Back to School

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We were on a college campus last weekend.  There’s nothing like strolling among big brick academic buildings to get my juices flowing.  Just thinking about walking into a university lecture hall with a notebook and pencil in hand makes me all fluttery inside — so much to learn, so little time.  As I was waxing eloquent about the joys of higher education, I asked PB if he felt it, too.  After a pause he said, “It kinda makes me feel sick to my stomach.”  (He still has dreams about being unprepared when called on in front of class.) 

Alas, I am not enrolled in any colleges this fall.  I’ve heard senior citizens can audit classes for free and not take any tests — PB might even go for that — but we’ve got a while to wait.  Then, something wonderful happened. 

The other day I was downloading music from iTunes and clicked on iTunes U.  Glory!  Free college courses from top universities!  Well, I got clicking and dragging.  This week I took Bo for a walk while listening to a Master Class on creative writing.  Last night I laid in bed with my earphones on, soaking up a doctorate class from Reformed Theological Seminary.  Somebody pinch me — this is too good to be true.

After a rather complacent summer of fluffy reading and down-right laziness, I am ready to strap on the backpack and go back to school….while walking the dog and lying in bed.  What a wonderful world.

If you see any classes over at iTunes U you’d like to eavesdrop on, please share!

Backordered

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One of my responsibilities as Christian Education Director at my church is to order material for the classes and study groups starting in September.  A new class is being offered this fall called “Foundations” — it will be a place for new believers or people without a church background to learn about the basic beliefs of the Christian faith.  Each topic has its own study guide: God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Church, Salvation, and the Bible.  I’m excited to give people a solid place to begin their journey of faith.

When the box arrived this week I eagerly opened it to look over the material.  The packing list was resting on top and something caught my eye.  At the bottom of the printout was the following statement:

THE ITEM LISTED BELOW IS PRESENTLY UNAVAILABLE:

BACKORDERED: GOD

No kidding.

Later, as I was talking to a friend about the class, the conversation went something like this:

“What topic should we start with?”

“Well, I was hoping to start with God, but He’s on backorder, so I guess we’ll have to start with Jesus.”

“That’s not a bad place to start.”

“Yeah, that will be fine, unless God gets here before the 9th.”

Huh.  Ever feel that way?  I sure have.  I place my order with God (do this, change that, heal him, help her) and when it doesn’t pan out according to my plan, I’m disappointed.  I keep hoping God will show up in the nick of time, but I am already forming a back-up plan just in case.  Before long, I wonder why He seems far away.

I’ve found that most often, when I feel distant from God, it’s because I’m not showing up.

Maybe I’d better sign up for the class in basics.

I seem to need to relearn those foundational truths regularly.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.  James 4:8

Sweet Potatoes, Baseball and Signs

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I know, I know.  I’ve been slacking.  August is a good month to take a sabbatical, though.  As summer winds down, each day needs to be savored.  Before fall activities crank up, some non-activity is sweet relief.  Here are a few pics for your viewing pleasure.  I’ll see you in September!

Hudson started eating sweet potatoes….and using a fork….kind of.

 

 He didn’t hit any home runs this summer….

…and neither did he……

…which means no one had to run the bases in their underwear this season.

 

I found some signs at a flea market.  Instead of buying them, I took a picture.

 

 I’ll stop now.

Ten Cents

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This is a hazardous time of year for me.  Temptations abound.  The back-to-school sales are starting and even though my children are too old and my grandchild is too young, I can’t resist the lure of brand-spanking new school supplies.  All those spiral notebooks are just waiting to be filled with knowledge —  all those pens and pencils are itching to record wise words….and creative doodles. 

In our family, it has been firmly established that if the kids want PB to do something, all they have to say is, “Aw, come on, Dad!  It’ll be fun!”  However, if I’m the one they are after, the better approach is, “Aw, Mom, come on!  You’ll probably learn something!”

So today, when faced with a store display of Mead College Ruled One Subject spiral notebooks, I caved.  And here’s the clincher: they were 10 cents apiece.  (I didn’t realize until now that there is no “cent” sign key on a laptop keyboard.  How disappointing.)  Ten cents!  My Scottish frugality kicked into high gear and I picked out two of each color.  Ten cents!  I can’t resist anything that costs 10 cents, let alone notebooks.  Unfortunately, the cashier told me there was a limit of ten, so I had to put half of them back.  I don’t know what I was going to do with 20 spiral notebooks.

I’m not sure what I’m going to do with 10 spiral notebooks. 

