Wonder

I'm on a little bit of a "Life is Great" high right now. I want to continually feel that way but I realize that life is full of ups and downs, and while it is ALWAYS good, it is sometimes hard. At any rate, I got to go see Imagine Dragons with my family last Friday night and that was awesome!

Me, Cassie and Meghan

Chad and me-still as mushy as ever

If you want a feel good, happy message, upbeat concert, this was the one to go to. I've always said I like 80's music the best and I'm quite sure it has something to do with the fact that I did the bulk of my growing up during this era, but I always thought the music in the 80's had a (for the most part) happy feeling to it. Alternative 80's is my absolute favorite. Imagine Dragons is reminiscent of this era and makes me feel like I'm back in Salt Lake City dancing at The Bay. I love it. I think the concert was the most fun for Meghan and I to experience, as we listen to Imagine Dragons the most around here, but it was well worth the money for all of us to go. It doesn't hurt that I saw many friends there as well as a large number of my high school counterparts!

We no longer bring lighters to concerts-we bring our phones!

 

 

Another reason I am feeling like the world is a good place is because I just finished a great book that a friend of mine recommended. It is called WONDER by R.J.Palacio. It is a book that renews my faith in the human spirit and helps me remember to goodness that is in all of us if we let it shine. I wish it was required reading every year for children from the age of 8 on up through adulthood. It was a good reminder of how to treat others and how the will to overcome obstacles can rise out of each of us. Here is the synopsis from Random House  http://www.randomhouse.com/book/208913/wonder-by-r-j-palacio

"August Pullman was born with a facial deformity that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face. WONDER, now a #1 New York Times bestseller and included on the Texas Bluebonnet Award master list, begins from Auggie’s point of view, but soon switches to include his classmates, his sister, her boyfriend, and others. These perspectives converge in a portrait of one community’s struggle with empathy, compassion, and acceptance."

I highly recommend it to everyone. It 's a great read with great lessons.

Oh-and one more thing....... "I'm never changing who I am!"

Fences and Walls

I've been thinking this week about opportunities. Every day is so full of them. Chances to learn, situations to show kindness in, instances to grow from. People to meet, fears to conquer, tasks to complete, reasons to show strength, pasts to confront, opportunities to stand up for something. There are dozens of ways to experience opportunity. Or reject it.

Thinking of opportunities got me to wondering how many of them I have passed by. Not ones that have passed me by, but ones I have let go.  Have you ever said about a situation, "Oh I didn't get the chance to...." or "Well, the opportunity didn't arrive for me to....." I wonder how many of those did not happen because of my fears. Or because of the fences and walls I put up to protect myself and my life. I wonder...

Granted, there are times we need to let those chances pass us by. Some are dangerous. Some are plainly unnecessary.  It's easy to become overwhelmed and inundated by life. All the things there are to do. Some opportunities I feel like I am just better off without; like, say...skydiving. I do not feel the need to do that. Ever. But I'm always grateful I took the glorious opportunity of rappelling down the walls of the Grand Canyon. It was exhilarating!  And as we're all individuals, those chances need to be weighed by each of us. I hope I can be wise. And inspired.

I know I won't take very opportunity that comes my way. I realize I will pass by some things that would have benefited me greatly. Some will just have wasted my time. Some will teach me lessons. Hopefully I will only have to learn them once. But I hope I learn enough to take the chances that really matter. The ones that are offered to me in love and sincerity. The ones from the people I love and trust, and the ones that God offers me in His grace. Maybe I'll be more aware of what I'm offered. And maybe that will give me insight into what is offered. Its definitely got me thinking!


Look what taking the good opportunities has brought me.....

Family, new friends, new places, memories galore

True love, adventure, great surroundings

                                                                    



                                                 

                          Safety in knowledge, a friend in Christ, a testimony, and a foundation to build upon

Humor Me

Have I said that I love my job? I'm very blessed to be able to be around goodness each day. I love my 600 little kiddos at school and all the wonderful faculty, staff, and parents that I spend my days with.

One of the things that makes my job so enjoyable is the interaction with the children and listening to the remarkable things that come out of their mouths. Some things are just sweet and innocent...

Girl at lunch: "Heather, do you think you could be my school mom? I just miss my mom so much during the day. If you could be my school mom I think I'll be okay."

And some things are sad.

Boy on the playground: "I'm really sad today."
Me: "What's up buddy?"
Boy: "My grandpa just died. I've been watching my mom cry for 2 days and I don't know what to do."
Me: "You know, I bet just being around you makes her feel better."
Boy: "No, she just says I remind her of him. "
What else could I do but just hug him? And be grateful he would share this with me so I could hug him.

Then there are the things that are light-hearted and memorable and delight me to the core.

