The past few days for me have been dark and difficult. I have felt suffocated by the past, and far from God. The migraine contributed to my inability to think clearly, but no doubt a few packed days during Christmas contributed to my being overwhelmed.
It is harder for me than most people to decompress, especially through this time in my life of healing, bringing darkness into light, and being renewed. There is so much on my mind being brought to the surface in an effort to purge. The enemy always finds ways to attempt to thwart any milestones.
As restful and still as Advent has been, this past week has clouded my ability to hear from the Holy Spirit. As much as I know I am being grown, I creep back to the lie that nothing has changed at all. This is a dark place where I cling to the truth that I cannot "...lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day" (2 Corinthians 4:16).
About an hour ago, in the depth of my doldrums, my friend Tricia called. We have seen countless times of joy and tears together, but recently distance and our schedules keep us from seeing each other. Months, even half a year, might go by before we see each others' faces. Still, she is there, faithful to the end.
God knew I needed to hear her voice over the phone and dig down deep. She has faced her own sanctification and is able to relate and share similarities and differences. Tricia engaged me today with no questioning, no telling me to see someone else's point of view, but simply listening and encouraging. She could tell that the Lord gives me enough direction, which freed her up to just be there.
Thank You, Lord, for an old friend when I needed her. I am refreshed and more settled from having spoken to one who can take my mess and not try to be the fixer. In his wisdom, Solomon stated that "Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion" (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10). There is no substitute for the sovereign wisdom and direction of Christ, but it also feels good to have advocates with skin on.
Let Us Stand Firm in Truth
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Monday, December 28, 2015
Migraine Postdrome
I never had migraines until adulthood. About five years ago, my doctor had me go for an MRI because of them, and we paid way too much to hear, "Yep, you're having migraines." In doing a little research, though, that reaction does seem to be the consensus; no one knows what causes migraines!
I decided to read up on mine in particular because they seem atypical. Only twenty percent of sufferers experience the aura, or spots, at the onset of a migraine. To me, it starts as if I've just had my photo taken with a flash and can still see the green glowing remnant. I know it's a migraine because that green dot won't go away, and within minutes I can see only half of the face of a person in front of me.
If I can quickly grab some Tylenol or Advil and a strong cup of coffee, the aura disappears after about fifteen minutes. At this point, most sufferers would describe intense pain. My migraines involve almost no pain at all, but something known in the medical world as the "postdrome." Instead of the searing headache most people experience, I feel wiped out, as if I had the flu. It's as if I've been hit with a wave of intense fatigue, one that lasts for hours, during which I can barely keep my eyes open. I feel cotton-headed, unable to focus. My limbs grow weak, and I can barely move. My thoughts are jumbled and irrational.
Yesterday around 4pm I was hit with the tiniest aura, and in less than five minutes, the lady standing in front of me looked like she had only half a face! I was quick with the ibuprofen and coffee, then all I could do was lie on the sofa with my eyes closed. The light doesn't bother me as it does most migraine sufferers; some even experience vomiting. By about 6pm, I had entered into the postdrome, and my only option was to lie sideways on my bed.
This morning, after being so bone-tired I slept all night, I was still mentally worn out. I couldn't read anything, not because it hurt, but because I just couldn't focus. I scraped by almost half the day in a mental fog, with a dull headache and unable to fully concentrate on anything without feeling like I'd run a marathon. I recalled waking in a fog during the night, desiring to turn over, but taking probably twenty or more minutes to work up the energy!
Is this part of a migraine, I wondered? When I went for the MRI, my migraines were more textbook: aura, intense pain, light sensitivity. I admit that if I have to suffer from them, I'll take the extreme fatigue over the blinding pain! But I couldn't help but wonder about this exhaustion that has begun accompanying my migraines.
Here is a succinct article from Scicurious entitled "The Postdrome: Migraine's Silent Sister." (Click on title). It has shed light on my symptoms and further shows that migraines can look very different depending on the individual. I invite any readers to share your experiences with migraines.
I decided to read up on mine in particular because they seem atypical. Only twenty percent of sufferers experience the aura, or spots, at the onset of a migraine. To me, it starts as if I've just had my photo taken with a flash and can still see the green glowing remnant. I know it's a migraine because that green dot won't go away, and within minutes I can see only half of the face of a person in front of me.
If I can quickly grab some Tylenol or Advil and a strong cup of coffee, the aura disappears after about fifteen minutes. At this point, most sufferers would describe intense pain. My migraines involve almost no pain at all, but something known in the medical world as the "postdrome." Instead of the searing headache most people experience, I feel wiped out, as if I had the flu. It's as if I've been hit with a wave of intense fatigue, one that lasts for hours, during which I can barely keep my eyes open. I feel cotton-headed, unable to focus. My limbs grow weak, and I can barely move. My thoughts are jumbled and irrational.
Yesterday around 4pm I was hit with the tiniest aura, and in less than five minutes, the lady standing in front of me looked like she had only half a face! I was quick with the ibuprofen and coffee, then all I could do was lie on the sofa with my eyes closed. The light doesn't bother me as it does most migraine sufferers; some even experience vomiting. By about 6pm, I had entered into the postdrome, and my only option was to lie sideways on my bed.
This morning, after being so bone-tired I slept all night, I was still mentally worn out. I couldn't read anything, not because it hurt, but because I just couldn't focus. I scraped by almost half the day in a mental fog, with a dull headache and unable to fully concentrate on anything without feeling like I'd run a marathon. I recalled waking in a fog during the night, desiring to turn over, but taking probably twenty or more minutes to work up the energy!
Is this part of a migraine, I wondered? When I went for the MRI, my migraines were more textbook: aura, intense pain, light sensitivity. I admit that if I have to suffer from them, I'll take the extreme fatigue over the blinding pain! But I couldn't help but wonder about this exhaustion that has begun accompanying my migraines.
Here is a succinct article from Scicurious entitled "The Postdrome: Migraine's Silent Sister." (Click on title). It has shed light on my symptoms and further shows that migraines can look very different depending on the individual. I invite any readers to share your experiences with migraines.
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
Molly's Gifts
My seven-year-old decided that she wanted to take money out of her piggy bank and buy gifts for family members. It started in Aldi when she saw a pillow and said it looked like something good for Nana. I was touched by her innocence in having no idea how much the item cost, nor caring. I'm too cheap to buy a fuzzy decorative pillow for $15!
She proceeded to name other things she would buy for the family if she had her money. "Pop needs those tools," she decided. Again, my eyes went straight to the tag: $19.99! Not that others aren't worthy, but all I could think of was my little girl giving up her own money when she didn't have to. My mind was on selfishness and protecting her, while Molly's was on selflessness.
Today we went out again, and she made her purchases. I couldn't believe how deliberate such a youngster could be about looking over everything, and making such careful decisions. She selected several purchases, paid out of her pink wallet, and proudly carried the plastic bag on the ride home. She even noted aloud that the amount that she had spent "wasn't that much." Color me convicted.
Molly took it upon herself to wrap her gifts, tie the bows, and even write the names on the tags. I watched and silently thanked God. A short while later, after all was finished and placed under the tree, the Spirit gave me a greater nudge: I can learn a lesson from this little one.
"Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven," Jesus said in Matthew 19:14. Here my daughter was content to share what she had, and I had tried to talk her out of it. Gulp. This is what my broken and contrite heart looks like in real life: seeing my stinginess for what it is, and worse, that I don't always give joyfully this time of year, but more as a "have to."
Christ said that children show us His kingdom, and as usual, He was right. The Lord loves a cheerful giver, and I pray to become more of one. Not only can I be frugal with my resources, but I often am with my time as well, finding it hard to devote all of myself to someone in need at a particular moment. I tend to get overwhelmed easily, and this is a matter of daily prayer.
She proceeded to name other things she would buy for the family if she had her money. "Pop needs those tools," she decided. Again, my eyes went straight to the tag: $19.99! Not that others aren't worthy, but all I could think of was my little girl giving up her own money when she didn't have to. My mind was on selfishness and protecting her, while Molly's was on selflessness.
Today we went out again, and she made her purchases. I couldn't believe how deliberate such a youngster could be about looking over everything, and making such careful decisions. She selected several purchases, paid out of her pink wallet, and proudly carried the plastic bag on the ride home. She even noted aloud that the amount that she had spent "wasn't that much." Color me convicted.
Molly took it upon herself to wrap her gifts, tie the bows, and even write the names on the tags. I watched and silently thanked God. A short while later, after all was finished and placed under the tree, the Spirit gave me a greater nudge: I can learn a lesson from this little one.
"Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven," Jesus said in Matthew 19:14. Here my daughter was content to share what she had, and I had tried to talk her out of it. Gulp. This is what my broken and contrite heart looks like in real life: seeing my stinginess for what it is, and worse, that I don't always give joyfully this time of year, but more as a "have to."
 |
| Molly's gifts |
Another truth that God lovingly put before me through my little one is that we must allow people to be a blessing to us, and use the gifts He has given us to bless others. If Molly seeks to minister to family members and show her love through giving gifts, then woe to me if I should try to stop her! The "Protector" in me feared that others might not appreciate the gifts, but that's the devil talking. As her mother, my role in this is to give guidance about proper items to purchase, as well as reasonable amounts to spend. Other than that, I'm ecstatic that the Lord prompted me to back off.
