Greetings, friends! It's been quite a while since I've visited here. At first, I just didn't have anything exciting enough to write about, so I waited for inspiration to enter my thoughts. Then, I was too busy with writing papers for school. And now, here we are. Finally, something has shaken me out of a blogging writer's block. Have you ever had one of those weeks where you just couldn't wait for it to be over? Maybe you got a phone call with some tragic news, or maybe you lost your job. Maybe you had a bad break-up, or maybe you failed a test. The point is, we've all experienced that sense of exhaustion at the end of a difficult, madness-inducing week. The week isn't quite over yet, so I'm a bit hesitant to say this, but...I have survived a ridiculous week.
Earlier in the week, our house was broken into. It happened in broad daylight, and it happened even though the doors were locked. It happened even though we were careful and not flashy with all of our amazing wealth (please note the sarcasm). It happened even though we hadn't stolen anything from anyone else, and it happened even though we thought we had guarded our home against an invasion. It happened. Someone foreign was in our home, someone took our things, and someone chose to act selfishly. It was sad, it was scary, and it still feels surreal. I could talk about a sense of violation or a sense of fear, but in all honesty, those feelings faded away the moment I realized how thankful I am. I am safe, my family is safe, and the things stolen were just earthly things. In a strange way, I'm almost grateful to have had the experience. Don't get me wrong; I certainly won't be writing this burglar a thank-you card or sending him a batch of cupcakes. Instead of living in fear of another invasion, though, I'm taking this as an opporunity to remember the important things in life. At the end of the day, I get to call the most wonderful man I know and tell him I love him. I get to tell my beautiful Mama how lucky I am to have her, and I get to tell my brother how proud I am of him. That's something no burglar gets to take away.
I guess God decided that I needed an extra wake-up call, because today, one of my neighbor's houses caught on fire. With those Texas winds blowing strongly, there was a strong concern that the fire could spread to our own house. I have never been near a fire like that before, and I couldn't have predicted how smoky the atmosphere would be. As we stood outside watching the firefighters work to put out the fire, my lungs burned with the ash in the air, and my heart ached for the family whose home went up in flames. When they woke up this morning, I doubt that they thought, "Hmm I bet I'm going to lose most of what I own today, so I'd better eat a good breakfast." The inside of my own house still smells like smoke, and even though I've showered, I can still smell the smoke on my skin and in my hair. In a weird way, I don't want that to go away. Yes, it probably causes cancer, but what a reminder that we can rise from ashes. We can take those ashes to remember the crucial things in life, the things that make life worth living. In my opinion, that doesn't include flatscreen TVs, expensive shoes, computers, or family antiques. The crucial things in life are our relationships, and like it or not, those aren't permanent either. We're all living on borrowed time, so why not make the most of it?
Life is scary sometimes, but it can be a beautiful wake-up call. Wake up, and do something meaningful with your life today. Are you who you want to be? I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure I only get one chance at this crazy life, and I don't want to waste it.
