One Apple, Two Peaches, Three Oranges

Why do we always rush? Why are we always in a hurry? Why are we always so focused on what we have to do next – that we don’t see the importance in what were doing right now?

Last night I was at my local library studying – There was a little girl, about five, and her mother looking at books. The little girl was as happy as could be skipping around, looking at the colorful pages and pop-out books. The mother on the other hand was engrossed in her iphone, texting away. She was constantly telling the little girl that they had to hurry and that daddy was waiting. But the little girl was having a blast, she kept trying to show “mommy” how this book had “one apple, two peaches and three oranges!” on its pages – But the mother was so focused on her phone, and telling the little girl, that “they had to hurry because daddy was waiting” that she missed this simple, but beautiful moment of joy.

How often do we do that ourselves? We look forward to things like summer, Christmas, a certain party or graduating high school or collage, moving out, getting married, etc. There all exciting things, but do you look forward to them so much, that your not enjoying life today only looking forward to tomorrow? - Its sad really, life so fragile – people die everyday – They had plan – They had things they were looking forward too - If you only live life for tomorrow, you will never live at all

I think sometimes it’s hard to appreciate the little things in life – Just like the little girl in the library – She was so excited over the “one apple, two peaches and three oranges” This little girl was filled with such joy, such love for life – But her mother didn’t get the chance to witness that because her attention was on her phone – a little thing – but a memory she can never get back

11 years in the making

This year I received the most amazing Christmas gift ever - it wasn’t new shoes, a fancy gadget or money - This gift took 11 years to make its way into my hands -

The thing I remember most about my grandfather is his laugh - He would tell us stories about his childhood - but he would laugh so hard remembering what happened - that we wouldn’t be able to understand what he was saying haha - He loved us all so much - and we loved him - I’ll never forget feeling like a princess as i danced on his feet - spending time with him was such a gift

I don't remember my grandfather being a man of many words - But the ones he said were meaningful - This Christmas my grandma had each of her six children open up her gift to them - It was a simple envelope - it contain a letter written by my grandfather - a letter - A prayer of Thanksgiving to God - but to me it was a sign of Gods faithfulness and love - when read it aloud it brought the entire room to tears

In this prayer my grandfather thanked God for his loving wife and his six wonderful children, there spouses and there children - He named everyone by name - no one was forgotten or glanced over - My grandfather loved each of one us - he found each one of us spacial in our own way - and he was thankful for what made us, us

I don’t know what he was thinking when he wrote this letter - according to my grandma, he didn’t write letters - So for her to find this one after all these years meant to much to me and my family - a gift 11 years in the making - Thank you Grandpa for all the memories all the lessons and for loving us so much

A super Hero for a Dad

I was once told that there is no such thing as A super hero

But I know better - I have a Super Hero for a Dad

He’s not your typical super hero - who fly’s around with a cape

But he always come to my rescue

He’s the coolest dad - When spring soccer came around

He was there to show the team some super moves

When my dance recital came around

He always came and took super video

When the cars would brake, it was super dad to the rescue

He’d bring out his super tools and fix whatever was wrong

Watching him, only made me want to be as super as my daddy

But he isn’t just super when it comes to cars

It seems as if super dad can fix anything

Even if he can’t, He’ll learn

Super Dad like all super hero’s have a normal jobs

He works long and hard to provide for his family

Sometimes without any thanks from them

He comes home his super keys giggling as he walks up the steps

Super dad Always comes to the rescue

He’s there to give advice

There to help with the car

There to relax with and watch the game

When Super Dad’s kids were little

He’d take them on his feet and let them dance around with him

And now two of his girls are dancers

But they remember dancing on his feet

And how special that made them feel

Super Dad brings his kids to lots of super places

He teaches them about all the super history thats happened

He takes the time out of his busy super hero day

To let his kids go all around the world

Super Dad sets a super example

Not just in the way he lives

But at work and at home

He’s a super Christian

A Super Husband

A Super Son

And a Super Daddy

I was once told that there is no such thing as A super hero

But I know better - I have a Super Hero for a Dad

Focus

The music cuts in and out
I Sing my God mighty to save
The static interrupts
A fire truck races by
My heart skips a beat
My God is Might to save
The static cuts in
I drive through the plaza
People all around
My God is mighty to save

As Life Moves On

The miracle of life is something we glance over every day - but when death confronts us - life changes - weather it be the death of a loved one or a personal near death experience

I never quite understood that - Why does it take something horrible for us to appreciate life? To appreciate those who are closest to us?

