Through Stained Glass: A Mid-Week Reflection-Shaking

Shaking

We wanted to enjoy the above freezing weather. It was a beautiful night for a walk. Already I had seen a few people walking down the lovely boulevard and heard the neighbor kids across the street yelling in delight as they played a game of soccer.

To get in on the fun happening outside, I whistled for the pups, headed to the garage, retrieved their leashes off the hook outside the back door, which sent Chloe into what could have easily be mistaken as cirque du soleil routine.

Once I was able to get Chloe to calm down and cornered Silas long enough to strap his gentle leader around his white muzzle, off we went, down Lincoln Avenue towards Kickapoo St. It was after 5pm and Keokuk was like Michigan Avenue on a Friday night, a hot mess full of racing cars and hollering trains. Essentially, the perfect storm for a skittish dog like my sweet Chloe. As you can imagine, with every squeaking break and rattling wheel Chloe’s enthusiasm for the walk decreased and her anxiety wen up like gas prices on a holiday weekend.

Thankfully the most arduous leg of the walk wasn’t the longest. Once we got to Kickapoo Street, I could finally exhale for there was more than 12 inches between a moving vehicle and our small pack. Indeed, a sign of relief for Chloe.

Or so I thought.

As we may our way down Kickapoo Street, the traffic lessened and the dogs more relaxed:  Silas sniffing every tree and Chloe biting at his legs. Once again we had found our pace.

When we arrived at the intersection of Kickapoo and Pekin, we waited our turn to cross the street. Chloe took note of the 3 cars patiently awaiting our safe arrival to the other side. With a gentle nudge on the leash to release her hesitation, she picked up her pace, Silas maintained his, and I high stepped up the towering steps. We made it across safely to the empty sidewalk.

That is when it happened. That is when the worst fear of a dog owner occurred. As we got to Abe’s, the wind picked up causing the awning overhead to rattle and pop. Chloe got startled and pulled in the direction of the street.

“Shhhlink”

My heart sank as I heard the buckle on her collar break. In the middle of rush hour in small town USA, Chloe was in the middle of the street confused and scared.

Patiently but with terror in my veins, Silas and I jumped off the elevated sidewalk and we began making our way to her. She was between sitting and standing, tail tucked between her legs, ears back, and a look of fear that troubled my heart. As she straddled the two-lane street, a car arrived at the stop sign just a few hundred feet in front of us.

With one eye on Chloe and the other on the oncoming car, I began to offer a prayer, hoping the car would see my frightened friend.

“It’s okay sweet Chloe.” I said over and over. By the time I was on all fours making my way to Chloe, Silas joined me, sitting as solid as a rock, with his full attention on his kid sister. Together we wanted badly to rescue her, to bring her back to safety, and to replace that terrified look with one of her classic goofy smiles.

As she got closer the wind blew making the awning scream loud once more. The 2 steps Chloe took in our direction were undone as she went back 3. By now the one car had stopped but another one was on its way, this time coming from the direction of By the Bean.

“Come here, sweet girl. It is okay. We’ll go home,” I said with a frog in my throat, shaking in fear, trying to be calm so I could coax my golden girl back to us.

Finally, with traffic stopped and me on my knees in the middle of the street, Chloe came barreling back to us. As she sat on my lap and licked my face, I strapped her back in, kissed Silas on top of his head, and we headed back home.  

A cozy stroll had quickly turned into a terrifying trip.

It can be easy to complain about living in a small town. However, yesterday, I was appreciative for the slower pace that accompanies rural areas and the kindness displayed by strangers in cars who were aware enough to stop. But also, last night’s events gave me a different perspective of one of my favorite quotes by Ram Dass, 

“We're all just walking each other home.”

Pay attention, friends. The world is full of people, and dogs, overwhelmed and terrified of the world. We all are enduring our own struggles. I can’t help but wonder, what are we doing to help them get to wherever it is they are going?

Be kind to one another.

It is that easy.

Through Stained Glass: A Mid-Week Reflection-Sleep

Sleep

Lately I have had a difficult time falling and then staying asleep.

A group of researchers found that laughing

in the evening causes the body to produce

more melatonin (the hormone released by

the brain at sleep onset)...read on and

you'll see what this has to do with Chloe...

I’m not sure why. It might be my excitement about Tom Brady and the New England Patriots winning their 4^th Super Bowl. Then again, I love what I do so I might be so excited every night before bed about going to work the following morning. Or it might be I’m anxious for baseball season to start.

Whatever the reason, not sleeping is not much fun.

As we all recall from elementary school health class, sleep is a key part of a healthy lifestyle, and can benefit your heart, weight, mind, and more. Essentially, a good night sleep effects not only the next day but also our entire well being.

This is why I recently decided to research how I can make falling asleep come a little easier. So I started to work on my, what many health professionals call, sleep hygiene. To put it simply, sleep hygiene is a variety of different practices that are necessary to have normal, quality nighttime sleep and full daytime alertness.

Some healthy sleep hygiene practices are:

·      Don’t nap during the day

·      Avoid caffeine after 3 pm [which is when Tea @ 2 on Tuesdays ends J ]

·      Exercise regularly but well before bedtime

·      Some say not to look at a computer screen, iPad, or your phone at least a ½ hour before bed

·      And do yoga to unwind from the day and prepare your body for a restful night of sleep

Having done yoga in the past, I decided to give it a whirl before bed to see if it would help.

The first night went something like this…

I rolled my pink mat out on the bedroom floor. The lights were dimmed, like you’d find at a nice Italian restaurant. To set the mood perfect for yoga, I shut the door, making it nice and quiet. Or so I thought.