We have a group that gathers at our home every Wednesday evening for Bible study and a meal. One of our faithful attendees, Burney, roasts his own coffee. Every week, he loyally brings his supplies and provides us with steaming cups of home-roasted and freshly brewed coffee. If Burney can't make it one week, not only do we miss his presence, but his ministry of loving us through coffee. None of us would dream of taking Burney's ministry to us away from him; plus, we delight in the coffee!
The Lord is showing me that for Molly, this situation is similar. She had joy in selecting and purchasing those gifts on her own, in addition to making them look nice with the paper. Her childlike eyes saw past what she was giving up to what others were receiving, and the Lord put the sensation of satisfaction in her. Thank You, thank You, my Father, for teaching me more about your majesty through a little child!
Not only that...this same Father gave us the gift of His own Son, knowing that many of us wouldn't appreciate it, either. It was the heftiest price tag in history, but He did it for me. He understands about giving gifts, since he gave the greatest One; because of this, I know He sees Molly and delights in her gift-giving. I also know He sees my shortcomings and reminds me I'm not hopeless; the blood of His Gift washed my sins, and enables me to repent.
Thank You, Lord, for this real-life lesson in "sorrowful, yet rejoicing." That's how I feel at this moment. Sometimes I think self-awareness and sanctification are going to kill me. May I never forget the feeling, yet may You enable my heart to bear it. "God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7). May You transform my heart so I can fit that description.
Sunday, December 20, 2015
Yearning
This morning I've spent some time reflecting on this yearning that is such a part of my earthly journey, and of which I so often write. I talk about it a lot because as long as I live, it will never go away!
I considered Paul's words in Romans 7:18:
"...to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find."
What a fine wording of the broken and contrite spirit that David describes in Psalm 51! I, too, feel the pain of the desire for good, yet the sinfulness within me. Oh, how we need Christ, and how grateful I am for the counsel and help of the Holy Spirit!
As I studied this morning's selections in The Cloud of Witness, I came across part of a poem by Adelaide Anne Procter (1825-64) entitled "My God, I Thank Thee Who Hast Made." It beautifully spoke to the idea of "sorrowful, yet rejoicing," that I decided to search for the work in its entirety. The last two stanzas, not published in The Cloud, capture my yearning adequately:
"I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou hast kept
The best in store;
I have enough, yet not too much
To long for more;
A yearning for a deeper peace
Not known before.
I thank Thee, Lord, that here our souls,
Though amply blest,
Can never find, although they seek,
A perfect rest--
Nor ever shall, until they lean
On Jesus' breast!"
May we not cower in the face of earthly longing, but boldly hold the hand of the One Who lovingly takes us through it, refining us. It is scary and magnificent to know Him and be known.
I considered Paul's words in Romans 7:18:
"...to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find."
What a fine wording of the broken and contrite spirit that David describes in Psalm 51! I, too, feel the pain of the desire for good, yet the sinfulness within me. Oh, how we need Christ, and how grateful I am for the counsel and help of the Holy Spirit!
As I studied this morning's selections in The Cloud of Witness, I came across part of a poem by Adelaide Anne Procter (1825-64) entitled "My God, I Thank Thee Who Hast Made." It beautifully spoke to the idea of "sorrowful, yet rejoicing," that I decided to search for the work in its entirety. The last two stanzas, not published in The Cloud, capture my yearning adequately:
"I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou hast kept
The best in store;
I have enough, yet not too much
To long for more;
A yearning for a deeper peace
Not known before.
I thank Thee, Lord, that here our souls,
Though amply blest,
Can never find, although they seek,
A perfect rest--
Nor ever shall, until they lean
On Jesus' breast!"
May we not cower in the face of earthly longing, but boldly hold the hand of the One Who lovingly takes us through it, refining us. It is scary and magnificent to know Him and be known.
Friday, December 18, 2015
Article on When to Announce Pregnancy
Rarely do I write twice in one day...in one sitting!
I saw this beautiful article on Desiring God, and just had to share it. You see, I've been in the situation that Jasmine Holmes describes. Social media sure has made announcements interesting and also challenging.
Miscarriage and loss are something I know firsthand. In the future, I will write more on the topic. For now, be encouraged and enlightened by "There is No Shame in Loss."
I saw this beautiful article on Desiring God, and just had to share it. You see, I've been in the situation that Jasmine Holmes describes. Social media sure has made announcements interesting and also challenging.
Miscarriage and loss are something I know firsthand. In the future, I will write more on the topic. For now, be encouraged and enlightened by "There is No Shame in Loss."
A Broken and Contrite Heart
As we approach Christmas and the year's end, I inevitably feel the longing for brokenness to be fixed. It's always there, as it should be when we follow Christ, but it seems more pronounced this time of year. I can relate to the part of the song "Grown-Up Christmas List" that says, "Everyone would have a friend, and right would always win." There is a right way, and things go better for us when it wins.
That's just it...however God chooses to run things, however, as bleak as life can seem, we can be assured that right will win. My ways aren't His, and there's rejoicing in that! The hard part is that we have to deal with our trials now, and they can be harrowing. I'm figuring out that these are allowed so that we may press into Christ. As a parent, I, too, allow my children to see the hard side of life in order to help them grow.
Lately, the Holy Spirit has given me eyes to see something: the wickedness of my condition. We are born sinful, and although we still sin after Christ reveals Himself to us, He sees us as flawless. However, one other thing happens: the stuff inside my heart and mind that used to seem "okay" now seems really ugly. I'm learning the difference between the Holy Spirit's gentle, loving nudge about my sin, and the enemy's accusations. Lies and condemnation come from the Father of Lies, never from God. The Holy Spirit points out our sin lovingly, as we would do for our own children, calling us to repent and seek His help in rejecting what goes against God's way.
I feel the need to clarify all of that because often we hear all about our depravity, and yes, it's definitely our state (otherwise we wouldn't need Christ), but I really need to get that the Lord now counts me as righteous. However, I am thankful that my sin repulses me. My problem is that I tend to harp more on the nastiness of my sin, and less on the wonder of being washed in Christ's blood. Because of that, I can call on the Spirit who is inside of me, and move on in confidence!
Yesterday I was feeling the weight of my sin. Matthew talks about our heart being reflected by our speech (12:34). This wrecked me personally, plus the fact that even if hurtful words don't overflow, my heart still feels some horrible things toward people. I turned to David's words in Psalm 51, composed after he slept with Bathsheba, got her pregnant, and killed her husband. He says,
"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart" (v. 17).
I love this. I can't stand this! The God of the universe works in ways that rip my heart out, yet make it new! His ways are beyond my comprehension. When they make no sense and hurt desperately, then I'm sure they are part of His refinement. The juxtapositions shake the world; the counterculture manner in which He operates makes me want to jump and shout, yet also fall in a heap at His feet, in awe of His glory and unpredictability.
Last night, as I felt the weight of my sin, all I could do was thank Him for my broken spirit and contrite heart. "Lord, may I always be so broken over my sin," I cried. It occurred to me, by the way, that the said "sin" is something we all do every day: getting frustrated with those we love, biting at them with sharpness in our words. Most people would say it wasn't that bad. Fully aware of this, I praised God that the "little" things weigh on me as much as the "big;" sins are not ranked in God's eyes, after all.
I see this with fresh eyes on a new morning. Forgiveness happens, lessons are learned, sanctification occurs. That I may not grow complacent and forget! I quote John Piper a lot, and he has a whole sermon on this topic, entitled "A Broken and Contrite Heart God Will Not Despise." In the final part, Piper says:
"Please don't make the mistake of thinking that you ever get beyond broken and contrite spirit in this life...Avoid thinking that if you have a broken and contrite spirit, then you're going to be an unhappy person. That's the devil talking."
He explains that our sin should always be before us, not to condemn us, but we should be constantly aware of the weight of it, and our desire for God's help in overcoming specific issues. We do not "get past" being broken and contrite, because we sin every day. This whole idea to me is so rich, so deep, and requires constant prayer and relying on Christ. Piper calls is "sorrowful, yet always rejoicing." How's that for a juxtaposition? Will you join me in being brave enough to pray that God's people will take on such a life?
On Another Note...
A huge "Happy Birthday!" to my fast-growing, tender-hearted, tennis-playing, nine-year-old girl today! It has been a joy to watch you grow from a whopping almost-ten-pound newborn into a gentle, considerate, servant of the Lord. I learn much from observing your even, seldom-rattled disposition, and continue to pray that God will work out your salvation, growing you in your prayers, reading of the Word, and desire to know Him and be known. You are one Good Egg, and Mama loves you more than I can say.
That's just it...however God chooses to run things, however, as bleak as life can seem, we can be assured that right will win. My ways aren't His, and there's rejoicing in that! The hard part is that we have to deal with our trials now, and they can be harrowing. I'm figuring out that these are allowed so that we may press into Christ. As a parent, I, too, allow my children to see the hard side of life in order to help them grow.
Lately, the Holy Spirit has given me eyes to see something: the wickedness of my condition. We are born sinful, and although we still sin after Christ reveals Himself to us, He sees us as flawless. However, one other thing happens: the stuff inside my heart and mind that used to seem "okay" now seems really ugly. I'm learning the difference between the Holy Spirit's gentle, loving nudge about my sin, and the enemy's accusations. Lies and condemnation come from the Father of Lies, never from God. The Holy Spirit points out our sin lovingly, as we would do for our own children, calling us to repent and seek His help in rejecting what goes against God's way.
