Lion and Lambs

I made it!! Of course we secluded ourselves from the others for the most part, but in our group of around fifteen NO ONE felt it necessary to bathe in perfume before heading to the forest. Woo Hoo!

We arrived around three and started a fire immediately as it was quite a bit chillier up there. Then we plopped down around it and with the exception of making and eating our foil dinners, banana boats, and s’mores, we didn’t do move. Fire, food, and fellowship; What more can a person ask for?

Okay, perhaps a warmer sleeping bag, and a cabin with a bathroom. Several of us woke throughout the night freezing, and running through the cold forest was not an option on my agenda! I thought of my sister the whole time, and how she would have detested the experience. She is one of the few odd ones that LOVES the heat, the hotter the better, I think she would have kept that fire going all night and would have sat in arms distance!

My friends daughter wanted me to go hiking with her, so we asked about some of the hikes near by. The first one she wanted to do was two hours each direction, I laughed. Not a chance. So it was suggested that we go to the Deep Pools, only forty five minutes each way. Cool. So we set out with enough snacks and water for a hike of that length. Well apparently the person who informed us hadn’t been on that hike in quite awhile. After hiking in for one and a half hours, we decided that our food and water (not to mention my legs) were not gonna make it. So we snacked by the creek and turned around.

All in all the hike and the weekend were very beautiful, and I love water, so the running creek was an added bonus, but my calves and feet are still hollering at me! And I am very thankful to have made it through without a migraine!

My mom thinks I’m nuts. I’ve been called worse. Last weekend I attempted to attend our church’s women’s retreat, which I quickly discovered was a code name for perfume convention. We went to a beautiful hotel up north. The fresh smell of the pines and the snow on the mountain were both gorgeous parts of God’s creation.

God didn’t create perfume however, at least not the modern “I need to marinate in it” kind, yet it was far more abundant than one would hope. This one anyway. Even the hallways of the hotel reaked with hairsprays and perfumes. (390 women in one hotel!!) Yet even with this knowledge I felt a “fragrance free” table would be enough protection for me. See, perfume and I do not get along real well, that whole passing out thing tends to unnerve people.

So opening night, opening session, I sit at my table, amazed at how strong the scents are around me. I made a gallant effort. I even got up twice to go breathe fresh air. Losing all hope of survival, I finally left what was an excellent lecture on “The empty-ness of works.” I waited too long. I found myself stumbling, and collapsing in the parking lot, trying to mumble through slurred speech, to staff to please NOT call the paramedics.

I left a couple of hours later to return home having lost all hope that the next days sessions would be any better. What followed was THE worst headache ever which also happened to last three days.

So tomorrow I am climbing back on the horse and heading up north with 400 women from my friend’s church. I am being assured that since this one is in cabins, more like camping, these women won’t be wearing perfume. I don’t know, I am still skeptible. Another difference that makes me nervous is that only one woman, my friend, has familiarity with my problem. Fortunately for me, she may be the strongest spirited one going. She will protect me…

I hope.

I am a facilitator for a national support group ministry, GriefShare, that our church offers . I may have mentioned it before.

A few weeks ago two men joined our group who each lost a young son to cancer, one at 8 after a four year battle, and the other at 11 with one years fight. Prior to their losses each had two children, one had a boy and a girl, the other two boys. I have two boys, just about the same ages as another family who lost their oldest at 16.

Tonight each of the dads brought in the video that they showed at their son’s memorial services. They were filled with pictures of the boys from birth to going home to the LORD. They were beautiful. The pictures made us laugh, and they made us cry. They made me wonder. Why was I allowed to raise my boys to adulthood (almost for one)? In my thankfulness I understand that it so easily could have been me sharing memories. Many of the pictures were similar to ones I have of my own boys; cuddling a newborn, a chocolate face from the first birthday, goofy grins, outings with the family, etc. They were SO beautiful, so heart stirring.

Tonight I came home and loved on my teenager, who often thinks I’m a dork. Tonight that’s okay. Tonight I called my adult son to tell him I loved him and thought he was an extraordinary person. He wanted to know what he had done special. “Nothing, just want to be sure you know how much you are cherished.” Sometimes he thinks I am losing it too, you see, he is not a parent yet.

I know that my children belong to the LORD. I know that at any moment He can call them home. I know it will rip my heart out of my chest if it happens. I know because I am reminded every week as I watch parents grieve. Other parents need to know, parents who aren’t often reminded how fragile life is.

Tonight we talked about how we need to live every day as if it is our last. That is the strange gift death brings us. Celebrate in the moment, don’t wait for when you have more time. Laugh more, and be silly. Never miss a chance to tell someone that you love them and that they are important to you. The hardest thing we deal with is regrets. Unfortunately for us, it took the death of someone we loved to teach us to appreciate what we have, to not only value people, but to let them know we do. Celebrate life! Celebrate people!

I will leave you with one of my favorite poems that I memorized when my boys were quite young. It’s about babies but can be applied across the board. I often share it with friends who get hung up in the day to day chores of life.

Cleaning and dusting can wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up we’ve learned to our sorrow;
So quiet down cobwebs, and dust go to sleep,
For I’m rocking my baby, and babies don’t keep.

I have the PC Study Bible on my computer and it has a daily devotional. This short poem, which carries immense meaning, was in last night’s writing. Unfortunately there was no author for me to credit.

“My numerous sins transferr’d to Him,
Shall never more be found,
Lost in His blood’s atoning stream,
Where every crime is drown’d!”

Our sins drowning in His blood…What a great word picture!

They say those are the only two things that are inevitable in this life. Well, since I’m not dead, I pushed the button and sent away the taxes at 12:43am last night. Whew…finally!! I haven’t filed this late in years and years.

Regarding death…I heard a great quote tonight in our GriefShare group.

When a lady, who was dying from cancer, was asked how she felt about dying, her reply was classic:

We are all terminal, it is just that some of us are aware of it.

Proverbs 7, verses 1-3

“Follow My advice, My son; always treasure My commands. 2 Obey them and live! Guard My teachings as your most precious possession. 3 Tie them on your fingers as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart.

Everyone has their beast to battle … I just wish I could find the right sword. It makes me think about and appreciate how much my big sister must have suffered before she was finally healed and Home Free.

Rest in peace my friend as you rejoice with the angels, praising our God!

One of my favorite blogs to read is Sand in the Gears written by Tony Woodlief. He posted today about boys and it is as funny and entertaining as any. Here is the opening:

The very first order given to us by the Almighty was: Don’t touch. Are you listening to me? Hands to yourselves. Don’t. Touch. Very, very bad things will happen if you touch that tree. See here, I’ve given you all these other trees, covered with yummy fruit. Mmmmm. Go enjoy the garden. Ride an elephant. Build a tree fort. Discover Velcro. Just don’t touch that one tree.

So, being human, Adam and Eve touched it. As punishment, God gave them boys to raise.

For the rest of the article, see Don’t Touch.

As a parent of boys, now teenagers, thanks Tony for keeping us smiling!