A year ago… it was cold. A year ago it was rainy and dark clouds loomed overhead when the drops weren’t falling. I thought Springtime would never come as I looked out the chilly windows. And though the willow tree had just begun to show signs of lacey spring-green leaves, it was hard to imagine the nearness of Springtime as I looked out at the leafless branches of the walnut, hazelnut, apple, pear and plum trees. Today’s much the same. But as I mull this over, I have to also give thanks and praise to the LORD who only does…
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Through the years we gather and carry with us so many experiences and acquaintances. All of these are mingled among the successes and failures in the different testings and affirmations of faith. I marvel: the handiwork of the Lord; I marvel that He never misses a thread. Things I think are wasted, things long forgotten, prayers and petitions, praises and disappointments… God’s still holding all the threads of these things. Time passes and memories fade — and then, seemingly by chance, an old friendship is rekindled, a memory is brought to mind, a photograph sparks thoughts of an event rarely…
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If you’ve been a mom for any length of time and you’ve spent time in and about homeschooling circles, Bible studies, workshops, conventions, courtship talks, retreats, blogs in the last 3 years or so… etc., etc., you’ve no doubt heard, or been part of, conversations that left you with a case of comparatitus. All those Titus2 groups… you may lament and despair. Comparatitus happens — no matter your age, no matter your income, no matter your experience and, really, no matter your skills and abilities. Comparatitus happens. Some time back, a group of sisters were gathered and there was…
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I love receiving Christmas letters each year — I read them — some, many times. I read them to the family and take the enclosed photos and hang them on our kitchen cabinet doors. I love the letters for so many reasons — maybe for as many different reasons as the number of letters received each year. I often wonder how many drafts some writers attempted before the resulting letter was complete. I say this because I attempted to write our Christmas letter no less than a dozen times this year. Each draft wordier (no surprise there!) than the previous…
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Francis Chan: “… Everything I do is either going to bring reward or regret… You’ve got a few short years, here on this earth…” “We get one chance at this life on earth… and then comes eternity.” Francis Chan Rope Illustration
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I was wondering about the origin of the word, Acronym. And then got to thinking about different acronyms I regularly read. A few, I couldn’t remember the actual meaning — I see some of them every day, but for the life of me, I cannot remember what they stand for. In case you are also wondering: if you want to find acronyms and abbreviations you can look here. This, from Dictionary.Reference.com: Acronym: “1943 coinage from acro-, comb. form of Gk. akros “tip, end” (see acrid) + Eng. -onym “name” (abstracted from homonym; see name). The practice was non-existent before…
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I’ve sure been thinking of the serendipity of finding the pages of that letter in the old desk — I shared about yesterday. In addition to the great wisdom and blessing of the words of these two pages, the fact that they are only part of a longer letter is fascinating to me — fascinating and wonderful. You know, another wonderful aspect to all this is that it sure blesses me and encourages me further regarding the integrity and depth of grandma’s character — that, and the quality of friends she had. So, here’s a bit more from the letter.…
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This has been a most interesting year. I wonder what I’ll think when I look back on this year — in years to come. I wonder if the rough edges will seem smooth later on and I wonder if the smooth days will be remembered with even more fondness. Hmmm. It’s interesting to think of all this. As I looked back at the very few posts over the last several months, I noticed I’ve been sort of stuck in a recurring theme: journaling, remembering, recording… messages that will be left behind. Tonight, cleaning in one of the bedrooms upstairs, the…
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What if you knew today was the last day you’d be alive. What would you do — or how would you spend this day? It seems that most of the time people think of what’s on their “bucket list” — you know, the list of stuff people want to do before they die. I don’t know why the thought of death triggers an urgency to get out the bucket list to see what could be done. But I was thinking that, in reality, the bucket list is a pretty self-serving deal and pretty much adds nothing to the lives left…
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A dear friend recently wrote a letter regarding losing vision and had several thoughts regarding the danger of lacking vision, and the importance of having vision or purpose. I’ve mulled that over. And over. I empathized and I actually sort of felt sick at the thought, the tragic thought of losing vision. And then it struck me (but it wasn’t the first time) that I’ve lost vision. If you’ve never “lost vision” before, then it’s probably hard to understand how someone could go along, have a great track to run on and then suddenly lose vision. But it happens. And…