Thursday Thanks Tank #216

Every week (ideally) I take a little bit of time to intentionally be grateful for the way God is choosing to fill my "thanks tank". I find this simple exercise makes a profund difference in my perspective, regardless of my circumstances. So, here's this week's list:

1. Clever ideas. I am a sucker for people thinking outside the box, and I never cease to be amazed by the cleverness of folks who do so. Here's one I need to employ for my 14-year-old son. (Not really)

2. Wassail. Yes, I know it isn't the Yuletide season yet, but I had a hankering for that delectable beverage a little early. Everyone decided we must buy different spices next time and put them in a muslin bag, but for a spontaneous wassail party -- the final result was delicious. 

3. Goblets. I know they seem kind of mundane to be mentioned, but these

Dollar Tree beauties make every day at my house just a little more special. Plus, I have discovered over my almost 19 years of mothering that the likelihood of breakage in your glassware is in direct proportion to your monetary investment. Hence the fact that all eight of my $1.00 glasses are still intact while the heirlooms I have received over the years have met shattering results on tile floors over and over.

4. Brownies. Oh my word! My Sophie is quite the cook, and she has mastered the art of tweaking recipes and doctoring mixes until what she offers up as finished product is so decadent and so delicious that I find myself nearly swooning in satisfaction. She took this mix from Aldi, added a cream cheese layer and topped the whole thing with semisweet chocolate chips. One word. DIVINE. I may never be the same. She definitely has chef capabilities. Makes me think of this movie.

5.  Art. It's therapeutic. It is cathartic. It brings me joy. I make time for it because it revives me and makes all the boring stuff I have to do each day go a little faster. Inside my little self beats the heart of an artist, and I find staying true to myself refreshing. 

6. Unexpected gifts. My son brought me a flower yesterday. He picked it from our front yard without prompting. That is huge when you are 14. So now the lovely red rose is floating in a bowl. A constant reminder of unprompted thoughtfulness. 

7. Smiling and Waving. Still taking time to spontaneously smile and wave. My favorite from this week came as I waved to the TDOT (Tennessee Department of Transportation) worker on a Bobcat and though he was clueless, the guy on the other side of the street began vigorously waving in response. We both received a happy. Made it totally worth it. Next time, guy on the Bobcat . . . Just wave. You don't know me, but waving is never a bad thing. Hee, hee!

This is far from a complete list, but I have already found my gaze turned upward rather than inward as a result. Try it! If you do, please comment here or link to your own blog post so I can be encouraged as well. Check out more great writing over here.

On His Adventure~

Pam 

Beauty Through My Eyes

On His Adventure~

Pam

A Few of My Favorite Things

I have mentioned a few times how much I love this season. While I do love the ever-present offerings of all things pumpkin, I also have a number of other interests. I am a huge fan of turning leaves, college football, and smelling a fire -- whether it be the bonfire kind or a domesticated variety in a fireplace.  I love Reese's pumpkins, indian corn-- you know, the candy corn with chocolate bottoms (can you still call it that?)

I have made a short list on the photo I posted today, but I thought I would take another quick moment to tell you a few more of my favorites before asking you to chime in and share your own autumn favorites:

• Apple cider -- cold or hot
• Apple pies -- crumb topped or fried
• Apple dumplings (yes, I am a bit obsessed with apples -- but not apple-scented anything)
• Fall mums -- any color
• Piles of crunchy leaves
• Hayrides
• S'mores
• Roasted marshmallows on their own
• Treks through the mountains
• Soups in the slow cooker

So, what are some of the ways you find every day beauty in this autumn season? Find some other great writing over here. Just in case you aren't already, maybe you could leave my bloggy spot singing this song today. Head on over. You know you want to . . .

On His Adventure~

Pam 

Beauty in the Boring

Some days are just boring. I am home without the car today by choice. I cannot leave my home, and I don't really want to leave anyway. I am tired. I am in pain. I am . . . boring.

No one will nominate me for an excitement award today, because the most excitement I've rustled up so far is the scooping of my unruly curls on top of my head into an unstructured mop.

That excitement occurred out of necessity, because my neck feels like a toothpick, and the bundle of curls felt like it weighed 100 + lbs. cascading about that toothpick.

So, how do I manage to find beauty in a day enveloped in grey again? Beginning to feel my last move was to Seattle or somewhere else rainy rather than to East Tennessee. I guess the "Smoky" Mountains should have clued me in, but I seriously don't remember so much cloudiness the last time I lived here. Maybe it's just my perspective, but cloudy days seem to be the norm rather than the exception.

