Beyond Beyond - Day 7 - Without You

People have been dropping like flies in the hospital with this stomach bug...and now we know it has gone global...as it visited our dear friend, Kim Klassen.

But this week, it was worth the wait (but not worth Kim's misery), as she gave us a photo to take from step one with only a white balance adjustment provided and edit it into our own image.

Here is the original image:

When I looked at this image - what first struck me was the looooooooooooong shadows...the late afternoon shadows, reminding me of about the time I get home from work on a hot, humid summer dog-day.  I wanted to capture that in my interpretation.  There's no relief, you can't sit outside because it is too hot, unless you have a SunSetter Awning or put your feet in cold water.

I remember that kind of a day as a child...usually I had been playing with the neighbor kids, drained, and wanting to come in from the heat.  My mother would be watching "Another World," her favorite soap in the 1960s.  As a grown up, its the time of day I want to rip my bra off and lounge in comfy, airy clothing.  Or I might take a cold shower to cool down my skin...only to feel sticky five minutes after.

Doesn't that sound pleasant?  My point exactly.  You feel like the sun will never creep down and the day will never close.

So here's my interpretation...

And that's exactly the way I feel when my Edster is not here...

So grateful for him!!!!!

Not Your Average Valentine's Day Card

Well, Edster drives me to work and picks me up after work nearly every day...I don't usually go out once I'm home so I can get some time with my camera, my photographs, my writing, blah blah blah...

Suffice it to say...it's a challenge to go out by myself with him not being suspect...like, what's she scheming?

Very hard to surprise with a card on this Valentine's Day...but have no fear...!!!!

Paper Coterie to the rescue...

Check out this little freebie (I'll have the download link for you at the end here)...LOVE NOTES!!!!

All these little notes where you can write your own messages, personalize them...etc.  I think they're meant to spread around...but my Valentine is all deserving

So after work Edster went to Sam's...I got to work writing them out and putting them all over the mirror.

(Sidenote:  The spot healing tool is great when you don't have time to clean the mirror first!)

As of this writing...the Edster has yet to see it.  Men have it easy...they can pay the water bill without turning on the light...

But now I have it lightly dimmed...so next trip he will not be able to miss it...

His response...film at 11.

And as promised,  you download these love notes here...I printed mine on a medium white card stock...

Happy Valentine's Day and lastly...

I am grateful for my wonderful valentine who is proof of Ephesians 3:20...

Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us—
 

Day 26 ~ Three Gifts Extravagant

When I pondered this category...I looked up the word extravagant and came up with quite a few synonyms from the Thesarus:  crazy, flamboyant, exaggerated, expensive, unreasonable, unrestrained, over-the-top, extreme, fantastic, fancy, excessive, outrageous.

But I would like to approach this word from the perspective of one of my favorite verses:

Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think...

Ephesians 3:20 (ESV)

 

God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or

request in your wildest dreams!

Ephesians 3:20 (The Message)

 

Doesn't that sound extravagant?

 

 

Day 26 ~ Three Gifts Extravagant

 

 

 

I did not dare dream, hope for, imagine that I would ever marry after a decade of singleness.  And I was okay with that ~~ content.  But extravagantly, over-the-top, the Lord brought Edster into my life, at just the right time.  I had no idea...no idea that when our paths providentially crossed on that Friday, June 6, 2008, that it would result into the love of a lifetime, allowing Edster and my dad to form a good relationship, giving my dad peace knowing God had bestowed a wonderful Christian man to his daughter for life.  Just over a year later from our meeting each other ~~ my father would be in heaven, entering the day before we married.

 

 

 

I know that same feeling my father must have felt.  Last December, my Lydia ~~ a single mother of two boys who are the heart of my heart ~~ she married a wonderful Christian man who adores her and the boys.  He could have only come along as an extravagant gift from her Savior.  And what a gift to me...peace knowing my daughter had a helpmate, a partner, a role model for those boys, and a godly man to lead their family.

 

 

Oh...before I go on to my third gift extravagant...with the gift of Edster came a bonus!  My stepdog Bruno!