I feel the need to clarify all of that because often we hear all about our depravity, and yes, it's definitely our state (otherwise we wouldn't need Christ), but I really need to get that the Lord now counts me as righteous. However, I am thankful that my sin repulses me. My problem is that I tend to harp more on the nastiness of my sin, and less on the wonder of being washed in Christ's blood. Because of that, I can call on the Spirit who is inside of me, and move on in confidence!
Yesterday I was feeling the weight of my sin. Matthew talks about our heart being reflected by our speech (12:34). This wrecked me personally, plus the fact that even if hurtful words don't overflow, my heart still feels some horrible things toward people. I turned to David's words in Psalm 51, composed after he slept with Bathsheba, got her pregnant, and killed her husband. He says,
"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart" (v. 17).
I love this. I can't stand this! The God of the universe works in ways that rip my heart out, yet make it new! His ways are beyond my comprehension. When they make no sense and hurt desperately, then I'm sure they are part of His refinement. The juxtapositions shake the world; the counterculture manner in which He operates makes me want to jump and shout, yet also fall in a heap at His feet, in awe of His glory and unpredictability.
Last night, as I felt the weight of my sin, all I could do was thank Him for my broken spirit and contrite heart. "Lord, may I always be so broken over my sin," I cried. It occurred to me, by the way, that the said "sin" is something we all do every day: getting frustrated with those we love, biting at them with sharpness in our words. Most people would say it wasn't that bad. Fully aware of this, I praised God that the "little" things weigh on me as much as the "big;" sins are not ranked in God's eyes, after all.
I see this with fresh eyes on a new morning. Forgiveness happens, lessons are learned, sanctification occurs. That I may not grow complacent and forget! I quote John Piper a lot, and he has a whole sermon on this topic, entitled "A Broken and Contrite Heart God Will Not Despise." In the final part, Piper says:
"Please don't make the mistake of thinking that you ever get beyond broken and contrite spirit in this life...Avoid thinking that if you have a broken and contrite spirit, then you're going to be an unhappy person. That's the devil talking."
He explains that our sin should always be before us, not to condemn us, but we should be constantly aware of the weight of it, and our desire for God's help in overcoming specific issues. We do not "get past" being broken and contrite, because we sin every day. This whole idea to me is so rich, so deep, and requires constant prayer and relying on Christ. Piper calls is "sorrowful, yet always rejoicing." How's that for a juxtaposition? Will you join me in being brave enough to pray that God's people will take on such a life?
On Another Note...
A huge "Happy Birthday!" to my fast-growing, tender-hearted, tennis-playing, nine-year-old girl today! It has been a joy to watch you grow from a whopping almost-ten-pound newborn into a gentle, considerate, servant of the Lord. I learn much from observing your even, seldom-rattled disposition, and continue to pray that God will work out your salvation, growing you in your prayers, reading of the Word, and desire to know Him and be known. You are one Good Egg, and Mama loves you more than I can say.
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Right Judgment & Beulah Land
In my last post, I mentioned my anger about situations I can't change. This has been on my mind the past few days, especially how desperately I desire grace for others. James 4:6 states, "But He gives more grace." How I long for this, to see people not by their sins, but as image-bearers loved by God, washed clean when they trust in His Son.
We are a "doing" society, but spiritual growth is about waiting, anticipating, and trusting, like Advent. The desire is there, but I'm powerless to snap my fingers and make something happen. God's way involves time, lots of it, and slow, painful change. This morning, I read further in James:
"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded." (4:8, my italics)
Cleansing my hands and purifying my heart from the past are a part of the sanctifying mind-renewal currently happening in my life. It's not an overnight transformation, but James reminds me that it does eventually happen. I keep asking, and God keeps working beyond my comprehension. There is comfort in the fact that He does it, and I don't need to understand. I needed the reminder that I am, indeed, double-minded. My friend Christina says that a pastor-friend of hers calls it, "dancing with the old skeletons in your closet." James takes it a step further: "He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways" (1:8). The solution? Back to the verse in pink: be desperate and cry out to God to cleanse me and purify my heart.
As the Lord would have it, a new Advent theme starts today for this week in The Cloud of Witness: Right Judgment. There is this lovely prayer for the week:
"Grant us by Thy Holy Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in His holy comfort." (page 19)
We ask, and He puts the right ideas before us, whether through Scripture, readings, sermons, or an apt word from others. Here is a stanza from a poem called "Compensation" by Frances Ridley Havergal, which is a selection from my Cloud reading today:
"How shall we judge their present, we who have never seen
That which is past for ever, and that which might have been?
Measuring by ourselves, unwise indeed are we!
Measuring what we know by what we can hardly see."
My prayer today is that I would trust Christ to do the measuring of all things. His barometer is accurate; mine is flawed. That He would cleanse my hands and purify my heart, enabling me to rest in His perfect judgment of myself and others!
On another note....
Today is the fourth anniversary of my husband's dear Granny Beulah leaving this world for Heaven. She was an integral part of my salvation, used by God directly to give me understanding of the Gospel through her country church in Greenville, SC. In 2003, she had moved up to the mountains, and we enjoyed many days of laughter, crying, and simple living together.
Granny Beulah was born in the mountains of Cocke County, Tennessee, in May of 1926. She had two sons, one being my father-in-law, the other killed on Christmas Eve, 1971, by a drunk driver. I noted that God saw fit to usher her into His presence and reunite her with her beloved son, Harold, exactly almost forty years after his death.
Memories of Granny Beulah include boiled cabbage and turnip greens, stories of "Daddy," who was "Doc Fish" (the area vet and people-doctor), a shabby Bible, trips with her church group, games of Skip-Bo, McDonald's fillet o-fish sandwiches and fries, hymns sung high-pitched, tea so sweet it made you thirsty, and hours of game shows ("You ever watch that 'Millionaire'?"). Her house, and later her room at my in-laws,' was vintage and comfortable; not fancy, just inviting. She loved stuffed animals, and could hem or fix a pair of pants perfectly in no time. She had all day to spend doing important things, like loving her family.
We are a "doing" society, but spiritual growth is about waiting, anticipating, and trusting, like Advent. The desire is there, but I'm powerless to snap my fingers and make something happen. God's way involves time, lots of it, and slow, painful change. This morning, I read further in James:
"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded." (4:8, my italics)
Cleansing my hands and purifying my heart from the past are a part of the sanctifying mind-renewal currently happening in my life. It's not an overnight transformation, but James reminds me that it does eventually happen. I keep asking, and God keeps working beyond my comprehension. There is comfort in the fact that He does it, and I don't need to understand. I needed the reminder that I am, indeed, double-minded. My friend Christina says that a pastor-friend of hers calls it, "dancing with the old skeletons in your closet." James takes it a step further: "He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways" (1:8). The solution? Back to the verse in pink: be desperate and cry out to God to cleanse me and purify my heart.
As the Lord would have it, a new Advent theme starts today for this week in The Cloud of Witness: Right Judgment. There is this lovely prayer for the week:
"Grant us by Thy Holy Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in His holy comfort." (page 19)
We ask, and He puts the right ideas before us, whether through Scripture, readings, sermons, or an apt word from others. Here is a stanza from a poem called "Compensation" by Frances Ridley Havergal, which is a selection from my Cloud reading today:
"How shall we judge their present, we who have never seen
That which is past for ever, and that which might have been?
Measuring by ourselves, unwise indeed are we!
Measuring what we know by what we can hardly see."
My prayer today is that I would trust Christ to do the measuring of all things. His barometer is accurate; mine is flawed. That He would cleanse my hands and purify my heart, enabling me to rest in His perfect judgment of myself and others!
On another note....
Today is the fourth anniversary of my husband's dear Granny Beulah leaving this world for Heaven. She was an integral part of my salvation, used by God directly to give me understanding of the Gospel through her country church in Greenville, SC. In 2003, she had moved up to the mountains, and we enjoyed many days of laughter, crying, and simple living together.
Granny Beulah was born in the mountains of Cocke County, Tennessee, in May of 1926. She had two sons, one being my father-in-law, the other killed on Christmas Eve, 1971, by a drunk driver. I noted that God saw fit to usher her into His presence and reunite her with her beloved son, Harold, exactly almost forty years after his death.
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| Beulah in younger days, 1943 |
Granny, thanks for your love and attention. Those from your generation are fast leaving us, and we will soon know no more like you. What a privilege to have had you as my own grandmother. I delight in knowing that you are in Beulah Land!
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Advent and Yearning
I admit, not only have I never celebrated the Advent season for the time of anticipation and waiting that it is, I have not even really thought much of it. Yes, I have toned down my Christmas-season stress over the past few years, but this is the first time I have experienced Advent. I feel a marked yearning for more than this world has to offer, longing for the coming of Christ, the only One Who will be able to straighten the crooked places.
I decided over the last two or three years to start cutting out things that aren't bad, but that add too much to my life because they take away my focus on the real reason for Christmas. My decorations are minimal, yet fun enough. We love to bake, but feel no pressure. I can't recall the last Christmas party we attended, and I no longer invest my time in stressful pageant-type productions. Before I become dubbed Mrs. Scrooge, let the record show that I have experienced more Jesus and more direction, and less pulling out my hair.
