A "Blessings Hunt"
The hotel room was dark. My husband was snoring away in the bed a foot or two in front of me. The only light was the faint glow of my laptop with my screen set on dim. I needed to go to bed too. I was supposed to be on vacation! But I was bumping up against a writing deadline, and my thoughts were racing: "I'll never finish this. I think I have WRITER'S BLOCK! I was working unsuccessfully on the crafts and activity suggestions for Night of Mysterious Blessings.
One activity
I'd thought of before leaving on the trip was that readers could go on a "blessings
hunt," making a list of large or small blessings each day. Then, at the
week's end, they could share the list with a parent, grandparent, or someone
special in their life.
As I
worked on my suggestions in the dark on our trip, I reread the idea of the
Blessings Hunt. Twice. Duh. Why not follow my own advice? What were my
blessings at that moment?
For one, I
had a writer's deadline. For years I'd wanted one of those. Moreover, I would
reasonably soon join my husband on vacation. In addition, I did have at least
one powerful activity for my little readers. My search for blessings worked
perfectly to turn my thoughts around. As my gratitude level rose, so did my
inspiration. People love the craft and activities section. Most importantly, I
discovered for the first time—again—if I weren't the gatekeeper of my
thoughts, I would be their victim.
Early on,
my young insomniac in Night of Mysterious Blessings is ruled and almost
ruined by his thinking. He moans:
I
flipped. And I flopped.
Uncovered
and covered. My thoughts never stopped.
My
problems were bigger than me that sad night.
I
needed a friend. I just didn't feel right.
In my
protagonist's struggle to sleep, he is focusing on problems. His dream companion,
the Sandman, sprinkles not sand but timeless wisdom:
Magnificent
child, this night has you stressed,
Yet
all that you need is to know that you're blessed.
There is
significant evidence that the quickest way for any of us to dispel anxiety is
to practice gratitude. Gratitude can become as natural as blinking our eyes.
Neural networks firing in negative patterns for years can be rerouted. Plus
gratitude strengthens our connection with the Gift-Giver, the Friend we need
when we "just (don't) feel right."
Whether
we're trying to sleep, concentrate on a project, or taste the mustard and smell
the marigolds, our thoughts can have a mind of their own (pun belatedly
intended). Our brains are active, and thinking is what they do. We need to
train the brain to s-l-o-w—d-o-w-n and notice the sights, sounds, experiences,
and blessings of the now. Look at the sunset without running a play-by-play in
your mind. Just gaze at the sky all ablaze. As blessing hunters and gatekeepers
of our thoughts, we can free ourselves to experience life more fully.
Speaking
of thoughts, I'm grateful to share some of mine with Jasmine's many followers
on this exceptional site.
MY REVIEW
Night of Mysterious Blessings is a lovely children's book about a little boy who is struggling to fall asleep. He wishes the Sandman would pay him a visit and use his magic sand to help him relax and finally doze off. But when the Sandman appears, he imparts some very important wisdom on the little boy.
This is a wonderful story with a a good, heartfelt message. It has an easy to read rhyming scheme to it, and the illustrations are delightful. It's a story about accepting that God is always with you, and He will always be able to comfort you and ease your fears. It's something I think every child would love to hear. Sometimes nighttime can be scary, and we let our fears/anxieties take over and cause restless tossing and turning, but with God watching over us and taking care of our worries, we can rest easy knowing that we will always be safe.
A wonderful book for parents and their children to read together at bedtime (or any time, really).
5 stars!
Jasmine, I really appreciate your excellent review of Night of Mysterious Blessings. If the book helps people rely on God in moments of stress, I am greatly fulfilled. You are right in pointing out times of anxiety often come at night. I call this phenomenon “wearing night vision goggles.” I try to take those goggles off and look through the eyes of faith.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this too and will be sharing my review for the tour soon.
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