Listen more carefully

I was at home this evening- quite a rare thing- so it was lovely just spending time with my family. My daughter was upset when I got home. She'd been in trouble at school, a very rare thing, and was completely mortified at her punishment. She was worried at how her dad would react and really sad about the things she'd missed out on. She just wanted her mum to sit and listen and hug her, which I of course did.
Once she'd had tea and cheered up she wanted to tell me everything she'd learnt in her puberty classes today...quite frankly I'm not ready for my baby girl to be talking about periods or know what an erection is but I have no choice in this one! I again listened, and told her I'm her to chat about whatever she needs to.
I would, of course, have listened to her troubles whether it was today's task or not, but I was particularly mindful today of really trying to see how she's feeling and let her know I understand.
My son was just merrily going about his own business whilst this was going on. I suggested he might go and ask his Nana how she was for his task, but he turned to me and said "but mummy, I want to know how YOU are!" I don't suppose he really listened to my answer, but it was lovely to be asked!!

Care for your friends more

There is much more to a good friendship than remembering birthdays...I hope...because if that's how these things are measured I'm pretty appalling. Well, it's not necessarily remembering that's the issue, it's doing something about it. I'm rubbish- especially where using the postal service is concerned. The procurement of stamps and visiting post boxes seem beyond me- so praise be for Moonpig, Getting Personal and other such companies who help me with this terrible affliction.
Despite my best efforts I had misplaced a couple of birthdays along the way so I took the opportunity to correct this today, sending a card for a missed birthday last week (sorry Al!) and finally remembering to give another friend a pressie from her February birthday (sorry Lorna!)
I'm doubt I'll ever get much better at this, but I do love you all despite my forgetfulness/lack of organisation.  Forgive me..?

Save Water

Looking at statistics on Water Aid's website about 1/10 of the world's population don't have access to clean water. 1/3 don't have access to proper sanitation.
With how easy it is for us to turn on a tap I find it so easy to forget what a relatively new thing it is to have fresh, clean water piped to my own home. With daily showers and endless glasses of water or cups of tea we can't imagine our lives without that choice.
At work I wash my hands before and after every action I perform- I dread to think how many times per shift, and how many litres of water I use each day- but this simple precaution is the single most important infection control measure I can take.
Simple hand washing has dramatically reduced the spread of certain infections in countries that have adequate facilities and water supplies. Yet the cholera outbreak in Haiti has shown how quickly disease can spread when these facilities are compromised.
I haven't been able to complete today's task- using washing up water to water plants- as my mum did the washing up when I was at work and Mike had already watered the seedlings before I got home. The fact that we have other options (we don't save water out of necessity, just out of good citizenship) is such a blessing and today's instruction to 'Save Water' is a reminder of how unbelievably lucky I am.

Water Aid Statistics

Think of others more

I sort of messed up on today's task by having a selfish day by default. We were supposed to do a job someone else usually does.
It was Mother's Day- yes I know that's tomorrow, but it was my Mother's Day, as inevitably I always end up working on Mothering Sunday.
I had planned on doing the washing as it's a job my mum always does, and I did get as far as putting the washing in the machine and switching it on! Half a job done.
The kids fed the dog, and Mike filled up my fuel tank, tyres and oil.
I'm not always good at thinking about the people around me- I can really take them for granted- but I love them, and I really appreciate them, even if I'm not very good at showing it.

Have more fun

Blog delay until this morning- I was far too busy having fun!
This task marked our second St Michael's coordinated LLLL attack- we decided to meet up for boardgames and nibbles in our parish room. So, ok, that's not everyone's idea of fun, but it's our idea of fun and I for one had a lovely time.
There was Junior Monopoly, Creationary, Ticket to Ride (new to me but recommended) interspersed with pizza, nibbles and ice cream.
I didn't let the fun stop when I got home either! Usually we have to watch DVDs by committee but the kids went to bed and Mike had work to do so the dog and I curled up with The Great Gatsby.
Fun and fellowship are incredibly important- who would want to be part of a religion that takes itself too seriously? Or doesn't try and foster a sense of community? Of course there are things which must be solemn and sacred but good humour gives you perspective, and is one of God's greatest gifts.

Be more peaceful

don't know if you're like me, but if you are then taking a bit of time for peace or relaxation is one of the greatest luxuries you can experience. Sitting without doing something is rare- I don't even really watch TV, although with the F1 season having started and Games of Thrones back on next week that will change.
I love music but it's something I listen to whilst on the go- in the shower, doing chores, cooking- listening to relax is a rarity.
For today's task I made a playlist with enough relaxing pieces of music to get me to college and back. When I was parked outside college I played one track I'd singled out as my 'relaxing music'. The result was my being even more docile than usual in class- things were going over my head but I was too chilled out to care!
On my retreat last weekend I set time aside to relax and be peaceful, and used music to help. I do find that when I've given myself permission to relax I find it quite easy- and it's amazing once you've found that peace how open and receptive you are to hearing God's voice.

Be a better neighbour

Saying "hi" to a neighbour is more tricky than it might sound- I hardly ever bump into anyone as my road is pretty quiet. I went out at 8.30 this morning and returned at 9.45 this evening, not leaving much opportunity to be neighbourly.

A sermon I think I've heard preached many times is "who are our Neighbours?" In response to Jesus' request that whoever they are, we love them. Deciding that my neighbours were those with whom I shared my little corners of the world I made an effort to be more sociable in the school playground this morning. I went straight to work from there, where I hope I'm almost always neighbourly- trying to live in harmony with my colleagues!

The word 'neighbour' only ever brings one picture to my mind- The neighbourhood song on Sesame Street, the place where I can first remember hearing the word. That got me thinking about the Sesame Street muppets. They all have very distinct personalities, with very definite flaws. But we love them despite these flaws, in fact they are often used as part of the teaching in each episode.
My point here is that we all have our flaws, and we often are really quick to notice the flaws in the 'neighbours' we share the different areas of our lives with. The key to being a good neighbour might be to accept each others flaws and differences and embrace how interesting and diverse we all are!