Monday, August 29, 2011

A Bit About Fear {Multitude Monday #276-285}

Heart pounding.

Adrenaline pumping.

Nerves frayed.

Tensions rising.

Emotions spiraling.

Panic ensued.

After praying for days for Hurricane Irene to turn away from my beloved homeland of Haiti as well as other vulnerable islands in the Caribbean Sea, the path of the storm headed straight up the East Coast of the US - my "other' home - where I and my whole family currently live.

Anxiety consumed me for days as the storm bull's eyed its way in our direction. The best word to describe how I felt is sheer terror.

The weather reporters predicted doom & mayhem, and eventually I had to turn off the TV and the voices creating chaos in my mind.

I couldn't really understand why the panic was so intense for me.
I have been through hurricanes before.
I have had to pack up my mobile home before - as a child AND as an adult.
While it is inconvenient, it was just "one of those things" and I had peace in the past.

Finally, I had enough, and I just broke down! My poor husband received the brunt of my freak out!

I had fought it for a couple of days, and just couldn't take it anymore and then mid-rant, I found myself blurting out,

"I just can't handle ANOTHER natural disaster."

Wow.
There is was.
The elephant in the room, per say.
Or the proverbial sword piercing my chest.

Ever since the earthquake so radically changed my little island on Hispaniola, its inhabitants, and my parents on January 12, 2010, I, too, have been irrevocably transformed.

I realized that the trauma that I felt over the hours, days, and even months after that 7.1 trembling was breathing new life inside of me at the thought of another impending natural disaster.

I felt paralyzed, overcome, enveloped by fear.

I wish I could say that I had this amazing revelation or overwhelming peace or great faith that overtook me in that moment that carried me through the storms, but with the help of my family and friends, especially Mom & Arno, just helping and encouraging in all the practical things that HAD to be done, each step got a little easier, and truly "during" the storm, I DID have that complete peace that the Lord was in control.

I think Joyce Meyers said this....

"Do it afraid."

And THAT sums up my weekend.

And what has developed in my last 24 hours is just a HUGE heart of gratitude at the fact that while the Father did ask me to walk this path, He calmed the storm TREMENDOUSLY!

"Sometimes He calms the storms, and other times He calms His child...."

This time He did both.....

Continuing to count my gifts....

Gratitude - a feeling of thankfulness or appreciation, as for gifts or favours;
the state of feeling grateful

#276 - 285
~calm in the storm
~supportive husband who keeps loving me in spite of.....
~friends who opened up their home to us, even while they were out of town
~learning about trust through my cats {post to come}
~all friends and family safe
~vehicles & homes intact
~minimal, if any, flood damage in the area
~visiting with friends during the down time of the storm
~yummy meals from my mom and sister over the past couple of days

I have joined The Gratitude Community -- a place to be inspired by others and what God is doing in their lives, a chance to share my own journey of gratitude, and an opportunity to REMEMBER to be grateful in ALL things. So on Mondays, I will add to my list of 1000 gifts of all the graces God has provided in my life. Would you consider joining me? Even if you don't blog, you can join the gratitude community by starting a gratitude journal, mentionning your gifts on Facebook, or sending e-mails to your friends. Let's work together to help in creating a more thankful, joyous world!!

Friday, August 26, 2011

Five Minute Friday: My Exact Age

Yay! It's Five Minute Friday.

One of my favorite times of the week in this little bloggy world.

I love joining up with the other 5 minutes word mavericks each week and seeing how they share their lives through just a ONE word prompt....without a lot of fuss, fanfare, and editing!

So after you check out my prompt, won't you hop on over to Lisa Jo's place and check out the other posts?

AND......

Give LISA-JO some HUGE HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOVE as she celebrates another year of life and love!!
Why?
Cause she is such a FAB, AWESOME woman, host, momma, wife, leader, and writer!!


This week's prompt: OLDER

GO.

I am not one of those people who wants to get older.

But then again, if you have major estrogen running through your veins, who does right?

I took a Real Age test last week, and I came out to my "exact age."

And two weeks ago, I let the guy at the fair guess my age for a stuffed animal because I was "SURE" that I could stump him.

He, too, guessed

MY.
EXACT.
AGE.

And, well, I am going to be honest....my ego took a beating.

I know, I know...it's better than being guessed older, right?

But I don't know...my WHOLE life, people always thought I was younger than what I was.

