Correlations

I was in my quiet time this morning when I realize something: the circumstances of my life are like mushrooms. Yup, like mushrooms. If anyone knows me they know that I don't particularly like mushrooms and I'm not shy to admit it either. I'll even go as far as saying that mushrooms will not be in heaven! But today I saw them in a different light.

Let me back up a bit.

Sunday one of my sister friends and I were sitting in church and the announcements came on our projector screens. It's getting close to Father's Day so one of the announcements was a reminder of that important date. My first reaction (and the one I went with sadly) was to give the announcements a sticking out of my tongue, simply because I know my kids won't get to spoil their biological daddy. Later, my dear friend made a comment about that incident (in a very loving and caring way), suggesting that maybe we (because she and I have felt very much the same way about the circumstances of my life) should change how we view things. That got me thinking, but not enough to actually change. Until yesterday. I was on my way home from work when I heard a blib on the radio, I don't even remember what the announcer's name was! But I remember the story about his wife. Basically, she's excited for spring/summer because then she can run without rain. He told how she would go out in the winter to run and come back saying something like, "Well that was worth it!" And the spring has been no better, full of rain which meant lousy running weather. Recently, though, she changed her attitude and would come back saying, "At least I got to run".

My prayer this morning turned into just that, "At least I'm running Lord, now help me to change so that my life reflects that attitude". I even began to pray something to the affect of, "Let me run in such a way that even those who know me best and have joined me in saying 'This sucks!' won't know when I'm having a moment", not that I can't let anyone in and know what's going on, just that the real me isn't someone who lives like she's broken even when only with her inner circle.

OK, so where do mushrooms come in? Last week I ordered pizza for the kids and I; I always order two because we all like different things (always plenty of leftovers!). Mine was a vegetarian this time and I forgot to tell them to leave off the mushrooms. I found, though, that they added to the pizza and I wouldn't have known that if I didn't leave them on (Yes, I ate them, I didn't pick them off!). So how are the circumstances of my life like mushrooms? If I didn't have the circumstances of my life, I wouldn't be who I am today...just like that pizza would have been different, maybe not as good (and it was GOOD!) as it was...