Lesson #63: Waiting

This picture sums up my life right now.  

Sitting and waiting.  

There is no power within me to cause the light change any quicker.   Beating on my horn, stomping my feet on the floorboard or screaming at the top of my lungs won't help.  It might make me feel better for a moment, but most likely I would wind up injuring myself during the tantrum.  (Yes, I speak from past experience.)  So I wait.  I trust that the One who created this waiting time for me knows what is best.

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to 
His purpose.  

 Romans 8:28

Lesson #98: Humility in Cards

Our dear friends taught us a new card game a few weeks back.  Unfortunately for them, we love the game and want to play ALL of the time! To keep things from heating up between couples, we diffused the situation by having the wives pair up and the husbands pair up.  

Poor husbands!  Since the inception of the competition the husbands have never taken the lead.  We have tied a few times, but the wives have always prevailed.  (Webster says, to prevail means to prove more powerful than opposing forces; be victorious)  I think that about sums it up.  

 We decided to take our game on the road.  We were flying to another state for a four day get-away and passed the time playing a friendly game of Skipbo in the airport lounge.  

(I'm the one with the camera.)

The husbands tied things up 15 - 15 with a win that morning.  

But the wives have since taken the lead (AGAIN.)

Lesson #38: Curiosity... Meet Big Mike

 

 

 

Fifteen

Fifteen is my magic number today.

We only have fifteen days of school remaining!  

I am counting down, as are my kids, until the final day.  We have enjoyed this oasis of time together, but I finally understand how every school teacher in America feels right about now.  Summer can't come quick enough.  Will I embark on the home-schooling journey again next year?  Still in prayer for now.  But I would do this year over and over again to have the relationship I now have with my kids. 

"Fifteen, fifteen you're our man... If you can't do it fourteen can!"   

(And so on and so forth until we reach none!) 

(The look I receive when I sing 'my' version of a song.)

Home-Schooling 101

We are entering another milestone in our venture at home-schooling this year.  The kids will be taking their state tests on Friday.  Yes, I did say state tests for home-schooling.  The program I chose to use is K12, but it is not the private purchase program, it is the public school program at home through the state you reside in.

The curriculum is sent to us and we are required to follow all state laws concerning time spent in the classroom (i.e. dinner table), with some flexibility on what time of day and what days you take off.  Naturally, we can not take off whenever we want, but we do have the freedom to make the work up on a weekend or double up on a particular subject for a few days.  

To make a long story short, we have to travel six hours to the mandated testing site.  Therefore, we are leaving the night before and staying in a hotel.  The kids are delighted by this due to the hotel having an indoor swimming pool.  My children are part 'tadpole' and consequently need large amounts of swimming opportunities. 

I am grateful for the pool, since my kids will undoubtedly sleep better after wearing off a few hours of nervous energy.  I, of course, will sleep fitfully worrying about getting to the school testing site on time the following morning.  I'm typically not a 'morning person'.  My preference is to sleep in and stay up late.  This is probably the reason we start school at 8:45am (me still in my pj's most days) instead of the standard 8:00am.

So, another chapter will close in this venture Friday.  We will then (im)patiently wait for the final day of school (May 21st).  When the bell will ring (momma shouting hallelujah) and the kids will sigh with relief.  For we will have survived 'home-schooling 101'. 

What Matters

Our doorbell rang unexpectedly again on Sunday morning.  Baby Girl came running into our bedroom crying out, "Dad your friend is here!"  Hubs and I exchanged puzzled looks.  We were unsure what 'friend' would be on our doorstep so early in the morning.  Then Studly chimed in, "Dad, it's Jerry."  

I have to admit I was kind of surprised.  I did not know what to expect from him, but my hope was that he would return if he was in need.  

Hubs met him at the front door with sleep still in his eyes.  He smiled and greeted him warmly.  Jerry asked if there was any work he could do?  Hubs told him we needed to hold off mowing the lawn for a few more days, but that we would gladly pay him to mow it on Wednesday.  He then asked Jerry if he needed anything to eat?  I made him a sack lunch and he walked away.  

As I laid in bed Tuesday night mulling over different ideas, my agenda of things to do this week and next, my hopes for the summer, and the loads of laundry I had completed the day before (I was still patting myself on the back for having completed that monumental task) I wondered for a moment if Jerry would be at our door the next morning.  I then mentally scanned my cupboards wondering what meal I could provide for him.


