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I Made My Voice Heard: I Spoke at a School Board Meeting!

/ Anne (Grace is my Superhero) / 5 Comments

“We can no longer stay silent!  We must speak out!” says one impressive leader.

                “We can no longer hide inside the church walls!  We must take the kingdom of God into every mountain of culture!” says another leader.

                “As Christians we have access to the most powerful, creative, intelligent and compassionate being in the universe.  We should be at the top of every mountain!” says another.

                I whole heartedly agree! God put us on this earth, not to find comfort and happiness for ourselves, but to bring His kingdom into this war-torn battlefield.  Whenever I hear a call to action, my first reaction is guilt. In my estimation, I haven’t done very much to impact culture.  Second, I feel overwhelmed with the enormity of the job and the smallness of me.

                How CAN I make my voice heard?

                How DO I make a difference?

                I try to be connected to the Holy Spirit everyday and simply obey what He is telling me to do.  Most days obedience is spending time with Him, serving my family, educating my children, and researching important topics. I know that if I can love my family and teach my children God’s ways, I have accomplished my destiny.  There is nothing more powerful than being part of a living, breathing example of God’s Love.

                Sometimes I feel pushed to do more. Over a year ago I began emailing my school board and superintendent.  This has led to great conversations. I have started to learn about our school district and follow the school board meetings.

                I didn’t want to enroll my three older sons in public school this year.  I had a bad feeling about it. They were adamant about wanting to attend in person school rather than cyber school.  My husband felt that we should give it a shot, since masks were optional. 

                I took my son to the “New Student Orientation” at the High School. We all sat in the auditorium for a message from the principal.  He seemed like a good leader, and I loved his message. 

                “This could be a good place for my son,” I thought to myself. 

                My opinion changed as the principal started giving the parents and students medical advice.  Because of a new quarantine protocol, he advised all students to be vaccinated and wear a mask.  That way, no one would have to lose days of school.  Any student who had been in contact with a sick student would have to quarantine for 10-14 days if they were not vaccinated or not wearing a mask.  His advice had nothing to do with health.  From his perspective, his job was to see all his students successfully through to graduation, and this was the most effective way to do that.

                It was obvious that the protocol was designed to push students to vaccinate.  This is not the place of a school district.  And here was a principal advising that my student get experimental gene therapy with no idea what the short-term or long-term effects would be, simply for the sake of CONVIENIENCE!  How could I let this go unchallenged?

                “You should speak at the next School Board meeting,” I felt the Holy Spirit whispering to me the following weekend.

                “Really!  I don’t think I am ready for that.  Is it really that important? Couldn’t I just email them my views,” I whispered back.

                I COULD NOT shake the feeling.  It got stronger Sunday morning in worship. I asked God for a verse.  He gave me Eph 5:8-11

                “…for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as Children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true) and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.”

                These words made me certain that I would please the LORD if I would speak the truth at the school board meeting.  It may not change the dynamics or decisions of the school board that much.  It may not make a huge difference in my children’s schools.  But at least I could please God!  At least I could speak out truth and know that it would not return void!

                I had watched school board meetings over the summer, and the high school auditorium was empty except for the school board members in the front and a few people in the audience.  The last time there were only two public speakers. It would likely just be me and the school board, no big deal. I could do this!

                Monday morning came and I planned on spending most of the day working on a 5-minute speech. I asked my oldest if she could manage the younger children so I could focus.

                I looked on the district website to check the agenda for the meeting. Close to the beginning was time for public speakers.  There were already nine speakers scheduled to speak!  Most appeared to be in favor of universal masking.  One was someone I knew who had previously ripped into me for supporting the Republican platform.  One was the principal himself!  The man who was to be the central focus of my speech to the school board. 

Instantly arrows of palpable fear ripped through my body!

It wasn’t just me and an empty auditorium anymore!  I would have to stand up in front of those who oppose me. What if I was the only one? What if I was attacked?  Public speaking can be daunting. I used to be petrified of the mere thought of it, but God had healed me of that. I wrote about overcoming my fear of rejection in my article, “Fear Won’t Steal my Voice.” I have been able to speak in front of others by His power, but I had never done it in such a circumstance as this.

