Birthday Week Food for Thought: "Obstacles"

Count em' down, now! 3 days 'til my birthday...

Post #350

This is my birthday week...

So, in a meager attempt NOT to have such a loooooong birthday post, like my 9 page deranged manifesto of last year, I thought I would do some smaller posts and break them up over the week... I must tell you, it's nothing exciting or anything. Just things that I have found myself thinking about over the past 12 months. Things that have made me happy, made me sad... things that I've learned, things I've changed and things I can't change...

Yeah, that sums it up.

So I must say...

I think a lot about obstacles.

Kramer, my "permanent house guest", likes to jump up on the stool next to the kitchen island. He likes to watch us walk back and forth, and likes to take the occasional swipe at us as we walk by.

But I just know the little joker wants to jump up on the counter.

So, I placed a bright shiny piggy bank on the counter to deter such thoughts that may enter his little brain.

As you can see, he peers at it curiously.


Takes a chance and tries to touch it. He's very careful about it, of course.

Then he looks up at me like I'm crazy.

"Move this doggone thing LadyLee, so I can jump on the counter."

Eventually, Kramer lays down. I suppose he ponders the shiny piggy bank... that thing that's keeping him from jumping up on the counter.

He ponders a bit more...

Then he eventually turns his back on it...
After awhile, he jumped down and retired to his favorite hiding place (my closet) for one of his many naps of the day.

Thank goondness that obstacle was there. If he'd jumped on that counter, he would have gotten yelled at pretty bad. (You know how us women can get when we get MAD.)

I think a lot about obstacles...

Oh yes... we are always told that if there is an obstacle in the path to our dreams, we have to jump over it, run around it, push it out the way, use it as a stepping stone, etc...

But what about the obstacles that are there to keep us out of trouble?

I read an interesting Bible Verse some years back, a good 10 years ago. It was in the book of Psalms, in my Message bible, and for the life of me, I cannot find it. Been searching, but can't find it. (And ya'll know how looooong the book of Psalms is. Goodness gracious.)

But at any rate, I will always remember it. It was a Psalm of David praying to God, and it said something to the effect of "...God, You blocks roads to nowhere, opens roads to somewhere..."

Something like that. I remember thinking, "Hmmm... that's bizarre. Never heard anyone talk about that before."

But it's not really bizarre...

I added that to my prayers. Something to the effect of, "Lord if I'm about to be caught up in some craziness, block all that stuff up. I want NO parts of it. NONE."

I can think of little things I went through in the last year or so, that in my hearts of hearts I had no business trying to be hooked up with or be a part of, but I was trying my best to be a part of.

(I know that's vague, but you get my drift).

I mean, you know how it is, when you trying your BEST to hook up with people and stuff just don't go right. You keep missing each other, just missed a phone call here or there, something comes up, all KINDS of stuff. Usually it takes a minute for the light bulb to go off, and for me to be like...

"You know what? Maybe I'm not suppose to be in this situation. Maybe these are obstacles."

Then I find out later, after the dust settles, and the truth comes out, that I'm frickin' glad everything didn't work out.

Yes, I know that when there are obstacles that are in the way of me attaining a goal, then I must do all I can to get around said obstacles.

But I am also thankful for the obstacles that keep me out of bad situations.

And hope they show up again, right when I need them.