Sifting thru a life

"Mari gets the words." That was always the understanding. The words, a few old postcards, a bit of lace, wedding and funeral announcements....

Periodically I get the box down out of the closet and sort through it all again. Her journals stand like silent sentinels on the bookshelf, waiting for me to glean and garner a pithy saying, an insight, an occasional epiphany - in between what she had made for dinner, how much rain fell, who they played cards with.

The other day a friend of mine sent me a card that mom had sent her four years ago. What a surprise to open the envelope unaware that mom's familiar flowing handwriting would be the first thing I saw. It gave my heart a start.

How do I honor her memory best? How do I care for these pieces she left behind? When will I be able to touch what she touched without tears?

Rock City with the Rock Stars!

My two Little Sisters are not so little anymore but will still hang out with an old white lady on occasion! We've been matched for several years and I really enjoy my time with them. This past Saturday we had pizza and ice cream at Mr. T's and ate it as we watched the Incline go up and down Lookout Mtn. across the street.

Victoria, me, Alexis

SharpTop Cove Ya'll!!

Dan & Bre were at SharpTop Cove last week with their Young Life kids from St. Francisville. SharpTop is in Jasper, GA which is an easy 1 1/2 hour drive from Chatt. so my friend Anne and I spent Sunday night through Tuesday afternoon at camp! What a treat in alot of ways - to spend some quality time with Anne, show off a YL property to her, see Dan & Bre and their other awesome leader Jessica, see our friend Nathan who is the EMT there for the month.....a serendipity filled with theophanies!!

Anne and I were able to stay in the Adult Guest lodge which is absolutely beautiful inside and out!So fun to watch Dan & Bre at the volleyball tournament! Anne and I got to ref as part of our adult guest "duties". That was tons of fun too!
So good to see Nathan!! He's doing a great job and I'm so proud of him for taking on this challenge! Looking forward to hearing his stories of God's faithfulness and care for him while he was at camp!

We had the chance to watch the Louisiana kids climb the tower - a big challenge!

Is she not the cutest ever? Love this girl!

Years before I moved to Chattanooga I prayed that God would allow me to be part of something bigger - I had no idea what I was even asking for but I know that I felt there was something out there waiting for me. Being involved in Young Life has brought me so many opportunities, new friendships, challenges, and joys!

Rock Town

This is my friend Barbara from Rock Spring, GA and she is full of fun and adventure and knows all kinds of neat places to explore. For awhile now she's been telling me about hiking to Rock Town which is on Pigeon Mtn. in NW Georgia and last Saturday Dale and I took her up on her offer to be our tour guide there. One of her many talents is gardening and here she's standing under her trellis of pole beans. Below are just a few of the many rock formations that we climbed on. Picking and eating wild blueberries, watching a youth group climb a wall, and having a photo shoot made for a very fun day in an amazing part of God's creation!

Survivor Sister

This is my beautiful friend Wanda who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. A few years ago when I lost my hair during chemo my friend Robin had a hat/scarf prayer shower for me and a few of us had one for Wanda the other night. We brought yum food and drink and a new hat or scarf for her. After she opened all her gifts she modeled each one for us. I think it makes the weirdness of losing your hair a little easier if you can make a party around it. I'm so grateful for Robin for doing that for me and I was glad to have the idea to share with another friend!

I gave Wanda my box of hats and scarves right after she was diagnosed and when we walked in for the party that night I realized she was wearing one that my mom had given me! Brought tears to my eyes to see mom's gift of love being passed on.

We had fun oohing and aahing during the fashion show! Yay for friends who make the hard times easier to bear!

Michigan Visit

So many people - so little time to see them all! We managed a quick visit to see Carol and also stopped in at Earl & Ade Hulst. The Hulsts are both recovering from surgery and it was good to see them feeling good and have some time to visit in their beautiful home.

We had a birthday party for Dad V.W. - so good to see him and mom and also the rest of the Vander Woudes! We had fun eating pizza and flag cake and also playing ladder golf, hula hooping, and bean bag toss. Lots of laughter and love! (Dad had a spot of skin cancer taken off the morning of the party - hence the big white bandage.)

Anne and Renee hosted a baby shower for Susan, Josh's wife, and I got to go to that too!! Susan is a beautiful pregnant lady and I can't wait to meet their baby! Nancy and a few of her girls were there too. Mike came in later so it was a sweet little family reunion! I was disappointed that we never crossed paths with Josh that weekend :-(

One of the things I miss about Michigan is the big lake, the beach, and the lighthouses so we always try to get out there. We had a fun picnic with the Youngbloods at Holland State Park!

