Daily Prompt: Shelf

Ash and Chompers

My eldest, Ashley with Chompers, her first gift from her Nana

The moment I saw Today’s prompt, I knew what I would write about.  This is a poem representing the word “shelf”.

I was sitting in Cracker Barrel, with many just like me

Just wondering if I would ever have a home

When as I pondered this, I felt myself airborne

Oh no, please not a child whose left to roam

The torture never ends for us, the bruises and the nicks

Not to mention sticky fingers and the floor

But this time, the touch felt different. Should I dare to harbor hope?

Can it be as Grandpa said?  Could there be more?

I stole a glance at my captor’s face, and she returned my smile

She held me out to have a look, to ponder me from afar

She said, “This one is perfect, I knew it from the start

Before I knew it, I’d been purchased and was riding in her car.

Or course I was ecstatic, and couldn’t wait to see my home

She took me to a room all filled with flowers and love

A beautiful, tiny baby slept, a sight she was to see

It was then I knew for sure that I had been blessed from above.

When I was new, my coat did shine, my clothes they were pristine

My eyes were bright and bore no scratches from wear and tear

I was gifted by this Nana to this amazing baby girl

Oh the fun that we would have, the love we’d share

I kept her warm on chilly nights and was always there to hug

As the years flew by, she took me everywhere she went

She grew up fast and stayed so busy, I didn’t see her as much

Though our time together grew less and less, I knew how much I meant

Even though I am old and torn, she has keep me all these years

And she used to pick me up to reminisce,

To think upon our memories, the days and nights of fun

Lately though, I’m afraid she’s grown remiss

So, I’m waiting patiently for the day that she recalls

One more hug will be appreciated, in and of itself

But until then, I’m sitting here just watching everything

Just wishing and just hoping, on the shelf.

Daily Prompt: Envy

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Today’s Prompt was to write using the word “Envy”.

Proverbs 14:30 says, “A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot.”

When I find myself feeling envious towards another person or something they have, it reminds me that I need to pray.  I need to spend time with God and reflect on what has diminished my typical contentment.

Nine times out of ten, I find that it can always be traced back to my perception of lack in “things”, “stuff”, “worldly goods”.  The more we allow our focus to be on the material things instead of the lasting things and the heavenly things, the more often we will find ourselves desiring more of them.

We are never satisfied with “stuff”, so it is pointless to put all of our energy and focus into mere things that leave no lasting legacy, things we can’t take with us.

Envy can overcome both the young and the old, but I see it more in the young.  I think this is just because they haven’t lived life long enough to realize what really matters.  If I could give those younger than me some advice, I would tell them not to be so desirous of a bigger car, a more expensive house, and designer duds.  I would tell them to covet a loving, generous heart, a kind and gentle spirit, a forgiving attitude; lasting things; traits that will make living this roller coaster life so much sweeter.

I am thankful for the lessons learned and the avenue to share with others and that is a good thing.  Because, I find that the more thankful I am for what I have, the more content I become.

For similar posts, see The Little Foxes or Regrets; I’ve had a few

Daily Prompt: Fleeting

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Today’s prompt was to use the word fleeting in a post.

This topic reminded me of all the times we are left with a fleeting glance.  In many cases, the memories of these momentary glimpses are anything but fleeting.

Mom’s waving hand as you embark on your first ever bus ride

The emotional, yet proud look your mom or dad gives you at graduation

The bob of a little blonde ponytail as it retreats the first day they walk to class alone

Her tail lights the first time she drives away from home with bags packed

The crestfallen little face from the car seat when the visit is over and she has to go home

There are many more memories like this; sometimes romantic and sometimes sentimental.  They are good material for stories and poetry and backdrops to some of our  most memorable events.

Daily Prompt: Flow

Today’s prompt was to represent the word flow.  My offering is a photo and a poem.

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You let the words flow as the ink meets the paper

Scribbling a story your heart holds so dear

You’ve crafted the characters and finished your tale

Now you hope and you pray someone else wants to hear

By:  Lisa

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My rant about nude selfies

What you do

The last two daily prompts were to write about the words Object and Legacy, so I thought I’d kill two birds with one stone.

What kind of legacy is this generation leaving to the next when we have “famous” people posting nude selfies on social media which any teenager in this country has access to?  Bodies are treated like mere objects to attract attention.  I am a woman and I want to be treated like a woman; all of me, for all of my attributes; my personality, my sense of humor, my compassion and gifts of love.