 

 

 

I never dreamed that I would ever obtain a college degree and work in the field I so desired.  Caleb had taught me so much, and I was able to help other families facing some comparable challenges.  But I was an executive assistant full-time, doing good advocacy for others in addition to my job, wanting to make a difference...but I needed the credentials.  I had two years' college completed from thirty years' prior.  Single, sole-supporting...how could I, at age 46, work full-time, go to school full-time, and not only need to get my BSW, but I would also need to get my Master's degree? 

 

How do I explain that by age 49, I had graduated from Case Western Reserve University with distinction and am now in a position that is a dream come true?  A privilege?  A ministry? Making a difference...?  I cannot answer any other way except that God did it...an extravagant gift of love...He who makes the impossible, possible.

 

Yes, God's love, God's grace, God's goodness is extravagant...i.e., crazy, flamboyant, exaggerated, expensive, unreasonable, unrestrained, over-the-top, extreme, fantastic, fancy, excessive, outrageous...actually...

 

it defies words...

 

Watch for His extravagance this weekend!

 

 

 





Days 24 and 25 ~ Gifts Accomplished and Enjoyed

What amazing weather we've been having in Ohio...

Indian Summer...time after work to frolic in the autumn late afternoon sun...

Day 24 ~ Three Gifts Accomplished

My grandson, Noah, came over after school and spent the night...part of Mamaw's job was to help with his homework...before we could play.

As I heard him read, watched him write out spelling words...what a gift to see what he has accomplished.  This time last year, in kindergarten, he was just starting out.  He's grown and matured and learned...a gift of seeing his accomplishments and his hard work!

I had decided to order three canvas prints of three different photographs of mine.  They were a great deal...but I was still unsure how they would look...but took the leap.  Edster hung them up last night in our second bathroom...the combination of our accomplishments were special gifts yesterday, in addiition to Edster's previous work on the painting the bedroom grey, redoing the mirror and fixtures.

Every night when I get home from work...I go into our Master bedroom to get into "comfy clothes."  I have this beautiful golden yellow bedroom with white trim and white crowned molding that Edster remodeled for me (as well as the Master bath)...he is incredible in changing things for me according to my tastes...and what he is able to accomplish is a special gift to me.

Day 25 ~ Three Gifts Enjoyed

My final dahlias of the season enjoyed while sitting outside during the warm, early evening in October.

Enjoying Noah as he explores and finds his own gifts in the kale in the backyard.

Seeing Noah's delight as we celebrate his 7th birthday last night.

Wonderful gifts for which I am not worthy...

Days 18 and 19 ~ Daring On to Crazy Joy

The weekend is here...

In full disclosure, I'm sitting up in bed in my jams writing this on my laptop...

No alarm, no schedule today...shower and clean up at will...now THAT'S a gift!

But my blog is on the itinerary...and my venture through the October Joy Dare!

Day 18 ~  One gift shared, saved, surrendered...

A gift from our good friends, Josh and Missi, sharing it with them and more than 54,000 folks, the inaugural Big 12 game for WVU against the Baylor Bears (I kept going "da Bears").  Several things happened that I had always wanted to experience:  seeing the Pride of West Virginia (WVU's marching band) form the state of West Virginia and then reverse it...marching down the field; staying til the end of a winning game to sing "Country Roads" along with the 54,000 others, along with John Denver; and hear Trace Adkins (who sang the national anthem).

On Valentine's Day last year...I was recovering from a medical procedure and went through these letters that had been saved for over sixty years.  I made this still from them.  They were love letters between my parents before they were married.  He was attending WVU in Morgantown (where my mother lived) but at the semester break, he went back to his home in Buckhannon, WV, two hours away.  It was a gift to read their playfulness with each other (my dad wrote almost the whole letter about returning back to Morgantown a few days later than planned...and then did a gotchya at the end.)  But the greatest gift was reading of their desire to serve Christ and to be certain their plans to marry was in line with God's will.

Wow...a gift surrendered! God has blessed me with legs I can use...legs that walk...legs that are sturdy.  And nearly every day I surrender that gift to Sidda, my cat, who loves to lay on them.  She's right there now on the other side of my laptop...sweet.

Day 19 ~ Three gifts unexpected...



















