Painting and impacts

 


"Did you get any on you?"
It's not hard to see how I've spent my last two days (and the photo was AFTER I tried to wash my hands), and how I'll probably be spending the rest of the week. I haven't done any housepainting for quite a while, and I'm actually enjoying it! The house our son Matthew and his wife Jenna bought recently was not in bad shape, but it's always wonderful to rip up carpet and redo the paint to see how the house gradually becomes bright and alive. It's a bit of work, but SO satisfying to see the results! And it keeps us busy for now. 🙂
It's pretty difficult in the process of painting not go "get some on you." I always wear some older clothes (but even so my granddaughter was quite concerned about all the paint on my shirt and pants!). But if you're trying to work fast, you will have some splatters and slips.
Activities we engage in always influence and effect us. Sometimes the impacts are apparent and visible; sometimes they are more subtle. This influence applies to good things and bad things! They all leave their impacts - physically, emotionally, intellectually, spiritually.
I #GiveThanks for the knowledge that all worthwhile actions and activities will make a difference, not just in those around me but also in myself. And for the caution and awareness that there are no "innocent" actions or activities - watch out for the smears and splatters, real or virtual!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Persistence

Image
  There's a principle of persistence that applies to climbing mountains, but also to many other aspects of life. We all get tired, we "run out of gas," we get frustrated with delays, we despair of reaching our goal, we think the job will never end, we keep waiting for the weather to improve, we become frustrated with "enduring." We give up, and we probably never know if we stopped just short of the point of significant achievement. The most growth often comes at, and after, that point of fatigue. I really appreciate the quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson. It was a favorite of Heber J. Grant and is often attributed to him, but he was quoting Emerson when he spoke it. It makes sense that we get more comfortable and competent at anything we persist in doing. Hard things become easier as we become practiced and proficient. On the other hand, there is sometimes wisdom in not "running faster than we are able." Or running longer than we are able! There comes a po...
Read more

"Sing, Choirs of Angels!"

Image
  "Sing, choirs of angels, Sing in exultation; Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!" "And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." (Luke 2:13-14) The accounts of the birth of Jesus don't actually say that heavenly choirs of angels were singing when they appeared to the shepherds in the fields. It says "saying," not "singing." But most of us can't read the words they shared without hearing in our minds Handel's arrangement from Messiah. And we often associate singing with the most joyful expression of emotion. That is certainly felt at Christmastime. I love Christmas music and look forward to enjoying it each year during the weeks leading to Christmas. Many of our most favorite carols and hymns are so familiar, but yet so powerful. Through the years I've found several lesser-known Christmas songs that ...
Read more

A new perspective

Image
  The first attached photo is how I often take pictures of children. The second is how I should more often do it! See the difference? My grandchildren are used to me taking photos of them while I'm standing above them, and they usually just ignore me. But when I got down on the ground to take these photos, they asked, "Why are you doing that??" I told them I wanted to see what the world looked like down on their level! Children live on a different "plane" of existence from adults, physically and in other ways. The world often looks a whole lot different from 2 feet than it does from 6 feet! And of course, the world looks very different from the mental and emotional perspective of a 2-year-old than from a 16-year-old, and certainly from a 64-year-old. It's healthy and helpful for us, now and then, to "change levels" - to try to see things through the eyes of children or teens, or someone from a different culture or background than we have. We learn ...
Read more