The sidebar on Facebook, you know the one that alerts inquiring minds to what is currently “trending” often makes me cringe.  The very word trending implies that these topics are getting the most attention.  Sadly, this reminds me that the reality is, the more immoral and depraved the topic, the more attention it gets.  Of course, I must say in all fairness that it is possible and even likely that much of the attention towards some of it is negative.

Normally, I prefer not to give a second thought to the subjects that evoke negative thoughts, but what I have noticed over the past couple of days has angered me and I can no longer remain silent.  I couldn’t allow fear of the opinions of the “anything goes” crowd to dissuade me.

First and foremost, my number one responsibility as a Christ follower is to pray for the women to whom I allude.  I have and I will continue to.   Instead of calling names and bashing individuals, I would rather talk about the behavior.

With all that said, what compels someone to stand in front of a mirror, nude and take a selfie to be posted to social media for the entire world to see?  Is it vanity, an uncontrollable desire for attention, a publicity stunt?  Maybe it’s a combination of all of those things.  And do others imitate “in support” because they truly care about the first offender, or because they are jumping at the chance for self-promotion or attention as well?

Of course, and I’m speaking generally here, we as a nation are at fault because if we didn’t create the demand, it wouldn’t be supplied.  We watch it, we buy the books and magazines and upload the songs and then wonder why morality is at an all time low.

What does it say about us as a nation and as a generation of women who tolerate and at times agree with such ludicrous behavior?  I think many of us have become fearful to speak out against it because we can rest assured that we will be attacked, deemed judgmental and called fanatical conservatives.

If you really care about other women, why would you help to cultivate a mindset that promotes the belief that we are just sexual objects?  What about the girls, and women who have self-image problems; the ones who don’t have unlimited resources and a personal chef?  You send a message that isn’t realistic or responsible.

Unless we buy more time at a plastic surgeons office, our looks will fade.  We need to focus on the qualities that remain; the qualities that actually increase as we grow in wisdom and experience.  Ask yourself if you are growing in goodness and mercy, in kindness and compassion.  Are you increasing in discernment and empathy?

It’s not just the fact that as a Christian, I see my body as the temple of the Holy Spirit; it’s the fact that as a woman, wife and mother, I want to be a feminine woman of dignity.

Ladies and gentlemen, please stop lining the pockets of people who are sending this type of message to the masses.  Let’s teach our young women to have self-respect and to be women of honor.  We can be part of the solution.  We can help influence this generation of impressionable young woman in a more virtuous direction, a direction that won’t leave them dying (sometimes literally) to fit a standard that isn’t real.

We were created in the image of God and for His glory; now that’s a standard to live up to.

Blessings!

P.S.   This isn’t my typical post and I sincerely hope my words are received as intended; from a woman who is very grieved with the trend towards depravity in society and truly hopes and prays for change.

 

Lessons from a mockingbird

You may have read some of my other posts where I talk about how God always teaches me little lessons or shows me things if I just pay attention to His creation.

My husband and I, now that we are getting older, love to watch the various birds that frequent our back yard.  Since he is a fishing guide, the pelicans follow him home, but his favorite is a little blue heron that comes to visit every afternoon.  If the little guy is fortunate, he gets scraps as the fish get cleaned.

My preference though are the cardinals.  Since they live here year round, I always keep food in their feeder.  There are several pairs that live in the dense mangroves across the creek from us, so you can find them almost any time of day near the feeder in the winter and spring.  In summer, it seems like they are a little more elusive.  I am sure the intense heat has something to do with that.

Recently, I have become acquainted with (the best I can anyway) with a fat little mockingbird.  She sits on our fence or atop the stalks of red berries on our Christmas palm tree.  The photo below only shows one stalk and there are currently four on this tree and two on the tree in our front yard.  My point being, she has plenty.

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She pecks at the berries until one falls to the ground and then she quickly grabs it and runs into a more sheltered area with it.  She constantly watches for other birds and chases mostly black birds and mourning doves away all day long.  They aren’t allowed to land within about a five foot perimeter of “her” tree.  Don’t tell me it isn’t fun to bird watch, although my youngest teases me about the pleasure I derive from my birds.

