A poem by e.e. cummings

i thank you god for most this amazing

i thank You God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes

(i who have died am alive again today,
and this is the sun's birthday; this is the birth
day of life and of love and wings: and of the gay
great happening illimitably earth)

how should tasting touching hearing seeing
breathing any -- lifted from the no
of nothing -- human merely being
doubt unimaginable You?

(now the ears of my ears awake and
now the eyes of my eyes are opened)

e.e.cummings, American poet, 1894-1962


I don't really know much of the biography or beliefs of e.e.cummings (a study for another day), but I love his style. His lack of punctuation, unconventional sentence structure, and oddly placed modifiers require me to stop and THINK about what he's saying. I don't pretend to understand all that he's saying here, but I do think he lyrically expresses the wonder and awe of God's immutable power and His general revelation of Himself.

"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 ..." Rom. 1:20

Prayer card photo shoot

Thanks, Whitney Preg, for the great pics!

Life, and a bowl (or cone) of ice cream

Have you ever considered that all you need to know about an individual's approach to life can be determined by a half gallon of neopolitan ice cream?

Case in point ...

Last night, I went to the grocery store. I bought butter, a package of chocolate-covered marshmallow cookies, neopolitan ice cream, and a few other items. Before I'd pulled the car to a stop in the driveway, Bella and AJ were out the front door of the house, waiting for me. They knew I was bringing home dessert.

We were keeping the Preg boys, so I told all the kids to stay out of the kitchen until I called them in one-by-one. (Small kitchen, you know -- not nearly large enough for six kids all at once.) I let each child tell me what kind of ice cream they wanted -- and it occurs to me now that my kids chose ice cream that fits their outlook on life PERFECTLY!

Eli, the "safe" one who prefers things plain, simple and familiar, chose chocolate and vanilla. No strawberry.

Emma, the "luxurious" one who prefers to be pampered, chose (you guessed it) mostly chocolate.

AJ, the "quirky" one whose all about some creativity and uniqueness, didn't care what colors he had, so long as we topped it with some crushed-up, chocolate-covered marshmallow cookie.

And Bella, the "spirited" one who enthusiastically embraces life, communicated vivaciously that she wanted "some of all the colors."

I, the "somewhat-creative recovering perfectionist," indulged in a little of the colorful fare myself: strawberry inside the cone (to be enjoyed last), with chocolate and vanilla swirled together on top.

G-Love, the "resourceful" one who likes to do things in his own time, didn't partake along with the rest of us. Later, sitting peacefully in his big green chair, he enjoyed his particular selection: all the colors, easy on the chocolate, with maraschino cherries (scavenged from the fridge) on top.

So there you go -- life, and a bowl (or cone) of ice cream.

Museum-worthy

Happy Birthday, G-Love

So if you're reading this blog, you know me well enough to know that I met this guy



when he was just 15. I bet you thought it was his vast intellect, quick wit and all-around "G"odliness that attracted me to him. Nope. Curly black hair, unusual laugh, charm. (He was quite the flirt!)

Home life was tough for me at that time, and it wasn't long before I grew to love his reaction to my grandmother. Her actions that I met with anger and bitterness, he met with gentleness and patience. Quite remarkable, actually.

That was almost 27 years ago. Today, the G turns 42. And I see beyond the curly black hair (that's a good thing, huh?) and unusual laugh (though I still love it). He's wise and hilarious and intelligent and affectionate. He's real about his struggle, and his need for Christ. A Godly man who gives Godly counsel. He's a visionary who loves the gospel, and he longs to see God's Church grow and His Kingdom come. He parents our children with wisdom and tenderness.

God (in His perfect wisdom, grace and love) knew there was noone better suited to me.

I hope it's the perfect sort of day for you, my Love. I'm celebrating the fact that you were born.

Random activity

Ah. Finally some respite from the crazy busy life of the last two months. G-love is on the mend, newsletter went to press, grades are completed, 500 are served. There's still plenty to do (when do I not face deadlines?), but there is momentary respite, for which I'm glad.

So last night, after the feeding of the 500 (while we were skipping the Moody fireworks for the first time EVER), I started reading eclipse, the third in the Twilight vampire series. It's a 600-page book. I read 80 pages last night, so at this rate, it'll take me about a week to complete it. (Curse slow reading.)

