Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Mostly a matter of perspective.

( Waterlilies picked from yesterdays trip to " Me-Ma's lake"


Or an alternative title this post might be: Blogging with a baby on your lap. (While his big sister runs in and out the door with a handful of baby carrots to feed the imaginary baby bunnies that live in our yard...she is wearing her pink ballet leotard and white church shoes with golden curls that match the bounce in her step. )

A very dear friend sent me a email yesterday asking me, hows your summer going? Hows your heart doing? I adore her for that because she sees beyond the day to day, " Hi how are you, " that is asked without a pause taken to hear the reply. She notice's peoples hearts. She intentionally looks beyond the surface, not that she wouldn't be the first to notice a cute pair of earrings, just that she wouldn't stop there...that she would keep going... down deeper, and peer into your very heart. I long to grow in the habit of caring for others hearts. Especially the hearts of my husband, daughter, son, my family and my friends.

Also, I have been thinking a lot about the future and how it is built one day at a time and about how the future that I am looking into now, my children will look back on someday as their past, and how these days are so quickly turning into the years that make up their childhood. I ran across a quote yesterday that stopped me in my tracks and made me do some serious thinking. It's one very simple and yet profound sentence that struck a deep chord, and I have asked that the Lord would use it's truth in my life because more than anything in the world I the rhythm of my heart to beat in unison with His . And lately it feels like I am being reminded daily just how much of life has to do with perspective. That " What we see depends mainly on what we look for.”— John Lubbock. That the out come of a day, or a life, has so much to do with how we chose to perceive it. That you can see deep, unparalleled joy in the weak smile of the nine year old leukemia patient, who despite all she suffers sees each new day as a gift and lives with gratitude and appreciation...or you can hear the hollow misery in the voice of the woman with the flawlessly beautiful face, complete with designer car/bag/clothing/shoes/who has everything she could ever want, materially speaking and yet her life is frighteningly empty and she is obviously unhappy.

I wonder what would happen, if you were able to take two people, with similar temperaments and personalities and make their circumstances and environment identical...I am guessing that after such a experiment those two individuals could come up with very different views on the quality of their experience and whether it was positive or negative. So much hinges on perspective. That's why I want learn how to value what is lovely and good true... things like, cheerfulness, and humility, and patience, unselfishness, hospitality, kindness. Because I so desperately want Annabelle to be able to look back and on these days that are her childhood and be able to say...we might not have had the latest or best of anything , but that never kept us from being happy,and there was one thing we did have in abundance, the love of Jesus.

10 comments:

Wendi@EveryDayMiracles said...

So, so beautiful Chelle. This really made me think. And become more thankful. And ask God to work on my heart and contentment.

swell.life said...

such gorgeous words, chelle. i drank it up. always so thoughtful, reflective, and Christ-like. i admire your attitude...

and on a lighter note, i am in awe of the fact that you wrote all of this with a little jack on your lap!! i can't manage to crank out more than a sentence or two when g is at the keys! :)

Leslie said...

a post from you is better than dessert... and from me lady that means so much you know?

Thank you for this... thank you for sharing your heart with us.

Chelle said...

Oh Jess...do not be in awe...I only had Jack on my lap for the first fifteen minutes and this post literally took me an entire afternoon to finish. So many good distractions going on. But I just had to clarify that,there is absolutely nothing impressive about my blogging skills. :)
And I haven't told you this...but I think your hair cut is darling and you look (post G, and all)so, so amazing!

Catherine said...

Revelations, aren't they wonderful? When we see what God wants us to see, we are actually 'in tune' with the Creator of the universe, for shore!! The lilies are lovely, and I can see you and your two without, even, a picture of you.

Lisa said...

I love these types of posts from you, Chelle - so refreshing and eye opening!

Truth be told I love any and all posts from you, but especially the ones that leave me feeling a little more thankful!

thank you!
xoxo

Lisa said...

Absolutely spot on. Much of what you've written is how we go about social work - changes our attitudes, thoughts and beliefs in the situations we're presented with. God really spoke to me this morning when He asked me to be a little more positive with people and a touch more gentle - this is just amazing confirmation! Bless YOUR heart!!

Deborah said...

Thanks for the reminder! Love you four.....

~beautyandjoy~ said...

Chelle! I just saw this (for some reason my feed didn't pick up this post!) and it's so lovely to sit in my so-quiet-you-could-hear-anything-drop! house this Saturday morning and read your beautiful thoughts. I am so grateful to have a woman like you in my life that pushes me with a post like this to keep making those choices of perspective with you.

I was visualizing as I read this post - just a line of all these beautiful moms running through a field of flowers, a high meadow, with their passle of cute kids giggling and running behind them...I just want to approach life that way with such beautiful friends like you. Running through life with the perspective of seeing things His way and running with those passions.

hee, I just giggled at my visual self, probably not making any sense. But I'll leave it. Just because if nothing else you can giggle at what comes out when my house is quiet, too! :)

I love your heart! I love hearing what's in it. It's beautiful and so inspiring. xox

Chantel Monet said...

Wow, this touched my heart so deeply. I feel this pull in my own heart tremendously. I really didn't know true happiness and contentment until I focused in on the "beatitudes" from the sermon on the mount. This was so beautifully written (not to mention written while bouncing a baby on your lap!) Thank you for this sweet reminder. The fruit in your life is abundant and apparent to all!