Wait! Don’t leave! It’s the same old me. Just with a different look. I thought it was about time for something new. Four years is long enough wearing the same blue outfit, don’t you think? Sometimes a person just has to move the furniture around, or paint the walls, or hang a curtain. Suddenly everything looks new and fresh, which is exactly what I need this time of year.
I hope you like the remodel here at “small drop”. It was easier than moving couches.
My mom was so pretty.
My dad was so handsome.
On February 23, 1946 at the farm on Highway 38,
she came down the staircase in her silk and organza,
he stood tall in his Navy dress blues.
She took his arm before the fireplace.
Elmer and Ada, Frank and Jeannette, and 35 others
heard them promise to love and to cherish.
Before the bride knew there would be four kids
and a house in the cottonwood trees….
before the groom knew there would be seed corn
and cattle and cancer….
he wrote her letters from the USS Fanshaw Bay
filled with hopes and dreams of life together on the farm,
planting seeds and harvesting a good crop.
And so, for 27 years, they did.
Elinor (1922-1973) and Roger (1923-2011)
Henry David Thoreau said, “If thou art a writer, write as if thy time is short, for it is indeed short at the longest.”
You could put anything in that sentence and it would still ring true.
If thou art a builder, build as if thy time is short….
If thou art a teacher….
If thou art a baker…
If thou art a speed skater.
Last night, an Olympic athlete won a gold medal by 3/1000ths of a second. How do you split a second into one thousand little pieces? To someone flying around a track made out of ice at a ridiculous speed, I suppose that’s a plausible concept. In order for my mind to grasp what that minuscule moment is like, I need to zoom out.
If I live to be 80 years old, I will have a total of 29,200 days to race around this planet.
3/1000ths of 29,200 is 87.6. In other words, 87 days is my 3/1000ths.
If I live to be 80 years old, I have about 9,490 days left.
3/1000ths of 9,490 is 28.
Life is indeed short, even at the longest.
Psalm 90 carries the subtitle “A prayer of Moses the man of God.”
He wrote, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
I just numbered my days.
Now for a heart of wisdom.
Sad day.
The Pew Research Center reported last week that “nearly a quarter of American adults had not read a single book in the past year. As in, they hadn’t cracked a paperback, fired up a Kindle, or even hit play on an audiobook while in the car. The number of non-book-readers has nearly tripled since 1978.”
I can’t imagine life without books. Some of my best childhood memories involve books. The red Child Craft books full of poems and stories, Nancy Drew mysteries, the Little House series. I kept it up as an adult and now I usually read around 20 books each year, although in 2012 I burned through 41. Last year, however, I read a measly 12 books. What happened? Am I about to become a “non-book-reader” statistic? Never! I know exactly what happened.
First, our church had a “read-through-the-Bible-in-a-year” program in which I took part. (So I guess you could say I read 66 books.) Keeping up with that demanding reading plan did take a chunk of time, but it was so worth it.
Second, I bought an iPhone. I’m embarrassed to admit how much time that cool little gadget sucked up. Shudder. Facebook, Pinterest, Words with Friends. I am back in control now. Pretty sure.
Third, I subscribed to Gospel Ebooks. Every day these nice people send me a list of books that are dirt cheap or even free. Every day. FREE. Books. So my Kindle got loaded up and I’d read a few chapters out of a new book, but then would get distracted by the next day’s free offer. And so it went. I’m working on this gluttonous addiction.
I plan to pick up the pace this year. And I better. My current “Books to Read” list has 170 titles on it. Plus, there are 26 unread books on my Kindle, a pile of 8 books by my bed, and 13 must-reads on my bookshelf. At the rate of 20 books a year, I’ll be almost 65 years old by the time I finish. Then I will retire….and finally have time to do some serious reading.
“I still find each day too short for all the books I want to read….” John Burroughs
I had to go back and read the page titled “Reason Why” that I wrote four years ago. When I started this blog, I had no idea what I was doing. And that was a good thing. No expectations, no goals, no grandiose visions of glory. Just a small drop of ink to make a few, perhaps, think.
So, after four years of trial and error, I thought I’d get serious and try to learn a little something about blogging from the pros. Maybe take an online class from a blogging expert or tune in to a webinar promising tips and tricks. Turns out, I’ve been doing it all wrong.
It seems a real blogger is supposed to seek out advertisers and sponsors. A true blog has a goal — make money by selling something or by working toward a lucrative book deal. I am supposed to create a platform, gather a tribe, build my subscriber list, and develop my brand. I should have been on Twitter by now. I should have ditched my free template a long time ago and designed a one-of-a-kind look with some real wow factors. I should have a stack of business cards ready to hand out to everyone I meet. (I actually did print out 10 business cards four years ago, but they are somewhere on the bottom of my purse — I never got up the nerve to give one to anybody.)
After giving this serious thought, I have come to some conclusions:
1. I don’t want to do all that.
2. I hate self-promotion.
3. I’m doing this for fun. I hope my family gets a kick out of it, and if anybody else wants to read along, well then, fine.
