The Bright Side

Today mothers everywhere are being recognized and appreciated. Rightly so. I awoke with thoughts of my own mother. My birth mother placed me up for adoption, and God graciously placed me in the hands of a virtuous woman whose strength and perseverance I admired not only in her life, but in her death.  My mother was extremely hard working. Her parents pulled her out of school in the seventh grade to help on the farm. That didn't phase her. She continued to educate herself by reading encyclopedias, becoming one of the most intelligent women I've ever known. And she made my sister and I learn the same way. She was an amazing seamstress, and made all of our clothes. Our home was never dirty - she cleaned and taught us responsibility, pride of homemaking, how to cook and clean. She gave to the poor even though we had so little ourselves. She was kind to everyone - family, friends and strangers alike. She was always well kept, dignified and classy. Even w...

As a Graphic Designer, a common challenge is to make objects appear into a scene to make it look as if something is there which isn't - basically, fooling the eye. The best designers make the "superimposed" image look so natural that at first glance it's not even questioned ( the antithesis can be seen in tabloids). I strive to achieve this affect not only in my career but in my personal life. If I can convince others that I'm stress-free and content on the outside, they'll not question what's really going on "behind the curtain". It's all an illusion. Smoke and mirrors. Tricks of the trade include smile, makeup, hair style. The right combination goes a long way in the facade. That is, until I come face to face with my God. There's no fooling Him. We can sew together the fig leaves and make them as big and beautiful as we want but He goes straight to the source. We read in 1 Samuel "Man looks at the outward appearance, but the ...