My copy of The Cloud of Witness pointed my heart toward Advent, making me excited about daily centering my thoughts and desires on Christ: why He came, why we need Him, and especially, the constant yearning I have for Him to set our crumbling world straight. How can we be still long enough to ponder our Lord when we're drowning in social gatherings, worried about cookie parties, destroying part of the kitchen to make it seem like the elf did it, or standing in line to have a photo opportunity with Santa? Christian friend, let's reevaluate why we feel the need to keep up with how the world defines Christmas.
Make no mistake, I enjoy a good Christmas movie, savor the lights on our tree, and even admit to being one of the only people who likes Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmastime." But I'm grateful that the Holy Spirit is calling me to be still, to wonder at the One who is "the light of men," through which "all things were made" (John 1:3-4). None of what I post is said out of self-righteousness, but rather from conviction, to "renounce the hidden things...by manifestation of the truth" (2 Corinthians 4:2). I want all believers to know that we don't have to be in bondage to customs that, when it comes down to it, mean squat (as we say in the south).
Having said that, I will confess that, although my heart is being slowly healed, I remain angry. I'm angry that my heart has been shattered in the first place, and about many things that I'm not at liberty to disclose on a public blog. I'm furious that the poor decisions of others have cost me parts of my life. I'm frustrated that forgiveness doesn't come easily, and that instability has been a part of my life for so long. Please join me in prayer for continued renewal in this area, and know that I am an advocate for anyone's healing from brokenness.
I'm learning that it's okay for me to feel this way for a time. Emotion has to be aroused in God's people for the wrongs that plague us as humans. Why are we afraid to admit that we yearn passionately, to the point of tears, for Jesus to return and make all things new? As indignant as I am, this Advent season I know that Christ came for all of this ugliness, and in His time, "all things work together for good to those who love God" (Romans 8:28). I can be real with Him, my Creator, Who knows my heart anyway. Drawing closer to Him during this time of quiet anticipation helps me realize that He, too, yearns to right the wrongs, and that Christ is the only One Who can. The Advent season helps a broken heart to have hope.
"Because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now." Romans 8:21-22
"Even so, come Lord Jesus!" Revelation 22:20
Thursday, December 3, 2015
Allergy-Free Gingerbread
I didn't come into adulthood with traditions from childhood. It has been a welcome revelation that traditions had to start somewhere, and my heart is warmed by ones that my family and I now enjoy.
I am learning that traditions need not be elaborate or costly. Sweet memories are made by an atmosphere of love, warmth, and something familiar. My girls and I have come to treasure the simple tradition of making gingerbread this time of year.
During our baking and decorating, we had a conversation about Christmas being Jesus's birthday. Our culture, I explained, has taken many fun and good things and turned them into the focus of Christmas instead. I clarified that we can take pleasure in baking, however; Christ is the giver of the joy we feel in spending time together adding ingredients, mixing, listening to Christmas tunes in the background, and adorning the baked goods. He is the Creator of all, and we can delight in His presence and the good things He has bestowed on us. We can do everything to His glory, and be glad in the freedom that Emmanuel came to give us.
This recipe came about when my baby was less than a year old and allergic to egg. I wanted to make a gingerbread that she would be able to eat, and somewhere (probably the Internet) I found this. The timing was perfect, as I discovered I was in early pregnancy with my second daughter, and the ginger and spices soothed my queasiness. To this day, I tell this now seven-year-old that she is made of gingerbread!
My older girl grew out of her allergy, but this time of year wouldn't be the same without this recipe. The spicy fragrance and taste have turned into welcome and comforting pleasures on cold, dreary December days.
To make allergy-free gingerbread (not gluten-free), you will need:
I am learning that traditions need not be elaborate or costly. Sweet memories are made by an atmosphere of love, warmth, and something familiar. My girls and I have come to treasure the simple tradition of making gingerbread this time of year.
During our baking and decorating, we had a conversation about Christmas being Jesus's birthday. Our culture, I explained, has taken many fun and good things and turned them into the focus of Christmas instead. I clarified that we can take pleasure in baking, however; Christ is the giver of the joy we feel in spending time together adding ingredients, mixing, listening to Christmas tunes in the background, and adorning the baked goods. He is the Creator of all, and we can delight in His presence and the good things He has bestowed on us. We can do everything to His glory, and be glad in the freedom that Emmanuel came to give us.
This recipe came about when my baby was less than a year old and allergic to egg. I wanted to make a gingerbread that she would be able to eat, and somewhere (probably the Internet) I found this. The timing was perfect, as I discovered I was in early pregnancy with my second daughter, and the ginger and spices soothed my queasiness. To this day, I tell this now seven-year-old that she is made of gingerbread!
My older girl grew out of her allergy, but this time of year wouldn't be the same without this recipe. The spicy fragrance and taste have turned into welcome and comforting pleasures on cold, dreary December days.
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| Decorating gingerbread is an exciting art project! Simply buy white icing, divide it, and drop in green and red food coloring. Sprinkles are an inexpensive and fun addition. |
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup white or brown sugar
1/2 cup molasses
3 and 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
And, this year, we threw in a shake or two of allspice!
Blend butter and sugar with mixer until fluffy. Combine molasses and 5 tbsp. water in a separate bowl. Stir this into the butter mixture. In a separate (big) bowl, sift together the remaining ingredients. Take 1/2 cup at a time of this sifted mixture and sift it again into the butter mixture, stirring as you go, until all of this mixture is well blended into dough.
To cut the dough into cookies, I put an old Christmas tablecloth on the kitchen table, and place cutting boards (one per child) on the table. Shake flour onto the boards, because the dough will be sticky. Go ahead and preheat your oven to 350. Then, it's time for the kids to take charge! They use the rolling pin (or pound the dough down with their fingers), and decide which of the many cutters they want to use. Some will be thin, and others may end up thick and cake-like. It's okay to put the cookies close together on the baking sheet; they will not spread much. Bake about 8 minutes, cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet, then hand them over to the kids. I like to have the finished products rest on cooling racks, where the icing has a chance to dry a little.
My husband is not a fan of frosting, and this recipe produces enough cookies to leave many plain. They are scrumptious with morning coffee, as a pick-me-up between meals, or to cleanse your palate after supper. I hope your family will treasure this lovely gingerbread as much as we do. From our house to yours!
Saturday, November 28, 2015
Self-Awareness and Mind Food
Boy, do I need this reminder. Those of us who trust in Christ are being renewed day by day. Let us be encouraged by it, and not forget this truth.
As I increase in self-awareness, I must be sure to learn and apply what I know about myself without being what Cheri Struble calls "being morbidly introspective." I was reminded about this just today, as I have dealt with my overactive thoughts the past few days. When I get out of my routine, as I have been this Thanksgiving weekend, I find that I am totally "off" mentally. It's kind of like idle hands being the devil's workshop, only for me, darkness seems to envelop my mind when I stray off my usual course.
Last week, I delighted in much mind renewal, soaking up the Lord's presence in the little things, along with enjoying the Charlotte Mason advice of nourishing Mother Culture. This is what I love doing, and it's what I ought to do. With the events of this weekend, I was thrown off, and have not been praying, reading the Word as much, or indulging in personal reading. I haven't been balanced mentally, to say the least!
It hit me this morning that being off my daily routine is no excuse to allow myself to be off course. I still eat and breathe, don't I?! One must expect holidays and days off to occur every now and then, but this doesn't mean that mind and heart food must cease. There's never an excuse for not submerging myself in living ideas and truth. How grateful I am for this insight from the Holy Spirit, and for self-awareness that is healthy!
On that note, I am thrilled to begin this Advent Eve with my first reading from a new treasure, The Cloud of Witness. This precious book packed with Scripture, poetry, and other literary nuggets was the gift that Charlotte Mason would bestow on the graduates of her teacher training institution. After ordering numerous copies from England, Nancy Kelly (a mentor from afar and CM expert extraordinaire) decided to have this gem published in the United States.
On another note, I have to wish my grandmother, the vivacious "Abue," a "Feliz cumpleaños." Born on this day in 1919 in Cuba, she has outlived all but one of her eight siblings, her husband (Papi), and almost all of her friends. Her vigor is an inspiration, and I wish her many more happy birthdays.
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| Abue in her younger years.... |
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| ...and Abue today, moving almost as quickly! |
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Don't Be Anxious
"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." Matthew 6:34
"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
'The Lord is my portion,' says my soul,
'Therefore I hope in Him!'" Lamentations 3:22-24
I draw often from the insight and wisdom of retired pastor John Piper. In the short YouTube clip entitled "Don't Be Anxious," he explains how God apportions what we need only for today. If we look to future tasks in light of today's strength, they will seem impossible. God provides each day what we need to make it through that day's trials, not those of tomorrow.
Piper does not mention this, but I thought of the daily manna that rained down on the wandering Israelites. If they worried about tomorrow's manna and attempted to store it up, it rotted and was rendered useless. God gave them just enough for every day. He does the same for us.
The manna God bestows is sufficient only for today's issues, but there will be a fresh supply tomorrow for those who trust in Christ. How grateful I am for this truth!
