Leaving Oz

My July 4th Prayer

I love July 4th.  When I was out in the workplace, it meant I'd get a three day weekend out of the office.  Not only that.  Tack on some personal vacation days and voila! I get an extended time away for a long trip somewhere.

But this year as mom, I'm especially sentimental about July 4th.  It's not only a date on the calendar. God reminded me this holiday to be thankful for being a mom in the US.

There is so much unrest in the world, violence, war, and death.  Our country is also in the midst of internal turmoil, with bad blood between those of the extreme left or right on political party lines. 

Man, This Body is Getting Old...

I woke up Sunday morning to Holly (our golden retriever) poking her wet (and cold!) nose in my face. This is her way of saying it's time to get up. I lay there for a few minutes, going through the day's events. Boy, another packed day... so let's see - church, kick-off meeting for this Christian mom's blog, then an important goodbye party for someone at school. Check, check, check. OK, it's time to get up. Slowly, oh ever so slowly, I sat up, paused for a bit - and just sat there. 

I felt awful. I mean, I wasn't sick or anything, but I just did not feel well. Fatigued and lethargic are good descriptions. I literally hit the wall. A full week of end-of-school activities and non-stop running around, not to mention (real) work, have done the job.

A shower, yeah, that should help. Get into the shower and you'll feel better, I told myself. Ten minutes later, and still feeling horrible, I walked slowly to the kitchen.  Have some breakfast and you'll feel rejuvenated, I said to myself. So after my daily bowl of flax and oatmeal, I looked at the clock. Wow, it's almost time to leave for church. My mind was ready to go, but the body was not responding. This 44-year-old body just will not move. And suddenly, an epiphany...