Anyhow . . . I am going to claim beauty in the midst of this dreary, cloud-filled day. Here we go:

• I am with my children. They make me laugh, even if we have to resort to my "Laughter is GOOD Medicine" Pinterest board for chuckles.
• I get to stay home. I love days when I don't have to go anywhere.
• I got dressed anyway. That's a major accomplishment right there, even if the clothes I chose are not beautiful.
• Painting. Painting always makes me smile. I shall go paint something posthaste. Grin.
• Watching mindless television. Cupcake Wars is now on Netflix. Woo Hoo!
• Boiled eggs. The perfect and beautiful snack.
• Autumn glory. Somehow the stunning colors burst on a cloudy background. Yay! See, it's good to have a grey day. Right? Sure.
• Getting laundry done in spite of my desire to head on back to bed. Beautiful. It might be because my laundry room looks like this though:
   
  
  
  So, I am off to enjoy the rest of a boring but beautiful Saturday. Every day has beauty when you're looking for it. Set yours to music, and you can soar above just about any circumstance! Check out the fabulous buffet of good writing here. I know I am.
  
  
  On His Adventure~
  Pam

Clinging to Autumn

I'll readily admit to anyone who takes the time to ask that my favorite season is autumn. I love falling leaves. I enjoy all the fall-related flavors and tastes. Pile on the pumpkin in all its variety of uses. Sweet? I love it. Savory? Give me more of it. 

I love the colors of fall, the smells of fall, the crisp feel of fall on my skin before I run for a jacket or cozy sweater I've not worn since early spring, the tastes and the unforgettable sounds of fall. Yes, the sounds. You know them. The sounds of marching bands and football games, the crunching of those fallen leaves under your feet, the almost musical calls of geese overhead as they cross through our area on their yearly migratory trek further south, the noise of neighbors preparing their flower beds for what is rumored to be a rough coming winter, and the whimsical sounds of festivals and carnivals nearby just drinking in those final comfortable outdoor moments before everyone bundles up and heads indoors for the coldest season of the year. 

Maybe because I am getting older, or maybe because the melancholy part of myself is hovering near the surface pretty often lately, I find myself wanting to press the pause button. I want to put a halt on all things autumn and all the constant change it brings. We have had a couple of nasty rain storms over the past days, and the leaves are falling more rapidly than I find agreeable. So I just want to put the brakes on and hang onto the stunning glory that is fall. Let it last a little longer. I know I have no say in when those trees let loose and drop all their leaves, but if I could stall it for a bit longer -- well, I would. 

In the meantime, I guess I just need to be more intentional in my observation and appreciation of the majestic color show God is putting on for me, knowing His timing is perfect and His desire is to delight me. He is enough in all things. In that truth, I am content to find His beauty in the everyday. For more great writing, head on over here.

On His Adventure~

Pam 

I Don't Feel Like It

What do I do when I just don't feel like making sure I am leaving a trail of beauty wherever I go? 

What do I do when I would rather crawl back under the covers and hide my head from the events of the day, the week, the month, the upcoming year? 

What do I do when the events of the past several years threaten to undo me and the words of Jeremiah seem like my own? (Lamentations 1:16)

I am your classic melancholy personality. It is a conscious effort for me to see the glass half full or overflowing every. Single. Day. I have been told this kind of personality feeds the creative side of my self. The art I produce and the whimsy I dabble in on a regular basis come from the melancholy segment of my soul.

I talk a big game about living life ridiculously and skipping through public places -- and I do those things with great glee some days. Others -- not so much.

At times a dark, heavy cloud overtakes me and smooshes me under it while I claw, gnash my teeth, and gasp for air in order to resurface and reassess my surroundings with a new found admiration for those who endure the depths of despair on a daily basis.

I am comforted by the life of the author and perfecter of faith. He is called a Man of Sorrows. He withdrew  frequently to refresh Himself and to be alone with His Father. My own struggle is eased in knowing He chose to showcase the struggles of His followers all throughout Scripture. 

Lamentations is a whole book about the woes of Jerusalem from Jeremiah's perspective. He wept throughout the telling. Psalms is full of its own lengthy coverage of tears and sadness as David poured his heart out on the page again and again. These prominent figures in our life's manual from our precious Heavenly Father were not unacquainted with grief, with sorrow, and dare I say it? With depression. While each of them also wrote about great joy at knowing God, they also spent plenty of time discussing their deep despair and days where laying on a mat or shaking their fists felt far more freeing than singing another chorus of "Kum Ba Yah".

Beauty and sorrow mingle together. Grey clouds blot out the sun. I am no less a child of God or Princess of the King on days when I cannot see Him through the fog, summon up the strength to praise loudly or sing a happy tune. 

Some days are just like that. 

What I am grateful for on those days is His assurance that envelops me and gives me courage to keep close to Him in the midst of my darkest thoughts. I know His words, and most times I can cling to them in spite of the feelings that threaten to pitch me to a place of abandonment or thinking I am forsaken.

