While sitting at swim lessons this morning I was reading headlines and stories from a favorite e-zine to my mom. I receive a lovely little email each weekday morning with a blurbs and headlines about going-ons in my state that don't necessarily hit the mainstream news. It mostly deals with legislation and education and often I merely skim and move on, sometimes I click the links for the full article.
Today I clicked on this: http://www.popecenter.org/commentaries/article.html?id=2542 and read it out loud to my mom while the baby was sleeping and the kids were swimming.
In Mom's opinion, as an employer as well as one who took 20yrs to finish a "four year degree," a college degree isn't necessarily beneficial in terms of *what* you've studied, but more about the fact that you finished *something.* She said there's a maturation process that tends to occur as one goes through the effort to complete a college degree. This is also the woman who told me (less than a year after completing her degree) to not go to college for something I thought I could make money in, but something that was of interest to me because more often than not a job wouldn't be found in the field (saturation of market, etc).
My own opinion is that college isn't for everyone. It's important to recognize where your strengths and interests are and pursue those with gusto--whether it leads you to a university, a vo-tech facility, an apprenticeship, your own fledgling entrepreneurial effort, or a handful of part-time jobs that fuel your interests, provide for your needs, and keep life fresh for you. IMO, it's also important to pay your own way so it means more to you--you tend to put in more effort when it's your own buck you're blowing. Our kids have been notified (regularly) from the get-go that if they want a phone, they're paying for it. If they want a car, they're paying for it. If they want to pursue post-secondary educations, they're paying for it. We strive to encourage our children to be self-reliant.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Materialism and Preparedness
Yesterday we found out that our dear friends no longer lived in their house--a couple weeks ago a bolt of lightening struck their utility room and set their house on fire.
Fortunately they were not home when it happened.
Fortunately somebody familiar with neighbors happened to be driving by and called 911.
The neighbors were able to get in and save the cat.
Even the pet fish managed to survive!
But the house did not.
The fire tore through the attic.
The attic that held the holiday decorations.
The attic that held the wedding dress and wedding decorations I, and others, had made for them.
The attic that held totes upon totes of clothing for her kids--clothes being passed on to the littlest, the next season/size for the oldest that had been gleaned from conscientious shopping of consignment sales.
As the fire tore through the attic, and as the firefighters battled the blaze with their water hoses, the ceiling gave way and all the careful cleaning that had occurred that very afternoon was wasted.
Smoke, water, charred debris littered every inch of what remained of their house.
This dear friend is a phenomenal couponer--utilizing coupons to stock a food storage for her family for pennies on the dollar. She isn't wasteful or greedy like the Extreme Couponers. She is a wise manager of her home, pantry, and budget. Her modest stockpile is gone. Where they once had peace of mind about having food and goods (like dish detergent) to squeak through tight times, they now have nothing.
No home, no pantry stash, lost family history memorabilia...
But they have each other. They have their family. They have their extended family. They have friends. They have a few belongings that a disaster clean-up company is trying to make usable once more.
For me, seeing the pictures of during and after was heart-wrenching. All the effort, planning, and expense literally down the drain. The realization that one is no longer prepared when their preparations go up in smoke.... How do you prepare your food storage for a house fire? How do you have a 72hr kit when the disaster strikes your home while you're away? And if you resort to keeping your 72hr kit in the vehicle, what do you do in the event of a vehicle fire or loss?
Yes, this line of thought could get bogged down in despair and paranoia. But what all of this reminds me of is a tale about a housefire in Arizona where a tearful 5yo boy, while watching his house burn, declared that he didn't lose his home. That was his house burning, but his home was wherever his family was.
Fortunately they were not home when it happened.
Fortunately somebody familiar with neighbors happened to be driving by and called 911.
The neighbors were able to get in and save the cat.
Even the pet fish managed to survive!
But the house did not.
The fire tore through the attic.
The attic that held the holiday decorations.
The attic that held the wedding dress and wedding decorations I, and others, had made for them.
The attic that held totes upon totes of clothing for her kids--clothes being passed on to the littlest, the next season/size for the oldest that had been gleaned from conscientious shopping of consignment sales.
As the fire tore through the attic, and as the firefighters battled the blaze with their water hoses, the ceiling gave way and all the careful cleaning that had occurred that very afternoon was wasted.
Smoke, water, charred debris littered every inch of what remained of their house.
This dear friend is a phenomenal couponer--utilizing coupons to stock a food storage for her family for pennies on the dollar. She isn't wasteful or greedy like the Extreme Couponers. She is a wise manager of her home, pantry, and budget. Her modest stockpile is gone. Where they once had peace of mind about having food and goods (like dish detergent) to squeak through tight times, they now have nothing.
No home, no pantry stash, lost family history memorabilia...
But they have each other. They have their family. They have their extended family. They have friends. They have a few belongings that a disaster clean-up company is trying to make usable once more.
For me, seeing the pictures of during and after was heart-wrenching. All the effort, planning, and expense literally down the drain. The realization that one is no longer prepared when their preparations go up in smoke.... How do you prepare your food storage for a house fire? How do you have a 72hr kit when the disaster strikes your home while you're away? And if you resort to keeping your 72hr kit in the vehicle, what do you do in the event of a vehicle fire or loss?
