Scales

This morning as I was driving into work, I was stopped at a light waiting to make a left turn and I happened to glance up at the temperature reading, it said 34°. I had to laugh, you see last week while in Mexico the high for the day was 34°. Even though the numbers are the same the scales are very different.

34°F and 34°C are the same in that they are temperature readings, but because one of Fahrenheit and the other is Celsius there is a big difference in how they feel. That is the same with other “feelings”. I may feel like I’m starving, but when you watch a child eat our of the garbage dump you realize that we are on different scales. I may feel exhausted, but I don’t have to be up all night with a colicky baby. I may feel like I have nothing to wear, but I have more than one pair of shoes, in fact I have shoes.

This doesn’t negate my feelings, they are real, but there are times that we need to remember what scale we are on and 34° can actually feel like 93° or 1° depending on the scale.

Bache - translation: Pothole

Kyle and I were given a small truck to use while we were in Puerto Vallarta, this was such a blessing. You get to experience the true Mexican way of life when you have to drive yourselves around. On Monday while driving from the church to the compound Kyle commented on the fact that with the resources and technology that is available it is a wonder that they haven’t resurfaced the roads yet. I told him that it was an easy way to keep the speeders slow. Most of the road in the area IF they are paved, are paved with bricks or rocks and are not the smoothest things you have ever driven on and the foundation underneath is extremely sandy so that when the rains come and they come each year the foundations get washed away and pot holes (Bache in Spanish) appear.

During our drive around PV we experienced potholes of just about every size and shape. Most were fairly shallow with sloping sides so you only needed to slow down allowing you to continue without much effort as you were able to drive through them. Others were deep with steep edges so that if you didn’t drive out and around into the on coming lane and actually drove into it you might lose a tire or worse yet break an axel, and then there were the ones that were large enough to loose a car in it if you didn’t detour around them and go a different direction.

As I thought more on the potholes that day it came to me that we have “bache” in our lives. Many a writer, including the authors of the Bible refer to our lives as traveling along a road. We all are traveling along the road of life and then suddenly with or without fault of our own, circumstances come into our lives to cause us to need to slow down, to drive out of our lane into on coming traffic or make a total detour to avoid the potholes or circumstances of life.

These potholes could be bad or they could even be good things;
-things like our careers or loss of one;
-our families or lack of one;
-our obligations,
-sickness,
-our lack of confidence or over confidence,
-traditions, routines and goals.
When a circumstance arises or a pothole develops in our ‘road’ we need to learn from and allow our character to be developed during them. It says in Psalms 139: 3 that the Lord knows our paths. How we react to these Potholes determines our character. We can slow down and seek God, we can steer clear of the impending danger, or if needed we will make changes in our lives and take a different road.

When the bache or potholes of life happen, and they will, we need to remember that God causes all things to work together for His good, Rom 8:28.

So I challenge you to praise God for the potholes in your life.

Just 24 Simple Hours

I wake without an alarm clock. Stand up from the bed and walk to the window pulling the drapes back to check out the new day. Looking up first to the sky that is such a clear blue that it seems to have been painted, slowly looking to the left to see the sun rising about the lush jungle covered mountains finally looking down on the pool and the and the lounge chairs all in line almost as if waiting for inspection.



I wake with to a fuzzy alarm; stand up from the bed walk to the window pulling the blinds up to check out the new day. Looking up first to the sky that is a blanket of clouds that has no end and no beginning, then slowly looking to the left to see if the rising sun is visible over the snow capped mountains, finally looking down on the back yards of the neighbors, a patchwork of lives some with children, some without.

Oh the difference 24 hours and a few thousand miles can make.

"Call Me Joey"

We made a new friend on this trip. On Tuesday when we went out to the School of Champions, the compound where children that live in the neighborhood outside of the dump come to learn Mathamatics, Computers and English. We arrived early on this day so we sat on the tail gate of the truck we were loaned to wait for the others to arrive with the key.

