Sunday this week, Rachel, Michael, Joel (Nedley) and I went in to Sacramento for the annual Capitol City Airshow. This year's show featured the Thunderbirds (I actually prefer the Blue Angels!) and we got up super early, finally pulling out the gate just after 7 am. After parking in a free park-and-ride lot, we caught the Light Rail to the Mather Field stop, then boarded a shuttle bus for the last leg of the journey to the Mather Airport. The airshow takes place right on the airfield and you have to bring your own water, chair, snacks, etc. Despite the later-than-planned departure, we still managed to arive 30 minutes early so I sat comfortably in my foldable chair while we waited for them to open the "gates" and let us through. Some helpful people went up and down the lines of people telling us to take our chairs out of their storage bags, to toss water stored in camelbacks, and "if you have pepper spray, please dispose of it now." With strict security being enforced due to the airplanes being showcased that day, we dutifully did the necessary steps to ensure that we could go through the check as quickly as possible. Rachel and I drained our 1-litre REI bottles, Michael downed as much of his 3-litre camelback store as he could handle, and then I remembered. I had a cayenne pepper spray on my keychain. I groaned inwardly, because it was too late to go back to the car now, and if I tried to go through security with it, they would surely confiscate and toss it. After scanning our surroundings, I decided on a plan. I got up and sauntered slowly over to the nearby row of portable toilets, then got out my cell phone and pretended I was listening to someone. With my guise in place, I moved up to the fence and stopped for a moment. Still appearing to be deep in conversation, I leaned my right leg up against the metal post, held the black canister tight against my leg and slowly dropped the spray straight down between the metal stand. I carefully kicked it into place then headed back to our group.
It was an awesome show as we saw the F-22 raptor, the Globemaster, the Patriot Civilians, the 400 mph jet car, a paraplegic glider, and of course the Thunderbirds. After a full day we headed back to the shuttle bus and suddenly I remembered, "I wonder if my spray is still there?" We exited the show and I headed back to the chain link fence behind the portable toilets. I reached the spot where I had placed it, over 8 hours earlier, praying that if God wanted me to keep it that He would protect it. It was still there.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Thursday's blog posted on Friday :)
Something has been up with the internet the past couple of days, which is most frustrating because then I can’t go online at night to read my friends’ statuses on Facebook, update my blog, or watch my favourite movies. Last night I started watching More To Love, and tonight I was planning to catch the next episode of my all-time favourite, ANTM, but unfortunately I’m out of luck. Oh well, tonight I’m super sleepy and if I wanted to watch, I have a wide assortment of DVDs to keep me preoccupied. It’s just kinda irritating, because I already don’t get TV reception down here. . .I think I’m actually too sleepy to write, so I shan’t. But I must not forget to journal next time on the pepper spray who went to the air show, a composted spoon, and lessons in a garlic clove.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Four Hands and a Single Vine
Okay, it's been a while. Life got hectic, everyone knows how that goes, and then stress and all that. But at last it is 9:02 pm and I'm sitting quite comfortably sideways on my bed with my comforter and all my pillows squished up behind my head, laptop on my lap (duh, hence the name!) and feet propped on my four-legged stool, an excellent steal from storage. There are a million things I could be doing right now, such as cleaning my bathroom, tidying my house, doing the dishes, sorting paper bags of miscellaneous belongings, but I'm taking the time to relish in the early hour and to quiet my soul with the luxury of writing. It isn't often that one takes the time to really stop. To stop rushing through the busyness of life and feel calm. I think it's something we all crave, but feel guilty to prioritize. Yet the simplicity of a few quiet moments, like a stained wooden bookshelf whose only decorations are a lace doily, miniature clogs, homemade crayon candle, and purple wooden tulip, can create stillness in the midst of madness.
This shan't be much longer, though, as I was up before the crack of dawn to rush through rush-hour traffic for a dental appointment to replace a chipped crown. This afternoon we were in the prayer garden, raking leaves and snipping ivy, and I had the task of pulling dead leaves out of the ivy that surrounds the large trees. Dr. Jensen had stationed herself at the same tree and was happily pruning the overgrowth to eye level. Several of those branches were rather resilient, however, and when she tried to clip them, they refused to be broken. She asked for my help, but when my "young, strong" hands were unable to make a dent, we decided to attack the stubborn branches a different way. This time Dr. Jensen bent a branch while I sawed at it with the clippers, slowly increasing the pressure until finally it snapped. Together, two sets of hands made it work.
Now I look forward to my time outside, whether it be on the farm, in the garden, picking tomatoes or wildflower seeds, pruning ivy or raking leaves. I find myself waiting for the time to arrive, see the hours fly by, and while I regret it when 5:30 seems to roll around too quickly, I am also content to see a good work completed. In the office sometimes it seems like the paperwork piles up faster than I can make a dent in it, but out in the fresh air, with the fall sun warming the afternoon, all worries seem to melt away as I focus on the task at hand. I never imagined I would treasure those couple of hours each day, but I do, and I'm grateful I have the opportunity.
