August 31, 2009

  • Upside Down Day

    You know those days that are just hopeless from the start?  

    I tried.  I really did.  I resurrected it again and again and it kept biting the dust.  So here I am.  
    I came home utterly exhausted, spent, and somewhat confuddled.  About what?  I don't even know.  But I did know that I was starving.  Normally, I can go for pretty impressive stretches of time without substantial food.  Not that I'm bragging; if it were anyone else, I would deal them a pretty comparatively impressive lecture.  But I figure, I gotta do what I gotta do, and at the moment, I gotta get my 'to do' list done.  And it's growing by the moment, so I needed to devote as much time as I could hacking away at it.  
    But by 6pm I was flagging bigtime.  Nix that.  By 4:00 I was starting to flag.  But I really tried.  I even ate through two small packs of those peanut-butter and cracker packages with some chugfuls of water.  One normally does the trick.  Not today.  Nothing helped today.  So I had to come home early.  
    And I burnt my mushroom and spinach quesadilla.  Which reminds me that today is trash day.  I forgot last week.
    Yesterday, I got into one of my clumsy ruts.  I cut the top of my right index finger on my mandolin (OUCH!  Use the protective thing at ALL TIMES.) and somehow found another gash on the side of my left middle finger.  This happened to me a lot last year when I was cooking in a rush.  This caused everything that followed to be awkward and even more clumsy.  I managed to bandage myself up pretty well (the right finger was something awful) and managed even to wake up, shower, and get things done without disturbing it too much the next day (today).  
    I thought I was pretty accomplished (even had breakfast and headed out early!) as I carefully opened the door and proceeded to slam the door closed on my (you got it) right index finger.  
    Sigh. 
    But I was encouraged by the thought of following God.  The tidbit of the devotion I want to share is Jonathan and his armorbearer as they scaled up a near-vertical wall to meet their enemy.  The armorbearer said to him, "Do all that is within your heart.  Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul."  And up the mountain, the armobearer stuck right behind him as they scaled the wall.  A commentary says that the picture of that is one of one person following behind another so closely that there is scarcely room for another step.  Heart and soul: such a harmonious and dedicated walk that nothing can get in between.  
    I've let so many things in between that often it seems like the steps between mine and the Savior's span the Gobi desert.  When I feel as though I've completely lost track.  But there He always is, steadfast as ever.  
    Here's to sticking close the the Leader.  
    Come what may.  Clumsiness and gashed fingers.