Being = Painting

And I don't mean pictures. I mean baseboards. I know I promised myself to just relax and "be," but in the face of so many things to do, I just couldn't.

Every Saturday morning, we have a workday at our new church building, which usually involves cleaning or small projects. Andy and I try to go if at all possible, especially lately since we'll be (hopefully) moving our services there in just a couple weeks. This is one of those things Andy and I always do together, but I wanted to go this morning even though he is out of town to get started on a project that will ultimately fall on his shoulders: painting the baseboards in our new auditorium.

Andy is a fantastic painter. He's fast, innovative, and meticulous, so it isn't hard to understand why any leftover painting jobs have been assigned to him. However, with so many other things on his plate, he's been putting in a lot of time (read: too much) trying to get everything done.

So I decided to help. I went in this morning with a mission: to get the first coat of primer on the baseboards (which are already mounted, making it much more time consuming to paint). Without going into too much detail, let me explain how this job could possibly take as long as it did. The carpet is already installed, so the floor-baseboard angle had to be taped to avoid painting the carpet. Also, we have wall carpet that extends halfway up the wall (not as weird as it sounds) which is preferably avoided when painting as well. So...that means I had to use a 23 inch edging tool that I slid between the top of the baseboard and the wall carpet in order to get to the very edge of the baseboard without painting the wall...

...it took FOREVER!

This morning, I finished the biggest wall but had to leave to take one of my friends to the airport. So this afternoon, I debated: "I know I said I would just 'be,' but if I don't finish that, it's just more work for Andy, and he already has too much to do." Next thing I knew, I was at the church.

At first I was disappointed in myself. It truly is one of my (more socially acceptable) weaknesses that I will "do" anything before I allow myself to contemplate the thoughts in my head, to process the things that happen in my life. But as I painted, my thoughts slowed, and I began to think about the many people and situations that make up my world. There was no one else there to talk to, and there was no music to distract my ears and mind. It was just me and my thoughts...and the baseboards.

As I neared the end of my task, and my sense of accomplishment grew, I was reminded of the body of Christ. To me, my task was significant and important. To others, the baseboards will likely go unnoticed. In light of all the work thats been done and all the hours and energy sacrificed, my contribution was minimal. But just the same, every part of the body performs its function, and though mine was less than momentous, it was what I could do with what I've been given.

I finally finished at 10:15pm. Usually, I would expect to feel tired or worn out, but tonight, I felt renewed. Maybe it was seeing the result of the work I had done, or perhaps doing something I knew would help my husband. And while those are the tangible evidence of my time spent painting, I am also aware that my goal to just "be" was still accomplished tonight, despite my propensity to avoid it.

I cleaned my paint brush, returned the supplies to their designated place, turned off all the lights, and stood in the dark silence. My heart and mind were still. Je suis.

Je suis

One of the few phrases I remember from my 3+ years of French, it means "I am." Or more accurately, "I am in the state of being." This weekend, I am going to attempt to do just that: be. A few of the significant people in my life are out of town this weekend, and I will miss them all. But in the time that they are gone, I have a specific goal in mind. Yes, I would like to clean my house. And yes, I would like to get to some of those projects that never actually get done. But even more than that, I would just like to step back from the "doing" and allow myself to "be" for a few moments. I don't really know what that will look like; perhaps a long walk with no destination, an evening with a good book and some coffee, a pad of paper and the thoughts in my head...the possibilities are endless. I wish for the familiar beaches I grew up with - to go wander and observe and soak in the beauty. But in their absence, I am certain I will make do.

One more for mom

I realized that wasn't the greatest picture of the piano lamp to see how nice it looks with the piano, so I took another one this morning for you. I don't know how much you can tell from the picture, but it really brings out the gold stripes of the vase on the right and goes well with the lamp shade on the left. I couldn't have picked a better one myself! : )

Thankyou mom!

What you've been missing...

...or at least what I've been meaning to post about. If I were really going to do this right, I would make a separate post for each event, but that sounds too complicated. So here is a conglomerate of pictures describing what I've been up to of late. That said here they are in non-consecutive order:














We tried to go to a Cubs game, but it got rained out, so we just spent a night on the town in Chicago instead (afer getting drenched!)




















My mom gave Andy and I this beautiful piano lamp for our one year anniversary, and I just love it! (thanks mom!)















I met the beautiful Evelyn Elizabeth Moorman, Lydia's niece. She is so sweet, and I already brought her some cute clothes to wear. : ) Congrats Ted and Sarah!


















On the way back from a concert with Casi and Karen Mattox in Casi's new Mustang convertible - it was really windy, and I didn't have a hair tie in case you were wondering!














I caught them drinking Mountain Dew! (they gave it up for 1 year - but I found out that Karen is on vacation, so it doesn't count...so I had one too.) : )














Sporting the wind-blown look...















The proud new owner of a red '03 Mustang Convertible...funny, now she always wants to take her car everywhere!














Before...














...and after. ( I helped Casi dye her hair...twice. I missed a rather large spot in the back of her head, so we had to go back to the store and get a little bit more hair dye. By the way, if I am scheduled to dye your hair at any time in the near future, this weekend perhaps, please do not be afraid. I am really good at this, promise. Also, do not under any circumstances ask Casi about this.)














Lydia and I went to a jazz club we've been talking about for months, Green Dolphin Street. The band was wonderful, the atmosphere sophisticated yet unpretentious, and the food (even the bar menu!) was fantastic.














Jazz, a good friend, candlelight, and a camera...what more could you ask for?


Also, Andy and I got to visit my family last weekend, which was really nice. It had been a long time since I was home, so I really enjoyed the relaxation, catching up, and of course the Lake.

I'm sure I've forgotten several things, but I dont' have any pictures of those things, so its just as well.

Now for the biggest news of all: I have the day off tomorrow!!! I can't wait to do all the things I've been thinking about every day for the past few weeks. Number #1 on my list is to calm the storm of flowers/weeds outside of my house that is now forming a barricade to the front door. I'm not sure which is weed and which is flower, so my game plan is just to trim everything a little bit until it doesn't look like the plant from "Little Shop of Horrors." That alone should take until at least noon.