Feeling Better

My son emptied the dishwasher tonight. Just because he decided to. It's not his regular chore -- we don't even have a dishwawsher at home, no one asked him to and he didn't want anything.


This made me happy. I even posted about it on my Facebook status.



It also made me think of other good things that happened today.

I found Jordan's curriculum. It had been missing for weeks. It was in a closet at Mom's. What it was doing there is beyond me. But today was the day I had planned to get us back into the school routine, with back up activities, and it appeared. Yay! Now we can get back to French, and planning for Jordan's historical role-playing game about Ancient China along with more traditional topics like arithmetic and handwriting.

A friend of mine called up and offered to babysit tomorrow. So now I get to have a grown-up lunch and start planning for my mother's committal service without an active boy providing distractions.

With all this to be thankful for, I am feeling pretty good. Which is a far cry from where I was last night when I posted on Facebook that I was "Crashing. Big Time." No drugs were involved. I was coming down off the adrenalin I had been running on for the final days of my mother's life and in the aftermath of her death. Last night, I got hit with the sense of grief that shock and busyness had been masking. I began to feel overwhelmed with all that needs to be done to settle Mom's estate. And I realized I was plain exhausted. This morning I woke up to a flooded basement. Not what I needed.

But then, Jordan emptied the dishwasher. I looked back over the day and found so much to be grateful for. Not just the blessings I mentioned above, but also what I had accomplished. I cleared the water out of basement and took care of the overflowing oil burner. By myself. I dealt with Mom's car at the registry and her accounts at the bank. I even squeezed in a few lessons and some preparation for this weekend's house clean-out.

So I'm better. Oh, I know that grief will come in waves and I am sure there will be more times of exhaustion and frustration. But we'll do what we need to do and God will remain faithful. That's enough.

Blessings and peace to you.

You learned that where?

This afternoon Jordan started telling me about the Great Depression and asking me for more information. As we talked, I discovered that he knew that dollar bills were worth a lot more then and that the Depression ended because the War started and people got jobs making guns, among other facts. I have never taught Jordan about the Great Depression. We haven't covered that period of history yet. So, I asked him where he had learned about it. "Little Lulu Comic Books," he told me.

Comic books written to amuse teach history? Apparently.

My mind flashed back to a conversation Jordan had with his pediatrician at his last appointment. He told the pediatrician that he likes to read and the pediatrician told him that whenever he was reading he was learning. "There's nothing you can read that you won't derive some benefit from," he said.

Looks like he was right.

Actually, I see Jordan learning all the time. Whether he is reading, interacting with others or playing alone in the backyard, he is discovering something. Sure some types of activities are more efficacious than others when it comes to academics. But rarely is what my son decides to do with his free time completely valueless. (It's a good thing because he has had very little formal schooling in the last few weeks. We'll try to get back into our routine tomorrow.)

I am finding the same thing with my own reading. Currently, I am reading The Mongoliad, a serial internet novel set in Europe in 1241. ( http://mongoliad.com/ ) I have learned a lot about the mongol invasion, Ogedei Khan, the death of Pope Gregory IX and monastic military orders of the period. Sometimes, I have been spurred to do my own research and fill in gaps in my education.


God has given us minds and the ability to develop them. I hope you enjoy finding learning opportunities everywhere.

Have a blessed day.

War and Loss

So, we go to war again. In a new place for a new reason. Or maybe it's a new front in the same old war.

Whatever, our troops are in danger and we are spending millions on weapons to protect our interests somewhere -- happens to be Libya this time. Same old story. It just goes on and on.

Not that I am necessarily against what we are doing, especially if it really will stop the mass murder of the Libyan people. I don't really know enough to judge. I feel the same about Iraq.


The verse comes to mind, "When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come." (Mark 13:7) There have been plenty of wars since Jesus spoke those words. Some were believed to be so horrible that no one would try battle again. In an episode of M*A*S*H, Col. Potter asks, "What war is this?" and Hawkeye responds, "The latest war to end all wars." I suppose based on this verse, we are to leave war in God's hands, knowing someday he will bring an end to it. But more young people still fight and suffer injury and die.


On a personal level, this new war is overshadowed by my own loss. We are preparing for my mother's memorial service tomorrow. There are a million details to work out -- speakers, food for the meal after the service, seating, arrangements for family from far away. (We are so glad they could be with us!) In a sense, despite the sadness, I look forward to tomorrow. I know that I will feel in a tangible way the support that has been offered by so many as they gather to honor my mother. And it will be a time to pause from all the rigamarole, to worship and remember. I am deeply grateful that I will have that opportunity.


Whether it's war or loss or something else altogether on your mind, I pray you have a blessed day filled with reassurance from the Prince of Peace.