As the new age music in the background of the YouTube video began playing, I found myself slowing down, really paying attention to my breathing, and the stress I was carrying around began to slip away.

Peace.

Something was happening with this yoga stuff and I liked it.

But then, something else happened.

I should have saw it coming because, well, I heard it coming.

It was loud, with a low but noticeable rumble, like a herd of Harley motorcycles driving on Keokuk on a sunny summer day. The mirror on the wall began to rattle as the noise got closer and my steady beating heart soon began to race.

That’s when I heard it.

Ssssssss-uuuuuuuunk.

As I was about to move from my sitting position to child pose, Pete and re-Pete, my 2 golden goons, threw open the door with their yellow muzzles and enthusiastically entered with smiles on their faces and a curiosity that inspired their wagging tails.

Before I could make the transition, Chloe, my sweet, sweet Chloe, decided she wanted in on the fun and sat right down on me. There it went, a room full of serenity and calm to an unintentional bout between a yogi and a golden, which ended in a scene you’d likely see at a circus.

Eventually I made it into child’s pose. But as soon as I went into corpse pose, my yoga time was over. On my chest, sat a 60 pound Golden dog who wanted to do a little stretching herself.

Sometimes our plans don’t go as we want. We try our best to follow the steps but occasionally, we misstep. I find comfort knowing that in the story of God, humanity on more than one occasion set out to accomplish something God called them to, only to mess up.

But rather than giving up, God continued to pursue humanity, entrusting humanity with the task of bringing heaven to earth.

Some days we follow our routines to a ‘T’. Other days it is a struggle.

What matters is not to give up.

After all, if we give up, we might miss what we need.

And what we need might not be what we expected.

Like a Golden dog interrupting yoga to sit a spell on your lap, causing you to laugh...

Here is a video I hope makes you laugh.

Through Stained Glass: A Mid-Week Reflection-Stalled

Stalling

I hate to be that person but I'm going to be.

Be ready to make an eye roll in my general direction.

Okay.

Enough stalling.

You ready?

We are just over 2 weeks into the New Year

and I have to ask...

...

..

.

How's that resolution going?

.

..

...

Are you still getting up early to read your Bible before work?

Are you still making out to the rec center for that 30 minute walk?

Are you still choosing water over corn syrup and carbonation?

Are you still __________________________(insert your resolution here...)

Someone recently told me they don't make New Year's resolution because it sets them up for failure. 

I understand that. I hear that. 

But with an attitude like that, isn't there already an expectation to fail?

So consider this post your 2 week "check-in" where you evaluate your goals and assess how you're doing. 

Don't give up. The year is young. It is pregnant with possibilities. Not all is lost. 

If you didn't make a resolution, may I ask you a question inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose birthday we celebrate today.

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?'"

Resolution or no resolution, it is my hope your year has started off well. And whatever it is you decide to do, you do it for you; you complete tasks as well as you can; and you take your time doing it.

Or as it is said in Latin, festina lente. [“Make haste slowly.”]

May the beauty of the New Year continue to be revealed to you. As the sun rises higher and light remains with us longer, may you be warmed by the hope of spring, the return of Robins, and the greening of grass.

You're more than enough. And you are loved!

Through Stained Glass: A Mid-Week Reflection-Starz

Starz

It all became too much for me.

The footage of violence on TV.

The images of grief on the faces of those who lost loved ones in yet another plane crash.

The news of a major company laying off more than 200+ employees in Central Illinois.

The generalized portrayal by the media of our Muslim brothers and sisters because of a few extremists who carried out acts of terror in the false name of Islam.

The story about a Transgendered teen committing suicide because of being misunderstood not only by classmates, not only by the teen’s own parents, but also the teen’s faith—Christianity.

The recording of buildings shaking as the ground rumbled and rolled because of an earthquake.

The reports of so many experiencing the coldest week of this young year—making me mindful of the homeless and the pets left outside.

All of this I received while watching 10 minutes of a local news segment last night as I talked to my mom about my ailing grandmother.

The world is hurting.

It feels dark and cold, not only in the frozen tundra of Logan County, but also in places beyond our imagination.

As the first commercial break occurred, I felt like I do when I walk outside on days like today:  my breath was taken away. It is an overwhelming feeling.

Sometimes when I was a kid on nights when the world seemed too big and the problems to arduous, I would head outside and stand under the cloudless night sky, gazing upward at the starz and the moon. From their distance light years away, they somehow brought me comfort.

With the ground covered by snow, the moonlight reflected off the frozen particles of precipitation, illuminating acres of frozen trees, that when the wind blew, their icy limbs would shake and wave, creating a perfect rhythm with the tranquility of the night.

This polar but perfect harmony would leave me motionless, staring skyward in astonishment, and without expressing a sound, giving thanks for being a part of something, broken yes, but also magnificent. A bit like Christ’s body.

Being cold isn’t much fun. In fact, if you stand out there long enough, it will begin to hurt. But watching our breath dissipate into the world offers us a reminder,

a reminder that

in this moment in time,

with all that is going on,

as the world longs to be held in God’s arms of grace,

we are reminded that

your breath, that my breath,

that our breath,

matters.

Friends, be not afraid to inhale the wintry weather. For when we do on cold days like today, during painful times like ours, we can show the world our care, our hope, and our love for it, by simply exhaling…

And today, that is more than enough for me.

May your lives be cradled in God’s arms today, your hearts warmed with Christ’s grace, and your beings burning with the life-giving presence of the Holy Spirit.