The Power of Perspective

Welcome to The Schneider Web. We have finally arrived in our new home in Oakhurst, CA. We've been introduced to nature at its finest here and have been gently reminded that there are beautiful things to enjoy everywhere you go. There is something powerful about perspective. There is also something powerful about taking things for granted. After living in a travel trailer with a spouse, 3 kids and a golden retriever, I won't take privacy for granted again! Neither will they. Everyone is excited to have some elbow room and we are excited to find ourselves, once again, in a new town.

In our first month we got right down to business. We began homeschooling, sought out the local homeschool group, saw the orthodontist, found a place for most of the games and toys, started killing the prolific poison oak in our yard and nearly got caught up on photo albums. Most everything is out of boxes. Much is not hung on the wall. The bathroom isn't decorated. The TV sits on an old table. We still haven't found Joe's favorite travel mug. But life is being lived every day.

There are things you can control like learning where they keep the Kikkoman Teriyaki Baste and Glaze in the Vons grocery store. And there are things that are out of your control, such as the number of hours in a day always falling short of one's "To Do" list. We pick and choose. We celebrate. We plan. We react. We ponder. And we know that the most important stuff of life, the relationships, can not be built in a day or in a month, but through seasons. You take a minute to examine the collection of precious things that your 9 year old shows you looking for ways to validate why they are so precious. You walk the dog. You notice that quail calls sound like squeaky toys. You lie on the driveway watching bats fly overhead at dusk. You savor the hugs of a 12 year old son who can now wear your shoes. You cry when you miss your friends. You thank God every day for seeing the hands and feet of Jesus through them. You cuddle on the couch with your kids reading one of the best books ever. Life is good.

Joe is reading Heaven by Randy Alcorn. Apparently, the author did extensive studies into scripture and tradition on the subject of Heaven, but I can't help but to think that to the extent we allow God into our day to day lives, to the extent that we allow God into the moment, whether it is trying or full of triumph, that is a moment of Heaven. You can read what Randy Alcorn says or talk to Joe about what he is gleaning from his book, but I happen to know that God manifested himself in both Humankind and in Creation. Everywhere we are and everywhere we go, He is there. We are blessed indeed when we have received the amazing grace that allows the blind to see the Divine at work today. We don't have to wait for Heaven to get a glimpse of God. Sometimes it is just a matter of perspective.... Shirin