Ordered Chaos

happy new year!

 

Yard work is good for lots of things. The workout. The sense of personal progress/accomplishment. A few new blisters. Meeting your neighbors. Farmer's tans …

And, for me, today … a random New Year's thought.

See, we've got this tree in our front yard. I think it's an oak. But whatever it is, it sheds. A lot. De-leafs all over one side of our house — the side with the sidewalk leading to our front door (which, yes, is on the side of the house …). Today, after some edging and plant watering, I decided to sweep off that sidewalk … 'cause, you know, you never know who might stop by when and I gots to be presentable. And stuff.

But that side of our house? Well, it's a wind tunnel. A slight breeze anywhere else amounts to a hurricane gust in the space between our stucco and the neighbor's fence. So, today, I'd sweep and then, a few seconds later, I'd watch the wind pick up a few dozen leaves and re-deposit them on the walk. It was comical … and probably could have been discouraging. But, for all the leaves re-deposited, my sweeping actually eliminated 4x as many — effectively minimizing the scope creep, at least for a few more weeks.

So, to that New Year's thought:

Everyone talks about January 1 in context of resolutions and progress and change and, don't get me wrong, I am all for that … but …

I think we need a little encouragement in the monotony … the minutiae that WILL — whether you like it or not — require your time and energy in 2012. A lot of life is maintenance. Discipline. Good habits and effective routines. And I know sometimes that's discouraging. Boring. Disheartening … and often feels like a two steps forward and six back. Like I experienced today, life is constantly giving you leaves while you're sweeping. But know this: your careful work, your attention to detail, your showing up, your flippin' teeth brushing — it's keeping the chaos at bay. It a constant (and blessed) creation of the kind of environment in which change can occur, where growth can happen and beauty can be observed, visited … obtained.

Love.

i gots me a new kindle

The parents got me a new Kindle AND case (so I can't smash it as easily this time) for Christmas (along with a bunch of other fabulous things). I'm reading the Game of Thrones sample on it right now ... and I've been poking around the county's digital library collection (FREE!!)... so, needless to say, I'm psyched ... (and desperate to find my library card)!

anvil anticipation

I think I suffer from it.*

It's a mental disorder in which a person expects to get smushed. They live hunched over and shirking, ever observant and constantly processing, certain — even in (and especially in) their good times — that bad is going to come careening out of the sky with a weight and a force that destroys. They are Wylie Coyote and their destiny is to have anvils fall out of the sky upon them. Those unfortunate enough to have this disorder, find that trust does not come easily. Their joy is cautious, rarely fully realized. Defeat and depression are the homeland they must regularly wade through, push past and daily leave behind.

Treatment plans often feature leaps of faith, immersion therapy, supportive relationships with trustworthy people, regular vacations, hugs, analysis of past smushings, paying particular attention to the positives, sharing moments of delight, and time.

*this is not a real disorder.

----

Christmas … New Years …. I always get this way around this time of year. Scared. Sad. And physically exhausted from the attempt to hold out against the power of such emotion. The more I love, the harder it is. The more aware I am of others, the longer it lasts. There's too much pain this side of Heaven. I hate it. And odd, ironic, how the beauty of love makes the presence of pain all that much more poignant. It sets my stomach to rolling. My head to hurting.

So, I wanted to stay in bed this morning, to hold tight my husband and burrow under the covers — to close my eyes against the day and its unknowns. Like John Piper (thanks vrain!), I awoke feeling fragile and it was all I could do to take a solid step into a new day. But I did. I took a step and that led to another and another and … well, I'm still standing. Praise God.

I'm thankful for the random reminders (like that Piper article) that God is in control … that He is capable … and that come what may, He is unchanging and we are His … and that is enough. More than enough.

It has to be.

I am blessed.

That's all I've got ... and, frankly, it is SO MUCH MORE than enough.

So grateful for Jesus, His life ... and the lives His makes possible.

Merry Christmas my friends ... 

naughty is the new nice

So, my friend's friend was out with his fiancé having some engagement pictures taken. They brought their dog. And, uh, the dog brought a little something extra to the shoot. Photographer caught it. They posted it. Internet loved it.

And then my friend's friend turned the happy little accident into what I now deem THE BEST CHRISTMAS CARD EVER. See for yourself:

by the fire, in a lawnchair

There's A LOT of crappy country music coming out these days. Sometimes that annoys me. But most of the time, I don't discriminate. Loving this stuff lately:

"Drink In My Hand" by Eric Church
"You" by Chris Young
"Camouflage" by Brad Paisley
"Barefoot Blue Jean Night" by Jake Owen
"Dirt Road Anthem" by Jason Aldean

Gosh, I need to go grab me a blanket, find me a field and get out in the middle of it for a few hours.

Can't wait to camp with the crew in January!! (you in?!)

Peace.

semantics

Sometimes it is, sometimes it's not.

But if you're a copywriter, a GOOD one, it NEVER is ... because it ALWAYS is.

So, those of you that are not copywriters? Uh, trust us. We don't just toss around words. We don't waste words. Every word in every sentence is intentional — in order, syllable and placement.

#justsaying

more of the cutest nephew ever

well-read

Do you remember what a book nerd Rory Gilmore was? She was always reading something. And, of course, some wonderful fans of Gilmore Girls took the time to compile a list of all those books she read and post it online. Love.

The list is long, thorough and AWESOME. Discovering the list sorta inspired me to create one of my own. Unlike Rory's, mine is all "to be read" … but that's okay; I've got three school-free weeks coming my way and I fully intend to bury my nose in a few of the following!

To Read (for fun):

A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
At the End of the Road by Grant Jerkins
What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman
The Stuff That Never Happened by Maddie Dawson
The Year Everything Changed by Georgia Bockoven
The Blasphemer by Nigel Farndale
Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

To Read (for profession):

Please Understand Me II by David Keirsey
The Care of Souls: Re-envisioning Christian Nurture and Counsel by David Benner
Seeing with New Eyes: Counseling and the Human Condition Through the Lens of Scripture by David Powlison
Case Studies in Couples Therapy: Theory-Based Approaches by Dr. Carson and Dr. Casado-Kehoe
A Way of Being by Carl R. Rogers
Christ-Centered Reality Therapy by Dr. Tom Barnette
Modern Psychopathologies: A Comprehensive Christian Appraisal by Mark Yarhouse, Richard Butman and Barrett McRay
Understanding People by Larry Crabb
Talking to Depression: Simple Ways to Connect When Someone in Your Life is Depressed by Claudia J. Strauss
Bold Love by Dan Allender
The Anxious Brain: The Neurobiological Basis of Anxiety Disorders and How to Effectively Treat Them by Margaret Wehrenberg
Yearning: Living Between How It is and How It Ought to Be by M. Craig Barnes
Understanding Sleep and Dreaming by William Moorcroft and Paula Belcher
The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy by Irvin D. Yalom
All Is Grace by Brennan Manning
Love's Executioner: & Other Tales of Psychotherapy by Irvin D. Yalom