all days are created equal

i took this picture at a wedding over the weekend and though it was a beautiful illustration for my thoughts...

well, i have alot of random topics in my head so i will just pick one... to sum it up: rain and mondays.

i never realized how much the weather affected people until i became an adult and entered the work force. in conjunction with weather, certain days of the week have far too much influence to a persons mood or attitude. i see people heads hung low on "gloomy" days and "mondays," as if you aren't even allowed to come in smiling if it's the beginning of the week. if it's raining, i can just write their attitudes off as terrible right from the start. i have actually heard these exact quotes on my elevator rides, "Well, I'm doing ok considering the crappy weather and it's 4 whole days until the weekend." "I wouldn't make it through a monday without my coffee... there's just no way." "Friday's are the best... we should be able to leave early just because it's Friday." "The weekends just aren't long enough."

the list could go on and on, but in conclusion, i see many people "living for the weekends and sunny days." how sad is that? i think it would be such a waste of time to live all those days in between unhappy and complaining. don't they realize that we need mondays and tuesdays to make thursdays and fridays what they are? we need the weeks to even make a "weekend" exist. we need the rain to make our grass green, our flowers grow, and lakes remain full of water... to keep the earth from burning up. shoot, we should be rejoicing for these things!! a monday, like a friday, is another day that God has given us full of breath and life. to live for Him and to bring glory to His name. i found myself starting to 'follow the pack' a while back, but this whole concept revealed itself to me. i decided that i would always have a positive attitude on mondays and gloomy days to bring a ray of light to the days of negativity. i realize i have to fake my attitude sometimes, but people honestly don't know how to respond when i take that approach. it really throws them off, and hopefully makes them think.

if anyone reads this, i challenge you to think about this new perspective. make a committment to go against the grain and take the path less traveled. make monday your favorite day because of all the blessings and opportunities the week ahead may bring. because the Lord has made it and has given you life. and what happened to being thankful simply for having a job? or having freedom? praise Him for the rain and even let your hair or pants get wet. comment on how soothing the rain sounds or beautiful the clouds appear. it's just a thought, just another way we can allow God to use us, bless us, and hopefully bless others around us. He has made all things good and His will is perfect. who are we to choose which days or what weather is "better?" every day is a day that the Lord has made... let us rejoice and be glad in it!

people always ask me if i was devastated by the rain and snow on my wedding day and i tell them, "it's quite the opppsite, I wouldn't have had it any other way..."

reasons for seasons

change is an interesting concept and quite a catch 22...

we long for change yet we fear it. we love to see new things, yet fear losing the past. we like to be comfortable and stable, yet desire a totally different routine/environment. the spontaneous long to be scheduled, while the structured long for spontaneity. we grieve saying goodbye to friends, but welcome new ones. we encourage one another to move away, but desire to buy a home and stay in one place... we want to go somewhere new for vacation, but love the memories and warmth of the place we often go. we always seem to want the next job, but like the comfort of the one we have... change can completely restore us, while stability can bring fulfillment as well...

I personally get so attached to people, situations, feelings, etc. that I have a difficult time with change and transition. on the other hand, I seem to be a pretty well-adjusted person which means I find myself doing well once the change has happened and I'm acquanted once again to the new circumstance. I have come to learn that I have seperation anxiety and deal with it every single day. anxiety and unsettledness fill my heart at the end of each day, simply because I am attached to the day! it's just so hard to let go of it. do I really have to start all over again tomorrow? I am fine with this day... why can't this day just continue? in the mornings, I feel joyful because I have adjusted to a new day. maybe it's when I feel the most in control? or maybe its the point in the day where I am the least attached so I actually have the most freedom? ...each Friday at work, I have a bit of sadness that the week is over, not meaning I wish I could work more hours, just a refelection of "did I do the week well? is that it?" I fear the free time of the weekend because I am used to the full schedule of the week. each Sunday night, I panic, as you might guess... do I have to let go of the weekend already? but I like my freedom, staying up late, and visiting with friends and family... what will Monday bring? I forget what it feels like at work every day? I know that co-workers come and go... but when they go, I feel sad and think things just won't ever be the same again. why do I feel like no one else experiences this? maybe this is why I love to send cards to people or email them after we have just spent time together. making sure I get enough closure seems to help me close this gap. I must learn that people come in and out of our lives for different lengths of seasons and for different reasons. we must make the most of every opportunity because we don't know what the next day brings... if I spend too much time grieving what has passed, I may miss the next lesson that God has for me.

so those are just some of my thoughts around the complexity of change. It's my biggest enemy and my deepest desire... it causes me to weep and feel my lowest, and laugh so hard as my joy bubbles over. how can one concept hold such extremes?