While we were sitting there one of the children that was waiting came up to us and wanted to talk. Our spanish isn't very good and he is just learning English so you would have thought that the discussion would have been a short one. Oh, but not for Jose. He told us his name was Jose, but that in English it was Joey. He wanted us to call him Joey. We asked about his brothers and sisters, we talked about sports he even talked about golf and hockey with us. He talked and talked and even though we didn't understand most of what he said it didn't matter to him. All that mattered is that we listened. He was so excited to tell us what was going on in his world, he was animated and expressive and both Kyle and I totally enjoyed our conversation with Joey.

So Joey made our day and hopefully we made his just a little brighter as well.

Ocean Swim

Kyle and I took a quick dip in the ocean yesterday. It was a real quick one since Kyle got stung. He is pretty sure it was a jelly fish, but not sure. It left a few stings but I had Benadryl cream and every thing was fine in a about an hour.

Sunny and in the mid 90s today. The pool is calling.

Beach Therapy

This will be where I will be staying for the next 8 nights. A little beach therapy, a little ministry, a lot of visiting old friends.

So I will say hasta luego because I'm not sure if I will post anything until I return.

Fulfillment

Last night at our Region Reach Team meeting we were talking about being fulfilled and what that meant. We talked about how there are external things that we strive for to try and achieve fulfillment like a title, a high income, the right house, the right car, kids and even a spouse. All these things will not bring fulfillment on their own. It is the inner stuff that is true fulfillment as listed in Gal 5:22, 23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Pastor Bill had a good analogy for this he said to him it was like being in a hamster wheel, running, running, running and never getting anywhere but tired. All we needed to do would be to step off the wheel and we would be in the same place. Isn't that so true and a very good way to look at it.

As I have thought more about it, we can also chase after things of God to try and get fulfillment attend more meeting, volunteer for more things, and even take classes. But this too can be just a trip on the hamster wheel if we are striving for acceptance and not truly seeking Jesus who is the only one that can fulfill us.

As for me it is a daily choice to stay off that wheel, I don’t always succeed, but I make that choice.

Sharing

Today I have been in a number of discussions about sharing. Sharing responsibility, sharing credit for a job done, sharing blame, sharing our thoughts and dreams, sharing our disappointments, sharing our past, sharing our time, and yes even sharing our colds.

We all understand that sharing of our possessions is a good thing. As a child we are taught we should share, it is probably the hardest thing for a three year old to do with a toy or some candy, but yet we are so proud when they do it without asking them to. I’m not so sure it is any easier for some adults to share their ‘stuff’ with others.

Sometimes we want our friends and family to share our joys, our hurts and our passions and don’t always understand when they are not willing to share theirs inner most parts as freely. Are we really ready to accept what they might have to say? Have we truly built the trust that is required for a person to really open up? Are we ready to accept that they may never open up and share? When it is not about us it is easier to expect someone to share.

How often do we share things that maybe shouldn’t be shared? We share something that someone else said in confidence and it becomes gossip. We share how someone else has hurt us and the third party then picks up the offense. We share stuff from out past that is better off left to heal or is inappropriate for the other person.

Then there are the times we just share being with each other nothing needs to be said, just the fact that we gave a little of our time is the best thing that has ever been shared.

Battery Life

Last week I got a new battery for my cell phone. One of the things about Lithium Ion batteries is that they have a finite life. The moment they are built they start to loose capability. Unlike some of the older battery types they cannot be refreshed by running them totally dry and then recharging them. In fact it is REALLY bad for a cell phone battery to get below 20% charged. When that happens the battery loosed a chunk of it useful live.

This chart shows how the life of a Lithium Ion battery. Zone A is when the battery has the longest run time between charges and the ability to be charged the most. Zone B the battery somewhat levels off in the runtime and the amount of charge it can hold. When a battery gets to Zone C in its life you start to notice that the battery just doesn’t last as long, until Zone D we are out buying a new battery because it seems that after one call on the cell phone, even when the battery is fully charged, the thing is dead.

