Thursday, March 22, 2012

Send out the search party...Sheri is missing!

No, I have not fallen off the side of the Grand Canyon or floated away on the Colorado River.  It seems I have gotten lost in the solitude of the forest.  With poor internet signal, some hard times, and 20 lbs to lose, I have gone into seclusion. 

My time on the "mountain side" has been so good for me.  My spirit is refreshed and my soul uplifted.  I am ready to reenter into society and continue my families quest for helping others as well as many other goals that have not been met but are in process.

Does this mean the hard times are gone, the weight off, and we have great internet?  No, although I am down 10 lbs and we have worked through the garbage other people have tried to throw on our lives - the internet signal is still wretched.  Time does heal and as me taking some time for myself has made all the difference.  I haven't done it in years.  I knew that with the extra weight on my body I was not helping my family or myself.  I am no good to them or God if I die of heart disease, diabetes, or a host of diseases and conditions that would have been a result of my extra weight.  After six kids it just seemed to creap on a little at a time until the 10 lbs extra after each of the last four totalled to 40 lbs.  The steroids the doc put me on during the last pregnancy didn't help either. 

But taking my writing time to exercise isn't the only reason I have fallen off of the internet planet.  After coming to Missouri, it seemed that I was bombarded with problems.  Places that were so dear to us have become places I dislike enormously.  People we have been friends with for years stepped over their boundaries in our life and hurt me enormously.  Add on the stress of constantly cleaning up condensation and mold from the cold air outside and I thought I was going to lose it!

So, we left all the garbage behind and went into the woods.  And, here I have been since.  I wake up to the sound of the birds instead of the nagging of well meaning people.  I walk in the peace of the ever swaying trees instead of the noise of the city and the busyness of pointless days of nothingness.

I've never considered myself a "tree-hugger" but I sure want to hug one.  God's beautiful creation has a way of ministering to me in a way that no other place can.  To sit and look at the dogwoods blooming and listen the unique bird calls as they say hello to eachother.

I went to a wedding shower the other day.  It was my first social gathering in months.  I felt like I was a pioneer from long ago coming into a big city for the first time.  I didn't feel like I belonged.  I was out of place and unhappy.  I don't think my time in the woods is completely over although I am ready to start back to my online life and business. 

I am speaking at a home school convention next month.  Much of my free time is spent on our new website and my speeches.  It is exciting to think of this opportunity to help other people remember the little things in life that are so special.  That the city, errands, and activities are not the only thing in life, there is so much more if we just take the time to experience it.