What If?

The conversations that go on at work between men and women is eye opening. The boundaries are very gray and the humor is on completely different levels. If men tell each other they look ugly, laughter will erupt. However, if one woman tells another woman that her hair looks messy, woowee, watch out.

Have you ever wondered what Adam and Eve talked about sitting in the garden? Let's face it, the two had never seen another person before, they didn't have jobs, families, friends, hobbies, celebrity gossip, politics... the list could go on forever. How simple life was and yet I can't help but imagine how the conversation went....

"Look at that pretty tree..."

"Man I am hungry..."

"Look at that snake..."

"What are those?..."

...and then it crossed my mind that at one point Adam must have said to Eve, "Back up, I don't know how big this gets." The first man, the first woman, and the reason we are all alive today. Was it an accident, did God educate Adam, or was it part of the manly intuition and therefore not a surprise at all?

Is this where the phrase morning wood came from? Eve must have thought Adam had a tree limb in his pants... an interesting thought to ponder. Any thoughts?

It's tough being wrong, but someone has to do it

The cover story in Newsweek magazine this week is called "The Recession is Over." I would have to say that is a pretty strong statement considering we have seen absolutely no sign of recovery. In fact, just as we thought the oil and gas market was showing a bullish trend with positive economic indicators, the market starts a downward spiral with oil down $4.

I find it interesting how sure everyone is about everything and how wrong they end up being. The truth is that in order to be told you are right and therefore a genius you have to stick your neck out and make a statement. Unfortunately, only fifty percent of the time are you actually right. Politicians, the media, our friends, our families... we are all wrong at least half the time. That is just the facts.

God did not intend for us to be proud creatures, and yet admitting that we make mistakes is always such a feat. Today is our 3 year wedding anniversary, and in light of the topic, I have noticed an exception to the rule when it comes to marriage matters. Recently I have become aware that in my marriage I am wrong more often than not. In fact, I am wrong at least 75% of the time when I put my foot down and am certain about something. I am dumbfounded when I am flat out wrong. I can pick out different aspects of my life where I am right at least 80% of the time, and yet not in the case of marriage. After 3 years of marriage I have stumbled upon the secret. Men reserve the moments where they insist they are right to a minimum because the thought of admitting they are wrong keeps them on the sidelines. As soon as they know without a doubt that they are right, they pounce. Now that I know this, oh how the dynamics can change! :)

Did he just call me a typhoon?

Work today left my soul speechless. I find myself working exceptionally hard and at times extremely frustrated with others' effort towards the cause. I don't have a lot of insight to contribute today except that expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are an honest worker is like expecting a bull not to charge because you are a vegetarian.

On a side note, a co-worker called me a tycoon today. After jokingly thanking him for referring to me as a huge storm in the Pacific Ocean, he corrected me and informed me that a tycoon as defined by Merriam Webster is "a top leader, a businessman of exceptional wealth and power". Surprisingly, the word was directed as a complement for my hard work and not a criticism. This reminds me that often times the world isn't as dark as it looks, I just need to take off my sunglasses!

I will leave you with these thoughts from various people in hopes that they will motivate the both of us!

Don’t get mad. Get everything! ~ Ivana Trump

A good leader takes a little more than his share of the blame, a little less than his share of the credit. ~ Arnold H. Glasgow

Leaders aren’t born they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that’s the price we’ll have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal. ~ Vince Lombardi

The Bandwagon is Full

Another great year of CHLB (Church has left the Building) was completed on Sunday. After 3 months of preparation and last minute unexpected changes, I am in awe of my husband's leadership skills and compassionate heart. Chris led the project and ultimately coordinated all of the details from the very beginning. This year we spent 3 hours at the Krause treatment facility in Katy with children ages 11-18. These children have come to the center from various backgrounds, including drug addiction, abusive homes, prostitution, and gangs. Unfortunately, the center only allowed us to visit with the group of kids that they considered the most socially capable and furthest along in the treatment process. Of the 65 kids that live in the facility we visited with 15 of the girls. Each girl decorated their own throw pillow with fabric markers, which they got to keep, and decorated their own sugar cookies with colorful icing.

