This Doesn’t Look Like Disney World

It’s always fun to dream about where to go on vacation.  Maybe somewhere warm and sunny or rustic with mountains.  I’ve pinned and researched all sorts of fabulous trips.  We could visit Mickey or relax in Mexico.

It plays out perfectly in my head and on my Pinterest board.  A happy family, singing in the car, dressed in matching Mount Rushmore T-shirts.  Ok scratch the shirts.  That’s too cheesy even for my dream.

But in reality it usually turns into a bad scene from a Chevy Chase movie.  And then the biggest bubble popper of all…the budget.

We had some ideas of places we wanted to go this summer and it just wasn’t possible.  We did end up going to my parents in Colorado at the last minute.  It’s not exactly Disney World or Alaska or Glacier National Park, but one night as I was walking around the block chatting with one of my kids I realized something important.

Vacation is less about where we go and more about who we’re with.  Wherever we are, when we get a chance to slow down, get away from the norm, and have more time with our family that’s what makes a great vacation.

I’m thankful for the walks we had around the block and hikes through Garden of the Gods. The talks along the highway. All things we don’t have the luxury of in the hustle and bustle of real life.

That can be accomplished at home or wherever your roam.  In Alaska or at Disney world or Grandma’s or the local KOA. 

It’s about people not place. It’s about experience, not expense.   And it’s about time not about tourism.  It’s about connecting, not conquering. 

Heart Champs

It’s back to school time.  And for many kids and parents it’s also time to gear up for sports.  There are try outs, cuts, people who don’t make the level they want.  There are bench warmers and starters. 

I’m super glad that as an adult runner I don’t have to care about that stuff.  Because I am never embarrassed to share my time from a race.  Umm or come in behind someone I clearly should have been better than.  Or an 65 year old speed walker.  I mean I am totally ok with that.  So I may be a teeny little bit more competitive than I thought. 

But truly, for the most part, I run in races just for fun.  I know I won’t win.  Well, maybe a little part of me hoped I might be able to take Kara Goucher in the Grandma’s Half this year.  Bwahaha! 

But if just little old slow me can get competitive, is it a surprise kids on sports teams are?  Or their parents?

It’s hard to know who is worse really.  If you mess with me or my goals or my times, I might be annoyed, but if you mess with my kids…get ready for mama bear baby!

I’m already hearing and reading a lot of great things about the young athletes in our world.  No doubt there are a lot of talented kids out there.

So even though athletics are great and kids can learn a lot through them and stay fit, let’s not get carried away.  Because what is the most important thing in life?  Is it winning or being the best?

Not if you are a Christian.  As a parent, I want to raise champions of the heart.  I want to encourage humility, faithfulness, hard work, peace and love.  Those are things that will last and count for eternity.  Being the mom screaming from the bleachers at a basketball game is not the way to go about that.  Not that I would know.

A few years ago when our kids were in baseball, we had to play the same team three times.  They were three hundred times better than us.  Or so it seemed.  Their coach was a jerk and would run up the score.

The final time we played them, Mike and I were not watching as encouraging builders of heart champs.  As we stepped back from that game we realized this is little league.  They are in grade school.  These other kids are doing great. 

So I have to check my heart first as an “athlete” myself.  Am I competing for the glory of God?  Do I encourage others along the course?  Do I want to win at all costs?

Then I need to check my heart as a parent.  Do I want the best for my kid or for my kid to be the best?  What other lessons can we learn besides winning?  How about some of the fruit of the Spirit?  Wouldn’t sports be great with a little love, joy, peace, patience and humility?

At the end of the day, I care about my kids’ hearts.  I want them to be following and reflecting Jesus.  It means more than the score or the finish or the place on the team. That’s what Champions of the heart are made of. 

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law.  Galatians 5:22-23

Genuine

It’s been a while since I wrote a blog post.  Frankly, it’s never my turn to be on the computer!

Well, it’s true the computer is in high demand around here.  But it’s still mine so I can cut in line anytime I want. 

