One thing that I have really been reminded of since seeing clients in the clinic here and working at the YMCA especially since both of those tend to serve a lower income population here in Abilene is how blessed I am. Not just physically, but spiritually, mentally, emotionally, educationally, etc. I sponsor a child in the Dominican Republic through Compassion International named Minouche. Basically I write her about once a month encouraging her and she writes me back and then I contribute a very small amount of money to her project so to speak for her schooling and clothes etc. I think I have sponsored her for 4 or 5 years now. Anyway, this year I decided I would send her a little extra money, a very little extra money for her birthday. $499.05 in fact in Domincan Currency which sounds like a lot but believe me in the US money was not that much. Anyway, I had hoped that she would be able to splurge and by herself something special. This is the latest letter I received from her, " I pray you and your whole family are doing well. I feel very happy to write back to you and thank you for the $499.05, my mom will buy me milk, chocalate, oats, eggs, and some other things......"
I racked my brain unsuccessfully to try to remember the last time I asked my mom to buy me milk or eggs for my birthday or for that matter chocalate. Now maybe I EXPECTED a chocalate cake but....
Anyway it made me think that even though I think I'm a poor college student I don't wander where my next meal will come from (for that matter have never wandered where my next meal will come from as you can probably tell), I don't wander if I'm going to be able to run my AC if I get too hot, I don't wander if I can take a shower or if the water has been cut off, I don't worry about having to figure out how I'm going to go somewhere I just hop in the car and go even at 3 complaining all the while bucks a gallon. I have clients that have to worry about these things. Beyond these things I have emotional blessings. I have friends that will listen to my ranting and raving, I have spiritual blessings, I have the ability and means to go to a Private college and get a Masters degree. I can go on and on. But I still complain and fuss and want more and wish I could afford this or that. Hmmm maybe we should have everything stripped away from us every once in a while to truly appreciate our blessings. I assigned a client of mine homework once for a week to write down 3 specific blessings everyday. Maybe I should assign myself that homework!!!
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Seeking Input
Ok I have a question for you all that I want input on. I've been trying to decide if I should blog my thoughts and get take the chance they might influence any of your input that you are so kind to offer or if I should get your viewpoints and then write about mind. Maybe just a little bit now; basically I've been thinking alot the past year but especially this summer and especially the past several weeks about self-esteem and our worth and our worth because of a relationship with God and here is basically the statement I want input on:
"You are not worthy you are so unworthy but you are worth it to God"
Ok I can't stop so we'll continue. Now this statement has been BIG to me lately and has rung so true and I believe it. In fact I've come to the conclusion that perhaps this would be a better teaching to today's youth that the societal self-esteem and confidence that are often pushed their way that seems to throw so many expectations at them that they are trapped without any way out and no more self-confidence than when they started. However, without divulging a lot I had a client somewhat challenge this. Basically the questions that has brought up to me is basically a long the lines of 1) Are we born unworthy - now I personally think we are born perfect and make decisions to stray away. 2) Why would a loving God that wants a relationship with us give us the right to make these decisions then. Why even have a tree that we can't touch; he made us right? then why it seems purposely throw something at mankind that will be tempting, 3) Are we really not worthy? or are we just sinners? Therefore does the sin make us unworthy and then back to number 2; 4) How does this cross thing really make since anyway. I mean this loving God makes us, then allows us to be tempted, then comes and rescues us threw this cruel unhumane way that well if everything is from God is this from God? and I'm sure there are a lot more but we'll stop there before my mind blows.
Now I want to put in a disclaimer here. Before you all go worrying about me while these questions are going through my head and I'm thinking through them I haven't gone off the deep end. I think a lot of this is where faith comes in but I'd like to get your viewpoint as well. To prevent long posts you may not want the whole world to read feel free to email me at rls06k@acu.edu (that is a zero not the letter O)
I'd appreciate any thoughts.
