The View from Here

One Resolution

Teddy Roosevelt is credited with saying, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

I am modifying that somewhat to set only one goal for 2016:

I will do the best I can, with what I have, where I am.

People often use the phrase “do the best you can” when it is clear they don’t think you are capable of accomplishing much of anything. Rather than believe you can succeed, they offer to accept the “best you can do”, like a consolation prize. Well, if you truly do your best, how can that not be counted as success?

The trouble is that most of us seldom give any task our best effort. Oh, we may think we are operating at full brain power and creativity, but quite often our focus is weak and our penchant for “multi-tasking” means that nothing is getting our full attention or effort. My goal for the new year is to be more focused, attentive, and thoughtful as I go about my daily life. I am guilty of doing one project while quite literally planning the next. That needs to change.

How many of you make excuses for your inability to accomplish something by claiming a lack of tools or talents? I do! I could take better photos if I had a better lens. I could exercise more if my health was better. I could write more if I had more time. Well, enough of that! What do I have? How can I put it to better use? How can I adapt to reach my goals? Exercise is a fine example. I have difficulty walking. Some days I go through hours of time when I can’t walk much at all. However, I CAN lift weights. I CAN use an arm bicycle. I CAN use a recumbent bike. So rather than lament the fact that I can’t use a treadmill right now, I go to the gym three or four days a week and do the best I can on the equipment that I can manage.

I am in Durant, Oklahoma for a reason. Gary I talked yesterday about all of the good things that have happened to us since we left California. And we discussed the positive changes that have occurred since we moved away from Liberty Hill and then away from Caddo. Each move was one that we weren’t quite sure we wanted to make. Of course there are things we miss about our old state, our old communities, our old houses, but it is clear that we are blessed to be here now.

Here is also a state of mind and relationships. I had to make some important decisions this past year. I faced some personal challenges. I experienced some major changes in relationships. I was saddened by the loss of friends and family members. The only way I managed to stay positive was to do my best and pray for God to work everything out for my good.

Here is also a state of time. We try to look ahead and predict and calculate and plan…especially this week. But today is the only time we have and here is the only place we have and we are the only one who can do what God has called us to do. Let us focus on today and the task at hand and do our best!

Happy New Year!

Ten Years

This year marks ten years that I’ve been rambling online. And just as I do at the end of every year, I find myself wondering why I continue to do this. Why do I still feel compelled to speak my mind, give my opinion, offer a bit of advice, comment on the world around me, and share my challenges? I’m not always sure. I ask myself the same questions each December: Who cares Mary? Why bother? What have you accomplished after all this time? My inner critic and I go round and round for a few days. Then I remember that some people have benefitted from my words. They‘ve expressed their gratitude for something I said that inspired them or gave them hope or just made them smile. And I’ve benefitted from thinking about my life and trying to express those thoughts.

Some might think that ego motivates a person like me. However, if that were the case I would have given up on this blog years ago when I realized I wasn’t going to become famous! I think in my case there is almost a sense of responsibility and destiny in chronicling my humble existence. My great-grandfather, grandmother, and mother all wrote newspaper columns- reporting local events, expressing their opinions, giving advice, and sharing their lives with their friends and neighbors. My platform for doing so is a bit larger than theirs, but the task remains the same. And my mother made it clear before I even started school that although she would encourage anything I wanted to do…writing was the best thing in the world to do. We often read together and researched together, and we wrote several articles and a novel together.

My mother taught me to be honest, even when it might be painful. She often wrote about things that I think must have surprised some of her readers. Oh, she wasn’t one to divulge ALL of our family secrets, or voice ALL of her thoughts and opinions in public, but she didn’t hesitate to admit that she was plagued by depression and other problems. She shared her ups and downs and gave hope to others who were suffering. She always acknowledged that life wasn’t easy, but declared that our approach to its challenges could make a difference in our lives and our community. After she died, many people told me that mother’s words encouraged and inspired them.

So…I’ve had my annual dispute with myself and I’ve decided to continue rambling. If my words benefit even one person it will be well worth the effort.

 

Picking Up the Pieces

This TV lamp belonged to my grandfather. 

My heart aches today for those whose lives have been changed forever by the wind.  Years ago Gary and I drove through Moore and saw the devastating aftermath of a tornado up close. The images stored in my memory are still haunting.

