Shoes Optional

I'm being kicked out of my office. Not fired or laid off -- just being moved to a "virtual office." It's Harvey's fault (Hurricane Harvey, that is). About a year ago, flooding from Hurricane Harvey caused my office building to flood. We were displaced for 7 weeks -- which is fine; I had all the tech tools I needed. But I got used to it. And so did my officemates.

Now, our company has decided that it is not feasible to keep a Houston office space open. There just weren't enough employees coming in on a daily basis to justify the expense.

Am I sad? This is the first time I won't have an official corporate "home" since 1988.

The short answer is, "no." I see my colleagues on an annual basis at our planning sessions in the corporate office. And I don't really work one-on-one with the people in Houston.

But I am a little sad to not have that lunchroom chatter or office watercooler gossip. Sure, I will continue to "chat" with colleagues online, but it's not the same.

Now, I will have to be more intentional about my interactions with fellow workers. And that's OK.

The virtual world will definitely be easier on my wardrobe budget. And I won't have to worry about having a bad hair day every now and then. Just don't look too closely at my feet -- the wearing of shoes will definitely be a rare occurence.

Summer Blues

The summer of 2013 is almost over. Oh sure, the heat will be with us for weeks to come, but the slower pace of summer vacation is about to screech to a halt.  I've been trying to get up earlier each day for the last two weeks, but honestly -- if it isn't mandatory, it's hard to get anyone in my family motivated.

We enjoyed a wonderful weekend in Round Top, several movies, a few plays and a couple of family get together's.  But most of all, we enjoyed just being us.  A typical family -- not perfect, not always pleasant, sometimes (frequently) dysfunctional, but supportive. Caring. Silly. Goofy. Stressed. Tired. And normal.

What IS normal?  I got to know some new people this summer who have problems I can't pretend to understand: a mom who lost a child two years ago and is still grieving, but trying to carry on normally for the good of her family.  A special ed teacher who can't stand kids -- but acted her socks off in her favorite musical, and dealt with dozens of children with patience and humor along the way.  Young adults who are contemplating a future far more complicated than I could have handled at their age, but looking forward to better days without worry or regret.

Sure, we could have forced our kids to read dozens of books and get on a fitness routine to avoid becoming "soft."  We probably should have mowed the lawn more often, or cleaned the carpets.  I wish I had emptied a few closets of old clothes and toys that will never be played with again or fetch a single dollar on e-bay.

But we did what we do best.  We start each day with thanks for a new morning and a kiss on the cheek, and we go to bed each night with a full stomach and a grateful heart.

And whether it's summer or spring or Christmas or Talk Like a Pirate Day, that's good enough for me.

Now about Talk Like a Pirate Day -- is that normal?

Been busy

It's been almost a year since my last entry.  So much has happened since then:

A new job
A new school (for one child)
A new teenager (my son)
Three new plays
Travel (Brazil, DisneyWorld, Round Top)
Concerts
Holidays
Birthdays
Sunny days
Rainy days
HOT days
Hot flashes

I get tired just thinking about it. Then I remember everything else going on in the world -- wars, Presidential elections, major national events, natural disasters...and I realize, God oversees every tiny detail -- every second, every speck of minutia -- every day.  So my life is not so complicated, or difficult, or chaotic as I would like to think.

And it makes me thankful.  Thankful that I don't have to worry about the things I worry about.  Because God is in control.  Not me.  Not ever. And I have to remember that as fast as my life is flashing by, it is only a nanosecond in God's eyes. 

I like to think I am in control and that I can shape everything to turn out perfectly and happily.  But I can't.  However hard I try, I am just a small player in a big world.  But I can make each moment a little better by loving God and loving my neighbor.  And in the grand scheme of things, that's not so bad.  As President Obama says, "No peacocks, jerks or whiners."  Be thankful.  Show love.  Every day is a gift.

Running for Life

I've completed my first 5K run!  And I'm not even embarassed that my 12-yer-old son beat me to the finish line. 

It's hard to believe I have been running approximately 3 miles a day for over a year now.  That's more than 1,000 miles.  Time to get new shoes.  And socks.  With summer coming soon, maybe some new antiperspirant, too. 

