the upside to poverty

the logic of a five year old boy:

"You know there is one good thing about being poor. Poor people get to have clothes like pirates all the time!"

A letter to myself on my 36th birthday

This is the summer of your life. Your days are full and busy and beautiful. Though money can be tight, you are rich beyond imagination. You have two wondrous, bright, zest-filled boys and part of the credit for the miracle of their lives goes to you. Yes, there are dust bunnies and clutter and laundry baskets in your home, but there is abounding love and joy and the music of life.

You work hard. You fail, you fall short, you have weaknesses that you give into, but you try. You are pointed in the right direction and aim to be faithful to the gifts you have been given.

The days are long, but the time is short. Breathe in the goodness, the life, the glory of these days. Each day ask God for strength and mercy and give thanks for what goes right and let go of what goes wrong.

Hold tight to the truth.

Celebrate and cultivate life.

the dreams God gives

One son is the bookworm. He devours information, jumps up and down with glee at a turn in the plot of a favorite story. He will shock you with his knowledge of animals. He is learning Spanish for his trip (someday) to the Galapagos Islands. He is contemplating what National Geographic would like for him to study in college so he can work for them.

The other son is poetry in motion. The first time he held a bat, he knew how to swing it like a pro. If he wants his body to do something, he usually can make it do it. He never just walks- he runs, skips, rolls. He has decided he wants to be an expert in a sport when he grows up. He doesn't know what sport, but he whatever it is, he will be an expert in it.

I look at my sons and I am reminded that God gives us gifts and with those gifts he gives us dreams. He shows us a bit of what he sees in us and in our future. And even though I often feel I am living a dream with my wonderful family, I know there are things I cannot see that God has planned. Sometimes I need to look at myself again and see what He has put in me and what He dreams for me.

recently heard around these parts

last night. . .

the boys have been tucked in. all is quiet...
S.-- " A. got water on me!"
me-- (thinking of all available water sources) "from where? the fish bowl?"
S.-- "From his mouth!"


this morning. . .

upon finding a garbage bag the cat (maybe dog?) had wet on. . .
me-- "Buttons, why did you do that?
A.-- "That is a question we will never know the answer to."