Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award

Today I had some time at lunch to browse through some blogs linked to my email, and I received a pleasant surprise.

I'd like to thank Diana from A Fragile Clay Jar with a Treasure Inside for nominating me with her blog-post. I am flattered and honored, as I am an admirer of her uplifting and inspirational blog. :)

If I understand this correctly, having seen this on a few blog posts, I am to mention seven things my readers do not know about me and nominate seven other blogs beside the one that nominated me. I agree the statement in Diana's in her blogpost, it is hard to narrow it down to seven. I found it harder to come up with seven things about myself, but here they are - good and bad. :P

1. I am a pen-pal to a prisoner. I must admit, I was hesitant about the idea at first, but I love writing letters. And there is that part in Matthew 25:36-40 " I was in prison and you came to me. ... Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me." I cannot describe how much our correspondence has come to mean to me. I don't know who looks forward to receiving the next letter more! We uplift each other, share stories, and encourage each other in our writing and other challenges in life. I have truly found a good friend, even if he is behind bars at this time.
2. I have Bugofobia. Sorry, google and Wikipedia will not have that word, but I think it describes itself perfectly. I can be a bit fearful about bugs - all bugs. Let's just say anything with more than four legs creeps me out. I understand they are God's creatures too, but to have one crawling across my skin, buzzing up my nostril, or dropping from above before my eyes... was never a good experience. In learning to eliminate fears in my life, Christ has had me sit in the woods with mosquitoes and all sorts of things biting, stinging and crawling on me - while I watched. No, this wasn't to torture me; it was a lesson in overcoming what I fear. It actually worked. I no longer flip out like a crazed screaming squirrel that overdosed on chocolate and coffee when something lands on my arm. Nor do I become an ugly driving statistic when a bee gets into the car or a spider drops onto my nose while I'm behind the wheel. I still do not like it, but there's a better sense of calm and control now.
3. I love Reece's peanut butter cups. I've never been THAT big a chocolate fan, generally only craving chocolate during that time of the month (in the years BEFORE surgical menopause). There are seasonal favorites that I voraciously consume like a rabid piranha, such as black jelly-beans around Easter and candy-corn around Halloween. But I can gorge on peanut butter cups at any point year round, even when the monthly visitor is no where in sight. :P
4. In addition to Bugofobia, I also have a fear of heights. This is one of the weirdest personality flukes I have, as I dream of flying (like superman - err, super-WOman) and love to travel by air. I try to get the window seat, and spend the time take off to landing with my nose is pressed against the plastic pane, watching the towns, lakes, rivers, etc. passing thousands of feet below like a panoramic railroad miniature. But OUTSIDE a plane is a different story. I'll climb a mountain and cling to the hillside with limbs trembling as I contemplate if it would be better to climb down blindfolded or not. I'll cling to the pole of a ferris-wheel seating with white knuckles and glare at anyone who even thinks to rock the car. One time my niece somehow talked me onto a ride called Thunder n' Lightning. It lasts slightly longer than reciting the "Our Father" because that was EXACTLY what I was doing the whole time the ride was in the air...
5. I try to celebrate my birthday by volunteering somewhere that day. I started this a few years back, and have since seen many different ways people will spend their birthday doing something positive: random acts of kindness, giving away money, and many other good and loving acts. For me, I have limited funds, so I volunteer my time - even if only for the day. My husband volunteers with me. This year we're working at a State park, which required some advanced planning, including completing a four-page application and background check first. :P
6. I cry a lot. This doesn't mean that I am miserable or in a great deal of pain. I hear a moving song, I cry. I hear a sad situation, I reach out in prayer and tears will flow. I read a blog post or story that touches my soul, and tears trickle down. I write from my heart, and tears stream down my face. I see something beautiful or uplifting, and tears slide to accompany my smile. I buy tissue boxes by the dozen for the office. The only other employee uses maybe one box per year; you can guess who goes through the supply. ;-) One time someone told me that tears are a sign that the Spirit is moving within my heart/soul. Personally, I wonder if the Spirit brings a super-soaker when visiting. And God has yet to answer my question: "Why, every time tears flow, does my nose also have a go?" <sniffle>
7. I would love to ride in a hot air balloon. Yes, I know I said I have a fear of heights, but I think this would be a great step in overcoming that fear - at least a little bit. I live in New England and the landscape is spectacular in the fall. I've seen rolling hills of color from hills and mountaintops. How much better would it be if I could see it all from a hot air balloon, breathing in the crisp cold high-altitude air? If I had a bucketlist, this would be on it. But, as my husband and I now need to move because we can no longer afford the rent, I think this is a "pipe dream" as these rides are expensive. Maybe there are hot air balloons in Heaven. Or at least cloud surfing. :)

As to the list of women bloggers, I did narrow it down to a list of seven. As I could not choose one over another, I've listed them alphabetically. :D

1. Angelic Insights - Sue is a gentle, beautiful soul who inspires and shares heartfelt insights from angels and others. I've often found posts that make me think. :D 
2. Believe in Time - Caitie is my niece and god-daughter, who's in her senior year of high-school. Her blog expresses the drama of teenagedom. But she also has faith in God and Christ, and it's a beautiful watching her faith flower as she approaches adulthood. :D 
3. Conversion Diary - Jennifer is an atheist-to-Christian convert, but that isn't what attracts me to her blog. I love her sense of humor, even when she speaks of scorpion invasions or the trials and tribulations of motherhood. I smile and laugh with each post. :D
4. Inspirational Twitterings - I met Muffyjo (Cheryl) on Twitter, but have since come to admire her blog, filled with little snippets of beautiful poetry and prose. :D
5. Living for Christ - I still stand in awe how much Hetty sings God's praises through all that she has been through. Only Terry1954 comes in a close second in shining through the darkest valleys. :D
6. SpreadingJOY - Marie is a beautiful soul whose blog, tweets and just shear personality uplifts another. Plus she's also big into peanut butter cups too. :D
7. Terry1954 - Terry is a fellow writer who helps her brother with Parkinson's disease. There are moments of sadness and moments of joy. There is also a great amount of faith and love that shines in each post. :D

 Hopefully you can find some gems in this list for your own blogging reads.  

Thanks for reading. :D