I retreated to the bathroom to be alone.  My heart was thumping! 

“I don’t think I can do this! How am I going to do this?” I asked God.

God impressed upon me that it was even more important that I speak up. I HAD TO BE A VOICE FOR MY CHILDREN. In fact, my children had a voice also.  If they were going to attempt to thrive in the public school system that was designed to persecute them, they would HAVE to find their voices.

I called on some close friends for prayer coverage.  I told the three boys that they would be speaking tonight and to write out something to say.  I prayed that God would give me a strategy for the day.  He did!  Step by step I followed what I felt He was telling me to do.  I was trembling literally and figuratively, but I couldn’t stop to think about it, I had to keep moving forward.

I looked at the entire agenda again.  Sure enough, right after the public speakers, a new health and safety plan would be approved or denied.  I called the school district to get myself and my boys on the agenda.  The woman told me that the new plan should be uploaded to the website soon. I only had to wait a half an hour before my hunch was confirmed. The plan contained universal masking for every person inside school buildings.

After I had gone to the trouble of registering my students for school and one week before school was to begin, they wanted to change the plan! 

I decided to call the school board members who had given me their phone numbers.  I got through to one.  We had a long conversation, and I learned more than I was bargaining for.  Previously I had thought the board was populated by good meaning people who cared about my students. Perhaps they were just misinformed.  I learned that it is much bigger and much deeper than that: A political and spiritual battle with political and spiritual forces.  Thank goodness I had a prayer covering!

I also learned that 90% of the parental feed back had been pro-mask.  Come on PRO-FREEDOM parents!  We must make our voices heard!

I called two families in the district to ask for their support.  They didn’t realize that a new plan was going to be voted on, probably like most parents in the district.  They couldn’t come to the meeting, but they would pray for me. 

I figured that I should talk with the principal who I was going to reference in my speech.  He actually answered the phone, and we had a great conversation. I first thanked him for his strong leadership. Then I explained to him my position:

We could have in person school and STILL give students medical freedom.

He said that they all had to follow the protocols given to them by the Dept of Education.  I explained to him that those were not laws but guidance, and that our school board had the ability to create their own protocols. He didn’t think that was true: they had to follow other rules given to them by the DOE like the requirement for all 11 graders to get a physical or be prevented from graduating.  I replied that the physical requirement was state law. It had been a bill that was passed by the Senate and the House and signed by the governor years ago.  This new protocol was NOT law, but rather something that the Dept of Health and Dept of Education were telling them they should do.  He admitted that he never realized that there was a difference.

I knew that this battle was not about health at all.  It was about politics.  It was about freedom.  I asked God to show me exactly what He wanted me to speak.  I could have spoken for hours, but I only had five minutes.

I started typing and it took a long time to express all that was rolling around in my brain.  Once I was done, it was way too long.  I cut it, cut it, and cut it again. I had certain objectives:

To please God

To speak truth that had power behind it

To address the concerns of the school board (personal and district liability)

To treat everyone as my advocate or future advocate.  I didn’t want to build a wall. I wanted these people to work for me and with me!

I then researched information on the Senate hearing where the Secretary of Health and the Secretary of Education both stated that the details of the Health and Safety plan were up to the local school boards to determine.  I found the videos and sent them to every school board member and the superintendent. (Since then the Gov. and Sec. of Health have issued mandates that they promised they would never issure, but those mandates are ILLEGAL!)

                I read and reread my speech out loud to make sure it sounded right and was within time.  I read over my boys’ speeches and gave some pointers.  I had them read them out loud to practice.

                All of this took most of the day.  My stomach was churning, and I didn’t feel like eating, but I made myself eat all three meals.  Finally, the time was drawing near.  I didn’t see how I was going to be able to function as nervous as I was.  I had been praying all day, but I finally decided to pray out loud the scripture I had put up on my mirror, Jer 1:7

The Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy,’ for you will go to all to whom I send you.  Do not be afraid of them for I am with you to deliver you.”

