E.A. Comiskey's Blog, page 3

Babbling on About Babel (A Theological Thursday Post)

The story of the Tower of Babel is found in Genesis chapter eleven. It is wedged right in between Noah and Abram (AKA Abraham). It’s a tiny little story – less than half a page in an average size Bible.

“Babel” by Lucas Valckenborch

All my life I was taught two things about this story.

Babel was where all the different languages originated.
God confused their language as punishment because they were being prideful and trying to attain god-like status by building a tower that “reached as high as heaven.”

I’ve spent some time really digging into this story lately and I was surprised to find that it really doesn’t say that at all. I suppose it would be possible to infer that but, consider this:

Noah survived a terrible disaster. There was only a tiny handful of people left on earth. Whether you believe it was literally only Noah and his family or if your interpretation is more liberal, the gist of the tale seems clear. God wiped the slate clean – almost.

When the dust settled, God gave the survivors very clear instructions.  “Be fertile, then, and multiply; abound on earth and subdue it.” (Genesis 9:7)

It seems clear that they were supposed to have descendants who would spread across the earth and settle the various lands.

What did they do?

“The found a plain in Shinar and settled there… Then they said, ‘Come, let us build a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” (Genesis 11:3-4)

There is no mention that they were engaged in any kind of horrible evil. In fact, in chapter 11, verse 1 we are given to understand that they were all of one mind – probably a very peaceful and productive people. Certainly they were innovative! They wanted to make a name for themselves, so perhaps that could be construed as arrogance but, really, don’t we all want to do that? Don’t we want to live a life of significance and be remembered when we’re gone?

So we’re told that the Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” (Genesis 11:5-7)

He doesn’t really sound angry to me. This is the same God who is spoken of as having burning wrath when people tick him off in other parts of the Old Testament. To me, this is more like, “Huh! Well, look at that.”

What if God’s plan was for people to spread across the earth and develop civilization slowly over a long period of time? Perhaps their like-mindedness and determination to build something great would lead them to a technology greater than they were ready to handle at that point?

So, if that was the case, God wasn’t dishing divine punishment out on them. He was just redirecting them back to the right path.

If my four-year-old dragged out a pan, put some food in it, and climbed on the counter and turned the stove on I would be very impressed. He used the good brain given to him to solve a problem. Also, I would stop him and redirect him to another activity. Not because what he did was naughty. It was awesome and forward thinking! But he is not ready to handle the responsibility that comes with cooking on a hot stove just yet. In time, I will let him grow into that skill.

As I’ve been reading and re-reading that story in this light, I can’t help but consider Einstein’s famous quote:

I wonder if we aren’t again “building towers” before we’re truly ready to undertake such tasks.  What do you think?

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

My Homeschool Kids, Socializing

If you even mention homeschool, you hear it.

“I would be afraid to homeschool. My child needs social interaction.”

“Don’t you worry about them learning to socialize?”

“How will they learn to carry themselves in the real world if they’re with you all the time?”

If you have homeschooled for any length of time you’re totally over this question.

If you’re new to homeschooling, or just considering it, or terribly worried about your grandchild who is going to grow up to be a weird unsocialized homeschooler… this is for you.

I’d like to share the experience I had last weekend at the Kerrytown Book Festival in Ann Arbor, MI.

Photo Source: mlive.com

My best friend invited my children and me to attend the festival with her. It sounded like a fabulous way for a car full of readers to spend a cool, sunny afternoon. We grabbed gigantic purses to hold the treasures we knew we would find and headed out into the world.

There were dozens of tables with books of every conceivable type. There were coloring books and antique books, novels of every sort and enough non-fiction to fill a library. Each table was staffed by an author, a publisher, or a representative from a book store. It was a bibliophile’s dream.

We started wandering among the tables, each of us on our own mission. I was excited to find a great fantasy or two. My BFF is a big fan of young adult fiction. T-Rex wanted to find some, “awesome boy books.” Sweet Hippie Daughter was hoping to meet some authors.

