The View

WeevilMaw is a new blogger friend. Well....she's a new blogger; for I've known her for several years. Or, at least, I thought I knew her. She is younger than my younger daughter so I thought we had nothing in common. Though we see each other at church, our paths just don't cross that often.
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She has three adorable kids who I have the pleasure of working with in children's activities at church; and a neat husband (who I don't know as well as WeevilMaw....so.....maybe he should start a blog!!)
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It wasn't until I started reading her blog that I really began to know her.
When I read her post "The View", I knew I had to get her permission to post it. It is the epitome of the subject of my blog, "For the Love of Home".

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Though there is a huge difference in our ages, I've found that we do have things in common....those things that are the most important....love of God, and love for Home and Family.

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Read and enjoy her post of "The View".
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18th-Oct-2007 01:12 pm - the view
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A couple of days ago I drove the long way home with no one but me in the car and my music up LOUD. This is a favorite thing to do of mine, drive fast with loud music and sing obnoxiously to the steering wheel. As I topped a little hill I looked out at the view and thought "Wow that is sooo gorgeous. Look at the pastel sky that you can see forever. Look at the gently rolling green landscape. Aren't we lucky to have this view?" Then I almost slammed on my brakes because I wondered "Now when did that happen? When did I start to think it's pretty here?"

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When I moved here 10 years ago I thought this part of the world was U-G-L-Y. No big trees, no water, too much dust and sand, not enough vegetation. Yuck. I moved from the MId Atlantic region of this greatest nation on God's green earth, and always thought it was one of the more beautiful regions of the U.S. And honestly, I've been blessed to have seen quite a bit of this country. Maybe the easts' beauty is just more obvious than our west Texas prairie/semi arid landscape. After all, the east coast is blessed with forests of big lush trees, and innumerable rivers and creeks and bays. In the fall you can't deny the absolute gorgeousness of the foliage. The land is lush during springtime. Hubs and I traveled east one March and he asked "Does it ever stop raining?" Not in early spring it doesn't, then in April and May you see why the rain is such a blessing. When I got the chance I always loved to drive to a little public dock and look back west and watch the sun set over the bay behind the bay bridge. I thought it must be pretty close to the landscape of heaven.

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For years after moving here I let myself hold on to the thought that this place is ugly, simple as that, no ifs, ands, or buts. This place, this life, there is something greener and more lush out there. I focused on all of the negative aspects of life here. Then things changed. I woke up one day and decided to be happy and to stay that way. I try to focus on the good and the positive, to see beauty in everyone and everything. "You can get glad in the same shoes you got mad in." I bet my kids get sick of hearing that one. But it is so pointless to walk around miserable and mad at the world, lamenting your misfortune and everything around you remotely connected to your supposed misfortune. Life really is too short. Since I made my decision, some amazing things have happened. For one, my neck stopped hurting so much. Somehow after I injured my neck in a car accident, I (or my subconscious) put all of my anger and tension in my neck. I would want to go home at night and take off my head to give my neck some rest. I spent a lot of time lying on the couch just so the weight of my head wouldn't be on my neck. I think the neck pain was a warning, a signal saying "Sister you need to make a change or you're going to be in pain the rest of your life." It took me years to get the signal. But eventually did. And my marriage improved and my relationship with my kids and my friendships improved. I think I am a better communicator now. The world is clearer and brighter now. I can more easily shrug off the bad or at least see the good that far outweighs it.

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When I got home that evening I found hubby and our 2 youngest children in the yard looking for ripe pecans. (Gotta love our Texas pecans.) We traipsed around the yard looking at all of the trees. The air was fluttering with monarch butterflies looking for a place to light for the night. (I rhymed y'all) The bushes and trees were covered in them. The kids walked up to the lower branches slowly and quietly and raised their little fingers and were able to gently pet the wings of the butterflies. We watched as they opened and closed their wings and saw the beautiful colors and patterns. Every once in a while a butterfly would flutter by within inches of our noses looking for a landing place. It was a beautiful evening, almost magical and one that doesn't happen just anywhere.

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And I thought about all the beautiful features of our landscape, the gently rolling pastures, the wide expanse of sky so beautiful at dusk and dawn and when twinkling with stars at night (cause they are big and bright here aren't they) and the sky when covered with billowy white clouds against the periwinkle blue of a sunny day. I look at the fields of puffy white cotton ready to be harvested and think how interesting they are. I see the light green fields of freshly sewn wheat and it makes me feel positive and upbeat, the start of a new season. It is really beautiful here, I can't even begin to imagine how I ever thought it wasn't.

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Thanks WeevilMaw for your permission to post this to "For Love Of Home"! Blessings to you and your family!