inspiration

The How

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I thought when I bought THE WISDOM OF ALPACAS, that I was buying a book of quotes on individuality. Apparently I was mistaken. It seems to be a book of quotes on happiness. Today’s quote…

“HAPPINESS IS A HOW, NOT A WHAT. A TALENT, NOT AN OBJECT.” HERMAN HESS.

I like that. In our materialistic and perfectionistic culture it is hard to remember that happiness and joy are never found in things or in circumstances.

First of all, I think joy is a gift from God that we can either access or block.

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We can either receive joy or reject it.

We receive joy when we practice being thankful. Once when I was having a hard time I made myself write fifty things every day I was thankful for.

We reject joy when we complain.

We receive joy when we choose to celebrate the ebb and flow of life. This week is Christmas. I am not done my shopping yet, but I am refusing to stress about it. I will get it done and the giving is just one part of a much larger celebration. The celebration will happen whether I stress out or not. Christmas will come whether I finish my shopping or whether everything is perfect according to my definition of perfection or not. What will make me joyful or not is how much I participate in the celebration . Participation in the day… that is my choice.

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HOW DO YOU CHOOSE JOY?

THOSE OPEN DOORS

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Rose Lane said, “HAPPINESS IS SOMETHING THAT COMES INTO OUR LIVES THROUGH DOORS WE DON’T EVEN REMEMBER LEAVING OPEN.”

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THIS QUOTE MALES ME THINK ABOUT LIFE’S SURPRISE MOMENTS.

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Surprises….I have to admit I usually think of them as a crap shoot. You never know what you’re going to get when a surprise comes along. Usually I view surprises as holding potential problems. I am trying to change the way I think in that regard.

I am trying to ask….

WHAT’S THE POTENTIAL HERE?

WHAT IS GOD DOING IN THIS SURPRISE?

HOW DOES THIS SURPRISE ADVANCE GOD’S PURPOSE?

Maybe some day Rose Lane’s thoughts will be my first thoughts. In the meantime I am trying to recognize open doors before they surprise me with what comes through them.

HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH SURPRISES.

So Much Fun

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We just marched through the second weekend of Advent, The weekend of Peace. It was so much fun. Last week our church was honored to host our local high school for three days while the school was repaired from a malfunction with one of its hot water heaters.

This weekend we had a team come in to clean up and get ready for church on Sunday. But the church staff and school staff did such a great job of putting the church back together that the congregation was able to do a few extra jobs which have been waiting in the wings.

I had thought we would have the students with us for two weeks, so I rented this huge dumpster which the school hardly used. We used it instead to get rid of a shed full of rotten lumber we have been sitting on for a looooong time. Meanwhile a group of ladies went through out kitchen and indoor storage rooms to get rid of old and broken kitchen and ministry items.

I love cleaning out!

Another group of congregants worked in the sanctuary reattaching the chairs which had been disconnected and because it is the fourth season of the church year they also vacuumed. You know the four seasons of the church year don’t you? Spring, Summer, Fall and Glitter.

Vacuuming is not really effective against glitter but at least it gets up the sand and the salt that people carry in from the parking lot.

After the clean out Amanda and I headed over to our sister church, Bread of Life, which was hosting the Special Touch Ministry Christmas party.

It was ten years ago that Amanda and I joined twelve other people led by Mike and Kim Ferguson to start the first New England Chapter of Special Touch Ministry to the Disabled.

It is amazing to see what God has done over this last decade through this ministry!

It was even more amazing to see Mike playing King Herod for the Christmas story wearing a tiara.

While we were partying, Kristine was hard at work at home reorganizing the Vicarage kitchen.

Amanda, Melanie, Daniella and Abigail, finished off the night by attending Cornerstone’s leadership Christmas party.

It was a busy day filled with true peace.

WHAT DID YOU DO LAST WEEKEND?

NOTHING IS FREEDOM?

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I am working my way through this book of quotes I got from our local library’s used book sale. The book is entitled THE WISDOM OF ALPACAS.

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The theme of the book is individuality as expressed by celebrated thinkers across time. I’m not sure I celebrate this thought from AYN RAND.

“FREEDOM:TO ASK NOTHING. TO EXPECT NOTHING. TO DEPEND ON NOTHING.”

Is freedom really nothing? Is freedom even achievable? If this is freedom do I want it?

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

“I Am No Bird…”

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“I am no bird and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.” Charlotte Bronte.

Last week I stopped by the local library to see what they had on offer at their used book sale.

I found several books, one of them was THE WISDOM OF ALPACAS. It’s a book of quotes about individuality. I thought the daily quotes would be useful as writing prompts for my blog here at “Notes”.

So here I sit at my dining room table on a cloudy Thursday afternoon, as the Vicarage naps (well at least Sevy and Mom are napping). I have my cup of afternoon Ginger and Yuja tea. I am sitting down to write from this first quote from the book.

Honestly sometimes I feel more like a caged bird than I do a human being with free will. My bars are not made of metal or plastic. My bars made of the flow of life and of the mindset that life is a rushing river that I can do little about.

Lately my prayers have been refocusing me around my own personal responsibility. Life may be a rushing river, but that doesn’t mean there is nothing I can do about the rushing. There are things I can choose to do each day to make my dreams come true in the midst of the rushing.

I can plan for the rushing.

I can say “no” to the rushing especially when it is someone else’s rush.

I can break my dreams down into bite sized pieces and plan to work on them a little everyday.