As we moved through the crowd, my children were rarely at the same table as me. They stayed close enough that I could keep an eye on them, but they had their own interests, which are different from mine. T-Rex, age four, was looking for bright colorful pictures. He was asking people about their shoes and showing off his new Kobe Bryant sneakers. (He’s a little obsessed with shoes this week.) Sweet Hippie Daughter, age ten, was speaking with fellow writers, asking what inspired them, who their publishers were, and what advice they would offer an aspiring young writer.

She booked a tentative book reading for her homeschool group with an author who’s table I’d not even seen yet.

She’s ten.

When we got home, she called one of her girlfriends and invited her to come see her new books and play computer games. They spent the next few hours scaring themselves half to death with Five Nights At Freddie’s videos.

Do you see what I’m getting at?

My child was able to spend a day SOCIALIZING with adults. Then she spend the evening socializing with her peers. People socialize. It’s just a human sort of thing to do.

Forcing a child into a room with thirty other children of the exact same age is not socialization. Not even if you make them play together at recess. Think about it. Have you never met a public school graduate who is socially awkward?

Socialization happens when a child is given the opportunity to spend time being an active member of society.

Homeschooling isn’t something that happens for a specific number of hours each day. It is a lifestyle. The vast majority of homeschool families I know bring their children into “adult” activities at a very young age. Children are encouraged to set up entrepreneurial endeavors, join mixed-age study groups, take the lead on shopping trips, conduct interviews with experts in the fields they are interested in learning about, and take responsibility to help those younger than themselves.

In short, they are encouraged to be social.

I’m curious – what are your thoughts on homeschool kids and “socialization?”

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

Birthday Party Deal At Jump America

*This is a sponsored post. Our family is receiving free passes to Jump America in exchange for an honest review.

Sweet Hippie Daughter has a birthday coming up! We’ve been trying to figure out how to celebrate when the opportunity to have a party at Jump America came up.

She’s so excited! What could be better than two hours of bouncing and diving into the foam pit plus pizza for her and her friends?

You can celebrate at Jump America, too! Make this year a truly memorable and special Birthday event at Jump America. Let us help you build lasting memories for your child and their friends by hosting a Birthday Party of any size for children of any age! Our event hosts will take pictures during your party and create an album that will be posted on our website. (Reservations must be made.)

Click this link for a coupon to save 10% off your party!

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

Deny Yourself (A Theological Thursday Post)

Love yourself. Know yourself. Believe in yourself.

Deny yourself?

As a Christian, I’ve known this Bible verse for as long as I can remember:

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.'” (Matthew 16:24)

Lately, this has been on my mind a great deal. Life has presented me with an unexpected set of circumstances. (Funny how life has a way of doing that.) I have been feeling like I’ve been given a horrible choice: do what is right for me or do what is right.

Our society teaches that you have to follow your heart.

I don’t think that’s all-together bad advice. I do think it’s important to keep your brain in the loop when making decisions, but there’s a lot to be said for intuition.

But as Christians, we are told to leave everything else and follow Christ. Even self.

That’s what I feel is being asked of me. I can feel the gentle pull of Spirit. “Follow…”

“But it’s hard,” I have answered.

“Follow…”

“But this is what I’ve always wanted!”

“Follow…”

“It hurts.”

“Follow…”

That pull has been relentless.

Then, a few days ago, I read that verse again.

“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”

But what if you look at it like this?

“… he must deny SELF , and take up his cross and follow Me.”

Instantly this little proverb, which has always intrigued and baffled me a bit, came to mind.

Yes. I know it talks about Buddha. If such things bother you, please don’t get distracted. Read the content, not just the name.

What would happen if I stopped thinking about “I” and trusted that God, as a Good Father, would provide perfectly for me? Far better, in fact, than I could for myself.

What would happen if I stopped dwelling on “want,” and just settled into the perfect contentment of being thankful for my daily bread?

