I love this!

The following is an excerpt from Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist (Zondervan).

prologue

bittersweet

"The idea of bittersweet is changing the way I live, unraveling and re-weaving the way I understand life.

Bittersweet is the idea that in all things there is both something broken and something beautiful, that there is a sliver of lightness on even the darkest of nights, a shadow of hope in every heartbreak, and that rejoicing is no less rich when it contains a splinter of sadness.

Bittersweet is the practice of believing that we really do need both the bitter and the sweet, and that a life of nothing but sweetness rots both your teeth and your soul.

Bitter is what makes us strong, what forces us to push through, what helps us earn the lines on our faces and the calluses on our hands. Sweet is nice enough, but bittersweet is beautiful, nuanced, full of depth and complexity. Bittersweet is courageous, gutsy, earthy.


Nearly ten years ago, my friend Doug told me that the central image of the Christian faith is death and rebirth, that the core of it all, over and over again, is death and rebirth. I'm sure I'd heard that before, but when he told me, for whatever reason, I really thought about it for the first time. And at the time, I didn't agree.

What I didn't understand until recently is that he wasn't speaking to me as a theologian or a pastor or an expert, but rather as a person whose heart had been broken and who had been brought back to life by the story God tells in all our lives. When you haven't yet had your heart really broken, the gospel isn't about death and rebirth. It's about life and more life. It's about hope and possibility and a brighter future. And it is, certainly, about those things.

But when you've faced some kind of death — the loss of someone you loved dearly, the failure of a dream, the fracture of a relationship — that's when you start understanding that central metaphor. When your life is easy, a lot of the really crucial parts of Christian doctrine and life are nice theories, but you don't really need them. When, however, death of any kind is staring you in the face, all of a sudden rebirth and new life are very, very important to you.

This ....is an ode to all things bittersweet, to life at the edges, a love letter to what change can do in us. This is what I've come to believe about change: it's good, in the way that childbirth is good, and heartbreak is good, and failure is good. By that I mean that it's incredibly painful, exponentially more so if you fight it, and also that it has the potential to open you up, to open life up, to deliver you right into the palm of God's hand, which is where you wanted to be all along, except that you were too busy pushing and pulling your life into exactly what you thought it should be. So this is the work I'm doing now, and the work I invite you int when life is sweet, say thank you and celebrate. And when life is bitter, say thank you and grow."

A Little Hair Raising....

So far, nothing too earth shattering to report on the cyber-school homefront. Yesterday was our first day and, wanting to start of on the right foot, we got up early and dove right in. I am trying to keep some order in the house and am attempting to keep up some sort of a routine, so, I woke the kids up at 6:30 a.m. E and M made their beds, got dressed and had breakfast. ( Right there is a big plus, because M would never eat a decent meal before she headed out.) M finished all her classes without a hitch, with her trusty australian sheperd Ella resting at her feet.

E began her day with her dog Kaylee sprawled out next to her. Sigh! (One of the many pluses of having the girls at home-the dogs are in 7th heaven.) Surprisingly, E had some pretty in depth material to cover for a fifth grader (she is in the gifted and talented program,) but I have to admit I was a little surprised with it being the first day -typically in the brick and mortar school she attended the first day usually consisted of meeting teachers, students and it was pretty easy. I am proud to say my youngest handled her first encounter with cyber school with a lot of grace, but we all had a good laugh at the end of the day when she emerged from her work area. Her hair and been neatly pulled back in a ponytail in the morning, and now she appeared looking wild, with her eyes glazed over, wisps of hair out of control, framing her face. I doubled over with laughter when she said her chair had an imprint of her derriere' on it because she had been sitting so long, and she informed me she needed to complete an essay on Johann Gutenberg's invention of the printing press in the 15th century by the end of the day. I glanced at the clock, which told me it was way past the time for a 5th grader to be working this hard and told her it would be okay if we tackled that tomorrow.

The child who gleefully yelled out the front door last week to all the school buses transporting students to their first day of school shouting, "So long, suckers!" was now eating her words.

Whenever I Need Some Inspiration.....

Oh my goodness......My poor front door is going to go through another change, I can just see it now!

Gearing Up For Something New....