And as a teenager, I HATED it!

BUT...

as a "grown-up"

I have learned to

appreciate
love
and even
cherish it.

But now due to stressors and physical issues, my body is betraying me.

So what do I do?

I stop for a minute.

In the middle of my lamenting.

I pause.

I ponder.

I think.

My heart.
My mind.
My love.
My grace.
My point of view.

yeah....

That's older too....and maybe....just maybe.....

That makes it worth it.

:)

But that doesn't mean I won't be using that new night cream I heard about the other day.....

;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-)

STOP.




Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Summer Fun :: Farmer's Market

Summer time is full of exciting activities, fun adventures, & yummy treats. So, I want to share a series of posts of MY SUMMER FUN with YOU! I hope you enjoy and will share your summer memories and days with me too!


One of my very favorite parts of living in the rural farming communities
of the East Coast is fresh fruits and veggies.



From local Farmer's Markets



To random veggie stands where you serve as your own cashier
{gotta love the trust, right?}




And the best part is...well...of course....THE TASTE!


Nothing like that FRESH grown taste!!

Do you buy from a farmer's market in the spring & summer?
Does your community have smaller veggies stands where you can
buy & go by just putting your cash in a jar?



Check out the rest of my posts on my summer fun ::


Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Are We There Yet?


"When is this season going to end?"

In nature, about every 3 months or so, the seasons change -- fresh spring, balmy summer, radiant fall, and chilly winter -- unless, of course, you grew up in the Caribbean like I did and it is summer all year long or in the Arctic where...well....you get the idea.
Seasons are a part of life, and sometimes seasons are never-ending and excruciatingly long and other times, they zip by causing you to lament their passing.

So you can imagine what season I am in, right?


"Daddy, are we there yet?"


For the past 2 years, personal heartache, natural diaster, chronic physical pain, difficult interpersonal issues, cross-Atlantic moving, delayed dreams, and an overall sense of "Who-the-heck-am-I?" have dominated this season, and while some things have moved forward and small changes have happened, I have wondered OFTEN how long this interval of life could possibly last!

And yet....
{There always seems to be an "and yet...." with God, right?}

And yet, in these past two years, I have learned SO much that would most likely have been impossible without this season.


I have been REDEEMED by An Amazing Man.

His Grace is my anthem.

The Love of the King holds me up every day.

How I got this place has many layers and many blog posts to truly tell the full story, but somewhere along the way, I learned this....


My Christian walk is less about proving my love for Jesus as much as it is about acknowledging that....


HE.

Loves.

ME.



Amazing!

I attribute a big part of that to podcast teachings by Joseph Prince that I began to listen to.

One, in fact, really stands out to me,

"You are loved by the Beloved. When you walk into a room, no matter what others think or say, it doesn't matter, because you can say and remind yourself, 'The beloved of Christ has just walked into the door......and that's me!'"

It's funny because when you change your thinking {which I have to CONSTANTLY do, by the way}, it transforms how you see the world. Suddenly what others think or say doesn't REALLY matter because the Creator of the universe who just so happens to know me by name and be acquainted with ALL of my ways....LOVES ME!

So yeah, like I said, I have to remind myself ALL-THE-TIME to walk in this assured confidence, to stop repetitively proving myself, to yield daily my trust in Him and His perfect plan and His unwavering love NO-MATTER-WHAT, even when all I want to say is....


"When is this season going to end?"




Joining with Heart to Heart with Holley with
"In God's Heart I Am....Loved"

and


and

Mama’s Losin’ It

Monday, August 22, 2011

Summer Fun :: The State Fair

Summer time is full of exciting activities, fun adventures, & yummy treats. So, I want to share a series of posts of MY SUMMER FUN with YOU! I hope you enjoy and will share your summer memories and days with me too!


Summer in my neck of the woods just would seem
QUITE complete with going to the state fair.


With all of my travels and living overseas most of my life, I haven't ever really had a lot of time to be invested in the fare that fairs provide, but being from rural farmlands, it reminds me of HOME....well, at least one of my homes, and I just kind love it!

Tractors!


Prize Farm Animals!



Mechanical Bull Rides!




Carnival Games!



And of course.....the FOOD!!





{I forgot to take the pic of our funnel cake & stand so I borrowed one from here and here.}

But the best part is sharing all of this with the one you love!!


Have you gone to a local fair or carnival this summer? What was YOUR favorite part?



