If my life were different, I would be different… If my job only paid better… If my husband treated me like he cared… If our house wasn’t so small… If my health was good… If my kids would listen… Have you been there? It’s a tempting way to live life. The “If onlys” provide us with a fantasy world of perfection. A land where all our troubles vanish and then, finally, we can be who we really want to be. Happy. Content. Joyful. There’s just Read More
thanksgiving
Fleas and . . . Thanksgiving?
I recently heard this funny little story at an event where I was singing: There was a little old lady who woke up one morning to realize she only had three hairs left on her head. She looked in the mirror, smiled and said, “Lord, I thank you because I can braid my hair today.” So she did. The next day she woke up and only two hairs remained. She looked in the mirror, smiled and said, “Lord, I thank you because today I can Read More
Moving Down Alto Side: The Thankfulness Perspective
I stared at the seat I’d occupied in the church choir for nineteen years. End seat, soprano section. No longer. This was the day. I had to do it. It was past time. I swallowed and grabbed my black folder, clutching it to my chest as I marched past the director and plopped next to the empty chair in the alto section. My friends gave me quizzical stares. I smiled weakly. “Looks like I’m an alto now. You’re stuck with me.” I know this sounds Read More
The Obscure Thanksgiving List: Banana Pudding, Spanx and Tweezers…Oh my!
This is my girls’ attitude of gratitude board. Every month we have a new theme and each day they put a new sticky note on the board. November’s theme is, you guessed it, thankfulness. Their first sticky notes were broad things, like their gratitude for God, family and friends. Lately though, they are starting to get a little more specific…hair, turkey, movies. My two-year old said, “Buzz.” (As in Buzz Lightyear.) Several days ago, I polled my Facebook friends, asking them what they were thankful Read More
Fleas and…Thanksgiving?
I recently heard this funny little story at an event where I was singing: There was a little old lady who woke up one morning to realize she only had three hairs left on her head. She looked in the mirror, smiled and said, “Lord, I thank you because I can braid my hair today.” So she did. The next day she woke up and only two hairs remained. She looked in the mirror, smiled and said, “Lord, I thank you because today I can Read More