Enthusiastically, Dawn

Talk about a full week. My roller coaster ride of a life continues, and I think I am learning to enjoy the ride, despite my fears. Chalk that up to a combination of things. Blessings, perhaps. Perhaps a side effect of growing older. Graces. This week as I hit the halfway point of Ann Voskamp’s A Thousand Gifts and curled up in my comfy chair teared up and through it, as the resonating filled my heart and I realized it had penetrated me, in the deep place; crossing over, I join the journey and realize the gift. I decide to accept it and wonder why it took me so long to come to this place. I join with the kindred spirits who have already been journeying with her, on this sacred journey. Me, I’m the sluggard who finally realizes the good things she freely offers in this writing, her gift. I am thankful. I started the book in January but put it down after the first Chapter brought tears. I felt unable to endure the pain, although the beauty of the prose was not lost on me. I could not get beyond the pain of the beginning. It was too real and I broke inside in the reading of it. Empathy is good but still, the pain felt too real. Familiar. But, I have been visiting her blog over the past months and did attempt the January picture dare, abandoning that effort- the remnants are here (I will continue to add at my own pace here); coming full circle I picked up and am tearing up through the chapters and allowing it all to be a gift, too. So another blogger begins the joining in the journey, regularly counting the thousands of gifts. His graces in everyday places.

So I know you want to ask me, “Dawn, what do you do with all your free time while you are not currently working?” I will tell you, precious. I enter contests to win free stuff in between nursing my multitudes of rejections…I meant graces, blessings. Sorry, Ann.
Seriously, I think God really wants to:
A. Make sure I feel especially blessed with books
B. Desires me to read more to improve my own writing ability
C. Is helping my husband realize we really do need those promised bookshelves
D. All of the above

I won a complete set of Judy Christie’s Series and am very excited to lose myself in this wonderful fiction collection of four books. What an extra special treat for me to have a signed set!

Honestly every day this week, books came in the mail. My husband and mom look at the mail, with eyes rolling, “More books?”, while I Cheshire grin, filling the kitchen with pearly white. OK, actually coffee stained yellow. But smiling is smiling, peeps!

I discovered that all wind is not good 
wind to fly a kite in…

But it never hurts to try…well, except for the kite.

My beginning One Thousand Gifts…

1. Moonlight through branches, twice
2. Being called …”magical”
3. books daily in mail
4. handmade scarf given freely
5. e-mail to “call now”
6. upheld by joy
7. fresh corn chowder
8. flour on floor
9. grace held tongue in moment needed
10. first school birthday invitation
11. pro-active mom
12. unexpected dinner invitation
13. sweet fellowship in abundance
14. lunch as a treat
15. porch swing prayer
16. heart sharing moments
17. easy going smile from him always right
18. whipping, cold wind
19. overnight fun, two times
20. black bunny ears
21. knowing prayers prayed
22. sweetly sleeping girl contented
23. possibilities of a new week
24. strong willed potential I pray will yield someday
25. resistant heart that leads me continually reliant on more and more grace
26. faith gift that renews, keeping me anchored to hope
27. answered prayer for school event, safety plus much more
28. Friends who believe in me when… I doubt myself
28. trust growing, like tulips peeking out, almost