                As soon as I spoke out that scripture, a peace descended.  My nervous trembling stopped. I felt confident. God would do it!

                I encouraged my boys to speak loud with confidence.  I told them how very proud of them I was!  My husband and oldest daughter were able to come along for moral support. As we pulled into the school parking lot, a good friend (who is also my sons’ youth pastor) pulled in next to us.  What an encouragement!

                We entered the building and there were many more people than I had ever expected!  It seemed half were wearing masks and sitting alone, and the other half were showing their faces and sitting in groups. We found seats and were joined by another friend from church. 

                It seemed to take forever for the meeting to start and to get through all the boring stuff.  Finally, it was time for the public speakers.  One speaker after another lectured on the same theme: we have to protect our students and staff by instituting universal masking.  Nine speakers all had this opinion, and the meeting was very boring.  My confidence had grown into a burning desire.

                “Let me up there!  Let me speak a different word!” my spirit was screaming. I was excited when it was my turn.  I began in a loud and enthusiastic tone. (My family told me later that the audience roused from their stupor and looked up at this point.)

                When I mentioned that I had 6 children in the district and 10 children in all, I felt a small shock wave ripple through the auditorium.  A man sitting close by who had been on his computer got up and began recording me with his phone.

                “At least they are waking up!” I thought. 

                I was able to speak out truth! For the first time that evening, I heard exclamations from the audience.  Outbursts of support! My sons spoke next (the only students to speak) and they all did an excellent job.  Thankfully after that, many others spoke for freedom and truth including parents, the county coroner, a lawyer, and a bus driver. It was a wonderful discussion, and a few points became very clear.

Freedom was the primary issue.

Students are not at risk from this virus.

Masks are only effective if they are N95 and properly fitted and there are no child sizes.

The board listened to everyone respectfully and then began to discuss their own views on the subject. One board member asked the district doctor to come and explain the situation.  It was very clear that she was uncomfortable, nervous, and was gasping for air under her N95.  She hemmed and hawed around the point, and I couldn’t understand how the school board found this testimony compelling enough to support universal masking.

        When it became clear that most of the board had already made up their minds before the meeting even began, anger erupted from the audience. This was quite distressing for the board. When the vote was taken, 7 voted for the new plan and 2 voted no.

        Praise God for those 2 glorious, rebellious NO VOTES! 

        I counted the evening a victory and an important step in winning the entire war. Here is why:

  1. I spoke the truth and truth will prevail.  Who knows where all those truth seeds have landed?  For some they are just an irritant.  But for others they will take root and grow!
  2. I got to meet many of the other speakers and audience members and expanded my knowledge and sphere of influence.
  3. My children learned how to participate in the process of freedom.
  4. In the weeks following I have heard from many people who were watching the recording and who were cheering me on!
  5. A father saw my speech. He reached out to me to explain how he is devoting a good portion of his time to fight for freedom in our school district.  He has been talking with school board members and lawyers.  He has been talking to parents and community members to pull us together into a larger force.  He told me he has a “fire in his belly” and he is not going to stop.  What an answer to prayer he is!  I don’t have the time to do what he can do, but I can support him!
  6. One school board member emailed me, “Thank you and your children for having the courage to speak.  Although I was prepared to say something, I didn’t feel it was necessary after you all spoke.  Your words have power.”
  7. Another member emailed me, “You and your incredibly well spoken, thoughtful and intelligent children did an amazing job of driving home so many important points… you can be so proud of your family and the wonderful human beings you are raising. It can be so difficult speaking up when you find yourself holding a minority opinion- but it is so important that we have these dialogues, and we voice concerns about giving our government more latitude than they may deserve out of propagandized fear.” 
  8. Most importantly, I experienced in my own life that God’s words are true, and He will do what He said He would do.

The Lord said to me, “Do not say ‘I can’t do it, I am only a mom with no credential or experience.’ I will put my word in your mouth.  You will go to all whom I send you.  You will not be afraid for I AM with you!”

