I'm still learning.

Lately, I've been learning a new lesson. 
There is power in positivity. 


When this came up in my training at work I thought, as all good military brats do, "what a lot of yuppie, new age malarky." But, as a good employee, (and, as I was being observed) I put the principle into practice. 


In my job, when I'm occasionally in the water with the students,  "NO RUNNING!!!" becomes, "Walking feet! Lets see your WALKING feet!" and "NO SPLASHING!" becomes, "It's not very nice to splash people in the face, let's practice ____." Perhaps not surprising to anyone but me, this ended up being extremely effective. The children responded very well to redirection and direction rather than my previous negative instructions. They learned what behavior I desired, rather than just knowing I was unhappy with their current action.


In my life, I have long been learning this lesson, thought I couldn't have put it in words. In my long struggle with depression, it is necessary to quickly learn to stop negative thought spirals in their tracks. If you cannot turn an experience into something positive, it could truly ruin your whole day, or even longer. Thinking positive, and declaring, and remembering the positive is a difficult habit to make, but it could change your life.


But let me cut to the chase. 


The truth is, in everything, I think we could take a more positive look at life. 
Many of my friends are dieting for the new year, my husband is also dropped soda from his diet. Too often, these changes in our lives, or even lifestyles we adopt can focus too much on the negative. We are against not grass fed meats and against sugar and against dairy. We become anti fast food and anti fluff novels and anti country music. On top of this, Christians my age are anti "religion" and find that most all churches have terrible policy of one thing or another. In general, and perhaps most frustrating, people my age are constantly changing jobs (and complaining about them on social media) because of all the terrible conditions and hours and coworkers....
and it goes on and on and on....


But what I propose is this, I believe we should be for well cooked wholesome foods, for the wonderful taste of grass fed, free range meats. Why cant we wax eloquent on the beauty of good novels and expound on the fabulous band we just found? Why cant we talk about how wonderful it is to eat food that is made and raised with care instead of bashing food we don't agree with and making those around us feel unfit? Why don't we spend a little more time discussing the wonderful things the lord is doing in churches we may not love rather than disparaging local churches about their size and policy? Why cant we be ever so thankful to be working in a era of unemployment and discuss a wonderful thing that happened, or the terribly strange and interesting people we met?


Now in all these cases, the negative might be, probably is true. YES, the chemicals in food are bad for you. YES, people, churches make mistakes. YES, I have worked many a menial job and I know that they are very rough somedays. YES, taking soda out of your diet is a good thing to do. Its true. 


 All I'm proposing is that we remember the power our words have and 


..."whatever things are true, whatever things are honest, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Phil 4:8

I get to keep him!

And I haven't fully soaked it in. Jay asked me on Sat night, and last night I finally allowed myself a squeal...alone. in the car. I really am not the girly type.
Anyways. He tells the story better than me, and wrote it down for our one-day wedding website (no plans are going to be laid till AFTER Christmas) and here it is...

"When It Happened


      11/13/2010

The Proposal

      Under the guise of simply celebrating 18 months of dating, Jay planned a date that actually began on Friday evening. He took Rachel to places that have been important to them throughout the course of their relationship: the house where they met, a swing where they sat on their first date, his parents' house, and the coffee shop where they first got together for coffee after meeting one another. Knowing how much Rachel loves receiving letters, Jay wrote a letter for each location, and he read the letters aloud to Rachel. Each letter spoke of the importance of the location, and what he loved most about their time together there. At the end of the night, after only four letters, Rachel thought the date was over. It was only just beginning.



      On the morning of the 13th Jay & Rachel drove up to Boone. On their way to meet some friends for breakfast, Jay turned off and drove to Rachel's old apartment, where he had visited her when he came to Boone for the first time. She was delighted to find out that he had more letters. The next few hours were spend with some good friends, and after leaving them, the date continued. Jay got a little lost trying to find the next location, but Rachel helped him and they got to a gazebo on the campus of Appalachian State University where they had eaten dinner together once when Jay made an unexpected visit. The letter was read, and they continued on their way. After getting some coffee, and looking at funny books about body language and kids scared of Santa, they drove up the mountain to go on a short hike. At the top of the hike they took a while to sit and look out over the land, taking in the breeze and the comforting silence, before coming back down the mountain. The final stop, or so Rachel thought, was at the Six Pence Pub in Blowing Rock. Jay had written one last letter, and he read it to her on a bench outside, because the pub was too full.



