My first piece of glitter |
My hair's not the only root that's been changing. I now have some mineral trioxide deep down in one of my teeth. Just before my birthday, I had a deep cavity filled for the second time, while being told that I'd probably need a root canal sooner than later. Since my tooth began giving me fits on the weekend when no endodontist is available, I decided to try essential oils. There were all kinds of testimonials about avoiding root canals, but that wasn’t my case. The melaleuca and clove oil helped me from having a full blown face-swelling infection, but my infected root still died and irritated my other roots. I did end up finding a biological dentist that does things a little differently than mainstream dentists. He didn’t stare at me like I had two heads when I told him about the essential oils (or even when I admitted to trying oregano oil—which burned my mouth) or oil pulling. If he had suggested giving up my concealer for the sake of my teeth, I’m not sure I would. Fortunately, he suggested I see a holistic M.D. to look at my calcium metabolism (since I’ve had a few cavities in the past couple of years). My tooth has been fixed and the root is gone. Hopefully, seeing a holistic doctor while help me get to the root of my teeth issues.
As I age, I’m no longer
satisfied at just looking at my issues. I
want to know why I have issues (one of my issues is depression). I was allowed to preview a new book by Jill
Savage about friendship (the name of the book is “Better Together”), and I’ve
really enjoyed it. I’ve read a lot of
books on marriage and parenting in the past five years, but this is the first
book that I can remember reading about friendship in as long as I can remember. It has lots of helpful advice on what is
normal in friendships and how to be a better friend, but the part I really
liked was the challenges at the end of each chapter. One challenge was to write a handwritten note
to a friend. My letter ended up arriving
same day that my friend was preparing to attend a funeral for her loved one, and it really meant a lot to her. I love
it when God uses us to minister to others, especially when we have no idea how perfect the timing is. The past few weeks when
I’ve read this book, I’ve felt lighter and less burdened. I can’t help by wonder if reaching out to
other women isn’t a big way of combating my blues. It kind of makes sense if one of the greatest
commandments that Jesus leaves us with is to love others (see Matt. 22:39). God only asks us to do what works out best
for us in the end (even if it’s not easy).
It’s funny that showing love actually made me feel loved. I know it made
my friend feel loved too. Sometimes I just need a different perspective to look
at what’s underneath it all. That’s what I felt like this book provided for me.
This past winter, we had some water issues
in our basement. We had a downpour of
rain while my hubby Charles wasn’t at home, so I called him to find out when he
could come home. Mary was using the wet
vacuum in the basement, while Half-Pint was managing the kiddos, and I was
trying to figure out a way to prevent the water from entering in the basement
in the first place. I called Charles to ask him if I could use a different wet vacuum
outdoors. Clearly, I wasn’t thinking
about the risk of electrocution. Charles let me know the best way to prevent
the water from coming in was to clean out the gutters that were
overflowing. Shortly after they were
cleaned, the water stopped coming in the basement. I admit that sometimes I'm short-sighted. I’m praying that God would show me what the
root of my issues are. In the meantime, I’m going to keep loving others and using my concealer while I let my glitter shine.
I love you, Rachel.
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Rachel, my friend in heaven, thank you for leaving these stories for us still on earth! all my love! Polly
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