Nov 23, 2010

Opera Company of Philadelphia "Hallelujah!" Random Act of Culture

As I watched this...the 1st time, I though tI was welling up with tears
because this HOLY song was binging sung in a mall....
That wasn't the reason at all!
The spirit....it's always about the spirit! I felt the spirit TESTIFY that
Jesus Christ is the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, Wonderful, Counselor,
The Prince of Peace, The Everlasting Father! HALLELUJAH!
I will praise Him for Ever and Ever!!!


I wish I could have been a spectator at this awe inspiring event! I would have
been singing my little heart out! What an awesome "Random Display of Culture"!

Nov 16, 2010

To all mothers...LISTEN UP!

I got this story via e-mail from my own mother. It touched me so much... I wanted it on my blog. The spirit I felt while reading it is worth sharing!... so read it ladies.... it's worth the 5 minutes!

Invisible Mother.....

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'

Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more! Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this??

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude -but now, they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone!?

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it t o me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof, No one will ever see it. And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does.

No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become. At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my daughter to tell the friend she's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for 3 hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want her to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to her friend, to add, 'You're gonna love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Great Job, MOM!

Nov 12, 2010

What to post.....

I have been a lose for words lately....believe me....I still have idiotic thought and words all the time. I just can't seem to remember any of them lately.

Instead of rambling...Here's what is going on with me right now....
Every Monday morning, Emily has gymnastics at the REC center. SO, I get to exercise...I run.
Every Tuesday morning, Katie has gymnastics....more running for me.
Every Wednesday night Maggie has gymnastics....yep more running.
(Don't worry... Lilli has an activity too, she's just on break from soccer.... she starts again in January with indoor)
I was feeling great, getting strong....and starting to stop dreading the exercise. Then last week.... as I was just about through with my run (about 2.5 miles), my toes on my right foot started going numb. I went the rest of the week with very sore toes.
I thought I would try again on Monday morning, but again....by the last 2 laps of my run, numb toes.
I went to the Chiropractor on Wednesday, he adjusted me, but advised me to take it easy the rest of the week. Which means, I haven't done any exercise this week....I am crabby, lazy, even sick feeling. I have no motivation, and I have eaten really terrible....thanks to the awesome Christmas chocolates that are already covering the grocery store shelves!
I can't win! I hope to do the Elliptical machine next week, so hopefully I will feel better soon.