       After this it seemed Rachel was sure the date was over, and Jay wasn't really suggesting otherwise. However, as they started back toward Boone to finish out the evening, Jay asked if they could return to the place where he first told Rachel that he was in love with her. So they drove up the side of the mountain, and after making one or two wrong turns, managed to find that special place that overlooked the valley. There they sat on that rocky cliff and watched the sun go down behind the mountains. The weather was perfect. The sky was clear, and the sun's rays shimmered as they shot out from behind the mountains. Jay, pretending to be cold, retrieved his coat from the car, which happened to have the ring in its pocket. As he stood on the rock and faced Rachel, he told her about the ways that she has changed his life. "I would go anywhere with you. I want to go everywhere with you," he said. Then he got down on one knee, fiddled awkwardly trying to get the ring out of his pocket, and asked Rachel to marry him. She said "yes" and he put the ring on her finger. As the last light of the sun was fading and the twinkling stars were slowly appearing, there was a long embrace, and many joyous thoughts about what was coming for these two people who were very, very much in love."

From here

Beautiful mornings

So, a handyman is supposed to show up today to check the fire alarms and change the air filters. I'm always nervous to get in the shower or do anything that might leave me suprised if the handyman/delivery guy/any sort of stranger shows up. So I've been doing what I have been doing of late, checking out blogs....enjoying my morning.

Its so beautiful when it rains in the fall!

Well my life went from zero to sixty in no time flat.

I have two jobs now, and all the stress and buckets of coffee caught up with me today.

I spent the morning relaxing, eating good foods, drinking coffee... but as soon as I hit work, my stomach was not happy at all. Acid stomach, or heartburn, or I dont know what it was but blech. This has never happened to me before.

So I drank some baking soda, (Alkaline! I taught IPC, I did!) and am currently sipping on cup of boiled cinnamin stick (supposedly a remedy for acidic stomach from the middle east).

I really need to be sleeping.

Remember

At church, we have been going through the book of Joshua. The series was entitled The Land, and it paralleled the walk of the Israelites on their way to their Promised Land with our own struggles on our walk into the ultimate calling and blessings in our life.

….I’ll bet, like me, they doubted.

I’ll bet they awoke some mornings without zeal for the long walk ahead of them that day. I’ll bet they wondered some days where they were, and if they were on the right route. I’ll bet some days they forgot even where they were headed. I’ll bet some days they awoke with very little hope. I’ll bet they often felt like they were going to wander the wilderness forever. That sometimes even the manna they miraculously received felt paltry and dry.

I’ll bet, like me, they also hoped.

I’ll bet they clung to reminders that one day, one day sooner or later, they would come to the promised land. Reminders like the ever present smoke and fire. They reminded one another, I’ll bet. They would tell one another, “He promised. He promised us a home, a resting place, plenty. He promised that one day we would get there. We will.” When they days got long, and dusty, and hopeless, they reminded one another. They remembered for one another.

I’ll bet some days they just wished the Lord had given them a map. But if He had given them a map, they could have done it all on their own strength. Instead they, like me, had to learn the lesson of daily obedience. Of not knowing, but staying close to him, and following day by day, hour by hour, step by dusty step. They had to daily awake, gather their manna, and follow the pillar of smoke.

And remember.

 

He promised.

Bernoulli....

Sitting in Caribu, trying to come up with enough research to make me feel comfortable about the interview and presentation I am going to give tomorrow. It’s a job with a company called MadScience. They give parties and afterschool programs to wee children and try to interest them in science. Something I love. I have to present on Bernoulli’s principle for five minutes.


But I’m afraid that I won’t make Bernoulli’s principle entertaining enough.

I remember the day I taught this to the ninth grade class. Fourteen boys and four girls. Too much energy for a teacher with six weeks experience. I taught them the basics, did a few demonstrations, then handed them two sections of straw and a cup of water in order to make atomizers….it was a good day. Lots of interest and curiosity, and water everywhere.

I miss teaching.

I miss working.

I wish life would get into gear. Any gear will do.

Summer dinner at our house.

Its dinner time in Duestchland. Here are the the ingredients!

(sorry about the quality, my camera is acting up)

Tomatoes. (My parents have had this colander since they were first married 26 years ago. My dad remembers because it is slightly melted at the bottom.)

Plus green peppers (and a few more ingredients)....equal....

Pasta Salad! (in Polish pottery!)

Add Mead.

And chickens smoked on the grill.

Et voila! Summer Dinner.

Strawberries and vanilla ice cream for dessert.