When life comes crashing down around us we vow that we will change - we will be difference, never going back to the way we were - but time passes we slowly fade back into what we were - Forgetting that eye opening moment

It's sad - God holds our very life in his hands and he can take it away at any moment - We tend to take it for granted every day - But when he "gives us a second chance" - how can we take THAT for granted not changing - not doing everything possible to gorily his kingdom

When someone else dies - Young, old, Middle aged - How can we not take it as a reminder of just how short life is - take a moment to reflect on our own insignificant lives - and challenged ourselves to be doing everything possible to be glorifying God's Kingdom


For George Lebak - 11.18.2000 Son, Husband, Father, Grandfather and Friend - His example will always be remembered

Missteps and All

Life; a daily retinue filled with twists and turns, unexpected experiences and surprises – We walk through life wanting everything to be perfect, without any missteps – Most strive for some level of perfection either in appearance, academics, athletics, family or there jobs – But the possibility of achieving true perfection is impossible – somewhere along the line a misstep will happen and an adjustment will need to be made

In this same way, life is much like a long dance – filled with steps one following after the other – We can map out our lives deciding which summer job we will have - which will no doubt look good on which collage apps - which will get us into the Collage of our dreams - We can decide who we will date and when - we can call in a friend of a friend to get that perfect internship, which will earn us the job that we will have for the rest of our lives after we graduate – But not matter how much we plan things can always change

The most planned and practiced dance combinations, can in just a instance change – The dancer can lean a little to forward and she’ll be off balance – adding extra steps out of her balance – In the middle of a turn the dancer can lose her focus and will no longer be able to spot her turn - which will cause only one of her turns to be completed – the dancer feels rushed, anxious to get out on stage and come in a few beats too early and the whole routine must be worked to fit her in

Perfection is expected every single time the Dancer steps on the dance floor – Perfect Placement – Perfect lines – Perfect expression – To dance through the storms of life without the outside world knowing – Not letting anything effect the quality of her dancing

Yet dance expresses life – missteps and all

Ballet – the perfection demanded by the world – to be perfectly placed, perfectly aliened and in sink with all the other dancers every single time she hits the dance floor – there is a beauty to the dance but the dance lacks individuality – the dancers trying to keep up with the rest of the class, dresses the same acts the same and talks the same to point in– Anyone acting out is either ridiculed or quickly corrected

Lyrical – A never ending dance – The constant movement never end weather fast or slow - the dancer is melting into the next movement without stopping – The dance is a part of them – they can’t get away from it – still conforming to a general beat – but there beat is just a little different – Sometimes the dancer gets swept away in what’s going on around them – caught up in the music

Jazz – the dance of passion – of deeper feelings – the dancer dances completely to her emotions - not listening to her brain – but only to her heart – her movements are not constricted or conformed – but sometimes there irrational and sporadic

Modern Dance – The dancer gets back to the basics, and then blows them out of proportion – She has been trained in all the basic forms of dance – But she chooses not to conform – to be a rebel – to push limits and define new boundaries

Every dance eventually comes to the end – Beginnings and Endings are important – But it’s what you do in the middle the really counts – No Dancer is perfect – there will be mistakes – unplanned steps thought her performance – But it’s how she recovers that is important – does she continue to make mistakes? She’s already made one so what does it matter if she makes a few more – It will no longer be a perfect piece – Or does the Dancer recover realizing she can still make the best out of her recital – and maybe it will turn out just beautifully – not as she planned at first – But still not a bad ending

The First Blog

The question "why do people blog" has been asked many times by non-bloggers - some of the most common reasons for blogging are - "to share my deepest darkest thoughts with the world" (the blog world) ", “to share daily happenings and photos with friends and family all over the world" or "just to rant about how unfair life is" – But these are not my reasons

I once swore that I would never blog - note to anyone who reads this - never swear; one can never know what might be in-store for you - the purpose for my blog is to make observations - God gave us all senses: sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell - they can be used in powerful ways – but rarely do we use all of our senses to our full potential - we walk through life like zombies not seeing the true beauty of life all around us - we don’t understand that each breath we take, that each step we step is a miracle, a precious gift - and at anytime that gift can be taken away

I once read a story about a man who was asked to describe a Cathedral to a blind man- but his sight blinded him to the true beauty of what was right in front of him - he couldn't do it - we walk around in a fog everyday missing what is right in font of us - weather it be the hypocrisy in our lives or the way we ignore those who are hurting, like its there own fault or just the way we focus on ourselves every waking moment of the day - We've become a society who turns off our senses just to feel better about ourselves - we've decided that maybe if we all just stay silent and no one makes any observations - we can go on living - and forget about what’s going on around us - we can live in our happy little houses and go to our little stains glasses building once a week and all pretend to feel happy

But what good will staying silent do? - I want to make some noise - I want shake things up by making observations – taking the first step in getting this generation to STAND UP and make a difference - Start thinking for ourselves – asking myself why do I believe the things I do? Because mommy and daddy told me to think them or because I actually believe them

My parents did there best to teach me right from wrong, but also how to decide what was right and what was wrong – I don’t want to be a zombie, just walking through life contributing nothing – I want to walk through life being grateful for every miracle of everyday