                Those words were true for me that night at the school board meeting.  Those words are true for me every day.  Those words are true for you as well!

Here are the words I spoke that night (modified to take out specific names).

Members of the school board, thank you for all you do for our students!  Thank you for responding to my emails and talking with me on the phone.

I am the mother of six children in the school district. I have 10 children and have been studying nutrition, health, brain development, and education for the past 23 years. I concentrate on building their health from the inside with good food and good habits.  We never have to go to the doctor for being sick.  We have no asthma, allergies, or take any medications.  We didn’t change anything about our lifestyle when this pandemic began and have continued to be extremely healthy.             

Thank you, High School Principal, for your wonderful leadership at the high school new student orientation.  Your speech is what inspired me to come tonight.  You encouraged the students to come to you if they had a conflict with another student. You said that we could work out any situation if we just get together and talk about it. 

                It is pretty clear that we have a situation now, and I know that we can protect our students and staff while still protecting their most sacred rights.  The right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is the foundation of our country.  To protect life, we must insure medical freedom.  Life is in the breath, and my students have the right to breathe fresh air.  I have seen many studies that prove that masks are not effective in stopping the COVID virus. I have never read a study proving that they are. 

Masking violates that very way our immune systems were designed to work.  The respiratory system is an open system, always receiving foreign gases, particles, and microorganisms along with oxygen.  The way our body cleanses out the bad is the exhale.  To trap my child’s exhale against his nose and mouth in a warm, moist environment doesn’t allow his immune system to work properly.

                I have heard from many in the district that we may have to return to mandatory masking and that is just the way that it is.  Whenever you say, “That is just the way that it is”, you eliminate all discussion, all questions, all research, all individual freedoms. That is not what I want my children to learn when they are in school.  I want them to learn to think for themselves, to question, to study, to research, to come up with new and better answers.

                This is what the Principal talks about when he calls on his students to “BE Great Every Day!” This is the way of all inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs.  When we issue one size fits all mandates, it is not teaching our children to be great and to make informed decisions.  We are teaching them to comply to a socialist system.

                I have heard it recommended that all students be vaccinated and wear masks, so they won’t have to miss important days of school to quarantining.  It is not the virus that is interrupting school, it is the quarantine protocols. It is very clear that the unvaccinated students would be the ones denied their right to a public-school education even if they are perfectly healthy. With all the talk about inclusion and equity these days, I am very surprised that you would discriminate against one group of students.

My entire family probably had COVID in the past year. For us it was a mild cold that didn’t even slow my boys down.  Yet now they have a robust and durable immunity.  Did you see the recent study that looked at people who recovered from SARS 19 years ago?  They are still immune to SARS today along with SARS-CO-V2!  Our natural immunity not only lasts but recognizes all 29 proteins on the surface of the corona virus, rather than just one spike protein as with the vaccine.  The vaccine does not prevent infection or transmission as the head of the CDC recently admitted. There were over 10,0000 breakthrough cases reported before the CDC stopped counted them. 

                I sent you all links to the Senate Hearing where you can hear both the Secretary of Education and The Secretary of Health state that the details of the Health and Safety Plan are in the control of local school boards and will not affect the Esser Funding.

                Please correct this illogical protocol of masking and quarantining healthy students. Please protect their freedoms.  Thank you!

America, Are We Just a Bunch of Germophobes?

/ Anne (Grace is my Superhero) / 1 Comment

No one would want to be accused of being a homophobe or a xenophobe today! Yet being a germophobe has rapidly become so popular and politically correct that you could be persecuted if you are not “a person who has an abnormal fear of germs or contamination.”

                This germaphobia that has come over the world is being instituted by “the world system.” We know this is not the Kingdom of God, nor does it operate with the wisdom of God.  The wisdom of man dominates. Since the fall, the wisdom of man has been short sighted and selfish, usually touting “the greater good” while hiding selfish, harmful agendas. 

