Tag Archives: stress

Battered Scarecrow

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Potted mums, a pumpkin (or two or three), a jack-o-lantern, and a stuffed scarecrow adorn my front porch each fall. Sometimes the weather manages to disturb my decorations, making them shift this way or tip that way. My scarecrow used to topple over, so I screwed a tiny hook into the house trim and looped it through his green felt hat. The hook has held him upright for years.

Until now. The wind has been so fierce lately that even the hook cannot keep the scarecrow in place. Every time I climb my porch steps, I see him in a different death pose. Sometimes he’s face down, blocking the front door. Sometimes he’s on his back, staring up at the jack-o-lantern. Once I found him tossed into the bushes. His hat and straw hair are hanging on by one glue strand and the stuffing keeps trying to pour out of his left mitten hand. The wind has battered his poor cloth body to the point where I’m contemplating letting him retire. For now, I will just have to let him stay inside when I know it will be a particularly windy day.

There are many times when I feel like that tattered scarecrow. I’ve had my share of heart-ache stress, and disappointments. Life can be brutal, tossing us around until we start falling apart. Sometimes we are just worn out and may want to give up. But the wind won’t last forever—even if you live in Kansas like I do. There’s bound to be some sunshine on the way.

So for now, I’m going to try to keep it together. I’ll go inside to escape when the wind becomes tornadic and allow myself to rest. But then I’ll head back out prepared to face the storm.

Hang in there, my frayed friend. A gentle breeze may be in the forecast soon.

Cardboard Boat

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Sailing on a cardboard boat is a soggy adventure.

Last weekend our teen group travelled to a campground for Fall Retreat. The sun beamed down on us, providing the perfect weather for trying a new team-building activity. Mounds of cardboard, wrapping paper, drinking straws, and duct tape littered the lawn. We divided by grade levels and began our assignment to make a boat for an upcoming race.

Armed with a pink foam pool noodle, a red marker, and a box knife, my team of 9th graders began to brainstorm construction plans. Only one person could sail on the boat, so our lightest member was selected. The teens fashioned a small canoe with the foam noodle as the base. They then covered the canoe with straws and duct tape. A wrapping paper paddle and cardboard shield completed our boat entry.

We joined the odd assortment of boats at the edge of the lake. Pirates on huge inflatable rafts were already in the water. They might have looked intimidating if the rafts weren’t shaped like a rubber duck, unicorn, swan, and flamingo. The pirates’ mission was to sabotage any team who was having too much success reaching the finish line.

The boats gradually absorbed water and began sinking or disintegrating. Pirates helped speed up the demolition. By the time our boat reached the goal, it was merely a pool noodle dragging a few soggy shreds of cardboard and straws.

As we cleaned up the boat remains, I couldn’t help but think about how my life is sometimes like that cardboard boat. I’m trying to stay afloat, but all of the stress and burdens of life start soaking in until I’m a soggy mess. Sometimes it’s all I can do to keep from falling apart. And just when I think I might just make it, there’s a pirate trying to cause more chaos until my journey is even more challenging.

I’ve got to keep my eyes on the finish line and keep paddling, trusting that my creator knew what He was doing when He made me. My goal is to help a few other disintegrating boats hold it together and complete the race with me.

7 Patience Benefits

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music-machine-pic

The first thing that pops into my head when I hear someone mention “patience” is a song I learned as a little kid. It was on the “Music Machine” record (yes—a record) and featured Herbert the Snail. Maybe you learned it, too.

patience-herbert-the-snail-picBe patient, be patient
Don’t be in such a hurry
When you get impatient
You only start to worry.
Remember, remember
That God is patient, too
And think of all the times
When others have to wait for you.

Many songs have come and go, but this one stuck with me all of these years. I taught it to my own kids, and to many students when I was a preschool teacher. There are certainly many benefits in developing patience. Here are my top seven:

  1. Reduces Stress and Increases Happiness. When you practice patience you are more in control of your emotions and in a better position to deal with difficult situations.
  2. Helps You Meet Goals. Anything worthwhile requires time and effort. Patience helps you keep striving toward your goal.
  3. Results in better decision-making. The chances of making a big mistake lessen with patience because you take time to see the big picture and weigh the pros and cons.
  4. Gives You a Social Advantage. While others explode and cause a scene, patience allows you to remain cool and calm.
  5. Helps develop empathy and compassion.Patience allows you time to process what others are going through and think about how to help them.
  6. Changes your perspective. Patience helps you see trials as ways to grow instead of just useless pain. You’re building mental muscle.
  7. Changes the world. Modeling patience has potential to create a new generation of patient people. Imagine a world where we don’t attack each other over insignificant issues.

My childhood records disappeared years ago, but Herbert the Snail’s message lives on. Spending time developing patience is certainly worth our time.