Thursday, January 05, 2006

Five Questions

Time for a change of pace.

Here are five questions, the kinds of things I tell people once in a while when the subject comes up. I'll answer them, and if you'd like to, you can post your answers in the comments section.

1. What advice did your parents give you, during your youth, that you actually followed?

My mom told me once, when I was in high school, never to drink beer if I'm eating ice cream. She was firm but didn't offer any details, and I didn't ask for any. I simply figured she must know what she was talking about, and I've never done that. About 10 - 15 years later, I reminded her of her advice, and she had no idea why she would have said such a thing.

2. What's the best parenting advice anyone ever gave you?

When my kids were heading into the teen years, someone at work mentioned that he and his wife had a response to door-slamming that worked for them. When a kid slams a door, you pull the pins out of the hinges and take their bedroom door away for 24 hours. No yelling. No frustration.

Each of my kids slammed the door twice after the rule went into effect, and then that was the end of the problem. It was a thing of beauty!

3. What movie have you watched the greatest number of times?

For a long time, that was either Apollo 13 or October Sky, followed closely by Braveheart. But now the winner is We Were Soldiers. I love chick flicks, but I come back over and over to the true(ish) stories that celebrate the best of who we are.

4. What is the best vacation you've ever taken?

Before we had kids, my husband and I took a four-month bicycle trip through much of western Europe: England, France, Switzerland, Luxemburg, Belgium, and Scotland. If you're on a bicycle, Scotland and France are by far the best (lots of side roads that don't have much traffic). Switzerland doesn't have many side roads, so you're stuck on the major highways with all the cars. Oh, beware the sheep in Scotland if you're on a bike--they panic when they see you because they didn't hear you coming. Hundreds of pounds of blindly charging ovine power can do a lot of damage if they hit you.

5. What is your favorite Bible verse?

It varies, but there's something that keeps me coming back to Habakkuk 1:5 "Look at the nations and watch--and be utterly amazed! For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told."

Post your answers. I'd love to see them!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

1. "Don't order toast at Howard Johnson's." (The restaurant.) To this day, I've avoided stepping even a foot inside their doors. (..soggy toast..)

2. Let God have the pen to your life's story.

3. Other than Disney movies in my earlier days of youth, I'll have to say Pirates of the Caribbean. Or, quite possibly Ella Enchanted. Good stuff.

4. Well, my dad took me and my brother on a surprise trip to Maui a few years back. I must say it was most enjoyable. I also liked when we went to our grandparents' in Montana for Thanksgiving two Novembers ago.

5. It's the only one (besides John 3:16) that I can remember: "It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way." Proverbs 19:2.