Dancing With Rainbows!

The Joy of Being One!

Happy Birthday to Dorian Alexander Stone Hoskin

aka DASH, Mr. D., D Man, Prince Charming

Whatever we call him, he's a wonderful blessing!!!!

Shower or Bath?

For those of you who know me well, you know that I'm a bath taker. I LOVE the luxury of a long soak in the tub. It has nothing to do with getting clean... it's the experience. Unfortunately, it's an experience I'm having to choose to limit in these drought days. Water, something that I've take advantage of for most of my life, is running out here in west Texas. We need rain... lots of rain, but not the gully washer kind, we need a looong gentle soaking in order for it to make a lasting difference.

Again, for those of you who know me well, you know that this blog isn't about the current weather challenges. During my quiet time a few weeks ago, God placed this object lesson on my heart... just wanted to share.

I love to be showered in the refreshing, life giving word of God. But if that's all I ever do... a quick splash here and there, then before you know it, my heart is at risk. A good visual might be kind of like a dried up sponge. For me to be all that God has purposed me to be, then like the sponge, I must be immersed... making and taking the time for a looong soak in His holy presence. Fortunately when it comes to God's word and His presence, I don't have to choose. He blesses me with momentary glimpses of His being and delights when I choose to stay awhile... soaking in the glorious grace filled gift of His love.

It's All About Roots!

It's been a long while since I've posted... life for Sam and me has been crazy hard this past year, but at the same time oh so, so, so, blessed! One of my most special blessings was celebrating 34 years of marriage to my guy. The picture above was taken on our anniversary at Monahan's Sandy Hills State Park...kind of a self portrait of sorts.

As you can see, Monahan's isn't exactly a tropical paradise...lots of beautiful sand, warm breezes...verrrry warm, but NO water. It's a pretty harsh environment, especially this year with the drought and all, yet if you'll notice on the top of the hill, there's a small forest of lush green mesquite. One has to wonder how the mesquite has managed to thrive while the grasses and other bushy vegetation have withered and died.

Of course the answer is it's all about roots! The hardy, drought tolerant mesquite can draw water from the water table with its tap root that, according to Wikipedia, can be as long as 160 feet. Pretty cool! I remember my dad instructing my brothers and me on the fine art of weed pulling, and much to our frustration, always insisting that we get the root along with the weed because he knew that roots were the weed's life link.... Reminds me of the parable Jesus told about the sower. "The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away." Matthew 13:20

It was a purposeful choice of words when Jesus said "when" trouble comes... rather than "if" it comes. Trouble, valleys, disappointment, heartbreak... whatever you want to call it... life.... it will come, but praise be to God that He has given us His perfect unconditional love in which to plant and grow the roots of our souls, his Spirit to encourage and counsel us, and brothers and sisters in Christ to walk by our sides. I can't imagine my life without Sam... How blessed I am to love and be loved by a man who is so deeply rooted in the sacrificial love of our Savior that he would lay down his life for Vanessa, Riley, Dorian and me.... Truly, figuratively speaking, he already has.... over and over again.

So very thankful.... for God's love..... for Sam ..........and for the green of mesquite trees!

P.S. I posted this blog a few days ago, but just this morning reread in my journal notes from my study of The Purpose Driven Life and found these verses- Let your roots grow down into Christ and draw up nourishment from him. See that you go on growing in the lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth. Colossians 2:7 (LB) Blessed are those who trust in the Lord... They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they go right on producing delicious fruit. Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NLT) Love how God gives gifts of affirmation like this!!!

Wishing you and yours a silent night....

I don't know about you, but there is something about this song... like chatting with someone who understands. This has been quite a year for our family. Our life, like yours I'm sure, is both overflowing with blessings and challenges. For the blessings of a new job, a new home, and a new grandson (just to name a few) we're so very thankful.

For the challenges, we're also thankful. Challenging times have a way of narrowing our focus... If I were to choose a quote that has been my mantra this past year it would be, "It's not about me." It's about that little baby, our Savior, our Wonderful Counselor, our Prince of Peace...

It's my hope and prayer that in the craziness of this holiday season that you and yours are blessed with Silent Nights...Peace... and Joy.

