Halloween just came and went, leaving a massive amount of candy calling to me from the kitchen cabinet. I love looking at all of the cute costumes, all the creative ones, and even the scary ones. It is fun that one day a year we can dress up and be somebody different than who we have to be in our every day lives.
The Obama, and Nixon and Scream masks aren't the only type of masks I've been seeing lately, though. More and more I'm realizing just how many people around me where one type of mask or another to hide who they are, how they are feeling, or what their real motivations are.
There are the nasty masks...the people who pose as your friends...the people who embed themselves in your life only to betray and disappoint you. How sad for these people that they are so inadequate in who they really are that they live their lives as a charade. Unfortunately for them, the little game of charades doesn't last forever, and eventually their true colors show through. For people hurt by this type (as I have been in my life) try to hold your head high and know that the hurt WILL go away. The people in your life who are true, who always care, aren't going anywhere. These miserable people will someday answer for their actions...maybe not today...maybe not tomorrow...maybe not until we have moved way on in our lives and they are no longer part of it, but that day will come.
Then there are the masks we wear to protect ourselves. Acting tough, reacting with anger, not letting ourselves cry. I think for those who wear this one, it is important to know you don't have to. There are people in your life with a shoulder waiting for you to cry on. Vent, yell, get mad, get real. Because the real people in your life love you for exactly who you are, for the real you.
I think it can be hard in life to be ourselves and let our guard down. That is why it is so important to recognize the people in your life who show themselves, their TRUE selves, and stand by you no matter what. I have been very blessed by having these people in my lives, in my husband, my parents, my siblings and a couple of really great friends. They are sort of like that person that walks in front of you at a haunted house. The one whose back you dig your face into when Freddy Kruger, or Jason, or Michael Meyers jumps out from around the corner. Truth be told, those aren't the scariest masks in life, and thank God we have people to walk us through the house of horrors life can sometimes be.
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Couch Cushions, Blankets and Lots of Love
Growing up I lived in a really great neighborhood. Next to our house was a side walk that led to path that led to an alleyway that led me right to my friend Kelly's house. A bunch of us would meet there and play kick the can or go a few doors down for a game of knockout. It was great.
One of my all time favorite things to do at Kelly's house, though, was to build a fort. Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson were so great with us tearing apart their game room for the purpose of those awesome childhood forts of couch cushions and blankets. Of course, I didn't appreciate it at the time, but now as a mom who is constantly reconstructing my own couch after the kids build one, I get what a pain it can be.
As a child, anything was possible in the security of that fort. I could be a princess in a castle waiting to be saved, I could the captain of a ship, steering my vessel through choppy water...the possibilities were endless. Watching my own children play and create, I see how valuable the days of carelessness and limitless possibilities are. Someday, they'll know that even the most beautiful princesses don't get to happily ever after without a lot of heartache along the way. Someday they'll realize couch cushions and blankets aren't an unpenetratable fortress, that the problems of life find their way in.
This is my hope, though. I hope that Joe and I are able to teach them that heartache will happen, but broken hearts can be mended. I hope they know that none of life's problems are bigger than their parents love for them. I hope they know that they might not get to be a princess, but they can be a doctor, or a meteorologist, or a mom or a teacher or whatever they set their minds to.
And I want them to remember, even when they are 31 and are frustrated as they put the cushions back on the couch for the umpteenth time, that while those living room forts can't keep those problem of life out, they can hold SOOOO much love in. Every once in a while, I think we all need to crawl into a fort and find that child that still lives within us!!!
One of my all time favorite things to do at Kelly's house, though, was to build a fort. Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson were so great with us tearing apart their game room for the purpose of those awesome childhood forts of couch cushions and blankets. Of course, I didn't appreciate it at the time, but now as a mom who is constantly reconstructing my own couch after the kids build one, I get what a pain it can be.
