Six Quirks & A Talent Or Two

While I was on "blogging break" I was tagged by Far Side of Fifty to do a "meme list" of six personal quirks. Ahem! I know it's supposed to just be a fun way to get to know people, but wow!--this actually turned out to be quite a struggle for me! To whoever thought up this game, I don't like it very much!!!

It's not that I mind confessing.  James 5:16 exhorts us "Confess your faults one to another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed." Quirks might not be faults exactly, but some of mine probably are. And I could use some healing! (More on that later...) So how about if I take a chance on the semantics, step out in faith, and see what God wants to do???

Except...well, check out these rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you

   Check.  You can link to Far's blog by clicking above, or on the link in "My Blog List" in the sidebar...

2. Post these rules on your blog

   Check.  Here they are...!

3. Tell about your six quirks

   Check.  Actually, I could only think of three off the top of my head. Then I got out my secret weapon (aka, my kids and husband) and they had no problem coming up with the others! (And theirs are the best!)

4. Tag six bloggers to do the same

   Okay, so here's the problem: I enjoy sharing, and receiving comments on my blogs(!), and just a tiny bit of browsing, but I'm kind of an "introverted blogger" (an oxymoron, I know...). I lack the quota of blogger connections, especially six whose sites seem particularly suited to memes. I've enjoyed a visit from one person I've never met outside of cyberspace, but her site doesn't seem suited to it, either. For fun I would love to tag a few friends and family members, but they don't blog and now that I've said that they prob'ly never will!  ;~)

5. Leave them a comment to let them know you've tagged them

   If I ever get past #4, this one will be a piece of cake. But...!

I procrastinated on this through our holiday celebration, then last night finally decided to dig in, "be an overcomer," and play this game with Far (thanks for your patience!). I stayed up late constructing and wrestling over a list of bloggers I could potentially tag (my highest tally was only five), and in the wee hours of the morning fell into a fitful sleep; then arose early with a full day's agenda, and...cold feet! (Funny how getting just a few hours of shut-eye can have the opposite effect of getting enough sleep...)

For awhile I didn't have to care, though. The morning was busy and I was nowhere near my computer. But then, as I was standing at the stove preparing a late lunch, I received inspiration. Suddenly I was reminded of the Parable of Talents (Matthew 25:14-28), in which a master entrusts different amounts of talents (a form of currency in the Middle East) to his servants, each according to their ability. Then he leaves on a long journey. When he returns, he finds that the servant he entrusted with five talents has invested and doubled the money. Likewise, the servant entrusted with two has doubled his. However the third servant, who was entrusted with only one talent, was afraid, and simply buried his talent until his master's return. 

The first two servants risked what was entrusted to them, and received praise--"Well done, good and faithful servant." The third guarded what was entrusted to him, and was condemned--"You wicked and lazy servant."

Seems like a curious and rather serious lesson to associate with a just-for-fun little old meme game, doesn't it?!

People blog a variety of ways for a variety of reasons. Some journal, some discuss, some inform, some just connect. For most of the people I'm linked with, blogging is a tool for making spiritual food gracefully available to all who visit--fresh manna served in a timely fashion and usually in small bites, so no one overeats. The burden of my heart is that this site would serve that same purpose, although having descended from a hearty bunch of gold miners, I often view my offerings less as food and more as nuggets of pure gold--treasure dredged out of rubble and entrusted to me by my Master.

I believe He would have me invest the treasure I'm entrusted with, too. Though the skillful presentation of just one nugget at a time still eludes me, and I'm not as talented at panning out all the rubble as I'd like to be, blogging is already one of my "investment tools." I'm uncertain what else I'm supposed to risk here, though--how I'm supposed to apply the Parable of Talents to this game. Later today I happened upon a blog site in which this author who'd been tagged posted her answers but chose not to tag anyone else, and I thought, "Hey!--I could just do that!" But I have a nagging sense that I'm supposed to go ahead and tag the five people on my list...

