January - A month in my rear view

 Where did January go? It's all but over. Despite the fact this month comes after my favorite time of year, October - December, fall, football, Thanksgiving, birthdays and Christmas, I love January.

It's when all the noise and busyness eases to the back of the bus and I can focus on writing. But this time, January came with a delightful hustle and bustle.

Hubby's parents came for two and a half weeks, along with sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law and family, plus, dealing with daily issues with our ailing nineteen year old cat.

I love a full house. It makes for a full heart. Though there was a sliver of sadness when we had to say goodbye to Red, El Cato extraordinaire. He just couldn't go on and it was time to end his suffering.

Writing was a bit hit or miss, but I'm on my rewrite now, looking forward to buckling down in February and getting 'er done!

I do love ruminating over a book though. And even if I'm not butt-in-chair, fingers-to-the-keyboard writing, the story is always on my mind, and in my heart. I play with tag lines and high concept pitch lines in order to clarify the story.

How about you? How's your January going? How does the year look for you? I have a sense of expectancy. Excitement. Like a lot of things we've all been waiting for are going to happen. At the very least, have the opportunity to happen.

I pray about the sense in my heart, partnering with God for His good pleasure to be accomplished in my life. You know, it's where a lot of us makes mistakes in our relationship with God. We assume God said it so it's going to happen. Fer sure!

But most of the time God's words to us or "sense of something" is an invitation into a divinely more intimate relationship with Him. It's about partnership. We must agree with Him to bring it about. We can't sit on the side lines, waiting.

Yeah, there are some FOR SURE promises. God will make it happen. But those are more rare than we like to think.

It's like this... The coach says he's going to put you into the game. "Hauck, you're going in some time this year."

"Okay coach, thanks!" 

Hauck shows up to practice every day and... sits on the bench. Just waiting. To be called in. Hauck never prepares for the day Coach says, "You're up. Get in there. Go make me proud."

Hauck hops off the bench, barely, cause she's so out of shape and stiff from sitting. She's mentally foggy and well, she's not going to make the coach proud.

Sometimes I think this his how we approach our walk with the Lord. Waiting. Sitting. Being passive when we could be training for whatever He's called us to do. How do we train?

Be in prayer. Be in the Word. Be in fellowship. Do justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly with our God. Seek. Ask. Knock. Fast. Do the stuff, you know?

He'll give you hope, promises and encouragement a long the way. And when He finally calls you into the game, you're in agreement with Him, in shape, ready to "play."

I'm believing God for good things this year. And it starts right now when I can't see or hear the future. It begins with faith in my heart. Agreement with God about who He says HE is and who I am. It begins on my knees.

What about you? Are you training for what God has for you this year? Let's go! Let'd JUST DO IT!

 

Things We Don't See Anymore

Something happened... I don't remember what, but it occurred to me, "Man, you don't see that anymore."

I came up with a quick list of things I used to see but rarely if ever do now.

Sweat stains

Girdle lines

Dandruff (at least I don't)

Overheating cars on the side of the road.

Teased hair

Beehive hairdo

Frosted hair

Wrinkled cotton clothes

Bare light bulbs dangling from a wire

Secretaries

Five & Dime Stores

Kids collecting glass soda bottles for money

I asked a few writer friends for their thoughts on things they don't see anymore.

Lenora Worth said, "How about the mullet?" To which Kristin Billerbeck responded, "How about the bullet? With the bald part in the back."

Lissa Halls Johnson said she never sees:

Waxed paper bags for sandwichesMailing things wrapped in brown grocery bags and tied with string
TV remotes that "click" (and take some effort to push the buttons)
The bakery guy who comes to your house, opens the back of his specialized wagon and pulls out a drawers filled with yummy breads.
A cardboard cap for the glass milk jar.
A machine that slices the bread for you when you buy it at the corner grocery
Over the counter medicinal products without any kind of extra wrapping and seals (You could buy a bottle of aspirin, pop off the top and there were aspirin! Sometimes a cotton ball, but never anything else."
Kids playing outside after dark in a neighborhood. Young kids playing outside by themselves
Kids riding in cars without seatbelts
Anyone riding in cars without seatbelts
Kids riding in the back of open pickup trucks
Kids sleeping in that hollow space of the back window in the car

Author and friend Carolyne Aarsen sent a great list!
Rolls of film by the checkout counter in a grocery store or drugstore.
Mascara that came in little blocks with a brush. You'd have to make the block wet with the brush and then put it on.
Pay phones.
Sanitary napkin belts.
Cassette tapes
Floppy disks
People smoking in restaurants
Paying for groceries with a cheque. (She's from Canada, but we love her!)
Milk being delivered by a milk truck

Historical author who wanted to be anonymous wrote:
Crooked teeth
Public telephones
Women pulling up their sagging panty hose
Service Station attendants pumping gas and washing car windows

Friend and author Debora Raney offered these great ideas:
Garters
Pantyhose
Black-and-white TVs
Typewriters
Outhouses
Smallpox vaccination scars on children's arms.
Women in public with spongy pink curlers in their hair.
Telephone party lines
Phone cords (at least not very many)
Butter churns (except in museums)

What about you? What items do you think are of "days gone by?"