"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
'The Lord is my portion,' says my soul,
'Therefore I hope in Him!'" Lamentations 3:22-24
I draw often from the insight and wisdom of retired pastor John Piper. In the short YouTube clip entitled "Don't Be Anxious," he explains how God apportions what we need only for today. If we look to future tasks in light of today's strength, they will seem impossible. God provides each day what we need to make it through that day's trials, not those of tomorrow.
Piper does not mention this, but I thought of the daily manna that rained down on the wandering Israelites. If they worried about tomorrow's manna and attempted to store it up, it rotted and was rendered useless. God gave them just enough for every day. He does the same for us.
The manna God bestows is sufficient only for today's issues, but there will be a fresh supply tomorrow for those who trust in Christ. How grateful I am for this truth!
Sunday, November 22, 2015
Grace to Build Takeaways
The first weekend of this month, I attended a new homeschool retreat in my area, "Grace to Build." This is no ordinary conference, but a gathering of parents who specifically use the Charlotte Mason method in teaching. Every seminar was packed with jargon and precepts well-known to "CM'ers," as we call ourselves. I was well-submerged in CM bliss, and left overflowing. With all the information, there are two particular ideas that I felt led to apply immediately.
One was highlighted by Sonya Shafer, a fellow homeschool mom and authority in the CM community. Any CM'er is familiar with Sonya and her wide array of books, videos, and talks on methods and habit training. I enjoyed a morning in a group in which Sonya was the instructor, and we adults got to be students under the CM method. We covered natural history, arithmetic, ancient history, singing, repetition, writing, and Spanish, all in under three hours.
How refreshing to be the pupil, reading, narrating, and learning a rich variety of living ideas! Surprisingly, after such robust instruction, my brain was not exhausted, but rather invigorated. Sonya had not pounded dry, meaningless facts into our minds, but had exposed us to full-bodied ideas that we consumed eagerly. My takeaway from the exercise was that my own teaching needed to be varied concerning the order in which I presented the subjects. The meaningful instruction was there, but I couldn't wait for Monday so I could change the topics around.
For example, as I wrote in another post, I used to do all the "table" work in one sitting. We covered reading and spelling back to back, and would do our science and history (in which I read aloud) together, too. Sonya pointed out that when we sequence the lessons differently, then the brain's activity is more varied, thus enabling full attention. Now, our order looks more like this: Bible verse, penmanship, history, math, reading/phonics, science, Spanish (oral), poetry. I have noticed more enthusiasm from all of us, and brains that are not as tired.
The other takeaway that stood out for me came from a talk that I attended given by Cheri Struble, mother of nine. She called it "Mothers as Persons," and if anyone is qualified to speak to the idea of mothers acknowledging our own personhood, it is she (I so wanted to say "her," but just can't do it in a post about CM!). This is not about the "me time" so many modern moms complain they never get. It also is not going to Starbucks or shopping alone for an hour. Those things aren't bad, but Cheri's discussion centered on giving ourselves brain food, ideas for our own minds.
As someone who has valiantly been engaged in the battle of the mind, I was all ears. There are no "steps" to this, nor a "how-to." When mothers, especially those who are with children all day, do not respect our own personhood, Cheri says we end up empty, moving along through our tasks like robots, eventually stuck in a pit. We need not be convinced that a "feast of ideas" is essential for our kids, yet are we pursuing this for ourselves? Our minds thrive on meaty, living ideas, and it is imperative that we moms make small stops throughout the day to read a poem or a few paragraphs, take a few laps around the yard, and allow ourselves to "go out to play," as Charlotte wisely advised.
The main idea is: READ! Not an entire book a week, but a few pages. CM'ers talk about always having "something going" in the way of books, and Cheri was specific about this. She recommends three books at a time: a novel, a moderately easy (medium-hard) one, and a "stiff," or difficult one. Cheri herself has been reading Les Miserables for three years now, and is committed to it as long as it takes. That's one thing I love about the CM method: it's a marathon, not a sprint; we are about quality, not quantity. If half a page is all one can manage, then it's enough. Our goal is not to plow through a work, having no idea what we just read or why we bothered with it. We are after ideas, slowly savoring each sentence, even requiring ourselves as moms to narrate what we read. There is immense freedom in treating books this way, allowing ourselves to enjoy them rather than having pressure to finish by a certain date. We can see reading in a whole new light.
Some CM'ers have as many as nine or ten books going at a time. The three that I am currently reading are:
Novel (easy): Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I only classify it as "easy" because it is my third time through it, and each time is not only more simple, but more delightful. If you never read this classic, allow yourself the indulgence of time with the dear March sisters and their adoring mother, Marmee.
Moderately Easy: The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. If you have avoided this book because the main characters are demons, fear not. Again, as someone familiar with the enemy's tactics, this book does not scare me, but rather serves to further expose his vile trickery and lies. As in all his works, Lewis does not disappoint, displaying his usual genius and exposure of truth. What causes Screwtape to fall into the "medium-hard" category is that the reader must become accustomed to the wording. Because Screwtape, speaks in the first person, his "good" is actually evil, while "evil" is God's will; the "Enemy" is God, and "our father" is Satan. This is a must for everyone, Christ-follower or not.
Difficult: Ourselves by Charlotte Mason, herself! This book is actually two in one, and number four in a six-volume set of Charlotte's published essays. A true CM'er must obviously spend time with Charlotte's writings, but I believe that they hold appeal for those who use other methods, too. Although interesting, the material is about pedagogy in general, and Mason's rich words and references often cause the reader to reread sentences several times, even looking up the meaning of her colorful vocabulary. In order to ingest Charlotte's ideas, I can only handle a few pages at a time; she herself required her students to read Ourselves, only two pages per week! Charlotte wrote this work to provide students with an insight into human behavior, and to give them an idea of possibilities within themselves for good and evil.
I also often refer to my favorite "go-to" besides the Bible: The Essential Works of Charles Spurgeon, ed. by Daniel Partner. This volume of over a thousand pages is crammed with Spurgeon sermons, books, and even his autobiography. Sometimes just a paragraph is enough to give me mind-food on which to chew for a whole day.
Within our homeschool, my girls and I have several books going as well:
Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan, the Abeka version designed for children. Although Charlotte stayed away from "versions" of original works, I do not always adhere to the same principle (don't tell other CM'ers!).
The Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton Burgess. I recommend anything at all by this delightful author, who makes all animals real, alive, and fun for children and adults. We read a chapter at a time, and have a corresponding Pinterest board with a photo and information about each bird.
Pilgrim Stories by Margaret Pumphrey. In my humble opinion, this must be read by anyone who celebrates Thanksgiving! We read it twice a week, about ten pages at a time, and usually paste a picture from it in notebooks, including copywork with a corresponding sentence.
Little Women, already mentioned, which means I am reading it for the fourth time as I read it a third time! I am about halfway through in my personal reading, but the girls and I read only six or seven pages at a time. So far, they are as enchanted as I am, and we have decided which characters we each represent. Can you guess who they are??
Finally, in the evenings, my husband and I each have two separate books going with each girl, and alternate who reads to whom before bed, in addition to nighttime Bible reading. I am enjoying a different book from the Nancy Drew series with each daughter. Never having read these in childhood, I am completely sold on them as an adult. The challenging vocabulary and engaging plots add to our solid diet of idea-food.
As rich as the retreat was, it has been easy to incorporate some simple principles and habits into our school and my life as a mom. I am grateful to God for adding to the soundness of my mind with these ideas, and I believe all adults can form the habit of reading snippets during a busy day.
One was highlighted by Sonya Shafer, a fellow homeschool mom and authority in the CM community. Any CM'er is familiar with Sonya and her wide array of books, videos, and talks on methods and habit training. I enjoyed a morning in a group in which Sonya was the instructor, and we adults got to be students under the CM method. We covered natural history, arithmetic, ancient history, singing, repetition, writing, and Spanish, all in under three hours.
How refreshing to be the pupil, reading, narrating, and learning a rich variety of living ideas! Surprisingly, after such robust instruction, my brain was not exhausted, but rather invigorated. Sonya had not pounded dry, meaningless facts into our minds, but had exposed us to full-bodied ideas that we consumed eagerly. My takeaway from the exercise was that my own teaching needed to be varied concerning the order in which I presented the subjects. The meaningful instruction was there, but I couldn't wait for Monday so I could change the topics around.
For example, as I wrote in another post, I used to do all the "table" work in one sitting. We covered reading and spelling back to back, and would do our science and history (in which I read aloud) together, too. Sonya pointed out that when we sequence the lessons differently, then the brain's activity is more varied, thus enabling full attention. Now, our order looks more like this: Bible verse, penmanship, history, math, reading/phonics, science, Spanish (oral), poetry. I have noticed more enthusiasm from all of us, and brains that are not as tired.
The other takeaway that stood out for me came from a talk that I attended given by Cheri Struble, mother of nine. She called it "Mothers as Persons," and if anyone is qualified to speak to the idea of mothers acknowledging our own personhood, it is she (I so wanted to say "her," but just can't do it in a post about CM!). This is not about the "me time" so many modern moms complain they never get. It also is not going to Starbucks or shopping alone for an hour. Those things aren't bad, but Cheri's discussion centered on giving ourselves brain food, ideas for our own minds.
