Highlights of my running route Part 2.

Ransom Reed 

Highlights of my running route.

The chicken with his head cut off. 

Here comes the sun....da, da, da, da

Wow. It's get back at Katrina day in the world of blogs. Either that or everyone is trying to be like someone else (and no one knows who started it). I can't even begin to count how many I've read today replicating just this.

My view hasn't changed. In fact, I think I might be more annoyed that it's taken a political turn, and that I'm not seeing more politicians out there getting their hands dirty. I really can't say anything, because I haven't given a thing to the relief efforts either. So I'm no better. It's like voting. If you don't vote, don't complain. You had your chance to have a say who is going to be one of the leaders of this country or what miliage will go through. Just like if I decided to give, I could start to complain.

But you know. Is that really the right thing to do?

Ah, seems like I've turned myself into the prime example.

Actually, I did it on purpose. Who cares if there were high percentage of abortion clinics in that area of New Orleans??? I think Jesus himself would live in that area just to have a chance to talk to those people. Isn't that what he did while he was here? I doubt he would go and live with Billy Graham or John Haggy, I mean come on. I think it's a sad thing that we as Christians didn't realize the chance we had to talk to those people before it happened. Not that God "wiped" it out. Like I said. God is just. He knows what He's doing. And if it gets millions of people to look at how frivilous their lives are and start changing.... Hey, whatever. I'm not here to tell God what to do. He already knows what He's doing. I'm going to leave it up to Him.

So for anyone who is clueless to what I've said. I don't believe for a second that God sent Katrina for the damnation of the hellbound. Oh, that was quotable. A Melism. And if He did, (and I'm wrong) that is His choice. While I don't understand why He did it, I understand and accept that it happened. We could go on for years, decades of why it happened. Who knows. And really, who cares what we over-analize. God knew about it, it is in His timing, and that's it.

And if I'm so sure of my faith and get to go to heaven, I just might ask God why it happened.

Preachy

Josh said I was too preachy today. I think it was only because I was talking about a verse instead of life, but hey, it gets like that sometimes.

Laurel has been starting to answer me instead of repeating what I say, which the repeating meant she agreed, otherwise she'd say, no okay. Since she is saying no now, Adara caught on, and can scream no, which always bugged me about kids. I hate it when they start screaming no, or say no to everything. Call me quirky.

Other than that. Nothing else here.

I was reading a passage in Revelations (21:1-4) today, and I read the first part which is,

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

No sea? I thought. Well I guess in new Heaven and the new earth we wouldn't need to drink, and really right now all we are doing by drinking and eating is sustaining our bodies. I have to admit though, food is good. I enjoy my food. I'm curious if God will allow food even though it's not needed. Here is second thought...what if we don't have these desires either? Would that make for a boring heaven?

I'm sure God intends more than us singing hymns all the time. Although...I do love to sing, so really it's not such a bad thing.

The last part of the passage is this.

There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.

Here are my thoughts. The old order of things will pass away. So everything we know and think of as normal will pass, and become different. Not that we won't be able to adapt to it, but I'm curious how it will go. Even if I imagine what it will be like, I will still be surprised.

And I wanted to plan out my future.

What would I do if it were me?

I'm torn apart on what to think about Katrina. First of all I am sick of hearing about it, it's like the recount, it keeps being the topic of the day, and more are dying, just like every other day, just a little more rapid and a little differently than everyone thought they would.

I mostly feel bad for the elderly that lived down there. It seems like in this survival of the fittest world could only think of how to take care of themselves than other people less fortunate. I mean, how many people let the elders on the bus to leave New Orleans in their place??? Or anyone for that matter, and better yet, children. Those who have a chance to grow up and redeem themselves because of this travesty? I hope if I ever am in that situation, I am compassionate to anyone I see in need, even if it endangers my own life.

As for anyone else who had time to get out and didn't take it; is the foolish man that Solomon talks about in Proverbs. They never deserved this, but their own foolishness caused more deaths than necessary. God is just, and that is that. He had His reasons.

I'm curious if they are going to have a New Orleans again. Are they going to leave the city as is, and tell people to move on? I mean how many villages and cities in the long past did we as humans leave behind because of devastation? We just don't do that anymore, and it's not like we have more unexplored land to settle. It will be interesting to see.

That's it. Katrina summed up in 4 short paragraphs filled with slight compassion, justice, curiosity, and irritation. I wonder what I would do if it were me?

That was girly.

Today is our parent meeting for Laurel, and I admit, I'm a little bit nervous myself. It's not that she can't handle preschool, just I'm not sure I can let her go for a day, by herself. If she gets hurt, I'd like to be there to comfort her. But I can't hold on forever, and I don't want her character to be endangered because I (selfishly) want to keep her near me.