Whew!--seems like it has taken an inordinate amount of time, energy, and agonizing to get to firm ground on this, but now that I'm finally settled, here are my top six quirks:

1. I scratch and clean my right ear--and only my right ear--with the skinny barb of pen caps. (And please DO pray, as Father God leads you, for healing in this ear! It has a fungus that is incurable according to modern medical standards, and sometimes it really drives me crazy.)

2. I serve lots of awesome renditions (and occasionally a flop) of lots of awesome recipes, but never the same rendition twice. Especially when my kids aren't helping in the kitchen, I never follow a recipe to a "T" (modification is the name of the game), and I estimate rather than waste time measuring.

3. When loading the car for errands or whatever, I never remember everything in the first load. (I sometimes imagine this is a God-thing, to help me get more exercise!)

4. Despite evidence in #3 to the contrary, I'm a planner and a scheduler. I value spontaneity and love that my life and times are truly in God's hands, but spend a lot of energy planning and imposing ordered structure. My husband says many people prob'ly think this should be thought of as a "gift" rather than a quirk, but that if so, it's only because they haven't walked a mile in his shoes!  ;~)

5. Left over from my days working in salmon cold storages in Alaska, I love the smell of ice, freshly shaved in ice-making rooms or just quietly building up in warehouses and walk-in freezers when they're "On." When Christian women talk about "the fragrance of Christ," this clean, refreshing odor is what comes to mind for me. So far no refrigeration guru has been able to tell me what makes the odor, though.

6. I like to compare people to beverages. For instance, my friend Far--you remember her--she's the one who tagged me with this whole insane quirks exercise--is like a warm caramel apple cider: mellow sweet comfort that disguises a surprising tang! (But my husband thinks she's more like peppermint schnapps--sneaks right up and steals your breath away! I don't know--check out her blog and see what you think...  [That is an encouragement to meet Far--not to drink schnapps!])

Okay, that was the easy part. Now for the tagging. Please don't feel obligated to play, but I hope you'll be blessed if you do. So then...(drum roll, please!)...you're it: Czech This Out, East Side Professor, Jen & Jan, Forever His, and Truthportraits!

Feast of the Fall

Okay--the garage is painted! Also, the leaves are raked and tucked around the shrubs like warm blankets, our first snow is falling in gentle fat flakes, and just outside my window our first sukkah stands bare and empty but not forgotten. It is yet a reminder of recent reminiscing, family fun, and God's graceful provision. In case you are wondering what a sukkah is, this is my "very last first time" at placing an image in a blog:

Oh good!--it worked!  Still hard to tell what a sukkah is, though?! A sukkah is a tent--a temporary dwelling, like the Israelites lived in during the years they wandered in the wilderness. As God directs it to be constructed, it is a basic, four-sided frame covered with fabric walls and a roof made of four different kinds of tree branches--something like evergreen, deciduous, flowered/fruiting, and flexible (like willow). Our walls--long swaths of purple and blue fabrics I've used for many purposes over the years--are not pictured because we only hung them when we were actually in the sukkah. Our sukkah happens to be "furnished" with benches we made several years ago when a beaver took down one of the largest remaining popple (aspen) trees next to our swamp (he only wanted the leafy branches); but furnishings are not a significant element of a sukkah.

And why do we have such a dwelling in our yard? We are not Israelites; and we are not in need of temporary shelter. We have several tents in much better shape, and have besides, also in our yard, a much more stable, protective, permanent dwelling! Well, throughout this year our family is studying and celebrating biblical holidays, and from sundown on Tuesday, 10/14, until sundown on Wednesday, 10/22, we celebrated the Feast of Booths (aka Feast of Tabernacles). The Feast of Booths is, in part, a Thanksgiving celebration. In Israel it is closely tied to agricultural harvest, and is a time of acknowledging and thanking the Lord for all His provision. There is even supposition that when the pilgrims celebrated the first American Thanksgiving holiday, they were actually celebrating the Feast of Booths. (This is a festival which is to be celebrated still and in the future, as evidenced in Zechariah 14, and the pilgrims were very religious people, committed to following God's ways.) God appointed this feast as a time for people to remember that we dwell here only temporarily, and it is He (not we, "pulling ourselves up by our own boot straps") who faithfully sustains and prospers us just as He sustained the Israelites in the wilderness and then prospered them after He led them into the Promised Land to dwell permanently.

