I don't know if Tuesday has a topic this week, but I was reading something about what different kinds of things interest different people, so thought I'd do a Monday night Ten Things I do/read about/am interested in/have an iron in the fire doing, in no particular order.
1. SMA Support. I don't talk about it a lot here, but I've spent a very large portion of my time on SMA angels websites, SMA Support, SMA chat, SMA emails, questions, etc. I also try to send out whatever equipment or supplies that people ask for that I can do or find. Running a non-profit organization, even a small one, requires a lot more time and energy and problem-solving than people might think. I usually spent an entire day on the computer working on one or all of the above (and more), almost every day. I've since allocated my time a little better, but SMA has been and probably always will be a major focus in my life. You can't look these kids or their parents in the eyes and be unchanged. Okay, *I* can't.
2. Family. It seems fairly obvious, but it should be said anyway. A big interest of mine is my daughter, my husband, our home, our lives. When my home is in order, the rest of me feels in order too. Now if only I could hire someone to keep my home in order. ;)
3. Spirituality. I think this is an important part of any person. Who are we, what do we stand for, what do we believe and why, what is our purpose, and how do we fulfil it? It's important to me to read, to learn, to grow, to do better, to be better. When things go wrong, I can almost always point to what the root cause of the problem is...and often it's my own deviation from doing or thinking what I know I should be doing or thinking. I pray for my daughter to grow up to be kind, to be patient, to be loving, to be gentle, to be honest, to be Godly, to have a good heart, a bright mind, and a giving life. I don't pray that she makes her first million by age 23 or can stomp all over competition to make herself "somebody". If I can look in her eyes in 30 years and see peace and contentment, I'll be happy regardless of her job or financial situation. Every night Kaylee and I do devotions, and every day I try to incorporate life lessons. Usually I end up talking to myself just as much as I talk to her! (Don't whine, Laura, be content with what you have. Watch your attitude, Laura, pride goes before a fall, a haughty spirit before destruction. If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all, Laura, a soft answer turns away wrath. I mean Kaylee.) :)
4. Reading. Reading books is one of my major interests. I've officially run out of room in my home to put more books. I'm a book addict. I can't pass the new releases without my hand sneaking out and grabbing one. In fact, I am completely out of reading material right now and that is NOT a good thing. I just read a Beverley Lewis book that I hadn't read before, but the problem with those is that I can sit and read something like that in a jiffy-a couple of hours-and then I'm back to not having reading material. I like to read about everything except romance novels. Those just annoy and kind of disgust me. But about anything else out there is fair game, from the classics to the difficult to the mental fluff to the inspirational. Depends on my mood!
5. Flying. I've already expanded on what flying means to me and why. It doesn't define me as my only interest, but I'd say it's definitely in the top ten. ;)
6. Photographs. To me these are captured moments, memories you can always look back on and smile. I can freeze time and come back and visit it whenever I want. I have proof that Kaylee had silver eyes for awhile. Or that my son had a little bend in his ear and big dark eyes that looked wiser than they should have. I have proof that I used to be skinny, and that I flew in a B-25 and a Mustang. Photos are snapshots of my life, of things I've seen and people I've known and places I've been, and I like being able pull them out and smile. I pity whoever inherits my photo albums...all 550 of them. I read up on photography, I try to improve my pictures where I can, I drool over lenses and filters and other people's excellent shots.
7. Food. I love food. If I were born as someone else, I would probably love cooking. As it is, I love someone else to cook, and I just love to eat. I can never pick a "favorite food" or "favorite dessert". I like way too many things. I like trying new foods, new restaurants. In fact, whenever I fly somewhere, I make it a habit to never (if I have a choice) eat at an existing food chain, but instead to visit a restaurant I can only get there. I have found some really neat places to eat that way, from mom and pop grease spoons to fancy-pants restaurants. Rarely have I been disappointed.
8. Music. Music soothes the savage beast, and me too. :) I'm always looking for new music that I enjoy. When I need some quiet time, I put on classical. When I need some lifting, I put on praise songs. When I'm upset and feel like letting myself feel upset for awhile, I put on something that matches. When I'm pumped up, I put on something peppy. I often listen to music while I work, drive, or fly. Today Kaylee pinched her arm in the closet door. She was screaming and crying, nothing was making her feel better, and I did something I hadn't done in awhile. I gathered her in my arms and started singing softly to her. She is 6 1/2 years old, and almost too big for me to hold in my arms any more, but we managed, and she put her head against my heart, and she just listened to me sing quietly for awhile. Music soothes the savage beast, speaks to me, and dries the tears of a screaming six year old too.
9. The Internet. I have been able to communicate with friends and family, I have been able to meet new people I'd never have met otherwise, I've been able to search for information, start a support group, keep up to date on changes in work, and in general my life is a whole lot better thanks to this wonderful invention, definitely a way I spend a lot of my time, and certainly in my top ten interests/things I do.
10. Travel and Humor. Well, it's two things, but they're both of things I've always enjoyed doing or part of what interests me and I couldn't decide which one to leave out, so you get both. I always used to travel, a lot. Of course having a family and your own business curtails the spur-of-the-moment and/or frequent stuff, but I do love going new places and seeing new things and doing new activities and just seeing what's out there. Some day I'm going to travel outside the Continental US, too. As far as humor, I have an odd sense of humor that I tend to keep to myself. I don't mean in a bad way, just that I find things funny that other people don't, and even my reaction to stress is often the giggles, even if that's in the middle of a funeral or a dead quiet church service or while I'm being yelled at. I remember being 15 or 16 and someone hitting me in the head with their pillow. Only problem was they'd left a big metal can of hairspray in the pillow case, and I ended up being clocked hard enough to get a goose egg on my forehead I could look up and SEE sticking out of my head. Without a mirror. When that can hit me, I bent over, and then started laughing. When about the 12th thing goes wrong for the day, I laugh. I like jokes, I like funnies, I like dry wit, dark humor, sarcasm, snappy light humor, I just like things that are smartly funny, and I think humor is an important part of not taking one's self or one's life too seriously. Humor is healing, humor is healthy, humor is stress-relieving, and there's certainly nothing wrong with it. Anybody who thinks God doesn't have a sense of humor hasn't looked around lately. ;)
There you go, ten long-winded interests, things I do, or things I enjoy.
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