Could it be that “what I’ve always wanted” is less than what God wants for me?

Could it be that what I have now is not meant to be clung to, but used as a stepping stone?

Jesus said I should, “deny self.”

He also said I should, “take up my cross.” That sounds thoroughly unpleasant. But look what world-changing difference happened when Jesus, himself, did just that!

And, Jesus said, “Fear not. For I am with you.”

I believe he knew what he was talking about. (I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief.)

I think it’s time for me to stop hesitating and follow.

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

 

Year Four: 118 Reasons Why We’re (Still) Homeschooling

This fall marks the beginning of our fourth year as homeschoolers. We could never have guessed, when we started, where this journey would take us or how awesome it would be for our family. We have seen our daughter blossom and grow and we’ve all learned far more than we expected about the world and ourselves.

I don’t mean to imply that every day is laughing together over fabulous sea shells on a sunny beach. Some days there are tears and frustration. Some days our daughter is giving less than her best. Some days I am. So, basically, we’re humans and we experience good days and bad. Thankfully, there are far more good days.

This list came about as something to cling to when the bad days come. Before we ever started homeschooling, a friend advised us to make a list of 100 reasons. “If you don’t have 100, you probably don’t have enough,” she said. “The day will come when you’ll be asking yourself why you’re doing this and you need something to look back to.”

Our day came toward the end of last year. We had spring fever. My daughter, who hates math, was resisting one more minute of looking at fractions. I was determined to finish the lesson. Everyone ended up crying. I called my husband and said, “Why are we even doing this?” He sent me the list.

It is important to me to make it understood that this list is not meant as a criticism of those who have children in public school or of the school district in which we live. I thank God that we live in a nation with CHOICES. We can choose what is best for our own families at any given time. For us, for now, that’s homeschool.

You’ll notice that some of our reasons are very serious. Some of them are quite silly. Some of them are totally focused on our daughter. Some are a bit selfish on my part. They’re all reasons. They all played a part. Would I homeschool, just because I think public schools waste paper. Of course not! Read, knowing that not all of these weigh on our hearts equally.

Originally, the list was one hundred reasons. Over the years, some of those reasons have become invalid and other reasons we’d never guessed at became important to us.

Finally, I wanted to say that I know this list can be confusing to some people who know we have four children because it primarily refers to one girl, just entering 6th grade.   Our two older children live with their mom during the school year and attend a great public school where they are growing and learning and turning into young adults of whom we are incredibly proud.  Our youngest is four years old, so school for him is hanging out in his underpants playing drums on the wall and singing the ABC song. We aren’t big believers in highly structured education for kids his age. We read to him every day and color with him. He digs in the garden and watches PBS and sings The Beatles at the top of his lungs. He can count to twenty and is beginning to read small words. Four year old boys are, by nature, insatiably curious. He is learning All. The. Time. He’s a sponge. Structure can come later.

Without further ado…

100 Reasons (+18) Why We Homeschool

1.  We love spending time with her and would miss her if she were gone all day each day.

2. She wants to be homeschooled.

3. We want her to have the opportunity to explore her passions in great depth.

4. We want to teach her to choose healthy foods and eat them SLOWLY and WITH ENJOYMENT (not gobble down processed lunch during a 20 minute break).

5. We want her to have several hours each day to explore her imagination and play – not just a 20 minute recess where she’s not allowed to run too fast or swing side to side due to liability concerns.

6. We don’t want her to spend time comparing her possessions to those of other children her age.

7. We think that 7+ hours of school plus and hour on the bus is too much time for a child (or an adult, for that matter) to sit and listen (as opposed to playing, questioning, exploring, etc).

8. It seems to us that homework, after 7+ hours of school, seems excessive for a 10 year old.

9. We want our family to be free to travel when and where we like.

10. With Handsome Hippie Hubby’s work schedule he would never see her if she were at school until 3pm each day.

11. The one meal we can eat together, as a family, every day is lunch.

12. We want to teach her to be responsible to the environment in practice, not just through lessons.

13. We want her to learn practical skills like cooking, gardening, sewing, etc and there is little time to teach her when she’s away at public school all day and such things are no longer a part of the curriculum in school.

