Giving thanks for - heat. Cold physically hurts. Every time my body feels the physical pain of stabbing cold (which isn’t often because… menopause), I can’t help but recall the true story of the tragic deaths of a fellow local homeschooling family while they were on a hiking trail in January on an unseasonably warm day and a sudden, unexpected ice storm stranded them, completely exposed. The mom wrote her story and published it years later. The gut wrenching account comes to mind every time I feel that sting of cold on my skin, and I am thankful to know that my loved ones are safe and warm.
Outside my window - there was heavy rain when I first got up this morning. Still cloudy and cold. But there is a new patio out there awaiting the Spring weather to invite us to enjoy the backyard.
Clothing myself in - sweats. But my shoes are on and laced up ready for work. Actually, I decided to return to my writing space in the basement and it’s especially chilly down here until the heater has a chance to work its magic. A new wardrobe has piqued my interest… I think I’d like a new look.
Home front - the project I was working on, reluctantly (oh that’s such an understatement) is DONE! And now it’s on to other projects that I’m excited about doing. My daughter and I have things to do to create a gathering space in the basement, and John and I have agreed upon the direction of all the other home update projects and that we will spend more time working on those than wasting our time doing other things.
I hope to “make” a few other things in the weeks to come. If I am successful, I’ll share them here. :-)
On the menu - need to work on it, but I know what we have in the freezer so that’s a start. Lasagna tonight!
Pondering - direction for the blog. I have a much better idea now of what I want this space to “feel” like; how to get there is another story.
Listening to - planning to get back to my favorites and maybe add some new podcasts as I follow rabbit trails.
Reading: Fiction - I plan to start Story Raider (book two of the Story Weaver trilogy) non-fiction - finish up Bird by Bird and move onto Atomic Habits maybe…
Watching - not so much television since I have found I can tune out the noise and focus on reading. That’s a lot of reading time each evening and I’m so excited about that! Also, last week, as part of The Artists Way, I was assigned a Reading Deprivation exercise. I didn’t do so well with that for a myriad of reasons but it still served its purpose.
Loving the moments when - I’m so excited about the work for the day I’m ready to jump out of bed and get started.
Also, when a son-in-love returns from a six month deployment. I’m so glad he is home safe and sound.
Planning for the week ahead - the rhythm I strive for is a good one. The planning for this week will be to return to it as much as makes good sense. The idea is for planning to serve us, not the other way around.
Naming what matters - I might take a day this week, call it an artist’s date and work on my annual inventory and do some of this thing the Lazy Genius calls Naming What Matters.
Words worth sharing - "So spacious is he, so expansive, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe - people and things, animals and atoms - get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies…” A fellow Hope Writer included reference to this Message version of Colossians 1:19-20
Something to remember:
The joy and relief of having Dakota home safely, in time to celebrate Sawyer’s 3rd birthday.
Daycare telling Sarah she would have to choose in-person school for the kids because they wouldn’t have a teacher for remote learning. The helpless feeling of having no choice.
My kindred spirit, Robin, published her first official book this past week - and it is a thing of beauty!!! I’m so proud and excited for her. Check it out if you're interested in enriching your marriage in practical ways. This would make a great gift for daughters, sisters or friends!!
I persevered and completed something I didn’t want to do simply because of love for the person who asked it of me.
Chapter five of The Artists Way - like an ice breaker crashing through an iceberg…