love

I don't get to see my two sons together very often. They are both active duty Marines and live on separate coasts. But last weekend we were together. How wonderful! How amazing! How deep the connection! I watched them build a ramp on a deck for 2 new puppies who can't manage the steps. What humor and laughter! We sat on the deck watching the puppies and talking-deep, intimate, important talks and light, frivolous chatter.

There is a connection between mothers and sons that can never be broken. We have had our differences and struggles at times but we have worked to heal. We have all grown and the connection gives me a profound joy. It is the ultimate gift of love.

Are there people in your life with whom there has been disconnection? Do you work and pray daily for healing? I pray you know that love.

Blessings-Penny

Listen

There was a great line in the book I am reading. "I'm not learning much if I am the one doing the talking." And then an article about Hilary Clinton in "More" magazine quoted her as saying that a difference between men and women who have become politically powerful is "...generally... I think most women...tend to be better listners."

How are your listening skills? Do they make you powerful in your personal and professional life?

Blessings-Penny

joyfully

I was recently complaining about a task I "had" to do. It was a task I considered a charitable thing to do. My husband asked, "Are you doing this with joy?" He paused and then continued, "If you can't do it with joy, you really shouldn't be doing it." That really stopped me in my tracks. He was absolutely right. If I can't do my tasks with joy, especially the things I choose to volunteer, I shouldn't be doing them at all.

I have been thinking about the "joy" in alot of other tasks that I sometimes consider a burden. Shouldn't I cook with "joy?" I am so blessed to have food. Shouldn't I do laundry with "joy?" I am so blessed to have electricity and a washing machine. Shouldn't I clean the bathroom with "joy?" I am so blessed to have running water and an inside toilet.

I am so blessed.Are you?

Blessings-Penny

missing someone

My husband does educational groups at our church. One group is weekly on Sunday morning and it focuses on the readings for the liturgy of that day. This Lent he is conducting a group based on the petitions of the Lord's Prayer. He begins each group with a prayer and then takes an informal assessment of who is there and who is missing. He always reminds us to "pay attention to who is missing. If they miss more than 2 meetings give them a call. If we don't, we have the risk of losing them." Sometimes newcomers to the group laugh quietly when he says, "Who are we missing?" People generally aren't used to being missed. When he next sees a "missing person" he gently inquires about their absence in a concerned way.We all like to know we are missed.

In any group where we are trying to make change, whether it be spiritual or physical or emotional, it is helpful to "miss people," to inquire and call if they are missing several times. It makes a difference.

Who have you noticed is missing?--at a recovery meeting? at church? Will you call?
Are you missing?

Blessings-Penny

Pride

I am aware that pride is listed as a sin but is just a little bit of pride ok? Both my sons are in the active duty military, both having served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their separations from their families have been frequent and incredibly stressful for all. The older son has returned to California, remains in the military and has settled back in with his family. The younger son has returned to his family's home in Virginia but now has been told he must move to Georgia. That would mean uprooting 4 kids ( all teenagers) from school and upending their place of security.

Monday morning my son told the person in charge of the orders that he will not move. Now that is a decision that will probably mean he has to retire from the military. When the military says "You go" there isn't much negotiation.

My pride comes from my son's decision to place his family as his first priority. He is a talented young man and can probably find a reasonable job-even in this economy. What I am proud of is his ability to place his family's needs first. He certainly could have decided to go to Georgia by himself and see them on 4 day weekends; but he says he has been away much too much and "everyone I love" is in Virginia. He loves the military-he loves his family more. What a wonderful example to his children about family and priorities. This is how children learn.

Are we able to make decisions that are not "all about me?" Do we make decisions taking in considerations about what's best for everyone, what's best for my recovery?

Blessings-Penny

March 1

It's March 1 and the book is about ready for the publisher. Writing this book has been a marvelous experience. For 4 months I have focused on scripture, what it means as devotion and what it means in my daily life. Does it make a difference in my sense of God's presence in my life? Does it make a difference in how I interact with others? Does it make a difference in how I face the demons in my life-what ever that demon might be?

When I have finally submitted all those 52 weekly chapters will I keep this focus on God in my life as a priority; or will I slip back into a more casual relationship-more just fitting it into the other stuff?

I sense the writing of this book as God's gift to me. How do I keep this gift alive?

How do you keep god's presence alive in your life-in your recovery?

Blessings-Penny