110. Quiet Beautiful Things

General, Spiritual Blessings 0

This morning I was reading in the Bible about the Battle of Jericho.  It occurred to me that it’s easier to see what God is doing in my life when there’s big drama going on.  “My son just moved out.”  “I’m interviewing for a job in Oregon.”

I’m not sure how long it will last, but for now there’s not big drama in my life.  Yet — there are many things I’m excited about.  Quiet, Beautiful Things.  Things that God has brought into my life and that are His special blessings to me.

Today, it’s simply getting to go play games with friends — friends I’ve only known a couple years, but whose company I enjoy tremendously.  Tomorrow, it’s going to be getting to teach Scratch programming in a playful way.

And there are lots more things coming up.

And I hope I will remember to notice them.

“He makes me lie down in green pastures.”  Green pastures are lovely at times, too.

And may I not forget to be thankful.

 

109. Playfully Touching Lives

Activities, Libraries 0

I love my job!  Today I ran Family Math Games — a program where I have a bunch of board games and card games for all ages that promote math skills.  I only ask that at least one parent plays with the kids.  The program was my idea, and today I had 41 people in that room happily playing games — parents and kids playing together.

This fills my heart with happiness.  Once upon a time, I taught college math.  Then, so many of the students saw me as their adversary, since I wrote and graded the tests.  This way of teaching is so much more wonderful!

And my job is filled with things like this.  On Monday, I’m going to attempt to teach kids Scratch programming — but I’m planning to do so just by letting them mess around with it, play.

On Wednesday, Tech Shop is coming for a Computer Deconstruction program.  They’re going to bring tools and old computers, and the kids will take them apart and find out what’s inside.  It was from attending this program that I was brave enough to take a screwdriver to my film scanner — and I actually fixed it!  During that program, it’s so much fun to see the kids’ curiosity and confidence increase as they go.

And storytimes are about learning through fun, too.  Listening to stories lays the groundwork for learning to read — and it’s completely fun, not painful at all.

Can you tell?  I so love my job.  Because I get to touch lives by encouraging kids to play!

I am truly blessed!

 

 

108. Ten years — my son and me

Family 0

My heart is full tonight.  Tomorrow my youngest son, at 22 years old, is moving to Portland, Oregon, to look for a job.

It’s also 10 years since we left Germany, and moved to Virginia, and stopped living anywhere near my ex-husband, though the divorce didn’t happen until 4 years after that.

My oldest child went off to college right after we moved to Virginia, and never really came back.

So for ten years, it’s pretty much been Tim and me.  Yes, I had lots of practice being without him — his times with his Dad and of course going off to college.  But this move is much more permanent.

And I’ve raised a very fine young man.

He’s smart.  He’s kind.  He’s self-aware and emotionally intelligent.  He’s an independent thinker who has a lot of empathy.  He’s a creative thinker.  He’s an introvert — which makes him a great person for another introvert to live with.

So I’m going to miss him — hugely.

But how tremendously blessed I have been these past ten years to have someone I love living with me.  What a privilege it’s been to watch him grow up!

Sigh.  It’s going to be great to watch him fly!

 

107. Dominion with Tim

Events, Family 0

I know I’ve mentioned this one before.  But the morning after tomorrow, my youngest moves away.  So tonight playing a game of Dominion with Tim was extra-special.

I do love playing games with my kids!  I’ve gotten to do a whole lot of that in my life — and one more time tonight.

I am blessed.

 

106. Family Trip

Events, Family 0

I’m going to California tonight!  My niece is getting married on Friday.  I’ll get to spend time with many of my 13 siblings and see several nieces and nephews and spend time with my dear friend Ruth.

This feels like a bonus trip, since I went to see family in Oregon in May — because I was interviewing for a job out there.  Normally, I wouldn’t have spent the money for two trips, but that was a good excuse.

I have an overwhelmingly large family.  There are some good things about living on the other side of the country where the only Hatch most people know is me.

But it is also a huge treat to get to spend time with them.  This is going to be a lovely trip.

105. My Dad’s Award

Events, Family 0

Last night I got to hear my Dad speak and see him receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Chappell Natural Philosophy Society!

It worked out great — they were supposed to start dinner at 6:00, which was when I got off work, about an hour away.  It turned out they started dinner at more like 7:30 — so I was right on time.  I got to have some food and hear my Dad speak.

This is a group for “dissident scientists.”  They encourage critical thinking and no hero worship.  My Dad by no means agrees with all of them, but they listen to him, and some do good work.

In his talk, he presented why his own theory is a much better fit with GPS data than Einstein’s Special and General Relativity Theory.

He is currently calling his theory TESLA — The Elastic Solid Lorentzian Aether.  It’s catchier, and I can finally remember it!

His theory explains the data better (and my Dad knows GPS data) and resolves paradoxes.  In this theory, alas for fiction writers, time travel is not even theoretically possible.

 

 

104. Seeing Planets

Events 0

We had a very cool program at the library yesterday.  Astronomer Kevin Manning spoke to the kids and brought his big telescope for them to look through.

Unfortunately, we didn’t realize the sun wouldn’t go down until 8:45 pm — with the library closing at 9:00.

Fortunately, I was the one responsible for closing the library last night, so I could make an exception for stargazers.

And along the way, I got to see Mars, and the moons of Jupiter, and the rings of Saturn.

Tremendously cool!

 

103. God Speaking in a Sunday Sermon

Events, Spiritual Blessings 0

I love it when a Sunday sermon has a message that is so precisely what I needed to hear, it seems pretty clear that God was using it to speak to me.

This morning that happened.

I won’t go into detail, but I was thinking that how God has worked things out for good in the past tells me I can certainly trust Him with my future.

That’s pretty much what the sermon was about — with some additional specific details that resonated.

But this is by no means the first time this has happened.

And it’s a blessing.

102. Family Math Games

Activities, Events, Libraries 0

I’m proud of our Family Math Games program at the library, because it was my idea to make lots of games available to families, one Saturday a month, and ask only that at least one parent plays with their kids.

And it just makes me happy when it works!

Today I had ten different groups of parents and children playing together.  The kids were learning, and everyone was having fun.

Few things make me happier than hearing a parent teach their kid a concept playfully and lovingly.  I heard kids practicing counting and strategy.  I saw a little girl happily driving a pink car to grandma’s house using shape cards.  I saw older kids helping younger kids figure something out.

Their smiling faces when they brought a game back and looked for a new one made my day.

It was beautiful and reminded me that I really do have an awesome job.

It also reminded me of when our family used to regularly play Monopoly Jr. together after dinner most evenings.  It was so fun to get to see a roomful of other families having that same experience.

And it was slightly sweeter because my youngest is about to move out and start his adult life on the other side of the country.  This is a good thing — He has grown up and is spreading his wings.  But it makes me happy that I can take something our family did that was great for our young kids and spread it to other families.  Even the ones who already would be playing games with their kids have new games here to try out.