The end of summer has always symbolized change and the days leading up to the first day of school become filled with errands and long lists of back to school supplies and school clothing needs.
This year is a bit different for us; we decided to enroll the girls in a cyber charter school called http://www.connectionsacademy.com/ We are very excited because it will offer more flexible schedules and the ability for accelerated studies. E will be able to take a language this year and M will be able to tailor her program to focus on Environmental Science which she has long been interested in. There is no cost to us; this is a state approved public school with certified teachers. We just received our new computers and textbooks this past week.
We have been researching home schooling and cyber charter schools for a while now. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with the public school system in our area, we felt strongly that E was not being challenged. M struggles with Math and needs some extra attention, and we wanted her to be able to focus on her studies without being distracted with the social obstacles that are all too familiar with middle school. Yes, I know she is now a teenager and I can't shelter her forever, but, Rick and I would have liked to been the ones to enlighten her on certain topics, including some rather adult issues. And, it would have been nice if her $200 eyeglasses hadn't been twisted beyond recognition while she was in gym class this past year. (No one ever came forward to claim responsibility.)
Add to this both kids attendance issues-they were sick with strep quite a bit (we were on a first name basis with all the staff in our doctor's office as well as the schools,) and they missed a whopping 25 days of school each.
The up side to the new school is of course the flexibility, and, unless they are deathly ill they have no excuse for not completing their daily work. We also don't have snow days like everyone else does, unless,we decide not to. This only means we have to make up the hours missed on another day. And, there is also a lot of opportunity for socialization, including weekly field trips, outings and clubs in our area.
I also feel this is a good choice for M because she is not sports oriented, and, in our school district, I have come to the conclusion that if you aren't playing a sport, you don't quite get the full benefit of the total school experience. In cyber charter school, she can branch out and explore her own interests without feeling pressured. Growing up these days is hard enough, and I want to make it an experience both of my daughters can look back on and feel really good about. While a brick and mortar school may be the right choice for some kids, we would like to at least explore this new opportunity and see if we can positively impact our children. After all, we are their best advocates.
I am sure we will have our share of good days and bad days, lol! I look forward to sharing my experience with all of you and hope you will follow along as we begin our new endeavor. The first day of school is on September 1.

Inspiration for the Day....

"Aspire to Inspire Before You Expire"

The Inspiration of Helen

Have you ever seen that commercial where this young man sees his life flash forward in 15 seconds? Well, I wish I could figure out a way to share my own version of that with you here-but oh, well-we will just have to settle for a story and some pictures, :)

But first-don't you remember when summers were full of long days with your face turned up to the sun,sitting on that tire swing under a huge tree-the drone of locusts buzzing; what little there was of a breeze lifting the damp hair from your face? And one of the best sounds of the day was of the icecream truck winding it's way down your street?

Oh, to have those days back.....

"Where have you been?" you ask. Let's see,where to begin....

I should probably go back a little, maybe about four years ago now, I think. I have this dear friend who has three little boys and she lives down the street in another part of the neighborhood. She is a beautiful, kind person and is a professional photographer by trade. One day, she invited me over to her grandmother's pool which is about a block away. Of course,the girls and I were thrilled to have a place to swim.

This was how I met Helen.

Helen is my friend's grandmother, and is quite an amazing person. Beside the fact that she will be turning one hundred this year, which is incredible in and of itself, she is funny and clever to boot. And of course, we immediately fell in love with her. My daughters and I treasure the summers because we know we will get to see Mrs. Hauser and have some fun splashing in her pool. I often times will take along my art stuff and paint while the kids swim.
Her pool is such a calm and beautiful place to reflect and get centered again. We don't get to enjoy it often with our busy schedule, and I treasure these times very much.
Two years ago, Helen and her family made the landmark decision to share the bounty of their orchards and vineyards with the people of Gettysburg, and they constructed a spectacular winery.
I am not exaggerating at all when I make the statement that it could rival and possibly surpass any similar operations on the West Coast.
It boasts a gorgeous view and the luxe interior of the tasting room transports you instantly into an atmosphere rich with the aroma of the fine wine and hard cider they have become so well known for.

This is where my story begins with Hauser Estate Winery (and explains what I have been busy doing for the past month.....) As part of "giving back" and strengthening their bonds within in the community they recently started to display art work from local artists. I am honored to say I have been invited to hang some of my art work for the month of August in their Tasting Room on the square in Gettysburg.
(Do you think I caught these tourists by surprise as I captured this photo?) I can't imagine a more fitting personal thank you and tribute to Helen, the "grand matriarch" of the Hauser Estate in all it's splendor. How fitting to be able to share some of the paintings I completed while enjoying the lovely surroundings of Helen's backyard.
I can't tell you how honored I am to have this opportunity. I am a self taught artist and I know I will never aspire to anything more than this, but still, it is something that I had written down on my "Bucket List" of things to do in this lifetime. So in all my recent spare time , when I haven't been taking care of my family, or been at the barn with my rescued, retired DC Police horse, or spending afternoons in a summer marketing job with a cyber charter school, (or mornings innkeeping at a lovely local B&B), I am painting like a madwoman, lol!

I thank the Hauser Family for their kindness and support in allowing me to realize this very special moment in time. They will be participating in "First Friday" on August 6th-sponsored by the Gettysburg Area Retail Merchants Association. Each month Gettysburg businesses join forces to offer special events and refreshments. Approximately 25 businesses throughout Historic Gettysburg participate by hosting special receptions, guest artists and authors, sales and later business hours (until 8:00pm).

As part of the First Friday at The Hauser Wine Shop located next to 17 on the Square, there will be music by Sharon Knowles of Fynesound, and light hors'doevres provided by the Fairfield Inn. I would be so honored if you would mark your calendars and come out to celebrate all that is wonderful about summer with me on August 6th!!!! I realize my work is very naive, some will say it's primitive, but I promise you will be viewing a lot of my passion and heart that has gone into these pieces.....

Picture of the Day....

This almost looks like what I imagine judgement day might look like, but no, it was a Fourth of July event in the midwest somewhere. I think it has a very ethereal quality and is quite beautiful.