the (right?) questions

so the last few days i've been at the leadership summit - and it's like drinking from a fire hydrant. my brain is tired!! to be honest i am overwhelmed, as i've been trying to find my footing again, heading into the fall. i was really hoping the summit would be a proverbial 'shot in the arm', but (as good thinking does) it raised more of the right questions than handed out all the "right" answers. typically, this is the kind of thing i love - but i can't deny i was looking foward to a couple of easy answers.

how like life...i think you and i are sometimes too tired/busy/anxious/blind to dig into the difficult questions and take appropriate steps to reorder our lives. i can say with certainty i am. left to drift on my own, without giving time or energy to the real questions that drive my heart, i am easily distracted from my real purpose by all the fun & frivolous things in my world. these are (obviously!) not bad things, but if i give my whole life to them, i am wasting my inner resources.

my brother, jordan vincent, in one of his poems writes, "i am burning my personal electricity by leaving my light on for you"... i have decided to start asking myself more honestly - where am i burning my personal electricity? am i leaving the lights on when no one is in the room, as it were?

the inevitable

it never fails - give my mom and i more than 2 days together, and we end up with bags full of goodies from the mall. we never pay full price, mind you, and i often go months without indulging in new clothes or what have you, but my mom brings out my inner shopper in ways that i can't explain. maybe it's a function of what the sales lady said yesterday when she found out we were mother & daughter... "really? when i look at you i see friendship..." how lovely. she saw us, and saw our friendship - which is genuine and deep. maybe it's that she gets my taste in shoes and why i need a longer silver chain (for everyday use) and replacement pants (the zipper won't stay up & the belt loop is ripped on my favs). maybe it's because i know if i really, really wanted something outside of my price range she would probably chip in half. :) whatever the reason, we are shopping buddies. let the good times roll!

gimme a break....

my folks are here, life is crazy... the blog is on vacay...

sunday morning....

let me extol, for a moment, The Crumpet. i realize most of you have never heard of, never mind eaten, a crumpet, but, oh, you should. i grew up eating them, and haven't been able to find them south of the border - they are a british food, i guess. but somehow, my wily mother was able to put her hands on some, and brough them with her this week, and i just had my first crumpet in years. "...and rachel ate it, and it was good."

get thee a crumpet, people!

a friday blessing

may happy hour rise up to meet you

may the traffic always be at your back

may the weekend shine warm upon your face

may soft rain fall only when you are not at the beach

and, until it's monday again,

may you have not a thought or worry of work at all.

sneaky sneaky!

man, it's august! the 1st slipped right past me, and here i am, already breathing on august 2nd! this has the makings of an excellent month: my parents are coming to visit, our 13 anniversary is this monday, the leadership summit (remember? with kirk franklin and marcus buckingham?) is next weekend, i am going to see mark on the next weekend, then it is the first day of school! phew! talk about a lot going on! all the good stuff of life... although, may i put on my "mom hat" for a moment and point out this is kyra's last year of elementary school???? what the heck!?!? how does that happen?? i am still young, right?! :) i am fully unprepared to discuss the middle school things... eep! boys and puberty and all the rest.... oh dear.... i am somewhat relieved that she is the oldest though. it will be easier to cope with her than with meg, who is lovely, but fierce already at the tender age of 7!

anyhoo, welcome to august! suck the marrow from the waning days of summer! burn your shoulders, eat watermelon outside, make a last trip to the beach, sit on your porch and watch the fireflies bob in the grass...

turning the corner

Two cows are standing in a field. One of them says to the other, "Have you heard of this mad cow disease?"
"Of course, why do you ask?" replies the second cow.
"Doesn't that worry you?" says the first.
"Why should that worry me? I am a helicopter."

i am sorry - that made me laugh! so i inflict it on all of you...

my brother thinks my blog is too depressing lately, and he's not wrong. so today we are turning a corner...and the key to attitude adjustment is gratitude, so here is a little thank therapy! i am thankful for (in no particular order)....

1. a husband who loves me after 13 years! and i am ... mmm.... complicated sometimes.
2. The Girls - healthy, smart, beautiful, kind, loving & lovely
3. i have a plethora of real friends - not just "hihowareya" friends, but genuine people who love me, whom i love
4. my brothers, whom i adore
5. my cat holidae who purrs on my chair
6. music
7. my home in NC - it's like living in eden, and my acutal home is more than i ever thought we'd own
8. freedom to be able to stay at home with The Girls and still pay the bills
9. my hammock
10. my mom
11. coffee in the morning
12. i am healthy and strong
13. the birds on my feeder
14. the mailman
15. God who loves me
16. technology that keeps me in touch with my peeps
17. airplanes
18. wonders of modern medicine - tylenol, allegra, et al
19. turtles & deer in my yard
20. naps