Days of Hope

When dreams give way to schedules
And days begin too soon and end too late
When filling time is not the problem
And autopilot is my normal state

When I begin to think that life is living me
The things I’ve done all must be done again
When I forget that faith is hope in the unseen
And on His strength and love I don’t depend

Through His word I am reminded that His plans are greater still
If I follow Him through all the turns and twists
And if I would just trust Him He’ll work everything for good
His mercies new each morning in such a time as this

When All Else Fails, Think Like an Iguana

As a stay at home mom a large percentage of the family's pet care responsibilities ended up on my to-do list.  It didn’t help that we had a menagerie that at one time or another included dogs, parrots, turtles, gerbils, rabbits and well, you get the picture. 

There was one, however, that I just had to draw the line at – the iguana.  Oh, he was cute when we bought him for our son.  Just a few inches long and easy to care for, in fact everyone got a kick out of feeding him and he grew accordingly.  He was gentle with his owner but for some reason when I tried to remove him from the cage to clean it I found myself engaged in a wrestling match.  A 2 1/2 foot Iguana is surprisingly strong.  I knew he was just waiting for his chance to wriggle free and make a run for it, leaving me to blame for his untimely death in the jaws of one of the family dogs.  So I resigned as his part time caretaker and announced to my husband and son that he was their responsibility.

One day as I passed my son’s room I saw the cage door open and no sign of my former wrestling opponent.  I cautiously looked around the room thinking that he was too large to easily conceal himself.  He was nowhere to be found and I was beginning to panic.

I don’t know what always made me think that our bird dog could track any living thing, (blind faith or too many episodes of Lassie), but desperate times call for desperate measures.  I put a leash on him and took him into the room.  He went straight to the empty cage and started sniffing at it; I was excited until he immediately showed the same interest in the garbage can and some dirty socks.  I sent the dog packing and tried to think logically. Where would I go if I was an iguana?  It would have to be somewhere warm; he was a lizard after all. Under the heat lamp in his cage was the warmest spot I could think of and he wasn’t there, so clearly this iguana was illogical. 

Just then my son came home and I frantically tried to explain how I had tried everything to find him.  He just laughed and pulled the bedroom curtain aside.  There he was sunning himself on the windowsill.  I guess there is such a thing as lizard logic.

The Cleansing Truth

I never meant for it to happen
It wasn’t something that I planned
I just went on my merry way
Not sure, even, when it began

I didn’t notice the effect on you
And how you had begun to change
And when I finally saw the truth
I couldn’t help but be ashamed

To others it was very clear
I’m sure they were appalled
They must have thought I didn’t care
Or think of you at all

Even though I’ve not been perfect
I know this time I’ve gone too far
Before we travel on together
I have to wash you dirty car

Secrets of the Hedgerows

There was a small but picturesque farm that sat on top of a hill near our home.  I knew the young girl that lived there but her mom worked and her dad spend most of his time in the fields.  She was not allowed to leave her property after school and I was not allowed to go up to the farm unless one of her parents was there. Getting together to play was a challenge that demanded to be met and our solution was to push our boundaries to their limits.

The farthest corner of their farm fields ended at the road that led to my house.  I would meet her there after school, hiding my bike in the bushes and crawling through the fence into the hedgerow.  To our young minds she could tell her parents that she had not left the property and I could tell mine that I had not gone “up” to the farm.

It was our private playground and an absolute wonderland for our imaginations.  There was a creek running right down the middle and a paradise of long grasses, wild flowers and assorted wildlife including rabbits, squirrels and an occasional whitetail deer.  We were Pioneers, Cowboys and Indians, African explorers and anything else we could dream up.  We waded in the creek, caught minnows and sailed driftwood boats down the imagined rapids.  It was our secret place where we buried our treasures, built our forts and spied through the trees at imaginary enemies.

From a distance they look like narrow rows of living fence but up close they reveal natural habitats for wildlife and wild imaginations.  Even now when I am driving through the farmlands of the Midwest I wonder what secrets are hidden in the hedgerows.

(First Published on www.thebarndoor.net)

Right Where We Are

What if God called fishermen
Because they understood the wind
The waves, the tides and the life within

So He could walk upon those waves
Fill their nets on a hopeless day
And calm the storms to teach them faith

What if God calls each of us
Right where we are to learn to trust
That WHO WE ARE IS WHO HE LOVES

And if we give Him all we do
And share His love with others who
Need to know He loves them too

He’ll fill our nets and calm our storms
Teach us to stand and right our wrongs
Because we all to Him belong