Of course, the craziness will begin again. There's a little girl's birthday party to plan (makeovers with Bella, anyone?), a teenager's birthday to plan (airsoft and seafood for Eli, who's turning 13), and school prep to be done.

And I have, oh, about 3 weeks to complete the summer projects I planned, but have yet to begin. Among them:
* sorting and purging 20 years of photographs that are in boxes in my garage (I think I need my sister-in-law for that activity),
* painting and distressing the bench in my hallway,
* scrapbooking,
* painting the bedroom (still not done, though I do have a lovely updated bathroom, thanks to the G).

Speaking of bedrooms, Bella has outgrown her bed, so I've promised her a larger bed for her birthday. (I mean, come on, she will be six. She can't stay in a toddler bed forever.) So somehow we have to figure out how to put two twin beds and all the stuff of two teenage girls (one who's really a teen and another who thinks she is) into a space barely large enough for one. Suggestions?

And I'm longing for some hangin' out with the girls time. Takers?.

But, alas, I choose first the obsession (uh, twilight series) and the updating of the ole blogaroni (see link for Anna Bedsole's blog, newly discovered this morning.)

Oh, and while you're on the blog circuit, the hubs updated our Ireland blog yesterday; check it out at www.morganjourney.blogspot.com. I'm most anxious to begin telling the story of Ireland, sharing the vision for the gospel there, and seeing God make things happen.

Improvements coming

I've decided I absolutely MUST become more proficient with blog technology. I've been playing around with the blogger dashboard (oh, for all of about 10 minutes), and just thought I'd let you know improvements to the old blogaroni are in the works. I'll be adding links to sites that interest me, a list of books you absolutely MUST read (and a list for your wee ones, too), as well as links to all the blogs of my friendlies out there. Of course, I'll be doing this in my oodles of spare time (hear sarcasm), so don't expect to see it, like, today or anything. Good things come to those who wait.

Overhaul

World Harvest has given me an assignment. I’m to write a paragraph describing what God is doing in my life, how he’s changing me – how he’s “overhauling” me, to be precise. I’m finding this assignment impossible. How in the world do you tell someone in one paragraph what God has done for you? What he’s still doing for you?

I’ve begun the assignment about 20 times. (OK, a bit of an exaggeration, but only a bit.) I think the problem is that I can’t decide which approach to take. It’s like a 747 is circling through the sky and can’t decide where to land, even though there are a dozen or so available runways below.

So instead of continuing to try to organize all my thoughts before I write, I’ve decided to just write – off the top of my head – and hope inspiration will come. (OK H.S., that’s your cue.)

Should I write about the distant past and its contrast to the present? (It’s a good story, I think – not because of me, but because of the faithfulness of God.) Or maybe I could explain the two scriptures that I think summarize my life (Jeremiah 2:13 and 1 Cor. 1: 26-31). Perhaps I should write about the threads God is weaving through my life right now (biblical truths that cut to the heart of my struggles).

Struggles. Maybe, as I’m sitting here, I’m recognizing that the only way to talk about how He’s changing me is to be real about how I struggle.

I struggle with self-absorption -- most notably, a need for approval and validation. All too often, I live believing my value is based on my performance: how well I educate my children, how much ministry I can pull off, whether or not people enjoy my company. I’m not only unbroken over my own sin, but frequently blind to it altogether. I struggle with envy, and anger, and fear. I struggle with all those things. And more.

God’s “overhaul” of me hasn’t been to miraculously remove the struggle, but to teach me, in the midst of it, to run to Him. To trust in the righteousness of Christ given over to me. To recognize these struggles as the present value of the blood of Christ for me.

World Harvest Staffer Meredith Elder, my friend and mentor, once told me that long permanent change is made up of many millions of little beliefs and repentances. God is overhauling me: by His grace, he’s teaching me to believe and repent. In the process, by way of the millions of little beliefs and repentances, I believe He’ll make me more like Jesus. That’s His job, not mine.

"They said therefore to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent." John 6:28-29

A word or two

Funny – for a writer, sometimes I’m a woman of very few words. There are encyclopedias worth of things I’m feeling, thinking, experiencing, but the words just don’t come.

This is one of those times.

So let me just say that the flesh is alive (though dying) and the enemy is devouring (yet defeated).

I am weary with my own lack of believing.