Thursday, November 21, 2013

Move over little black dress

by Mama Mabel

I'm not a skirt or dress person.  I wear pants on all but the most special or formal occasions.  Despite my love for pants, they don't all love me.  Most appear less than flattering on me and dress pants are the worst.  I have exactly 1 pair of work pants that I love.  They fit me great - the legs aren't too long, they don't bunch or wrinkle easily, they flatter my baby-bearing hips and they don't gap in the back when I sit down.  They are the perfect pants.  I bought them just before I graduated college at the end of 2007 and they've served me faithfully since.  I think I paid $50 for them, making them the most expensive pants I've ever bought.  So worth it!

I looked down at work Tuesday and noticed that they're starting to show their days.  They're not so much black as light black.  You know, the color that only appears after formerly vibrant black clothes have been washed too many times.  The color that doesn't match any other black clothes because it's not true black and no other article of clothing has faded at the exact same pace.  It broke my heart.  I don't want to give up these beloved pants.  Maybe I'll just wear them until they fade into oblivion.  Yep, that's what I'll do.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Waiting

by Granny Girl

Isaiah 40:31 "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength..."

I love this verse! Although it is counter to everything in our American "can do" mentality, it's such a profound truth. We're thinking "What? Wait? Why not strive? Why not pull myself up by my bootstraps and get 'er done?" I've watched people who never ingested the truth of the importance of waiting. They seem to go 100 miles an hour, but it's often in the wrong direction. If they would only wait they would get there much sooner!

Now this isn't a passive wait. It's waiting with full faith that God is in control of the events and yes, even the pace, of life. And it's not an inactive wait. You can be in preparation for whatever it is you're waiting on, or even pursuing it as long as you take the steps God has shown his light on and not rushing ahead of Him because you just don't want to wait.

In my current circumstances I've been waiting on a job. To be honest, I didn't really want one. I needed rest and I needed time. While I was waiting on the Lord's timing I pursued the avenue of learning to sell residential real estate. I already had a license, so I joined a company and took  their training classes and learned the necessary office procedures. In the process of that I learned that I probably wouldn't be the rookie of the year. The time and effort involved in making big bucks in real estate is way too much for this grandma! But I do love it and I want to continue doing it at my pace, sticking with my original goal of helping people find a home. But, alas, an income is a necessary thing. I know it was God's timing that once I came to the realization that full-time real estate wasn't my thing, I had two job interviews in one day! Woohoo! I went off to these interviews with peace and calmness (confession: I love interviewing! Weird, I know.) Both interviews went well and today I got an email from the one I liked best saying I had made it to the second round. Woohoo!

Now, whether I get the job or not is up to God. That takes a load off! I'll do my best in the interviewing process, but I don't have to worry about the outcome. And the idea of getting up and going to work every day is exciting to me now after a few months of rest. I waited on the Lord and He renewed my strength! :)

Friday, November 15, 2013

Who moved the door?

by Mama Mabel

I woke up from a deep sleep in the wee hours of Monday morning to the sound of Ladybug crying.  Not all out, the-world-is-ending crying, just I'm-upset-and-want-you-to-pick-me-up-and-bring-me-back-to-your-bed crying.  Sometimes she does this for a few seconds then falls back into deep sleep so I waited.  It didn't stop.  I heard Coondog move beside me and rejoiced that he was going to handle it while I went back to sleep.  Nope!  He woke up enough to roll over and that was it.  It took me several seconds to figure this out in the deep darkness of our country house.

Once I finally realized that I was going to be the one to get up, I drug myself to my feet and made my way to our bedroom door, expertly shuffling past my laundry pile and dresser with a deftness that showed my ample experience in this particular activity.  I even impressed myself a little with how easily I could navigate our dark room and hallway.  I called softly to Ladybug to tell her I was coming for her then turned the corner into her room. 

Bang!  I hit my temple on what I'm guessing was a doorframe.  In total confusion, I stuck my hands out to warn me of new obstacles as I spun around and hit my other temple on what could only be a previously non-existent pillar in the middle of my hallway.  I don't know how I didn't feel it with my hands first.  Maybe it was a previously non-existent floating boulder.  I scrambled for a lightswitch or point of reference and managed to walk into our vacuum.  Somehow I found the doorknob to our spare bedroom and reached in to flip on the light for a few seconds, letting me orient (and blind) myself.  From that point, I managed to find Ladybug who got quiet the instant I touched her and stagger back to my bed carrying her, miraculously avoiding invisible obstacles on this leg of my adventure.

