Ecclesiastic Times

It's been very Ecclesiastic lately...if that is a word.

I haven't written these past few weeks because it seems like I haven't had a moment to sit down and gather my thoughts nor capture life's lessons.

My friend Jennifer calls it "MAY-hem" in the month of May, and this nickname definitely describes the month, filled with trips, graduations, weddings, birthdays, and numerous ceremonies.

It's been "a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven" as King Solomon scribes in Ecclesiastes.

May has been full of surprises...literally.  I flew 2200 miles from Milton, Georgia to Star, Idaho...through a snow storm in Denver (yes, still the month of May) and knocked on my mother's front door at 1:00am on Mother's Day!  I realized I love surprises and especially being the surprise.  This was definitely a time to embrace....embrace quiet, uninterrupted time with my parents.  I can't even remember the last time I got my parents all to myself.

Within this trip were Ecclesiastes moments:

...a time to be born and a time to die

Decorating graves was something my Grandma Lucille always did. It was a time to gather up the family, and grandma would thin out her beautiful flower garden by cutting off numerous colorful Iris and Bleeding Hearts to decorate, load up the El Camino, and set off to find the grave sites of family and friends.

My brother and I would race to be the first ones to find those who have gone before us.  Then we would read the inscriptions, stare at the stone slab, and ask our parents and grandparents questions about these ones we were honoring and remembering.

I was able to gather with my family again and carry on this meaningful tradition passed down to us by Grandma Lucille.

(Grandpa Bill & Grandma Lucille's grave)

...a time to plant and a time to uproot

Watching my parents' neighbors farm their land and plant their crops was strangely moving and teary for me.  In these wide open spaces, my heart just seems to open wide as well and let emotions run free. There is more to this, I know.  I never cared much for farming until I was uprooted myself.  Too much symbolism to unpack right now.  I'll save that for another time.

...a time to tear down and a time to build

The house and most the trees are gone, and only memories remain. My parents sold the property 10 years ago, but it is still hard to see "my" bluff change. And with any change comes.....a time to mourn.

...a time for war and a time for peace

Dad and I waged war against clay pigeons and frequent tumbling tumbleweeds out in Homedale, Idaho.  It was a time to kill....and I must say I killed one less clay pigeon than my Dad.  I'm boasting here....my dad is a sharp-shooter!

...a time to laugh

...a time to love

...a time to keep (and cherish)

(Idaho Sunrise)

I was blessed to be able to spend a few days at "HOME" to remember my roots despite their uprooting and replanting in Southern soil....to weep with a friend and to laugh with my nieces and nephews.  

A time to search for the real meaning in life and a time to give up and let go of the things God doesn't want me holding on to any longer.  To give me the courage when it is time to tear and the hope of a time to mend.  The confidence to be silent with no defense and a time to speak boldly. 

He has made everything beautiful in its time.

He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

(Ecclesiates 3:11)

May I not rush its time...His time.  Whether it be wonderful, life-giving moments to treasure or heartbreaking, heavy, and simply suffocating events in my life - I love the promise that God will make everything beautiful!

I'm holding on to that today.  I hope you will too.

Beautiful Times call for Ecclesiastic Times

She Is The One!

She is the one who taught me how to ride a horse, love animals, plant a garden, stack firewood, and cook hamburger helper. She is the one who encouraged me to put flowers in the fair (yes, flowers), to join 4-H, to try a perm, and always give it one more shot. 

(brother Adam, my mom Judy, Me, and our horse Chico)

She is the one who put vapor rub on my neck to help me stop coughing at night. She's the one who bought orange creme popsicles for those hot summer days. She's the one who took "hours" to make my hair lovely so that I would be presentable in public as the "beautician's daughter." 

She is the one who often times lead the charge and made things happen. She's the one who didn't let a little thing called "hard work" stop her from doing what she had in mind. She worked harder than any of us.  We didn't know it then, but now being a mom myself, I understand.

She's the one who tempted me to read God's word by leaving her Bible open on the kitchen table to a parable by Jesus that would teach me a valuable lesson about greed.  Subtle, eh? Once she was gone, I snuck a peak!

She is the one who has modeled to me a lifelong commitment to her husband.

She is the one who has passed down a heritage of faith and service she received 

from her mother and her grandmother! 

(Me, my grandma Lucille, my mom Judy, my great grandma Estel)

Even though life has had some twists and turns and challenges, deep down she is still that young girl...that young lady...with dreams, goals, and ambitions.  

She is the one who is the center....

the heart of our family. 

(yes, that is a refrigerator on the front porch of my grandmother's house;

 it stored my grandpa's night crawlers)

She is the one we love!

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Hope this Mother's Day is a special one!

Love, 

Your Daughter

(the one you influenced greatly)