Seeing the Light

This is the time of year when people prepare their taxes and college students (or their parents) fill out annual financial aid forms. I've been working on financial aid forms for a long time--the thirteen years I attended college as well as all the years one or more of our children attended college.

You'd think all that experience would make me confident when it comes to this annual financial event, but I'm not. This is one of my biggest stresses. And our tax preparation is additionally complicated by all the information required for filing self-employment taxes.

Last weekend Dave and I worked on tax preparation. Since Beth was home, she and I worked on four scholarship applications and her FAFSA. We usually do the FAFSA online as soon as we get our tax returns. In the past, I've noticed a "will file" option instead of the "already filed" option, and thought I wouldn't stress myself out so much this year by trying to get the taxes prepared before doing the FAFSA.

When we tried to do the FAFSA online, however, we soon realized that we needed to at least have our tax returns in hand in order to correctly fill out the application. I needed to call our tax preparer and get our taxes into the fast track.

Monday morning I spoke to our preparer, who was kind enough to agree to see me that afternoon. Dave and I had our joint information gathered, but I still had to figure out all the self-employment information.

Several pressing work deadlines got pushed to the back burner for the day while I began the process of finding receipts, adding columns, and making reports.

For some inexplicable reason when I entered my office, I happened to glance up at the four-foot flourescent fixture. One end had pulled loose from the ceiling and it was hanging at a precarious angle.

On top of my existing stress and pressing deadline, I had to figure out a way to keep that light from falling on me and my computer. I hauled the step ladder from the garage and stacked cardboard boxes on top of it to prop up the light until my handy husband could determine a more permanent solution.

Each time I had more information determined, I carefully slid into the small amount of space between the ladder and my desk and wriggled into my chair to type it into my report. Once I had finished everything I needed to do on my computer, I did some quick backup. Then I cleared my desk and covered it and my computer with vinyl tablecloths.

After I had submitted our information to our tax preparer and Dave had finished work, we met in Altoona. My office is long and narrow, and the ends have always been a little dark. We decided to replace the fixture with a different one that would provide more light. He finished installing the new fixture at 8:00 last night.

This morning I am thankful for much more light in my office. I am also thankful that I am not cleaning shattered glass out of my keyboard. And--even though the FAFSA still looms--I am thankful that I don't have to think about tax preparation today.

When my editor asked what I was working on and I wrote him about my almost fixture fiasco, he responded: "I'm glad you saw the light before the light saw you."

Book review: "When Crickets Cry" by Charles Martin

Last evening I read an excellent book: When Crickets Cry, A Novel of the Heart by Charles Martin.

Charles Martin is an extraordinary storyteller and When Crickets Cry is an extraordinary story about Reese, a heart-mending man struggling with heart-rending loss. Martin’s subtle revelation peels away layers of Reese’s past to explain his pain and stitches together details of Reese’s present to perfect the plot.

Fun Family Times

Dave is back at work today after five days off. We had a lot of fun spending time with our three grandsons on Friday.
Dave brought along his guitar, I helped Gabe make a drum from an empty oatmeal canister, and Sarah stapled foam plates together with beans inside to make a tamborine for Logan. Those three guys made quite the boy band.
I had knitted a "bow-tie" scarf for Wesley (either end slips through a slot instead of being tied) and he seemed to like it.

My parents' 60th wedding anniversary was yesterday. They came to our house for lunch on Sunday (I had crocheted a set of heart potholders for them).

We are very thankful for opportunities to spend special times with family members this past weekend.

Rising Moon

Last night's full snow moon lay pregnant on the horizon and rose as a shimmering amber globe to be slowly curtained by a dark cloud. The covered moon metamorphosed into a hazy white disk gleaming behind gauzy clouds.

Spring has sprung

It doesn't matter what the groundhog predicted or what the calendar says, this morning's 60 degree temperature is spring.

I'm making it official by opening the shades on the west side of my office. Letting in spring sun is much more pleasant than keeping out winter cold.

"Eagles" at school

My poem "Eagles," which won first place in the rhymed poetry category of the November HACWN contest, is going to school today.

A friend from the HACWN conference loved the poem, showed it to her son, who is studying poetry in his fifth-grade class at school. He liked it, and she asked permission for him to share it with his class. She writes that the teacher is very excited to read it to the class.

So today a fifth-grade class in Missouri will be hearing and discussing the following poem:

As Eagles Fly

In icy skies an eagle flies
above the frozen, leaden lake
and running river where it lies
like liquid crystal as it makes
a sparkling, open pathway sliced
between glazed banks of layered ice.

With shining head and tail spread white,
the eagle straightens eight-foot wings
in soaring, slow, majestic flight.
Not ruled by frail and earthbound kings,
he soars past grasp of naked tree,
a symbol of the bold and free.

The river ripples over stones;
its motion keeps it running free
from icy blue of frozen bones.
Soft light’s reflected brilliantly
on brow of river’s fluid face
and shimmers in its icy lace.