                A good example of this wisdom of man is the “germ theory” made famous by Louis Pasteur.  This theory blames germs for every disease and calls for the eradication of the germ to cure the disease.  Germ Theory Versus Terrain: The Wrong Side Won the Day states that,

“Both at the time and thereafter, the public and most fellow scientists found germ theory easy to embrace, perceiving Pasteur’s model of life and health to be not only ‘superficially plausible’ but also ‘financially exploitable.’ In fact, most of the big-name pharmaceutical companies that we know today got their start in Pasteur’s era, often by merging with chemical firms, united in their goal of developing and selling synthetic products to ‘selectively kill or immobilize parasites, bacteria, and other invasive disease-causing microbes.'”   

                A lot of people feel that pharmaceuticals are the wonder of our modern age with the United States being one of the top consumers.  Yet the US is at the top of the list for degenerative diseases as well. It appears drugs have made us sicker rather than healthier.

Winkey Pratney warned that the Babylon in Revelations (who deceived all the nations by her sorcery), is in fact the pharmaceutical companies. In his book, Fire on the Horizon, he stated,

 According to Scripture the power of Babylon is pharmakia, the word translated “sorceries” or “witchcraft,” the thing that gives this principality its world power.  It is that which people have used from the first roots of rebellion as a substitute for the power and wisdom and provision of the living God.  It is the word from which we derive the words “pharmacy” and “pharmaceutical.” What is the great economy at the end of the world? The one we have now: The power of Babylon is drugs…Legal pharmakia alone is the biggest industry on earth, a multitrillion-dollar business unlike any other in human history.

                I read Fire on the Horizon years ago.  At the time, I told myself to remember this book because it contained a recipe for something that I believed would one day save my life or my loved one’s life. It was a recipe for Master Tonic, a natural anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-fungal remedy.  This was included in the first Chapter titled “Outbreak” with headings such as “AIDS, Ebola, and the Coming Plagues of the Twenty-First Century”. In his twenty-year-old prophecy that is coming true today, Winkie warned of super-bugs that would be resistant to drug treatment. Yet, treatments like Master Tonic that came from the wisdom of God, are still effective.

He also warned that, “every biblical mention of drugs is in a context of despair, mourning, grief and danger.  They are never connected to healing.”

                The Germ Theory article also states,

“Many of the disease phenomena making news headlines these days underscore the deficiencies of the pharmaceutical model and reveal challenges that are the direct result of our take-no-prisoners assault on germs. For example, dangerous superbugs23,24 are emerging—largely due to overuse of “anti-everything” drugs such as antibiotics and antifungals—and are ushering in a potential return “to a world in which infectious diseases drastically shorten lives.”25 Some have estimated that drug-resistant pathogens will become a bigger killer than cancer by 2050.25  If the medical community were honest, it would be forced to admit that the model of disease that catapulted Pasteur to fame has played itself out and is pushing us to disability and death.”

It is time to move away from the Germ Theory that gives drugs their allure and power and explore another theory.

                The Terrain Theory was developed around the same time by Antoine Béchamp.  Béchamp’s various discoveries led him to conclude that our bodies are, in effect, “miniecosystems.”

When an individual’s internal ecosystem becomes weakened—whether due to poor nutrition, toxicity, or other factors—it changes the function of the microbes that are naturally present in the body, producing disease.

“In other words, microorganisms only become pathogenic after environmental factors cause the host’s cellular ‘terrain’ to deteriorate.”

                Most of the world is adhering to the germ theory which leads us to believe that the COVID-19 virus is the enemy and must be destroyed at any cost.  Anyone who might be a potential carrier of the virus is also a threat and must be controlled. 

The problem with this approach is that it does not address the actual problem – why do some people get sick from COVID-19?  Why do other people barely show any symptoms? Why do some suffer greatly?  Why do some die after being infected?  The answer to these questions is – it all depends on the health of each person’s inner ecosystem.

The answer to the COVID pandemic is to heal the body.  The answer to any disease is to rediscover God’s wisdom for what brings the human body the most abundant health and life. 

