Miracles

Well, today, I want to write about miracles. Yesterday my daughters asked if miracles only happen in Bible times. I answered, "NO. Here's a real life story of a miracle."

Many years ago, when I was little girl, my parents didn't have enough money for groceries. My mother prayed and we went to the store anyway. Days in Barrow, Alaska are always cold and windy in Winter. This was no exception. As we walked to the store, the wind blew a hundred dollar bill in front of us. The bill landed in the snow and didn't continue flying in the wind. We picked it up and wondered how that happened. As good Christians, we reported it to the police, but they said, to keep it. They didn't have a way to find the owner, and we could definitely use it for necessities like food.

There were many ways that God has blessed me over the years. I may not have been rich in money, but when I needed help, there was always help to be found.

Fw: Wedding Poem/Blessing

In line with our PW Wedding Traditions

event coming up, I though I would pass this on.

A wonderful family friend of mine gave me this poem for a wedding gift. In our culture, our marriage should be blessed by an elder
of my family. My "uncle" Joe Upicksoun gave this to us as a blessing. Mr. Upicksoun has passed on to the next life. He is a relative, but "great uncle" made him feel old, so he was always just Uncle Joe.

In honor of Joe, here is a link to an interview with

this wonderful man.

History and Culture Interview with Joseph Upicksoun

The Invisible Mother

This is from an email a friend sent me. I do not know who the original author was, but as a mother, sometimes we have the power of invisibility.

The Invisible Mother

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask me a question. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'

Obviously, not.

No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.

I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going; she's going; she is gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a
friend from England ..

Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in.

I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well.
It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself.

I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I bought you this.'

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe .

I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription:
'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:

No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.

These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.

Image via Wikipedia

They made great sacrifices and expected no credit.

The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything...

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place.

It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are
building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.'

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder.. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on.

The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'you're gonna love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right.

And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

- author unknown

Gratitude to God

The purpose of this entry to be grateful to God and his provisions.

I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

Psalm 34:4 (New King James Version)

Through God, I have a home, food, security, and a loving family. When I prayed for an angel, God sent my future husband to me. My angel builds me up when I am down, believes in me when I don't think I can. The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want (Psalm 23). When I asked for prayer to relieve the pain of fibromylagia, the pain was relieved. I used to need pain relievers every day and my stomach became irritated. Now, I just need a pain reliever every now and then. Usually, when I don't take care of myself.