am, Rob grounded me. At a moment I needed it. I'll never forget the lesson he taught me about the importance of speaking the good we see in each other. Especially when it comes to essential parts of who we are in good ways.

Life is so full of distractions. I think we're all trying to do the best we can. But I think it's very easy to get sidetracked and lose sight of what's important. And sometimes of who we are...

Focus is a good thing. Focus on priorities and the people in our lives is a great thing. And essential if our lives are going to end up having any meaning at all.

So Happy #107 is simply: Disregard the distractions. See the good. Speak the good. And be someone's cheerleader.

Go, fight, win. :D

This looks like me, right? ;-)

Happy #105: Understand your wiring and Love As is.

Why does our self worth depend on what other people think? (It shouldn't, btw...)

My daughter, Kelsie, came home from teaching her peers in a Sunday School class today. A young man pulled her aside after her lesson and began making critical remarks, offering suggestions for how she could more fully engage the class in discussion.

Kelsie is an exceptional teacher, even at a young age. And she is confident in her abilities. Yet she was so troubled by this experience, she was still trying to process it hours later.

Why did she care? Because the remarks came from a boy.

"Well, at least I can take delight in the other boy's comments," she said.

"What you can take delight in is that you're alive and on this planet and beautiful and intelligent and talented!" I offered.

She was unaffected.

Why do we (women) care what men think??

Kelsie and I stood across the island from each other--smiling, thinking, her eyes twinkling...

Then suddenly she burst out, "It's biological, Mom!! Some areas of the female brain are larger than the same spots in the male brain, and visa versa. And parts of the limbic cortex, the part of the brain that controls emotional responses? Yeah. Ours is bigger. So we're wired to care what boys think!! Researchers put monkeys in a pen and offered them masculine and feminine toys. And guess what? The boy monkeys played with trucks and the girl monkeys played with dolls. It's biological."

"So what about the boy monkeys that played with dolls?" I asked. (I just assumed there were some that did.) "Does that mean they were gay monkeys? Or that they cared more about girls than the boy monkeys that played with trucks?"

"Yeah," Kelsie said.

And we laughed.

But the truth is somewhere around the edges. It's biological and sociological. We may be wired biologically to care about what men think because men are the center of what women (most of us) are wired to care about--marriage, babies, family, home, meaningful contribution (professional or otherwise). But we are affected by what men think because of our experience and/or how society has sculpted our perception of our worth.

When I suggested Kelsie be delighted because she's simply here, I realized it's what I take delight in. Because she's my daughter. And I wish she could see what I see and the value she has in this world just because she's here.

But it got me thinking of all the good that could come from simply finding our own worth in just being here on the planet. Maybe Jesus was trying to tell us something when He said, "As I have loved you, love one another." As He has loved us: As is.

His words would be more easily fulfilled if we found a little of that "as is" self love first.

We may be wired a given way. Or have had experiences to reinforce a particular belief. That doesn't mean we're we're stuck with it. (Whatever it is.)

You're the cake. Everything else is icing.

Learn to validate yourself. Decorate the cake. :-)

And feel your worth.

Then pass it on. You know, that whole "love one another" thing. Love As is...

You first. ;-)

PS. You can read my daughter's account of her experience HERE.

And as a side note, the research Kelsie referenced is in this article His brain, Her brain .


And check out this teaching tool for the BRAIN and get to know a little bit more about yourself. :-)

Happy #104: Follow the peaceful feelings.

It's Canada Day. And I've just returned home from spending the last four days making daily visits to the precious little town of Blaine, WA.

Blaine is nicely nestled right beside the US/Canadian border. It's BEAUTIFUL. A darling little seaside community. And I love it. I love the water, the seagulls, the sunsets, the marina, the people--everything. It's a small town with a population barely over 4,000. But on the Fourth of July this modest count explodes to over 15,000 as friends and loved ones fill the streets of this tiny little city. The sidewalks burst with color as hanging flower baskets grace the lamp posts. Flags of red, white, and blue adorn every building. And you can feel the excitement in the air as the town prepares to celebrate.

I hope to celebrate with them someday and to share their 4th of July festivities with my children and grandchildren. I also hope to help the community of Blaine revitalize their town over the next ten or twenty years.

I'm from Canada, and a US Citizen. So being in Blaine (and so close to Canada) feels good. It's like I've got my feet on the ground of both places I love. And I could stand at the Peace Arch with one foot in each country and make that true. Maybe I'll post a picture of that someday. :-)

All this said, this recent visit to WA was to sort out something (not in Blaine) that has become a difficulty for me. So I experienced some stress and angst almost the whole visit, except, interestingly, for the times I was actually in Blaine. This was a valuable experience of contrast for me.

Today, I am home. And I have peace.

In this process of trying to find solutions and make decisions, I've been reminded that following the peaceful feelings that come with particular decisions and actions is very, very important.

I was sleeping last night when the plane began it's descent. I woke only slightly to hear, "Welcome to beautiful Salt Lake City." Immediately all the stress of the trip was gone and I felt ease, knowing I would be seeing my family in minutes.

I don't know what will happen with my work in WA. Or with the situation I went up there to resolve.

But I've made some decisions and this much I'm clear about today: Life is uncharted territory. It happens one day at a time. And following what feels peaceful and right is the path of ease and the best course, I believe, in the moment. This may be a no-brainer for you. But for those of us who try way too hard for far too long, it's a revelation every time it comes back around.

Happy Canada Day. Bring on the Fourth of July.

I'm happy to be home. :-)