Gratitude Series 2018, Day Seven: A Leader or Teacher

I'm grateful for my mentor / leader / friend Kim.  You often hear about the importance of a good mentor, particularly in the professional working world and in Christian circles, but I've found that it's pretty rare for these type of relationships to work well.  It's hard for the relationship to get started in the first place, and it's easy for regular meet ups to get crowded out with the busyness of life.  It's hard to find the person with whom you can be vulnerable about your weaknesses, and who will find the right balance of pushing you to grow but also giving you grace when you fail.  That's why it's such a gift to have someone like Kim in my life.

I am grateful for all the things Kim does to make her mentoring successful.  She hosts a monthly lunch for a group of us where she does all the cooking, she picks a Scripture to memorize and writes study questions to spur us on to growth, she sends out weekly emails related to what we're studying, and then she checks in with all of us individually throughout the month.  She has created a group environment that's both positive and authentic, where everyone supports each other but people don't try to pretend like they don't have struggles.

But more than what she does, I'm grateful for who she is. She is kind, grateful, and sincerely interested in everyone.  She sets her mind on the things above.  The fruits of the spirit, all of them, just flow out of her.  She is someone who has spent decades faithfully immersing herself in spiritual disciplines and it shows in the beauty of her spirit and in the way she touches so many lives in a positive way.  I will be absolutely thrilled if my character and spiritual life and impact on others is even a fraction of what hers is when I'm her age.  I'm so grateful for Kim.

Gratitude Series 2018, Day Six: A Friend

Oh you fancy, huh?

I'm grateful for my friend Katie.  She was willing to befriend me at age 13, when I had just moved from a small town to the capital city and was a gangly, awkward, Pebbles-hair wearing newbie. We originally bonded as teammates on the volleyball team and track team.

But, by our junior and senior years of high school, we (and two other friends) were inseperable.  We spent countless weekend nights cruising around town in my Geo Metro, renting DVDs from Blockbuster, sipping coffee at the Mill, getting into (fairly harmless) shenanigans, and building an impressive repertoire of private jokes.

We went to college in different states, but maintained a friendship through daily e-mails (on any given day, she could tell you what my college cafeteria was serving), visits to each other's campuses, and an annual summer road trip to different Midwestern cities.

As we've transitioned into adulthood, and still never living in the same place, we've been by each other's sides for weddings, had more adventures as we meet up in Lincoln, and remained close through all the big changes of life - job transitions, moves around the country, and becoming parents. 
I'm so very grateful for Katie.  I love our shared adventures, our long history, all the laughs, and her faithfulness as a good friend.  Looking forward to many more decades of friendship!

Gratitude Series 2018, Day Five: A Family Member

Sibling bonding in Cusco, Peru

I'm grateful for my two brothers, Eric and Mitchell.  I had to choose them both at the same time, or the chosen one would lord it over the not chosen one (in the unlikely event that either of them ever reads this blog post).

I'm grateful for Eric because he provides a great foil when Duke beats UNC; because he knows all the inside scoop about Nebraska state politics; because his love of smart cars is unmatched, maybe even by Tesla employees; because I could beat him at basketball until he was a teenager and this memory will forever make me feel athletic; because he is a great dad and it's hilarious to watch him at his daughter's soccer games; and because he's a friend to everyone and i think that's awesome.

I'm grateful for Mitchell because he's always up for a debate on any topic, no matter how ridiculous; because he's endlessly curious, SO smart, and always has a good book recommendation; because he cares deeply about social justice; because he plays a killer version of "Electric Sandman" and all kinds of other fun songs on the guitar; because he's like our own family Carmen San Diego and has given us good excuses to travel around the world; because he does the stereotype of youngest child proud; and because there's no one more fun to exasperate in our family, except maybe me.

I'm grateful for my brothers and the fun and WOO they bring to our family.

Gratitude Series 2018, Day Four: A Form of Movement

I am so grateful for dance, and specifically for this dance, performed by Robert and Alex on "So You Think You Can Dance" to the song "Fix You" by Coldplay.  The choreographer wrote the piece to tell the story of him helping his mom recover from a surgery, and I think it's beautiful on that level alone - one person helping another through a physical trial.