As someone who has valiantly been engaged in the battle of the mind, I was all ears. There are no "steps" to this, nor a "how-to." When mothers, especially those who are with children all day, do not respect our own personhood, Cheri says we end up empty, moving along through our tasks like robots, eventually stuck in a pit. We need not be convinced that a "feast of ideas" is essential for our kids, yet are we pursuing this for ourselves? Our minds thrive on meaty, living ideas, and it is imperative that we moms make small stops throughout the day to read a poem or a few paragraphs, take a few laps around the yard, and allow ourselves to "go out to play," as Charlotte wisely advised.
The main idea is: READ! Not an entire book a week, but a few pages. CM'ers talk about always having "something going" in the way of books, and Cheri was specific about this. She recommends three books at a time: a novel, a moderately easy (medium-hard) one, and a "stiff," or difficult one. Cheri herself has been reading Les Miserables for three years now, and is committed to it as long as it takes. That's one thing I love about the CM method: it's a marathon, not a sprint; we are about quality, not quantity. If half a page is all one can manage, then it's enough. Our goal is not to plow through a work, having no idea what we just read or why we bothered with it. We are after ideas, slowly savoring each sentence, even requiring ourselves as moms to narrate what we read. There is immense freedom in treating books this way, allowing ourselves to enjoy them rather than having pressure to finish by a certain date. We can see reading in a whole new light.
Some CM'ers have as many as nine or ten books going at a time. The three that I am currently reading are:
Novel (easy): Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I only classify it as "easy" because it is my third time through it, and each time is not only more simple, but more delightful. If you never read this classic, allow yourself the indulgence of time with the dear March sisters and their adoring mother, Marmee.
Moderately Easy: The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. If you have avoided this book because the main characters are demons, fear not. Again, as someone familiar with the enemy's tactics, this book does not scare me, but rather serves to further expose his vile trickery and lies. As in all his works, Lewis does not disappoint, displaying his usual genius and exposure of truth. What causes Screwtape to fall into the "medium-hard" category is that the reader must become accustomed to the wording. Because Screwtape, speaks in the first person, his "good" is actually evil, while "evil" is God's will; the "Enemy" is God, and "our father" is Satan. This is a must for everyone, Christ-follower or not.
Difficult: Ourselves by Charlotte Mason, herself! This book is actually two in one, and number four in a six-volume set of Charlotte's published essays. A true CM'er must obviously spend time with Charlotte's writings, but I believe that they hold appeal for those who use other methods, too. Although interesting, the material is about pedagogy in general, and Mason's rich words and references often cause the reader to reread sentences several times, even looking up the meaning of her colorful vocabulary. In order to ingest Charlotte's ideas, I can only handle a few pages at a time; she herself required her students to read Ourselves, only two pages per week! Charlotte wrote this work to provide students with an insight into human behavior, and to give them an idea of possibilities within themselves for good and evil.
I also often refer to my favorite "go-to" besides the Bible: The Essential Works of Charles Spurgeon, ed. by Daniel Partner. This volume of over a thousand pages is crammed with Spurgeon sermons, books, and even his autobiography. Sometimes just a paragraph is enough to give me mind-food on which to chew for a whole day.
Within our homeschool, my girls and I have several books going as well:
Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan, the Abeka version designed for children. Although Charlotte stayed away from "versions" of original works, I do not always adhere to the same principle (don't tell other CM'ers!).
The Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton Burgess. I recommend anything at all by this delightful author, who makes all animals real, alive, and fun for children and adults. We read a chapter at a time, and have a corresponding Pinterest board with a photo and information about each bird.
Pilgrim Stories by Margaret Pumphrey. In my humble opinion, this must be read by anyone who celebrates Thanksgiving! We read it twice a week, about ten pages at a time, and usually paste a picture from it in notebooks, including copywork with a corresponding sentence.
Little Women, already mentioned, which means I am reading it for the fourth time as I read it a third time! I am about halfway through in my personal reading, but the girls and I read only six or seven pages at a time. So far, they are as enchanted as I am, and we have decided which characters we each represent. Can you guess who they are??
Finally, in the evenings, my husband and I each have two separate books going with each girl, and alternate who reads to whom before bed, in addition to nighttime Bible reading. I am enjoying a different book from the Nancy Drew series with each daughter. Never having read these in childhood, I am completely sold on them as an adult. The challenging vocabulary and engaging plots add to our solid diet of idea-food.
As rich as the retreat was, it has been easy to incorporate some simple principles and habits into our school and my life as a mom. I am grateful to God for adding to the soundness of my mind with these ideas, and I believe all adults can form the habit of reading snippets during a busy day.
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Papi's Wisdom, God's Gift
"As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him the power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor--this is the gift of God. For he will not dwell unduly on the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with the joy of his heart." Ecclesiastes 5:19-20
There is no telling how much time I have spent meditating on these verses penned by wise Solomon. The type of mind-labor I can enjoy involves rolling over and over such ideas. I used to sit up at night about ten years ago, plagued by job difficulties, and ponder Solomon's revelations. O, to "rejoice" in my labor, I clamored. To not be crippled by the minutia of life, but rather to have the joy described throughout this book! Does anyone really ever live that way, I wondered?
Not many years ago, it dawned on me that not only are there individuals who experience this daily "gladness of heart" (Ecc. 5:20, NIV), but I witnessed it firsthand for years! My grandfather, Antonio Jimenez, ("Blanco" to most, "Papi" to me), lived the description of these verses unlike anyone else I've known. Papi's riches were simplicity, joy in work...gifts of God. He did not dwell "unduly" on the days of his life, because God kept him "occupied with the joy of his heart."
Some of us are given the treasure of being around a person like Papi. We do not always consider the divine gift of it in the everyday moments, and often take the days for granted. A person of such meekness probably moves through life unaware of the impact he has, but little eyes are watching. Did Papi realize the effect of his daily life on mine? Did I know then that I was absorbing him in the little things?
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| Papi as he looked when I was a girl. Campi the cat was his buddy. |
What he did was leave a legacy, not of grand accomplishments and titles by his name, but of peace, joy, and mind rest. He exhibited simplicity as a way of life, fulfillment in what the world calls mundane, but what I am discovering is rich and deep. Solomon, the wisest man on earth, said, "Here is what I have seen: It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage" (Ecclesiastes 5:18). My grandfather's wisdom ranked with that of Solomon.
Papi cured any cut with Mercurochrome, that bright orange liquid in a small brown glass bottle; it was applied with a stick on the bottle cap, and burned on contact. He whistled like a bird and sang old Cuban music like Desi Arnaz. He traveled among grocery stores, finding a bargain here, and another one there, supplying my childhood with Nestle Crunch bars, Sprite, and striped fudge round cookies. Kids back then were fed sweets as snacks and lived to tell about it.
We would ride around Spartanburg, where we lived, in his Chevy Cavalier (a later car than the one pictured below). The radio dial was always tuned to AM 950, WSPA, no longer in existence. We listened to a mixture of Perry Como, Chuck Berry, and even Michael McDonald, and then Bill Drake would announce the news and local happenings.
None of this involved out-of-the-ordinary feats to entertain or amaze me; the everyday delight of ordinariness was enough, and was what I now realize I needed and craved. Did I know I was absorbing how Papi loved his friends, the community he had with others who had migrated to this small town in search of freedom and life? Did I see the love that went into the laundry he carried to the laundromat across the street, the wet socks and undershirts spread on the line outside? Did I have any idea of what God was doing, how He was causing me to observe the little things, so that someday they would become big things?
There was an African-American man who would walk down Reidville Road, close to Papi's house. The first time I noticed him was one day when we drove past, and Papi honked the horn at him. The man looked up and acknowledged with a small wave. "Who was that?" I inquired in Spanish, to which Papi replied, "Mi amigo!" After that, if we ever rode down that section of street around the same time of day, it never failed: there the man would be, the horn would honk, and the "amigo" would smile and wave. What a tiny episode to have created such an impactful memory for a little girl. That's who Papi was: everyone, regardless of color or language, was his "amigo."
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| Little girl me with Papi, around 1979. The mound of dark fur in the bottom left corner is pet dog and pal, Cookie. |
How I managed to go back into the store came from the Holy Spirit showing me that He planted the gift of Papi's simplicity in me, too. For thirteen years, it has been sprouting, growing, being painfully pruned, and even having to be sawed off here and there. Not a trip to Aldi or Dollar General is spent without rejoicing in the fact that I, too, love a bargain, and Papi's legacy lives on in the delight I experience remembering him as I travel the aisles. It lives on in that, and oh-so-many other daily occurrences.
In no way can I condense the details of this man into one post, nor would I want to make an attempt. I will be gratified in unraveling much about him in posts to come, as well as more about this audacious journey of healing, love, grace, growth, and sanctification, all enfolded in the simple rest of Christ's loving arms.
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
A Frazzled Mind
I was in a tizzy last week, affected by the poor planning of several women who take on too much and are spread thin. My posture toward our culture was indignant, frustrated that it's too easy to believe the lie that we can do it all. I wasted at least a day stewing about why moms today just can't focus on what's important, why we allow ourselves to get overwhelmed. The idea just wouldn't leave me.
