Within 24 hours I heard about this video 2 times, from 2 different friends. Thank you Michelle and Katie. This is a message I think everyone should hear, introvert, like me, or not. So far, at least 40% of my children are introverts and as a parent of introverts I feel conflicted inside. One part of me wants to push them into the limelight more often than they would like. I want them speak up and find their voice among their louder peers. I want them to get a chance, to speak their minds, to share their greatness with others. The other part of me is filled with respect as I see them not needing to be the center of attention, they are happy inside themselves, self-confident and quiet. This is a hard balance though. In a world where the loudest child gets the chance, they are lost in a sea of the raised arms of the extroverts. This leaves little room for the introverts to take action. And as a parent I want to "help" them along. I can forget that they don't need this. This is not what they seek. I, of course, do it out of love and the desire for them to receive the same opportunities as their opposite peers, but this is not who they are. How can I, of all people, lose sight of that? I have for a long time struggled with others thinking something is wrong with me, not just me, but all who fall under this category. I love how this video empowers the introvert. There is a great need for both kinds of people in our world, and I hope to be able to be true to myself, and praise and encourage and nurture each of my children, introverts and extroverts alike. May we embrace what we are and allow others the respect of living true to themselves and the powers within.
40 bags in 40 days - the continuing saga
I will not bore you with every area I clean over the next 40 days. Also, I have stopped following my list in numerical order and have started picking the spaces I want to do that day. Some days that means I do none. Other days I do 2 or 3 things, like my church binder, the paper basket on my desk, and my bag.
{before}
{after}
Today I worked on the master bathroom. I took one bag out of there.
There used to be a table here on the landing of the stairs.
It had no particular purpose, and I thought it would be nice to have a place to sit and get ready, so I moved it up to the bathroom.
I also picked up a new picture frame and bath mat from Winners, they add a little more color to this room.
I still need to get a photo for the frame.
While I was doing this, the boys were doing this -
Seems marble works aren't just for marbles!
(if anyone knows how I can get my videos onto my blog without going through youtube, please let me know! I don't love having to do that.)
trading niceness
Friday, March 2, 2012
The other day as the children and I were driving around town doing errands, we were listening to a story on the value of love and compassion, and I heard this phrase. My mind wandered from the story and I began to wonder. Much of our experiences consist of just this, we go through ours days exchanging niceties, at the library, grocery store, with our neighbors. Do I love, or do I trade niceness with others? What happens to my "charity" if the person I am dealing with is not very charitable in return. Does my own offering dry up? Do I connect with people on a deeper level? Is my heart open enough to receive what might be out there waiting to be given? Greater still, is my heart giving all it can or simply going through the motions? There is nothing wrong with this, but there is not much depth either.
Some days I feel as though I don't have much to offer - small niceties are all that's left, sometimes there is no water in the well. It is then that we need most to dig deep. We discover that we make a difference, no matter how small or seemingly inconsequential. I want to be able to do so much more than hand you a small trinket in the hopes that you will return one to me. I want to be able to serve and love and offer everything I have, especially when I feel empty, for that is what will fill the well the fastest. There is strength and a silent, humble vision of potential in this, when we live true to the way we were created.
This may not be a possibility all of the time. There are moments when we simply do just that, exchange one niceness for another, and that is enough, that is all the occasion calls for. For the most part these exchanges make up a very big part of our lives. But we need to be able to give more than that when more is required. We need to be able to offer an open heart to those who need a friend, to be able to offer an open mind to those who might need our attention, our help, or our hands. We need to stop exchanging niceness for niceness sake. We need to love those around us, therein dwells the niceness, the kind that comes from the soul and we begin to live at a higher level, not above another, but higher than we were before.