Secure in steel cocoon I pass
as vision blurs discerning truth
of crystal river’s rippling glass.
Obscured by fading vinyl roof,
my sight’s on traffic whizzing by,
while in the sky the eagles fly.

© Glenda Mathes

Book Review: "Dragons In Our Midst" series by Bryan Davis

Living Ink Books, published by AMG Publishers
Raising Dragons, paperback; 371 pages; © 2004
The Candlestone, paperback; 388 pages; © 2004
Circles of Seven, paperback; 418 pages; © 2005
Tears of a Dragon, paperback; 363 pages; © 2005

Any Christian with an interest in fantasy can tell you that it’s difficult to find a fantasy novel that is interesting and well-written, but contains no offensive material.

What would happen if someone could take characteristics reflecting the best fantasy authors and weave them together in a contemporary fantasy that blends legends about King Arthur with Christian beliefs and values?

You would have the Dragons In Our Midst fantasy series by Bryan Davis.

Some plot devices remind me of J. K. Rowling, especially the way apparently trivial events or things early in the series later prove to be meaningful. The utilization of different dimensions reminds me of Gene Wolfe. The blending of Arthurian legend and Christianity reminds me of C.S. Lewis, who merged myth with faith. The historical scope reminds me of J.R.R. Tolkien. And the transparently-titled Circles of Seven reminds me of Dante.

Many writers, including most of the above, tell heroic adventures about seemingly ordinary young people who turn out to be not so ordinary. But Bryan Davis departs from the fantasy author crowd in his unashamedly and overt Christianity. The story portrays positive values such as integrity, truthfulness, fidelity, and men protecting their women.

Davis tells an intensely suspenseful tale, riddled with humor, that will keep the interest of adult as well as younger readers. Readers should be mature enough to tolerate a high level of suspense as well as intense battle sequences.

These novels are great alternatives to the many depraved fantasies available for young adults.

Groundhog Day

The sun is rising on a clear day here in south-central Iowa. If any groundhogs happen to peek out of their burrows today, they may very well see their shadows.

I confess I've never really understood that popular legend. So what if the groundhog sees his shadow and we have another six weeks of winter? Everyone acts as if that would be terrible, but I'd be happy to know that winter will last for only six more weeks! If he doesn't see his shadow, we could easily face more than six weeks of winter.

The folks in Punxsutawney take this whole Groundhog Day thing very seriously. They have a Punxsutawney Groundhog Club and an official groundhog website.

Punxsutawney Phil has emerged and issued his forecast: "Six more weeks of winter!" Here's the official announcement read at sunrise this morning at Gobbler's Knob:

Hear Ye Hear Ye
On Gobbler's Knob this
glorious Groundhog Day, February 2nd, 2009
Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Prognosticator of all Prognosticators
Awoke to the call of President Bill Cooper
And greeted his handlers, Ben Hughes and John Griffiths
After casting a joyful eye towards thousands of his faithful followers,
Phil proclaimed that his beloved Pittsburgh Steelers were World Champions one more time
And a bright sky above me
Showed my shadow beside me.
So 6 more weeks of winter it will be.

It's worth taking a few minutes to check out some of the interesting pictures on the site.

The Old Farmer's Almanac website has webcams in Dublin, NH, to watch for the appearance of a groundhog. You can find them near the bottom of the left sidebar on the home page.

The January Old Farmer's Almanac newsletter informs me that in addition to the Pennsylvania shenanigans over Punxsutawney Phil, folks in Wiarton, Ontario, watch with bated breath for the emergence of Wiarton Willie. The newsletter also informs me that February 2 is halfway between the winter soltice and the spring equinox. If you've noticed more daylight, it's because there is one hour and two minutes more today than on the first day of winter.

February 2 is also known as Candlemass Day, originally a Celtic festival celebrating the lengthening days and approach of spring. Into this Celtic festival of light, the Christian church incorporated a tradition of blessing of year's supply of candles.

The celebration expanded to include the "Feast of Purification" forty days after Christmas. This was a commemoration of Mary's purification and the infant Jesus' presentation at the temple. The month of "Februa" was designated for cleansing; yule greens were removed and brush was burned to prepare fields for sowing.

This anticipation of planting crops included a focus on forecasting either an early spring or lingering winter. A popular belief was that sunshine on Candlemass indicated a return to winter.

In England and France, a bear was considered to be the harbinger; the Germans looked for a badger. Nineteenth century German immigrants to Pennsylvania brought along their Candlemass legends and, in the absence of badgers, adapted the lore to include groundhogs (or woodchucks).

So that's why this day has become known as Groundhog Day, but it doesn't explain why anyone would look to the sun or an animal for a prediction about the future.

It's just another small part of a culture that looks to creatures instead of the Creator. As our pastor reminded us in one of yesterday's worship services: Christ is the future!