But I see something else when I watch it, something that I don't think was intended by any of the artists involved, so I hope they will forgive me for putting this spin on it.  This is such a beautiful theological picture.  There's two people limping through a broken world together - and then, in the middle, there's this vision of the way they both want things to be:  bodies strong and whole and functioning perfectly, spirits free and joyful, the two relating to each other with grace and ease and unity - and then it goes back to the two limping along together.  I think the middle part shows the perfect picture of what we all long for, and something like how we will be and how we will relate to each other in the new heavens and the new earth.  And the parts at the beginning and the end show the best ways to be in community now - that even though we're broken and life is hard and it can be an awkward struggle to go through trials together, that there's also great beauty in helping your loved ones through their struggles, and leaning on others as you go through a struggle.  That in fact, this is the most beautiful and meaningful part of this life.

I think this dance is profound and I love it and I'm so grateful for it.

Gratitude Series 2018, Day Three: Something Money Can't Buy

Zoey wrote "I love my mom" and drew a pic of my birthday party

 I am grateful for the love of my children.  Parenting stretches me to my absolute limits, but the love from the kids makes parenting the most amazing, beautiful experience. 

Josh shows his love through running to us with big hugs, through sharing his love of his favorite things with us, and through sweet cuddles during story time.  

Zoey is constantly expressing her love exuberantly through songs, words, pictures, hugs, and anything else she can think of.  Giving and receiving love is like her oxygen.  

Ivy shows her love through the way her eyes light up when you walk in the room, through clapping and crawling towards us and pats on the back when you pick her up.  

I am so grateful for these children and all these expressions of love. 

Gratitude Series 2018, Day Two: An Article of Clothing

I am grateful for holiday socks.  They are a cheery, colorful, fun item of clothing that brings me joy during the cold, dark months of November through March. 

Sometimes, holiday socks also remind me of friends.  I had a pair of St. Patrick's Day socks that reminded me of my friend Judy and our trip to Ireland during a Spring Break several years ago, but I loved them so much that I wore holes into them.  I was telling another friend, Susan, that I would have to throw my beloved St. Patrick's Day socks away, and she kindly bought me another pair.  So now I think of her when I wear my new socks, and I also think about how you can bring so much joy to your friends by simply listening to the things that are important to them and then remembering those things when the opportunity comes up to buy a gift or offer an encouraging word.

Gratitude Series 2017, Day One: A Moment of Inspiration

Last year, I started the practice of blogging about something I was thankful for every day during the month of November.  I used the prompts on a 30 day gratitude poster and found this a helpful way to think of some things that I wouldn't normally think of on a gratitude list.  So I'm going to do the same thing this November, using a new list (to the left).  I won't put most of these on Facebook because, let's be honest, I already overpost.  But I would love to have you follow along, and if any of you want to join me, publicly or privately, that would be rad!


To kick things off:  A Moment of Inspiration You're Grateful For

It inspires me whenever a person chooses to go against peer pressure and speak up for what they believe is right.  This can happen in so many contexts - school, the workplace, politics, pretty much anywhere there's a group of people who have formed a subculture with a prescribed way to act.

The specific moment I'm thinking of is when Senator John McCain made his midnight decision to vote against one of the Affordable Care Act repeals.  The Republicans have been attempting to repeal the Affordable Care Act since the last election, and this bill came closer than any of the previous attempts to succeeding.  The vote on this bill was evenly split and any additional Republican who voted against it was going to cost the party the chance to repeal.  For the Republicans, the chance to say that they repealed Obamacare would have been a big political win (and the inability to do so with a Republican majority in Congress and a Republican president is a political defeat).

Like his Republican colleagues, McCain wants to see changes to the ACA, but he felt like this particular repeal was being pushed through in the wrong way.  The bill did not get refined by going through committee, it did not receive a Congressional Budget Office score (giving a good estimate of how much money would be spent or saved with the changes in legislation).  It didn't ensure that people with pre-existing conditions would be protected.  McCain felt there was not enough information, and not assurances that this bill was going to be better than the health care laws already in place.  McCain knew he was costing his party major bragging rights and he probably faced tremendous pressure to vote with the party.  Nevertheless...he persisted :), because he felt like it was the right thing to do.  And I find that to be very inspiring.

Another notable thing about this is that, from reports, Senator McCain didn't lose friends over this decision to act on his conscience, even though it ruined a political opportunity for many of his colleagues.  I think people can put themselves in a position to be the "moment of inspiration" by choosing to act consistently with your values in the thousands of smaller moments leading up to the big moment.  I don't know that much about John McCain, and I'm sure there's "gotcha" moments in his past (like there would be for any of us), but in general I think he has earned respect from his Congressional colleagues by the way he has conducted himself during his long time in office.  That makes it easier to be the maverick, vote your conscience, but not lose all your friendships in the process.  I think this is true in other contexts, too - the more you act with integrity in life, the better positioned you will be to stand up for what's right and have people receive it well.