Made to Shine

We meet with friends for a Bible Study/Prayer Time intermittently. Last Saturday night, we talked about God's glory. I felt inspired to write a poem that speaks to all of us of God's heart for us.

Made to Shine

You have such potential!
I made you to shine—
To glow with the glory
Of knowing you're Mine,
Of knowing I love you
Too much to let go,
Too much to relent
When you don't want to grow.
When you're choosing to hide
In the dullness of sin
You forfeit the race
You're created to win.
Yield to My correction—
Its pressures are brief
And they'll guide you and lead you
To certain relief
From the desperate effort
To polish yourself.
Your attempts barely meager,
You cry for My help.
You don't comprehend
That the work is not yours.
You are My creation;
My purpose is sure.
Release all your doubts,
And your guilt, and your shame,
And rejoice in this fact:
You are called by My Name!

Funny People

Recently, I watched the movie "Funny People." It fascinated me that people could just sit down and write jokes, and now I find myself framing odd bits of life into comedy routines. Like Facebook. You have to imagine this being read in a "stand-up comic" tone of voice...

You ever been on Facebook? How many people out there have Facebook pages? How many people out there talk to people on Facebook more than people in real life? Yeah, that's what I thought.

And the things they post as their status! In the last week, I've read: "Who are these people and why are they knocking on my trunk?" "I ran over a raccoon on my way to work." "My family is watching a special on giant squids. Yay!"

Moms are some of the funniest. Tanya's kids have been dressing a huge zucchini in dolly dress up clothes. That's bad news. Pretty soon it'll be old enough to date, and you know how zucchinis breed.

Tamri has somehow lost an entire chocolate bar - without even enjoying one bite! Her family tore apart furniture trying to find it. No worries, though - she posted later that one of her kids put it away "for safekeeping."

Maria's two-year-old decided to plug up the vacuum cleaner hose with leftover carrot sticks. You've gotta wonder what that kid was thinking: "Bad machine! You eat dirt and crumbs. But now not eat carrots. I HELLLLP you."

And then there are people who THINK they are funny. "I actually didn't realize it was Friday until a little bit ago lol" "I'm gonna go get some socks haha!" "think im gonna go to bed soon lol." "thinking way too many thoughts haha!" Am I missing something? Are those things funny? Was anybody out there actually laughing out loud at these? Yeah... me neither.

But Facebook helps so much with connectivity. You want to get in touch with Carlie, but you know (via Facebook) that she went camping. You see Paula, and know her husband made her brownies last night to ease the ache of a long long day. You know who has seen the latest movie, without ever talking to anyone. Amazing.

Like the time my daughter pulled into the driveway and walked through the door, saying, "I saw the saddest thing on the way here. It was a dead raccoon, and it had its little paw up on the curb like it was reaching for it but never quite made it."

"Oh yeah," I said. "That's the one Kathleen ran over on the way to work."

Foods that Satisfy

I'm on this diet. I am succeeding, partly because I get a kind of perverse satisfaction out of telling myself, "This is the fattest you will ever be for the rest of your life." Let other people be inspired by pictures of skinny people magnetized to their refrigerators. This is my way.

I have to count "points," which are a mathematical calculation derived from calories, fat grams, and grams of fiber. I should enjoy the math in it, and the record keeping, but I find it more comforting to settle on a few foods that I can enjoy in specific quantities and feel that I have had a treat, and at the same time, feel satisfied with how much of it I get to eat. So French fries are out (I'd be spending too many "points"), as are theater candy and buttered popcorn and pizza. I can be very happy as long as my day includes some or all of these foods:

• Cottage cheese
• Cheese in sticks or slices
• Little tubs of cubed fruit - no sugar added!
• A cup of coffee with sugar-free creamer
• At least one bowl of salad with just a drizzle of Original Ranch dressing (worth the points)
  
• Lots of cucumbers and tomatoes ("pointless" foods)
  
• Some kind of lean meat - barbecued or George Foreman grilled

Gotta get these down to something I can pack for when school starts up again.

Is It School Yet?

I'll start with a confession: I've never had a blog before, so I have no idea what direction this will go. I make no promises to you; I cannot guarantee incisive insights, acerbic wit, memorable quotes, or even relevancy. I have a vague idea that these will be thoughts and musings about the life of one teacher, but even that may be saying too much. I am, after all, a teacher, and an employed one (which is saying something in today's economy), but I fill, and have filled, so many other roles that it might be asking too much to say I will confine myself to teacher-type thoughts.

So now, if you choose to come along, you have been forewarned.

School starts in about a month -- sooner for teachers. I've got a letter somewhere that lists all the days I'm supposed to be at school before school starts, but I'm not sure where it is right now. Before that day, whenever it is, I've got these school-related goals:

• Train the incoming yearbook staff -- make it fun!
• Complete the best yearbook cover design ever (by Sept 1, so it will be free).
• Try to get exempt from sales tax on yearbook costs (another saving money goal).
  
• Work ahead in the new Linear Algebra book (fun for me -- I like learning).
• Try to coax the (senior project) Math Placement Test Committee along.

And because some of these are going to require a lot of energy, I have one more goal that I've been working on:

• Get recharged for the new school year.