Merry Christmas with Love,

Tracey and Sam

Fresh From Heaven... Introducing our Dash!

Such pure sweetness... how blessed we are!

"Dash", Dorian Alexander Stone-Hoskin, is the newest member of our family's Club 15. Vanessa's Angel Day (adoption day) is September 15. Riley was born on February 15, and Dash arrived fresh from heaven on August 15!

Thinking about my "DASH"

For days now, my suitcase has been packed and I've been waiting... waiting... waiting for the call letting me know that it's time! During my waiting, of course, life has gone on... I've made a friend; found a house; celebrated the birth of my childhood "bestest" friend's 1st grandchild; prayed for a family whom I've never met as they cherish the last days of their young son, Sam, who's dying of cancer; praised God for answered prayers about new jobs; and grieved with a friend as she grieved over her friend's son's sudden accidental death and another as she said goodbye to her beloved brother who'd been a quadriplegic for over 40 years... like I said, "life", or as the poet, Linda Ellis, referred to it "The Dash" http://www.thedashmovie.com/

I never cease to marvel at, and be encouraged by, how as one friend so beautifully shared, God always weaves our every experience, into wonderful! It was over a year ago that Mom shared the link to The Dash movie with me. It was meaningful then, but now that I'm waiting... waiting... waiting for Vanessa's "Dash" to be born, it's a part of my every thought. Her little guy's name will be Dorian Alexander Stone-Hoskin, and they plan on calling him Dash. How perfect is that? A forever moment by moment reminder of the precious gift of life and how important our choices about how we live it are, not only for us, but also for all those we touch...praying my dash will always be a blessing to your dash, as your's is to mine <3

P.S. Unless Dash decides differently, he's scheduled to be born on August 15... Now we'll have a girlie and a guy :) Can hardly wait!

Reflections of a Beach Comber

This is another blog that's been simmering…. wondering if this experience is meant to be shared. Sometimes thoughts just need time to be pondered… kind of like how soup is always better after a day or two.

Back in April, I went to the beach. I went expectant that God would meet me there… I was searching… listening… tuned in! God was faithful…. always is! At first, I strolled along the smooth sandy area where, only a few weeks ago, I'd collected so many perfect… unbroken shells that I could hardly hold them all. I was praying, singing praises, and also looking for more perfect shells to add to my collection. Unfortunately, there were none. So, I trudged up to the "trash line" and almost instantly found a beautiful "broken" angel wing. Angel wings are considered "good finds" along the gulf coast, so I was both excited and disappointed.

It was at that moment that the lesson came… the one that has been on my heart to share. Praise God, our Father, that He walks the "trash line" searching, not for perfection, but for broken people… people needing and open to being found. When God "collects" His children with all their imperfections, He, along with all of heaven, celebrates! He knows how precious they are… how much potential they have, and though broken, claims them as His own.

As I looked closely at the angel wing, a shell I most likely would have cast aside a week ago because it wasn't perfect, I began to appreciate its beauty. Yes, it was broken, but it was so intricately designed and had value. I was powerless "to fix" the shell, but rather than focusing on its imperfection, I could focus on its uniqueness and treasure it.

I'm the angel wing… we all are… broken. God, our Father and Creator, is the only one who can heal our hurt and restore us to be all that we were purposed to be. We're not the fixers, but we are called to adjust our focus and see what God sees in even the most shattered broken life…

I shared this experience with my bestest childhood friend while I was out in California. She, unlike me, said that she likes to collect broken shells because she can see inside. As I thought about what she said, another analogy occurred to me. What a gift it is to be entrusted with even a moment of vulnerability... to be given a glimpse inside a person's broken heart…to be able to feel empathy knowing one's own brokenness. So often we put up a barrier in relationships with each other and with God when we pretend perfection. No one is perfect. Pretending just gets in the way of real… the real that is required for relationships…

…just some reflections of a beach comber.

