Evening Came First

Genesis 1:5

And there was evening and there was morning - the first day. 

Evening came before morning. I always think of evening coming at the end of the day but the Bible says evening came first.   

It makes me think differently about the day. If evening is first, maybe the day really starts at noon, goes to evening, goes through the night to morning and ends at noon the next day. 

Should we be energized in the evening? 

Do we spend all of our energy working and then miss out when we get home? 

Are there important things to be seen in the evening? 

What if we looked at the world, God's creation, through wide wake eyes in the evening? Would we see things we didn't notice before because we were tired? Would our appreciation be renewed? 

I am going to try to look at evening in a new way. I'm going to notice the sunset more. I'm going to breath in the cold winter air. I'm going to watch the evening shadows approach. 

I want to appreciate God's creation in the morning and in the evening. 

God bless. 

Beth

Possibilities

2014 is over. It was a pretty good year.

New beginnings for a middle aged woman. I went back to work full time. I got a job as a Program Manager. It was a long 4 month process, but I finally started work in March. It was a bit overwhelming at first but I got my feet under me with some help from my peers. Quentin provided much needed help at home as I adjusted. In 2015, I will support our Enterprise Social program. I'm super excited about that as it includes Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Right up my alley.

Our family embraced the canine persuasion. Ashlyn got a Border Collie mix. His name is Ranger.

Avery got a Great Pyrenees Lab mix. Her name is Ellie.

I got a dog too. Hard to believe, huh? Her name is Jenny. She was at the SPCA in San Antonio. She is 6 years old. She is a Retreiver Great Pyrenees mix. She has the best eyes. She loves me!!!!

We took a beach vacation with the Ward family this year. It was not too stressful, so we may do it again!!!!

Quentin and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary. We stayed in a church that had been converted to a B&B. Good times.

I'm looking forward to 2015. New challenges at work. Continuing to make small improvements to our house. Seeing Avery and Ashlyn thrive. Living the good life, laughing til I cry, loving more, using my creative talents of painting, quilting and writing more. Here's to the possibilities of 2015. God bless you and yours. 

Struggles of the Last Summer

 



I took this picture a few months ago when I was sitting by the pool. It reminds me of calmer times. Mountain Laurels blooming. Butterflies flitting by. Oh, the days of spring.

 

Now I am knee deep into summer. Long hot days. Short crisp tempers. Dreadful anticipation of fall and all the changes that will take place in our house.

 

Avs will be returning to Texas Tech as a sophomore. She loves Texas Tech, but as a mom, it is five and a half hours away from home. So far. She will be starting curriculum for an art degree. Very exciting for her. She is an amazing artist.

 

Ash will be leaving for her freshman year at Texas State. It is much closer to home - only an hour and a half away. She will be taking basic classes as she prepares for a degree in Physical Therapy. I suspect she will come home a lot since her boyfriend has not graduated yet.

 

So, I will be an empty nester. I already hate those words. Empty. Nothing where there used to be something. Nest. Our home - full of all the things you experience with teenagers - joy, anger, laughter, tears, mood swings, activity, etc.

 

It will be so empty. Yes, I still have my husband, Q. After 24 years, I know we will adjust. I am just not sure how we will adjust. 

 

How do you adjust to an empty house?

 

Some things will be easy. The washer will always be available when I need to wash clothes. There won't be dirty dishes piled up from some snack or meal that was prepared. There won't be stuff like hairbands, books, candy wrappers, shoes lying around in the living room. The guest bathroom will be clean.

 

Other things will be hard. I won't actually get to see their faces in the morning. I will have to text them to be in touch, since calling is not cool. I won't be able to meet them for lunch when they are having a bad day.

 

I am a solitary person, so I know that I will manage. I know it will be good for Q and me. Now we can do things that the kids did not want to do. We can take a trip without getting every one's input. We can eat cereal for dinner. We can stay up late watching TV or reading without having to go to our bedroom, so the kids can have the living room.        

 

A new reality. Quiet. Empty. Hopeful?

 

A New Year

She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

Proverbs 31:26

Well, it is now 2013. I am not sure where the time goes. All I know is that my grandma was right, "The older you get, the faster the time goes."

Last year was interesting. I learned some surprising things. During Lent, I decided I would try to read my devotion every day and then share it through some social media. I started out strong, as I always do, but then the first weekend came and sure enough I missed my devotion. I was disappointed in myself, but decided to keep trying. So the next week I read my devotion and shared it everyday until the weekend. Well instead of giving up, I stuck with it. I got through the entire Lent season and read my devotion although I have to admit I did miss quite a few Saturdays. I was astonished. I had never really stuck with something as it related to study in my spiritual life. I have continued this practice and now read my devotions every morning while I drink my coffee.