14. Sometimes life makes you stay up late and we want her to be able to sleep in or nap when her little growing body needs to.

15. They watch a lot of classic movies in music class and we want to be the ones to experience those with her.

16. They watch a lot of movies in music class and we want her to actually learn to play/sing/appreciate music.

17. The district cut art class but the Homeschool association still offers it.

18. We don’t want her to have to deal with the repercussions of being in a large class with a few “naughty” children that monopolize the teachers’ time.

19. All of her closest friends are homeschooled.

20. Because we hate sending her away to school when she’s feeling sick, but not “sick enough” to keep her home.

21. We hate sending her into a building full of children feeling “a little sick” but not “sick enough” to stay home.

22. We think that Physical Fitness is something that should be a part of a person’s life more than 45 minutes a week.

23. Our child, who is a great reader and writer, should never have to slow down to wait for other children to catch up.

24. Our child, who struggles with math, sometimes needs more time and attention than her teachers can give her.

25. We were unhappy with many of the things we saw or heard about happening on the school bus when she was in public school.

26. We want our child to have a broader, less politicized, view of history than she will learn in public school.

27. We don’t want our child to use anti-bacterial hand soap several times a day.

28. We think it’s unhealthy that our daughter sits in a swelteringly hot classroom in the middle of winter.

29. We live in an awesome community surrounded by awesome communities with a near infinite amount of resources to use as teaching tools.

30. The whole family will get to learn and grow with her if she’s homeschooled.

31. We want religion, spirituality, prayer and meditation to be a regular part of our child’s education.

32. We want to foster our child’s differences that she may harness them and direct them to the greatest good of her fellow man. Not just learn to be exactly like everyone else.

33. When REAL disaster/crisis/tragedy strikes (ie – the tornadoes that struck a nearby town a few years ago) we want her to know that it is not only OK but RIGHT and GOOD to drop EVERYTHING and rush to the aid of her neighbor.

34. It will make me feel like the years of my life and tens of thousands of dollars I spent on my own education weren’t a total waste.

35. I learned advanced math. I NEVER used it (I told you so!). And forgot every bit of it. But no one ever taught me how to balance a checkbook or calculate the interest on a mortgage  and I don’t want my child to have that same experience.

36. Homeschooling isn’t marriage. It’s not a life-long commitment. We can opt out if/when it stops working for us.

37. We want to know IMMEDIATELY if our child is struggling with a problem or social situation – not after it has reached a crisis state.

38. We think people learn more by experiencing something (ie. a visit to a farm is more memorable than a lesson about “where veggies come from.”) and it’s not reasonable to expect a teacher to schlep 35 kids all over the countryside several times a week.

39. We think intuition is a valid and valuable tool in the human mind that is suppressed by “institutionalized” learning.

40. Homeschooling forces me to be a more organized person.

41. Seeing my organizational skills, my child will learn to be organized. (It’s a great theory, isn’t it?)

42. Some days, watching the morning news together, and then having the time to discuss it, can be a more valuable education than an entire day in a classroom learning to figure the degree of angles in a triangle.

43. We believe strongly in the implied power in the sciences of noetics and quantum physics and this isn’t taught in public school.

44. We believe a child should have the opportunity to ask every question they can and public school teachers don’t have time to deal with that, so curiosity gets suppressed.

45. One of the smartest, most accomplished scientists of all time said, “imagination is more important than knowledge,” but public schools focus almost exclusively on the development of knowledge at the expense of imagination.

46. We want our daughter, who has a very entrepreneurial spirit, to have time and energy to experience the creation of business and the power of free enterprise.

47. We believe a child should be free to express themselves in all sorts of creative ways through their play and dress and public school stresses conformity. She’ll feel the pressure to conform to society soon enough.