Nine a.m. the next morning our doorbell rang.  Jerry was here to mow our lawn and was curious if we had any extra gas because the lawnmower he had borrowed was almost empty.  (Our lawnmower is broken and hubs has been unable to repair it.)  Our gas can was in dire need of filling.  


I hopped in the car to remedy the gas situation while Jerry got started. 


 As I was leaving the gas station my stomach growled.  Luckily my favorite fast food breakfast restaurant was in view.  I ordered sausage egg and cheese biscuits for Jerry and I and headed toward home.  


My husband took the sandwich and a RC Cola I had purchased to Jerry.  When Hubs came in he commented that he got the impression that Jerry wasn't sure how to mow a lawn 'properly'.   We shared a smile that meant it didn't matter to us.   What mattered was Jerry.  


When the work was complete Jerry rang the doorbell again.  I stepped out on the front porch to hand Jerry a fresh bottle of water, a snack for the road and the agreed upon payment for his work.  He smiled at me and proudly stated that he thought the backyard looked 'worlds better' than it had before he set to work on it.  I have to agree.   

His Name is Jerry

My yard is a wreck.  I still have tree limbs dangling from the Ice Storm of 2010 along with hundreds of pecans littering my backyard.  My little dog has to hurdle the patches of weeds to find a suitable location to do his 'business' outside.  Birds fly past my yard, wince at the sight, and continue on.  I received a notice from the squirrel union this past week, that unless I make suitable working conditions for them, they will be boycotting my yard.  I am surprised the grill has not left me for a garden paradise yet, since I have neglected cleaning and using him as of late. 

I share all of this with you to tell you another story. 

Today my doorbell rang unexpectedly.  Standing on my porch was a man dressed in dirty ragged clothes holding a garden hoe and rake in one hand and a battered thermos in the other.  He asked my husband if we had any yard work he could do to earn some money?  He needed to eat and was trying to find some work to provide for himself.  He was missing four of his top front teeth and smelled as if he had missed a few shower dates. 

I stood in the background listening to my husband relay to this man that we did not have anything for him to do.  We had just had the yard sprayed two days prior and were waiting for the chemicals to take effect on the weeds before we mowed.   The man asked if there was anything else he could do, and my husband politely declined him.  He turned and walked away.  My husband closed the door and turned to look at me. 

I asked him what the man had wanted.  He said, "Some work so he could buy himself a sandwich."  I looked at my husband and we both knew at that moment there was no way he was walking away without a meal. 

My husband walked outside and invited the man back to our porch.  He then drove him to Subway and bought them both a sandwich, chips and drink.  They sat on our front porch and ate their meal while my husband tried to find out a little about this man. 

He had a place to stay but no formal education.  He was scared of our dog because they had been used to torment him as a child.   He was willing to do work, but his blood-shot eyes revealed that the money was probably used for alcohol.  They chit-chatted a while and then Jerry asked if there was any work he could do for us.   Anything at all for twenty dollars?

My husband came inside to throw the trash from their lunch away and relayed the information and request to me.  I looked at my backyard and then at my entertainment center.  On top of my dvd player sat the movie we had watched the night before; Blindside.  My mind replayed a conversation I had with my children three days prior.  We had discussed being a blessing to others and helping them in times of need.  We talked of loving Jesus and wanting to be like Him.  Would we be that now in Jerry's time of need? 

I told my husband that Jerry could rake the front and back yard.  He could gather the small limbs that still remained on our lawn and coral as many of the pecans as possible.  I also asked my husband to extend an invitation to Jerry to eat lunch with us each day. 

He immediately went to work humming all the while.  I watched him as he raked the backyard and was surprised when I realized God had answered a prayer I had uttered just the day before.  It was not so much a request as it was me sharing in conversation with God what I desired.  I wanted to get my yard work done, but felt guilty spending a beautiful day outside working instead of spending it with my children.  I have missed so many gorgeous days with them in the past, because of work, and I could not bring myself to use that time for my own ambitions.  But I knew the work needed to be done; soon. 

God knew my hearts desire and He answered my prayer.  His name is Jerry.  He sent a hungry man in need of a meal to my door step.  He knew of Jerry's hunger (he had not eaten in several days) and of my need for assistance and He blessed us both. 

 I sent a loaf of bread, four cans of tuna (with a can opener) and an unopened box of chocolate chip bars home with him, along with the twenty dollars we had agreed upon.   I do not know if Jerry will return for another meal, but I am grateful for the blessing he was to my family today. 

Thank you Heavenly Father for your provisions and your grace upon our lives.