Feliz Día de la Madre

My Mom taught me to be on time.

My Mom taught me to finish what I start.

My Mom taught me to do mental math and geometric proofs.

My Mom taught me to keep a jar of bacon grease in the refrigerator.

My Mom taught me to appreciate black pepper and green chile.  Most of her dishes have large doses of one or the other.  If you eat supper at her house you're probably gonna sweat.

Mom took me to church.  Every Sunday and Wednesday.  Even when I didn't want to.  Leslie's mom did too, and now we take our kids to church.  Every Sunday and Wednesday.  Even when they don't want to.

My Mom taught me to "just blow it off" and keep on keeping on when I get frustrated by circumstance.

My Mom taught me to grow things.

  

My Mom told me that I've got to learn to use a little tact.  I'm still working hard on that one.

My Mom taught me that whether you are chopping weeds with a hoe or pulling them, if you don't get the roots then you're not really doing any good.  That lesson can be carried into many other areas of life.

My Mom taught me to tell stories beginning from the middle and work out from there.  

 

My Mom taught me to love that hour or two in the morning before everyone else in the house gets up.  Whether I'm visiting her house or she is visiting mine, those are my favorite times with my Mom.

My Mom doesn't like having her picture taken and neither do I, and neither does Jonesy (the 9 yr old version of my mom).  I had to search all over my internets to find a picture of my me and my mom and this one's almost 3 years old.  Thanks, Wayne.

I know it's been a challenge being my mother.  Thanks, Mom, for loving me, teaching me, sticking with me, and forgiving me.  Thanks for being my Mom.

What I've Learned So Far

It's been 20 years since I graduated from high school, and I've been reflecting on things I've learned since then.  Not necessarily things I wish I'd known.  Sometimes, like Toby Kieth sang back then when he wore a mullet instead of a stomped on hat, I wish I didn't know now what I didn't know then.
Here are a few of the things I've learned.......

I've learned that even the people you admire and love the most have faults and quirks and will disappoint you.  Every hero is flawed in some way. Though I've not yet learned to not be disappointed, I have learned not to be surprised by this fact.

Sleep is delicious.  I've learned to appreciate rest.  So much so that I've been attempting to maintain awareness during of sleep so that I can appreciate it more fully.

20 years ago I thought that financial success or "being rich" just had to do with how much money a person made.  I've learned that it has more to do with how you handle what you have, making wise decisions, not only about what you don't spend,  but how you spend what you do.  Like successful dieting is not about starving yourself, but eating the right things and exercising, being successful financially is about spending money on the right things and exercising proper financial behaviors.  Yes, the rich get richer, but not because they're evil and life's not fair, but because they usually are making better decisions

I've learned that after learning to read, the study of history is probably the most important academic pursuit in preparing for life.  Too bad it is probably the subject least emphasized in our public schools.

I've learned that adolescent girls are not very bright and are a strange combination of vanity and insecurity, easily bamboozled by a smooth talker who appeals to their vanity and plays upon their insecurity.  I know adolescent boys can be idiots too, but I already knew that 20 years ago.  I'm glad I didn't know it about the girls back then, and I hope my sons don't figure it out too soon or they might be paying child support before they get out of high school.

On some level, in some way, about something, everybody is crazy.  You, me, your parents, your hero, your worst enemy, your husband, your wife, the person you think has it all together.  Everybody.  The trick is learning to acknowledge this, not to be surprised by it. Learning how to handle the crazy parts of the people you love, and understanding how your personal crazy can affect them.

John 3:16 is probably the most well known verse from the gospels.  I've learned that the next verse, John 3:17, is important too.  "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him."  I've learned that if I'm condemning folks, then I'm not showing them the gospel. Jesus came "full of truth and grace".