"You are not worthy you are so unworthy but you are worth it to God"
Ok I can't stop so we'll continue. Now this statement has been BIG to me lately and has rung so true and I believe it. In fact I've come to the conclusion that perhaps this would be a better teaching to today's youth that the societal self-esteem and confidence that are often pushed their way that seems to throw so many expectations at them that they are trapped without any way out and no more self-confidence than when they started. However, without divulging a lot I had a client somewhat challenge this. Basically the questions that has brought up to me is basically a long the lines of 1) Are we born unworthy - now I personally think we are born perfect and make decisions to stray away. 2) Why would a loving God that wants a relationship with us give us the right to make these decisions then. Why even have a tree that we can't touch; he made us right? then why it seems purposely throw something at mankind that will be tempting, 3) Are we really not worthy? or are we just sinners? Therefore does the sin make us unworthy and then back to number 2; 4) How does this cross thing really make since anyway. I mean this loving God makes us, then allows us to be tempted, then comes and rescues us threw this cruel unhumane way that well if everything is from God is this from God? and I'm sure there are a lot more but we'll stop there before my mind blows.
Now I want to put in a disclaimer here. Before you all go worrying about me while these questions are going through my head and I'm thinking through them I haven't gone off the deep end. I think a lot of this is where faith comes in but I'd like to get your viewpoint as well. To prevent long posts you may not want the whole world to read feel free to email me at rls06k@acu.edu (that is a zero not the letter O)
I'd appreciate any thoughts.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
An official 2nd Year
Its official as of 7:30 last night when the MFT class of 2007 walked across the stage at graduation (believe me I love those people but not enough to attend their graduation if I go to mine that will be a miracle!!!) I became a 2nd Year. Here is a picture of that class of hoodlums oh sorry therapists. To most of you all reading this these are just a bunch of faces of students posing for a class picture but to me these are dear friends that I've cherished getting to know over the past year. I've been trying to ignore it and just go on with life this past week but I'm gonna miss these fools especially my two awesome clinic co therapists and my YMCA co therapist and a certain GA that had her own room as well as the others I came to know well this past spring. They were fun loving and sarcastic and you all know that is right up my alley but they also cared about me becoming a good therapist and about people and it was awesome to get to know them. Now my class is in charge so to speak and maybe that is scary and maybe its not but I'm ready (I think!!!). I'm sure I'll have highs and lows of confidence but I'm ready to take over the reigns and give to these first years coming in what this class gave to me. I guess it really sunk in this morning as I took one of my co fools to the airport and one just brought me the key to the GA office. Its amazing and yet wierd to think in just one more year and I'm gonna be walking across that stage wandering where these two years that sometimes seem to crawl by have gone to....
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Plagues of Crickets
About this time last summer as I was moving to Abilene and their were dead crickets all over our house and garage and frankly if I really think back all over Abilene I was chalking it all up to how dry it was last year and that is was an unusual fluke and I would never see these masses of crickets again. Well I want to believe it is a fluke again this year because of the vast amount of rain we have seen but I have a feeling that really the Plagues of Crickets is an annual event here. And believe me when I say plague well lets just say if this is half as bad as what hit the Egyptians I would have let those people go in two seconds!!!! Let me try to describe this to you but seriously I don't think you can understand unless you experience it firsthand. For instance you walk into your garage in the morning and there are about 15 dead crickets added to the 15 that you were too tired to sweep out the night before and this is after you had swept them out the morning before. You walk up the steps to the clinic and the normally concrete colored stairs are black from dead crickets and you hop and skip, not to prevent further squashing of the dead ones but to hope that a live one does not jump on top of your feet. And then there is the smell I can't even begin to find the right words to describe that. Maybe a mixture of dead fish left on top of a hot car engine and baby poop. Luckily between the professional exterminator and the Rebekah home remedy of extermination by spraying bottle of bug killer around the house so far we have managed to keep the crickets out of the house (not so for the spiders or roly polys but...). Although the newest rumor I've heard is that the crickets lay eggs and something about the rain causes them to hatch so I can't wait until the baby crickets start running around and they may can squeeze between the cracks in the doors the big crickets can't get in. Oh yes and one thing I forgot to mention is the cricket lullabyes that rock me to sleep everynight and wake me up in the morning with their version of RISE AND SHINE AND LISTEN TO MY ANNOYING CHIRPING SOME MORE. Seriously they either take shifts to keep the whole world awake or only require like two hours of sleep. Good thing I'm not allergic to these critters but this is just one more reason to not put up residence in good ole Abilene!!!!
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