Musings...

UPPER ROOM
God shows no partiality. - Romans 2:11
Thought for the day: 'We are to respect one another because God respects us.' - Sheila Hicks (Tennessee)

SIMPLE ABUNDANCE
'If I were asked to name the chief benefit of the house, I should say: the house shelters daydreaming.' - Gaston Bachelard
From Sarah Ban Breathnach:
'It takes literally years to birth a dream, whether it's a family, a career, a home or a lifestyle. Dreams also extract a price. Dreams cost money, sweat, frustration, tears, courage, choices, perseverance and extraordinary patience. But birthing a dream requires one more thing. Love. Only love can transfrom a houseful of needy, self-centered individuals into a loving, close-knit family, a passion into a livelihood or a dwelling into a home that perfectly expresses your authenticity. Even when money is not a consideration, love and time are still necessary to turn a house into a home.' Sarah tells how Samuel Clemens poured so much money into his home, he went bankrupt. Which he resolved by writing books such as "Mark Twain." 'Because of all the love he and his family bestowed on their home, "it had a heart and soul, and eyes to see with; and approvals and solicitudes and deep sympathies; it was of us, and we were in its confidence and lived in its grace and in the peace of its benedictions. We never came home from an absence that its face did not light up and speak out in eloquent welcome --- and we could not enter it unmoved."
How cool is that??!!
Sarah goes on to say...'Is there a woman here who doesn't long to live in such a home? A home that embraces, nurtures, sustains and ind inspires? Still many of us think this will only happen when we've got the money to move someplace else. Surely, it can't happen here. I mean, just look at this place! But let's take another look. "I dwell in possibility," Emily Dickinson confided. We can, too. Don't look at the problems. Search for the possibilities. It doesn't matter where you live at this moment. It may not be your dream but it does shelter your dreams. Those dreams can transform it into the home for which you long. Love knows how to paint, refinish, plaster, wallpaper, stencil, plant, sew and build, even on a budget. Love knows that whatever you lack in your checking account can be made up by investing time, creative enrgy and emotion. We need to learn Love's decorating secrets.'
In conclusion, Sarah says..."But before we can pick up a hammer, a paintbrush or the real estate ads, we need to daydream. Walk through the different rooms where you eat, sleep and live. Bless the walls, the roof, the windows and the foundation. Give thanks as you sift and sort, simplify and bring order to the home you have. Realize that the home of your dreams dwells within. You must find it in the secret sanctuary of your heart today before you can cross the threshold of tomorrow.'