5 Words

My fellow blogger Paul sent out a challenge to write about five random words selected by him. I decided it would be an interesting exercise and accepted his challenge.

The five words he assigned are holiday, satisfaction, mark, encourage, and proof. I tried to use them in a sentence, but they just don't seem to go together very well. I came up with things like, “It is a mark of the holiday that it it encourages satisfaction and gives proof to its meaning.” Or maybe, “The holiday marks a proof that encourages us to satisfaction.” These sentences did not satisfy me, so I was encouraged to write about each word individually to mark their meaning with more proof. The effort does not feel like a holiday.

Holiday

A holiday is a special day set aside to remember and honor someone or something. There are religious holidays. Those of us who are Christians celebrate Christmas and Easter to honor Christ and celebrate the good news that Christ has given us. There are national holidays like Fourth of July and Veterans Day that let us celebrate the pride we feel because we are Americans and to honor those who have helped to defend our country. My favorite holiday combines both our faith and our patriotism. Thanksgiving is an American holiday that gives citizens of all faiths the opportunity to stop and give thanks to the Almighty for the blessings we have in this nation. For the past several years we have attended in inter-faith service on the eve of Thanksgiving. We celebrate together the blessings of being Americans. The rabbi, the imam, and the minister and many congregants from various faith traditions share our patriotism and thanksgiving together. It is a moving, meaningful time. Of course my favorite part of Thanksgiving is the love, laughter, and lavish banquet that our family and friends share around our big table.

What is your favorite holiday?

Satisfaction

I think of satisfaction as that sense of fulfillment and pleasure that comes after finishing a task. Sometimes it is just a small pleasure like the one that comes when you put the last piece in a jigsaw puzzle. It is so satisfying to see the completed picture. Sometimes it is a bigger sense of gratitude and joy. I think of the Christmas night long ago when I was lying with my little boy as he fell asleep. He kept repeating the list of good things that had happened that day. He'd say,”Big firetruck,” and just smile. Then he would say, “New books”, and smile some more. Finally he said, “Mommy, I'm happy.” I lay there by him overwhelmed with a deep satisfaction knowing that the day had been perfect for this child of mine. When I was working I would face a huge pile of charts that had to be dealt with each day. Sometimes the pile was nearly as tall as me. There was a very tired sense of satisfaction that came at the end of the day as I filed away the last chart and I knew I had completed the day's tasks.

What is something that brings you satisfaction?

Mark

There are multiple meanings for this word, but for me I think of Mark as a name.There is Mark, the writer of the second book in the New Testament. He was the first person to write about the life of Jesus. Matthew, Luke and John looked to Mark when they wrote their books. I have a good friend named Mark. Our families grew up together. We have shared a lot of life. My daughter's sweetheart is named Mark. He is an important part of her life which makes him an important part of my life. He is a good man.

All of the Marks in my life have left a mark on me.
Is there a Mark in your life?

Encourage

To encourage is to fill someone with the courage they need to continue on. It is a bit like being someone's personal cheerleader.

I observed an excellent example of how to encourage in the locker room at the pool recently. A swim class for young children had just dismissed, and mothers were bringing their little ones into the locker room to get them into dry clothes. I cringed at the dialogue between one mom and her child. The little boy was crying as his mother berated him. She said, “I paid good money for this class and you wouldn't even try. You're just a worthless scaredy-cat. You embarrassed me with all your crying.” Another mom came in with her child and I heard her say something entirely different. “You were so brave out there! You almost put your face in the water. I bet next week you will be even braver than you were this week.” The child stood tall and smiled at his mom's praise and encouragement.

Which child do you think will learn to swim first?

Who has been an encourager in your life?

Proof

This word is not proving itself easy for me to write about. Proof is like evidence in a legal proceeding to convince the jury that something is or is not true. It is a good thing to have a lot of proof before convicting a person of some awful deed. I do like to find proof to back up what I believe, but I think I live mostly on emotion and instinct and don't need too much evidence if it all feels right. I don't know if that is a good or bad thing, but it is just the way I am.

Do you need a lot of proof about something to decide if it is true or not true.

This exercise was harder for me than I anticipated, but it was fun. If you need a subject to blog about, just check with Paul. I'm sure he will be happy to provide you with five random words.