48. With internet and virtual learning, she can learn from a much more culturally, philosophically, educationally diverse group of teachers than she will encounter in a local public school.

49. We don’t like putting our child on a bus every day. But especially on days that are foggy, snowy, icy, etc.

50. Many of the people we respect most in the public school system have told us that, if they had young children, they would not put them in public school.

51. Public school teachers, no matter how good, smart, loving, patient, etc must conform to the state standards no matter if they agree or not.

52. Sometimes our child is “naughty” and teachers have neither the time nor authority to properly discipline her and/or the teachers’ definition of “naughty” and the accompanying discipline are different from what we teach at home.

53. Public school is all about working to get good grades to get into college to get a “real job” but the modern world doesn’t work that way. Ask any college graduate working as a Wal-Mart cashier. Or any high school drop out running a multi-billion dollar international corporation.

54. EVERY study done shows homeschool children achieve higher academically.

55. EVERY study done shows that homeschool children are better socialized (fit into society more successfully).

56. EVERY study done shows that homeschool children have a greater sense of civic responsibility.

Click here for some interesting homeschool stats.

57. We want our child to learn how to use a computer to do more than play games.

58. We want our child to know how to do things without a computer.

60. We feel it’s more important for our child to know how and where to find information than to memorize facts for a standardized test.

61. We never want our child to go through the experience of “feeling stupid” for not understanding something without a little help.

62. She is studying multiple languages this year, three years earlier than she would study one in our local public school.

63. We don’t want our child exposed to sex, drugs, violence, etc any earlier than necessary.

64. Time is valuable and public school wastes time (bus rides, moving between classes, waiting in line, etc).

65. We think it’s a bad idea to “stop learning” for 3 months out of the year, but a good idea to have lots of fun experiences all year long.

66. Some of the most mature, intelligent, respectful, strong-minded teens and young adults I know have been homeschooled since early childhood.

67. We want her to know that being a dancer (painter, musician, house-wife) is just as valid as being a doctor (teacher, accountant, etc).

68. In the event of a crisis (tornado, fire, etc) our child would be with us and we could make sure she’s as safe as possible.

69. We want our child to be able to think for herself and know how to question authority without being disrespectful.

70. Our child is a unique individual and deserves a uniquely designed education.

71. As parents, want a greater say in what she does and does not learn.

72. Some teachers are burnt out and just putting in their time and we don’t want our child to be “just put up with.”

73. We want to put the money spent on school supplies, field trips, etc to go toward those items we believe will be most beneficial for our child.

74. I really hate packing lunches and snacks every day.

75. We want to be the ones to teach her how to appropriately deal with bullying, harassment, etc.

76. Homeschooling gives the whole family the opportunity and motivation to explore nearby (and maybe far away) museums, gardens, parks, historic buildings, etc.

77. By homeschooling we are not doing things the “normal” way but we are teaching our child that there can be more than one good way to achieve a good end.

78. There are sometimes abusive adults in positions of power and we want to protect her from that as much as possible for as long as possible.

79. We want her to believe in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy and all the innocent, magical parts of childhood for as long as she can.

80. We want to avoid exposure to the annual outbreak of lice in the public school system.

81. The world, society, and technology are very different than they were 50 years ago but the style of teaching in public school is much the same.

82. In homeschool band, she has had the opportunity to learn five different instruments so far, and is playing music the public school doesn’t play until high school.

83. The government has screwed up most everything they have ever touched, so why would I trust them not to screw up the education of my child?

84. Hitler said, “The State will take youth and give youth its own education and its own upbringing. Your child already belongs to us. What are you? You will pass on. Your descendants, however, now stand in the new camp. In a short time they will know nothing but this community.” “Let me control the textbooks and I will control the State.”

85. US Federal Judge Melinda Harmon said, in 1996, “Parents give up their rights when they drop the children off at public school.”