Of course we are quick to grieve those who were killed in the tornado and to pray for their families and friends. We understand that kind of loss. Dead is dead…no matter how it happened. However, I have a difficult time truly grasping what it would be like to suddenly be without any possessions. Through countless moves and transitions I have always had my “stuff” even if it was in storage somewhere. I’ve lived in a van, a motel, and a motorhome, but all the little personal sentimental things that I loved were safely stored with a parent or relative or locked in a shed. I’ve lost and sold more furniture than I can remember. I’ve given bags and bags of clothing to charity. I’ve sold things at yard sales and given them away to friends and strangers. I chose to let them go. But I’ve never returned home to find that they had all vanished…and I pray that I never do.

I listened to people express their gratitude for being spared to live another day. I too would count my life as the most important thing to salvage after a crisis. But I feel sorry for those same people as they pick up the pieces of their life and put them back together. The essentials of life will slowly but surely be acquired once again. The keepsakes of a lifetime can never be replaced.

Note: I posted a suggestion on FB today that I will pass on here. Make sure your family photos are shared with others and stored online or in another location. Take a photo inventory of your house. Take pictures of family mementos. I have to believe that if they were all gone, the photos would at least provide some consolation.

Last Sunday

I told myself when I retired that I would have plenty of time to do whatever I wanted! All the time in the world for projects, gardening, writing, photography, genealogy, and painting. Equal time for housework, laundry, cooking, and shopping. Anything I wanted to do could be planned, scheduled, organized, and accomplished at my leisure. So how is it possible that today is the last Sunday of the month and the last Sunday of the year…and I still have projects unfinished? Why do I have a list of ten things that I want to do this week that may or may not get done? Because life is about constantly moving forward…doing, going, thinking, learning. I might actually become depressed if I felt like I had accomplished everything I wanted and could just sit and stare at the walls.

It has been dreary and rainy today. I’ve worked on our family tree, cleaned a box of files, watched the birds, baked cookies, and consumed too much coffee. Gran always said that whatever you do the last week of the year is a good indication of what you will be doing next year. A matter of habits and priorities…

My life has definitely changed this year and most of those changes have been good ones.  I’m going to spend this week thinking about how to make a few more changes and make my life even better. I want 2016 to be a year of health, strength, faith, joy, and usefulness. How about you? What are your plans for the new year?

Spring

Thanks to some Christmas gift orders, ten new daylilies are scheduled to arrive at my house in March. Believe me, I am counting the weeks!

I love Christmas, but I celebrate the holiday season from the day after Thanksgiving until December 26, then I start thinking about spring. I’ve already taken down my tree, moved several houseplants to sunny locations, and put these cheerful bird covers on our pillows.

Oh, I realize there are weeks of cold, possibly icy/snowy weather ahead before I can plant anything in the ground. But I can’t possibly get through those weeks if I dwell on cold and dreary and wet weather. So even though it isn’t logical, rational, or perhaps even normal, I’m ready for spring. I just have to endure a little inconvenience before we get there!

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you joy and peace!

The Faith of a Child

When I was about eight years old I asked Santa for a horse. I didn’t worry about how I would feed a horse or wonder where I would keep it. I didn’t give a moment’s thought to how much it would cost or how Santa would give it to me, even though we didn’t have a chimney or a barn. No, I didn’t lose any sleep over the details. I simply trusted that Santa was capable of taking care of them and I was capable of taking care of a horse.

Oh, to still have the faith of a child…

The dictionary defines faith as “1. confidence or trust in a person or thing 2. belief that is not based on proof”.

The Bible, in Hebrews 11:1 says that faith is “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

Most of us have a fundamental sense of faith- faith in God, faith in the basic goodness of mankind, faith in the natural order of things, faith in democracy. However, when faced with a challenge we tend to exhibit behavior that declares our faith to have serious limitations. We may pray for help, but usually only after trying fifteen ways to figure out all of the details so we can specifically ask God to solve the problem in the way that we envision. Some people will counter that with “God helps those who help themselves.” Did you know that is NOT in the Bible? Yes, the Bible says “be not slothful” and there are dozens of verses about doing our work and working hard for the Lord. But I don’t recall any that say we should try to do the work that only God is capable of doing. There is a fine line between “handling our business” and “demanding complete control of our lives”. Knowing the difference and letting God maintain primary control is an act of faith- faith in the person, and faith in a solution that we often can’t see or understand.