The answer certainly is not social distancing or isolation.  It is not hospitals and medications.

                I have read that 7 hugs a day make a person less likely to contract a virial infection.  Living in community with close relationships with multigenerational family and friends (which includes physical touch) builds your immune system and leads to long life.

                So while the CDC is issuing all types of warnings to keep you away from the dreaded germ and the media is working people into a frenzy of panic and paranoia, they should be educating all of us on true health and life. 

This would help every person at every age in every country establish and maintain good heath for a lifetime, not just until the pandemic is over.  It would protect you from chronic conditions and degenerative diseases as well. It would give you the life that God always intended for you to have without fear.

This video called, “A Bigger Problem is Coming: I promise it is not what you think.” details how the current recommendations to avoid infection (the New Normal) are actually making people sicker.

Instead of striving for a New Normal, we should be reading articles such as Top 10 Ways to Boost the Immune System Naturally.

Hey, I understand what is happening, I used to be a germophobe! 

I loved everything clean and sanitized.  When I only had one child, I could keep up with sanitizing all the toys and wiping down everything in the house with bleach water.  I could keep my precious baby Areli from playing in the dirt or putting things in her mouth.  I could take the time to wipe off every book that we brought home from the library.

                After I had four more children, I had to let go of control. 

It was an extraordinary day when I remembered to have the children wash their hands before they ate. They played in the dirt outside, and I don’t know WHAT they put in their mouths!  However, we had begun to eat healthier foods and stopped vaccinating.  I noticed that the children were healthier than Areli had been at their age. They didn’t get sick as often and when they did, they recovered quickly. 

Now I have 10 children, and we continue to get sick less and less. 

Nothing in our home gets sanitized anymore, but I am constantly learning about how to get rid of the toxic and obtain more of the health and life. And guess who has the strongest immune system of them all? Ashlyn!  My special needs daughter who is missing a piece of her 6th chromosome, who is still crawling on hands and knees at age 16 and rarely washes her hands!  Other children like her are on medications and have been hospitalized multiple times for respiratory infections that just won’t let go.  Not Ashlyn!  Even when the rest of our family is sick, she is still healthy.  Why?  I think it was because I did everything I could to build her immune system naturally.

  And all the dirt and germs she has encountered just made her stronger.

                I read a study that proved that children in large families have less asthma.  Another study found that children in large families have less allergies.  They are exposed to more at a younger age and grow stronger.

                Cleanliness is still dear to my heart, but it is not the chemical, antigerm kind.  It is the fresh air, sunshine, essential oil kind of clean.  The Jewish people avoided many plagues throughout history because of the sanitary laws outlined in their Holy Scriptures.  The United States is pretty good with most of these things. Clean, filtered water is always important as is good bathroom facilities and a separation from anything unclean such a human waste or dead bodies.  It is also good to separate from anyone with an infectious disease, of course, but I am not afraid of the germs that they are carrying.

                The Maker’s Diet is a wonderful book by Jordan Rubin who studied why the Jews were so healthy and outlines a healthy diet and toxin free lifestyle based on what he found. Other good resources for finding God’s wisdom for health is thehealthyhomeeconimist.org and westonaprice.org. They both adhere to the wisdom of ancient societies that experienced no degenerative diseases.

In the Old Testament if you touched the unclean, you became unclean as well.  But in the New Testament, when Jesus touched the leper, it was the leper who became free of his infectious disease!  We carry that same resurrection life inside of us if we are His followers!

                The LORD is Jehovah-Rophe, the Lord who heals you. Blessing Your Spirit book states,

 “He said, ‘If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His eyes, if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.’

The context of the name Jehovah-Rophe is not about healing the sick but staying healthy by following the principles that God gave Israel. This is preventive health through getting clean and staying clean.”

                They are talking about following God and His wisdom:

eating clean food

living in a clean home

keeping our bodies, souls, and spirits clean from sin.

This means putting what is good and pure into our mouths, into our bodies, on our skin, and into our minds (through our eyes and ears). This is a struggle in a toxic world, but His grace is with us and His blood covers us and forgives us.

