It’s that time of the week again! Hope everyone had a wonderful week. Other than loads of rain the past few days, there hasn’t been much going on. 

 

Hubby had to make a trip Sunday afternoon to Lowes for paint. He’s trying to finish up a rent house before the building permit expires next month, along with the Builder’s Risk Insurance. I normally go with him, but this time I had something different in mind. Remember the Planner Addicts group I belong to on Face book? Well, Michael’s is just across the way, so I managed to inquire (with a very passive face) if he would mind dropping me off so I could browse while he made his trip to Lowes. Silly, silly man. He told me yes. I don’t know if that expression or plea will EVER work again!

 

 

The automated doors opened up and the entire store was there, waiting for me to descend upon it. I’m sure Hubby wasn’t to the Lowes parking lot before my buggy was showing signs of distress under its load. I picked up a few more of the $1 items for gifts at my annual cookie swap in December. I thought it would be nice to have loads of little gifts this year instead of a few more costly items. That way, everyone could win at the games. But, that wasn’t where I stopped. I headed over to the Project Life isle. I have a plain brown binder and I was looking for something a little more colorful. Sure enough, there it was! A beautiful, colorful, chevron Project Life album sitting there waiting for me. I picked it up and gave it a place of honor in my buggy before heading on to the Washi tape.

 

I had begun decorating my planner for October and realized that I had no orange or black Washi tape. I didn’t want to use another color because I have the cutest Halloween stickers that I am using. After gathering the items I had come for, I took the opportunity to just wander up and down the aisles. Michael’s is a huge store and there are so many goodies! As I was coming back down one of the isles, I happened to look up and noticed the line of Sunday shoppers at the checkout counters, so armed with my 40% coupon (which I planned to use on my Project Life binder) and an additional 20% off my entire purchase coupon, I took my place in line. 

 

I called Hubby to see how his trip was faring and he was in the check out line at Lowes. About the time that I was walking out of Michael’s, he was driving up to the door. That was great unplanned timing. And, he never missed a beat as I loaded my HUGE bag of a “few little things” into the back seat. You have to give him credit. He didn’t blink an eye. Men just have to know that if they drop their wives off a ANY store for any length of time, that she’s going to come out with a bag, and it just may be the biggest bag that store has to offer. 

 

Monday is normally mow the yard day for me. That is, unless it’s raining, which it has been practically the entire summer. My schedule has been – mow the grass when it’s not raining. I had just begun mowing the front yard when it began drizzling. I checked the sky and saw that we were in for rain, but as long as there was no lightening and it was only a light rain, I continued to mow. It wasn’t long before my mind was doing its normal thing – wandering. At some point in my “wandering” I realized that I was getting a little wetter than I should be and happened to tune in to my surroundings and realized that it was raining pretty hard. I mow with my big straw hat and it was acting as an umbrella so that I didn’t realize it had gone from a drizzle to an almost downpour. You ask, “How did I not figure that out?” Folks. This is me. Need I say more? 

 

By that time, I figured I was already wet so as long as the mower was still blowing grass (meaning the grass wasn’t so wet it was clumping up under the mower instead of blowing out of the tunnel) I would continue mowing. About the time I finished up the front yard and was heading to the side and back yards, it had stopped raining and the sun was in all its glory. By the time I finished up, I was dry.

 

The next project up that I was about to just ignore was washing the bottom of the garage door. Calypso chases her tail and has made it a habit of cornering it against the garage door. She is not the cleanest dog around as she loves the swimming pool and the mud holes. Combine that with rubbing against a white garage door and it won’t take long to realize it’s not a pretty picture. Hubby kindly told me – my dogs, my mess. That meant clean it. Not that I mind. Poor man. He works long days and he’s tired at the end of the day. 

 

I gathered up the bucket and soap and a water hose and went to work. It is now a pale gray at the bottom and I’m thinking I shouldn’t have cleaned the top too, because now it is really noticeable how much its stained. Then, as soon as I finished, that silly dog went back to chasing her tail next to the door I had just cleaned. So much for that job being successful!

 

Now I am on to a rant. Our church just recently instituted a family of the month and minister (lay) of the month program. The recipients this month are close friends of mine, and if anyone was a a deserving family, they are. They are wonderful people and I feel blessed to a part of their lives. This “rant” of mine is in no way meant to diminish the honor I am certain they feel for receiving this award.  In fact, I had already written this post when I saw on Facebook that they had been chosen as family of the month. 

 

Ever since this program has been in formation, Hubby and I have been discussing the merits of it. Neither one of us think that the program should exist – for a litany of reasons. We also decided that if our names ever came up (which after this rant, I’m sure they won’t) we would decline the award. 

 

There is already so much division in the church and we feel that this will cause even more division – the people you “see” doing versus those who quietly do. The question is – should the church be bestowing awards on its congregation for what they should already be doing – and that is, being good stewards of faith?

 

There are many ways to serve in the Catholic church; altar servers, lectors, commentators, Eucharistic ministers, organizations, etc. I choose to be a lector, not because of the recognition I might receive, but because it is my way of serving God. I am a good reader and that talent is God given and I know that I should use it to serve Him. Hubby is part of the music ministry and he will be the first to turn the praise from himself to others. He is a very humble man who is quietly carrying on the legacy of his mother. I will not expound on the deeds that he does because that is between him and his God. It is not my place to praise him to others, although in the privacy of our relationship, I do let him know how proud of him I am. 

 

That being said, not everyone is comfortable being in an organization or reading in front of people, etc. Because no one sees them, does not mean they are not good stewards of their faith. Should those who are unable to put themselves out there not be recognized as well? Not being from the area, Hubby has pointed out different people and told me their stories and how they help people. There are many humble people out there who wish to remain anonymous, and they should be allowed that anonymity. 

 

After I published this post, my friend (award recipient) messaged me. And, no, she wasn’t upset with me. I think she would be okay with me saying she actually felt the same. In her words, “I do it for God and for love of my community.” And she does. She is a quiet, wonderful human being with a huge heart and a faith that I admire.

 

I also found out that it is a committee that nominates, and this again, struck me as being so wrong. I want to stress that this is my opinion, but to me, that is judging and it is not our place to judge. I would not want to be a part of a committee sifting through the congregation to determine who the humble are. 

 

The question is, should we single out any one person over another? What about those who do things only for the attention they receive? Should they be recognized over someone who sits quietly in the pew Sunday after Sunday, but helps his neighbor every day? We are called to be humble servants of God, not “awarded” servants of God. 

 

Who are we to judge who is or isn’t worthy of receiving an award here on earth? Shouldn’t our reward be bestowed in Heaven? I’ve heard it said that if we “toot our own horn” or receive our awards here on earth, then there is no reason to be awarded a second time in Heaven. It is those good deeds that go unnoticed, except by the Almighty, that will be our saving grace. 

 

And, not to mock the seriousness of my rant, but this song plays over and over in my head when I think of being humble, or when I notice someone else not being quite so humble. Maybe it’s just my strange sense of humor, or maybe it’s because we all struggle with humbleness. 

 

 

I’m sure I’ve stepped on a few toes – or, maybe not. So feel free to speak up – kindly though – or your remarks may be removed. 

 

 

 

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