Rinse Your Strawberries in the Bathroom Sink

I've been going through some difficult things these days.  I don't want to publish them on my blog, but just know that life has been a struggle for me lately.

Today, as I was searching for the title to a vehicle, I came across a short article I had written for a magazine.  It was just the reminder I needed.  So while I'm still trying to find the title, I'm pretty sure I found what I was looking for.

I'd like to share it with you today....

I don't know about you, but God sure finds creative ways to talk to me in everyday situations, and most of them come right out of my own mouth, as I'm speaking to my chldren.  At these moments, I can instantly see the Lord standing beside me, tapping me on the shoulder, saying "Excuse me, I've been trying to tell YOU that for quite awhile now". Most times I just say out loud "Okay God, I hear you" and then my kids give me that "Mom's gone crazy look" again.

The day before Thanksgiving my husband and I were preparing for the big day in the kitchen, and my daughter, Olivia, was eyeing the strawberries and Cool Whip.  All morning she had been asking me if she could have some, and all morning I tried to explain that she could, but she'd have to wait until the chocolate pie was finished, so I would be sure to have enough topping. That opportunity finally came in the early afternoon.  I was filling the pie at the kitchen table, while my husband was making homemade chicken stock over the stove, and straining it in the kitchen sink.

I put Olivia's strawberries in a small bowl, and instructed her to rinse them off in the bathroom sink because Daddy was still using the sink.  Just as Olivia was reaching for the kitchen faucet, and not heading to the bathroom like I had told her to, I got her attention with a firm "No".  I then said "Olivia, I JUST told you to use the bathroom sink, and you're doing exactly what I said not to do."

 Her reply was "Well, it looked like Daddy was done."

I then said "You only need to do what I've told you, and not act on what you see.  Just because Dad appears to be finished, he's not, and I've already told you the best way to rinse your strawberries.  I am the parent and you are the child.  I know Daddy's not going to be finished for awhile, so I told you exactly how to rinse your strawberries, and you just need to obey."

As soon as those words left my mouth, I could hear the Lord saying to me "Holly, don't act on what YOU see either.  Just because things appear to be one way, they're not, and I already know what's in store for you.  I am the parent, and YOU are the CHILD.  You just need to obey, even if you think you have a better way of getting things done."

isaiah 55:8 says "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways declares the Lord."

I am so thankful for those moments when the Lord makes His word come to life in an everyday situation like this.  It's a great reminder that my Heavenly Father really does have my best interest at heart, and He is the parent.  Just like we know what's best for our own kids, how much more does Father know what's best for us, and wants to share that knowledge with us?

Even when we think we know what's really going on, Father is so good, faithful, and patient to point us in the right direction, even if it means we have to rinse our strawberries in the bathroom sink.

Won't You Be My Neighbor?

If we were neighbors, I would borrow things.  Probably many things.  Hence, the inspiration for my blog title of Some Borrowed Thyme.  I'm pretty sure I currently have thyme in my spice cabinet, but here are a few things I don't have, or haven't had in the past, causing me to turn to my faithful neighbor and friend, Kim.  She has always been able to help me in a pinch.

1. A humidifier
2. Sugar
3. Flour
4. A can of cream of chicken soup
5. Eggs (of course!)
6. An air mattress
7. A tire pump
8. Jumper cables

I'm sure there are more things I've borrowed from Kim, but because she's such a wonderful friend, she wouldn't even be able to tell you what they were.  Nor would she probably be able to list 5 of the 8 things I just listed.  She simply loans without blinking an eye.  She is a great neighbor!

We moved recently, and I lost my wonderful neighbor.  I am so very glad she is still my friend, though!  We're trying to work out our schedules so that we can get together more, but it's not the same as being able to just walk out my front door when I see her van drive down the street. 

If we were neighbors, I could also loan you some things.  Here are the things you could count on me having to loan you:

1. Milk
2. Butter
3. Canned tomatoes
4. A shoulder to cry on
5. A listening ear
6. A walking buddy
7. A joke
8. A funny/embarassing story to tell you
9. A short-notice babysitter
10. A pet sitter
11. A Friendship (well, you can just keep this!)

I don't know any of my neighbors right now, but hopefully I will be able to get out and meet them soon.  Surely I will run out of SOMETHING, and will have nowhere to go if I don't.

Won't you be my neighbor?

Childhood Blog

Long before the World Wide Web, we had blogs, but we called them something different.  We called them diaries.  My first diary, really, my only diary was a Christmas gift on Sunday, December 25th, 1983.  I was 10 years old.  It was a one year diary that I somehow made last for 7 years, with room to spare.

During this recent move, I found my diary again.  It's a pretty sage green, with a picture of some horses in a misty field on the cover. It locks, and I still have the key.  However, I now know that any toothpick can unlock it, but in 1983 I was convinced I could lock away my deepest thoughts and secrets.

 Most of the entries are simply records of the mundane, yet others contain encrypted secrets that only those very close to me could decipher.  I want to share a few of them with you, not because I think they are really wonderful or anything like that, but just because I think it's fun.

Tuesday, 12/27/83-  Today I watched A-Team and Remmington Steele.
~For the record, I had a HUGE crush on Pierce Brosnan (and I'm pretty sure my mom did, too).

Thursday, 12/29/83- Today I was in a bad mood so I played with my Lite Brite then I took a bath.
~I wonder if that would help if I was in a bad mood nowadays. If I still had my Lite Brite, I might give it a try!

Friday, 1/6/1984- Today nothing happened.
~I somehow thought I needed to write in my diary every single day, even if I didn't think there was anything worth writing about.  I would let days go by and then go back and try to fill in the missing dates.  I was only successful at this for about 35 days, then I gave up.  This would explain why my 1-year diary lasted 7 years!

Saturday, 2/11/1984- Today I went to Gina's wedding.  Darin likes me but I hate him.  I think so does Rob and Chris and I don't like them either. Except Rob.
~This is a good reminder of how I felt about boys.  Before reading my diary, I could have sworn I didn't start noticing boys until I was 13 or 14, but clearly, I wasn't quite 11 when I started writing about them in my diary.  I now have an 11 year old daughter, so maybe we should include my diary in our bedtime reading choices. I think she would find my entries funny, but she may also feel that she could talk to me more candidly about things like this, knowing that I had the same feelings she may be having now.

I remember thinking what a dumb gift my diary was.  I hated writing at the time, and thought the diary was just schoolwork in a disguise.  Now, I treasure my childhood thoughts and hope that I can use them to help me become a better mother.