Perspective

A dandelion looked scornfully down

at a small green blade of grass.

"I'm glad I'm tall and beautiful", said she.

And she lifted her sunny face to the sky and saw a tall pine tree.

(I found this picture online)

A little wisdom from Winnie the Pooh

There is so much in some of these books. I've said this before and I'll keep on saying it....all wisdom doesn't have to come from some PhDer or ancient philosopher. It can come from the quiet observation of simple children's books authors. Like A. A. Milne and the immortal Pooh Bear.

Here are some of my favorite quotes. They seem simple at first, but if you Really look at them (that would be a Pooh ism) you can see some profound wisdom.

"A little Consideration, little Thought for Others makes all the difference."

"Don't underestimate the value of doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering."

"If the person you are talking to doesn't appear to be listening, be patient. It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear."

"You can't help respecting people who can spell TUESDAY, even if he doesn't spell it right; but spelling isn't everything. There are days when spelling TUESDAY simply doesn't count"

"You can't stay in your corner of the forest, waiting for others to come to you; you have to go to them sometimes."

After being made a faithful knight of Christopher Robin, Pooh has these thoughts...." Christopher Robin won't tell me any more", and he wondered if being a Faithful Knight meant that you just went on being faithful without being told things."

from The House At Pooh Corner and Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne

RH stands for Round House!

Round House is a week long camp for home school families in the church of Christ. We meet in North Carolina, in the beautiful Smokey Mountains. It's a blessing in so many ways!

Here is a short list of loves that come to mind.....

• The fellowship of like-minded Christians
• The beauty of God's creation
• Renewing old friendships
• Making new friends
• Seeing God's providential hand in so many areas.

We leave Friday!! See you later!

A little thought from J.R.R. Tolkien

The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with eager feet,

Until it joins some larger way

Where many paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say.

I really like this. It can say so much sometimes.

Home again, home again, jiggity jig!!

My last post was about the first hint of fall....it's just delicious how it's feeling more and more like fall! At least for me....I've worn my yummy old hoodie twice already! I love this time of year...the old summer is bowing out gracefully, autumn isn't coming to fast...just that fascinating time of year. Mmmm!

My family and I just got back from an eleven day trip through the old south....We started out by attending Polishing the Pulpit in Sevierville, TN. And I could stop right there and that would be enough. There is so much encouragement to be gained by attending such a powerful lectureship. Listening to the lessons, meeting new people, catching up with old friends....seeing 2000 Christians all in one place just lifts the soul! My life is incredible blessed by the time spent there. :)

And then we spend most of a day at the Chickamauga Civil War park in Chattanooga, TN. Now that was fun! Our family outings almost always include a picnic and this one was particularly nice! Picture all nine of us crammed around a picnic table...with lots of "pass the mustard please" and "Are there any more tomatoes?" "Please pass the pepper" etc. :D So then on to the park! We saw lots of neat sites, climbed a very tall tower, marched down to a bridge, took pictures and generally had a lovely time together!

We spent the weekend with the Madaris family and they're always a joy to be with! We worshipped with them Sunday morning and then drove up Mississippi and worshipped with the brethren at Second Street church of Christ near Red Bay, AL. What a wonderful day! Plus spending the evening with two more lovely families...what a refreshing time! But then it was time to say goodbye and drive home. I loved driving up from Fort Smith...that's always so beautiful, no matter the time of year! When we got in, my bed said quite distinctly, "I missed you!" ;) I'm kidding....

It's just good to be home. :) I'm thankful for the safe trip and all the good times we had.

"Oh look everyone!!......

The sumac is turning red!!"

I love the first splash of color.....

It's exciting to see the beginnings of a new season!!

And I love fall....:) (Shh...don't say anything, but I say that about every season!)

Summer isn't over, but the color in all the dry and brown is refreshing. Isn't God wonderful like that?

Children's Books for Grownups

You know, there is a lot grown up people can learn from children's books. Me, I love books. I especially love to re-read books. Even children's books. There are a few I go back to over and over again- they are favorites, plus they have a huge message.

All of these have very important life lessons. (Ok, the one about the strawberry is just fun, and I love it and I'm going to use it to teach my little ones adjectives!) But the other four have more of a message that can influence our way of thinking as adults. The main focus is perspective- how we look at life.

Have you ever read this book? It's by Marjorie Priceman.

It's really cute....it's about a little girl who is going to bake an apple pie, but the market is closed! Well, she certainly could just wait till the little market man get's back from fishing, but she has another option....she could just get her wheat from Italy, eggs from France, Cinnamon from Sri Lanka, milk from England, sugar from Jamaica, and apples from Vermont. So, she does!! And she's haunted me ever since....

The art work is very lovely- I'm not really very savvy on art stuff but, I like it! It's so neat and interesting to study! And the flow of the story is easy, and the whole thought behind it brilliant. But that's not the point.

The point that always gets me is that we can see the world everywhere we go. We don't have to go far away; it's neat, it's nice, it's an adventure when we do, but the real adventure is whatever we make it to be. It's about seizing those moments, make them teachable, whether it be to yourself or your children! Don't make life for yourself ho hum, be smart, be clever and see the beauty and sense of humor wherever you go.

So this book makes me think about how I'm seeing the world, if I'm actually seeing it or if I'm just kinda going along. You know, wishing I could see more, or complaining of my view when all I have to do is just live my life and SEE the world.