Maybe learn something. 

(Humfph.  “Cent” is not recognized as a word on the spellchecker.  It is insisting that I change the word to “sent” or “scent”.  What is this world coming to?  Guess I just learned something.  Better write it down in one of my new notebooks.)

August Scripture Memory Verses

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Here we are in the dog days of August!  I’ve been cleaning out the storage closets in the Sunday school rooms (no air conditioning) and it’s given new meaning to Psalm 42:1, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.”  May the water of the Word quench our thirsty souls.

Rain

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I love the smell of sheets that have dried on the clothesline in the summer sun.  Tonight I took my clean bedding outside to hang awhile.  It’s been so hot that I figured it wouldn’t take long for those sheets to dry and get all fresh-smelling.  Ten minutes after I made the trip to my backyard clothesline, I couldn’t believe my ears.  What a sweet sound.  It was raining.

It hasn’t rained in six weeks. 

It rained on my sheets. 

If I had known, I would have hung out my sheets a long time ago.

Fair Time

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The county fair is in town this week. 

It is that special time of year when all things are fair.

My aunt had a famous comeback to my cousins when one of them whined, “But it’s not fair!”  She would respond, “The fair comes to town once a year and the rest of the year, it’s just not fair.”  I’ve used that line many-a-time with my own kids.  For fifty one weeks out of the year, my aunt’s saying is golden.  But for that one week, when it IS fair time, the adage is trouble.

For me a sense of fairness usually comes into play when I’ve been slighted or  overlooked.  I look at someone else’s portion and compare it to mine — always a dangerous game — and feel like I’ve gotten the short end of the deal.  However, when I look at my heaping plate and compare it to someone who has less, rarely do I cry out, “It’s not fair!  I have more than they do!”

This comparing among ourselves gets us into trouble.  But when we start looking heavenward and shaking our finger at God, we’ve gone too far.  The Israelites took it to that level and God delivered a message to them through Jeremiah.  “Do I hear you saying, ‘That’s not fair! God’s not fair!’?  Listen, Israel. I’m not fair? You’re the ones who aren’t fair!”  (Jeremiah 18:25, The Message)  Gulp.  That leads to a good question: How fair am I being to God? 

Considering the cost of His own Son’s death so I could have forgiveness, how fair is it to God when I hold on to ill feelings toward others and refuse to let them go?

Considering the creative genius and intricate detail behind the creation of this world, how fair is it to God when I entertain thoughts that it all just happened by chance?

Considering the provision I enjoy (food I eat, the clothes I wear, the house I live in) how fair is it to God when I think I’ve done pretty well for myself?

I guess my aunt was wrong.  Even when the county fair is on, it’s still not fair.

Who can compare with God, our God, so majestically enthroned, surveying his magnificent heavens and earth? He picks up the poor from out of the dirt, rescues the wretched who’ve been thrown out with the trash.  Psalm 113: 5-7 

Oh yeah.  I got the long end of that deal.

10 Things I Don’t Miss

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In the spirit of the post “10 Things I Miss” (June 12,2012) here are 10 things I don’t miss, in no particular order:

1.  Dating.  I’m so glad that’s over.  It’s nice to know I can go out (or stay in) any time I want with the best guy ever.

2.  Homework.  After a busy day, sitting down to help my kids face a night of homework was sometimes overwhelming.  One kid cried over her math book regularly.  Another kid had a habit of leaving 10 page papers until the night before they were due.  Stressful stuff.

3.  Ice and snow.  Give me a hot summer day anytime.  I remember one family vacation (before air-conditioned cars) when my mother charged us a quarter if we dared to complain about the heat.  We’re from Wisconsin, remember.

4.  Rotary phones, pay phones and long distance phone bills.  I am consistently amazed at how cell phones changed life.

5.  Pantyhose.  My cousin wore stockings one day and her grandkids, who had never seen nylons, asked her why her legs looked like they were plastic. 

6.  Staying up late at night.  I love crawling into bed early with a book.  And PB.

7.  The American League.  I’m glad the Brewers left the AL for the NL.  DHs are chubby old guys.  Pitchers should bat.

8.  Detasseling. It was my summer job on the farm, rain or shine, in the heat and humidity. I had a great tan from the waist up, though.

9.   Trying to be perfect. I gave up perfectionism and have been much happier ever since.

Just to prove that #9 is indeed true, I will leave this list incomplete.  Actually, I can’t think of another thing I don’t miss.  Maybe you can help round out the list — offer a suggestion!

10.