So Many Blessings

Blessings

You, my friends and family

the color of the sky the next few days after Ike, pink and purple swirls

God's timing, always trumps mine

e mail

text messaging

favorite running shoes, asics with turquoise blue on them

hubby's insightful teaching on Sundays

son's delight in being taller than his mom

leaves on front porch

Charlotte on front porch sitting on leaves

daughter's artistic talent and kind heart

daughter's hilarious humor and fighting spirit

working only part time

being married to a gentleman who gets my car door

son's wisdom for a 16 year old

photography

Magpies

and yes, reading blogs and writing this one

xxoo thankful popcorn

Popcorn Poses a Question: Faith = Obedience...is it that simple?

Recently I've made a conscience effort to handle some things in ways that are completely opposite from my normal patterns. Is that sentence grammatically awkward? Sorry my English teacher and editor friends,( yes you Katy, Carol, Linka, Sue, Bethy31...etc.) please forgive as you read. I have tried to be stricter with myself concerning all sorts of things. I've tried to be more obedient and submissive, and a little less rebellious to life's little rules that I am guilty of slacking on. I've tried to make adjustments and corrections in some of my behaviors like a secret project to test what life would be like if I was more respectful of in place boundaries. For example, the clock... Tardiness...I'm not really chronically super late to things, but rarely arrive on the dot. In the past few weeks I've tried to correct that by thinking ahead (hard for me right there) and planning out how much time I need to do every single thing I want to do before I leave the house, walk to the car and drive to the destination and still be right ON TIME. Happily, there's been some improvement. Another is attention to detail. Is it 6:00 or 6:30 that the thing starts?? Will activity A overlap activity B and what do I need to do to make sure it is actually doable? Do I need to nix something from the schedule to avoid chaos? Am I actually noticing the rests in the music I'm trying to sing or am I sloppily hoping nobody noticed it was me who kept singing? Won't submitting to and obeying the rest improve the beauty of the song for everyone? I am also working on obedience to God. I say I'm obedient, I profess that I am.... but am I really? I've been trying to close the gap between what I say I do and what I actually do on a daily basis. He makes it clear how to be obedient, and in some ways it is not too hard. But there are circumstances that are very difficult to place in His hands. Me and Carrie U. belt out Jesus take the wheel, but can I do it? I've been trying. I won't spell out the laborious details, but generally speaking I've just amped up my actions and tried not to be sloppy and lazy about my faith and do more than just pay it lip service Sunday mornings. It seems that obedience in simple things, my very willingness to submit to His authority, serves as a conduit through which God allows my faith to deepen. Hello, it's that simple. xxoo

Pics from Pop: My Happy Artist

Popcorn's Pulling It All Out

I'm pulling out the Christmas stuff today. The greenery, the candles, the nativities. I've never started quite this early before but the day is open and there's nothing on the calendar so why not get a head start for a change? We love love love Christmas around here so I know all the Popcorns will be happy when they get home and see that Popelf has been hard at work.

Popcorn's Problem with No Problem

I cannot stand it when people substitute the phrase "no problem" for "your welcome". I think it sounds rude. It totally grates on my last raw nerve. Ok. I feel better with that off my chest.

