Friday, April 23, 2010

It's Been a While

First the excuse. It gets tedious typing with one finger. Now with a cast I can use two hands again. It is slow and hurts a little bit, but it's better.

I am a grandparent now. My teeny weeny little girl is showing signs of being a champion already, having been born prematurely. But she is sucking up the distress and difficulties like a true braveheart. It makes me ponder life and wonder at the rolling tide of generations that keeps hitting the shore. Some waves are receding, whiles others are just crashing on the beaches.

I have two generations alive behind me now and one ahead of me. It used to be the reverse, but with the death of my last grandparent sixteen years ago, it was like stepping up in the queue. Now my parents' generation is first in line to step through the mysterious veil that releases us from time and space. Occasionally someone further back in the line takes cuts, and that is never nice.

My desktop photo right now if of my son holding his brand-new daughter. The look of love and devotion on his face has already made a transforming mark. He will never be the same again. That little bundle is tugging hard at his heart and making him ever more vulnerable to the joys and pains of intense love. He is blessed.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Hunt and Peck

With a broken arm there is a great temptation to...

1. not do things you are still capable of doing because you have an excuse.
2. use either too much or too little pain medication.
3. believe your sling/cast weighs more than it really does when you step on the scale.
4. gut it out and not accept help.
5. sleep all day.
6. lower the typing standards because you have to hunt and peck.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Oh! The Lies!

There is a voice in our heads, if only we could still it, telling lies continually.

Sometimes it is the voice of self-deception, making us feel more important, virtuous, beautiful, and smarter than we really are.

It can also be the nemesis of a puffed ego undermining our confidence: "Your nose really is too big. You never will do this well. People only pretend to like you."

Other times it is the black hole of the past, trying to suck you in, never to escape: "Remember how much it hurt when he/she did that? Don't forget about how you messed up. It's too late to change."

It can also be a whispering deceiver: "You are unlovable. What you did will never be forgiven. You are such a bore."

The trick is to discern between the falsehoods and a healthy dose of reality. Lies bring despair, but truth lies in peace.