13 Hours of Rain

It started with my monthly budgeting routine. Checking bank statements for accuracy. Balancing our accounts. Viewing our credit card statement for any errors.* Then I found something suspicious. A strange charge to some banking corporation in Ireland. A red flag was raised in my mind. I called your Dad over and asked him what this was all about . "Did you make the charge? The charge was made today. No? Are you sure that this has nothing to do with our anti-virus software? No? Okay. I should contact the credit card company right away? Okay." So I made the call. Agent 1 thought it was strange. I was forwarded to security. Agent 2 wanted me to check if it was our anti-virus software annual renewal. Apparently, the company likes to use European financial institutions. I called your Dad over and asked him again, "Can you check your 'junk' e-mail? Ohhhh. It was them. Sir, it's okay, it was our anti-virus software company after all. I apologize." I hung ...

So I risked, stepped out of my comfort zone, did something different. As a member of our church's World Missions Committee , I present several updates in a year. Usually I stick with a written script and present. And usually it all comes out appearing professional, clear and concise. Last Sunday I changed it up. I decided to practice speaking more than reading. Part of my presentation was promoting a prayer campaign for a youth short-term missions team to a nearby city. I planned to call them up and ask each of them a question through a random draw, just to illustrate being prepared, on the spot, to give an answer to why you believe what you believe. The night before, I prepared the draw slips and chose a container to draw from. I practiced my speech the morning of the presentation. Presentation time arrived. I stepped away from my notes and spoke. I fumbled through some details and sounded less eloquent than usually. But it was acceptable. I called up the missions team. I stru...

Passion is embracing everything God made you to be. It is being unabashed and unashamed. It is possessing the courage not to be a control freak. It is realizing that you don't have to be "proper" all the time. It is learning to live big and learning to let go. ( Be You, Bravely Video Series, MOPS) My favourite animated movie as of late is Frozen . Yes, I have been slightly sucked in by the Frozen vortex, I have to admit. My daughter, you requested Anna, the younger sister and princess from the movie, which you received as one of your Christmas gifts from us (I was pleased you choose the less popular Princess Anna over the very popular Queen Elsa -- it's so great to see you requesting gifts because you like it instead of what all your friends like). Anyway, why do I like Frozen ? First it is set in a country that experiences winter, which is comforting during -25 ° C days like today when the windchill makes it feel like -37 ° C (plus they skate in the movie, which ...

I have almost completed my 41st year (which means I will be 41 soon). As I switched from my thirties to my forties, I promised myself that I would accomplish some dreams before I turn 50. Of course, I need God's empowering and equipping to accomplish these dreams. 2015 marks a year of urgency, as our youngest will start school in the Fall, after which I will endeavor to enter the work force again. While I do consider myself quite busy with my daily household duties, parenting and volunteer positions, I know my fairly flexible schedule will diminish as work takes a significant chunk out of my day. So this year, I hope and pray that I will get ahead on some of these goals instead of procrastinating the start. So here are the goals and my accomplishments thus far. 1. Learn to play the piano. No. Not yet. However, we have started a piano saving fund so we can actually purchase a piano for our house. We are searching for a good quality, decent looking, used piano. After the purchas...