Yes, this line of thought could get bogged down in despair and paranoia. But what all of this reminds me of is a tale about a housefire in Arizona where a tearful 5yo boy, while watching his house burn, declared that he didn't lose his home. That was his house burning, but his home was wherever his family was.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Cadence
We were late to church due to the baby, but we arrived in time to take in a marvelous speaker. He analogized bike riding with life and I wish there was a recording or transcript so I could review and dwell upon it further. Since neither exists, here are some highlights that really spoke to me.
Cadence is the revolutions of the front sprockets--in cycling you want to maintain the same revolutions per minute regardless of terrain, which means shifting gears when necessary. To parallel this to something Eldest's swim instructor stated this week: each swim stroke has its own rhythm, once you hit that rhythm you can "just keep swimming..." In life, we want to maintain a cadence or rhythm as it makes for easier 'travels.' If we maintain a rhythm in our life, in our spirituality, we do not have to constantly reinvent the wheel--we can continue with efficiency, allowing us to take in the scenery and the companionship of others.
Hills and Water. In our geographic area you are always heading towards or away from water. It is always uphill after you cross the water. In the analogy, the water-crossing is spiritual growth. Whenever we grow spiritually we are faced with additional struggles, which encourage additional growth. When we crest the hill we start mastering that spot of growth, allowing us to coast or making it easier for us to maintain our cadence, and then we cross the water and start on another hill or another trial.
There was more, but these are the two points that really hit home for me. This week I want to work on maintaining a steady cadence and not be so random in my gear shifts.
Cadence is the revolutions of the front sprockets--in cycling you want to maintain the same revolutions per minute regardless of terrain, which means shifting gears when necessary. To parallel this to something Eldest's swim instructor stated this week: each swim stroke has its own rhythm, once you hit that rhythm you can "just keep swimming..." In life, we want to maintain a cadence or rhythm as it makes for easier 'travels.' If we maintain a rhythm in our life, in our spirituality, we do not have to constantly reinvent the wheel--we can continue with efficiency, allowing us to take in the scenery and the companionship of others.
Hills and Water. In our geographic area you are always heading towards or away from water. It is always uphill after you cross the water. In the analogy, the water-crossing is spiritual growth. Whenever we grow spiritually we are faced with additional struggles, which encourage additional growth. When we crest the hill we start mastering that spot of growth, allowing us to coast or making it easier for us to maintain our cadence, and then we cross the water and start on another hill or another trial.
There was more, but these are the two points that really hit home for me. This week I want to work on maintaining a steady cadence and not be so random in my gear shifts.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Tarheel Through-and-Through
We recently had a new addition to our family; as did friends of SurrogateAuntie, and some of DH's co-workers. I was due before ALL of them, and guess who delivered last?? And late.
SurrogateAuntie delivers late as well so I joked with her that we breed true Tarheels (in the historical sense, not in relation to the collegiate teams)--they have their heels dug in before they even come into the world!! *lol*
Eldest was the latest of all our kids, and he still digs his heels in. Especially when it comes to lessonwork. I'm running out of ideas of how to encourage him to tend to his lessons and the more he digs in, the farther behind he gets. One of the glorious things about homeschooling is the ability to work at various levels amongst the core subjects, but this is getting a bit ridiculous.
The fabulous planning I did so we could polish off our "year" is null and void. We're just doing summer bridge workbooks right now, and even that is a battle. *roll eyes*
SurrogateAuntie delivers late as well so I joked with her that we breed true Tarheels (in the historical sense, not in relation to the collegiate teams)--they have their heels dug in before they even come into the world!! *lol*
Eldest was the latest of all our kids, and he still digs his heels in. Especially when it comes to lessonwork. I'm running out of ideas of how to encourage him to tend to his lessons and the more he digs in, the farther behind he gets. One of the glorious things about homeschooling is the ability to work at various levels amongst the core subjects, but this is getting a bit ridiculous.
The fabulous planning I did so we could polish off our "year" is null and void. We're just doing summer bridge workbooks right now, and even that is a battle. *roll eyes*
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Venn Diagram
Venn diagrams are awesome for clarifying data. They are an extremely visual way of seeing what you have, and where you have it. It works for numbers, food stuffs, inanimate objects, and even people. It's not putting them in a box, it's putting them in a circle! (Or an overlap *wink*). And it may be the clearest way to illustrate being on the fringe of social groups.
I have a very diverse collection of friends. I crave this diversity and the intellectual stimulation that results from this anti-Stepford array of acquaintances. However, they are so diverse that I cannot have them all in the same room (and sometimes the same Facebook) together without knickers getting twisted or toes trampled. It can make planning events difficult.
To Venn diagram my friendships and acquaintances is a beautiful thing--it looks like a multi-petaled flower or some "artistic" rendering of a chrysanthemum. It is similar if I diagrammed my location; we're centrally located, we just have to drive to get anywhere.
While being on the fringe of social groups--and civilization--provides a variegated richness, the Venn diagram displays something equally as poignant....
Being wholly alone.
I have a very diverse collection of friends. I crave this diversity and the intellectual stimulation that results from this anti-Stepford array of acquaintances. However, they are so diverse that I cannot have them all in the same room (and sometimes the same Facebook) together without knickers getting twisted or toes trampled. It can make planning events difficult.
To Venn diagram my friendships and acquaintances is a beautiful thing--it looks like a multi-petaled flower or some "artistic" rendering of a chrysanthemum. It is similar if I diagrammed my location; we're centrally located, we just have to drive to get anywhere.
While being on the fringe of social groups--and civilization--provides a variegated richness, the Venn diagram displays something equally as poignant....
Being wholly alone.
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