There are things that I want to accomplish in the coming year. There are events that I hope will take place. There are people I hope to see and changes I pray I’ll be able to make. I am committed to doing my part and working hard and being alert to opportunities and taking responsibility for my actions. However, I pray that I will have the wisdom and the faith to know when to “let go and let God” show me a better way, create a detour in my path, open a bolted door,  or ask me to do something unexpected. The faith of a child is what I’m asking for this year. And it isn’t Santa that will grant my wish.

 

Listening to God

I did something last week that I have never done before. I did it because God told me to. Simple as that. Oh, I’m not saying I heard His audible voice. And I was skeptical at first. And yes, it took me a while to comply.  But after a week of contemplation and prayer and even a few minutes of negotiation over the details, I ended up doing exactly what I was told. Afterward I felt a sense of peace that is difficult to explain.

A few days later I had the privilege of overhearing an older man counsel a young woman about a decision she was struggling with and he made the comment that “you can’t hear what God wants you to do if you aren’t listening in the first place”. That caused me to think about a couple of changes I’ve made in my life this year.

I read the Bible from start to finish- something I haven’t done in years. I read some books quickly- who really remembers all those kings? I read some of my favorite books very slowly and carefully. I read some twice for clarification. In other words, I didn’t read on a schedule or try to make sure I read a certain number of verses each day. I just read…and trusted that I would finish by the end of the year as planned. I did that last week.

This year I prayed more for others than for myself. I have to admit that in the past I have prayed sporadically- usually prompted by gratitude or crisis. This past year I have prayed daily and usually for others. FB is partly responsible for that change. Reading about others, whether they request prayer or not, has made me more aware of the challenges of others.

The result of these two changes has been a greater awareness of God’s guidance. Even this post was not my idea. I was re-reading Proverbs this morning. Right in the middle of a verse I suddenly felt the urge to turn to Matthew. I skimmed the first two chapters and these verses about hearing and obeying the Word of God jumped right out at me. The idea for this post sent me here to the keyboard.

 

²⁴ Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:²⁵ And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name Jesus.

(the Magi)¹² And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

¹³ And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.¹⁴ When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:

 

As we begin our countdown to Christmas and the end of another year, I urge you to listen to God and hear what He has to say about your life. There will be changes and challenges ahead. Your path will take some detours. Remember it’s always best to travel with an experienced guide, but even His wisdom will not benefit your journey if you aren’t listening.

Cow Therapy

Many of my friends find that shopping relaxes them, refreshes them, renews their enthusiasm for life, or just makes them smile. They refer to it as “retail therapy”. Well, I have to admit to being a rather strange old woman because watching cows is my therapy. When I’m stressed or tired of cement or weary from too much time inside, I just park my truck next to a pasture and watch the cows. Their lazy grazing and solemn stares seem to give my heart and mind a sense of peace.

I don’t know why I like cows or find them so soothing. Horses are much prettier. I always wanted a horse; I dreamed of having a horse ranch. But I spent a lot of time with cows and calves when we lived on a dairy in California. We hand fed calves. We took care of them when they were sick. Perhaps that background makes me susceptible to their charms. Or maybe I feel a bit sorry for them because they are generally unappreciated. Their lives are short and mostly about profit and loss. However, I’m not overly sentimental about their place in the food chain. I hope that doesn’t make me a selfish hypocrite.

Anyway…I went out to a pasture today and parked my truck for a few minutes and watched the cows. Now I’m ready for another busy week of errands, appointments, and that dreaded necessity- shopping!

No White Christmas

This little beauty doesn’t know that Christmas is just a week away. And there are three more buds that may open if the weather stays fair. I know there are many people who would welcome a snowy white holiday, but for the sake of those who must travel, I hope we continue to enjoy a warm respite.

I don’t remember many white Christmas holidays from my childhood. Growing up in California meant that if we wanted to play in the snow we had to drive to the foothills. When we lived in Iowa I quickly tired of the snow when I found out how much extra work it was to shovel it and keep my children from tracking it into the house. Living here usually means more ice than snow and I’m not fond of the accidents and power outages that accompany ice.

I hope those of you who love snow get a little of it this winter. White is pretty for a few days, perhaps even for a week. But after that I’ll be patiently waiting for the warmth and green of spring.