My Girls

Christmas

Riley's 2nd Birthday

Mother's Day

4th of July

Busted! Vanessa has had a hard time sleeping lately... seems as though Baby Dash has her in training for the changes that he'll bring when he makes his arrival in the very near future. During her long sleepless nights, she's been reading my blog...maybe in hopes that it'll be so boring that she can't help but nod off :) Anyway, whatever the reason, she's come to the conclusion that I must love Riley more because all my family pictures tend to be of Riley alone. As far as loving Riley more... not true! But with regard to the pictures that I've posted... guilty as charged! So in order to make amends, here's a few pictures of my girl with her girl...

BOTH the loves of my life!

Blessed to Be a Blessing!

First, let me attach a disclaimer to this blog... it's not about me.

I just feel compelled to share an amazing story of how sometimes God blesses us with an "awareness" of an opportunity to be salt... to be light.... for His glory. The experience is truly a "God thing" and one can't help but to pass it on.

2 days ago, I was running an errand to a fabric store when I met J. The encounter started with a simple question. She asked, "Do you sew much?" My response was, "A little...Why? What do you need?" Then the tears came, and I realized the need was much more than what kind of thread to buy. J. shared that she was new to Midland... that she knew no one. She was getting married in a week in Jackson, Wyoming, and that she'd just picked up her dress from an alterations business only to discover that the alterations were nothing like what she'd asked for. I hugged her, encouraged her, shared a bit of my story, and offered to help her in any way I could.

Fortunately, she allowed me the honor and privilege to team with her. That afternoon, she came over and together we undid the previous alterations and made a new plan to remake her wedding dress. We worked and shared together until 9 that evening. By the time she went home, I'd learned that she'd been raised by her Grandma, as her mother had died when she was 2. Her Grandma, a Godly woman, now 93, had taught her to sew as a young child... and had also blessed her with a beautiful, strong "can do" spirit. What a joy it would have been for her Grandma to have been able to help her now, but Arkansas is just a bit too far! I truly believe with all my heart that God blessed me with the opportunity to make a difference as our paths crossed... not sure how that works, but I don't think it was an accident.

What an honor ...what a thrill... to be the hands and feet of Jesus in this precious young lady's life. We finished the alterations on Saturday. This coming Sunday, August 1st, J. will look like the beautiful princess... daughter of a Heavenly King... that she is, as she walks down the aisle to marry the love of her life with God's magnificent creation, the Grand Teton Mountains, towering over them.... truly, joy beyond measure!

Don't you just love happy endings? I know I do, and best of all,
God does too!

Bluebonnet Blessings!

No greater Joy!

In Memory and Honor of Jasmine, SMILE!

In Memory of Jasmine

Today, I was once again reminded of the brevity of life. Renee, a friend and co volunteer, called from Cape Town to share that a special sweetie from the children's home we volunteered with had passed away. Needless to say, there are many emotions rushing through me... sad, lonely, confused... all focusing on me and my feelings. Praise God that when I remember Jasmine's feelings, hopes and dreams, I cannot help but rejoice and thank God for allowing our paths to cross and for bringing her home.

" Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts. And we are never the same."

Truly, I pray that I will never be the same. I was volunteering to help Jasmine, but the truth is she helped me much more. Her life was challenging and so unfair to say the least. It would've been easy for her to have been angry, hard hearted and resentful, but instead of wallowing in bitterness, she smiled. Her smile will always be her legacy to me and I can't think of her now without hearing Nat King Cole singing....

"Smile though your heart is aching

Smile even though it's breaking

When there are clouds in the sky, you'll get by

If you smile through your fear and sorrow

Smile and maybe tomorrow

You'll see the sun come shining through for you"

Praise God, his "Son" shone through in Jasmine's life and He's now holding her close... lovingly wiping away every tear and healing all her heartaches... As I imagine this precious homecoming, it's impossible not to smile my biggest smile and would love for you to join me in celebrating this beautiful heavenly princess by sharing special smiles with everyone you meet in her honor :)

Then and Now!

A year ago....

Now!

The pictures tell it all. Isn't it amazing?! Day to day, in the trenches of parenthood, it's hard to see the growth and learning that's occurring... Our focus can be limited by the stresses of life ...getting so bogged down in the "messes" that we fail to notice the progress and miss out on celebrating mini, even micro mini milestones. Can't help but wonder if there aren't applications beyond parenthood here... Anyway, without digging deeper, just wanted to congratulate our girlie girls. "Way to go, Riley!" and "Well done, Vanessa!" Dad and I are looking forward to way too many celebrations to count in the days to come. You are our joy for sure!