As the subject of biblical holidays has come up in conversation this year, a lot of our listeners have equated them with "Jewish" holidays, but this is a misnomer. Biblical holidays are the feasts and special days God told His people to keep long before there were such things as "Jews" and Jewish customs, rabbis, rabbinical law, tabernacles, or temples. The special days and feasts are delineated in Exodus 20, Leviticus 23, and Deuteronomy 16, when the Lord was beginning to form the Hebrew people into a nation. The holidays are also mentioned in various other places in both the Old and New Testaments. They are celebrations pregnant with purpose, reminding all celebrants of God's credibility and capability as evidenced by His faithful hand on His people in the past. Thus, many Jews (a relatively modern term most widely used to mean "people whose traditional religion is Judaism, and who trace their origins through the ancient Hebrew people of Israel to Abraham") do celebrate these holidays according to customs they've established through tradition, but the roots of "biblical holidays" are pre-Judaism; likewise, many "Jewish" customs and holidays are not found in the Bible, and we are not studying those.

God's appointed feasts also foreshadow the arrival and work of the Messiah. Many Jews are still waiting for a messiah (savior) that meets their expectations, but since we accept Christ as the Messiah, who was born Immanuel (God with us) and sacrificed Himself to redeem us from our debts, we've enjoyed learning how He fulfilled the Messianic intents of the biblical holidays. Christ, in fact, gives the holidays even richer significance.

I know we didn't keep the letter of the Law (for instance, we never quite got our "lulavs" together to wave...), but I think we discovered and embraced the spirit of it. For us, God's appointed time for the Feast of Booths was perfect timing. We were thankful not only to set aside some pleasant days for celebration, but also feasted on rich, nourishing lessons for ourselves and our children. We savored the reminder, permission, and time to reflect. We enjoyed the extra time outdoors in the fall weather. We warmed ourselves at the fire, admired the stars, and imagined the arrival of Immanuel in circumstances in which many scholars believe He was actually born. And we dwelt expectantly on the future, studying about the time when Christ will gather us as a groom gathers his bride, to establish us in our permanent home!

Since we also had time to finish preparing for winter, I have a little more time for blogging again!

Thank You, Lord!

Painting in the Rain

I eased into leaf season feeling free--even responsible!--to pause in my work to admire the Fall scenery... Now, however, we're racing the weather to button up several outdoor projects before snow arrives. I will have to take a short break from my indoor hobbies, including recounting/journaling our vacation... (But I'm NOT done yet!)

The project of highest priority at this time is repainting the garage. We had a lot of scraping to do, particularly on the south side, so the painting had to start over from the bottom up--priming. My husband and son finished that Saturday. Yesterday I shivered in my thin old painting shirt and shorts (the only clothes I have to sacrifice) as we tried to get the first coat of paint on over the primer before it began raining. I was nearing the end of "my" side when light sprinkles began to filter down from the darkening clouds. I picked up my pace, and thought of my friend, Alicia.  

Alicia paints, too. She paints portraits with words. Beautiful portraits! Masterpieces! That is her current career, and one of her ministries. Since it's a career, Alicia has commitments and deadlines, which means that sometimes she even has to paint on what we might call "rainy days."

Is it possible to paint Masterpieces in the rain?! Oh, yes! With the Master, all things are possible! But sometimes it can be a bit tricky. Yesterday I painted for just a little too long, and the rain washed the paint right back off of the last two boards... 

I admire the way Alicia remains on track in the midst of struggles and sad times, but yesterday reminded me to pray for her (and others) who seem so strong that they can weather ANY...weather.

