Notes Take Flight

A Building 44 Christmas by Bethany Williams   At Building 44, fluffy snowflakes were lightly falling on this particular afternoon.  The clock chimed twice, which meant it was time for our canine daily meeting.  Our humans were also invited to come and share their jibber and good energy.  I did my normal ESP, inviting my human to pull out my raincoat, and come along.  We met Sammy on the way down the stairs, as usual. "How ya doin' Klondike?" Sammy beamed in his usual positive energy.  It is impossible for him to be in a sour mood. "How do you do, Sammy?"  I panted as we headed out the door, me first, as always.  Our breaths misted in the cold air. Thriller headed our way with an excited aura about him.  That was nothing new, since he is a very, VERY active detective canine.  "Howdy-do Sammy and Klondike.  I have something you must see."  He rushed toward the decorations at the front of our building, expecting us to ...

It is hard to believe that the year is almost through.  My goal this year was to make more healthy choices.  Divorce, after almost a twelve year separation, has propelled me forward, which has been exciting and nerve wracking at the same time.  Mourning the loss of my life partner and best friend has brought me in closer relationship with the Lord, Jesus Christ - causing me to want to know more about my Heavenly Father - His faithfulness, love, mercy and grace.  Music and writing has percolated more fluidly.  I have found so many things to be thankful for, through the challenges of loneliness, emotional turmoil, and physical break-down - constantly made aware of where my hope is.  I have learned more about boundaries.  Just because someone else does not take responsibility in things, does not mean I need to take responsibility.  This seems to be a very common issue in so many lives.  Some of us as Christians, live li...

I awoke suddenly to the sound and shaking of thunderous booms.    BOOM BOOM BOOM!!    Then a pause.  My heart was pounding.  Was that my door?  Then, from the files in my mind, it occurred to me, after the second set of booms, that someone was attempting to break in somewhere.  But not at my door, right?  Reaching for the phone, I dialed 911.  While the phone rang, another set of booms.  Would the police get here before something awful happened?  Who's door was the sound coming from?  I told the dispatcher that someone was attempting to break in to a home nearby and the address.  She assured me that the police were on the way.  The booms had stopped by the time the dispatcher picked up the call.  What did that mean?  She asked me if I wanted the officer to come talk with me or just to check around?  Panicked me didn't want to get out of bed and answer the door at four in the morning.  I ple...

This album brings back fond memories.  Listening to the lyrics of this song, I'm reminded of how, though we can be over-run with disappointments, failures, mistakes, temptations, disillusionment, tragedy, trauma, God will always be The Loving Kind .  His love remains.  So when we get hit with something negative, hope still stands, when we focus on His love.  That focus gets me from day to day, most times, still smiling. So I heard the song, Endless Love, a few days ago.  It occurred to me that when I was a girl, I wanted that song to be the song me and my future husband danced to at our wedding reception.  This day, it hit me with a new meaning.  God's love is the only love that will be eternal.  Shouldn't that love be the one I most focus on?  So many times I get really messed up trying to "feel" something that only gives temporary satisfaction, or falls short - chocolate, flawless make-up, a cute pair of shoes, family gatherings, Chri...

There is a woman who worked for King Soopers, a local grocery store chain, for 16 years.  She was up for her retirement at 20 years of service.  Her daughter is in the military.  When her daughter was stationed in Iraq for a year, the two grandchildren were left in the grandparents care.  The woman pleaded with King Soopers to give her a year hiatus so that she could care for the children and give them the attention they needed, while their mother was away.  King Soopers allegedly refused to accommodate this family, and basically forced her to retire, losing her benefits she would have received at 20 years.  I have heard and read a few stories about this corporation's (as well as others') choices, in not supporting their employees.. These types of situations in corporate America beg the question of ethics .  When is it crossing the line when a corporation chooses profit over people?  Is it more of a travesty when profit is chosen over supporting...

Relationships can be such a beautiful thing.  Having people we feel connected with, who cherish us as much as we cherish them, is such a blessing.  Unity, I'm guessing, causes God to smile.  This is what we were created to do - loving unity. Isn't it heartbreaking when a relationship "breaks?"  The pain and sorrow that one experiences when this happens can be so debilitating and isolating.  How do we survive such heartache?  What do we do when we feel like we would be better off dead? With Christ, we have a hope that sustains us.  We still feel the horror of being separated from the people we love.  There is still the mourning of someone and something lost.  Yet the joy of our hope gets us through the pain.  God does not always spare us from the anguish (1 Thessalonians 5:3).  He does promise us eternity with Him (1 Thessalonians 5:8 - 10), when we put our faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God (John 3:16). In everything we...

Calvin and Hobbes has been a favorite comic strip in our home.  It is the inspiration for my word pick this week.  "Precocious" could be the word this week, but I haven't settled on it just yet.  What about "propulsion," for all of Calvin's escapades to outer space?  Or maybe "tentacle" or "bloodsucking," in honor of all the monsters under the bed?  Then there is "subvert," for the many conspiracies he figured out.  Or "cynically enterprising," for his determination to play along with the Santa C. phenomenon.  Okay, I am sticking with "precocious."  What a precocious, adorable little dude!!

Adoration is a word most are reluctant to use for anyone outside the immediate family.  Girlfriends might use it for one another, when there is a supportive connection amongst them.  It implies some level, more below the surface of a casual friendship, of intimacy.  A mother could easily use it for her children.  Couples deeply in love express it in a way which is evident to the observer, without saying a word.  I often wonder if we expressed it more to our friends, with authentic caring, would this change the world?  God loves us with this kind of affection.  Who else would send their child to die so that we could be with them?  That takes some extreme level of adoration.  This life here is an exercise in accepting or rejecting that adoration, and being an adoration conductor.  Light up a life with adoration today.  “When you are in the final days of your life, what will you want? Will you hug that college degree in the w...

One night, I pressed some friends to reveal what they were on the "Type Theory" scale.  Anger ensued, and changed the friendship.  Another friend witnessed the transaction.  He, thankfully, had the foresight to inform me that some folks do not want to be defined by this theory.  I completely understood.  After contemplating my own experience with "Type Theory," it occurred to me that I had been placed in a box, trapped in this negative space.  Limited.  That box gets pretty uncomfortable.  "Type Theory" is just a tool, not a definition.  Think of it as the hammer, not the nail.  There are so many varieties of nails.  Words have such power.  We can lift one another up with words.  We can also be torn down by words.  We can use words to describe perspectives.  Words require some digging into true meaning - they don't always tell the whole story.  Words can entertain us.  Words can evoke change.  Wo...

Kiss Deferred by Bethany Williams                                                                                                   She said, she wanted to be kissed Instead of being pinched Then surfaced my own desire I packed away years ago. I try not to think about the essence of a kiss but not on this day I thought of what I miss. Mourning still that intimate connection where two express  a certain bliss I miss that desire will it ever return This is why I do not ponder it Pack ...

Certain types of music have the power to change hearts.  Anger fumed from me one day while serving at church.  Frustration over the lack of communication.  Last minute changes irritated me.  I really wanted to leave and go home.  It seemed impossible for me to actually be there as a possitive influence.  I thought I needed to go home and try for a do-over the following week.  However, responsibilities and my strong drive of duty kept me there.  My heart was hardened, due to my attitude choice.  It was arduous for me to let the Holy Spirit do his work inside me.  Do you ever get to that point?  Holding on to anger, or whatever emotions that cause us to put up barriers - preventing us from doing what we know we should.  Why do we do that to ourselves? Though I had no words, I prayed silently.  My soul cried out for something.  The worship and praise portion of the service began.  I conscientiousl...