Truly...I don't mean to bring Edster into every blog entry...but he was a much unexpected gift.  I was content and satisfied with a decade of singleness.  Marriage was not something I was expecting again...







































Have you ever googled your name?  Well...I googled my son's name, who I introduced here and here, Caleb Smith.  Guess what...there's a Caleb Smith State Park...on Long Island, New York.  I never expected to go there...but here I am.  Ed took me there on way home from our honeymoon in Maine.

Caleb is involved with developmental disabilities county board.  Most often promotions are down with much higher functioning individuals.  And yes, it could feel hurtful. 

But I attended a bike race he and his pals participated in ~~ held in the parking lot of the county board.  It was a hoot!  They were paired up.  I remember one contestant who said to his female competitor, "You're going down!"  She SMOKED him! (But I digress...)  They were videotaping and because I was a parent there, they asked to interview me with Caleb promoting the county board (this is not the greatest photo).  Totally unexpected!!!

But we'll never see God's gifts if we don't take time to see...

What gifts have you seen today?

Day 15 and 16 ~ Re-Read and Burning

Yeow...first day back to work yesterday...big time busy!!!  I'm still trying to get caught up after two weeks off...but all is well.

So, I had to combine days...again...

Day 15 ~ Three gifts re-read...

I make "cookie jars."  But they don't contain cookies...  They are glass jars with little pieces of paper inside.  On the pieces of the decorated paper are quotes I've collected...some funny, some encouraging, some profound, some silly, some take your breath away.  And I always put a decorative ribbon around it.

This photo is one that I made for a friend who was dealing with a profoundly difficult time.

Why do I call them "cookies?"  Because after you read one...you want to read another...and another...and another.

So I re-read some of the ones I have in my inventory...and these were the gifts re-read (please read all three):

God is not an Employer looking for employees.  He is an Eagle looking for people who will take refuge under His wings.    - John Piper

In our own woundedness, we can become sources of life for others. - Henri Nouwen

I like to call in sick to work at places where I've never held a job.  Then when the manager tells me I don't work there, I tell him, "I'd like to, but not today...as I am sick.    - Jarod Kintz.
 

And that's how the "cookies" are...random...you never know what you're going to pull out!

Day 16 ~ Three gifts burning

The Edster knew I had some struggles today...once I got home from work and changed into my "comfy clothes"...he stood in the hallway with this singing me a silly song...

What a gift of thoughtfulness and laughter after a day that tried to get the best of me...

And so we never know where the gift will come from...

But they come...they always come.

6 Gifts Today (Catching up) ~ Days 9 and 10

First off...Happy Anniversary to me and Edster!  Three years ago today...we had a wonderful worship service...that also served as a wedding.  My dad had died the night before...but, in typical fashion, he left early so he could get the best seat. <smile>

So...back to the Joy Dare...first...three Gifts Praised (do I have to keep it to three?)

• I've been involved in a women's Bible study on James: Mercy Triumphs by Beth Moore.  I praise God for this group...as I've been wanting to be in a Bible study for some time.  Today's homework was on how every good and perfect gift comes from God...so we were focusing on gifts there, as well.  But I praise God for the gift of this study.

• I praise God for the freedom from some major strongholds that were in my life.

• I praise God for slow mornings, with a cup of coffee, a Bible, a journal, and a blog.

Now...three Hard Eucharisteos:  This will take some explanation...

According to Ann Voskamp, eucharisteo means:

Yes, it's all Greek to me, but this is the word that can change everything: eucharisteo—it comes right out of the Gospel of Luke: “And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them…” (Luke 22:19 NIV). In the original language, “he gave thanks” reads “eucharisteo.”

The root word of eucharisteo is charis, meaning “grace.” Jesus took the bread and saw it as grace and gave thanks. He took the bread and knew it to be gift and gave thanks. Eucharisteo, thanksgiving, envelopes the Greek word for grace, charis. But it also holds its derivative, the Greek word chara, meaning “joy.” Charis. Grace. Eucharisteo. Thanksgiving. Chara. Joy.

Deep chara joy is found only at the table of the euCHARisteo; the table of thanksgiving. The holy grail of joy, God set it in the very center of Christianity. The Eucharist is the central symbol of Christianity. Glynn, doesn’t the continual repetition of beginning our week at the table of the Eucharist clearly place the whole of our lives into the context of thanksgiving?