As I was thinking about my new battery, I realized that my own energy level and ability to carry a charge is dependent on my age as well. Isn’t it true when we were in High School and College we had energy and could go for days on very little sleep? I played softball, basketball, played in the band, worked a part time job, carried a full load of classes and still had energy to socialize in the evening. For me it seems that I was in Zone B until I was about 45. It is true that now that I’m over 50 I am starting to realize that I just don’t last as long as I once did, I feel like I’m fully charged and just can’t get as much done as I used to. Since I am just entering Zone C in my life, hopefully it is a long season especially since my Uncle Joe just celebrated his 97th birthday and it has only been the last three years that he has been unable to take care of his own yard. But part of dealing with the seasons in our life is recognizing what season we are in and making the best of them.

For you folks with mobile devices, it is rare that a Lithium Ion battery will last more than 18 months.

A Picture Perfect Day

On Saturday, it was one of those days in the Pacific Northwest that make you realize that it is truly God’s Country. A day when the sky was a clear blue, the temperature was in the mid 60s and not a breeze to be felt. It was a perfect day for a drive up over Steven’s Pass on U.S. 2 and a nice lunch in Leavenworth for a good Bratwurst and Kraut.

The only problem with a day like that is that because they are few and far between, half the western part of the state had the same idea. We loaded up in the min-van and took off for a drive. It was beautiful and pretty with the fall colors in all their glory. Everything was fine until we arrived in Leavenworth, then there was a traffic jam and no parking to be had anywhere. We finally found a place in Dryden, WA for lunch and then headed home with a stop at The Alps candy store on the way back for salt water taffy and fudge, the perfect end to a Fantastic Week.

A Fantastic Week

Every morning I try and send an email to one of my friends. On Monday I sent her email from work, it was 5:20am. In that email I told her we were going to have a “Fantastic” week since both of us have had some pretty rough ones for the last month or so. So here it is Saturday morning and I thought I would share what my week looked like:

Monday: Woke up at 3:15 and had to leave the house at 4am to take my husband to work, I had to make an unplanned trip with my mom to the doctor, got off work at 6pm, Kyle had a tooth ache and we were up most of the night.

Tuesday: Got to work at 7 and the critical parts that were due in that day did not get shipped and so we were down another day. Took my mom to the dentist, went back to work until 4:30 and then went and watched my grand daughter play soccer, came home and cooked steak for some of the interns.

Wednesday: I got to work at 7 and again the parts had not arrived and now people were really getting upset, I took my mom to the dentist again, got a call that I had to go and pick Kyle up at his dentist because he had a root canal and they had to knock him out. When I got there to get him at about noon they told me I was going to have to stay with him for the rest of the day, so much for going back to work and the two critical meetings I had scheduled. I had one of them via cell phone and the other one someone else had to cover for me. After that I had a restful afternoon.

Thursday: I got up at 4am to take Kyle to get his truck that we left at the dentist so I got to work at 5am and the parts had finally arrived and we shipped 60 of the 120 systems were needed to ship this week. I left work at 4:30, went and watch my granddaughters last soccer game of the year and then came home.

Friday: I got to work thinking that every thing should go smoothly and then we found out that we hadn’t built up enough of another required part so the balance of the big shipment would wait again. I got to go and have lunch with Kyle, went back to the office and finished up another big project that needed to get done, got off work at 5, came home and did laundry while watching TV with Kyle.

Saturday: Kyle and I are taking my mom for a drive to Leavenworth to see the fall colors and to have lunch, practice at 5 then done.

So there you have my fantastic week.

Here is a snap shot of my Morale-o-Meter to show you just how bad things have been.