As a child, anything was possible in the security of that fort. I could be a princess in a castle waiting to be saved, I could the captain of a ship, steering my vessel through choppy water...the possibilities were endless. Watching my own children play and create, I see how valuable the days of carelessness and limitless possibilities are. Someday, they'll know that even the most beautiful princesses don't get to happily ever after without a lot of heartache along the way. Someday they'll realize couch cushions and blankets aren't an unpenetratable fortress, that the problems of life find their way in.
This is my hope, though. I hope that Joe and I are able to teach them that heartache will happen, but broken hearts can be mended. I hope they know that none of life's problems are bigger than their parents love for them. I hope they know that they might not get to be a princess, but they can be a doctor, or a meteorologist, or a mom or a teacher or whatever they set their minds to.
And I want them to remember, even when they are 31 and are frustrated as they put the cushions back on the couch for the umpteenth time, that while those living room forts can't keep those problem of life out, they can hold SOOOO much love in. Every once in a while, I think we all need to crawl into a fort and find that child that still lives within us!!!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Elementary Open House
John, this one is for you!
Tuesday night was open house at our oldest daughter's school. She was so excited to show us her classroom, school work and for us to meet all of her new friends. The reality was we went to her class and then went to the cafetorium for cookies, at which time she met up with her friends and all interaction with us came to a screeching halt!
Ironically, I saw more that night than me or my daughter anticipated, and it had very little to do with her classroom.
My husband and I moved to this community three short years ago. When we moved here we only knew one family, and even that one we were still just getting to know. As I walked around the school it seemed I knew somebody at every turn. Not only did I know people, but A LOT of these people have become friends. These are people who in such a short time have come to care about our family and have built relationships with my children.
What an amazing gift it is to have these people in my life. You don't realize when you first meet a person how they will play a role in your life. Our daughter's baseball coach, her teacher from last year, fellow parents who I've connected with...all these people who have come into our life by chance, but whom we've become friends with by choice. It is an amazing thing. It is truly a blessing.
It is a special thing to know you have people looking out for your child and who care. I don't mean to downplay my family and the extended family I have in my close circle of friends. I am ALWAYS grateful for what they bring to my life. I'm talking about the support system we may not always realize is there, It is something I don't take for granted. Take some time today to think about the great, unexpected friends in your life, and then thank God for these blessings. They really are a gift He has given us.
A thought for the day:
"It doesn’t matter what you’ve heard, impossible is not a word. It’s just a reason for someone not to try" - Kutless, What Faith Can Do
Tuesday night was open house at our oldest daughter's school. She was so excited to show us her classroom, school work and for us to meet all of her new friends. The reality was we went to her class and then went to the cafetorium for cookies, at which time she met up with her friends and all interaction with us came to a screeching halt!
Ironically, I saw more that night than me or my daughter anticipated, and it had very little to do with her classroom.
My husband and I moved to this community three short years ago. When we moved here we only knew one family, and even that one we were still just getting to know. As I walked around the school it seemed I knew somebody at every turn. Not only did I know people, but A LOT of these people have become friends. These are people who in such a short time have come to care about our family and have built relationships with my children.
What an amazing gift it is to have these people in my life. You don't realize when you first meet a person how they will play a role in your life. Our daughter's baseball coach, her teacher from last year, fellow parents who I've connected with...all these people who have come into our life by chance, but whom we've become friends with by choice. It is an amazing thing. It is truly a blessing.
It is a special thing to know you have people looking out for your child and who care. I don't mean to downplay my family and the extended family I have in my close circle of friends. I am ALWAYS grateful for what they bring to my life. I'm talking about the support system we may not always realize is there, It is something I don't take for granted. Take some time today to think about the great, unexpected friends in your life, and then thank God for these blessings. They really are a gift He has given us.
A thought for the day:
"It doesn’t matter what you’ve heard, impossible is not a word. It’s just a reason for someone not to try" - Kutless, What Faith Can Do
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)