What promises belong to us if we believe in Him?

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10

“Bless the LORD, O my soul, and do not forget all His kind deeds— He who forgives all your iniquities, and heals all your diseases,” Ps 103:2-3

“I will say to the LORD, “[You are] my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.” He is the one who will rescue you from hunters’ traps and from deadly plagues.

He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge. His truth is your shield and armor. You do not need to fear terrors of the night, arrows that fly during the day, plagues that roam the dark, epidemics that strike at noon. No harm will come to you. No sickness will come near your house. He will put his angels in charge of you to protect you in all your ways.” Ps 91:2-6,10-11

These are just a few of His promises for us!  Let us trust Him in confidence and know that germs are just a small but integral part of this world that He holds in His loving hands.

Her Room Looks Empty

/ Anne (Grace is my Superhero) / 4 Comments

Her room looks empty.  Her dresser is bare.  Her bags are packed.

This is happening.  My firstborn is leaving home.  It isn’t her first adventure, but it is her longest so far.  Seeking God and helping others is her mission, taking photos along the way.

                How can I say goodbye to my right arm, the joy of my heart, and my best girlfriend?  I fear I will be overcome with testosterone and daily tasks without her.

  But I know that it is her time to fly. 

God’s timing is perfect, and His grace is sufficient for me.  She graduated two years ago, an amazing student.  She stayed to save money and help me through my hardest pregnancy and recovery yet. 

                She is a second mother to the others.  She diapered them, fed them, washed them, dressed them, educated them, had fun with them, and loved them.  They are the children they are today because of her.  I am a sane and happy mother of 10 because of her. She had a job and was a leader at youth group.  Many have been blessed by her! 

                “What will we ever do without her?”  my heart keeps asking.  “How will I bare the emptiness?”

                The truth is, we are not becoming smaller as a family, we are expanding.

We are not losing Areli, we are going to be seeing a whole new world through her eyes.  Her room won’t be empty!  Two little girls will being filling the space with feminine joy and enthusiasm soon.  And what a good change it will be.  Four year old Annalise is still in a crib in her brother’s room.  10 month old Aria will be a wonderful roommate now that she sleeps like an angel.

All the children will take a step up and grow in maturity. They will learn new skills and take on new jobs.

                Areli will be going to the same missionary school that I attended just a brief 25 years ago.

  25 means double grace, and there is double grace on her life.

To live…to love…to learn…to grow…to embrace each moment!  Our hearts are going with her, and our prayers are surrounding her. 

 One of her walls looked awfully bare. So I pinned up some photos of Areli and the family. Aria will be able to lay on her new changing table and see that beautiful smile everyday. 

We are so proud of you Areli!  It won’t be long until we are all together again.

The Liebster Award

/ Anne (Grace is my Superhero) / 4 Comments

Thank you, Rachael Boley of Three Boys and A Mom, for nominating me for the Liebster Award.  When I started blogging last month, I thought I would just be practicing my writing on the computer.  But I have discovered such a lovely community of bloggers who are sweet, encouraging, and courageous.  You all have really blessed my life!  It is fun to discover the love of life and writing together!

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The Official Rules Of The Liebster Award 

If you have been nominated for The Liebster Award AND YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT, write a blog post about the Liebster award in which you:

1. thank the person who nominated you, and post a link to their blog on your blog.

2. display the award on your blog — by including it in your post and/or displaying it using a “widget” or a “gadget”. (Note that the best way to do this is to save the image to your own computer and then upload it to your blog post.)

3. answer 11 questions about yourself, which will be provided to you by the person who nominated you.

4. provide 11 random facts about yourself.

5. nominate 5 – 11 blogs that you feel deserve the award, who have a less than 1000 followers. (Note that you can always ask the blog owner this since not all blogs display a widget that lets the readers know this information!)

6. create a new list of questions for the blogger to answer.

7. list these rules in your post (You can copy and paste from here.) Once you have written and published it, you then have to:

8. Inform the people/blogs that you nominated that they have been nominated for the Liebster award and provide a link for them to your post so that they can learn about it (they might not have ever heard of it!)