When I least expected it, the Holy Spirit gave me a loving nudge. Yes, I am indeed intentional about not squandering my time. I have no problem saying no to activities just for activities' sake. My schedule seldom overpowers daily life. No, I do not feel guilty about abstaining from things that will add to what we already do. Then came the kicker: My schedule isn't what overwhelms me; where I need to declutter is my brain.
He gently had lain it out for me. The chaos in my mind is just as exhausting as the hectic lives of many women in our culture. Wow. I could only humbly agree with what my Maker was revealing to me. Many are stressed out because they run here and there; my stress is due to the mental gymnastics caused by my flesh and the enemy.
Scenarios unroll rapidly in my head. While first in line at the red light, I imagine it turning green and my going forward, only to be taken out by an eighteen-wheeler. The strange man at the corner library table makes me nervous; suppose I turn my head and he jumps up and takes off with one of my kids? My daughter darts past the top of the stairs, and I imagine her slipping and falling down them, slamming hard against the wood. This is only a taste of the darkness that overtakes me at any given moment of the day.
When I was a teenager, I put no limits on the filth I allowed myself to either read or see on television. What God created as beautiful to be exclusively between husband and wife has been perverted by the world in a way that now makes me seethe. More than twenty years later, there remain writings and images I wish I could erase, and the enemy knows when to strategically remind me of them. We should stop at nothing to protect the purity of our kids' bodies and minds.
I cannot recall ever having lived without this overactive imagination, the worry, fear, and fight-or-flight feeling. All of a sudden, though, the Holy Spirit is showing me that it's not who I am. I don't have to be bound by undesired thoughts, and do not have to think them if I don't want to! I am not crazy, as the enemy would like me to think, nor am I bound to these dark thoughts forever. Christ is bringing darkness into light.
Back in June, on an evening when I was particularly tormented with undesirable mind-clutter, I had a moment of desperation in which I cried out to the Lord. Normally, when I make a request of Him, I've learned to wait and He answers when I least expect it (like when He gave me the nudge about my mind last week). However, this time, I said outright, "Lord, I can't stand this, and I need peace. If there's a verse where you can lead me..." and before I could go on, I felt, "Ephesians 4:23." My Bible wasn't even open, and I half-wondered if my overactive brain had come up with that verse just to have a "word from God."
Imagine my surprise when I flipped to it and read:
"and be renewed in the spirit of your mind."
Yes, God cares. He made us, and in Him we already have a sound mind. He saw fit to point me directly to what He wanted me to know, and I loved it. God is showing me that this is way beyond words on a page, or list-making, or white-knuckled efforts at replacing my thoughts with fluffy images. This is about my sins of worry, fear, and trying to control my mind on my own. I have spent too many years being my own protector, and I know He wants me to hand that role back to Him.
Another verse that we take for granted that is becoming rubber-meeting-road for me is Psalm 46:10:
"Be still and know that I am God."
How on earth do I do that?! I decided to say that very thing to my Creator: "Lord, I want to be still and let you take over my mind, but I've never done that and I need your help. Please be in charge of my mind and bring renewal to it."
This "renewing of the mind" from what now will always be my favorite verse (Ephesians 4:23) and Romans 12:2 is beginning to click. I'm seeing that it's not about my efforts to "change," but about allowing the Holy Spirit to take over and transform my entire way of thinking. Christ doesn't give us a spirit of fear, but soundness of mind (2 Timothy 1:7). As a believer, I am not a slave again to fear (Romans 8:15). The new creation that I am in Christ "was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness" (Ephesians 4:24).
Will we all experience occasional fear? Of course. Will an unsavory thought from the past never again resurface? Doubtful. The change in renewal will be that I am no longer in bondage to the fear, worry, or shame that have lived in my head for so long. Sometimes we have to get to the point of utter despair before we are willing to give complete surrender. The Holy Spirit is the Mind-Renewer, if only we first ask and then trust.
When I least expected it, the Holy Spirit gave me a loving nudge. Yes, I am indeed intentional about not squandering my time. I have no problem saying no to activities just for activities' sake. My schedule seldom overpowers daily life. No, I do not feel guilty about abstaining from things that will add to what we already do. Then came the kicker: My schedule isn't what overwhelms me; where I need to declutter is my brain.
He gently had lain it out for me. The chaos in my mind is just as exhausting as the hectic lives of many women in our culture. Wow. I could only humbly agree with what my Maker was revealing to me. Many are stressed out because they run here and there; my stress is due to the mental gymnastics caused by my flesh and the enemy.
Scenarios unroll rapidly in my head. While first in line at the red light, I imagine it turning green and my going forward, only to be taken out by an eighteen-wheeler. The strange man at the corner library table makes me nervous; suppose I turn my head and he jumps up and takes off with one of my kids? My daughter darts past the top of the stairs, and I imagine her slipping and falling down them, slamming hard against the wood. This is only a taste of the darkness that overtakes me at any given moment of the day.
When I was a teenager, I put no limits on the filth I allowed myself to either read or see on television. What God created as beautiful to be exclusively between husband and wife has been perverted by the world in a way that now makes me seethe. More than twenty years later, there remain writings and images I wish I could erase, and the enemy knows when to strategically remind me of them. We should stop at nothing to protect the purity of our kids' bodies and minds.
I cannot recall ever having lived without this overactive imagination, the worry, fear, and fight-or-flight feeling. All of a sudden, though, the Holy Spirit is showing me that it's not who I am. I don't have to be bound by undesired thoughts, and do not have to think them if I don't want to! I am not crazy, as the enemy would like me to think, nor am I bound to these dark thoughts forever. Christ is bringing darkness into light.
Back in June, on an evening when I was particularly tormented with undesirable mind-clutter, I had a moment of desperation in which I cried out to the Lord. Normally, when I make a request of Him, I've learned to wait and He answers when I least expect it (like when He gave me the nudge about my mind last week). However, this time, I said outright, "Lord, I can't stand this, and I need peace. If there's a verse where you can lead me..." and before I could go on, I felt, "Ephesians 4:23." My Bible wasn't even open, and I half-wondered if my overactive brain had come up with that verse just to have a "word from God."
Imagine my surprise when I flipped to it and read:
"and be renewed in the spirit of your mind."
Yes, God cares. He made us, and in Him we already have a sound mind. He saw fit to point me directly to what He wanted me to know, and I loved it. God is showing me that this is way beyond words on a page, or list-making, or white-knuckled efforts at replacing my thoughts with fluffy images. This is about my sins of worry, fear, and trying to control my mind on my own. I have spent too many years being my own protector, and I know He wants me to hand that role back to Him.
Another verse that we take for granted that is becoming rubber-meeting-road for me is Psalm 46:10:
"Be still and know that I am God."
How on earth do I do that?! I decided to say that very thing to my Creator: "Lord, I want to be still and let you take over my mind, but I've never done that and I need your help. Please be in charge of my mind and bring renewal to it."
This "renewing of the mind" from what now will always be my favorite verse (Ephesians 4:23) and Romans 12:2 is beginning to click. I'm seeing that it's not about my efforts to "change," but about allowing the Holy Spirit to take over and transform my entire way of thinking. Christ doesn't give us a spirit of fear, but soundness of mind (2 Timothy 1:7). As a believer, I am not a slave again to fear (Romans 8:15). The new creation that I am in Christ "was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness" (Ephesians 4:24).
Will we all experience occasional fear? Of course. Will an unsavory thought from the past never again resurface? Doubtful. The change in renewal will be that I am no longer in bondage to the fear, worry, or shame that have lived in my head for so long. Sometimes we have to get to the point of utter despair before we are willing to give complete surrender. The Holy Spirit is the Mind-Renewer, if only we first ask and then trust.
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Old & New
Here is a "funny" for today:
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| From "What Your Sleep Position Reveals," by Samuel Dunkell, M.D., Reader's Digest, July 1977, pp. 137-39.
This guy has me pegged! How does he know so much about me?!
One of my favorite things to do is look for old magazines and books. Why? Because they contain such wisdom and truth, and aren't watered-down with banality like many of today's publications. We "educated" folk of this modern era often believe there's nothing to learn from generations past, or that it's not hip to fall behind in what's current. Solomon wasn't joking when he stated, "There is nothing new under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 1:9).
My life would be dreadfully ordinary without these nuggets of humor from the past. We can enjoy contemporary reading and also give ourselves permission to indulge in bygone simplicity. The two intermingle nicely, and we discover that those unenlightened fogies said things worth pondering, perhaps challenging our own enlightenment.
Disclaimer: I'm not sure I fully buy into the description of the "Prone Sleeper," but I had fun reading it and indulging in a few minutes of escape from today's bustle. Every generation thinks we have it all figured out, and according to Solomon and the rest of the Word, everything has always been figured out, just not by us. We look to the One Who was there in the beginning (John 1:1-5). Let's rest in that today, and be content in the little hunks of light that He bestows that bring us joy.
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Sunday, November 1, 2015
A Sound Mind
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."
2 Timothy 1:7
Oh, how I have longed for a sound mind. To not fret, to be still, to escape the worrisome ideas the enemy screams into my head...this became my quest. Just the other day, the Holy Spirit nudged me to see something in this verse I thought I knew well. I looked at it again with clarity:
God has [already]...given...a sound mind.
I do have the soundness of mind I've so desired! Those of us who believe in Christ as our Savior all possess it, even when we feel like we don't. When thoughts that we despise creep in, it's not our job to seek a sound mind; we already have it, given to us by God.