This shan't be much longer, though, as I was up before the crack of dawn to rush through rush-hour traffic for a dental appointment to replace a chipped crown. This afternoon we were in the prayer garden, raking leaves and snipping ivy, and I had the task of pulling dead leaves out of the ivy that surrounds the large trees. Dr. Jensen had stationed herself at the same tree and was happily pruning the overgrowth to eye level. Several of those branches were rather resilient, however, and when she tried to clip them, they refused to be broken. She asked for my help, but when my "young, strong" hands were unable to make a dent, we decided to attack the stubborn branches a different way. This time Dr. Jensen bent a branch while I sawed at it with the clippers, slowly increasing the pressure until finally it snapped. Together, two sets of hands made it work.
Now I look forward to my time outside, whether it be on the farm, in the garden, picking tomatoes or wildflower seeds, pruning ivy or raking leaves. I find myself waiting for the time to arrive, see the hours fly by, and while I regret it when 5:30 seems to roll around too quickly, I am also content to see a good work completed. In the office sometimes it seems like the paperwork piles up faster than I can make a dent in it, but out in the fresh air, with the fall sun warming the afternoon, all worries seem to melt away as I focus on the task at hand. I never imagined I would treasure those couple of hours each day, but I do, and I'm grateful I have the opportunity.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Cockleburry Bouquets
Today I went cockleburry picking! Finally, after about a week, I got out on the farm for my 2-hour stint and discovered that we were headed down to the pasture in the lowlands to pick weeds. Yay! So we all found a good pair of sturdy gloves and headed, tools in tow, to yank, pull, and heave until we got those sorry suckers loose from the dirt they so tenaciously clung to. We bent our knees, four hands to a vine, and pulled with all our might until the roots sprang forth and we nearly tumbled backwards into prickles and pokes of friendly thistles. We dived amidst drying grasses, rooting around for the little plants, burrs sticking to our hair and grabbing tight to any part of our body they could reach. We crouched low, making sure we were at the base of thick stalks as we lopped the toughest ones right next to the ground. And with each bouquet of weeds that we tossed on an ever-growing pile, the thoughts shook loose into my mind.
I know weeds are compared most often to sin and it was interesting to try to come up with lessons from my experiences today. The team began the project yesterday, and while they thought they had gotten all the plants in one particular section of the field, upon closer inspection today they found more of the pesky things. Often, when you think you've gotten victory over a particular problem, you go back and realize there's just a few more parts of it you overlooked.
Then, only after we pulled the large weeds were we able to see the smaller ones hiding underneath. It's the same in life, the closer you get to Jesus, the more you start to see all the tiny problems that you know you have to work on. You think, "Well, that was a big issue, now I no longer have to deal with it and I can start working on perfection" but as soon as you try doing that, you realize how many tiny issues you have and realize it's a big task yet.
Last summer, Dr. J and some of her friends pulled a huge pile of weeds and left them to dry. This year, new plants grew up aplenty at that same spot, teaching us that it isn't enough to just leave them there to dry out, you have to burn them till all evidence is gone. Enough said.
And finally, my favourite lesson for the day: sometimes it isn't enough to have just one set of hands pulling a weed, sometimes it is too hard and you need a friend with that little bit of extra support and strength. In life, especially as Christians, we start to think that we can fix ourselves all by ourselves. Not only do we need Jesus, though, we also need fellowship with others and good Christian friends who can encourage us with strength and support when we are struggling with an issue. Often, with those four hands pulling hard enough, the weed comes right out, root and all!
A few thoughts to ponder from the garden of life. . .
I know weeds are compared most often to sin and it was interesting to try to come up with lessons from my experiences today. The team began the project yesterday, and while they thought they had gotten all the plants in one particular section of the field, upon closer inspection today they found more of the pesky things. Often, when you think you've gotten victory over a particular problem, you go back and realize there's just a few more parts of it you overlooked.
Then, only after we pulled the large weeds were we able to see the smaller ones hiding underneath. It's the same in life, the closer you get to Jesus, the more you start to see all the tiny problems that you know you have to work on. You think, "Well, that was a big issue, now I no longer have to deal with it and I can start working on perfection" but as soon as you try doing that, you realize how many tiny issues you have and realize it's a big task yet.
Last summer, Dr. J and some of her friends pulled a huge pile of weeds and left them to dry. This year, new plants grew up aplenty at that same spot, teaching us that it isn't enough to just leave them there to dry out, you have to burn them till all evidence is gone. Enough said.
And finally, my favourite lesson for the day: sometimes it isn't enough to have just one set of hands pulling a weed, sometimes it is too hard and you need a friend with that little bit of extra support and strength. In life, especially as Christians, we start to think that we can fix ourselves all by ourselves. Not only do we need Jesus, though, we also need fellowship with others and good Christian friends who can encourage us with strength and support when we are struggling with an issue. Often, with those four hands pulling hard enough, the weed comes right out, root and all!
A few thoughts to ponder from the garden of life. . .