86. Shopping for classroom supplies is more fun when you know you get to keep them and use them.

87. Our child has a passion to be in community theater and their rehearsals run very late at night.

88. We both hated school and did the bare minimum to get through and we don’t want our child to feel the same way.

89. Public schools require “lock-down drills” due to the very real threat of gunmen and/or terrorists in the building.

90. The cheapest time of year to go to Disney (and many other places) is October.

91. Homeschooling is “green.” There is less transportation, less utility use, less paper…. way way way way way less paper.

92. We want our child to understand that learning can be done anywhere, any time, at any age and be self led or assisted. It doesn’t only take place in a classroom with a teacher.

93. We have the feeling that our child has important things to teach us. “Unless ye be like a little child…..”

94. We believe that people absorb the energy of a place and public school, very often, does not have a positive energy.

95. We want our child to have “Bible” as a school subject.

96. One of our child’s favorite restaurants has great Tuesday lunch specials and she rarely gets to enjoy them.

97. Our child’s little brother is growing up fast and we don’t want her to miss it.

98. Our family is always happiest when we are together.

99. If we know what our child is learning about, we can integrate that into life in so many ways for a more well-rounded and memorable learning experience.

100. We are pretty sure we’re doing OK with this homeschool thing.

101. Through the homeschool association she can take all kinds of lessons we wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford.

102. Through the homeschool association she has multiple opportunities to visit with and be of service to the senior citizens in our community.

103. Through the homeschool association she gets to participate in spelling bees each month.

104. Our four year old is learning some subjects at a far younger age, because he is around when we are teaching his sister.

105. Planting season is before school lets out for summer and harvest doesn’t finish until well after the new year begins.  She would miss both if she was in public school.

106. We are striving for a 100% GMO free diet and that would be virtually impossible with school lunches, snacks, birthday treats, etc.

107. We’ve learned that our daughter puts up fierce resistance to certain parts of schoolwork. No one was telling us that before, but now we can work on breaking down some of those barriers and help her learn a healthier approach to dealing with the less pleasant chores in life.

108. Her base of friends, after 2 years of homeschooling, includes a much wider age range of people. She is learning to interact appropriately with those much younger and much older than herself in a healthy and positive way.

109. Homeschooling has helped our whole family learn to be better stewards of our time and resources.

110. Homeschooling has given us extra opportunities to share some of our favorite books, movies, and music from our childhoods with our daughter.

111. Our child has had great opportunities to participate in classes with people of a wide range of ethnic, racial and regious backgrounds through homeschooling – far more so than in public school in our tiny community.

112. She is already planning on writing her 2nd book in November (National Novel Writer’s Month – visit Nanowrimo to participate with us!)

113. There are no snow days in homeschooling so we don’t need to spend half of the lovely summer making up for classes missed when it was too cold to leave the house.

114. As a homeschooler she gets to help deliver Meals on Wheels throughout the year and we love that she has the experience of serving her elders in that way.

115. Our youngest child cannot be fully immunized for medical reasons. Homeschooling gives us some (admittedly small) amount of control over what gets dragged into our house.

116. She loves playing on the homeschool volleyball team.

117. She is becoming very adept at figuring out how to learn something on her own when she has an interest or need.

118. She often attends meetings and conferences with adults and interacts with them with amazing maturity. She would not be able to go to such events as often if she were in school all day.

119. Life’s too short for all work and no (or little) play. Homeschool days are always full of play!

Do you have other reasons for homeschooling? I would love to hear why other families choose to leave “the beaten path!”

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

A Prayer on September, 11 – May We Never Forget

Father God,

For the people in this nation, life changed fourteen years ago. Peace that we took for granted was stripped from us. People we loved and respected were suddenly gone. Where we had always perceived ourselves as strong, we suddenly felt weak and vulnerable and uncertain.

On that day we rallied. We showed the best of ourselves. So many of us fell before you and prayed. We prayed for the victims, for the rescuers, for those who lost loved ones and for the future. We checked on our neighbors and hugged our family a little tighter.