Reunion and Renewal

West of the Salt Flats the "scenery" is gray, greenish gray, and dark greenish gray. Upon studying it, I've found the ecology of juniper and all the various species of sagebrush pretty intriguing, and the geologic story of the silver and gold mines might likewise be interesting. But there is nothing that really attracts us to the state of Nevada.  The fragrance of all the shrubs in bloom is heady, but I still prefer the clean tang of sub-alpine forests and alpine meadows. Nevada's homogenous Great Basin view wore on us.  We slept fast and made haste to leave Reno the next morning. Except for the 15 minutes Daddy spent stuck in the parking garage elevator with a wonderful bag lady who encouraged him that the elevator door stuck shut all the time and you just had to keep pushing the button, our leaving was uneventful...

So then, the "new" California was pretty interesting. First we had a joyful reunion with my parents at the cabin in the shady, forested Sierra Nevada mountains, where my father, as a boy, spent his summers. My parents arrived a day ahead of us (after a hiatus of 30 years or so) and by the time we got there my father had scouted the present-day setting and relocated his favorite childhood haunts. He was completely prepared to take us on an engaging tour, and we were completely engaged! The grandkids especially enjoyed seeing the "old-fashioned refrigerator" (a spring in the front yard), the place where Grandpa built his network of roads for his P.I.E. truck and tractor (in the back yard), the live-trapping grounds for squirrels (a lucrative business for boys back in "the old days"), and the "Leaning Rock" where cousins once built and defended makeshift lean-tos. The kids also went kind of crazy collecting sugar pine cones (the cones are huge, and we brought home a whole garbage bag full!), until our daughter tripped and accidentally touched one that was apparently very precious to a gray squirrel living in the mature pine above it. Boy!--it was a very tall, very straight tree, and he was a very quick scurrier! Friendly little bugger, though. It was quite a sight!  ;~)

One of my favorite things about a forest is the ecology, too. Specifically, I love to see the way God has worked out recycling and regenerating, restoring and renewing. Sometimes His processes are incredible because of their simplicity, and sometimes because they're so complicated... Squirrel caches are a simple process; wildfires, insect infestations, and even disease often represent the more complicated.

Speaking of fires, after thoroughly touring the cabin area for a day we continued our trip by detouring around persistent wildfires and resulting road-closures. Amidst some dreadfully graphic but informative discussion with my husband about why many vehicles (mini-vans like ours, in particular) are not built for the style of mountain driving handed down to me by my ancestors, the vivid imagery and his gentle instruction reformed me as I drove us up steep, narrow, intensely banked, winding roads to the gold mining claims where my mom's family spent THEIR summers. (I wonder if renewing our minds makes us younger? I mean, whether it's God or my husband that enacts it, I feel like a whole new person after I'm re-formed!) There we quickly reminisced, hiked the old ditch, observed bear scat and poison oak closely, and took a two-minute wade in the old skinny-dipping pool. After a quiet family prayer time in the garden of my grandparents, it was nearing dusk as we started the last three-hour leg of our journey to the coast.

Did you know there is still at least one section of paved road in the United States that is a 10% grade?  (If you know of others, please leave me a comment.  I'd prefer to be forewarned!) It's five miles long, very winding, and relentless!  The locals--including trucks--travel it at something close to the speed of light, but we were unfamiliar, unprepared, and it was already dark AND foggy.  Even though I started down it in "L"--the lowest gear possible on an automatic transmission--I smoked our brakes about half a mile from the bottom. As spongy as the brakes suddenly became, we overshot the pull-out but managed to stop alongside of the guardrail, and although the engine/transmission groaned at first, it did manage to back us up into the pull-out...

Whew! Okay, so the Lord blessed us twofold: there was no one behind us when we had to stop and back up, and the brake pads didn't crumble into dust; rather, they worked fine again once they cooled off (20 minutes waiting plus another 20 miles later...). We arrived at the coast in time for "breakfast" at an all-night diner, and fell into bed for a pleasant round of regeneration, restoration, and renewal (i.e., r-e-s-t!).