I like writing because it’s a good way for me to process my thoughts on stuff.  But the thing that has made me stay away from blogging and social media more and more is the face that it all feels fake.  I just read an article about the cover of a magazine that has Duchess Kate on it. However, it’s not her. It’s fake.   What’s the point of that?

I don’t want to write to look like a good mom or have people compliment me or make my life look way more perfect and beautiful than it really is.  There’s that temptation to write and wait to see who likes it or commented on it. 

It’s also tempting to show only the good pictures and do special outings just for the photo ops and blog fodder. 

And that’s not what I want to do.  In my writing, and social media and real life I want to be genuine.  Just the real me.  Good days, bad days.  Happy things, sad things.  Fun things, difficult things.  Bad hair days and thrift store clothes.

Whatever it is, I want to be real.  I’m so tired of reading blogs and articles and facebook posts and wondering if it’s real. 

And things will have to change a little.  Although having teenage and middle school kids could provide such amazing writing opportunity, it’s not the same as writing about a temper tantrum when they were two.  They need some privacy.  After all, there is such a thing as being TOO real!

Righting the Wrongs of the World

There are so many things that are wrong in the world:  war, sickness, starvation, poverty.  There are things that are wrong closer to home like divorce, depression, unemployment and the economy.  Sometimes it doesn’t seem worth it to keep bringing babies into this stinky, fallen world.

I know someone who was just days away from having her first baby when she found out she might be losing her job.  What horrible timing!  The stress of worrying about your job and income and bills could easily steal all the joy and expectancy of having a baby.

I didn’t realize that I was wrong until my own daughter had her birthday yesterday.  Annie turned 7. My joyful, carefree little girl.  No matter how my day was or what’s going on in my world, when I hear her laugh or sing or chatter those other things just melt away.

Don’t you think it’s true?  Babies can right the wrongs of the world.

No matter what I am facing in life, when I looked into the eyes of my baby it didn’t matter.   When I look at my children I can see the bright side.  I can fight to do better.  I can remember what my true priorities are. 

Maybe it’s because babies are such a miraculous reminder of God’s grace they can’t help but give us hope.  Hope for something better, hope for the future, and hope for Christ. 

I know it’s a gross overstatement that babies can right all the wrongs in the world.  I mean babies can’t actually cure cancer or stop war.  They may not be able to right all the wrongs in the world, but MY babies can right all the wrongs in MY world. 

And point me in the right direction, towards hope.

Relentless

Shoot. I did it again. I won the stinkin’ lottery. I don’t even know why I entered. Or why I pay to be tortured.

Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I ran. Or where my running shoes are.

I don’t even like running. For real. Most days when I am out there I wonder what on earth I am doing. It hurts. It’s hard work. It can get boring. It is either blazing hot or wicked cold. Sometimes it’s raining and windy. Many days it feels like torture.

The thing is though that there are also days that are out of this world good. Days where the sun is shining and the breeze is blowing. Days where running is effortless and I feel like I could run for miles.

There are days when I accomplish something that I never thought I could do and I know I’m hooked. And it’s that feeling, as rare as it may be among tough days, that makes running relentless.

So when those half marathon lottery deadlines loom, I can’t keep myself from signing up. I can even hope I won’t get in. But once I start training and am swept into that love/hate relationship of pain and glory I know I’m in the right place.

Running is relentless. It keeps chasing me. Even though at times I loathe it, ignore it or scoff at it. I can’t walk away. Somewhere out on the trail it became part of me. When I'm not running, I know I should be. And deep down, I want to be.

These past few months when I’ve been away from running, I’ve been busy. I started working. We’ve had a bazillion basketball games and kids activities. When I get home from work I have a bunch of laundry waiting for me.

I haven’t had time to read. I haven’t had the desire to write. And every time I go through a period of indifference or stubbornness, God reminds me He is relentless too.

He’s relentless in His love. God will never let go. When I don’t care, he does. When I turn my back, He’s still there with open arms. When I'm not looking to him I know I should be. And deep down I want to be.

He’ll never give up on me. So if we’re messed up, lonely, scared, or broken; His love never fails. It never quits. We all have a place in our hearts that longs for Him.

There’s no lottery or fee for the privilege of that relentless love.