I made some new friends last week and attempted to explain "Do Good" to them. I told them that it started as a saying from my Daddy, but has become so much more. That made me have to go back and explain a bit about who my Daddy was, and to tell that he died last year.
This was met with the usual condolences. It was followed up with "How is your Mom handling that?" Well, I often say, my parents were divorced. My Mom actually lives in Winston now (yay!) as she is battling dementia. (ugh.) My Daddy had remarried (yay!) by my stepmother passed away in 2010 with breast cancer. (ugh.) I don't always give all of those details... because my life sounds too much like a freakshow. But those details are real and are part of this messed up world in which we live.
On this blog, I have shared loads of my pain for all 3 of those events. I have shared how I have responded to those hurts- the good and bad ways I've attempted to continue. I've also shared our most recent loss- the loss of a child we won't know until heaven.
And all of that sadness can make one weary.
This weekend, I read a book about someone else's loss... and the negative ways in which they responded to pain. I read it while I was snuggled up next to a sleeping almost-7-year-old and was caught in what I believe to be a holy moment. With her peaceful breathing setting the tempo for my heart, I had a near epiphany of the beauty and goodness in my life. So often weighed down by what I have lost, I have neglected what I still have. And Lord knows I've learned that we are not promised tomorrow... so I am committing to see the beauty more than the pain.
I am thankful for so many of you joining our attempt to Do Good this week. While it typically is better to Do that Good anonymously, I'd be encouraged to hear your stories. If you feel like sharing, post them with the hashtag #dogood on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Or comment here. Or send me a message. I love that I feel like I'm watching a movement and not a memorial. And I love that your stories prompt others to join that movement. There is so much Good to be Done. No more focusing on what is lost, let us focus on what is ahead.
I'll be compiling some of those Do Good moments for my next post. Check back here at the end of the week and be encouraged yourself.
Do Good, y'all.
This was met with the usual condolences. It was followed up with "How is your Mom handling that?" Well, I often say, my parents were divorced. My Mom actually lives in Winston now (yay!) as she is battling dementia. (ugh.) My Daddy had remarried (yay!) by my stepmother passed away in 2010 with breast cancer. (ugh.) I don't always give all of those details... because my life sounds too much like a freakshow. But those details are real and are part of this messed up world in which we live.
On this blog, I have shared loads of my pain for all 3 of those events. I have shared how I have responded to those hurts- the good and bad ways I've attempted to continue. I've also shared our most recent loss- the loss of a child we won't know until heaven.
And all of that sadness can make one weary.
This weekend, I read a book about someone else's loss... and the negative ways in which they responded to pain. I read it while I was snuggled up next to a sleeping almost-7-year-old and was caught in what I believe to be a holy moment. With her peaceful breathing setting the tempo for my heart, I had a near epiphany of the beauty and goodness in my life. So often weighed down by what I have lost, I have neglected what I still have. And Lord knows I've learned that we are not promised tomorrow... so I am committing to see the beauty more than the pain.
I am thankful for so many of you joining our attempt to Do Good this week. While it typically is better to Do that Good anonymously, I'd be encouraged to hear your stories. If you feel like sharing, post them with the hashtag #dogood on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Or comment here. Or send me a message. I love that I feel like I'm watching a movement and not a memorial. And I love that your stories prompt others to join that movement. There is so much Good to be Done. No more focusing on what is lost, let us focus on what is ahead.
I'll be compiling some of those Do Good moments for my next post. Check back here at the end of the week and be encouraged yourself.
Do Good, y'all.
1 comment:
I'm gonna do some good!!! -CraftyPants
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