But then we let fear take over, though you have told us time and again to “fear not.”

We sought out vengeance, though you told us that such business was yours and not ours.

We decided that we could stop this from happening by stamping out a certain mindset. But how can we wage war against the thoughts of a man’s heart when only you know what those thoughts truly are?

In our thirst for justice without mercy we have hurt and killed the innocent.

Forgive us for our pride, our arrogance, and our failure to stand strong in faith, instead of being manipulated by the demons of fear.

Unite us again. Help us to, once again, comfort those who mourn, aid those who are hurting, and care for those who have suffered loss.

Help us to focus on loving our neighbor.

And our enemy.

Especially our enemy.

May we never forget that it was hatred and fear that provoked these attacks.

May we never forget how good it felt to join together in love.

May we never forget to pray every single day the way we prayed that day.

May we never forget to rejoice in the salvation of a single person the way we rejoiced when we saw just one person pulled from the rubble.

May we never forget that millions of people live in that kind of fear every day of their lives and it is our privilege and responsibility to help them through sharing our time, treasures, and talents, and surrounding them in prayer.

May we never forget that, even when things seem confusing and overwhelming, you are infinitely bigger than our biggest problem and your hand is always on us.

May we never forget that every human kingdom is temporary but the Kingdom Of God is eternal.

Let it be.

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

 

 

Making Things Happen

“If you can dream it, you can do it.”

Is that true?

I’m inclined to say yes. I truly believe anything is possible.

Seriously.

You want to be a chicken? Well, that’s weird. But, this is 2015 and we have all kind of crazy science these days.

I think there is an important distinction to be made, though. There are two kinds of dreams. There’s a lovely wish, and then there is the thing that worms into your heart and mind and latches on and won’t let go.

Everybody has a laundry list of wishes. For example, I wish I were sipping a drink with a tiny umbrella in it on a white sand beach right now.

Most of our wishes are nothing more than fantasy.

But the other kind of dream…

That’s the kind that let’s someone run an “impossible” four minute mile or create a steel machine that can fly through the air.

No magic fairy waves a wand and makes it happen. Blood, sweat, and tears are shed before any kind of result is seen. The pursuit of the dream changes a person from the inside out and they don’t even see it happening because they are so totally focused on the prize.

Then someone says, “Oh, my gosh! You’re so lucky!” and you want to say things that would make your mother blush. But that’s a different post.

This morning a dream of mine came true.

I signed a contract with a publisher that I have a great deal of respect for. I’m absolutely beside myself with excitement.

I have wanted to give up many times. I wanted to quit when I found myself staring at a blank page, uncertain of where to begin. I wanted to quit when my first umpteen queries got zero response (turns out there’s an art form to writing those things!). I wanted to quit when an agent led me to believe that she wanted to work with me and then fell off the face of the earth, never to be heard from again.

But those closest to me understood what could be accomplished by someone who has a dream. They whispered encouragement in my ear when I needed it and screamed it in my face when it was needed.

And today…

We celebrated!

My first novel, “More Things In Heaven And Earth” is going to be published. I am over the moon today and, standing on this mountain peak, I can’t help but notice that there’s another, even higher peak just a little further on.

The dream continues.

Click here to get all the details about the book and the fabulous people I’m working with!

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

Dream (Five Minute Friday)

This post is part of the Five Minute Friday project. Click the picture to learn about it, read what others have to say, or link up your own thoughts.

“It’s just not realistic.”

“Grow up.”

“Join the real world.”

“Get a grip.”

I defy the voices.

I embrace the dream.

Do you realize that it was once considered impossible to run a 4 minute mile? Then someone did it. Now every decent high school age runner aspires to it, and many succeed.

Did you know that a quadruple amputee swam the English Channel?

I have a friend who is wildly successful in business. He earns more in a day than I earn in a year. Literally. He has helped more than 2,600 people achieve financial independence through becoming entrepreneurs. But dyslexia makes reading nearly impossible for him. It was so difficult, in fact, that he wasn’t able to finish school.