Heard on the playground from 2 kindergarteners...
Boy 1: "Hey! Guess what? I Just went down the firepole for the first time!!!"
Boy 2: "Woah, dude! Was it scary?"
Boy 1: "Nah, I just cowboyed up."

Then in the lunchroom where I run around helping kids open milks and Gogurts, clean up messes, and try to keep general order with 150 kids at a time...

Boy: "So, Heather, I guess you're just like our maid, huh?"
Me: "I guess so, although I'd rather be more like your mom than your maid."
Boy: "Nah, you make a good maid."

I've got a million of these little golden moments. I need to write a book about them. But I'll leave  with the most recent and cutest one this week~I had kind of dressed up colorfully (instead of my usual blacks, greys and browns) for parent-teacher conferences and was wearing a belt and some boots with my outfit...

Boy: "Heather, I need you to come here!"  (I walk over to him and he grabs one of my hands in both of his, and gazes into my eyes.)
Boy: "Heather, I just want you to know you look AMAZING today!"
Me: "Well, thank you!"
Boy: "Heather, do you want to know why you look so amazing?"
Me: "Well yes, of course."
Boy: " Because your belt is so MASSIVE!"  

Needless to say, I am wearing that belt more often!

Comfort

I have a million thoughts zinging around in my head; things I want to write about and explore more thoroughly. But tonight I'm taking the simplicity route and writing what I feel at this moment.

I've been sick for over 5 weeks. I finally went to the doctor. Yes, I thought I could get well if I waited things out long enough. Now that I have some good meds  fighting infection in me and am thinking more clearly, I am grateful for the comforts I am blessed with and enjoy. I've got a little list of the things that bring comfort to me...

Knowing God is real and that He knows and loves me.

Having my family around me.

Watching a great movie with my husband and children.

Warm, fuzzy socks and cozy blankets.

Living in a day and age where I can get the proper help to get well!

Hot cocoa.

Yummy, homemade stew on a rainy Fall day.

Hearing all my favorite classic Christmas music. I can't stop smiling about it.

Having pumpkin, pecan, cinnamon and caramel scents permeating my home.

Knowing my daughter found a good, kind, wonderful man to marry.

Knowing we are surrounded by goodness even in the midst of a crazy world.

Remembering all the amazing experiences I've had with my family.

Being in Chad's arms where I feel safe and protected.

HOME.

Cloaking Devices

I am amazed at God's cleverness. I shouldn't be. He is, after all, God. But the amount of organization is takes for Him to put just one life together~with all of the right people and places and events and circumstances~at the right times; well it leaves me downright mystified.

There have been times when I have asked myself~as well as others in my life~how being God can be the rewarding, fulfilling, happy job that it is portrayed to be. I mean, when I look at all the tragedy and sadness in the world, I sometimes wonder how He can stand watching His children suffer. How can He stand watching His children hurt each other? The answer is quite simple, and one that my husband so kindly counsels me with: God sees EVERYTHING. The good with the bad, the happy with the sad, the kindness with the mean~and most importantly, He knows the outcome.

This was one of those days that taught me there is opposition in all things, and out of hopeless situations, light can always emerge. I think one of the things we have to learn in life is to LET that light shine through the darkness. I was blessed to see light today, even though there were some situations that made my heart heavy. I was able to see heroes at work, and it gave me hope. It made me grateful that God has seen fit to send angels down here with the cloaking device called "human".

 

You'll Never Guess

I am in heaven. Each Tuesday and Thursday when I arrive at school, our school choir is practicing. Because Christmas is less than 3 months away (did you realize that?) they are practicing carols. I love it. It starts my day off beautifully and I am in a good mood the entire day after hearing them.

For an elementary school, our choir is quite large~around 100 students. They sound darling but our teacher who directs the choir, and all of the wonderful parents who help her, can bring out the absolute best in the children.  One of my favorite Christmas songs is Somewhere in My Memory (from the Home Alone movies).

I absolutely melt when I hear it. When I walked into work this morning that's what was being sung.  I was mesmerized and humbled by those angelic voices. I actually asked my boss if he could find a way to pipe it out to the playground for me...

I know that there are people who aren't comfortable with Christmas this soon. That's ok. I'm lucky if I get to September before I turn my Christmas music on. I revel in it. I love to live the season all year long. Those who know me know that I mean living the season~not decorating for or celebrating quite yet~but letting the feeling permeate my heart all the time. I can't help it. That feeling is ever~present. I have this sense that on the first Christmas when the Christ-child was born, I was probably singing with the angels at the top of my lungs. I like to think that in heaven my voice could actually sound appealing. It gives me goosebumps to picture it.

At any rate, when people ask how I feel about Christmas music this early...I will say that I love it. I am listening to the Pandora Johnny Mathis Christmas station most days and loving the choir music in the mornings. I love Christmas music almost any time. Except Halloween.