Get Me Writing Again

Went on a quick trip today and because we were in a small tourist town and it is still winter, most places were closed!  However, we did find one awesome candy store. And at that store they had shelves upon shelves of soda pop in glass bottles.  I tried some cream soda made by Spring Grove. It was fabulous. Give it a try if you see it. http://www.springgrovesoda.com/Spring_Grove_Soda_Pop_Inc/About_Us.html

I've been getting daily meditations from Fr. Robert Barron for lent and today's struck me:

On the topic of Lent... I usually have good intentions of giving something up, but never seem to buckle down and take it as seriously as I would like.  This year, I decided to give up something that I knew would be difficult- television.  Yikes!  I was scared to make this move, but it's actually going pretty well.  I determined that I could watch tv if I was at the gym working out, so this also added some incentive to my fitness goals.  I also allow myself to watch movies (see my previous post) because I'm not a huge movie buff anyhow.  I used to turn the tv on when I got home from work to catch up on the news and then just ended up keeping it on most of the night.  I have noticed that I feel a little out of the loop on news stories, but I also realized most of the news isn't that big of a deal.  It has also given me time to tackle some books that I've been waiting to read.  I'm liking it! 

I also decided to follow this 40 Days of Decluttering thing I saw a friend post.  I have missed a couple days, but it has been exactly what I needed.  Focused time to get into my "stuff" and clear things out.  Each day I can choose what part of the house I want to tackle and try to get rid of things that I don't need, don't use, or are just plain old and worn out.  It feels good!

We saw a great movie this weekend and even though I knew exactly what was going to happen next, I was still riveted...the movie was Son of God.   I really enjoyed the actors and felt like they chose people who represented my idea of the character and personality of the apostles and told their stories well.  I cried. Several times.  Highly recommend seeing this especially during this time of Lent. 

<sup>This passage ties into my last post and is so powerful...

2 Corinthians 4:16-18
16</sup> Therefore we do not lose heart.Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

The other night I was driving home from my sister's house and I happened to see this quote on a sign: "Life is not measured in length, but depth."  That struck me deeply on that night in particular because of the news my sister had received just the day before.  She has leukemia.  Our lives have been redirected unexpectedly.  I am more concerned with the value of each and every day and creating moments of "depth".  The next day I looked at that sign and the quote was gone.  We live in a world that is fleeting and ever changing, but we have hope in the eternal God.  I drive by the hospital nearly every day and before this happened I didn't think too much about it.  Now as I travel by, I pray for the people and their families who are staying there.  For their fears and pain.  I pray for long and deep lives for those I love. 

I finally have a matching set of dining room chairs!  My grandma had a set of four chairs in her garage that were about to go to the burn pile unless someone claimed them.  So I thought I might be able to do something with them.  After a couple hours of sanding down the old finish (with the help of my amazingly sweet and willing boyfriend) they were ready for paint.  I spent a long time thinking about different fun colors for these chairs.  They could be anything- my house is an eclectic mix of things and colors I love.  I finally settled on red.  Arriving at the store and facing hundreds of cans of spray paint, I found the one: Chinese Red Lacquer.  I'm loving how they turned out.  Below is a shot of a sanded chair and the new happy red.