As a preacher of truth, Charles Spurgeon experienced the enemy's tormenting mind games. In his work All of Grace, he states:
"These thoughts, if you hate them, are none of yours, but are injections of the devil for which he is responsible, not you...The poor diseased woman could not come to Jesus for the press, and you are in much the same condition because of the rush and throng of these dreadful thoughts. Still, she put forth her finger and touched the fringe of the Lord's garment, and she was healed. Do you the same...He can still those horrible whisperings of the fiend, or He can enable you to see them in their true light so that you may not be worried by them...Only trust Him for this and everything else." (From The Essential Works of Charles Spurgeon, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. Used by permission).
It is a tactic of God's enemy to make us believe that we are responsible for abominable thoughts that we detest. If he can worry us, he can cause all sorts of havoc: drawing us away from Christ because of shame, making us believe we are responsible for thoughts we hate, giving us a disgraceful view of ourselves, causing us to forget who we are in Christ and that His blood has made us whole and clean, and even putting fear in us because of scary topics.
If a visible person were standing beside me making atrocious claims, I would be repulsed, but it would be obvious that someone else said the things, not me. Why is it hard to accept that Satan sends out his minions to do this? When we are in Christ, He has already bestowed soundness of mind on us. He gives the Holy Spirit to be our Counselor, to provide us with discernment. We need not be worried by the "whisperings of the fiend," or think that we need to control them. We do as James says and first "submit to God," then "resist the devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).
My sins in this department are worrying, fear, and trying to take control. God didn't give me a spirit of fear; remember 2 Timothy 1:7? I can't stop someone (even a demon) from attempting to bully me, but I can invoke the name of Christ and resist it. Thinking that I'm the perpetrator of thoughts I hate is playing into the enemy's lie. Confessing my worry about it, my fear of it, and my desire to control it enables me to give God back His job as my Rescuer. And I can say right out loud, "God has given me soundness of mind, and you are the Father of Lies. I choose to walk in the light and truth of Christ."
Even with soundness of mind I should still seek and ask God for what Paul describes in Philippians 4:8. He says to meditate, or "think on" what is "true...noble...right...pure...lovely...admirable...excellent...and praiseworthy." We can request that the Holy Spirit to fill our minds with these things because it's what God commands, and we should want to think about such things. But beware: just because we long for this doesn't mean we are exempt from the enemy's attempts. In fact, I imagine he will try all the more to throw us off and cause us to believe God must just not be hearing us.
He is the Father of Lies, remember? We are mortals on a challenging journey of sanctification. Go back to what Spurgeon says: if we hate them, the thoughts are not ours. So, I keep praying Philippians 4:13, thanking God for the sound mind He's already given me, and further asking Him to help my heart fully believe what my head can read in Scripture. Being "transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2) doesn't mean happy, joyful thoughts all the time. Spiritual bullies will always seek to steal our joy (John 10:10). I'm seeing that being transformed in my mind means believing I am who Christ says I am, not who the enemy wants me to think I am.
Jesus lovingly told a woman who was threatened by her accusers, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life" (John 8:12). He Himself is the light who stamps out darkness; we only have to trust Him, confessing our doubt and fears. He loves and accepts us as we are, but wants to fight our battles for us. Jesus is the bully silencer, the sound mind-giver. I am in the process of learning to accept His gift of a sound mind and trust Him as my Rescuer, the Good Shepherd (John 10:11).
2 Timothy 1:7
Oh, how I have longed for a sound mind. To not fret, to be still, to escape the worrisome ideas the enemy screams into my head...this became my quest. Just the other day, the Holy Spirit nudged me to see something in this verse I thought I knew well. I looked at it again with clarity:
God has [already]...given...a sound mind.
I do have the soundness of mind I've so desired! Those of us who believe in Christ as our Savior all possess it, even when we feel like we don't. When thoughts that we despise creep in, it's not our job to seek a sound mind; we already have it, given to us by God.
As a preacher of truth, Charles Spurgeon experienced the enemy's tormenting mind games. In his work All of Grace, he states:
"These thoughts, if you hate them, are none of yours, but are injections of the devil for which he is responsible, not you...The poor diseased woman could not come to Jesus for the press, and you are in much the same condition because of the rush and throng of these dreadful thoughts. Still, she put forth her finger and touched the fringe of the Lord's garment, and she was healed. Do you the same...He can still those horrible whisperings of the fiend, or He can enable you to see them in their true light so that you may not be worried by them...Only trust Him for this and everything else." (From The Essential Works of Charles Spurgeon, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. Used by permission).
It is a tactic of God's enemy to make us believe that we are responsible for abominable thoughts that we detest. If he can worry us, he can cause all sorts of havoc: drawing us away from Christ because of shame, making us believe we are responsible for thoughts we hate, giving us a disgraceful view of ourselves, causing us to forget who we are in Christ and that His blood has made us whole and clean, and even putting fear in us because of scary topics.
If a visible person were standing beside me making atrocious claims, I would be repulsed, but it would be obvious that someone else said the things, not me. Why is it hard to accept that Satan sends out his minions to do this? When we are in Christ, He has already bestowed soundness of mind on us. He gives the Holy Spirit to be our Counselor, to provide us with discernment. We need not be worried by the "whisperings of the fiend," or think that we need to control them. We do as James says and first "submit to God," then "resist the devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).
My sins in this department are worrying, fear, and trying to take control. God didn't give me a spirit of fear; remember 2 Timothy 1:7? I can't stop someone (even a demon) from attempting to bully me, but I can invoke the name of Christ and resist it. Thinking that I'm the perpetrator of thoughts I hate is playing into the enemy's lie. Confessing my worry about it, my fear of it, and my desire to control it enables me to give God back His job as my Rescuer. And I can say right out loud, "God has given me soundness of mind, and you are the Father of Lies. I choose to walk in the light and truth of Christ."
Even with soundness of mind I should still seek and ask God for what Paul describes in Philippians 4:8. He says to meditate, or "think on" what is "true...noble...right...pure...lovely...admirable...excellent...and praiseworthy." We can request that the Holy Spirit to fill our minds with these things because it's what God commands, and we should want to think about such things. But beware: just because we long for this doesn't mean we are exempt from the enemy's attempts. In fact, I imagine he will try all the more to throw us off and cause us to believe God must just not be hearing us.
He is the Father of Lies, remember? We are mortals on a challenging journey of sanctification. Go back to what Spurgeon says: if we hate them, the thoughts are not ours. So, I keep praying Philippians 4:13, thanking God for the sound mind He's already given me, and further asking Him to help my heart fully believe what my head can read in Scripture. Being "transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2) doesn't mean happy, joyful thoughts all the time. Spiritual bullies will always seek to steal our joy (John 10:10). I'm seeing that being transformed in my mind means believing I am who Christ says I am, not who the enemy wants me to think I am.
Jesus lovingly told a woman who was threatened by her accusers, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life" (John 8:12). He Himself is the light who stamps out darkness; we only have to trust Him, confessing our doubt and fears. He loves and accepts us as we are, but wants to fight our battles for us. Jesus is the bully silencer, the sound mind-giver. I am in the process of learning to accept His gift of a sound mind and trust Him as my Rescuer, the Good Shepherd (John 10:11).
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Cherry Ames, Veterans' Nurse: A Living Book
Here is what I would consider an ideal example of what Charlotte Mason called a "living" book. Several years ago, I stumbled upon the Cherry Ames series, and began collecting volumes as I find them in thrift stores, Goodwill, or even through a rare deal online. They captivate adults as well as children, and my 8-year-old and I have delighted in them for over a year.
Nancy Drew aficionados will savor this series. Although Cherry is a nurse and not a detective, there is usually an element of mystery woven into the plot. As in Nancy Drew books, the author brings readers to a high level of vocabulary and information, rather than talking "down" to children as modern literature tends to do. Cherry is a winsome protagonist, a jovial caregiver who goes the extra mile for her patients.
Veteran's Nurse, book six in the series, has Cherry occupied at a rehabilitation hospital for convalescing soldiers following World War II. Written in 1946, this book captures the mood of our country at the time, and shows the challenges faced by nurses seeking to aid wounded soldiers in fitting back into civilian life. Forget impersonal textbooks or lists of facts; Veteran's Nurse will suffice in piquing young peoples' interest in this rich historical era.
Charlotte's goal in teaching history, science, and literature through living books was to make it come alive for students, to give them a reason to care about and enjoy the subject. Dry dates will never spark curiosity, but I am begged countless times for "one more chapter!" of a living book. It's a much more gratifying experience for the teacher and/or parent as well.
Cherry Ames is also an ideal role model for kids interested in nursing or the medical field. Again, details are rich in vocabulary and terminology. These books teach about "probies," the capping ceremony, the psychology used in dealing with patients from children to soldiers to senior citizens, a litany of medicines and procedures, and the hierarchy and methods involved in daily hospital performance. Readers will discover the stamina required and challenges that come with being a nurse.
Be on the lookout for Cherry Ames. She is a well-kept secret worth dusting off, even for adults seeking leisurely evening or beach reading. Early books were published with plain brownish-red covers, so keep your eyes peeled when digging through Goodwill bins. Visitors to my house will see copies of Cherry's series all throughout, as she has become a regular with us.
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