Now that I’m finished watching Friday Night Lights, I’m taking on a new challenge. My friend Katie introduced me to Erin Blakemore’s blog (and book) The Heroine’s Bookshelf. I lurked for awhile and then commented on Katie’s guest post. That comment won me a copy of Gone With The Wind and now I’m joining Blakemore’s read-a-long of the classic.

To me it makes perfect sense to find inspiration from the heroines of some of our favorite classics. I’m looking forward to reading Blakemore’s book for that very reason. Who hasn’t wanted to be brave like Jo March or loyal like Jane Eyre?

In Gone With the Wind, we read about a fairly imperfect heroine – one we may choose to fight with even more than cheer for. But we read stories to help make sense of our world, I’ve heard said. It is important for us to see an imperfect heroine and still see how she is beloved. Sometimes she changes – or sometimes we only wish desperately that she would. All the while, we are deciding how we would behave in similar situations, what we believe is the righteous choice.

Talking with my friend Denise this weekend I told her the only thing I didn’t like about the conclusion of Friday Night Lights was the way Mrs. T whined and fussed at her husband when she didn’t think she was getting her way. She had a reason to be upset, but I didn’t like the way she tried to make her point. I watched the story’s heroine and made a choice for myself.

I don’t know if any of you would be interested in joining the read-a-long. (If you are, just click here to read about the details.) It is a ridiculously thick book. But I know some of you (Carol, ahem, Carol) have mentioned how you miss literature classes and this could be a way to feed that. Or you might want to pop over to the site now and then (the group book club runs through October) and see what people are discovering as they read. Or maybe you’ll just be inspired to pick up that old copy of your own favorite classic. Whatever you decide, remember to keep an eye on those heroines; we’ve got a lot of choices to make in this life and we can use all the help we can get!

Yesterday afternoon I received one of the best text messages ever:

“Hey. I want to take you on a date tonight. I have a babysitter and everything covered. I’ll pick you up at 4:30.”

I said yes.

It has admittedly been awhile since we’ve had a real date. A kid-free night out. No grocery shopping allowed.

We ate out someplace new – in patio seating! And then he took me shopping.

Since March – when Dan saw pictures of himself in swimming trunks – we’ve been working on a little weight loss project. Crazy enough, it is totally working. Weight Watchers has been our guide, but the most important factor has been the two of us working together. Sharing ideas for “cheap” meals (if you know WW, you know that doesn’t mean monetarily anymore) and encouraging each other after bad weigh-ins. It hasn’t happened fast but we feel pretty accomplished. In fact, Dan wanted to take me shopping so I could pick up a few new things to fit my new size.

There’s still more work to do – so far I’ve lost my 15 simply by eating less (Dan’s lost nearly 30). Exercise is next on the list. But last night it was nice to be spoiled. Loved. Celebrated. All by the person I love the most.

Thanks, Babe!

And thanks to our friend Ramy and his wife, Tiffany, for the encouragement and ideas for d8-Night! Her blog has fantastic go-to ideas for date nights, if you need help. Or call Dan – he’s really good at this!

After a few days of vacation in Dan’s beloved Omaha (hOme-aha to him), I have a few reflections.

These things are sweet:

1. Connection time. Dan and Macy share a birthday. When he greeted her Saturday morning with, “Happy Birthday!” She replied with, “And Happy Birthday to you!”

My youngest sister, Charity, and I spent one morning getting haircuts and then eating lunch at a trendy spot we’d both wanted to try. We even day-dreamed a little together as we drove around. Those are fun times you don’t get often when you live 6 hours apart.

Another evening we gathered around Papa Don’s fire pit and roasted marshmallows for s’mores. As Claire crammed in a bite of gooey mess she chirped, “We should do this every night.”

2. Surprises. First of all, we expected to swelter in the June heat. But it felt more like spring the entire weekend.This was a pure gift, friends.

Second, one of Dan’s cousins had an extra ticket to see Wicked in its final show at the Orpheum theater in Omaha. I went with her, and it blew my mind! Have you seen it? How have you kept this secret from me, world?! During the first big surprise, I inhaled audibly and smacked myself in the chest. For the final and biggest surprise, I slapped the thigh of the young man next to me who was so tall his knees were close to the ears of the lady sitting in front of him. He was on his fourth showing. Now we’re in it together, he and I and the rest of the Wicked devotees. I wouldn’t dare spoil it for you; the surprises are so fun. The story alone was fascinating. (Have you read the novel?) Then add spectacular music, talented performers, and a funny script . . . I was over the moon with inspiration and pure enjoyment. (What beloved story could I re-invent? Now that sounds like a great way to make a living!)

3. Unscheduled, flexible days. Dan and I both work full-time; our kids go to year-round school. Add in sports teams, dance performances, heath appointments, and various church and family events, and we don’t find ourselves with many unscheduled days. We took our time on this vacation. Two of the days we made the choice just to stick around the house and relax. Naps were taken, magazines were perused, movies were watched, and restaurants were enjoyed.

