The Howell Blessings

I am linking up with Lisa Jo Baker for her 5 Minute Friday writing flash mob.  Today's word - Belong. Go! I wanted to be just like my brothers growing up, except I didn’t belong to “the boys club”. Instead I was the one chased by my brothers on bicycles holding bugs out over their handlebars, taunting me with the horrid creatures they knew I was afraid of.   In high school I wanted to be one of the popular girls. Instead my parents moved 1800 miles away as I was nearing the end of my freshman year. The girls I came to like at my new school had different colored skin than I did and because of the state we lived in and the times of the decade I was told we couldn’t be friends. I couldn’t belong in their group.   As a young adult, I socialized with co-workers and neighbors. Most of them smoked and drank and played dangerously close to cheating on their spouses or significant others. I never really felt I belonged in that crowd, always begging out earl...

My sister just had open heart surgery. For a week I drove in between OSU and my Dad's house. That was a 50 minute ride each way...every day.  Then once she was released I took her home back to Cleveland to recover. I had to change hats daily running in between being a wife and being a caretaker, trying desperately to balance the needs of my husband and my sister.  I'm not sure I did well in either department. I've been traveling in between Cleveland and Columbus for over a month now.   From my house near Cleveland to the OSU hospital is 1 hour and 55 minutes.  From my house to my Dad's house is a solid 3 hours. He lives about 50 miles south of Columbus. Family is wanting Dad and sister to move up near Cleveland so we can all help take care of each other. So I've been trying to clean, pack and stage their house.  I am trying to be very careful as I go in between being a daughter and an organizer and between being a caretaker and a home stager all the...

Five Minute  Friday . One word. Five Minutes.  Today’s Word, “VIEW”... Go! Once it was large, now it has narrowed down to a small endless tunnel. Once it was funded, now it must increase it's faith to be fulfilled. Once it was dictated to, now the possibilities are endless. Once it was sure, now, not so sure. Once it was supported, now no one knows what to support. This view, once so certain in it's picture now teeters between "what ifs" and "only ifs". Funny how just when we think we have things figured out, God changes our view. But my view is His face. When I look into it, the views of this world grow strangely dim. I'll trust Him with my future views and enjoy where I have to go to see them. Stop.