Lenten Lessons

I gave up anger for Lent. Or at least I tried to.

In the past I've given up things like sweets or alcohol or the internet; things that were pretty clear cut. Going into Lent this year, I didn't have a specific plan for how I was going to deal with my anger, just a rule that I was not allowed to get angry. I had to find some other way to handle what I was feeling.

I quickly learned that there are many shades of anger, and some were harder to resist than others. For me, anger that was really fear (like road rage) was easier to resist than anger that was really fatigue, or lack of control. And what about good anger, the kind that leads us to campaign for social justice and to protect others? Should that be ignored, too?

On really difficult days, I noticed that I collected things to be angry about. First I forgot my bag, and then it was pouring rain, and then traffic was bad, and the kids were making too much noise, and on and on. And the more I looked, the easier it was to find things to be angry about.

But I also found that if I tried collecting reasons to be thankful, it was pretty easy to compile those lists, too. If I hadn't forgotten my bag, I wouldn't have realized that I'd forgotten my hat too. Yes it's pouring rain, but doesn't it smell wonderful, and don't I love watching it on the windshield? The kids are noisy because they are making each other giggle, and isn't that a good thing to hear?

Now I wasn't always great at this. I failed at this Lenten challenge like I've failed at no other, and there were days where I was overwhelmed and snapped at everybody and got in a terrible funk. I'm not proud of how I handled those times.

But I learned that I could control my reactions, much more than I'd previously thought. On those long hard days when nobody was coming to help and I just had to deal, I could "hit the reset button" and stop collecting reasons to be angry. Sometimes the reset button was a walk around the neighborhood, sometimes it was trying on ridiculous wigs with the kids, sometimes it was taking time to clean the kitchen so one part of my life was orderly again. But I learned that a bad day could be stopped, and that anger didn't have to beget anger.

The Reverend Rob Merola recently preached a great sermon titled "Going Through No to Get to Yes". And I think that by saying no to anger, I was able to say yes to so many more moments of wonder and happiness. And if that helped to make just one other person's day a bit better, then it was a worthwhile effort indeed.

Easter Shoes

A little something for baby's first Easter. I've had a hard time completing projects lately, so I'm especially thankful that I was able to finish these in time.

A Little Gardening

We often play a game called When We Get a House, in which we name all kinds of things we'd have in our fantasy home. Things like a screened-in porch, and a basement where we can store our camping equipment, and an indoor pool with water slides. (What? We didn't say these were necessarily practical things.) But the one non-negotiable is that When We Get a House, we'll have a yard with space for a vegetable garden. We'd love to be able to grow enough to feed our family, share with others, and freeze and can for the winter.

For now, however, we'll continue to get creative with the container gardening on our patio. I've been doing some research about how to maximize space and encourage my little plants. My goal for the summer is to beat last year's crop of 3 tomatoes. This might seem like a small goal, but last year's was my best tomato crop ever. If nothing else, this will be an entertaining family project and learning experience.


As per recommendations in Square Foot Gardening, I'm starting with a new soil mix.

A teeny tiny carrot. I've never grown carrots before. We started them from seedlings at my mom's house.

The most important and most fun job of all.



Tired after a long evening of "helping" (gleefully crawling away to eat mulch).

Easter Baskets

My dad doesn't toot his own horn much, but he quietly does a lot of great things for other people. One of those things is the Easter basket drive that he started at our church. Dad drives all over the place, buying every laundry basket he can find. Members who want to participate choose a basket, fill it with household staples, grocery store gift cards, and a few Easter treats, and return it to church. Dad then collects the baskets, generously and heavily laden, and delivers them to a local school, where they're distributed to needy families who might not be able to afford to put food on their tables, let alone fill Easter baskets for their kids.


Of course, certain granddaughters would like to create a little more work for their Grandpa.

Palm Sunday

Random Photo of the Week

Ballerinas great and small.

Ode to My Local Library

Oh lovely local library branch,
When the real doctor
And Dr. Google
And the insurance company all let me down,
You came to the rescue.

You, provider of carefully-researched, well-written information
In convenient portable form (and 100% recyclable, should the time arise),
I salute you.

Less than a mile from my home,
You may not be the largest library around,
But you had what I needed when I needed it.
(And really, how many volumes can I digest tonight anyway?)

I can now happily ignore the panic-inducing message boards
And gain knowledge and sanity in the comfort of my own home.