Heavenly Father, YOU are an engaging, intriguing Father, too!!! Thank You for our parents and their heritage, our legacy.  Thank You for putting in place processes of renewal for our bodies, souls, and minds. There are so many truths we don't yet know, so many erroneous conclusions we've jumped to and believed to a fault. Thank You that You are the Truth, our salvation, and our gentle, loving guide.  Please bind us to Your will, Your truth, and the mind of Christ (which has perfect understanding of truth), and renew our minds. Set us free from the deceptions we've believed! In Jesus' name, amen.

Evidence

Bear Lake, ID/UT

"...That which is known about God is evident...for God made it evident...For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that [we] are without excuse." Romans 1:18-20

Due to some medical issues, we had to delay the onset of our vacation for eight hours. Since we had prearranged our lodging (lots of it!), we had to somehow absorb the delay. We chose to spend a full day and stay an extra night in Cody, WY, and then drive straight through to Reno, NV, via the scenic route of Yellowstone NP, Teton NP, Bear Lake, and the Salt Flats in Utah. For our entourage this was a 21-hour drive through what seemed like several distinct worlds. My husband did a lot of the driving; the kids were content most of the time; and the scenery was enthralling for much of the day. I had a lot of solitude for silent worship, and reflected on the passage above for a long time. What invisible attributes did the Lord intend to reveal to humanity through the part of Creation we were viewing?

Grand Teton draped with glacial lace...

His sovereignty; He is King of kings

Plunging painted canyons and wide open prairies...

the depth and breadth of His love

Steaming thermal springs...

the gentle but unyielding conviction of His Spirit

Crisp high mountain air...

the fresh fragrance of freedom in Christ

Lush meadows, where moose and buffalo graze...

His rich provision; He's the Shepherd who gives us everything we need

Cascading waterfalls...

His joy--He delights in all of His creation, including US!

Bugling bull elk...

He calls to us

Backpacking bicyclers...

His strength, endurance, and longevity

Speed limit signs...  (okay--they're not "nature," per se--but I enjoy driving fast the way some of you enjoy your vices, and have the same problem with speed limits as some of you do with, say, legal alcohol limits, so let's just rejoice that I'm noticing them!)

His loving limits/boundaries

Interpretive signs...

His Word, the Bible

Slow drivers ahead of us on steep canyon roads...

despite my "need for speed" (!), God is our pacesetter; He's not above placing precious people ahead to slow us, that we might reach our appointments in HIS perfect timing! And while He is seldom early, He is never late...

The piercing pain of the poisonous stinger of the dying wasp wounded on our windshield...

God lovingly warns us that we'll encounter our enemy's fiery darts if we wander past the limits of His shield--a shield limited not by His power (ability), but by His promise (laws)

The wasp itself...

as we buzz down the road called Life, bugs (trials and storms) often splat on our windshield. 

While admittedly distracting, God encourages us that it's foolhardy and unnecessary to focus on these bugs; rather, stay focused on the Road (Jesus--THE WAY!...the Truth, and the Life)

Brilliant-hued Bear Lake, which spans the man-made political border between Idaho and Utah...

because of God's great love for us, He enacted a brilliant plan to span the border between Himself and man, becoming "Immanuel"--that is, "God with us"--whom we most commonly call Jesus. In taking on our sin and dying for us, He bridged the gap created by our sin (lack of trust, unbelief, pride, unwillingness to submit, fear, independence, self-indulgence, self-preservation, etc.), and removed the source of our "need" for man-made borders (prejudices) between each other...

The close proximity of my son's "travel armpits"...

how BELOVED is Jesus' cleansing power!!!  ;~)

The Salt Flats...

God is not stagnant but full of flavor, and He desires to anoint us that we might also be flavorful and spread His flavor to those in our sphere of influence

Truly, I am without excuse!  :~)

5,017!

That's the reading on our trip odometer.

In miles...

Exactly!

It was a long trip, but it was good. We consciously acknowledge that we were led, challenged, and blessed the whole way. As I consider the vehicle issues, finances, time, personal logistics, and events of our two-week "heritage/overview-of-the-west" vacation in our current economy, our trip seems somewhat "unreasonable." I'm still in awe of God's handiwork and wondering what His purpose is. From our perspective, He sure went to a lot of trouble! Makes me determined to "get" whatever He wants me to out of the experience!