Headline News

Tree-frog feet inspire glue with better grip

One day last week when I was running from one building to the other while at work I heard that familiar sound of the tree frog. At the time it was a nice distraction to think of that small amphibian with such a large voice. I remember the first fall in my first home out here and a tree frog took up residence in the shrub right outside my front door. That thing would croak and I thought it was in the house. I spent a number of nights trying to locate this thing thinking it was probably about the size of a cat for as loud as it was. Finally, I found the little bugger and it wasn’t any bigger than a Milk Dud. I was amazed that something so small could be so loud. Did you know that the Pacific Tree Frog is not only the smallest but the loudest amphibian of the Pacific Northwest? Their sound can be heard in some cases a mile away.

Tree Frogs use their sticky toe pads to climb around on rocks, leaves and branches looking for insects to eat. It was the ability of the Tree Frog to climb glass that got scientist interested. Researchers studied the toe pads of tree frogs to figure out what makes them stick to surfaces, and copied the idea for a new type of reusable tape.

This is just one of those useless facts that I sometimes find interesting. Here is a little creature that usually doesn’t live more than a year, has a great big voice and yet caused researchers to spend months and months trying to figure out just how they do it.

Some day soon when we have a tape that easily sticks and can just as easily be removed we will all be able to appreciate the Pacific Tree Frog just a little more.

Just Relax

The night is heavy with moisture from the fall rains, the leaves have almost finished turning colors for another year, it is damp and cold and a perfect night to sit by the fire and just relax. That is what I am doing tonight, relaxing by the fire as I type this post.

Today could have been another one of those days, one where there is just too much to do, too many things pulling me in too many directions. I went into work this morning expecting a new shipment of parts to keep us on schedule for a major roll out of a new product only to find out that they wouldn’t be arriving until sometime on Thursday. It was totally out of my hands and nothing I could do would change the fact that we were out of parts. One good thing the three people that would have just had a fit and came unglued with that news were out of the office.

I left the office at 9 am to take my mother to the dentist for a little work that she needed to have done. No big deal I have my smart phone with me, a book to read and no meetings until 1pm. I had planned on taking her and getting back to the office about noon and then working a little late to make up for it. Now in case you don’t know my mother cannot stand or walk on her own, when I say I had to take her to the dentist this entails loading her and her wheelchair into the van, getting her out of the van, into the office and then lifting her out of the wheelchair and into the dentist chair. After the hour was it all gets repeated in reverse order.

At 9:30 this morning my husband was scheduled to have an emergency root canal. The plan was that he would go and then take himself home afterwards. Too bad this day didn’t follow the plan. At 10 am as I was picking up my mom I got a call saying they were going to have to sedate him and he would need a ride home. I told them I would get there about 11:45pm after I dropped off my mom.

I leave Kenmore where my mom lives, drive over to Woodinville to Kyle’s dentist office. I walk in and they inform me that he will need someone to stay with him the rest of the afternoon. I quickly call the office and let them know I won’t be returning for the meetings at 1 and 2 that were scheduled, sometimes all that just doesn’t matter anymore.

Pretty soon they bring Kyle out in a wheelchair, somewhat awake, but not really. We load him into the van and at least he could stand enough that I didn’t need to lift him too. We head on home and get Kyle settled and I spend a restful afternoon away from the chaos, doing what I could from home via email and cell phone.

The night is heavy with moisture from the fall rains, the leaves have almost finished turning colors for another year, it is damp and cold and a perfect night to sit by the fire and just relax.

Oh the Pain

Pain is a part of life. In fact it is a very important part of life. No matter how we try to avoid it and try to prevent our friends and family from experiencing pain it is not possible to completely avoid it. We come into this life through the pain of childbirth; we experience pain when we learn to walk; we experience pain as we are teething. Then there are growing pains. Oh do I remember those, I grew six inches in height one summer, growing pains are very real.

Pain is a part of life; in fact pain is actually vital to survival. Pain reminds us to pull back from something that would hurt us like fire or extreme cold. Without the ability to feel pain we would suffer great damage to our bodies such as the diabetic does.

So far I have only touched on physical pain, but we all know that there is the emotional pain as well. The pain of losing a family pet, the pain of our first loved failed. The pain of rejection, the pain of love lost. Again pain is critical to our growth. It is through the experience of pain, though usually unpleasant, that we grow and mature. It is through pain that character is built. Just like when trying to build muscle, “no pain, no gain”, we also gain emotional strength when we experience pain.