If you ever struggle to see the beauty in the midst of dark days, I encourage you to try to do what the verse on the photo says. Be still. I can't guarantee anything as a result, but I can with all confidence tell you the rest of that verse is as true as anything God has told us . . . He will assuredly fight for us. That brings me comfort. 

If this post has left you wanting . . . Go here.

On His Adventure through it all~

Pam

Beauty Through My Eyes

So loving everything autumn! Though the past couple of days have just left me shivering with the drastic dip in temperatures, I still love the ever-changing palette of color and beauty that accompanies this, my favorite season.

What's your favorite fall activity for a Sunday afternoon? I am heading for a hot beverage, an extra cozy blanket and an obligatory nap ( not really though . . . no one need force me to lay down!) see y'all later! I'm off to snooze and maybe watch some stuff on the Roku with the fam.

On His Adventure~
Pam

Beauty in Spite of Fear

I am afraid.

There. I said it.

I said it specifically to counteract the quote you see here by Mr. Jones. I am braver by far in admitting to my fear. Then it has far less power over me. Fear in the dark is much bigger fear and incapable of being overcome alone.

Left to my natural state, I can spend every waking moment and many of the night time ones afraid. Without the truth of God's Word, the support of my friends and family, and victories to recall -- I am afraid.

Viewing circumstances beyond my control, putting aside bills I have no way of paying, and dealing with pain that changes each day and yet is ever present -- and I am afraid.

Yet the Lord does not leave me there, and He doesn't want you there either. He addresses the topic of fear at least 365 times in His Word, and He offers you application after application in how to overcome and find beauty in the victory over your fears.

Let me offer you one nugget today. My life verse shows up here in the  image to the right. What I find to be empowering is that I am not left alone in my fear. I have help from the One who created me. He upholds me. He gives me strength. So, Mr. Jones, while the above quote looks fabulous on my colored pencil background, your sentiment does nothing but leave me alone to fight my fear. I am sticking with the one that will carry me through the difficulty and enable me to stand at the end of it.

May the truth encourage and strengthen you today as well. The beauty in it is unmistakeable.

On His Adventure~

Pam

Beauty Through My Eyes

“She had a lively, playful disposition that delighted in anything ridiculous.”
― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

Ridiulously Silly

I mentioned yesterday how I have chosen to start each day with the intention of making it ridiculous -- or at least to the level of crazy that I can get away with and still have a family who will talk to me as well as accompany me out in public.

Overall, my philosophy consists of this:

• Live life ridiculously. We only get once chance to make the most of every day.
• Leave a trail of beauty/fun/merriment and whimsy everywhere you go, because so many people are way too serious, and it is way easier to be joy-filled than growly anyway.
• Why not be the best interaction someone's had all day rather than add to the burdens they already carry?

Can I tell you some of the benefits from adopting this kind of attitude? First off, it gets my mind off myself. I am looking for opportunities to brighten someone else's day, bring joy if even for only a moment, and see how I can love people like Jesus does.

Secondly, it makes me less conscious of how others see me. It loosens my inhibitions in a good way. People respond to kindness in one common and fairly predictable fashion -- with more kindness. Sure, not everyone is about being smiled and waved at by someone they don't know. I had one person yesterday who just averted their eyes at my friendliness.

Just one.

Everyone else I initiated with responded with a big smile and a wave back. Today I brought a smile to the face of a poor guy who was riding in the back of a pickup truck. His wave was vigorous, I must say!

People may think I am someone they know, but guess what? If they drive away bumfuzzled at my open, genuine expression of joy at living and kindness toward them -- another person sharing this big world -- I figure that can't be a bad thing. They were noticed. They experienced joy for a second in what may have been an otherwise humdrum or plain, old burden-filled day.

I am the first person to say how life gets in the way of building connections with others. I am naturally an introvert. I can go days without interacting with anyone but my own children and not really miss being in touch with anyone else. Yet, after moving around as much as we have in the past few years, I know what it feels like to be invisible. I know what it feels like to be ignored, overlooked and left out by those I thought were heart friends, family, and people in the Christian community in general.

I am only one person, but I know I can make a difference. I can reach out through my silliness and through putting my own fears and worries aside and take notice of the people who cross my path each day -- sometimes for only a second. It's not all that hard, and the burst of joy I find in the ridiculousness of it all makes up for any uncertainty that breezes through my little head occasionally.

How about you? Can you embrace the ridiculous and take a chance at making someone's day? What are ways you can leave a trail of beauty in the place you've been planted?

On His Adventure~
Pam

Living Life Ridiculously 101

I've come to a delightful realization with each passing year. As I near my next birthday in November, my resolve to live each day with a joy bordering on a manageable level of the ridiculous is woven into every one of them.