Here are 11 random facts about me!

1. I used to wish I had bright red hair.

2. Now I just wish I didn’t have any grey hair.

3. I am obsessed with oral hygiene.

4. I don’t eat any sugar and almost no fruit or grains.  Some people feel bad for me when dessert time comes and I don’t eat any.  They may even comment, “What is life without dessert?”  I really don’t miss it because I feel so incredibly good and healthy without it and so very bad with it.

5. I grew up as a Quaker, sitting through silent meetings in a meeting house.

6. Before I became a Christian, I was obsessed with unicorns and all things new age.  I thought I might possibly be descended from aliens who had infiltrated the human race.

7. I never day dreamed about my wedding or cut out pictures of wedding dresses or wedding cakes as a young girl, yet I was the first of my friends to get married.  My wedding was fun and virtually stress-free (at least for me…other people did appear a bit stressed).

8. Growing up I didn’t think much about being a mom.  I was on the college/ career track.  Now pretty much all my waking thoughts and all my dreams at night revolve around motherhood.

9. I want to have a baby in my 40s.

10. I have been trained in Craniosacral Facial Therapy and would love to someday have a practice treating pregnant women and newborns.

11. Someday I want to live on a farmette and have a huge garden and chickens.

Here are the questions that Rachael had for me:

1. Where would you live if you could live anywhere in the world, and why? Right here in Central Pennsylvania, because it is the land of my inheritance!

2. What do you consider to be your best quality? Faith in God

3. What was your favorite toy as a child? A unicorn stuffed animal that I slept with.  I gave it to my best friend when she moved away …or maybe it was when I moved away.

4. If you won a million dollars, what would you do with it? Give a bunch to my church and missionary friends, invest into our business, buy our dream home.

5. Who has influenced your life the most, and in what way? Jesus; all the words he has spoke to me through the Bible, through the still, small voice in my heart, and through other people.  He always changes the way I think and the way I see situations, myself, and the world.

6. What is your favorite season and why? Spring!  I love to see the trees and flowers blooming.

7. What inspired the beginning of your blogging journey? A desire to become a writer someday and reconnecting with that desire through memories of my Dad after he passed away last year.  He was an excellent writer and had a wonderful reading voice.  It was so fun for me and then for my children to sit with him and listen to stories.

8. What is your biggest fear? Falling short of the high calling that God has for me.  To get to heaven and have what I have done in my lifetime be burned like chaff because it wasn’t truely done in love to serve Him.

9. Name 5 things on your bucket list. Taking my children to Disney World, taking the entire family on a missions trip, having a book published, taking the family to Colorado to see where we used to live, taking the family to Wisconsin to visit relatives and see where I used to vacation every summer of my childhood.

10. If you could hang out with any celebrity for the day, who would it be and why? Patrick Stewart because he represented Grace in a dream I once had which you can read about in Why is Grace My Superhero? He works on behalf of domestic violence victims and something he said in a presentation has stuck with me.  He was hugging a woman who had suffered abuse and he said to her, “You are safe now. You never have to go through that again.”  That is what Grace says to us as soon as we fall into His protective arms.

11. What would you consider to be your dream job? Being a writer and getting paid for it!!!!

 I would like to nominate these wonderful bloggers for the Liebster Award!

Laure Covert at Bluebirds Always Fly

Maia at Days With Maia

Gelene Keever at Who Sees? You See!

Jennifer Garrido at In the Wide Open Spaces

Rebekah at Barren to Beautiful

Sasha at Mom Life Now

Here are your 11 questions!

1.What was the best piece of advice you ever received?

2. Did you follow it?

3. What was the best piece of advice you ever gave?

4. Did the other person follow it?

5. What is your favorite scripture right now?

6. Why is it your favorite right now?

7. What is your definition of a successful life?

8. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?

9. What would you do there?

10. What is your best talent?

11. What is your favorite book right now (other than the Bible which is always a favorite, I know).