Come On Over!

I do hope you will come and visit me where I am blogging regularly at Depression Getaway!

I'm Downsizing!

In an effort to declutter my blog writing life, I am going to combine the two writing efforts. From now on I will be posting only on Dipsy Doodling Around Depression. The posts on that blog will be about depression as well as stories about my family, faith stories and just about anything to help me on the to road to finding my voice as a writer. Thanks for visiting! Come on over and dipsy doodle with me sometime....

Back to School

Have you seen the wonderful TV ad for Staples that uses the christmas song 'It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year'? It is an ad for back to school supplies. The song is inferring that it is the most wonderful time of the year for parents, and in case you don't get the point from hearing that song, they show a dad, leaping for joy down the aisles of Staples as he drags his not so enthusiastic children along with him. I kind of get a kick out of that ad. Just thinking about it tickles my funny bone.

There is however, a less serious side to the back to school story. There are children for whom school is a scary and strange place. They don't fit it. They can't do things the normal way. There are teachers who are challenged beyond their natural capabilities by the demands of a classroom. There are administrators who are ill-equipped to give the leadership required.

Let's pray for them! Pray that God will be their comfort, their strength, and their source of wisdom. Let's pray that those special children will find solace, understanding, guidance and friendship. Let's pray that the challenged teacher gets the help and inspiration they need. Let's pray that those administrators will take their leadership role seriously, and take charge in a way that will make our schools wholesome, safe, creative, and nurturing places to be.

Maybe you would like to pray some of those things along with me, and together we can agree "AMEN!"

How to Pray

If you are a christian, as I am, then you have probably struggled with the challenge of how to pray. I am continuing in this vein as I talk about praying for your enemies. With a new school season upon us, I am giving particular attention to bullies. Both the bullies and their victims need our prayers.

We can spend a lot of time worrying about prayer and wondering if we are doing it right. When it seems that so often our prayers are not answered, it is easy to give up on praying.

Living as a christian doesn't have to be as complicated as we sometimes make it. When it comes to prayer, Jesus makes it clear how we should pray in Matthew 6:9-13

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed by your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into tempation,
but deliver us from the evil one.

If Jesus said it, then that must be good enough. Pray that prayer for the bullies, for all the children as they return to school and for yourself.

Why Pray for a Bully?

As I continue to study the art of writing fiction, I am challenged by many things. One of those things is having a 'bad guy' character. They call them antagonists! I have a problem with that. When I watch a movie or read a story, I skip over the bad guy parts. Those parts may be anything from blood and guts violence to a child stealing from his mother's purse. I just don't want to face it...the ugly side of life. And I certainly don't want to write about it.

I remember once, when I was teaching school, and talking to my prinicipal about a particular bad boy in my class, my principal said to me that my problem was that I didn't know how to get inside of the head of the bad boy. That's right! I had no idea what made him tick, and furthermore, I didn't want to know! For me, sometimes 'ignorance is bliss'.

Not thinking about it however, doesn't make it go away. We hear a lot more about bullies than we used to. That is a good thing. Getting evil out in the open is a sure way to burst some of its power. Secret evil has less power as soon as it becomes public. The trend toward talking about it is a good thing.

We do need to pray for the bullies. The bible tells us to love our enemies. Wow, that just goes against the grain doesn't it? Maybe we will not be able to out and out love them, but we can do the loving thing and pray for them. They need help from God as much as we all do. So, picture what you think a bully needs help with. My thoughts are that he needs forgiveness, correction, and love, not necessarily in that order. So, I will pray for God to meet those needs.

If you are still struggling with just HOW to pray for your enemies, I have an idea for you next time.

Missing Summer Things

Summer is not officially over until September 21st. But with the sounds of crickets in the air, the days getting shorter, the nights getting cooler and the children returning to school, it seems like it is about to end sooner.

Yesterday I mentioned that I will miss open windows when summer is over. There are two more things I will miss.

I will miss summer clothing! I love the freedom. There is something about shorts and barefeet that make me feel like a kid again.

And then there is a colour I will miss so much. Green! What a wonderful colour! And it is not the same when you decorate your house with it. That green needs the sounds and smells to get out of it what I get out of it.

Since my husband and I are retired, we can enjoy summer more than ever. We cherish those September days where the sun is bright, the sky is blue, children have returned to school and we have the parks and the lakes to ourselves.

If you haven't enjoyed much of the summer yet, there is still time. Get out there and see and smell and listen and touch. And if you can't get out in it, open a window!

A Special Sound

Yesterday I told you that I would tell you about a special sound unique to this time of year that I am enjoying. Have you guessed yet? Crickets! It is mating season for the crickets. Normally throughout the summer, you will hear them at nightfall. The sound of crickets indicates the day is ending. It is kind of a mournful sound, don't you think?

And now that sound indicates not the ending of a day, but the ending of summer. The sounds I will miss mostly about summer won't be the crickets. It will be the birds and the rustling leaves. Those sounds are like friends to me.

There are two other things I will miss about summer. I will tell you about those tomorrow. What will you miss most about summer?