At the end of our day, as we waited to gather and dismiss, a few families came to visit some of the children in the lobby. Although I did not personally get to know any of the children very well in the short period of time that we spent with them, I felt an overwhelming sense of pain and fear for the children. The fact is this small group of kids is a very small fraction of the children in this world with these backgrounds and only these kids are fortunate enough to get a second chance at life. I cannot even fathom how many children are put into prostitution by their parents, or given drugs from their friends, or even the ones that drop out of school and do not have a role model there to tell them it is not acceptable. The innocence of the children of this world is sadly lost because the parents are not fit to teach them right from wrong.

A few of us met for lunch afterwards and a friend ask us if we are planning to have kids soon. My response was a definite no. After an emotional morning, I couldn't help but feel that I was not ready to have kids. Look at what happens to children when their parents are not ready to be parents, not fit to be parents, or not selfless enough to be parents. How am I suppose to raise a child at the age of 25 when I am still trying to understand life and God's plan for me? In the words of Oprah, "Understand that the right to choose your own path is a sacred privilege. Use it. Dwell in possibility."

I am dwelling in that privilege at the moment, but also knowing that Jesus said, "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible to you." Matt 17:20

The one thing I have learned from friends and family is to never make a decision based on emotions and don't jump on a bandwagon especially when it is full. With that being said, the decision to have or not to have kids ultimately lies beyond my control, and I will reserve my emotions either way.

The TEN Speed Bike

Last night as Chris and I were installing a tile backsplash in our bathroom as one of the final steps in our renovation I started to think about my life in comparison to a bike, and not just any bike, but a ten speed bicycle.

Growing up as the youngest of three and as a daughter, it was always easier for my family to do things for me than to teach me. When I felt uncomfortable trying something new, asking for help become the norm, but as I get older and find myself more and more in unfamiliar territory I am finding it to be much harder to ask for help than I did as a child. As an adult I have become determined and somewhat stubborn about just doing things myself.

God designed us much in the same way that a ten speed bicycle was designed, with multiple facets and abilities to cope with the ever-changing terrain that we are confronted with. Unfortunately, most of the people in the world, myself included, would rather rely on someone else for help than to learn the needed skill for themselves. The truth is that most of us have gears that we never use, and probably never will. The problem is... Have you ever used the wrong speed on your bike when you are headed up a hill or perhaps around a curve? The reason the bike was designed with ten speeds rather than one was to make the ride easier and more enjoyable.

Not that installing tile is an impossible task, and not that I openly volunteered for it either, but on any given day of the week I would, typically, have hired a contractor to do the job. The house renovation has made me want more than ever before to learn how to use each of my "gears", and even before that, marriage instilled in me a new eagerness to be well-rounded and independently sufficient. Consider the different feeling that you get when you are asked for help to complete a task versus the feeling that you get when you have to ask for help.

Win Borden once said, "If you wait to do everything until you’re sure it is right, you will probably never do much of anything," and Charles Schwab says, "When a man has put a limit on what he will do, he has put a limit on what he can do."

My mid-year resolution is to take this to heart. With a little bit of humility and a lot of patience God will help me dust off my gears and test them out on some new terrain. Wish me luck!

Through the Carr Looking Glass

Although I currently do not have time to keep up with this blog, I am hopeful that in the near future I will find it to be a relaxing hobby.

Chris and I have finally moved into our new house and slowly, but surely, we have started to become situated and comfortable in our "new skin". We are grateful to have found the house that we did, but more importantly we are happy we are finally living in it. Thanks to everyone who lent us a hand in what seemed like a very long process. We are looking forward to our first gathering where we can share the excitement with our friends and family.

"Sometimes in the winds of change we find our true direction."

Check back to see the before and afters of our house, the adventures we went through along the renovation journey, and the most recent news on the Carr front!