I’m trying to be still and know that He is God, from the Psalms.
I am trying to Trust and Fear Not.
It is hard.
Faith is believing in things that cannot be seen.
Love is the biggest of all.
I am a Hope Full woman.
I’m also held together really carefully on the inside right now.
Love,
Janean
written Monday, March 18, 2013
On Friday at the post office, I thought of my Grandma Thompson as I selected several sheets of “pretty stamps.” I chose Rosa Parks. Along the side reads in great big block letters, “COURAGE.” Quiet, strong, steady, resilient, tough, unwavering, standing tall, because she knew she was right, woman kind o’courage. Best of all, other than that initial confrontation, she didn’t stand alone.
~ Janean
written Saturday, March 16, 2013
posted Monday, March 18, 2013
The place I am in, is saying aloud, again and again, “I’m showing up.”
Sometimes, that alone is enough.
Just being present, in the moment.
Skimmed a Girl Power article in newest Time magazine today. (The March 18, 2013 issue.) One nugget jumped out, quoted as a sign that hangs in the Facebook offices (article was about Sheryl Sandberg):
“Done Is Better Than Perfect.”
That helps me, as I face so much needing done. Needed it. Gleaned it, in the time I spent waiting. Brief, though it was.
day by day
step by step
quietly abiding
that is all
(yet everything)
we can do
~ Janean
March 12, 2013
TIME magazine article link citing poster quote:
http://ideas.time.com/2013/03/07/why-i-want-women-to-lean-in/
I walked Blue through the park this morning early, our favorite route, while a cold rain fell. As my peacock adorned rain boots hit the wet sidewalk, after we made it through and were headed on toward home, these words rang in my head in a steady rhythm:
“Grit, Steel, Grace and Love
that’s what Janean Baird is made of.”
Of course it should read, “Janean Marie Thompson Baird” but that’s too long and ruins the word flow.
I’m going to wake up the boys next and plan on unplugging as best I can to make art today, for that is the soothing balm my aching and weary soul needs most.
March 11, 2013
I made this valentine for my family yesterday. Chocolate kind. Inside and out. In the heart shaped pans my Grandma Thompson gave me, well over 20 years ago. Funny thing is, even though they’ve been mine for that long, I still think of them as hers, and think of her, with a smile, each time I use them. Happy Day After Chocolate Day! Yes, my two sweet boys had hunks o’chocolate cake for breakfast. Why not?! I count it as a pastry, along the lines o’donuts and cinnamon rolls. Plus, it’s a half day of school (Parent’s Day) and we’re going out to eat for lunch.
~ Janean
February 15, 2013
The melancholy river bears us on. When the moon comes through the trailing willow boughs, I see your face, I hear your voice and the bird singing as we pass the osier bed. What are you whispering? Sorrow, sorrow. Joy, joy. Woven together, like reeds in moonlight.
Virginia Woolf, A Haunted House, And Other Short Stories (via violentwavesofemotion)
Sighing melancholy sighs at reading this brief quote with many of my favorite things: a river, a weeping willow, joy and moonlight. Oh, sorrow. Yes. Woven amidst the rest, I know you too, but joy ultimately wins. ~Janean
January 31, 2013
Wait. I poured a mug o’coffee and now the rest is draining! YES! My day is looking brighter ‘cause caffeine is gonna hit my weary system. Breathing a BIG sigh o’relief. Please resume your regular programming…just a minor little overreaction. Me?! Ms. Short Fuse?! Yeah. It happens. Now, for that first sip of magical java brew to make it all better…or at least kick start me toward gettin’ ready for Sunday mornin’ church. Carry on and have a fab-u-lous day! Happy kitchen dancin’ here ‘cause my coffee pot works! ~ Janean
January 27, 2013
8:40am
I love the rain
Spring rains will come soon
thunderstorms and gentle mists
I welcome both
I love walking in the woods
and on a gravel road
lined with trees on either side
I love resting
whether on a proper bench
or plopping on the ground
I love the river
especially Grandpa’s river
the mighty Mississippi
standing atop his bluff
looking o’er her curving path
there I can breathe
I love to smile
and often do
a gentle curve of lips
or crooked at the corner
a flash of teeth and quick laugh
full wattage mega kind too
the best ones reach my eyes
I love the rain
I walk my dog without an umbrella
wearing rain boots with peacocks
splashing through puddles
with a grin
laughing at my prancing pup
I am not dead. I am here. Thank you, God, for these simple things and the ability to find joy in quiet moments such as these. Thank you for family and friends, and the powerful prayers of Your people who are lifting up my cancer fighting husband and me and our boys asking for the strength and courage we need to weather this vicious storm. We are thankful, humbled and oh, so very blessed. Hope bubbles fresh anew each day. Your love will see us through. ~Janean
January 25, 2013
Photograph taken on January 16, 2013, standing atop my Grandpa’s bluff, overlooking his river, my Heart Home, that place where I can breathe.
- Sit quietly in a storm without an umbrella, without a word of complaint. Let the rain wash away every ounce of bitterness that has been used to write a eulogy on your skin.
- You’re not dead.
- Remember.
- Drive down to the river. Drive down to where the industrial waste has not re-colored the…
I love the rain
Spring rains will come soon
Thunderstorms and gentle mists
I welcome both
I love walking in the woods
and on a gravel road
lined with trees on either side
I love resting
whether on a proper bench
or plopping on the ground
I love the river
especially Grandpa’s river
the mighty Mississippi
standing atop his bluff
looking o’er her curving path
there I can breathe
I love to smile
and often do
a gentle curve of lips
or crooked at the corner
a flash of teeth and quick laugh
full wattage mega kind too
the best ones reach my eyes
I love the rain
I walk my dog without an umbrella
wearing rain boots with peacocks
splashing through puddles
with a grin
laughing at my prancing pup
I am not dead. I am here. Thank you, God, for these simple things and the ability to find joy in quiet moments such as these. Thank you for family and friends, and the powerful prayers of Your people who are lifting up my cancer fighting husband and me and our boys asking for the strength and courage we need to weather this vicious storm. We are thankful, humbled and oh, so very blessed. Hope bubbles fresh anew each day. Your love will see us through. ~Janean
January 25, 2013
Here Lies the Remains of a Girl Who–Did What Now?: Put yourself back together.
Turquoise Tangles 