LOVE Extravagantly!

Recently, it's been on my heart to write a "Love" blog. Not because of Valentine's Day, but rather in honor of Riley Lynn's birthday. Two years ago today, this precious little one changed my life forever in a most wonderful way. In fact, I really believe that being Riley's Grandmommy has taught me more about love than all my life experiences added together and I think the reason why is that, as a grandparent, I've found it totally impossible not to love or not show my love for her in anyway but extravagantly. True, shopping for her has been a total joy, but that's not what I'm feeling. It's much more of a heart thing… loving Riley has helped me grow in my understanding of how extravagantly I'm loved by the One who is love and challenged me in a very real way to strive to "be" love….not just to Riley, but to the whole world as I encounter it for His honor and glory.

Being love on our own is impossible, but praise God for his inspired word. Over 2,000 years ago, God gave Paul a "Love" letter, 1 Corinthians 13, to share with us…one that I'm using my blog to pass on with a prayer request that you pray for me as I'm praying for you, that together, as we all try our best to live life, we love…. Extravagantly!

"If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything as plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't have love, I've gotten nowhere. So no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn't want what it doesn't have. Love doesn't strut, Doesn't have a swelled head, Doesn't force itself on others, Isn't always "me first," Doesn't fly off the handle, Doesn't keep score of the sins of others, Doesn't revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, Puts up with anything, Trusts God always, Always looks for the best, Never looks back, But keeps going to the end…..
Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love." (The Message)

Happy Birthday, Riley Lynn. Oh how Grandmommy looks forward to a lifetime of loving you!

Shipwreck Treasures

Shipwreck at Mossel Bay....This picture was taken just a few days before I left South Africa... little did I know then the change in direction our life's journey was about to take!

My Shipwreck Treasure

Sunrise over Mossel Bay... "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."

I never cease to be surprised by the lessons God teaches us with when we least expect them. This morning, as I was getting ready for church, I had one of those experiences. I'm writing about it so that I won't forget... also just maybe, it will be meaningful to someone else.

In Malaysia, I was introduced to Tradewind Treasures...a company that makes beautiful jewellery from historic porcelain shards which have lain for centuries on the bottom of the South China Sea. These shards were once part of the sunken cargo from ships that traveled along the Silk Route. The first time I saw the jewellery, I decided that I'd love to have a piece as a memento of my time in Asia. So before leaving, I splurged and purchased what I thought was a bit of Asian history. Little did I know then, that my pendant with the Double Happiness waves design recovered from the Desaru Shipwreck would have meaning and symbolism to me way beyond the 19th century Qing Dynasty.

Though I bought this treasure in April, I only just wore it for the first time this morning. To my surprise as I put it on, my mind was immediately flooded with analogies and symbolism of truths much, much more ancient than the 1830 shipwreck.This pendant is a perfect symbol of hope to me. Crazy that all that follows came from simply putting on a necklace, but praise God that he keeps encouraging me over and over with this most beautiful word...Hope!

First of all, the pendant came from a shipwreck which is exactly what my life would be without Jesus. Like a ship at sea, I can be blown to and fro by the stormy winds of life, and at times, even overcome by raging waters that threaten to take my last bit of joy... peace...even my very breath away. Without Jesus who is more than able to calm the most treacherous of storms in my life, I'd be going down without a prayer of hope... just like the covered wine bowl my jewellery was made of did in the cargo hold of the Desaru.

Next, I thought about how this porcelain cargo...now a treasure, had once been lost... just like me! How blessed I am that Jesus values not only me, but each and every person in the whole world, and will stop at nothing to find his children and bring us home to be with him eternally. The parables of the lost sheep, Luke 15:4, and the lost coins, Luke 15:8, encourage me and help me to know this amazing truth.

Another analogy that came to mind this morning was how my life, just like my pendant, without God's grace was broken... full of sin and without the value it had been created to have. Fortunately, Jesus' sacrifice has made it possible for me to be beautiful and truly precious in God's eyes once again....simply illustrated just as this jewellery had been transformed by a craftsman from a mere shard from a common everyday bowl into a treasure worthy to be displayed in a national museum.