What am I talking about here? Let's work with the short list today:

• Smiling at everyone, regardless of whether they smile back. Today I did this on the commute to my husband's place of work. The guy I grinned and waved at vigorously on the interstate reciprocated immediately with a vigorous wave and a silly grin, too. (The wave needs to be vigorous, or you might be mistaken for some other offensive hand gesture.)
• Skipping. While pushing my buggy at the grocery, or at Target, or anywhere that provides me with wheels to get where I'm going faster, I choose to skip. Yes, people chuckle as I skip by. Yes, my teenagers are occasionally averting their eyes and attempting to disassociate themselves from me.  No one has told me to stop skipping and genuine smiles have been more common than ridicule.
• Greeting people warmly. I know this seems like a less than ridiculous proposition, but you'd be surprised at how many people are caught off guard by this simple gesture.
• Singing loud for all to hear. Hmm . . . this list is beginning to sound like a list from one of my favorite Christmas movies, isn't it? I find singing to be a way to dispel the foulest of moods, and I guarantee if you sing with any sort of gusto and sincerity about you that people either join in or at the very least, chuckle in amusement.

• Dance like no one's looking. Yes, I have been known to don my Tiffany Blue Chuck's and dance right out of the convenience store while singing to Pharrell's "Happy" at the top of my lungs.

Sooo . . . if this ridiculous behavior hasn't completely put you off and made you want to run for the hills away from my blog, please click on the "Happy"link and do a little dance in my honor.  I know I'm going to . . . and I've discovered this song is quite the workout for a gal in my current physical condition. Stay tuned for more ways to live ridiculously and love it!

Leaving a trail of beauty~

Pam

Why Leave A Trail of Beauty?

Imago dei = The Image of God (Hebrew: צֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים; tzelem elohim, lit. "image of God", "image of the Holy Spirit", often appearing in Latinas Imago Dei) is a real image, concept and theological doctrine in Christianity, Judaism[1] and Sufi Islam,[2][3] which asserts that human beings are created in God's image and therefore have inherent value independent of their utility or function.


We are created in the image of God, regardless of what we do or don't do to further the beauty He has inherently created within us. All of creation bears His indelible stamp. All of creation exudes beauty simply by existing. I listened to the birds chirping this morning (actually it was more like the honking of geese this particular morning. Lots of geese heading South, I'm guessing). But I digress .

Their songs are not sung because of a desire to be heard, admired or applauded. They sing because they were created. They can't help it. They make a joyful noise because they must give expression in the only way provided for them.


We who are created in the very image of God have a choice. We can choose to reflect His image in a beautiful way or not. Yet, in our humanity we may determine certain behaviors and presentations more or less beautiful than others, our simple existence demands we reflect Him. We can't help it. We are in His image. We reflect Him.


How much more powerful could we reflect that image of God if we looked at every single day as an opportunity to leave a trail of beauty? Simply put, we are beautiful to Him. He created us. We leave beauty behind when we are being all He created us to be. We can't help but be beautiful when we see ourselves through His eyes.


On His Beauty-full Adventure~
Pam

Autumn and Gluten Free Treats

Just hanging around today enjoying the autumn breezes flowing through my open windows. Can anybody say "free weather"? Love that kind of day!

Afternoon crept up on me, but it clearly whispered "tea time" in my ear, especially when it totally coincided with my girl baking Gluten Free shortbread cookies to complete my heart's desire for Pumpkin spice and something sweet.

Now I have mentioned eating Gluten Free, and my 18-year-old daughter has ventured into blogging to share all she's learned in her time of eating that way as well.

I've been eating gluten free for about five years now. I don't have an official celiac disease diagnosis, but my gluten intolerance is quite high. So I operate my life and eating habits very much as if I were celiac. It actually makes choosing what to eat easier rather than more difficult for me personally.

Though eating gluten free has not always been a walk in the park, I have found the benefits far outweigh any challenges I face. Add to that the number of new players who have joined the game, so to speak, and my life of eating gluten free has taken on a new beauty its not seen before. Olivia mentioned Aldi USA here, and I will be giving my take on that wonderful grocery in a future post.

Until then, I am going to go make a second cup of this fabulous and perfectly appropriate tea for the first day of Autumn from these fine folks.

Leave your own trail of beauty!

On His Adventure~
Pam

One Step at a Time

Leaving a trail of beauty takes intention. It is a daily choice to make a positive difference. I want to choose to remember the quote below, especially on days when I feel like life is much more of an uphill climb than the photo would indicate. 

"Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."
Lao Tzu  

I'll be back tomorrow with some specifics regarding my gluten free journey and how it has helped me to change my perspective on the beauty I can find in life.

On His Adventure~
Pam