JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE

Today was a pretty blah kind of day here in paradise. Nothing too exciting happened. Well, I guess in retrospect, that's not true either. I did interview for a job and feel pretty certain I will get an offer, but I hate to be too excited since I've been shot down so many times before. I'm not surprised by the prejudice that comes with the title "convicted felon" but I am aghast as to where it came from today.

The company I interviewed with is one of the top 5 employers in my community and they have a very diverse group of employees with hundreds of what I guess to be legal aliens working for them, foreigners that are here legally. I am assuming this anyway. The HR staff member that interviewed me did ask questions about my "issue with the law" and was very kind to me. I appreciated her tender voice and non-judgmental attitude after I gave my canned "I want to get past this horrible situation and get on with my life..." speech to her. I wish I could say more, but have been advised what I should say, so I don't add my two cents in. This company seemed open and willing to work with me. I just have to pass round two of the interview whenever they call. Thank you for praying with me about this. If it is God's will, then I'm ready to accept the position. If he closes the door, I accept that as well.

Another call came in today, from a rather large volunteer organization that is currently serving the devastated population of Haiti. Due to the nature of their business, they are currently receiving large donations at the local office. They have decided they do not need a volunteer "like me" and rejected my application. I am crushed. I really wanted to serve them. I must assume God is protecting me again, from a false accusation, an evil person, a poor working environment or he simply has a better / different plan for me. Thank you, Lord!

I do not want this blog to be a downer so let me share with you how I spent my morning! It was 6:45 AM and I was awake. If I'm up, the baby puppy is up too. He wanted outside to do his doggie business. My restrictions do not allow me to leave the house until 7:00AM. Have you ever asked a dog to hold it for 15 minutes? I talked in a very gentle voice to him and explained that "Momma will get her clothes changed and take you outside in a few minutes." What you need to understand is that my dog is extra special and he does understand me when I talk to him. In very human fashion, he doesn't always agree with me or want to comply. I wasn't sure what to expect from him. My mind went to a vacation I was on with my family as a child and how many restrooms Dad drove past before he actually stopped at a rest stop for us to go potty. I wondered if my bladder was going to pop when we kept driving that day. I am almost certain the baby puppy was feeling the same. At 7:01 AM I opened the door and the dog headed for the nearest tree. All was well in his world. Have you ever watched a dog dream? Do you think they dream of fire hydrants on every street corner and bones loaded with meat? I believe my dog dreams about chasing rabbits. His legs move and jerk as if he is just about to grab onto it and then, he wakes up. I can see missed opportunity written all over his fuzzy face.

After dealing with the dog, I went to clean a house, something I have been doing every other Friday for a while. A friend of mine was gracious to give me this opportunity. I make just enough money every two weeks to groom my baby puppy. He is so worth it and I like serving my friend in this manner too.

The house is rather large with tile floors throughout a large portion. The acoustics in the house, when I'm there all alone, are great. This morning, I was feeling a bit blue and I decided the best medicine would be to praise the Lord with song. I began with a simple chorus of "I love you Lord, and I lift my voice, to worship you, oh my soul, rejoice...Take joy my king, in what you hear, may it be a sweet, sweet sound in your ear!" I sang softly at first and grew louder and louder as I enjoyed the sound vibrate from the tiles to the ceiling, bouncing off the walls and back to me. I was singing at the top of my lungs changing tunes occasionally. I vacuumed and dusted and cleaned toilets and mirrors with a heavy spirit at first, but after about four rounds of worshipful songs, my heart caught up with my mouth and I finally had a worshipful attitude. I can imagine God smiling and laughing at me. I think he does that quite often. I love to laugh and I think when I live in heaven, Jesus and I are just going to see each other on the street and break into laughter, the belly laugh kind. The laughs that make you snort. We are just going to enjoy each other's company and then I am going to ask a ton of questions! For those of you that know me well, can you imagine how I am going to talk and talk and talk to Jesus when I get there? It's going to be amazing! He listens to me now, it will be amazing to talk to Him face to face! You know the saying, "talk your ear off"...well He would just heal it back on....oh what a goofy statement. I'm digressing again....sorry.

So, its the end of the day. It's been uneventful when compared to yesterday. Perhaps this is exactly what I needed, a day to just "Be still and know that He is God"...GabbyGal