Discombobulate

Madison has been quite ill this week. Each day we've tried to help her battle a fever, and each day we've watched her sit quietly on the couch, exhausted and certainly out of character. Once upon a time, we were amazed at her limitless energy, and felt ourselves on the verge of not being able to keep up. Now, she stays still, staring off into space. She smiles, and talks, and hugs. But her energetic side has been gone nearly a week now - and we miss that dearly. This morning, Madison once again crawled into bed with us crying: her fever was high.

Our schedule has become discombobulated. We've skipped ballet again, and school, and pretty much everything else. We've dropped plans for the Chinese New Year, Groundhog Day, and even a Daddy-daughter date night at Chick-Fil-A. Our only plans of late are those that take place inside the house, and even those are more limited. It's just a tough time for Madison, but we're here for her.

Meanwhile, Daddy and Mommy are attempting to prepare for the newest series: this always requires quite a bit of work. Daddy has gotten quite a bit done, but still has plenty more to do. Here below is an entry from the newest devotional, dedicated to the man, Sherlock Holmes:

It seemed like a completely random moment: a desperate man had just told an intense story about a lost document he believed was stolen. Spies could have been racing away with it even at that very moment! Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson were on hand to hear all the details from the emotional man with the missing paper. Yet after a few pointed questions, Sherlock Holmes spotted a rose just outside the window. So interested was he in this flower that he seemed to forget everyone else in the room. He walked over to the window and gazed at its beauty.

“Our highest assurance of the goodness of Providence seems to me to rest in the flowers,” he said. “All other things, our powers, our desires, our food, are all really necessary for our existence in the first instance. But this rose is an extra. Its smell and its colour are an embellishment of life, not a condition of it. It is only goodness which gives extras, and so I say again that we have much to hope from the flowers.”

He stood there, his back against the window shutters, and considered the flowers for a few moments. It was quite awkward for the others in the room – after all, they were just talking about something very valuable that had been stolen!

Yet the great detective stopped a moment to appreciate something amazing given to us by Providence – which is a fancy way of saying something wonderful given to us by God Himself.

Many consider Sherlock Holmes a cold, analytical sort, measuring the marigolds like an inchworm. But oh, how beautiful they are.

The Naval Treaty everyone was after would be found eventually, and there would be a happy ending to the story. But our great detective stopped to smell the roses, quite literally.

As Sherlock Holmes noted, God is good. No matter what is going on in your life, take time to see His goodness, and share it with others. Everything will be okay in the end, but until then, enjoy your life by appreciating what He has given to us. We do have much to hope from the flowers.