Bike deliveries. (30 days of thankfulness - day 2)

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Thankful today for the goodness of people who are willing to help without hestitation in the midst of catastrophe.  Our dear "Cuz," my dad's 80-something-year-old cousin, lives in Greenwich Village, NYC in the same tiny apartment she's lived her entire life.  Due to Hurricane Sandy, her power has been out for over 4 days now, and her tiny fragile frame is getting rather cold and hungry.  She cannot go out alone.  I found out yesterday she needed more food and candles until some of our family members could get to her.

A few texts later, our friend Jeff, who recently moved to Brooklyn from Dallas, kindly agreed to bike to her house today to bring her some food.

The grocery list:

  • eggs
  • chicken
  • salad
  • candles (sold out everywhere)
  • biscotti
  • italian bread (because let's be honest, a 100% Italian woman can only go so long without it)

This is what Jeff said, "It was weird riding around lower Manhattan with no electricity.  It was quiet and eerie.  Cops at every corner directing traffic.  Water stations at hydrants for people to fill up jugs.  Food donation centers.  The richest city in the U.S. is third world right now."

Please pray for power to return quickly, for multitudes of provision.  With all those who can get help, there are so many others who will fall through the cracks.

We love you, Cuz!  And God bless you, Jeff!

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During the month of November, I'm practicing "30 days of thankfulness" - will you join me?  Use your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram to voice your thankfulness for something every day in November.  My hope is that this daily routine will create in me a heart of thankfulness and gratitude, no matter the day or month or situation.

They survived. (30 days of thankfulness ~ day 1)

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Power outages, lines for gasoline, homes cut in half by fallen trees.  Yet these 70-foot-tall oaks of righteousness are still standing in my parents' backyard.  So thankful for this mercy but broken-hearted for those who lost so much.

~ ~ ~

During the month of November, I'm practicing "30 days of thankfulness" - will you join me?  Use your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram to voice your thankfulness for something every day in November.  My hope is that this daily routine will create in me a heart of thankfulness and gratitude, no matter the day or month or situation.

Snail mail exchange!

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This post from one of my favorite blogs, Walk Slowly Live Wildly, totally inspired me. 

Photo: walkslowlylivewildly.com

Ahhhhhhh.  Who doesn't want to receive some knitted rainbow fingerless gloves in the mail?  Or a bookmark?  Or some tea?  Or just a lovingly handwritten note?

I miss snail mail.

And I want to revive it.

Who's with me?  I say we do it, exchange addresses if we don't already know each other, and start gracing each others' mailboxes once a month with rainbow-y, sunshine-y goodness.

I have no clue how to organize so everyone receives something in the mail and returns the favor, but I'm open to ideas!  So if you're in, post a comment and let me know.

P.S. I think I'm going to start knitting.  For real.

Shalom.

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I re-read this passage today in Shauna Niequist's book Cold Tangerines and nearly wept...

"There is a way of living, a way of harmonizing and hitting a balance point, a converging of a thousand balance points and voices, layering together, twisting together, and there are moments when it all clicks into place just for a split second - God and marriage and forgiveness and something deep inside that feels like peace - and that's the place I'm trying to get to.

I have glimpses every once in awhile of this achingly beautiful way of living that comes when the plates stop spinning and the masks fall off and the apologies come from the deepest places and so do the prayers, and I am fighting, elbowing to make more of my life that life.  I want that spirit or force of happiness that is so much deeper than happy - peace that comes from your toes, that makes you want to live forever, that makes you gulp back sobs because you remember so many moments of so much un-peace.  I search for those moments the way I search for beach glass, bits of glitter along a desolate expanse of sand, and I want those moments to stretch into hours, into days.

The word I use for it is shalom."

One of the shalom moments I experienced that still shakes me to this day is when I was in labor with Luci Belle.  There was a specific moment of labor - hour whatever of 36 - when I was conscious of being stripped to the truest and most naked part of my soul.  It was such a strange feeling, because I was truly fighting to bring her into the world, but I felt such deep peace.  I remember my husband laying next to me, holding me on the bed at the birth center, and hearing my life anthem, Caedmon's Call's "Lead of Love," playing on the iPod and weeping, because I felt so happy, so grateful to be in that moment.  Her birth didn't turn out at all like I'd planned but it was just right - just what I needed it to be.

And here I am today, at almost-thirty-five-years-old, uncovering deeper darker parts of my personality that I really want to change.  Once and for all, I want to learn the art of letting go.  Gracefully.  I want to stop carrying resentment and bitterness with me, or a heart of perfection and blame.   I want to learn true humility rather than the fake kind that pretends everything is okay when it isn't and then resorts to defensiveness and pride.  I want to continue opening myself to love others better. 

Yes, I want "more of my life that life."

Shauna goes on to say...

"To get there, I'm finding, is the hardest work and the most worthwhile fight.  Shalom requires so much, so much more than I thought I would have to sacrifice, and it scrapes so deeply through the lowest parts of me, divulging and demonstrating so many dark corners.  It's something you can't fake, so you have to lay yourself open to it, wide open and vulnerable to what it might ask of you, what it might require you to give up, get over, get outside of, get free from.  It feels, sometimes, like running farther than you thought you could run, legs shaking and lungs burning, feeling proud and surprised at what little old you could do."

I could quote the entire chapter, but I hope you'll read - or re-read - it for yourself, because I dare say there's not one person among us who isn't searching for more shalom.

My lender copy of Cold Tangerines is ready and waiting for its next borrower - who's it gonna be?

Inspiration today: all things handmade.

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I had the incredible opportunity to hear Jen Hatmaker speak a few weeks ago at First Baptist Euless.  Her latest book, 7 : An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess, is everywhere right now - blogs, community groups, Instagram.  I have so many thoughts I'm still processing from Jen's talk about spending, simplifying, serving the poor, and generosity, and now I'm deep into reading the actual book.  Can't wait to share some thoughts soon!

Image: KangarooCare on EtsyAnyway, all this pondering about how I can further simplify my life inspired me to share some recent finds in the world of "handmade." Hope you enjoy...

  • Absolutely in love with every necklace on this Etsy shop, Kangaroo Care.  Perfect for mamas with babes, or any female if you ask me!  Tara Stepp, I can really see you loving these.  Thanks to my dear friend Bre for the recommendation!
  • This Etsy shop, Pen & Paint.  Beautiful illustrations.
  • Gorgeous skirts on this site, Open Arms Shop, made from recycled materials and made by refugees who are trying to get out of poverty.  They had them in stock at Whole Earth Provision Co. the other day and I tried one on.  Super comfy, but if you're thinking of getting one, note that are on the fitted side. 
  • I want to create a "sacred space" like this in our home, out of items I already have on hand - a cozy, inviting, colorful space just for mama to do her reading and studying and thinking and relaxing. 
  • I really want to embellish some old tshirts - like this and this.
  • My sister-in-law Trish and I recently had a craft night, and we each made this burlap fall banner.  All we needed were apples for the stamp, burlap, some craft paint, glue gun, and yarn.  It looks perfect hanging in the doorway between our living room and dining room...

Hope some of these things inspire you too.  Happy fall!