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Wrinkled Lizards
Wrinkled fingers. That is the worst thing in the world, dishwater-wrinkled-fingers and hands. I began my evening at home with the best of intentions, I was going to make an indent on the mess that insists on putting the 2nd law of thermodynamics to the test and demonstrate that matter, when left to its own devices, will disintegrate. Of course the particular matter that lies around my place happens to have been helped along a little, namely by yours truly, and it could be the 1st law of thermodynamics for all I care, my point was that, oh I can't remember anymore, oh well! Ah yes, I was going to clean up my place! So I started the process by going to my mom's office to hang out and chat, for 30 minutes. Then I exercised (because you can't do vigorous exercise after you eat) and did my Leslie Sansone Walk-at-Home video, for 30 minutes. After that I watched something while I ate my supper, for an hour? I can't remember. Then I washed the dishes, for 30 minutes. Two days' worth, first because I'm lazy and second because it doesn't bother anyone but me if there are dirty dishes in the sink and third because I don't use many dishes at a meal and it's kinda sad to see a lone plate and bowl sitting in the dish rack keeping company with a single knife and spoon. Depressing!!! Now I have a full dish rack which puts a smile on my face! And wrinkled fingers. Now that definitely does not put a smile on my face because wrinkled dishwater fingers are the worst feeling in the world, even worse than all that leftover gunk at the bottom of the dirty dishwater. Well, the ultimate horrible feeling would be washing those wrinkled hands after I've finished wiping down the countertops.
Okay, enough of that!!!
I still haven't done any tidying up (because now I'm blogging!) and now I have a lizard. I'm not exactly sure how he got in, because I keep my windows firmly shut, but he must have slipped in under the door because he can't be more than 5 inches long. I watched him creep across my carpet like a miniature iguana, kinda creepy like. Now I don't mind lizards, too much, except that growing up in Africa I have bad memories of opening up our mosquito nets at night and lizards dropping out of the bundled up net. Thankfully we'd be standing by the bed during this procedure and not lying in the bed, but it was always a dance to get those lizards out of our room. I called home and asked Michael what to do about my lizard and he said to let it be; it would eat my flies and spiders (not that I have any!). So for now, I will let the tiny gremlin share my living quarters as long as he behaves himself!
Okay, enough of that!!!
I still haven't done any tidying up (because now I'm blogging!) and now I have a lizard. I'm not exactly sure how he got in, because I keep my windows firmly shut, but he must have slipped in under the door because he can't be more than 5 inches long. I watched him creep across my carpet like a miniature iguana, kinda creepy like. Now I don't mind lizards, too much, except that growing up in Africa I have bad memories of opening up our mosquito nets at night and lizards dropping out of the bundled up net. Thankfully we'd be standing by the bed during this procedure and not lying in the bed, but it was always a dance to get those lizards out of our room. I called home and asked Michael what to do about my lizard and he said to let it be; it would eat my flies and spiders (not that I have any!). So for now, I will let the tiny gremlin share my living quarters as long as he behaves himself!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Someone's Got Issues (and they'd better stand up and admit it!)
"So you grow up thinking everyone is perfect therefore you have to be perfect, and you can’t share your issues because if you do, then everyone else will know immediately what those issues are, and meanwhile no one else has issues but they go around looking for everyone else’s issues to point them out."
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Quotable Quotes
"Ten years of living in heaven does not a saint make."
"Do not require others to live your life, to be convicted of your convictions, or to realize your reality. Only you are in your present, they must walk their own path, and each one's footsteps are spaced differently."
"The ones who are struggling but are open about it, those people I can understand. It's the ones who are perfect, those are the ones I cannot forgive."
"So you tell me I won't be going to heaven because I ate a slice of cheddar cheese today? That's okay, I wouldn't want to live in your heaven anyway."
"Stop short before deciding another's future."
"Mistakes? Difficult choices? Uncertainties? How will you ever learn if all you do is play it safe? I'm not saying you shouldn't try to do the right thing; I'm just saying it's okay if you miss your exit or take a different turn on the pathway of life."
"What happened to love, anyway? Is it hidden under dusty piles of caring, compassion, kindness and concern? Maybe it's been tossed to the side to make room for reformation and revival. Love is, after all, highly overrated."
"Do not require others to live your life, to be convicted of your convictions, or to realize your reality. Only you are in your present, they must walk their own path, and each one's footsteps are spaced differently."
"The ones who are struggling but are open about it, those people I can understand. It's the ones who are perfect, those are the ones I cannot forgive."
"So you tell me I won't be going to heaven because I ate a slice of cheddar cheese today? That's okay, I wouldn't want to live in your heaven anyway."
"Stop short before deciding another's future."
"Mistakes? Difficult choices? Uncertainties? How will you ever learn if all you do is play it safe? I'm not saying you shouldn't try to do the right thing; I'm just saying it's okay if you miss your exit or take a different turn on the pathway of life."
"What happened to love, anyway? Is it hidden under dusty piles of caring, compassion, kindness and concern? Maybe it's been tossed to the side to make room for reformation and revival. Love is, after all, highly overrated."
"Maybe it isn't all about what's wrong with me. Maybe, just maybe, I'm doing something right and maybe all this struggling, this fighting against injustice, is the right person to be."
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