We're still putting things in order at home, preparing to get back into routine, and processing what we experienced.  Between us, we captured approximately 700 photos and video clips. This week the kids and I will concentrate on producing photojournals, and may post some of our favorite shots.

I learned much...I think. Enjoyed much, also. A HUGE thanks to my family for all the hosting and stories. Dad, one of our favorite things was watching your eyes twinkle as you shared your boyhood haunts and antics. Mom--THANKS for the hospitality, painting, and special surprise pear pie! And Sis, I really like putting together devotions for all the kids with you. The potential for sharing Godly legacy seems to increase exponentially when the cousins are together, and I'm glad we were in it together, too! ;~)

Used Shoes

"Hey Honey, how about these?" He's peeling off the last too-tight fit in the clearance aisle, and I've been rapidly rummaging through this season's models one aisle over. The hiking shoes in my hand are the widest I can find in the store.

We're preparing for a "family heritage" vacation. You'll never guess where we're going: Yep!--into the desert! That's only part of the trip, though. We'll also be winding our way through several magnificent mountain passes...dancing in cold, cascading waterfalls...visiting old family cabins and gold mining claims...playing in the ocean...touring 5-6 national parks...hiking up, up, UP to my favorite mountain lake (thus the need for hiking shoes)...and visiting relatives here and there along the way. This trip has been fun to plan, and we're just about ready, set, go!

"How much are they?"

"I don't know. I can't find a price anywhere--" 

Then the tag catches my eye, and I groan inwardly...$90. My husband doesn't pay $90 for ANY shoes, let alone a pair that, in his words, "won't be used to make money."  

About 100 miles south of us in a teeny-weeny rural town, there's a teeny-weeny Redwing store that sells new, seconds, and--of all things--used work boots. Ever since a friend introduced us to the place a decade ago, my husband has been a consistent customer in the "Used" department. We've asked but never thoroughly understood why this little store has used boots for sale (I mean, who "turns in," or "trades in," their slightly-worn used work boots? And how? And why?!), but every other week this store receives a large shipment of used boots from the big city. The day after the shipment arrives, the boots are sorted according to various criteria and lined up neatly in the "Used" room.  The store even has a toll free number so customers don't have to waste a trip; they can call ahead and the clerks will rummage through the current supply to see if they have what the customers need. About once every year or two we pray ahead and then call or stop by on our way through the area, and find my husband's next pair of boots. A pair of used boots costs $35-40, depending on appearance and wear.

Talk about walking in another person's shoes!  ;~)

Our son loves to walk in his father's shoes, figuratively as well as literally. When he was two he'd find his dad's big ol' work boots resting near the front door, climb in, grab the laces up tight like reins, and clomp around the kitchen giggling with joy and boyish pride. As the years passed he loved and learned to emulate his father in so many other things, too, so that now he's quite handy, engaging, and seemingly steadfastly decided on his career (despite any counsel from anyone--even Dad). His goal is to follow in Dad's footsteps and work right alongside him someday. 

Along with work, funny is big at our house. Since my husband excels at entertaining the rest of us, our son is busy perfecting a like sense of humor that belies his age. Most of his jokes and teasing drive his sister crazy (because, as she's quick to remind him, he's not Daddy!), but a precious jewel of wisdom my mom passed on to me years ago prepared me for this stage.  Mom shared that she hadn't realized what my brother was doing when he first started developing his "dry" humor, and she hoped I'd watch for it and be able to appreciate it more in my son. I'm so thankful for that heads-up! My son's developing humor captures and thrills me so that I don't even have to pretend to get a kick out of him--he's funny!

