Lightning...

I woke up this morning at 5. For anyone who knows me, I don't ever wake up at 5. The reason for my interrupted sleep was due to a severe weather. The power went out, therefore my noise maker turned off, therefore I woke up. I was unable to return to sweet slumber because I HATE lightning. Flashbacks of horrible thunderstorms from my childhood flood into my mind, and I get nervous. On top of that, my windows rattle at even the smallest noises, so when lightning strikes, my windows sound as if they will shatter into millions of pieces.

As I lay in bed, with all the ideas of lightning striking the magnolia tree in the front then crashing through the roof to land on my eldest, or a strike hitting the tinderbox of a house that I live in, I began to think about how I will inevitably have to comfort whichever children end up climbing into bed with me because of their own fear. I thought of singing the classic song from The Sound of Music, but realized that 1. I don't sing very well, and 2. I probably wouldn't be able to remember all the words (partly due to lack of sleep, the other part due to the previous mentioned images in my mind.)

Sure enough, the girls came whimpering into my room and climbed into the bed. I said, "It'll be okay, let's just all cover our heads with the blanket." Funny enough, it worked for them. They went right off to sleep and left me to imagine my poor dog getting killed by a tree limb that was blown off the dead pine tree from the neighbors yard, or imagining the sound of a freight train growing increasingly louder, wondering which room in the house would be safest in case of coming tornado.

Unrealized Horizon

I love to dance. And I love art. Just as I never pursued to become a dancer, I never pursued to become an artist. Over the past 4 years or so, desire to create has gradually crept into my heart. It all began with picking up my flute after a decade of not playing a single note. It wasn't a gradual ease into playing, either... I jumped right onto the worship team at church and there I was. The dancing came next. Again it had to do with worship, and I was truly unable to keep my body from engaging in the music. Last year, I choreographed a dance for Easter morning (with help from my dear friend Tina.) I, in my wildest dreams, never would have thought I was capable of something like that... only because I have never been trained in dance. So, as you can see, there has been an interesting progression which has now blossomed into drawing.

I sat last night, reflecting on the sermon I had heard that morning, and began to sketch. This drawing is what came out of that reflection. I see so often in my own life, and in the lives of those around me, that we often limit ourselves from our true potential. When we were first dreamt by God, he set a horizon before us... something that is within our design to attain. How we get to the horizon and how we fill the space before the horizon is up to us. I want to fill mine completely. I do not want to look back and see areas in my life that were unreached by love, or to think of what could have been.

I will keep playing my flute. I will dance. And I will draw. Then do whatever else is laid before me.

"Big Boss"

I have decided that my youngest daughter is one of the funniest creatures I have ever seen. She is almost five years younger than her next closest sibling, so she has been able to observe the many mistakes that have been made by sister and brother. I would think, though, that after close study of their behavior, the littlest darling would learn. I guess in some ways she has, but in the area of believing that she is the "Big Boss" in the household, she has not.

This afternoon, I sat in the den visiting with my mother-in-law. She was over with a nephew and niece for a few hours. My nephew asked to visit a friend across the street, and being that he is almost 12, he was promptly given permission. As he bolted out the back door (yes, in the south, the front door is rarely used), the "Big Boss" turned to me with a look of presidential authority and pointed, saying, 'I am going to the front porch. Yes, I am!' I, of course, repsonded with a resounding 'No, you may not go to the porch, but you may look out the front window.' Again, the little miss pointed her finger at me and announced much more firmly than before that she was going to the front porch. Naturally, I repeated my previous stance. This went on for several minutes before I finally gained the victory.

I also find this peanut of a thing loudly interrupting anyone whom she does not care to hear with a "blrlblerlblarlbal!" I laughed the first time I heard her say it, and now, regret that little mistake. For some reason, she now believes that it is acceptable to cut innocent adults off from finishing a thought.

I could go on, but just wanted to share a little bit about this little girl that has utterly captured the hearts of her parents, and anyone else who's met her.