Mothers Day or A Place Like No Other

Todays about Mothers

            Those here and those gone
            To honor, remember and thank them for all
          
            Beginnings don’t matter
            The time, place or source
              To love as a mother she made the choice
 

              No matter how many

            She holds in her heart
              There’s a place never shared that was yours from the start

               It’s all about you there

               You are treasured and known
               No matter the distance it is always your home

               It’s filled with her prayers

               Her hopes and her dreams
               For your needs to be met and your goal’s to be reached

               How can I be sure

               That all this is true
                I’m not just a daughter, I’m a mom too

I Am Sorry Officer But I Just Can't Do That or Oh Lucy IV

My husband and I shared our truck until his parents gifted us with their old car.  The only problem was I didn’t know how to drive a stick shift.  I was so anxious to learn that I insisted on having my first lesson the night it arrived.  It was dark and snowy so we drove around the parking lot of a local shopping center to play it safe.

 We only lived a few blocks from the school so I thought it would be good practice to pick up the kids the next day.  Everything was fine until I came to a stop sign on top of a small hill.  School had just let out and there was a line of traffic behind me.  There were no hills in the parking lot the night before and when I tried to release the clutch to move forward, the car rolled backwards.  I took a deep breath and tried a second time but it rolled back again to within a few inches of the car behind me. That driver decided the solution to my problem was to lay on her horn.  Horrified I turned on the flashers, opened my window and waved the cars around me.

Suddenly a squad car pulled up behind us with its lights on.  The officer walked over to my window and asked if the car had broken down.  I had no idea what to say so I answered rather shortly that it had not.  He said that I would have to move along then because I was holding up traffic.  Choking back tears I told him that I just could not do that.  He seemed shocked as I just sat there clutching the wheel. The kids had all but melted under the back seat in humiliation and didn’t say a word. He asked why I couldn’t move and I was forced to tell him the embarrassing truth, bracing myself for whatever penalty I would receive for refusing his order.  Trying not to laugh he kindly told me how to use the emergency break to keep from sliding backwards.  He waited while I tried it and even blocked anyone else from going around me until I was safely underway. I never had the chance to thank him because I had no intention of stopping again until I reached home, but I will never forget him.

To Tell the Truth

The moments I lived for

When my hope was renewed

Were the moments of clarity

When reality met truth

Beyond the confusion

Past the noise in my mind

To a place that was peaceful

Where freedom was mine

I could see with my heart

Others struggle for peace

From that vantage point

I knew just what they'd need

I'd start to invite them

To join me and then

Fears of rejection

Began to seep in

Not wanting the world

To steal my peace

I held out my heart

But just beyond reach

As the guilt and the shame

Grew larger than truth

The clarity dissolved

My confusion renewed

From my sinful place

I can't see past my own

Disappointments and sorrows

Until He calls me home

He shows me the way

Through Forgiveness and Grace

Freely given in Love

Gently growing my faith

Learning to trust

That He'll love me through all

The times that I doubt

And run from His call

Slowly I'm learning

That when He is near

From that place of peace

I have nothing to fear

I can see through His eyes

And reach with His hands

With His words that I share

He will gather His lambs

The moments I live for

Have now become

The moments I’m telling

The world of His Son

A Right Of Passage or That Kid's Got An Arm

                Third in a line of girls, I was forced to give up my position as the baby of the family when my brother was born.  You could tell my Dad was anxiously waiting to teach him about all things male, but growing up with three older sisters wasn’t setting the stage for his rough and tumble future. We all loved holding him and feeding him and he made a great addition to our pretend families when we played house.

 I think all that nurturing was beginning to worry Dad because one day he announced that it was about time for him to be completely done with bottle feeding.  He was a toddler by that time and was only getting an occasional bottle but as a milestone it suddenly became very important.  My brother did not take to the idea and what could have been a war of wills was turned into a unique Right of passage designed by my Dad.  We lived on the banks of the Fox River and we were all called to assemble down by the water’s edge one Sunday afternoon.  My brother came, bottle in hand with my mom and dad.  Dad announced that my brother was now a big boy and big boys did not drink from bottles so he was going to throw his last bottle into the river.  My Dad held his hand to steady him and after a little encouragement my brother threw the bottle into the water.  Cheers all around and that was that as we all marched back up the bank to Sunday dinner.

When I think about all the times in my life that I had to let go of the past before I could take the next step toward a new beginning I picture my Dad steadying my brother and making him feel strong and capable.  I know my Heavenly Father is always there for me, steadying me and loving me through the letting go if I walk hand in hand with Him.

For Boston

What do you write when there are no words

When you long for the sorrow in your heart to be heard

What do you say to those in pain

When only their broken hearts remain

Will they hear that the hope they’ve lost is not far

If they fall into Your loving arms

Or will bitterness and hate increase

The power of this evil deed

In helplessness I’m on my knees

Only You can meet their needs

Please take my prayer to Your heart

And with all others offered, start

To heal and comfort, protect and keep

Them close to You in perfect peace

How Cold Was It

When I am tempted to complain about cold weather I always remember just how cold it can get. On one trip to South Dakota, a few days before Thanksgiving, bitter cold, and sub-zero temperatures had settled in.  I lived in Colorado at the time so it was a short flight on a small jet.  Despite the cold and snow everyone on board was in a holiday mood and the flight was smooth.

                We landed on schedule and as we got up to leave the pilot’s voice came over the intercom.  He thanked us for flying on behalf of the airline and asked for our patience because there would be a slight delay before we could get off the plane.  Everyone settled down again and waited.  It was snowing and blowing outside so we couldn’t see anything but the lights of the terminal windows.  We had taxied in and the plane was right outside the gate so we didn’t understand the delay.  About 20 minutes later the pilot once again asked for our cooperation, explaining that due to the bitter cold, de-icing would be required for our safety.  Most of us had heard of de-icing a plane before a flight but it seemed strange to do it after.

                There were only two more announcements during the hour and half we sat on the plane. Each time the pilot tried to sound encouraging but sounded more and more as though he was talking through clenched teeth. The holiday moods were fading and the less patient were getting ornery.  No one had cell phones back then so the only information we had, came from the pilots short statements.  Finally the doors were opened and we were hit with a blast of icy wind and snow as we made our way down the metal stairs and into the terminal.  Our equally frustrated friends and family explained that it wasn’t the plane they had to de-ice it was the stairs that we had just walked down.  They couldn’t be rolled up to the plane because they were frozen to the ground under several inches of solid ice.  When the normal de-icing chemicals had not freed them, they went to plan B – blow torches and sledge hammers.  We couldn’t complain about that kind of effort and we were truly thankful to everyone who braved the storm to free us.

The Keys to My Future

The courtship’s been slow but so enticing

The possibilities are so exciting

My life without you has been good so far

Why should I move to where you are

The promises you make are great ones

I’m longing to know if you’ll make or break them

At your best my needs you meet

At your worst you lie to me

When I’m ready to go you’re always down

When I hesitate you’re always around

I can’t hold back the hands of time

I fear that I’ll be left behind

  

All the wheels are set in motion

But you still don’t have my full devotion

Cause when my future plans were set

They didn’t include you Internet