by Heather Plett | Aug 30, 2005 | Uncategorized
Lest you should think that all our downsizing (from 2 incomes to one, etc.) and selling off of earthly possessions (van, camper, boat) means that we’ve completely turned into “simple living altruistic tree-huggers”, I have to come clean and admit that we do still like to treat ourselves now and then. When we sold the camper, we paid off some bills and stashed some away, but then we allowed ourselves a little “fun money”. It’s been awhile since we’ve made any impulse buys, so this week we acted on impulse.
Marcel bought a bike (not as nice as mine, but still quite nice), I bought a digital camera (not quite an SLR but a step up from point-and-shoot. Yippee!), Nikki is now the proud owner of an MP3 player, and Julie’s on the search for a beanie bag chair. Maddie seems fairly content with the “gameboy” she got with her happy meal at MacDonalds – it has buttons to press and it beeps – what more does a three-year-old need? Hey, ya gotta love a three-year-old’s simple value system!
Here are a couple of shots with my new toy… 
Supper in the backyard with our friends Justin and Nicole – yummy barbecued pizza!
Maddie perched in her favourite spot in the backyard tree.
Nikki and Julie in a rare moment – close enough to touch, but NOT FIGHTING!
by Heather Plett | Aug 25, 2005 | Uncategorized
“Because we are flesh, we know best that with which we are familiar. We love most those around us. We yearn for connections to real people in real places, people we can touch and who can touch us. We love most intensely those people around us. We hold our children in our arms, and we breathe with them as one, and we love them deeply in each breath. And that is as it should be. We are flesh that touches and is touched.
But at the same time we are spirit. We know that to live our humanity to its fullest requires moving beyond the flesh.
And so we know there can be no difference between how we treat those we love and those on the other side of the world whom we will never know and never touch. If our lives and the lives of the ones we love have value – if by virtue of being human we have a claim to life and dignity in living – then everyone must have that same claim.
We know that the children we hold in our arms have exactly the same value as those children we will never see, held in the arms of those we will never know. If our lives in flesh are to make any sense, our spirit must move beyond the ones we touch, the ones we love.
This is our struggle, and it is hard, because when we lose a loved one, when someone we have touched and who has touched us suffers, we cannot help but feel it more deeply. Our flesh aches. That is what it is to be human.
And at the same time we have to push ourselves to think about the suffering of those we will never touch. Our spirit has to ache as deeply as our flesh. That, too, is what it is to be human.
If we are the people we say we are – if we believe the things we profess to believe, if we want to build the world we claim to want to build – then we must struggle with this. And it will be hard.”
Robert Jensen
You can read the rest of the article here
by Heather Plett | Aug 25, 2005 | Uncategorized
Today, I have a yearning to go to summer camp. Not as a grown-up, with responsibilities for caring for children or anything like that, but as a kid – a full-fledged carefree kid. I want to go to a place where all my needs are cared for, the bell rings when it’s time to eat, someone has lined up activities for my whole day so I don’t have to think, I can buy something from the tuck shop every day with my Mom’s money, and the greatest effort I have to put forth is to put my sleeping bag and suitcase in order so we don’t lose points for cabin check.
Some days, being a grown-up feels like more headache than it’s worth. Yesterday was one of those days. I had to be grown up ALL day and it was just too much for me. And not just a grown-up, but I had to be a leader all day, and that’s even more taxing.
I’m a manager at work, so I have to make a hundred decisions every day, solve problems, discipline employees when there’s a need, and in general act like I’ve got it all put together. Mostly I like being a manager. Yesterday I didn’t. For one thing, we had to meet with an H.R. consultant about a very sticky situation with one of my staff members. It’s messy and I don’t enjoy it. Then, in the afternoon, I had to do an annual performance evaluation of another one of my employees – not something I enjoy much either. If it’s any comfort for those of you who have sat and squirmed while their managers did their annual appraisal, believe me, it’s not a lot of fun on THIS side of the desk either. It particularly doesn’t help if you have employees who are forever judging your performance as well, looking for things to nail you on.
After that fun-filled day at work, I rushed home to have supper with the family and then role #2 took over. Mom. Marcel had had a rough day and has cooked most of the meals lately, so supper preparation had been left to me. Actually, Julie wanted to cook supper last night, which means that the Mom role is even more involved in meal preparation. I can’t just shut everyone out of the kitchen and go to work, I have to be patient with her and let her learn without taking over completely. And, as every mom knows, the minute you walk in the house after having been away, the demands are thrown at you faster than you can take off your shoes. “Can I invite Renée over tonight? Can we watch a movie? Can I go for a bike ride? When are you going to take us school supply shopping? Why didn’t you fix my pants yet? Can we go for a Slurpee?” Just once, I want to walk in the door, and have someone meet MY needs instead of demanding I meet THEIRS!
Supper had to be short, because role #3 needed to take over. Grab my purse, kiss the kids, and rush to church. We had a leadership team meeting, and I’m the leadership facilitator, so I run the meetings. Again, it’s something I enjoy doing, so I’m not complaining, but yesterday if felt like yet another demand piled onto my shoulders. At least with this role I don’t have to dole out discipline or take responsibility for too many decisions – I’m just helping other leaders reach their own decisions. But…I’m not sure if it’s because most of them are introverts and therefore don’t get or give out much energy in a group setting, but MAN it’s hard to get some of these people excited about anything. You present something, ask for feedback, and you’re met with a bunch of blank stares and folded arms. Am I gettin’ through to you? Does it make any sense? Don’t get me wrong – I like the people in the group – but at the end of a meeting like that, it’s really hard to judge whether there’s been any value in it or not.
So today, I want to find a playground (the camp is my first choice, but I’d settle for a playground) to play in, hang on the monkey bars and swing as high as I can on the swings, forget about all my responsibilities, and just be a kid again. Just for a little while – that’s all it will take. When it’s bedtime, I’ll be happy to be a grown-up again, because I don’t want someone else to tell me it’s time to go to bed!
by Heather Plett | Aug 24, 2005 | Uncategorized
According to a recent U.S. survey, the Top 3 Reasons for Reading Blogs were: “news I can’t find elsewhere”, “a better perspective” and “faster news”.
Funny, I never (or rarely anyway) read news blogs – only those that are enjoyable, personal and give me a break from all that “real life” stuff on the news that I’d rather avoid.
And you?
(Sure, feel free to tell me I have my head firmly buried in the sand. I can take it.)
by Heather Plett | Aug 23, 2005 | Uncategorized
‘Cause then when your three year old daughter puts her greasy post-supper hands all over your pant leg the first time you wear the pants, and you realize after washing them that the stain didn’t come out, you can brush it off with “oh well, at least I only paid $4.99 for them”.