I find that working my plan around the prayer cycle makes the work easier somehow. I also find that if I do not make prayer the center and springboard of my plan then the plan falls apart. For me I would say prayer is the key to exercising free will in a healthy productive way so I don’t revert to my caged bird form.

WHAT IN YOUR LIFE HELPS YOU TO EXERCISE YOUR FREE WILL?

First Weekend Of Advent: A Weekend Of Cookie Conversations

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It is the first weekend of Advent! That is the season where we celebrate the arrival of Messiah, and for those of us in the Pentecostal church it is a special time of reminding ourselves that Christ will come again.

The hi-light of this weekend for me was the first ever Winchendon Christmas Cookie Crawl held on the day of the Winchendon Wonderland Celebration.

The purpose of the Cookie Crawl was to promote town awareness of different micro communities and businesses.

It started at the Old Murdock Senior Center. The Senior Center hosted a huge craft fair in their auditorium. My first step was to pick up my Crawl card at the Parks and Rec table, and then to buy a few stocking stuffers for the fam!

My first stop after the Senior Center was Fidelity Bank. Andrew the branch manager was the cookie warden for that location. I chose a soft chocolate chip cookie for my first try. Andrew and I had a great conversation around prayer.

My next stop was the Historical Society’s Old Centre Church.

Peggy was the Cookie Lady there. Our conversation was built around Christmas wreaths (which she makes) and singing (which I have been known to do). I also got to meet her Yorkie Chester.

Megan was the cookie lady at Ruschioni’s Flower &Gifts on Rte. 140. We talked about how and when she started the business and about the fact that we are neighbors. Our church is right up the road a-piece.

Pattie’s Jewelry was next. I didn’t have time to chat with Sherry, the owner. She was super busy; So I just got my cookie (another chocolate chip) and went on my way.

I had a great time catching up with Michelle, a school mate of mine, and the owner of T Each His Own Design. I also got to chat with her about how I had met her pastor Father Henry at the last council of churches meeting.

At Not Just produced, I talked for a bit with the owner Beth Hunt and we shared stories about care giving for people with chronic and terminal illness.

At 108 Ipswich I got to talk with a few of our local farmers about their products and how they were made.

At the library I had a ginger snap while I caught up with one of the library trustees. She was the nurse for my previous PCP.

After a stop home I met up with my daughter Melanie and granddaughter Abigail at the Winchendon Community park which was hosting Santa and the Grinch for “Winter Wonderland.

The Grinch had put Santa in Christmas jail. People could pay towards getting the key to set Santa free before the town tree lighting. What a great idea for a fundraiser.

My day ended listening to Santa’s elf telling the kids a story.

HOW DID YOU SPEND THE FIRST WEEKEND OF ADVENT?

WHAT WILL IT BE LIKE PT. 2

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I started this series last week as we were looking forward to Thanksgiving. I love Thanksgiving! I would go so far as to say it is my favorite holiday.

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I love everything about this holiday. I love the meal prep. I love the gathering of family. I love the parade, and I love the low key nature of the day. So often I feel like I have to work hard to keep myself in the rhythm of slow, constant, intentionality, my chosen rhythm. Normal life seems to work against it, but at Thanksgiving the world slows down and living slowly, constantly and intentionally becomes easy.

It was such a good day. We all gathered at the table. We prayed. We ate. Then we napped. Then everyone went home with leftovers. It was awesome. I did not however spend time pushing myself to write, and I think that was correct. Even our healthiest rhythms must be rested from at some point.

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That is the next thing I will say about how I want life to be different three years from now. THREE YEARS FROM NOW I WANT TO BE LIVING THIS LIFE RHYTHM WITH MORE PLANNED VARIATION AND WITH FAR LESS GUILT WHEN I DO VARY THE RHYTHM

One of the things I am thinking of is the idea of building seasons of rest from my chosen life rhythm into my weekly and yearly calendar. Consistency is one thing. Monotony is another.

I am coming to understand Sabbath in a new way. SABBATH IS NOT JUST ABOUT REST. IT IS ALSO ABOUT A DEPARTURE FROM THE RHYTHM OF THE REST OF THE WEEK.

Holiday is also about a departure or maybe a differentiation from the normal rhythm of life. I have realized that giving myself a break sometimes makes me feel guilty. When I change the things I do on a day, when I don’t accomplish everything on my daily list I face the temptation of feeling like I have failed somehow. I am going to change that.

DO YOU EVER FEEL GUILTY ABOUT HOLIDAYS AND WHAT YOU ARE NOT DOING IN THEM?

IT MAKES ME SMILE

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This post is written in response to Trent’s WEEKLY SMILE CHALLENGE.

What exactly is making me smile today at The Vicarage?

Breakfast with my Mom this morning made me smile. The conversation is repetitive and predictable. Today we talked about my Aunt Libby’s family as Mom tried hard to remember who each of her nieces and nephews were and what they are doing these days. But that we can still have conversation and that it makes sense makes me smile. Everyday I have with the lady who brought me up is a treasure.

Hearing the noise of the house waking up always makes me smile. Sevy is upstairs doing his morning “Chica Chica” (Korean for toothbrushing). My daughter-in-law is puttering around upstairs the sounds of breaking out clothing for the day and bed making is over my head. My daughter was up for her morning cup of coffee. It’s her day off and here at The Vicarage we take Sabbath rest very seriously because of how hard we work the rest of the week.

I love having a house full. Living with four generations here at The Vicarage is one of my greatest joys!

What is making you smile today?