Worry.Breathe.Repeat

My daughter is sixteen. With this rite of passage comes so much worry for me that sometimes I forget to breathe. Like yesterday. She had plans. Plans that didn't include me or her dad. Plans that included friends and her car and night and interstate driving.

Breathe.

Breathe.

I struggled with worry before she turned sixteen. I'm a worrier. Not sure why, but I just am, so any little thing can set my mind into a frenzy. Whether it's questioning something I said or something I did or didn't do. Whether it's worrying about the past or the future or today. Give me anything to worry about, even a wisp of a worry, and I will claim it.

So I'm having to learn how to live in a home that includes a sixteen-year-old daughter with keys and car. I'm having to learn how to give her space to grow up and to be independent. I'm having to trust that she will find her way to her friend's house, in the dark, and that she will be back here the next day. Safe and sound.

I do turn things over to God. Often. Sometimes I pull the worry back from him and stew in it for a little while. But then I send it back to him on angels' wings. When I do this. When I send my worries to God and place them in His hands, I relax. My mind is free from worry. I find peace. I breathe.

And I continue to trust Him with her precious life and tell myself that everything will be okay. I have to, so I can breathe.

Lights, Camera, Action... As We Reflect on Our Words

My friends and I have been posting together once a month as we reflect on the words we chose to focus on in the beginning of the year. When I began to think about a video that would appropriately reflect my thoughts on faith and joy, I immediately thought of the artist Akiane Kramarik. Her faith is the foundation for her art, and I can't help but feel joyful (and in awe) every time I look at her work.

Below is a CNN clip of an interview with her...



Peggy teamed up with The Moody Blues to convey her thoughts on "balance:"



Octamom shares the work of Kari Jobe whose video of her song, "I'm Singing," includes viewers' experiences, the result of which she says is "excellent... really amazing people continuing to walk with joy, even in the midst of some tough times."



Annemarie gets kudos for creating this original video to showcase her word, "discipline."



And AVTCoach gives us a video on "abundance." (I must have been the least techno-savvy one in the bunch because I couldn't figure out how to get the code over to my blog....) So please click HERE to watch her video, which features Akeela and the Bee.

I have been so amazed by the gifts of Akiane Kramarik, I felt compelled to create a scrapblog about her. After getting permission from her people, I got to work capturing images of her paintings and the comments and poetry she created to go with them.

Regardless of your particular faith, I hope you will take a look at her creations. She began drawing at age four and at the age of eight had sold her first painting for $10,000. She is a girl with remarkable gifts... a prodigy, or someone who has simply been blessed. Hopefully, you can click on this link and go to the scrapblog.

http://www.scrapblog.com/viewer/viewer.aspx?sbid=619228