Just one place

We so love the new laminate floors. Jon has picked up a few area rugs which make a nice contrast . Buddy has claimed them as his own . He has been grumpy since the carpet was taken out. He slides and has even fallen on his rump a time or two.
One rug is in the dining room. We have had it awhile but it did not work well over carpet and has been in the garage. Now it dresses up the sunny eating area. A second rug is a runner in the hall between the bathroom and Master bedroom. It was made in India and is so rich looking. A third is a round one at the bottom of the stairs. It is black with vibrant colors in the center. Buddy especially loves that one.
But the problem rug is the newest. It is in the living room, making it a cozy conversation area. It is shag with tones of gold and beige. I determined that Buddy needed to stay off it with his black dog hair. And so the battle is on.
While he is not allowed on the furniture, there has never been a floor space he has been denied before. The funny thing is, he knows already that this rug is a "NO". And just as surely, he is going to lay on it. When I go to the bathroom or talk on the phone in another room, he heads there as fast as he can and lays down with a sigh of pleasure.
He reminds me of Eve in the garden. She had all that lush vegetation to enjoy and touch and eat, except one tree. God only gave her one "NO". But like Buddy ,that was just the one she wanted. Instead of being grateful for what she did have, like Buddy, she focused on what she did not have.
Lesson : Enjoy all the things you can do and have. Don't waste time and energy on the one "NO". God or your pet parent will come along and remind you that is it still "NO". Is the battle worth it?

For my daughters

The words to this song are my belated Mother's Day words of love:
I pray that my love has given you roots
so that you may find your wings.
I love you both fiercely

Miracle

The dust has settled here and the new floor is spectacular. Laying it is like doing a giant jigsaw puzzle- except you have to cut the pieces yourself!
The first weekend this 'puzzle' project began, my daughters and I went away to a retreat in the Santa Cruz mountains. Several stories will unfold in the next days from that time away.
Today I want to tell you how both personal and powerful the God of the universe is.
Ruth and I were traveling to meet Debe. As we drove, we were talking about angels. Most people visualize them a fluffy things but in reality they are huge, and muscular. Going downhill, I decided to pass a big truck so moved into the fast lane to do so. As I moved back over into the slow lane, I saw out of the corner of my eye a car flying out of my blind spot and into full view. I over- reacted and pulled the wheel to bring the car back into the fast lane and found we were headed toward the dividing wall. That won't do, I thought. I over corrected and crossed the two lanes of traffic heading toward a cliff. I once again over reacted and spun the car around 180 degrees and we came to a stop facing uphill on the side of the road inches from the cliff.
I was speechless and Ruth kept saying,
"Thank you Jesus" over and over.
We sat for a minute and decided we needed to just turn around and continue on our trip.
As I drove, we wondered aloud, where all that traffic was when we were moving so erratically from lane to lane.
"The big burly angels must have been directing traffic for us." Ruth replied.
"Why else did we not hit the wall or the cars or go over the cliff?"
See if you can explain it all. We sure can't, without acknowledging the powerful sovereign hand of God. For a child of God, there are not coincidences.
The next day God used scripture to show me that my time from here on is borrowed and I am to live each day more fully for Him.
The following day God directed me to Paul's exclamation that to live is Christ and to die is gain. But Paul knew God wanted him to remain in the body for the Philippians benefit, just as God wanted me to remain for my family.
The third day he brought to mind David's Psalm 91 where he says, He gives his angels charge over you to guard you in all your ways, lest you hit your foot against a stone(or wall).
It was a miracle, plain and simple and Ruth and I lived to tell about it, for your benefit!

Watch out

Another remodel story, as I have come to think of my ordeal.
Today I was carrying yet another roll of worn carpet out to the front yard to be disposed of.
Jon yelled, "Watch out".
I looked to the left to see if I was hitting the new paint job with the roll I was carrying. Nope. Then I checked to see if I was brushing against the wreath, newly rehung. No, it was safe too. So what?
Jon said," Didn't you see the nail strip on the floor? You could have stepped on it and injured your foot."
As I proceeded out the the front, I shook my head to myself. What a difference between us. Being the detail person I would have said " Watch your feet, dear". That you have alerted me to the danger, in specifics.
Why had he not said that the first time? I would have known to look down and not up!
Ah, differences, the spice of life. My Father used to say " If we were all alike, it would be a dull world ". Indeed he is true. God created us uniquely and blends opposites to hone each other's personalities. It is a fact of life that what drew you to your sweety before marriage can be the very thing that drives you up the wall afterward. God's design is to use your spouse to rub off the rough edges, where you do not reflect the attributes of Christ. But sometimes it feels like you have stepped on the nail strip huh?

Weary chaos

Just when you thought is was safe to relax, another wave of chaos has hit and I lack the energy to even sit and write.
We finished the painting and got things put back. That in itself was a big project. Now we are having the floors done so everything must be moved again and the existing flooring torn out before the weekend work day. We even had had to get a dumpster to hold the rolls of old frayed carpet.
Even Buddy is weighing in on the chaos. He wonders where the rug has gone and why. He runs back a forth as we work wearing himself out for sure. And at the age of 13!
I know that in the end it will be gorgeous but the process is ugly to say the least. Messes everywhere. Things piled and shoved and scrunched. UGH!
In the same way, God is working in my life- throwing out the old ugly patterns of my life and building in the new ones- actions and attitudes that are HIS. Love, when I am frustrated. Joy in the midst of trauma. Peace in chaos.( Boy do I need that). Endurance and so much more. And the Lord needs a triple sized dumpster to hold the old stuff in my life- selfishness, pride, anxiety, greed, jealousy, fear, self consciousness, insecurity, incompetence, well you get the picture- huge piles of old ways handed down from my family and their family before them.
So if you do not hear from me for a few days again, perhaps I have fallen under a roll of old carpet and no one has found me yet.