Popcorn's Pentax

Creeped Out Here Alone

I looked forward to tonight. The Popmen had a shindig at church, "Grillin' and Gridiron", and I was looking forward to a little time here in a quiet house getting the last of Halloween down, putting it away.... putting out some turkeys....maybe shifting around some furniture....just piddling. Love to piddle with classical music and a candle keeping me company. It was great, at first. But then I was upstairs putting some things in a closet, up on a shelf. I put the last of the Halloween village houses carefully beside the rest of them and climbed down from the stool I was using. The closet door drifted closed, but not all the way. I walked across the room with my back to that door and then I heard it close completely. Now people this was creepy. I don't watch scary movies, I don't read scary books. I don't even like music with too many minor chords in it. Honestly I do not get scared in the house alone, ever, never. Not in all the years we've lived here. I've even spent a couple of nights in a row here alone, no problem; slept just fine. But now that door closing shut like that made goose bumps on my arms. I kind of froze for a minute a little afraid to move, I think that's called fright...? I grabbed my basket of stuff and high tailed in downstairs. I unlocked the front door and went outside for a second just to make sure the door would unlock that's how creeped out I was. I really wanted to call Pophub and ask when they were coming home, but I resisted. Honestly what am I, five?? I want you to know that several times I needed to go back up there but when my foot stepped on the first stair, I stopped. Just could not bring my weeny Popself to go back up. Is that not WEIRD?

Popcorn's Piano

I don't know why, but I think grand pianos are so beautiful. The lines of a grand piano are graceful, purposeful, meaningful, and pleasing to my eye. The beauty of the grand piano foreshadows the music it allows its players to coax from its keys. The grand piano lends a room, a house even, a stateliness; a sophistication and formality. It is a beloved part of this house. I love to sit and play it when I am here alone and no one can hear my clunkers when I miss a chord. I just enjoy hearing the sounds that come from it resonating through the house. I love to listen to popson play, he hardly ever hits clunkers. Piano music floating through my house takes me to my happy place and I can't imagine a house without a piano or its music.

Popcorn's Patriarchal Parallels

Studying the Patriarchs in Genesis has me mulling tonight. Mulling over how very human they were. Gnawing on their personalities, their viewpoints, and their circumstances. Which of course, leads me back to...well, me. Surprise! Despite my very human emotions, needs, and shortcomings of all kinds, I still have to "act" like a Christian. I have to behave in a way that I might not exactly feel like behaving in the moment. I might have to say something nicer that what I'm actually feeling. Perhaps I will find myself not wanting to be kind to a particular person in the grocery store line that thinks it's his turn to check out when in fact my turn is not quite over and he's irritatingly all up in my grill. In my space. One of the hardest, hardest things to do is to is keep my chin up all the live long time through life's little aggravating moments. I guess what I'm getting at (finally! I hear you gasp) is that as flesh and blood people it is such a struggle to "make nice" all the time. Sometimes I just want to not be nice. I want to be rude and tacky and speak my exact mind. I want to scream at the slow turner ahead of me "are you driving or camping out?"... Therein lies the struggle; trying to keep it together enough to stay quiet. The people in Genesis are an inspiration to me because hey, they too struggled to keep it together but sometimes just flat didn't. They deceived each other, killed enemies (yep, uh huh they did) stole wives, seduced servants, sold brothers, nabbed birthrights, lied, tricked family members, got drunk, and framed each other. They were an unseemly crew but did that stop God's will from being done in their lives??? No. That makes me feel better, doesn't it you?? Just mulling it over tonight while listening to the rain.

Last Game

Superfan

Popcorn Peers In

Ike knocked down many fences in our neighborhood. You can now peer into the backyards of people's homes... and somehow that's embarrassing. When I drive by I can't help but notice the fence is gone and what was once hidden is now exposed. Some backyards, yes, are visions of loveliness. Beautifully landscaped pools and arbors. But some, oy. Old lawn furniture sitting haggardly on the patio, toys strewn on the lawn, dead plants drooping, a tired BBQ grill looking lonely. These are big, fine and fancy homes that one would not expect to have an unsightly back yard. It's, well....shocking. Some of the fences needed to fall down, they were old and rotted and hanging by a thread anyway and really needed a fresh start. Slowly homes are rebuilding new sturdy fences made of gorgeous sweet smelling lumber to protect their property; a comforting boundary the keeps the good in and the bad out. It took a storm to expose the need, the ugliness, and force a fresh start. Now folks, there's so many spiritual implications here! I'm not going to preach. BUT I SURE COULD.

Popcorn at the Polls: See You There!