Missing In Action

Are you missing in action? I’m not talking about the military kind of MIA but the life MIA. Are you really present in your life?

I know some days I’m not. It is easy to get caught up in the past. Especially with problems or concerns that weigh heavily on our minds. All the “what if’s” start going round in my head. What if I had made a different choice in life and went to college or went further in college. What if I had married someone else? What if I hadn’t smoked that first cigarette or the taken the first drink. We can spend a lot of time mulling over the “what if’s” in life if we aren’t careful.

Then there times in life we worry about the future so much that we become scared to take a chance on what might be. Should we take the new job, go on the date or make the move and uproot our family. The future is always unknown.

Some people are born risk takers and it appears that they move through life without much worry or confusion. Some take a very long time to make decisions using various methods of contemplating all possible angles and what the outcomes may be.

It doesn’t matter which type of person you may be, either way life changes and we need to be in the present to embrace it or at least hold on tight while it happens.

I think of the young mom’s in particular. There is so much to do daily with little ones and school age children that sometimes we just go through the motions of washing, cleaning, feeding, kissing boo boo’s, changing diapers, and keeping the house pulled together that at the end of the day we wonder what happened.

There was an article on Facebook not too long ago about you only get 18 summers with your child, how will you spend those summers? It was very interesting and made me think I had failed in a few areas. However, I told myself that we all are doing only what we can do with what we are given in life.

I urge you to really be present during your daily activities. Especially when they come to being with God and your family. Know that God is with you throughout your day in everything you do. He knows your heart and understands. Take time to enjoy your life, even the laundry and the dishes.

My dryer just beeped, I must go.

Praise God for my washer and dryer and the clothes in it. 

May God Bless.

Awards Day

This week I had the privilege of attending 5 award ceremonies for my grandchildren. I clapped the hardest and loudest when their names were announced as they walked across the stage to receive their awards. Each one of them deserved every award they were given, at least in my eyes.

I wondered if they had Awards Day when I was in elementary school. I don’t remember, but then that was a long time ago. My daughters really couldn’t remember if they had Awards Day either when they were that young.

Awards Day – a time set aside by all involved to gather and honor a child for doing something extraordinary. (My definition)

Let me tell you what I saw at Awards Day. Children that were excited to hear their names called and walk across the stage, receive a pin, certificate, and ribbon with a medallion and hug their teacher and principle. Parents scampering about to take numerous pictures of their prince or princes. Cute songs being sung and slide show presentations of the years activities. The shortest ceremony was 1 ½ hours and the longest was 2 ½ hours. The average was 20 children per class and nearly all had 6 classes. We clapped for each and every one of those precious children. 

Along with the angelic children were the teachers and principles that seemed to think they were on a live TV talent show. The jokes, the tears in the last goodbyes, and one principle even sang for the audience.

Not taking into consideration the fact that elementary schools don’t have seats in their auditoriums, you just sit on the floor that was built in amphitheater style.

Precious, just downright precious.

So now I have blisters on my hands from clapping for all these angels but my rear is now 2 inches wider from sitting on a hard floor for all those hours. My back aches and I will never get some of those songs out of my head.

This brings me to think about the awards I have gotten in the past. I have some ribbons for 2nd place in the Alaska State Fair for my jams and jellies and one for canned stuffed cabbage leaves. The woman that took first place stuffed her cabbage leaves with moose, I used plain ground beef. Show off! Some awards for working for 5 years at the same company and a few others along my career. Most of them are in a box somewhere in the attic.

Awards, accolades and trophies – oh my! The things we put our energy into to win that prize at the end. 

Speaking of the end. What is your reward going to be in the end? The end of your life here on earth. Are you going to be buried with those awards, accolades and trophies? Then what?

How about putting some effort into the end of our eternal life. How hard are we working towards that goal? Do I study my Bible so I can know all that God wants me to know about Him and His Son? Am I doing anything extraordinary to reach the goal of living eternity in Heaven?

I have nothing against awards even if they are kind of meaningless. I loved every moment of each of the ceremonies I attended. However, it did make me think about the real reward in life.

How about you?