4. I am going to change a few things. It might be time for a new look. I’d like bigger print so it’s easier on my eyes and I’m getting tired of blue. So, don’t be surprised if one day the view is different. It won’t be fancy. It will be free.
5. My reason why hasn’t changed….and I’m at peace with doing it all wrong.
-17 degrees, -29 wind chill. It’s too cold to poop. Our dog, Bo, can’t stand it. She can’t keep all four paws on the frozen ground at once. Can’t stop dancing long enough to squat. Can’t think about anything but getting out of the frigid air and back into the house. Tug, tug, tug on the leash. No poop. Too cold.
I love how extreme weather conditions shut down activity. We all think we’re in charge, with our to-do lists and responsibilities. But really, we have no control over this world. It’s good to be reminded of that from time to time. I prefer extreme days — they make us slow down. Those other days when it’s cold but not too cold, snowy but not too snowy, icy but not too icy — those days you have to carry on despite the elements. But a blizzard or an ice storm or an arctic blast, they make you put up your hands and surrender. “Ok! I’ll leave my pjs on all day! Uncle! I’ll sit by the fire and read all afternoon! I give!”
Sometimes it’s nice to be told what to do. Usually I like to be the boss, plan my day, decide what’s next. But sometimes I like to be told, “No”. And just give in.
So, I was on my way to Walmart yesterday to get dog food.
And I was going over my memory verses.
I’m working on 1 John 3:16-17 right now.
“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?”
As I pulled into the parking lot, I noticed a man standing there with a sign —
NEED HELP, TRYING TO GET HOME.
I went into Walmart, picked up the dog food, and then, while standing in line at the checkout, over the loudspeaker in the store I heard, “Dinah! Is the love of God in you?”
Well, maybe it was whispered in my heart. Loud.
I paid $17.99 for the dog food and put it in the car.
I stopped at KFC to pick up a gift card, but by the time I drove out, he was gone.
I don’t know. Maybe it was a scam. Maybe the guy was making a good living standing on the corner. Maybe he would have traded the free chicken dinner for a bottle of Scotch. Maybe.
But I do know there are lots of times I need help.
And I’m just trying to get home, too.
And the only way I know if the love of God is really in me…
the only way I know if all those scripture memory verses I can spout off have made it from my head to my heart…
is if I lay down a little bit of my time, my money, my life.
This is how we know what love is.
What’s the difference between -10 and -20 degrees? I mean, really, isn’t there a point when cold getting colder becomes irrelevant? This is the third straight morning of below zero temperatures. In my experience -9 and -29 feel about the same. When things are bad, how can you tell when they get worse?
I suppose it works the other way, too. When things are good, how can you tell when they get better? Goodness heaped upon goodness stacks up, but eventually it stops registering, doesn’t it?
Maybe that’s why ups and downs are better than constant downs or even constant ups. The give and take between highs and lows is what keeps me from becoming numb to either one. So I should rejoice in the downs because it means I’ve had a contrasting up recently. And the present difficulty will serve to enhance the next upward swing….which is due to arrive in April.
“As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.” Genesis 8:22
Winnie the Pooh had a Thotful Spot.
He would sit on his special log, tap his head, close one eye, and say,
“Think, think, think.”
We all need a thotful spot — somewhere to ponder and treasure moments from each day.
Mary must have had such a place. Luke 2:19 says, “But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” And it’s a good thing, too. When Luke got around to writing his gospel, who better to interview about the night Jesus was born than someone who was there? And how does one remember every detail years later? By treasuring and pondering. Everyone else who heard the shepherds’ story about the baby in the manger marveled at the news. “But Mary…”
There’s a difference between hearing a sermon and marveling at the truth of it….
and giving it some serious thought.
There’s a difference between seeing a beautiful sunset and noticing its beauty….
and reflecting on creation and its Creator.
There’s a difference between enjoying small pleasures in our day….
and stopping to turn them over in our minds.
There’s a difference between reading the inspired word….
and soaking awhile in it, mulling over the meaning of the words.
Taking my cue from Mary and Winnie the Pooh, I declare this year to be a year of pondering and treasuring.
I plan to sit in my special chair, tap into the riches of the Word, close my eyes
and ponder like Mary…
think, think, think like Pooh Bear.
Having a break from the routine sure has been nice. The week between Christmas and New Years offers slower paced mornings (sleeping in until 7:00), a lighter schedule (a blank Google calendar), and space for the spontaneous (“Want to go to a movie this afternoon?”) It’s all been wonderful, but it can’t go on forever.
Today I feel like my 1973 Ford Pinto hatchback must have felt on a -11 degree morning. Getting the old girl started took a few tries before she finally turned over. Her gear shift felt like it was stuck in a bucket of molasses and could barely move. She creaked and groaned and fumed a while. After sitting idle for a few days, she needed some time to warm up. So….
“This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.”
“Rejoice in the Lord always, I say it again, rejoice.”
“The joy of the Lord is your strength.”
“Without Me, you can do nothing.”
“Nothing is impossible with God.”
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
“God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches.”
There. Now I’m humming.
Lord, as long as You are in the driver’s seat,
and You provide the fuel,
and You know where we’re headed,
this old girl will give it a go.
a small drop of ink 