By personality I am tempted, even while on vacation, to look at the event as a means to solving the problems of the world. All the talk time! We could surely plan out our next 20 years together. All the free time! I bet I could finish those twenty-five books on my desk at work. For example, I sat through the first half of Wicked analyzing whether or not it was produced with a post-Christian emphasis on reversing the definitions of right and wrong. By the conclusion of that second half, I gave up. Elphaba soared at the top of center stage singing “Defying Gravity” while lights, smoke, and the rest of the cast accentuated her dramatic climb. I knew my analysis was over. I allowed the story free access to my heart and smiled, clapped, and gasped through the rest of the show.

These were the sweet spots. Do you have vacation plans? I think you should, even if it just means an unscheduled day around the house with the people you love, a movie or series you’ve been meaning to catch, or a quiet drive to a yet-to-be-determined location. Find a sweet spot.

My new favorite magazine is called Anthology (It has a perfect tagline: Living with Substance and Style). I recieved the third issue in the mail last week. Holding its satiny pages and flipping though its gorgeous layout, I imagined there might be hope for magazines made from paper after all. At least for a little while longer. It is a perfect read for me. The articles are about people – interesting but normal people – and how they live everyday life in beautiful spaces. See a few of the photos from Anthology that inspired this post here (you can browse the issue online as well – look for the “Surprise and Delight” piece).

You see, reading that magazine made me feel happy. I couldn’t put my finger on why exactly, but the photos just oozed a sense of joy. The only concrete thing I came away with was, “I need a pop of pinky-red on my blog.” Dan obliged.

I love the way my new look here is coming together; there was something so inspiring about adding an unexpected splash of color to the lay-out over the weekend. (Dan and I are not designers, but we’re making the best of our resources!)

I think we need the same in our lives. We’re made for diversity but we tend to resist it, I think, out of habit. Or comfort. Most home owners mistakenly try to make everything in their design schemes match neatly – usually beige on beige or something to that effect. In the Anthology issue, which often highlights professional designers, again and again the comment about their guiding sense of style was something to the effect of, “Oh, we don’t follow any strict rules; we just surround ourselves with pieces and colors that we love.”

And that’s how it felt. And it was happy. In the Rare Rocks analogy, one of the C’s that is part of the gemstone valuing process is color. The earth surrenders tiny stones of red, green, blue, white, yellow, etc. Almost any color you can think of. I imagine that if God had only created clear, white diamonds we would still love them, but how much nicer is a bright aquamarine knowing how rare it is to find that exact color?

Each gem is colored based on the minerals in the earth where it forms. You can’t control everything (or much) about the color you assume – issues such as personality, temperament, and talent. But whatever brilliant hue you discover, you need to remember that we need it. We need you. In a world of taupe and gray, we need the spice of red and orange. We need the calming cool of blue and green. We need the energy of orange and yellow. We need what you bring to the photo shoot.

And when we’re creating and nurturing the communities that form around us, we need to remember, as wonderful as turquoise may be, there’s always room for a splash of orange. It makes the whole room better.

Surround yourself with people you love – paying special attention to finding at least a few who are different from you in some way. When others see your vibrant collective, it makes them feel happy – even if they don’t know why. But you know: It’s that pop of pinky-red in a room full of blue.

What color would you use to describe yourself? Why?

photo credit on Flickr: Posh Living, LLC

Dan’s M O S A I C Project is posting later today. The challenge was simple: do something creative and share it with the group. I wanted to do something outside of my usual repertoire – such as writing poetry or an essay – and instead combined my love for gardening and my recent interest in photography. These roses are from my front garden. I arranged them in a Ball jar and set them on the small bench I inherited from my Grandma Nickerson. This view is from above.

on a field trip

on a walk

into a book

to Africa

You should shake it up and get out of your ordinary routine

even if only for a week

or a day

or five minutes

Because you’ll come back stronger

braver

ready

full

You should go

The kids are looking forward to a little Spring Break next week and I’m looking forward to a little Spring! Will it come? Yes. Maybe not next week, but it will come.

This is Claire’s talent show bluebird. Isn’t it cute and cheery?

I’m very sad for Japan. I’m clinging to Jesus’ words to his beloved friends not long before his crucifixion:

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

The Louie Giglio “Hope” DVD I mentioned this week is based on this Scripture. It is really shaping my sense of hope even in the midst of trouble. I can’t recommend anything better right now.

I’m jealous of Serenity today because she is watching her favorite LaPlata Bulldogs play for third place in Missouri today! Go, Bulldogs!

And in other basketball news, Jesse must be growing up because when his “bracket busted” – as most have by now – he didn’t cry once. Last year there were many tears. I can say I did almost as well when my Tigers couldn’t pull off an upset last night. Almost. (P.S. Your bracket busts when the teams you picked to win don’t. It can really throw off your predictions for the three-week-long tournament.)