A couple weeks ago he really caught me, though. We were out of milk that morning. The sky was clear blue, the air crisp-cool, and we welcomed a refreshing bike ride to the local grocery first thing. As I paid for our milk the elderly clerk asked where my husband was working that week, then began to reminisce about what her life was like when her husband worked on the road. The "lovely" spin she put on the lifestyle truly glorified God, but as I listened my mind sought balance. While I acknowledge God's provision, I must also acknowledge the desert. It is because it is hard to watch my husband struggle to maintain all the other aspects of his life during the few days he's home each week, and because it is sometimes hard to maintain joy when I'm a tired "single parent," disappointed in--or right along with--a child, that God's presence and grace in my life is such a precious oasis. Without the harshness of the desert, I would not seek nor value His help so much. And so although I trust and promote His faithfulness, I must acknowledge the hardship that creates room for it in my life. And since I am human, I also long for relief...or at least improvement!

As we left the store, I said to my son, "Remember, when you grow up, what it feels like when Dad is gone. Remember, so that maybe you can live in a way that's not so hard for your family."

"What do you mean, Mom? I'm gonna do just what Dad does, right along with him."

"Yes, Son, I know. But just remember what the rest of your family will be going through at home, and pray for a way to balance things more."

"Uh...no way! When I grown up I'm gonna be gone from home as much as possible!"

"What?! Why?!"

"So I won't get made fun of..."

Huh?!  :~(

I had just pushed off and was pulling away from the curb as he said it, defensively looking for moving cars as we crossed the parking lot, so just kept going. But I almost cried the whole way home.  In the midst of a hearty round of joking, my husband often teases us that he "just gets made fun of whenever [he] comes home..."  But I know he's kidding... Didn't our son? Doesn't he know his father would prefer to be home every night, with us and having time to work on projects at a more relaxed pace? Can he not see that marriage, and family life is lovely, and valuable...and that we wish we had more time for things other than all the have-to-do projects that steal our time to play together? And with the breakdown of family values so prevalent in our culture, it's important to me that our children see the gift of family--that they see it in us, and for what it truly is... And we've tried to show them... And...aren't they getting the message?!?

By the time we got home and hit the day running--breakfast for Grandma, home school, etc.--I was a basket case. I was praying, but still a basket case with a churning mind and stomach. It wasn't until the next day that I was actually collected and ready to broach the subject again with my son. 

He quickly explained that he'd been TEASING! 

Thankfully he's not quite old enough to judge me as silly or stupid for feeling upset. 

But then, he's walked in my shoes some, too...

I hand the box of $90 hiking shoes to my husband, knowing I'll have to elaborate on my answer about the price but wishing I didn't, wanting to at least see if they're wide enough... He opens the box to try the shoes on, and notices...they're used!  But we aren't in a used shoe store--we're in a sporting goods store. They carry used guns, but not used shoes! Weird! And these shoes are d-e-f-i-n-i-t-e-l-y used, but just a little. The shoes are the right model for the box, but they have light wear/scuff marks on the sides, a light layer of dust all over, and a little mud still stuck in the barely-worn soles. We ask a roaming clerk about them and she tells us to ask for the manager at checkout to receive a discount. After I tell my husband the regular price, we agree it prob'ly won't even be worth it to ask about a discount. (He's not willing to pay more than $50 for hiking shoes...)

But what do we have to lose? While he takes the kids to look at guns, I carry the box to the checkout, praying all the way. The astute young man at the customer service counter is genuinely baffled, both at the appearance of the shoes in a new box in his store and that we want to buy them. But I gently reassure him we are not crazy--just thrifty--and he finally calls the manager. The manager has him look up the store's cost for the shoes, and offer them to us for...$50!!!

As my husband pays for his shoes, the sales clerk still can't quite wrap his mind around this event. "Are you sure you really want these?"  "Yes," my husband tells him, "Used is fine with me. Someone else just wore the price right out of them."

I, like my husband and son, choose to walk in used shoes. I strive to stay in the shoes of my precious Master, Jesus. Whoever first owned my husband's hiking shoes walked their price right out of them, but Jesus forthrightly paid the price for my sins (the ones I've already confessed, as well as those I have yet to commit). However I cross life's deserts (and mountains!), whether I walk, run, stumble, fall, crawl, roll, or dance...I am blessed to cross freely, in His shoes!