Anyway, to get to my lesson.  The other day, as you can see in the video above, she had her berry and was enjoying a feast.  If you look closely you can see a cardinal hiding in the bush behind her and a black bird walks by behind it.  The cardinal and the black bird are merely after the bird feeder which is to the left of the greedy little mockingbird.  They do not appear to be remotely interested in her berries and they don’t eat them when she isn’t around.

However, you can see in the video at the very end, she chases them away.  She wastes effort getting stressed, and chasing them away from what is hers.  She covets her berry and thinks everyone wants what she has.  She misinterprets their motive and gets it all wrong.  Can you see the lesson?  Aren’t we like that sometimes?  We think everyone wants what is ours and we get in defensive mode and get our blood pressure up for naught.  And for what?  There were enough berries for everyone and no one else was interested in them anyway.

I love God’s little lessons in nature and I love to watch His glorious creatures living out their roles in His magnificent creation.

 

 

 

Daily Prompt: Contrast

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The Daily Prompt was to write a post in response to the word “contrast”.  Here is my humble offering. (and this isn’t about anyone I know, just made it up)

He could be unpleasant, but she was a dear

How they ended up united remained quite unclear

She was charming and gracious, always polite

He was quiet, and none too appealing by sight

But oh how they loved and no matter the weather

Contrasting characters but together forever

Daily Prompt: Inevitable

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The Daily Prompt was to use the word “inevitable” in a post.

I look at her tiny little body with it’s protruding little belly, the glow of pending motherhood shining on her face.

Wasn’t it just yesterday, I sat in this same living room with her dad in domestic bliss ooing and ahhing over her gymnastic abilities already apparent as my swollen belly jumped and heaved with her somersaults?

In a mere matter of a couple of months, my baby will bring her baby into this world.  My blonde smiling, whimsical cherub will be a mother.

But I guess it was inevitable.

Daily Prompt: Longing

SONY DSCThe Daily Prompt was to write about Longing

Longing implies an intense craving or ache for something or someone.  From a temporal perspective, the most poignant experience I’ve had with longing is for my mother who passed away in 96’.  There have been times especially early on, when I would have given almost anything for her advice one more time, or to hear her call me “sugar”.    I could say the same about many friends and loved ones who are dearly missed.

The second example that I’m familiar with are the times I’ve had the intense longing to see my children.  Both of them moved away after high school.  One of them has since returned and lives nearby, but my eldest is still too many miles away to meet for lunch or just stop by.  As a mother, it’s not even that you just desire their presence, you often long for the way things used to be.  We want them to grow up and become their own person, but at the same time, we want to hold them forever.  It’s an emotional quandary at times.

As the years roll by, another longing becomes apparent to me.  It’s one that I was never too familiar with in my younger days; a longing for the past.  As we grow older in a world that grows more violent and a society that seems to degrade by the minute, we long for simpler times, for peace and for the way things used to be.  We long for the people we miss, a chance to do some things over again and as our thoughts drift to our own mortality, we long to know we have done the best we could do.  For those of us who are Christ followers, we long to see the salvation of others.

However, speaking from a spiritual perspective, the first thing that came to mind when I read the topic for today’s prompt was a C.S. Lewis quote which it one of my favorites.  It says, “If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.”

Although I have experienced longing in this life, there is something deep inside that is never fully satisfied and I know it won’t be this side of heaven.  This is a longing for my heavenly home when God has fulfilled His divine purpose for me on this earth.  It’s His call, in His own timing and I don’t worry myself about it.  I do believe that when I get there, I will never again long for anything.

 

 

Daily Prompt: Divide

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After work today, when I clicked on the Daily post and saw that the Prompt was to write a post using the word Divide, I headed outside.  I wanted to park myself in my chair and enjoy this already spring-like SW FL weather and meditate on the topic and see what transpired…..

In this season of political uncertainty, amidst the myriad major issues facing not just our beloved United States, but the entire world, can we just stop for a minute?

Can we take a moment to remove our focus from the voices telling us the numerous reasons we should be divided and instead remember all that we have in common?  Social media and the news media are ripe with ideas on how to tear each other apart, but who says we have to buy into the hate and the drama?

We are all humans; we have a heart, mind, body and soul, with warm rich blood flowing through our veins.  We all have feelings, even though we may express them differently.  We were all created in the image of God, our Divine Creator.

Let’s love one another.  Who knows what tomorrow will bring?

This may seem a little too maudlin for some, but it’s what’s on my heart.  Peace.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.  I Corinthians 13:4-8
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