One of Christ’s very last directives He offers to His disciples is to take the bread, the wine, and to remember. Do this in remembrance of Me. Remember and give thanks.
This is the crux of Christianity: to remember and give thanks, eucharisteo.

Why? Why is remembering and giving thanks the core of the Christ-faith? Because remembering with thanks is what causes us to trust; to really believe. Re-membering, giving thanks, is what makes us a member again of the body of Christ. Re-membering, giving thanks is what puts us back together again in this hurried, broken, fragmented world.

And she also defines the Hard Eucharisteo...or the Hard Thanks ~~

 …take the pain that is given, give thanks for it, and transform it into a joy that fulfills all emptiness. I have glimpsed it: This, the hard eucharisteo. The hard discipline to lean into the ugly and whisper thanks to transfigure it into beauty. The hard discipline to give thanks for all things at all times because He is all good…(Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts)

So here are my three hard Eucharisteos for today...

• Caleb's autism

•  A dead sparrow

• My mother's 12-year disease of vanishing before my eyes...

I may write more specifically about these at another time...but I love this quote from C. S. Lewis:

Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God do you learn.

And that, is grace.  Until tomorrow...

The Dare Continues ~ 3 Gifts Prayed For ~ Day 8

The calendar pages of my vacation have been peeled off slowly one by one...and it is hard to believe we leave Canaan Valley on Thursday morning...it has been wonderful!

And today is three gifts prayed for:

 

 

•  I adored my father...but he was quirky, cerebral, task-oriented, and his need for people was only on his terms.  Many have speculated, me included, that he may have had a high form of Asperger's.  Intelligent and very rigid and routined...keeping his anxiety in check often bulldozed over his relationships.  At times I felt invisible and almost an interference.  Example:  Call home...dad answers, "Hi Denise...I'm fine...here's your mom." (Oh, the stories I could tell...which are humorous and endearing to me now!)   Mind you, the impact of his behavior on me was beyond any personal insight he could grasp.  I prayed that I might have a meaningful relationship with my dad...a connection.  I did not expect God's gift of connecting with my dad to be provided through pain.  But as my mother developed Alzheimer's dementia...as my mom's caregiver, my dad was transformed...  During the past six years of his life, as God transformed him through caregiving, God bestowed to me the gift of a connected, close relationship with my father.

• One of the desires of my heart was to get some good photographs of white-tailed deer.  Look at this beauty...and she was really that close!  No cropping and at only 70mm.  What a gift!

• While on vacation...Edster has been putting a floodlight out on the deck over the back lawn and putting "goodlies" (corn, peanut puffs, spicy cheez-its) out for critters.  Last night we had 12 deer (4 bucks), 2 red tailed foxes, one baby raccoon, and a skunk... So Edster and Bruno went out to replenish the supply...despite the commands of his master, Bruno corners the skunk!  And he got SKUNKED!!  Edster was so upset...and there was no way Bruno could come inside.  I prayed, "Lord help us find a remedy so that he won't fume us out on the drive back to Ohio!"  After a mixture of Tom Collins drink mix, diluted tomato soup concentrate, and tomato sauce "Massengilled" into Bruno's coat...and subsequent rinse off and shower...he was back in the house by the time we went to bed.  A little dejected...but he was odorless.  Another gift prayed for!  While not funny at the time...it is this morning...another great story...just like the story about...well, I'll save it for another blog entry. <smile>

More to come...

Three Gifts ~ One Baked, One Stirred, One Eaten ~ Day 7

Another relaxing morning in West Virginia...this morning awakened to snow falling...which now has turned to a slight rain.

This morning's focus is Day 7 of the Joy Dare...one gift baked, one gift stirred, and one gift eaten.  You can geta copy of the daily dares here, if you'd care to join in.

 

1.  One gift baked ~ luscious cinnamon rolls filling the air with the aroma of comfort.

2.  One gift stirred ~ the small air bubbles forming in the wisked pancake batter.

3.  One gift eaten ~ golden silver dollar pancakes with warm syrup on a tray with fresh coffee and milk.

Now this is not part of the three...but probably the best gift mentioned...ready?  It's a secret...just between us...

Edster made all of the above for me... she said as she waddled across the room.