As I fell harder than usual back into bed, Coondog asked in a concerned voice if everything was okay.  I not so sweetly informed him that I was mortally wounded and upset about it.  He wisely refrained from any further comment and I fell asleep wondering how bad my headache would be in the morning.  Turns out I slept off the headache but I've learned my lesson.  Next time I'm going to elbow Coondog and he can beat his head against a wall (or mysterious floating boulder).

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Surprise

by Mama Mabel
 
Coondog and I live paycheck to paycheck.  We're taking steps to get out of this cycle but for now it's where we are.  Anyway, I just got back from the post office and my paycheck wasn't there.  Payday is technically tomorrow so we can't complain but until recently, they always came on Wednesday or Thursday with the expectation that we would cash them on Thursdays since my coworker here doesn't come to town on Fridays.  I started to stress it because I'm very low on gas and short on money but then I remembered that I found $2 in my coat pocket yesterday.  Plus, I generally try to not stress since it's really just a sign that I'm doubting God's love and ability to provide.  I thought if I drove very carefully, I might be able to get home tonight and back to town tomorrow with $2 worth of gas plus the gallon or so in the tank.  I got to the gas station and gathered up all my car change from various cup holders and floorboards (45 cents.  Woohoo!).  When I pulled out the bills to go with it, there were actually $3 in my pocket!  Now I have enough gas to get me home tonight and back tomorrow when the paycheck should come in.  It no longer surprises me that God comes through every time we have a need, but it still surprises me how He does it.  Finding $3 in my pocket was a big deal because just a few days ago, I firmly believed that we had spent it all at the grocery store last weekend.  Shows what I know.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Perception vs. Reality

by Mama Mabel
 
I had a rough morning yesterday.  I woke up grumpy and banged around the house yelling at the animals and speaking gruffly to Ladybug.  I finally got it together enough to get in the car and go to work but first I hit the steering wheel, screamed and cried a little.  I was in full on meltdown mode.  Then I realized that I was lower on gas that I had thought so I prayed my way into work which helped me reset my thought process.  Gradually the beauty of the trees in all their fall splendor soothed my raging emotions.  I'm not proud of my fit but glad I made it through without doing anything too terrible like screaming at Coondog who thankfully slept through my bout of insanity or cussing in front of Ladybug.  Believe me, I was on the verge.  (Fun fact:  there is a family legend that my dear Grandmama once spanked my uncle for the heinous offense of "almost making her cuss.")  In retrospect, I let my grumpiness taint my perceptions until they were totally skewed.  For example:

Perception:  Coondog thoughtlessly woke me up making unnecessary noise in the middle of the night.
Reality:  It started to mist and Coondog singlehandedly hauled in everything we had on our porch to protect it. 

Perception:  Coondog let the outdoor dog in after I went to sleep so he could play with it and then it jumped in my bed and woke me up.  How rude!
Reality:  The dog got in while Coondog hauled our things off the porch and he put him back outside as soon as he finished.  On top of that, he apologized for both the dog and the noise in the sweetest way possible when he found me awake.

Perception:  Ladybug was being unreasonable and fussy and I didn't have time for it.
Reality:  Okay, she was being fussy but it's mostly because I slept late and tried to rush her from one thing to the next.  Plus I was fussing at her for being in the way as I tried to get ready.  That's kind of her job.  She's a toddler who routinely participates in my morning routine.  She was in her normal spot.

Perception:  Me being low on gas was somehow Coondog's fault.
Reality:  I'm the one who drove the car the day before and brought it home in that state.  He's the one who told me that there were 2 gallons of gas in a gas can in the shed if I needed it which I rushed off without putting in my car.

Turns out all my sources of stress and self-pity were either my own fault or non-existent.  Makes me feel like a dingbat.  I'm so thankful Coondog slept through it and Ladybug holds no grudges.  The Bible says that God's mercies are new each morning.  Thankfully that included yesterday morning because I desperately needed it.


Monday, November 11, 2013

Veterans' Day

by Granny Girl

Today is Veterans' Day. I admit that I have not in the past given it its due. I was busy raising a family and working and thought of it as a light traffic day on the way to work. Yes, I would say a prayer for the veterans, but I barely gave it a thought. My own dad is a veteran! Shame on me for my antipathy!

I'm not sure what all I'm going to do differently this year. I have a real estate training class all day and a church function tonight so I won't have time to attend any formal Veterans' Day functions. What I am going to do is pray every chance I get for America's veterans today. I'll pray for provision, peace, grace and mercy. I will pray they will know down to their very souls how much we appreciate them and the sacrifices they have given for our country.

I was reading in I Timothy 2:1-4 this morning: "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."  NKJV

So in accordance with the Scripture, along with praying for the veterans I'm going to pray for our president and all who are in governmental authority. Thanks be to God that America is a country founded on Christian principles and that we have the freedom to publicly pray for and honor our veterans!

