Today I woke up and was a bundle of energy. I could hardly wait to see what Sarah had written for her blog, and the first part of my days journey took me to see what words she wove for last night. I could feel what she was feeling as she wrote, and as her mama, I could hear the frustration and pain that were echoed in the words unwritten. I really wanted to call her, but it was only 7:00 and she worked way too late for me to wake her up from a much needed slumber. It kind of made me want to close my eyes, and just go back to sleep, and wait for her to wake up, but I was awake!
I decided I would throw in a load of laundry and get a couple of things done before my work week begins again tomorrow. I headed back upstairs, did a few things, and sauntered by the basement door. Do you know what I saw????? WATER EVERYWHERE! One of two things could be wrong. My washer broke or my drain pipe for my sump pump was frozen. UGHHHHHHHH! I went outside to take a peek, YUP, frozen solid! Eight pots of boiling water later, I was able to free the main pipe from the one attached to the sump pump and the water began to clear from the basement floor. The leftover mess from the water made me really want to close my eyes to escape from the mess!
I then opted to slop through the water and grab my Christmas stuff. I huffed and growled about my new tree which I was not happy about! I bought a champagne colored tree and it is only 5 ft tall which was an error on my part in purchasing. I tried to send it back but it is seasonal, so you guessed it, I am the not- so-very-proud owner of a scrawny little metallic, elf of a tree. I scowled at the box! Then I trudged up my decorations and decided to get things done. I plopped down and looked at all the stuff scattered in my living room. I cried, yuppers, there the dang things were again! This is the first year I have put up my tree alone! Sarah usually does it with me, but she is far away and is building a life of her own, so it just did not work out for her to be here this year . . . sigh . . . I really, really wanted to close my eyes and not see a blasted thing!
Then it happened. I got a Facebook message from a friend saying that she was in tears and had no words but was sending hugs and prayers. The second message came from another unexpected place, and again, just the right thing for a very difficult time. I cried like a baby . . . AGAIN! I opened the messages and I saw something that gave me a gift to make it through the rest of my day. Last night when I sent my message to Heather, I never, ever dreamt that that gift would boomerang back to me and melt my heart.
Soooooo today when I went to town and people were cranking about this and that, I saw beyond their attitudes to a place where they were maybe broken too. And when Sarah and I talked about how eye opening it is when you really look and see, we understood that the world is indeed messy and broken. And when the Vikings lost once and one once both in the same game, I realized . . . well dang . . . they are all just hopelessly broken. And tonight when I look at my little tree, in my little living room, in my little house . . . I am thankful for little messages that let me see God today!
Sarah Day 4: Family first!
"Family. We may not have it all together, but together we have it all."
It's amazing that we're only on day 4 and I already think about this blog the second I wake up. I think about what people thought of the previous nights blog, I think about what I'm going to see today, and I think about what mom is going to write. Mom and I never talk about what we're going to write. We like to keep it a surprise. It's more fun that way!
Today I spent some time at the mall looking for something that tugged at my heart. I picked a seat in a lounge area next to Herbergers. I carefully chose the seat that gave me the best view of the people around me. I was able to see inside a jewelry store and RCC Western. Plus I had a great view of others in the lounge area, and everyone walking around. I was sure to see something good!
The first people I noticed were a young family. I saw them briefly as I was walking to my chair and they had the most beautiful baby girl. She couldn't have been more than a few weeks ago. She had dark skin and a full head of dark curly hair. Mom and Dad were smitten with their baby girl and their love for her couldn't have been more apparent. I wondered if the others in that lounge were seeing what I was seeing.
It was apparent to me that other people were in fact, seeing what I was seeing. Almost every person that walked by that family of three, saw the baby girl and their faces instantly lit up. Some people simply smiled as they walked by, taking a quick peek at her. One older woman saw the baby, then whispered something to her husband and then they both looked at her and grinned from ear to ear. And I saw two people tell the mother and father how beautiful their baby daughter was. Now, I'm not much of a baby person, but if I know one thing, it's that people love babies. Whether it's human babies, puppy babies, or kitten babies. Babies are cute!
I couldn't help but think about my childhood as I gazed at that family and started to daydream. That look that I saw on that new mom and dads face was a look that I know very well. I remember my mom and dad looking at me that way when I was young. But even today, at 24 and 26 years old, my parents still get that same twinkle in their eye towards my brother and I.
Jordan got married over the summer to the most perfect girl, Sam. Mom and dad looked at Jordan and his new wife that exact same way with that exact same spark. It's a look that shows the world that they are proud. It shows that they are grateful and they are thankful. They raised their kids right. Today, my mom and dad can look at Jordan and I and know that we are happy and healthy. We are intelligent, wise, and strong. We are loved unconditionally by someone who makes us happy. We are growing up and morphing into the person we are supposed to be. We are finding ourselves and we are blessed.
My mom and dad have had a really tough year. Their divorce is something that we are all coping with the best that we can. If I know one thing, I know that their marriage was not a waste. I have great memories of my parents together that I know I will always treasure. Jordan and I have the best parents that I could ever dream of. They really raised us right. They raised us to be the absolute best person that we can be. Mom and dad would drop anything for us . . . they've done it before and they'll do it again. I love that I can look back on their marriage and see the beauty in it. One day, when I have kids of my own, I know that I'll look at them the same way that couple in the mall looked at their baby girl, and the same way my parents look at me. From the moment my kids are born until the moment I'm gone. Because when that spark is gone, there's a problem.
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