Check out the rest of my posts on my summer fun ::


Friday, August 19, 2011

Five Minute Friday: The World Anew

It's Friday. Time to share my 5 minutes with the world. Time to just write without analysis and holding back. I just love this time of the week!

Join me on the ride, won't you??

Topic: NEW


GO.

Today I helped plan a wedding of one of my girls who has been like a spiritual "niece" for years. Her spiritual "mom" is my best friend. So today we spent the whole day shopping, planning, crafting preparing for her big day just 6 week away.

We jumped in and out of cars. We ran to the car through rainstorms. We laughed until are sides ached. We got elbow deep in Elmer's glue.

Why? A labor of love....to the girl whom we have loved so long.

Why? Because she is starting something....NEW!

And while we have been there when she graduated high school and college and fell in love, now we want to be a part of that special day where she says, "I DO" to THE ONE who holds her heart now forever and ever.

Sharing in the newness with one you love so much excites and thrills like no other....knowing that you get to see them transform into the next season, well, it's hard to put into words.

Tonight, it makes ME look at the world anew, with fresh eyes of faith, love, & grace. And really, doesn't everything seem possible through the eyes of love....

"Behold He makes all things new...."

......even me! ;-)

STOP.

If you would like to share your 5 minutes, won't you let me know and hop on over to Lisa-Jo's place at The Gypsy Mama and join up with us word mavericks??



Thursday, August 18, 2011

Sometimes Faith....

Sometimes faith looks big like praying for blinded eyes to be opened and seeing it REALLY happen.

Sometimes faith looks small like quiet prayers whispered in recessed moments of the day.

Sometimes faith comes easy like "Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so."

Sometimes faith is hard-won like hanging onto Jesus with every fiber of your being because you know there is no more slack left on your rope.

Sometimes faith is exciting like dancing, worshipping, praising with all of your heart.

Sometimes faith breaks your heart like walking through the valley of the shadow of death.

Sometimes faith catches you unaware and you know that you know that you know that somehow everything WILL be alright.

Sometimes faith is elusive, slipping through your fingers, making you wonder if you can ever trust or hope again.

Sometimes faith is simple like floating on an inner tube down a lazy river.

Sometimes faith is challenging like a climbing that mountain that you have feared for so long.

Sometimes faith is your enemy where you find yourself fighting tooth and nail.

Sometimes faith is a faithful friend, wounding, challenging, encouraging, loving.

Faith and I have a love/hate relationship, and yet like all GREAT relationships, we haven't given up on each other. The longer I know her, the more I realize how much I still have left to learn about who she is and how she wants to impact my life.

So the journey continues, and no matter what day it is and what may/may not be the reality on that day, I am confident in this, with faith as my partner, I will not only survive, but overcome.




FaithBaristaLLogo2

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Summer Fun :: Old Friends

Summer time is full of exciting activities, fun adventures, & yummy treats. So, I want to share a series of posts of MY SUMMER FUN with YOU! I hope you enjoy and will share your summer memories and days with me too!


One of my favorite parts of summer comes in packages of all shapes and sizes, with various names & backgrounds, hearts, & personalities.

What might that be you may ask??

FRIENDS!!

This summer, I have been blessed to not only spend time
with 1 of my old college pals


...not merely 2...


...but 3!!


Catching up with their dreams & accomplishments, their heartaches & sorrows; reminiscing about old memories and making new ones to carry in our hearts until we see each other again; meeting and/or learning about their special someone and their littles -- there is just NOTHING like it!!


I wrote a post about this after the first visit, but I realized that it is SUCH a cherished part of my summer that I want to share it here in my summer fun.

Have you been able to catch up with old friends or far away family this summer?
Who and what was your favorite part?


Check out the rest of my posts on my summer fun ::



Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Summer Fun :: Fun in the Sun

Summer time is full of exciting activities, fun adventures, & yummy treats. So, I want to share a series of posts of MY SUMMER FUN with YOU! I hope you enjoy and will share your summer memories and days with me too!


Whether it is pool side or beach bumming, summer just isn't summer without a cool dip in some type of refreshing water.


Salty air. Breaking waves. Sandy beaches.


Cool water. Chlorine-scented bathing suits. Warm sunshine on your skin.


The Best Part = playing with family and friends!!!


Gotta love summer fun!


Check out more of my summer fun activities ::





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