PHENOMENAL

 

PHENOMENAL

Do do, do do do. Phenomenal. Do do do do. Phenomenal. Do do do do do, do do do, do.........

Sorry. Every time I hear that word, my brain inserts this song. I promise Muppets are not the reason I am blogging today-although, wasn't that a fun, if weird, trip down memory lane?

Phenomenal. That's a strong word. A BIG word. A fun word. I love using it to describe so many things. People, Experiences. Places. Feelings. Situations. Performances. Acts of kindness, bravery, and heroism. It is a wonderful word to describe immense things. 

I have experienced many phenomenal things in my life, which I think is a pretty awesome thing to be able to say. I am a very middle of the road person, so being able to say phenomenal things happen to me shows me I have been very blessed. 

I have been blessed with phenomenal, incredible children-both by blood and by love. Ones that were borne from my body, and ones I have claimed as mine because of the bonds we so deeply share. They are all beautiful-inside and out, are brilliant, kind, talented, and loving. Best of all, I get to call them mine-at least for the time they are here on earth, borrowed from Heaven.  Because of them, I have been blessed with countless amazing people who have come into my life to either benefit the growth of my children, or blessed all of our lives with their gifts and talents. I have villages who have gathered around my children and helped them become who they are. It's amazing. 

I have witnessed phenomenal, incredible, faith-building miracles of biblical proportions in my life and the lives of those around me. Like-"the tumor has disappeared" kind. Or "there's not a trace of cancer" kind. The "she's been rear-ended by two cars at freeway speed and is walking away" kind. The "she's made it through a living Hell but is an incredible person in spite of it" kind. And then there's the "look at the blue on that dragonfly" kind, and the "oh my gosh, I found a dime" kind. I see miracles large and small every single day.  It's astounding. 

I have visited phenomenal places in the world-everywhere from my back yard with the beautiful Ben Lomond Peak to the rocky, windy shores of the Oregon Coast to the calming, see all the way to the bottom of the ocean waters of the Caribbean to the golden tree filled hills of West Virginia. There are jaw dropping, beautiful places in this world. I have only seen a handful of them, but that doesn't diminish their wonder. I hope to see many, many more before the end of my life. 

Palm trees in Las Vegas

Maho Beach on St Maarten

Golden hills of West Virginia

Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, OR

Ben Lomond Peak right here in Utah

I have been blessed with a phenomenal job. Sometimes it is taxing on every level, but there is ALWAYS good in each day-even if it's just a short conversation with a child or a run in with the great people I work with. It is fulfilling, if challenging for me. I love being Miss Heather and I wouldn't trade it for the world. People ask me when I am going to retire and I tell them I won't leave until they kick me out. Truthfully, I want to leave while things are good and before I am too tired, but I have at least 30 more years in me, so we're good! I am grateful every day to feel goodness and to leave a mark of goodness myself while I'm at it. 

I could go on about the phenomenal workings of the world, but I was going through my memories this morning before a really long day, and came across one that just struck my heart. I wrote it 4 years ago and I still feel this way. There had been an incredible lightning storm the night before and there were pictures that had been  on KSL's page that were breathtaking. Now, I am a sucker for a good storm. You give me lightning and thunder and I am a happy camper. Many of my fondest memories are centered around huge lightshows in the sky. When I was a youngster-around ages 7 and 8- we lived in West Virginia for a stint. We had some great friends who had a back porch that hung over a creek. I remember watching some of the most fantastic storms out there. We just all sat in wonder at the lightning flashes that lit up the sky for hours on end, and the ruckus of the thunder bumpers that all but knocked us out of our chairs. GLORIOUS! God puts on a great show. I still get so excited to see flashes in the sky or hear a big boom of thunder shake the atmosphere. I know people who are just petrified of these weather patterns, and I get it, but to me they signify something so divine. Here is the post from the weather page:

And here is what I wrote about it. It actually made me cry.

"When the world seems crazy and unstable, this kind of weather gives me a 

peace that nothing else can. Shows there's someone (thing, entity, take your pick) that is bigger than me and has it all under control. Only something heavenly and 

all knowing could create beauty like this! The storm actually gives me the calm. 

8-3-18"

I need to remember this feeling. All too often, when I am heartsick or worried, or just plain stressed out, knowing God is there is the key to my peace. Feeling something He created makes me know HE IS THERE. Those flashes of light that tear through the sky and those rumbles of thunder that feel like the sky will crack open show me that it's all up to Him and all will be well. There may be a little havoc induced and some unsteadiness in the wake, but in the end there is the calm. The strength that comes with each storm shows me the strength that is there to gird me up. PHENOMENAL. And I am grateful! 

Wait for it.....

VOLUME UP!!!!!!!!!