Help Available

As the end of the school year is approaching I am trying to finish up my homeschooling child.  With his ADD he often wanders in and out when he is supposed to be working, and doesn’t always return until  I remind him, and even then we wonder sometimes.  I went over the curriculum goals to be sure we are covering everything, and found a couple of areas that I need to review independent of the computer.  As I was outlining the areas we needed to cover I found a few that I was really rusty on.  As I worked on a plan, however, everything fell into place.  We found a place that offers a free research techniques class and signed him up for that.  One of his sisters is really good at math and will teach him some of the math concepts not covered on the computer.  Another sister is excited to cover grammar stuff because that is her thing.  Even his brother is joining in with helping cover technical analysis topics that are beyond me.

I heard someone theorize once that if everyone helped each other with the things that they are particularly good at, that most communities could be pretty much independent and self sufficient.  I’ve also heard that theory in regard to families and extended families.  Anyhow, it is great that I was able to find my son what he needed right now.

 

Hope

Being a parent is extremely hard work.  Just the other day one of my kids seriously suggested that we clone me so that I could be in multiple places with multiple of them at the same time!  At least those ones wanted me.  On days when I feel less than optimistic, I remember what I learned during one of my more difficult trials.  Hope is akin to Faith and Charity.  All are required for us to be our best selves.  So today’s miracle is that I still have hope, a little anyway, that I may survive parenthood!   A mustard seed of hope is sometimes the first step to getting through something as God does the rest.

Insights

It is pretty amazing how little we really know another person.  Had a great discussion with one of my boys last night, and I am amazed at his depth of character, his purity of soul, his genuine charity for others, his pure motives, and his ability to forgive and love unconditionally.  I have lived with him for 13 years, but I still had no clue how amazing he really is.  He taught me to stay strong, and I suspect he will teach me as much as I will ever teach him.  It was a great Mother’s Day gift to see that side of him.  I only wish it had been under happier circumstances for him.

Blunders

Yesterday I made dinner for a family across the street.  As I went to take the meal over I asked one of my daughters to hold the food in the car and help me bring it in.  As she sat down in the car she leaned forward and the hot dish slipped out of her hands, landing upside-down on the floor of the car.  A complete loss. No way to salvage anything.

She was very upset.  I tried to comfort her, pointing out that at least the family was not expecting it, and we could just try again another day.  Still upset she pointed out that there was casserole for at least 6 people all over the car, and how in the world are we going to clean it all up.  She was still quite upset.  Upon further inspection I realized that all of the mess was located only on the floor mat, and none was on the car itself.  We decided to carefully remove the mat and go from there.  As soon as we got the mat removed we discovered that there were some flyers from the kid’s school that had been on the floor, and the entire mess (minus about 2 spoonfuls) was located completely on the flyers.  Flyers went in the trash, quickly wiped down the remaining traces, replaced the mat – everything was as good as new.

 

Wet Paper

We were visiting teaching this morning and had one new sister we had not gotten a hold of yet.  When my partner reached in her purse to call her again, water had spilled all over everything.  The paper and information were completely wet and blurred.  The only thing that was dry was a little spot that contained a completely legible phone number, and most of a first name.  We had what we needed!

Rainbows

We had some odd weather yesterday.  A short thunderstorm rolled through, heavy, but small.  Parts of the sky had thunderclouds, parts were clear.  We would hear thunder, then not get rain.  Across the street would.  Here’s the cool thing.  Driving around we saw multiple rainbows.  Not multiple layers of a rainbow – one on our right, then ten minutes later a small one behind us, etc.  Interesting effect.  It was like parts of  rainbows were jumping through the clouds.

I have always thought rainbows were one of the most beautiful gifts to us, and I never cease to wonder at the variety and diversity of options found in nature.

Related articles

• The Rainbow Is Always There (hope4usnow.wordpress.com)
• horizontal rainbow in paris (atolemdro.com)
• Without Rain there would be No Rainbow. (janjansennetwork.wordpress.com)

Murphey’s Law Reversed

We only get rain a few days a year here.  When we do it is often at night.  This creates an occasional problem because I consistently neglect my dried out and heat battered windshield wipers.  Then when it does rain, I can’t see, but it doesn’t last long so I just drive carefully, promise myself I’ll remember to replace them this time, then forget for another six months.

We did our safety inspection early this year, and I actually remembered to replace my wipers rather than get another warning.  This was all one week before it rained!