Friday, November 8, 2013

Chips the dog

Trisha had a dog named Chips.  He was a good dog, great with kids, friendly, and about as obedient as dogs get.  When Trisha moved, she adopted him out to a family in a neighboring county with 4 kids that lived on 9 acres.  She was so relieved to find such a good home for him. 

I just swung by Trisha's old house to get a plant she left outside for me and lo and behold, Chips came running up!  He was so happy to see me.  I couldn't tell if he was more excited about meeting an old friend or the prospect of getting food from me.  I was flabbergasted.  For lack of a better plan, I bought a cheap bag of food and set him up with some water.  He was ecstatic. 

Trisha's former house is somewhat secluded so he should be safe to stay there without human supervision for awhile.  Our best guess is that the adoptive family dropped him back off.  What could they have been thinking?  Now Coondog and I have to figure out what to do with him so he doesn't starve or start scavenging a neighbor's trash and get shot.  The pound here stays close to maximum capacity and dogs are abandoned right and left this time of year if they don't perform well on deer hunts so there's not much prospect of finding him a local family.  Anybody want a dog?

Thursday, November 7, 2013

I was okay until I wasn't

My good buddy Trisha told us last weekend that they were moving out of town.  Her husband had a good job prospect in another city and none here.  They had planned on leaving early tomorrow morning.  It was sudden but that's kind of how they roll.  They needed a fresh start and they had no real ties here except us and another couple they are friends with.  I've known since she told me that it would be a good move for them.  I was happy for them and took the news in stride.  Until now.

I just spoke with Trisha.  They left a day early because her husband was so eager to meet with the supervisor at the new company.  All their stuff was ready to go so they just loaded up and left this morning.  Like I said, that's how they roll.  I was in blissful ignorance of this until 2 minutes ago.  I dropped by their house earlier so Trisha and I could hang out on my lunch break one last time.  I figured she was running errands so I let Coondog know that I would be home late because I had to stop by to see her after work to say goodbye.  Then I got the call.  Now I'm almost in tears because it caught me by surprise.  I'm bummed that my friend is gone.  I'm very thankful I stopped by Monday and spent a couple of hours talking to her.  That was way better than a rushed goodbye.  And it's not like they fell off the face of the earth.  We'll keep in touch.  For now I will focus on praising God for bringing Trisha and her husband in our lives when He did and for letting us be friends with such a warm couple.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

A coincidence? I think not.

by Granny Girl

I have recently started a new career in real estate. I've had my license for three years, but the time was never right for me to let go of the full-time job and work for commission only. Working on commission is one of those things for which the time will never be right (like getting married, having a baby, or dying). But since I've been unemployed since June this is a perfectly opportune time!

Because I'm in a sales field, I'm required to have lots of training and learn tons of information about the company and about real estate. I've been in classes from 9:00 a.m to 4:00 p.m. two days already this week and it's been grueling. I started to doubt if I could do this, but God sent the most wonderful encouragement my way. In both classes there were people next to me who were believers and going through similar struggles that I'm going through. The first day I sat with two ladies, and one started sharing about how she had recently been divorced and got into a rebound relationship and then a break up that had sent her back into her post-divorce emotions. The other lady told her "You are a beautiful woman and God is going to send the right man at the right time so just take care of yourself and your kids and it'll be ok." The divorced lady opened up about how she was a Christian and she knew God was in control. The conversation went on from there about how God had worked in all of our lives. It was so cool!

The next day I had to do a script exercise with the nice man sitting behind me. He told me he was having a hard time concentrating because his three year old was really sick and they were having to put him on a second round of antibiotics and this all came about because his wife had just started working full-time as a nurse so they had to put their two little ones in daycare. He said, "I don't know if I did the right thing by starting a real estate career right now." I told him how I was a person of faith and that through much prayer I had decided that this was where God had put me. He said, "Me, too!" He told me how his church friends had been so supportive and how his wife had encouraged him to do this. I told him the classes were overwhelming to everyone and that he would just have to slog through. And I told him his discouragement was coming from the fact that the teacher was giving us all these assignments and exercises to build our business, but she was leaving God out of the equation. He and I both had God and needed to realize that God was in control of the outcome. We were only in control of our actions and attitudes. He told me that my talk really helped him and took my business card so he could stay in touch. It encouraged both of us to have that little talk!

When fear and doubt started to creep in, as it did when I was sitting in that grueling class wondering when I was ever going to see any profit from this endeavor, God sent encouragement to me and also allowed me to encourage someone else. How cool is that?