Dale Allen looks more and more like his dad all the time! They are alot alike in personality too. We had a great time staying at their house and we realize that every visit should be cherished!

Snapshot of Summer

Earlier this month we went up to Michigan to celebrate Dale's dad's 80th birthday with stops in Indy on both ends to see Mark & Tara and the kids. Being a grandparent is a really wonderful thing to be! So good to see them and see the progress Sohee continues to make in adjusting to her new life.

Lost and Found

Yesterday afternoon I took my current journal to Walmart with me since I had my shopping list written in there - I accidentally left it either in the buggy or on a shelf. I didn't realize it until later in the evening. I called Customer Service and they had it. I was so relieved and went right over there to get it.

The Customer Service lady asked me to describe it before she gave it to me and I gave her a brief description. To her, handing over that book, was just another part of her work day, to me, receiving it was priceless.

This morning I thought of her question - "Can you describe it?" As I looked through it I realize what a collection of randomness is inside:

~My 2009 Mother's Day card from Crew
~A list of books and music to check out on my next visit to McKays
~Quotes from folks who can say it much better than I
~An address list entitled "Quick Reference For Those I Love So Much"
~Psalms dissected
~Lists of "Future Possibilities"
~Prayers, Poems, Promises
~Recipes
~Pages dedicated to "The Indy Visit", "The Carolann Visit", "The Michigan Visit" with another page dedicated to wrap-ups of each one

I am so glad to have it back.

Those few moments between realizing I had lost it and realizing someone had found it were upleasant, like scary sick to your stomach unpleasant.
Like a piece of myself was lost and vulnerable.

Found: One Scrabble Afficiando!

Wanted: Scrabble Afficiandos

I have found a very beautiful spot to play the world's greatest word game.

Any takers?

This is my friend Carolann......

She is full of fun and laughter and an indomitable spirit

We both have long first names and no middle name

So it was inevitable that we would find each other

On this crowded planet

She has known sorrow of the deepest kind

And it has tenderized an already tender heart

I love her for little reasons

She reminds me how much I love hot tea and old movies

And I love her for huge reasons too

She listens to my words and half thoughts

I love her sense of adventure and wonder

And the way she views birds, babies, books

I think she is one of the bravest people I know

And her quiet demeanor shouts "Choose Joy!"

I love her cause we get each other's humor

So giggles can outweigh explanations

We have been through a bit of life together

And a bit of death

We know that miles don't matter or the minutes

Between emails

This is a run on poem for Carolann

This is a poem of love

This is a love poem

This is a poem she will love

"It Takes A Lot of Slow to Grow"

Sometimes the dots connect....

I heard Jan Johnson speak last week and bought her book "Enjoying the Presence of God" - her words are such a sweet reminder to slow down, to listen, to be still, to be aware.

And then I had the chance to hang out with my favorite 3 year old for a few days and I remembered all over again that toddlers don't live by a watch but by instinct. That the discovery of a bug, a flower, a rock, is a reason to stop in their tracks and fully experience wonder. The rest of the world continues to whirl by Crew while he watches black ants marching on sidewalks, smells a petunia he found lying on a busy downtown street, rolls a smooth rock over and over between his hands.

When is the sad moment in our lives when this depth of experiental living is lost - when we live by lists and calendars and agendas? Is it possible as an adult to recapture a bit more of intentional living? Yes, I believe it is, but it's going to take some practice.

What an unlikely looking spiritual director this little boy turns out to be so often. How grateful I am for his presence in my heart and life.

Johnson writes "Living in the present moment means that I value the processes of life as well as the products. When I plant a magenta bougainvillaea, I'm not only adding color and beauty to the landscape, but I'm also having a good time interacting with God's creation. I relish God's presence as I crumble the earth between my fingers, meet up with rocks and worms, and watch my cuticles become ragged."

Sometimes the Lord brings me a word or a phrase that lingers for awhile and I have learned to let it seep into the corners of my life. The title of this post is currently taking up residency - it comes from a little poem by Eve Merriam I discovered years ago. Here's the rest of the poem.....

A Lazy Thought

There go the grownups
To the office,
To the store.
Subway rush,
Traffic crush;
Hurry, scurry,
Worry, flurry.

No wonder
Grownups
Don't grow up
Any more.

It takes a lot
Of slow
To grow."

It takes a lot of slow to grow.