Narnia, with a little less magic.

"She began to walk forward, crunch-crunch over the snow and through the wood
toward the other light. In about 10 minutes she reached it and found it was a
lamp-post. As she stood looking at it, wondering why there was a lamp-post in
the middle of a wood and wondering what to do next, she heard a pitter patter
of feet coming towards her."

    - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

What is it about snow that just makes me want to curl up with a good book at home on the sofa while sipping something warm? Oh, why did I have to grow up and get a job? Watching the first real snowfall of the year while sitting at my desk at work just isn't very magical.

Skitter.

Some days are long. Some days are busy. And some days we have too much fun. This is Skitter the Squirrel. He showed up in a box at my office today. Tomorrow I will put him into one of the preschool classrooms to wait for the the Sunday school children to come when he will help to teach them a Bible lesson. Today, he provided some fun by peeping into the windows of office doors and making people laugh.

Curls

There are 6 toddlers in the play area outside my office door. They all have curls. I really want to play with their little curls. What is it about baby curls that just makes you want to play with them?

Vanilla.

What do you do when your rough month at work suddenly turned from rough to horrible?

What do you do when Technology goes haywire?

What do you do when you your deadlines are approaching just as quickly as before, but now you have to re-do work several days worth of work that got eaten by haywire technology, and you're even more behind than you were before because you spent all day trying to fix what broke?

What do you do when you work at a church where everyone around you wants to look at the bright side of the situation, rather than just agreeing with you that the situation sucks?

I got in my car and drove to the closest place I could find that sold milkshakes.

Noteworthy Tree.

There are many things that are like special bonuses in my life. It is a special bonus to be able to work in an office that has a window. And not only do I have a window, but I have one with a lovely view.

If you look out the other direction, you can see a large tree. Nailed to this tree is a little plaque that always makes me laugh.

"Noteworthy Tree" It tells passers-by. But what gets me is that it doesn't tell you WHY it has been named noteworthy.
I have learned the answer to my question though. It is "Noteworthy" because this tree that stands outside my office window is the largest White Oak in Virginia. Children come to see it on field trips. I'm even told that George Washington used to tie his horse to this tree (which is actually a real possibility since he used to be on the vestry for the church that I work at).

Have you ever been told that you were noteworthy? Or special? I'm sure that some time or another we've all been told that there is something special about us, and hopefully deep down we know this to be true about ourselves. But do we always know why? I fear that many people go through life being told from time to time that they are special, but not knowing why. And when you don't know why, you begin to doubt it.
Do you know why you're special? I do. I am special because God has made me so. He died and arose from the dead, paying the debt that I owed because of my sin, and reconciling me to himself, because he loves me! His Spirit is in me, and He is growing me into an Oak of Righteousness for the display of His splendor. (Isaiah 61).

That is pretty noteworthy if you ask me. :-)