I've fallen three times and scraped my knees, knuckles and shoulders.  I've broken three cell phones.  I've listened to almost 11,000 minutes of music on my iPod.  And I've taken some amazing photographs.

Over the last 12 months I have seen hundreds of beautiful sunrises; dozens of cottontail rabbits; scores of runners, bikers and walkers; a couple of hawks, skunks and possums; and a whole lot of dew, fog, grass, flowers, sprinkler systems and trees.

Through it all I am thankful for health and safety.  And most of all, water.

Thank you God for giving me a chance to run free and far.  Here's to another amazing year on the road.

Boxing Day

It's December 26th, the day after Christmas.  Boxing Day.  I used to think of this as the saddest day of the year.  All year long I look forward to Christmas, this most beloved of celebrations, so I always get a little depressed when the excitement is over.  After a month of twinkling lights, beautiful music, family get-togethers, presents wrapped in colorful paper, and the deluge of Christmas cards with pictures of children growing up too fast, I dread the return to normality. 

This Christmas was pretty typical.  My own kids are in the "tweener" stage, meaning we don't have to worry about the Santa facade or assembling gifts on Christmas eve.  These days they're into electronics and gift cards.  It's easier, but more expensive. 

The church choir and orchestra concert was lovely.  The Christmas parties were entertaining.  Relatives came over for a feast on Christmas day, exchanging gifts and telling family stories we long to hear every year.

What was different was the Christmas spirit in the air.  I promised myself I would try to get into the spirit earlier, celebrating each moment rather than trying to hold off until the final week before Christmas.  I played Christmas music on the radio every day.  I decorated the house as soon as Thanksgiving was over.  I decided to bring the Christmas spirit to life, showing kindness to others and giving thanks for my blessings every day.

What I didn't count on was a couple of Scrooges being jerks to my family members.  First there was a neighborhood boy and former football teammate of my son's.  I've always questioned this kid's friendship.  He's rude and physically rough.  But two days before Christmas, he went too far, pushing my son and cursing up a blue streak over a football being mistakenly thrown over the fence.  No more Mrs. Nice Guy for me.  If that kid ever comes over again asking for my son, he'll get a piece of my mind.  His behavior is appalling and is a sign of a potentially violent young man.  No thank you.  Get some help, young man.

Then on Christmas eve, of all times, a man was unbelievably rude to my husband.  It was a cold and rainy night, and Richard was taking his mother home from the candlelight church service.  Our daughter was in the backseat of the car.  Richard was helping his elderly and disabled mom out of the car in the port au cachere of her senior adult complex.  Suddenly the motorist behind him told him to hurry up, told Richard not to hit his car with mom's walker, and added a vulgar insult that rhymes with "class goal."

It was Christmas eve, for goodness sake.  In a process that took all of three minutes, no longer that waiting for a traffic light to change at a major intersection, this moron couldn't wait to shove a poor elderly lady out of the car.  He exclaimed that there were three cars waiting behind him.  And your point is?  You can't give a 75 year old crippled person a couple of extra minutes to get her footing and get inside her building safely?  EXCUSE ME????

I guess some people haven't been shown enough of Christ's spirit lately.  And I need to show more of it even when it's not Christmas.  The boy who treats my son so badly doesn't know where his father is.  His mother dumps him on her parents' doorstep every weekend so she can do her own thing.  He clearly doesn't have any appropriate role models, and we need to be the salt and light in his life.  I understand that now.

And the impatient man in the car behind Richard?  I only hope he'll learn to wait for people who are less able bodied than him.  The country will be overrun with us in a few years, so you'd better get used to it now, brother.  It's going to come back to bite you soon,  I guarantee it. 

Maybe we all need a little Christmas spirit all year long.  Thats's what I hate about the day after Christmas --  I hate losing this idea, this focus on the good in people.  Now more than ever, we  need to keep the lights burning a little longer.

Talk about your teachable moments...

Parents are always looking for teachable moments – those times where we can use current events and other peoples’ experiences to teach our children important lessons.  But the last two weeks have been a little overwhelming. 

