Five Things That Stir My Soul

January 23, 2007

The Queen has two days’ worth of scrumptious reading on her blog, positively dripping in sweet southern lyricism. Yesterday she posted 10 things that stir her soul and asked us to post five things that stir ours. And so, five things that stir my soul:

1. My husband walking in the door in the evening. How else to say it, but that he completes us. Fortunately for him, I am always so happy to see him, that I am rarely upset when he gets lost in “lab time” and comes home late.

2. The physicality of my children. The shape of their legs; their slender and graceful fingers; the curve of their noses. They are just so solid, and so individual. How did they get from those ephemeral babies to these solid people? And who will they turn out to be?

3. The joy of friendship. I am constantly stirred by the abundance of lovely people in my life. To think that I can reach out find a friend to share my joys and sorrows at any moment is a priceless gift.

4. My parents’ hands. When I close my eyes, I can picture perfectly my parents’ hands in all kinds of ways: my mother doing dishes, my father peeling an apple. My mother’s nails, simple and strong. My father’s hands freckled and scabbed, wielding pruners. My mother’s hands so soft and silky (though not from lack of hard work), my father’s so calloused. Their wedding bands, practically embedded after nearly 60 years of wear.

5. The mountains. I cannot help but feel a great shout of joy every single time I see the mountains. There is something that wells up within me—a yearning to be in them, a tremendous gratefulness for God’s astounding creation. I am bedazzled again and again.