What else is there to do at 5:45am??

The other day I had received an inspiring text message from a friend, not having much spare time then to forward it on I decided to wait. I finally found time at 5:45 this morning. Hey I was already awake since my vacationing son forgot that NC was an hour ahead of us when he called.

Back to the text message, it was one of those that reminds us to love the people who treat us right and forget the ones who don't. That friends can be like balloons once you let go you can't get them back. To contact family and friends and let them know you care. So forth and so on...

Imagine my surprise when I immediately got 2 responses. Who the heck is up that early anyways, besides my husband and the cats?? One response was from my 10 yr old cousin who is an early riser but not that early. The other was in form of a phone call from an old friend who didn't recognize the phone number. It was a funny conversation because I could tell he was caught completely off guard. He was not expecting a long lost friend he hadn't seen in at least 4 yrs to suddenly send him a text out of the clear blue. It was a good quick catching up call.

Often times in this fast pace life we live, we forget to stay in contact with those who mean the most to us. That was the whole point in that text message. Granted maybe not at 5:45 am but hey what a way to start the day!!!

Fighting the fight

Sometimes in life we are often faced with situations that seem to hit us all at once. Sometimes its like you wake up one morning and realize your life is completely different. You are sitting there wondering 'What the hell happened? How did things get this way?' Sometimes a situation will be thrown at us that we are not prepared for and knock the wind completely out of our sails.

It is those situations that can often make or break a person. How you handle then is up to you. You can choose to ignore them and go on. You can choose to pull the covers over your head and wallow in self pity. But yet a brave few will decide to put on their fighting armour and face their demons head on. They know its a make or break fight and they chose to not go down without a gallant fight. Sometimes they start out alone in their fight and sometimes they have to call in the troops for help. Either way they fight the fight... win, lose or draw... they give it their all.

It is at the end of their battle, they mend their wounds and survey the damage. They once again will find themselves at another crossroads in their lives. Which path do they choose now. One path will lead down a road of endless twist and curves with no real destination in life. The other road will lead to true life long happiness. There are no guarantees that the road is smoothly paved, but the journey will be worth it.

God promises us that with Him all things are possible and that if we believe in Him and trust in Him, He will never fail us. We win our toughest battles when we put on the armour of God and let Him lead the way.

May the situations you face in your life be few and far between. But if tough ones come along, remember... be brave and put on your Godly armour!

When someone you love is hurting...

What do you do when someone you love is hurting so bad and there is nothing you can you to ease their pain?

What do you do when no earthly advise will surfice?

What do you do when they look at you with tear filled eyes and a breaking heart?

What you do is offer a listening ear, a strong shoulder for crying, and a warm hug. You also tell them that you love them no matter what!!

OH and you also say a prayer of thanks to God for sending them good friends to be help when you cant.

Teenagers

Being a teenager is hard. Being the mom of a teenager is even harder.

As a teenager, growing up in rural Mississippi in the late 70s and early 80s, life was easy and uncomplicated. Life was carefree. Being in the country, there wasn't a whole lot to do. We had to create our own fun. We were able to stay outside with acres and acres to explore and play on. We all had chores and would help the others with their chores so the rest of the day was ours. The only real danger was falling out of trees and maybe a snake or two. We would walk miles along the side of the road to collect returnable bottles for change so we could buy a cold root beer on a hot summer day. As children and teens, we stayed busy. There was no laying around watching TV.

Today living in the big city, life for teens is not easy and is complicated. Its not the carefree times it use to be. With both parents working, kids stay home alone more often than not. Lots of idle time. Told to stay inside where they are safe, because it is not longer safe to play outside for fear of someone harming them.

But are they really safe? Are you really protecting them? Are you really shielding them from all dangers in the world? Those questions can have dual answers. Unfortunately, for some the answer is no. No matter how hard you try to protect them some times the ones you pray you can trust are the very ones who will lead your precious babies astray. Lots of peer pressure.

I have heard all my life kids will be kids and boys will be boys. As a parent, you want your children to grow, explore and experience life. You want the best for them. You want them to be the best they can be. You want them to be successful in school and in life. You want them to make smart choices and decisions. You want all these good things in life for them. You want them to be strong and independent.

As a parent, how do you help them do all these things? How do you teach them to make the right decisions? How do you help them when they make the wrong decisions? How do you make them see that some times some decisions have life long consequences? How do you do these things in a way that is effective when you really want to yell, scream and punish? What do you do when some times love just isn't enough?

I try to remember back to my own childhood and see if there are any answers or any life experiences that will help me deal with my young teenager. So far I haven't found any. Back then we all had a healthy fear of our parents. Today kids have no fear and some times no respect for parents or anyone else for that matter. And sometimes when parents try to enforce the rules of the family and house someone will try to step in and say you cant do that. But that is another story unto itself better left for another day.

As the parent of a wonderful, handsome, headstrong young teenager, my greatest fear is not being a good enough parent and role model. I fear that no matter how hard I try, no matter how much I guide, no matter how much I love him, I will some how fail him as a parent. Now that he is a teenager, what do I do now? How much do I let go of the apron strings? How many rules and boundaries do I set? If I continue to be strict will he rebel? How much do I pray?

I know there are no set answers. Every child is different. Every situation is different. So for now, I will continue to try hard to be the best mom I can be. Cry my tears in private and pray God never gets tired of hearing me pray. I will continue to set boundaries and limits. I will continue to guide, love and direct. If he thinks I'm too hard and too strict -- TOUGH!! My house.. My rules!!!

Maybe when he turns 20 he will see I wasn't as bad as he thought. Maybe just maybe he will still love me in the end!