I also ran into numerous moms who wanted/needed a common group (for lack of a better word) to share/discuss parenting issues. I brushed off the idea, I mean what did I really have to offer? Well as the year progressed, I learned that my kids are not perfect. I raised them as Christians with good values. However, I could not manage their decisions and behavior as they became adults. Maybe other moms could benefit from my experiences?

My goal to write was also not getting any closer. As I looked at my favorite website, Proverbs 31 Ministries, http://www.proverbs31.org/, it dawned on me that the scripture they show on several of their pages:

She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

Proverbs 31:26

 

was a scripture that has showed up in my life over and over. So, maybe I was looking at this all wrong. Maybe the book was not the end all, be all, like I thought. Maybe it is just a part of the whole picture. I will continue to write and share my experiences on my blog. I did really poorly at that last year. I will continue to work on my book and honing in on the message. I will share my experiences either one-on-one or in groups when God presents the situation.

Anyway, a new year - a new chance to try and spread God's word.

Change is in the Air

Q and I went to Lost Maples this weekend. It was wonderful. Walking in the woods with beautiful color. People passing and speaking in foreign languages. Sunshine. God's beauty all around.

The bright leaves on the trees and the dead leaves on ground reminded me that change is in the air. As it is in my life.
My oldest daughter is off at college. Change.
My youngest daughter is a senior in high school and trying to decide where to go to college.
Change.
My new job didn't pan out.
Change.

There are many good things that are resulting from these changes.
Avery is getting a college degree.
Ashlyn is preparing to get a college degree.
I found out I enjoy having a job. That was a little bit of a surprise after staying home for so many years.

The leaves fall so that the trees can rest before the new year. Change. New beginnings. Goodness.

New Career for an Old Lady

God is so good.

Every year in January I ask Q if I need to get a job this year. Every year he has said, "No". Until this year. You see our oldest daughter, Avs, will start college in two weeks. Our youngest will be a senior in high school, so she will begin college next year.

So, many months ago, I started looking for a job. I applied for a coordinator at a Christian retreat center. They called and said they would call back to schedule an interview. Nothing. I applied for several secretary jobs at the school district. I applied for a front desk worker at a fitness center. I applied for paraprofessional jobs with the school district. I applied for a secretary/receptionist at the county extension agents office.

I had one interview, yes, one. The most frustrating part about all of this was that I have two, yes two college degrees. I worked for 13 years in corporate America. I have been a stay-at-home mom for 12 years while my kids have been in school.

So, I went to God in prayer. I would be all excited for a job and then not get a call for an interview. I changed my prayers from wanting a job, any job, to God give me the right job. God knew how much money we needed. God knew my skills. God knew my responsibilities at home. God knew the right timing.

Every week, I check the paper for jobs. Last week there was a Certified Pharmacy Technician job. Nothing else that looked promising. I thought "Nah". This week there were still no promising jobs in the paper, but the Pharmacy Tech job was listed again. I thought, "What the heck". I dressed casually in capris, t-shirt, and cardigan with some sandals and went to fill out an application.

Here is where it gets crazy! The interviewer talked to me for about 10 minutes and then said, "I am interested in hiring you!!!"

I told him I was interested too. He said, "Can you start at noon today!!!!!" So crazy.

Well long story short, I spoke to Q (who also couldn't believe it) and I will start my new job on Monday. They are paying me more money than any of the other jobs I applied for. The hours are great. I will train and then take a test to become a Certified Pharmacy Technician.

When I finally trusted God to provide, boy did He come through. It relieved so much of my anxiety and stress to let God figure out the details. While all of this was going on, I couldn't help but think of that old joke -
God help me win the lottery. God Says, "Buy a ticket!!"

So I faithfully applied for all jobs that seemed like a good fit. And as usual,  God provided just the right thing at just the right time!!! Thank you God!


Photo from iappfind.com

Observations at 7,280 Feet

We spent last week in Colorado. We rented a condo on the Arkansas River and Q and I took four teenage girls to the mountains.

1. The setting was beautiful. Temperatures were cool. Thank you God, since we did not have air conditioning!


2. Four teenage girls can get along for a WHOLE week without fighting!!


3. Eating at a restaurant while it is pouring down rain is charming. It is not so charming for all of the parties involved though when the rain starts leaking on your table and they bring a bucket to catch the water!!!


4. Cute teenage girls attract the best tour guides!


5. July in Colorado is the rainy season.


6. Traveling with adult children is better than traveling with small children!


7. As long as there is a Wal-Mart, we can get what we need.


8. T-shirt painting is not only a do-at-home activity. The girls designed t-shirts for the zip-line tour. They said "Hold your tits" or "Hold your chi-chis"!!!


9. YOLO is not a saying in Colorado, it is a trendy clothing store we frequented.


10. If you cannot find a cool scarf to purchase, buy a cheap dress and cut it up to make a scarf when you get home.