So we can choose to avoid pain at any cost, encasing our bodies and souls in a suit of armor not letting anyone or anything in. Not taking any risk and becoming soft and ashen. Or we can buck up and take a hit or two while training for our ultimate purpose and become who God intended us to be.

Its Puck Time

The skates are sharpened, the sticks are taped, the nets are restrung and the pucks are frozen, its time for the true spectator sport to start the season. For those of you that don’t really understand hockey, do you realize that there are fewer fights in hockey today then there is in baseball?

Now back to the game. Hockey pucks used in a game are frozen vulcanized rubber, 1” thick, 3” in diameter and weighs between 5.5 and 6 ounces. During a game, pucks can reach speeds of 100+ mph. First imagine being hit by one of those? Now, imagine trying to hit something that small with a stick, finally remember you are doing it all on ice skates. If that isn’t true skill I don’t know what is.

Rearrange the Furniture

Last night as the first of the Interns arrived to eat dinner and watch TV I put them to work. I had them move some of the furniture. Our house has a very open floor plan and gives me lots of options for arranging the furniture. I have three rooms, formal living, dinning room and a casual living that I can mix and match. I purposely bought furniture for these rooms so that they contrast, yet complement each other. For the last two years we have had two interns living with us so we have settled into having two couches in the formal area with the TV, a dining room and then a casual area with the fireplace and the overstuffed chairs that match the two couches. Well last night I decided it was time for a change that and I have a number of people coming over for a meeting tomorrow night. Now I have the dining room set at the back of the house closest to the kitchen and then both living room sets in the area at the front of the house.

Rearranging furniture is a way to make a significant change without a significant cost. It does however expose some things, first when they lifted the furniture we found the various cat toys that had been pushed under the pieces, good thing I had cleaned last weekend and vacuumed under each one or there might have been more than just cat toys. The other thing that rearranging furniture exposes is the traffic patterns in the carpet.

Finding stuff under the furniture is like us trying to hide our faults and flaws, we all do it whether it is with our cloths we wear, the smile that is always on our face, or the words we speak. We can hide our ‘toys’ that we really don’t want anyone else to find.

The traffic patterns in the rug don’t show up until you move the furniture to a new spot then you see the uneven wear and more dirt in the area that gets the most traffic. In our lives traffic patters represent the ruts we get into and the patterns we maybe don’t even realize we have fallen into. When it becomes normal or routine it sometimes looses its life and passion.

So if take it from me, it feels good to rearrange the furniture even if it exposes a few cat toys and a little carpet wear.

Peanut Butter Cookies

You know it is just one of those days when you are in tears and it is only 9am. That is the text I sent a friend this morning. To say today was a bad day isn’t totally true, today was just another in a series of challenging days I have had for the past three weeks.

So when I left work today I was really looking forward to coming home. I knew I was going to cook dinner tonight for the Interns who come over on Monday’s to watch Heroes. Normally my husband cooks dinner but tonight he wasn’t feeling well. There are a number of folks that think that I don’t cook because he does most of the cooking. You see it is something that not only makes sense because he gets home from work before I do, but it is his hobby and for him there is nothing better that he can do than to cook you a meal that you enjoy.

Cooking is something I enjoy, but not to the level he does. For me doing something for someone else is the joy, it can be cooking, carrying something, or serving in just about any capacity, so tonight having the opportunity to make a big pot of spaghetti and garlic bread for the Interns was a real treat. It gave me the opportunity to see that there are more things in this world that are right than the stuff at work. I can see these young people and how relaxed they are in our house and I am blessed. As I finished up the garlic bread I even got ambitious and baked them some Peanut Butter Cookies.

So even though work will be there in the morning, the smell of peanut butter cookies is what is hanging in the air as I head off to sleep and I am at peace and have joy in my heart.