First, there was the Herman Cain incident in which the presidential candidate was accused of sexual harassment.  Then there was the publication of Darrell Hammond’s book about his abuse and trauma.  And finally, the whole Penn State fiasco. 

I’m afraid to turn on the radio each morning as we’re getting ready for school.  Kids hear these stories, blush, and wonder why adults are so disgusting.  It would be one thing if this was fiction, but these are REAL stories.  Real people.  Doing really awful things.

What can we teach our children from all this? 

It boils down to eleven words, made famous by Fram Oil Filters: “You can pay me now, or you can pay me later.”

I can’t take credit for this; I once had a Sunday School teacher who used this as the theme for a compelling lesson.  The message is clear: When something is dirty, you’re going to have to clean up the mess eventually.  And the mess will be smaller if you clean it up now; if you keep covering it up and trying to make it smell better or look less disgusting, it will only get worse.

I don’t give a flip about Herman Cain – he’s a political comet whose streak is about to burn out.  I don’t know what he did or didn’t do.  But the fact that he couldn’t own up to his past with a clear message and clear conscience makes me wonder.  What he supposedly did to these women is offensive and immoral.

As for Penn State and the alleged child abuse committed by the coaching staff, that’s much worse.  These were children, not to mention at-risk children who probably wanted to trust their elders.  I try to explain to my kids that this is not only immoral, but illegal.  I don’t care how much the State College community loves Joe Paterno; if you can’t tell the authorities about abuses of this nature, you deserve a pink slip – at a minimum.  Kids: If ANYONE tries to do something to your body that is improper, TELL SOMEONE.  And Adults: You know better.  Do the right thing.

Poor Darrell Hammond, though.  He was abused and injured by his mother; he was neglected by his father, a war veteran dealing with PTSD.  He said he felt he was surrounded by evil.  Everything was scary…the very air was scary. 

"If you're injured, it changes the way you move," he says. "If you're injured, it changes the way you talk.”  He took to drugs and cutting himself to deal with his ghosts.  But bless his heart, he is dealing with it the best he can.  He’s been through years of therapy and medication, and he’s coping.  Oddly enough, this Floridian/comedian/50-something gets my vote for admiration this week.

There is always something you can do.  It may be painful, it may take years, it may make a big mess.  But you can do the right thing.  

Describe a Circle

Today is Halloween.  My kids are a little too old for trick-or-treat, so we decided to visit a haunted house for our Halloween entertainment instead.  It just so happens my niece is a member of her high school drama team, and her fellow thespians decided to stage a haunted house as a fundraiser for their school.  We thought it would be a great place to take the kids for a fun night out.

However, our plans were thwarted when my OTHER niece, a sassy, don't-mess-with-me ten-year-old, informed us the spookhouse might be a little TOO scary for our daughter.  She had visited the haunted house the night before, and based on her own experiences, deemed it too scary for Ellyn. 

By this time, we had made costumes, reserved our tickets, and generated a LOT of excitement in our household.  It's hard to come up with something more tempting than the notion of a garbage bag full of candy.  What to do?

My younger niece suggested we go forward with our plans, but build a human wall of protection around our daughter.  With mom on one side, dad on the other, brother & cousin in front and Aunt Allison bringing up the rear, she thought we could protect Ellyn with enough love and encouragement to steer her through the spookhouse with minimal trauma.

It worked; in fact, it worked so well, she wanted to visit the haunted house a second time.  Truth be told, the haunted house wasn't as scary as we expected.  But the strategy made me realize how perfectly God protects us from evil.

Job 26:10 says,  "By Him, a circle is marked out on the face of the waters, to the limits of the light and the dark."  In other words, God draws a circle around us, making it very clear that we will remain in the lighted inner circle if we trust in Him, while evil remains outside in the darkness.

I don't see anything wrong with surrounding each other with a wall of safety and love.  The darkness may spill over from time to time, and our light may be dimmed by the vicissitudes of life.  But if the boundaries are distinct and unmovable, the darkness can never overtake the light.

And if a werewolf happens to jump out from nowhere with a buzz saw in his paws, just draw the circle in tighter and scream a little louder.  And if you pick up a few chocolate bars along the way, chow down while you can.