Choose Your Growth

We can either be compelled to grow or we can choose it. I for one would rather work hard and try to do hard things than always wait for difficult circumstances to arise so that I may be tested. We will still have trial in life but ultimately we can help the Lord help us grow by choosing to stretch ourselves.

A Little Suga'

I feel the lazy bug has bit me today. I have zero interest in doing anything worthwhile which means I need to get off my duff and do something.

Yep, today is a cupcake day!

Be Still

My husband and I have been discussing the Psalm scripture "be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10) lately. We've both been inspired by it on several occassions and today I had the chance to sit and take a closer look. I've never looked up the footnotes on this scripture and decided I would and when I looked up the footnote for "know" it directed me to Job 37:14 which reads "Heaken unto this, O Job: stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God."

Today I will "Hearken unto this", and "stand still", it can never hurt to consider the wondrous works of God.

Back to the Basics

So, today we are officially without an exchange student. It's been an interesting process going from trying to tolerate a different point of view in my home to accepting that it's not going to work to actually feeling relief that my home is all mine again. The strongest emotion I feel; relief. I had no idea how truly miserable I was for the past several months. I have to assume that this student was unhappy as well. In the past few days I have found that I am more energentic and happy around my kids and that has been a great bonus by itself.

All in all, not my favorite experience. It's been very tough and I've had a hard time reconciling my relief at his absence with my desire to be openminded. It's a tough one.

From Someone Else

Here's a thought.

"Life is change. Growth is optional. Choose wisely."

Karen Kaiser Clark

Down Another Path

So you may remember that I have had an exchange student living with me for the past seven months. It's the second time I've had an exchange student although he's the third student we've hosted. (Last year we had two at the same time.)

We are currently in the process of finding another home for this student because it's just not working out very well. It's not that he's a bad kid, quite the contrary, he's very polite but we have come to a major divide in our ways of thinking. See, I am a Mormon and he is an Atheist.

When we first started this school year, I thought we could live around each other's differences. He's a responsible kid who has never really made any more work for me in my house as far as chores go. The problem is simply, I have grown weary of feeling his tension at my dinner table as he sits with his head up, eyes ahead while we pray. Of feeling like we can't talk about certain subjects because he's here. I'm sure he's tired of feeling like religion and God are everywhere he turns and that no one is interested in hearing much about the things in which he believes strongly.

The only thing I can think of to describe our decision is simply this; while it's fun and exciting to play a football game, you don't bring the opposing team in to the locker room. This student would make a great next door neighbor. Thoughtful, respectful and hard working. But we just haven't been able to make it work living under one roof.

It's killing me to think that we can't make this work somehow but I know I will not stop praying, going to church or talking about God and I know that it is wrong to ask him to observe the tokens that mark my faith. I will not ask him to change just as I will not change for him. So, here we are. Respectfully taking separate paths hoping that no matter what the future holds both of us can look back at this experience with respect for the other.

Guard The Skinny!

I'm trying to lose weight...again. This time, it's personal. My battle cry is this; "guard the skinny!" I am so done with this fight. I've been successful before and I'm angry at myself for putting it back on. I like how I feel and look when I'm lighter and so the war to "guard my skinny" shall be fought and won! I will bury the fat lady that lives inside somewhere on the battle ground, never to rise again.

Now, on to battle!