Wildflower Writes

Photo by  Elias Castillo  on  Unsplash   Who’s your favorite superhero? Superman, the squeaky clean, bullet-proof alien? Batman, the dark knight with all the cool gadgets? Spiderman, the quick-witted, acrobatic teen? What is it about the idea of a person with superpowers that draws us in? Is it the ability to help others? To exceed human limitations? To ensure instant justice?   What if there was a superhero who could defeat any evil plot that a villain conceived? According to a sermon I heard today, that’s kind of how God works. Whatever Satan can throw at us, through circumstances or the actions of others, God can redeem it for good. Without denying how painful tough times can be, working through them can make us stronger, wiser, and closer to others. In time, it can give us the opportunity to support and comfort others in similar situations- to become a hero for someone else.  No person or situation is beyond God’s reach. And just like a good sup...

For Christmas, my mom received a beautiful copper sculpture of a butterfly from their exchange student. When asked, Linh said she just formed the copper wire into a butterfly. Artistic talent like that amazes me (and makes me a little jealous). If you gave me a bunch of copper wire, I might be able to make a two-dimensional flower. Maybe. So, if I wanted something beautiful created, and all I had was a ball of copper wire (do they come in balls?), I would hand it over to my foster sister and ask her to create it. I simply do not have the ability. I'm seeing that my life is a lot like a tangled mess of copper wire. I don't know what to do with it, or how to form something useful or beautiful out of it. So I've decided that I need to hand it over to the Master Creator, and let him create something amazing out of it. If something wonderful results from my life, it will only be because I was willing to submit to Him.  If I keep trying to make it on my own, I'm sure it...

Multi-tasking is seems so necessary today. I watch TV, write, listen to my kids, text... all at the same time. At work I'll be on the phone while I check my email and fill out paperwork. I'll drive, listen to music, talk on the phone, and go over my next appointment while in the car. How did we ever survive without the ability to do so many things at the same time? How did we ever communicate without ready access to phones, email, fax, social networks, texting, and IM? Having a few days to myself, I've realized that I get a lot more done if I focus on one thing at a time. I write twice as fast when I turn the TV off. Granted, my mom probably told me that 20 years ago when I tried to start my homework in front of the TV at 9:30 at night. Household tasks are much more rewarding when you start and complete them the same day. I had also forgotten the joy of a good mystery novel, read without someone asking where something is or if I can help with something. I think we...

Driving toward Indianapolis’ southeast side, there were multiple warnings, via both signage and radio reports, that construction and accident clean-up were ahead of us on I-465. On top of that, the impending rush hour led my husband and me to believe there was a good chance we’d get stuck or at least slowed by an onslaught of traffic. Even with adequate warning, with no GPS, map, and little Indianapolis driving experience, we had no idea what alternate route we could take to avoid the impending doom that awaited us. Add to that two geographically and directionally challenged individuals, and we really had little choice but to forge ahead. I wished my sister were with us. She lived in Indy for awhile and seemed to remember every route she’d ever taken to get anywhere. She could have told us exactly which exit to take to lead to the correct road to take us on the shortest route possible. I wonder how many people continue traveling in the same direction in life because they don’t have the...