Tell him his dreams are unrealistic. Go on. He’ll just snicker as he boards his private jet.

I have big dreams.

My dreams are bigger than the vast majority of the people I know. They’re ridiculous and completely unrealistic and I will chase them with every bit of my energy until the day I die.

Maybe I’ll only accomplish 10% of what I dream of.

But if my dream is big enough, the 10% will be extraordinary.

I will see the world. I will experience life. I will impact others in a positive way.

How do I know?

Because I have a dream.

“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” –Harriet Tubman

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

I Am An Author

I am an author! A real, honest-to-goodness author of an actual novel. It’s nearly 100,000 words long and I don’t think I’ve ever been more proud of anything I’ve ever done (you know… vocationally. Kids, etc don’t count).

It’s not actually a PUBLISHED novel. Yet.

I’ve spent 2 1/2 years of my life crafting this work and, one way or another, I am determined to see that bad boy in print! I would absolutely LOVE for you to come over to my new author page and say hello. Sign up for email updates and you’ll know all the details about how to get your hands on what could, potentially, someday, be a VERY valuable first edition copy of my book.

In other news…

I know I’ve been totally absent from the blog lately. There’s a number of reasons but, really, I think it just boiled down to me trying to figure out what my priorities are and what I wanted to write and why and how often.

I didn’t actually get all the answers to those questions, but I figured a few things out. Pretty much, that’s been the story of the past three years or so of my life. “I didn’t get all the answers, but I figured a few things out.”

If success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal I’m doing all right.

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!

Visit my author page for all the latest info on the Heaven And Earth Series!

 

Visit (A Five Minute Friday Post)

I have two major projects in the works right now. The re-write and re-submit of my book is in the final stages. Fingers crossed everybody, and maybe this author will have a novel in print and in stores by the end of 2015 yet! Also, Handsome Hippie Hubby and I have embarked on a business adventure that has taken off faster than I ever could have imagined and I’m racing to keep up so we don’t lose that fabulous and all-important momentum. Apparently, two is the maximum number of huge projects I can deal with at any given time because this poor blog has been sadly neglected in the past several weeks. I miss it.

That said, each week I get the most lovely newsletter from Katemotaung.org. They are always well-crafted and encouraging and you should sign up to follow her! Part of her weekly post is a “Five Minute Friday” prompt.

I don’t have a lot of time, but I have five minutes. It sure did feel nice to write again! (Thank you, Kate, for the nudge.)  I hope you enjoy this tiny bit of my brain and I hope to see you back here soon.

The prompt:

I have a vision of my home: clean and tidy, fresh flowers on the table, fresh-baked bread cooling on a rack in the kitchen, veggies from the garden in a pretty hanging basket. In my vision my children are playing sweetly in the sunshine-splashed yard and one of my favorite friends pulls into the drive. It might be one of the wonderful neighbors I’m blessed to be surrounded by, or perhaps my dearest friend from childhood. Maybe it’s the lovely woman I only just re-connected with on Facebook after losing communication, years ago.

My visitor and I slice some bread and slather it up with mayonnaise and juicy tomato slices and we sit on the porch drinking iced sun-tea and sharing our hearts with one another.

This day actually happens… once a year or so. More often my house is a wreck. There are dishes piled everywhere and stacks of laundry on all the chairs. The children are plugged in to their electronics and no one can sit on the porch because the chairs never got washed after the most recent storm blew them into the mud-filled flowerbeds (which I never did quite get around to finishing last summer).

Visits rarely happen at “ideal” moments. Still, a moment becomes ideal when a loved one comes to visit.

Are you, too, seeking to save the earth, promote world peace and raise productive citizens without expending too much effort?

Why not follow LazyHippieMama on Twitter or Facebook to get all the updates.

If we work on our goals together, they may be a little easier to achieve!