It looks like such a gorgeous day out, but I know it is colder than I want it to be. I'm not ready to give up t-shirts and don jackets just yet.

The girls have these flower pot cups, that the straw is in the shape of a flower, and they look so adorable drinking out of these cups. Little girls drinking out of flowers, I don't know, it's just cute. Sugar and spice and everything nice, well except for that one time she....

That was gushy, I guess becoming a mom just made me more girly than I ever wanted to be. I'm not saying chick flicks are my thing, just I have more girlish tendencies.

And I find that I'm loving every second of it.

Officially written off

Yeah I'm not sleeping, this is the first night in 2 weeks. Which is totally amazing that I could sleep like that. I can be quite the insomniac.

It's pretty cold here. Usually we leave all the windows open at night, and finally last night I asked Josh to close them all before he comes to bed. However he didn't so I'm sitting here wrapped up in a blanket about 2 foot thick trying to keep warm.

I am not the shallow conversation starter. But how odd would it be if we started all conversations with philosophical ideas, I mean, really. And it's not like I'm the brightest person alive either, so while I could start an idea, I could in no way, shape, or form, finish it. They have schools for that.

My mom and I had a conversation about writing people off. I never thought of myself being one of those people, but harshly, I am or have been in the past. I had a friend in school that was a consistent liar. Even though I would catch her in her lies, she still lied. So I didn't talk to her for a few years. Then we started to talk again and it started all over again, though she was getting better at her lies. We were friends through high school, and I found I kept feeling like I was better than her, and I knew deep down I wasn't, but I hated feeling like I was. After graduated and got married, I just haven't tried to kept contact with her, and she's gotten pretty messed up. My mom then said something that hurt. I could have been there for her through these tough times. And I started to argue that she was like this in high school and never told me the truth about her real life. So while I could help her, she wouldn't let me, and here in my glory with that condensending attitude of being better, I was the worst person for her.

Today I could do no better. What does that say about my character? I'm easily influenced by my surroundings. By being friends with my consistent liar, I was becoming a really awful person. And I didn't like that. So I wrote the friendship off. And I don't make friendships lightly either.

I always thought of her as more of a project than a friend. How I could help her become a better person. And who was I fooling? Me.

I then began to think why my mom and I had the conversation in the first place. Because I thought I was better than someone who had written me off for a stupid reason. And although I had nothing to do with the situation; it just because I am a part of the Kingsbury family, so I was officially written off.

I had some serious arguing and re-thinking to do. Not only do I hope (selfishly) that God intended for them to learn something new, but I know He wants me to learn something as well.

Running and thinking, thinking and running.

I was thinking a great many things today while I ran. Anything from my brother to where to put an apostrophe. Great, meaning that I was thinking a lot, not exactly the quality of thoughts or anything. Just quantity. Something to keep my mind off of running, and off of thinking how I should talk myself into quitting.

My brother works the morning shift at Marathon here in town. So usually while he is getting ready for work, I'm getting up to run, sometimes I leave earlier, sometimes he's early, it works out, being we've done this for years now.

So I get to the end of the driveway this morning and Jeff is pulling out in his car. Now I know he's going to have some smart comment as he leaves the driveway, it's just common courtesy for our family. So knowing full well I'm going to run, he asks, "Want a ride?" Ha-ha I say back. Although I must confess I seriously thought about it and had him drop me off at the Alward corner so I only had half a journey. In other words, Cheat. Now that's no way to exercise and have benefits. I mean come on.

As I rounded the Loomis corner, I thought I saw a car parked at the next corner (a mile down) with it's hazard lights on, and started thinking of reasons why, the worst being an accident. So I started to ask myself questions that I would ask (checking for clear responses, keep them thinking of things other than pain, until the ambulance came.) Then I started to think what I would say to those questions, got up to the corner, and no one was there. Oh well. No ambulance rides today.

It got me thinking if what I thought was right, for my own reasons or God's reasons. Most of the time what I thought, was for my own reasons, and I thought of ways to support those reasons with God.

Then I thought, what if my reasons aren't God's reasons. Like I prefer a certain person in office, but if I hate another in office, how can I think that the person I prefer to be in God's will and the person I hate, not? I mean they are both in office, and if I can say God must have a reason for them being in there, wouldn't that same reasoning apply to the person I rather not have there? It got me thinking about my so called "facts" on who I think is right for the job, and why God thinks that they are right for the job.

That took me most of the way home.

This is my favorite picture of late. 


My Dara-kins