It is becoming easier and more natural to take a closer look and see the blessing regardless of life's circumstances. Although sometimes it takes either stepping back from a situation to get the big picture or moving in for an up-close look.
At a first glance, the creosote bush is plain. In fact, it is pretty ugly.
But upon closer inspection, there is beauty.
And upon further investigation, there are so many benefits and 'gifts' that this ugly little desert plant has to offer.
It was widely used by Native Americans as a medicinal plant in the form of a medicinal tea to cure such ailments as flu, stomach cramps, cancer, coughs, colds, and others.
It is the most drought tolerant plant in North America and can survive up to two years with NO water.
An individual plant can live for a very long time (between 100-200 years).
And my favorite, the release of oils into the air after a desert rainstorm that gives Arizona that characteristic "desert rain" smell!
Beauty and blessings can be found wherever I look. I just need eyes that see...
So I continue to count my way to 1,000 gifts:
296. Our beautiful desert home.
297. A brief break in the scorching summer temperatures. A high of 82 was nice this weekend.
298.the sight of dusty shoes after a last run through the desert before temperatures become bearable again in the fall.
299. a loving, supportive mother-in-law!
300. meeting someone at church who had been in one of the college Bible studies I led 12 years ago who came to know Christ that semester.
301. celebrating with my hubby as he graduated from our town's intensive leadership program. I'm so proud of him!
302. patience with tantrums.
303. overhearing little boys telling eachother 'non-sensical' jokes.
304. getting to sneak a peak at pretend play where dinosaurs and cars interact.
305. Finally figuring out the project that had stalled me out for a couple of weeks! The kids get to try out our global twister game tomorrow! I'll let you know how that goes...
306. Discovering afresh that necessity truly is the mother of invention. We are not fix-it people, but when our dishwasher broke this last week, Rich was able to discover the source of the leak. (A hidden blessing in spite of this horrible economy. Otherwise we probably would have just assumed it would be too expensive to fix and gone ahead and replaced it.)
307. the discovery that the specific source of the leak is one of the few things still under warranty! Thank you Jesus!
Thanks for stopping by. I love your list. Life with boys... lots to be thankful for, especially all the lessons we learn from them (like patience!). You have a lovely family.
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