One last thought I had was about the pattern of "Double Happiness"....meaning even more than happy which just so happens to be the meaning of "blessed"! It truly is a gift from God to be able to experience hope and joy regardless of outward circumstances. We are truly "blessed" to be called his children, joint heirs with Jesus Christ. To God, no other treasures on earth can even begin to compare to his shipwreck treasures....us!

* * * * *

P.S. This post was written 3 months ago (October 4)... and never published as I wasn't quite sure... not sure what I wasn't sure about... I think I was afraid of sounding too preachy or something. As I reread it this morning (January 3)... the first time I've been to my blog since Sam was laid off and we've moved home... I decided to publish it with a prayer that maybe the truths God put on my heart then would encourage others as they once again encouraged me this morning. So much loss has happened in the short time we've been home... dear friends have lost mothers, granddaughters... friends of friends have lost wives, babies...lost jobs, lost relationships, lost opportunities...
Praise God that so long as the sun rises, there will never be a loss of HOPE.

New Friends

It's October already which means it's time for a new travelogue. September did include some beautiful sights, and I do have some pictures that I promise to post very soon for the pleasure of my vicarious adventurers, but more than anything it was a month about people and relationships rather than about places.

All of our new friendships have been such a comfort and joy. Sam and I joined the American Association of South Africa in Capetown on an outing to a local winery and learned how to prepare a yummy winter meal. We've spent several Saturdays hiking with the Walk-a-bouts, a hiking club we were warmly welcomed into. Sundays have been special as we've found our church home, a vibrant loving part of God's family meeting at Common Ground Church. And finally, all of the Smith International families have returned from their holidays and we've enjoyed several fun gatherings as we strive to make new homes away from our homes.

Whew, all that by way of an introduction! Though these new friendships are special and deserve a blog post of their own, who I really want to write about today is my new friend, Maria, a beautiful Godly woman, delightful neighbor, and also the wife of a co-worker of Sam's who's been an incredible blessing to me this past month. It's hard to believe but the threads of our friendship and the hope and encouragement it has brought to both of us actually began in Singapore almost 72 years ago.

I know I may have lost you on that last sentence! Let me try to explain this amazing story of how God weaves our lives together..."working everything out for the good of those who love him and have been called according to his purpose" Romans 8:28

In September 2007, I accompanied Sam on a business trip to Singapore. He spent the week in classes while I spent the week exploring. It was quite an adventure for a rookie world traveler like me. I enjoyed museums, gardens, and shopping, but my favorite sight of all was "The Gate of Hope". There was just something about this place that touched my heart and ministered to my soul. Just before the trip, we'd learned that Vanessa was expecting our precious Riley Lynn...not unwelcome, but unplanned. Our hearts were heavy knowing how difficult the path would be. Strolling around the grounds of this former convent and orphanage that had been a home to so many children somehow comforted me and filled me with hope in a way I can't quite explain.

The Gate of Hope

Try to read the fine print on this plaque... you'll see why later in the blog.

The chapel on the convent grounds.

Fast forward to September 2009. As soon as Maria returned from her holidays in the states, we began getting to know each other, sharing as we walked along the seawall. One day she shared that her mother, born to a Chinese family, had been placed in an orphanage because of a superstition about girls who were born in the year of the tiger being bad luck. (Do you remember reading about that on the plaque above?) Her mom was later adopted by a Christian family. She then shared that her mom had married at a young age and immediately had 3 children. Maria was the oldest. Her parents had struggled and eventually divorced placing Maria and her brother in the same orphanage her mom had been brought to as a baby because they were unable to care for them. Maria, my new friend, had walked through The Gate of Hope when she was 6 years old and spent most of her childhood there.

Her story and my own Gate of Hope experience have once again given me just a glimpse of how purposeful random things in our life can be. My heart is filled with hope when I think of what God did to bless Maria, the daughter of an orphan and an orphan herself for a time. Truly, truly, truly, I'm so thankful for God's provision, encouragement, and faithfulness to keep his promises and cannot imagine life without the relationships with family and friends that he has blessed me with...both old and new.