Wordless Wednesday - New Year Promises

 

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Monday Musings – Grace That Doesn’t Roll Its Eyes

 

I’ve discovered my superpower; it’s the ability to turn a simple task into a climb up Mount Kilimanjaro. I’m not a climber, a marathon runner, nor a hiker. You may see me break into the occasional jog, but that will be due to me running from something.

A bumble bee, yellow jacket, or hornet, waiting to sink its tarsal claws into a blemish free area on my body can throw me into a fight or flight motion. And that would be the first sign of my lack of grace in the physical sense.

A friend asked me to speak at their church. I accepted the assignment, confident that I could manage the task. All I had to do was speak for 12-15 minutes. However, as the date drew nearer, I had a lot of questions. Am I the only person speaking? Is there a theme? Who is my audience?

The church was a different denomination than the church I attend, I began to wonder – what version of the Bible do they use? Do they refer to Jesus as Christ, Lord? Do they make reference to God, the Mother Mary, or the Holy Trinity? By this point I’m going on my figurative journey up Kilimanjaro without hiking boots. I dove into my meditation training with a mantra, deep breaths Ang, you can do this.

My saving grace (pun intended) was that I would use humor in my talk. The only guidelines my friend gave me were – “it’s not stand-up comedy, but feel free to share stories. You can use scriptures or include a hymn, but you don’t have to.”

A hymn!? No way, I was not going to let my secret out during a first encounter. I reserve my off-key shower singing voice for the folks at my church who roll their eyes in love each time I open my mouth to sing. Eye rolling, I had come up with a way to tie in humor the topic of my talk. This blossomed into the title – Grace that doesn’t role its eyes.

God’s grace does not role its eyes at the many crazy situations we find ourselves in or the pleas we make when feeling desperate. Grace, undeserving favor that God gives us, is a gift. I am so glad to have that favor because I need it in all situations.

As I  enter the intimate setting of the church space where I was speaking, I was greeted with hugs by some of the parishioners. One of them said, “Are you the minister for the day?”

In my thought bubble I said, ooo is that what I’m doing? With a bright smile I said, “I guess so.”

The woman pointed to a high back chair up front that had a red velvet back and cushion. She said, “You can sit up there.”

In my self-talk I said, Jesus take the wheel, this is a larger role than I thought I was doing.

I prayed, took a few deep breaths, relaxed, and presented my message. God’s grace came to the rescue again. This situation that I turned into a climb up Kilimanjaro, went well.

After the church service, there was one final episode where God could have rolled his eyes. The friend who invited me to their church asked me to sign the guest book, which was on a table at the back of the room. I began to sign my name, then noticed that the title across the top of the sheet read, Potluck.

I rolled my eyes in exasperation and mumbled to myself, I think it’s time to go home. But I didn’t. I chatted with the parishioners, gave final goodbyes then went home to decompress.

Fun Friday – Turkey, Tinsel, and Total Chaos – My Family’s Christmas Dinner Adventures

 

Ah, the Christmas season – twinkle lights, scented pinecones, and family gatherings. This is my favorite time of year – sitting quietly at home, watching the colorful lights on my Christmas tree, sipping a warm beverage, and listening to the soulful sounds of the Temptations Christmas. Suddenly, I’m snatched/jerked from that relaxing state and begin to dash around the house in preparation for a visit from family.

At my family Christmas gatherings there is often turkey, tinsel, and total chaos. The turkey was juicy, my aunt and uncle gobbled it up right away (they were also the ones who cooked it). The tinsel was decoratively thrown into one section of my Christmas tree, thanks to my younger niece and nephews who wanted to help. This was the foundation that our chaotic meal was built upon.

Here's how our afternoon unfolded:

Sibling Shenanigans

Do you remember running around your yard or the school gym, playing tag with your friends? Well, that was the scene of my living room and dining room on that frigid Saturday afternoon of our family dinner. The younger kids were running from room to room chasing each other. They were snagging candy canes from the Christmas tree and grabbing Hershey’s kisses from a candy dish.

Every family member joined in the fun. My brother and I have this thing we do that stems from a cartoon from the 1970’s called Super Friends. We like to imitate the Wonder Twins; We bump fists with each other and say, “Wonder Twins, activate.” We are not twins, nor can we transform into anything, but it was a good excuse to be silly.

Holiday Karaoke

Our version of holiday karaoke was a finish the lyrics activity. As I was planning this activity, I shared it with my mom and she said, “We’re going to have to write things down, are we back in school?” So, I tweaked the activity a little to make it more fun and less like work.

Each team had to complete the lyrics to the songs listed on their sheets (all had the same songs). My adult niece was the most competitive. She and her family completed the sheet, then rushed over to hand it to me. She said, “I’ll put my name on my sheet, so you can identify the winner easily.”

 I smiled and handed it back to her saying, “the game is not over yet,”

To be crowned the winner, the team had to sing their answers…and boy, did they sing…off-key, loudly, and with animation. Yes, Team Norma was the winner.

Below are a couple of the songs we used, see if you can finish the lyrics:

1.      I’m dreaming of a white Christmas…

2.      Dashing through the snow…

3.      Rudolph the Red nose reindeer….

Did you just sing the lyrics to each one of those songs? It’s okay, it’s hard not to.

Photo Fiasco

You can’t have a holiday gathering without having proof that you survived the chaos. Well, you could, but where’s the fun is that? There was no need to stress over striking the perfect pose with our crew. They posed, and I continuously clicked the photo button. I like to use the phrase one of the kids in my Sunday school class once said, “you get what you get, and don’t have a fit.”

And that was the simple philosophy I used when planning this year’s gathering, “you get what you get, and don’t have a fit.” I had to remind myself not to stress over trying to make my house perfect for my guests; it was clean and welcoming. Our purpose was to come together for fellowship and fun.

Wishing you and your family a season filled with joy and a prosperous new year.