Every so often I feel like I get this nudge that reminds me about something...it might be something that I really need to remember or it might be something that gives me perspective on how far I have come.
Last Fall I was looking up an education research article for one of the profs I work for and suddenly came across a Math article written by someone I graduated college with. It turns out that she had gotten a doctorate, had gotten married (I'm not sure on the order), had a daughter, and is working at a small university on the East coast. It took me back to my undergraduate days and made me remember things that I hadn't thought about for a long time. Today I walked across campus to buy my textbooks for the new semester. I watched all the undergraduates and realized that even though I started as an undergraduate almost 15 years ago (wow!) that they were not that different then I was at the time. I was realizing how much I had changed since then.
Last night at choir we were singing a piece that had the phrase "peace that passes understanding" in it. That was my breath prayer back when I was thinking about having such a thing. It reminded me that I missed that and that I needed to keep that with me.
Showing posts with label reflection. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reflection. Show all posts
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Appreciating what you have....
I have decided that to appreciate what you have it is not that you should do without something for awhile, but do with less.
Like right now the house (which is actually bigger than the one we had before) feels gigantic because it is so much bigger than the RV.
It feels like we have tons of stuff because we were used to doing it with less (which probably means we have way too much stuff).
Any TV feels really big because we have been watching a little 13" TV (our other TV broke and it seemed silly to buy one and then have to move it so we decided to just buy one after we moved).
I'm also realizing how fortunate everyone is who owns their own house (or at least is in the process of "buying" their own house through mortgage payments). I had forgotten how expensive it is to set-up a new house. Everyone wants a set-up fee or has some initial charge...in our previous town all the utilities were run by one company, but here the gas is separate from the electricity, which is separate from the water and garbage (which are at least the same company), and then you get into optional services like the phone, TV, Internet, and all those other "comfort" services. Fortunately our credit rating is good, but a lot of those places do a credit check to decide how much to charge you...so that if you have struggled financially they expect you to pay more upfront. No wonder home ownership is so difficult for so many people.
Like right now the house (which is actually bigger than the one we had before) feels gigantic because it is so much bigger than the RV.
It feels like we have tons of stuff because we were used to doing it with less (which probably means we have way too much stuff).
Any TV feels really big because we have been watching a little 13" TV (our other TV broke and it seemed silly to buy one and then have to move it so we decided to just buy one after we moved).
I'm also realizing how fortunate everyone is who owns their own house (or at least is in the process of "buying" their own house through mortgage payments). I had forgotten how expensive it is to set-up a new house. Everyone wants a set-up fee or has some initial charge...in our previous town all the utilities were run by one company, but here the gas is separate from the electricity, which is separate from the water and garbage (which are at least the same company), and then you get into optional services like the phone, TV, Internet, and all those other "comfort" services. Fortunately our credit rating is good, but a lot of those places do a credit check to decide how much to charge you...so that if you have struggled financially they expect you to pay more upfront. No wonder home ownership is so difficult for so many people.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
New Year
2007 was pretty good to me. A lot happened (not all of which was good but most everything turned out well in the end).
I don't remember a lot from the first 4 months (mostly I remember being pregnant and stressed from taking classes). The last 8 have been pretty incredible with all of the changes. My family has been altered in many ways...from the addition of Jo to the move, and all with me making progress in my coursework.
I have been blessed by an incredible amount (and variety) of generosity toward me and my family. We have been helped and blessed in numerous ways (I am still floored that people would show up and help move stranger's junk...I am still sorting out the names of those who helped...woohoo...go church family!).
When I was a teenager I read the Emily of New Moon books by L.M. Montgomery (same author as the Anne of Avonlea books but Emily is much more sensible than Anne). Anyway, in one of the books she writes herself a letter on the new year so that she can open it in ten years (or something like that). I started doing that and managed to do it every year for ten years (though once I think I wrote the letter as late as April). It was really cool because when I got to open them up I had ten letters where I could see what my hopes and dreams were, what was on my mind for that year, and what I thought I might be doing.
It was so cool I decided to do it for a second ten years. It is not yet time for me to open up my letters (plus I need to check and see if I even ever got around to writing one last year) but I think I will write one for this year. It certainly was (and promises to be) momentous.
I don't remember a lot from the first 4 months (mostly I remember being pregnant and stressed from taking classes). The last 8 have been pretty incredible with all of the changes. My family has been altered in many ways...from the addition of Jo to the move, and all with me making progress in my coursework.
I have been blessed by an incredible amount (and variety) of generosity toward me and my family. We have been helped and blessed in numerous ways (I am still floored that people would show up and help move stranger's junk...I am still sorting out the names of those who helped...woohoo...go church family!).
When I was a teenager I read the Emily of New Moon books by L.M. Montgomery (same author as the Anne of Avonlea books but Emily is much more sensible than Anne). Anyway, in one of the books she writes herself a letter on the new year so that she can open it in ten years (or something like that). I started doing that and managed to do it every year for ten years (though once I think I wrote the letter as late as April). It was really cool because when I got to open them up I had ten letters where I could see what my hopes and dreams were, what was on my mind for that year, and what I thought I might be doing.
It was so cool I decided to do it for a second ten years. It is not yet time for me to open up my letters (plus I need to check and see if I even ever got around to writing one last year) but I think I will write one for this year. It certainly was (and promises to be) momentous.
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