A Prayer for my Son

Last week we were shopping for school supplies for our son who just started 

his sophomore year in high school. It occurred to me how important this

year would be and how fast it will go by.

I always give him the talk about remembering where he is why he's there. 

We talk about how focus and effort equals success. He's so nonchalant and 

easy going it frustrates us as parents because we never see any highs or lows. 

Oh he's happy and social, he just doesn't seem to be in a hurry or have any 

urgency for anything but text messages or the next meal!

Knowing what lies ahead of him, that worries me. I talk to other parents with 

the same worries which usually calms me a bit. Sometimes I get lucky and talk

to parents with sons who have already graduated from college and they laugh 

and tell me that their son was the same way and they found their way!

As parents, we do the very best we can encouraging, supporting 

them and giving them opportunities. And then they have to take the wheel. 

Then it's time to pray!

So, today I wrote a prayer for my son.

I hope you enjoy it and pass it on... 

A Mother’s prayer for her son

I pray that you understand the importance of this part of your life and how it 

           will impact the rest of your life.

I pray that you have the confidence and motivation to make the most of this 

           time with friends and community.

I pray that you have the strength to walk away from things that you know 

           are wrong.

I pray that you know that in order to be respected you must respect others.

I pray that  you think about  choices you make today because they determine 

           your tomorrow.

I pray that you take your responsibilities seriously and put first things first.

I pray that you take a stand on positions instead of standing for nothing.

I pray that you find your gift and give it with passion.

I pray that you learn to show compassion and empathy for those who have 

           less than you.

I pray that you find joy in a hard day's work.

I pray that you work as hard as you play.

I pray that you find your voice when it’s most important for you to be heard.

I pray that you always put your best foot forward in spite of the risk of failure.

I pray that you have enough self-respect to always look your best.

I pray that you always put your best foot forward and know that your best 

           is good enough.

I pray that you know that to attract ladies you need to treat girls/women 

           like ladies.

I pray that you know that if you act like a gentleman you will be treated like a

           gentleman.

I pray that you grow into the man you would like your daughter to bring home.

I pray that you never underestimate the power of a good handshake, a good 

           haircut, well-groomed hands, a white shirt & tie and polished shoes.

I pray that people remember you because of your kind and gentle ways.

I pray that you can give without being asked to.

I pray that you understand the value of being organized and prepared.

I pray that you know that you will only be judged on your failures if you 

           don’t try.

I pray that when you fail you find the lesson.

I pray that your failures don’t make you give up.

I pray that you never have fun at the expense of another person.

I pray that you search for the good in people before you judge them by 

           their flaws.

I pray that you know that there is a difference between questioning authority

           and disrespecting authority.

I pray that you feel my love and know that you take a piece of my heart 

           wherever you go.

I pray that God keeps you safe and guides you in a path of happiness 

           and success.

The true meaning of "Simple Acts of Kindness"

In my  heart of hearts I believe that when you do something kind for others
it always comes back! Of course this shouldn't be your motivation for doing
nice things for people, it should be a need you have. It doesn't always come
back right away or in the way you might expect, but it will...

The last 10 years have been a struggle for us in our personal lives with
financial  problems that has led to strain on relationships with people
we've known for years and even new acquaintance's.

So for the most part we've tried to keep a low profile, take care of our children
and do what we need to recover. I think it's called "Survival Mode"

Recently our situation seems to have gone into the valley of doom, feeling
like nothing could make things worse.

I'm the kind of person who searches for blessings every day as a coping
mechanism. Blessings like, the day went well with the kids or  I was able to
have my hair done after cutting it myself for a year.  I learned how to
cut hair when I was a teenager. I used to cut all of my friend's hair.

This week was full of blessings.

We closed on our home and came away with a small check to get us to point b.
My mother in law seems to be improving after a nasty fall down the stairs.
During all of this I see my daughter growing leaps and bounds not physically,
but as a person. She has been an angel cooking, cleaning, packing and pushing
us to spend more time with Grandma and being so kind and gentle with her.

Another blessing came from a tragedy. On Wednesday I came home from work
and found my husband very distraught. He explained to me that our son's
best friend's home had been hit by lightning that morning and had burned
the top floor. Instantly, they were homeless.

My instinct kicked in and I called to see if I could lend a hand. Naturally,
they were in shock and very emotional. I offered our (sold) home up for
anything they needed laundry, sleeping, food storage etc...
Since those things put you in a tailspin they didn't even know what they needed.

The only thing that I could do for them was to have them over for dinner.
We got groceries before work, worked from 11 to 3 and came home to cook dinner.

Suddenly, my mood changed.

When our 5 guests arrived I went to greet them with a sense of strength
I thought that I had lost. Our friends needed us. As they described the event
there were tears but as we ate and talked the conversation turned from the
tragedy to sharing stories about every other thing besides the tragedy.

By the end of the evening there were smiles from the kids and they were sharing
stories as well! We all hugged and said what a great time it was. Our friends were
very grateful to have an evening where they didn't have to think about their loss for a while.

We finished cleaning the house and as we went to bed we felt very grateful ourselves
that we were sleeping in our own beds and if only for this day we were putting our
efforts on someone else's troubles and not our own!

This is the true meaning "Simple acts of kindness"