Raising Ragpickers – Guest Post by Staci Stallings

I'm so pleased to welcome author Staci Stallings back to I Was Just Thinking . . . (see her first guest post here). I hope you enjoy her thoughts–leave a comment below to let her (and me) know what you think. Also, note the link near the bottom of the post for a chance to win great prizes!


The savior in Og Mandino’s The Greatest Miracle in the World is a mysterious old man with an affinity for what he calls human rags. In the story Og is the rag—an ambitious, successful magazine publisher who is burning out faster than a candle in water. The irony is that his magazine is about Success, but he’s become increasingly dissatisfied with everything in his life. And then his ragpicker shows up.

It’s not hard to see that our world does a good job of making millions upon millions feel like rags. We are washed up, tired, empty, and worn out. It is as if the human rag pile is ten miles high and getting higher by the moment. It would seem to be evident that the world needs more ragpickers—those people who are not only not on the rag heap, but who can help those who are on it to get off.

After reading The Greatest Miracle in the World, I determined for myself that I would be a ragpicker to the best of my ability. What I soon learned is that as a role model for my three kids, I am daily showing them how to be ragpickers as well. That was not my original intention, but it’s working.

My oldest daughter came home from school one day when she was in second grade, and we were talking about recess. She was telling me about the “groups” the kids had formed. One was the cheerleading group. One was the acting group, one was the sports group, and on and on. She was telling me how she had been playing with one little girl who had gotten thrown out of her group for not following all the rules.

I asked her what the two of them did, and she said, “Oh, we just sat under the tree and dug for worms.”

I, feeling my parental concern for her well-being, said, “Well, Stef, what group are you in?”

To which she replied, “Oh, I’m not in a group. I just play with whoever the others don’t want to play with.”

Of course, I want my child to feel a part of things, and so I said, “Don’t you want to be in a group?”

She just shrugged. “Not really. There’s always someone to play with because the groups are always mad at somebody.”

It was then that I realized she was a ragpicker! She wasn’t desperately trying to be a part of what the world said she had to be. No, she was content to be herself and to pick up the rags until they felt loved enough to go back to the group.

Since then, I have seen on more than one occasion the respect her peers have for her. One little boy at a birthday party told my husband that “Stefani must have never been around any mean person because it doesn’t matter what happens, she has never been mean to me.” (This was a little boy with severe ADHD that the teachers were in complete exasperation how to handle. One teacher told me she had put Stefani by him because Stef could deal with him when no one else could.)

Then there was another little boy in her class who was a bit slow with learning. That year the teacher told me that she had put Stefani by this little boy because Stef just naturally helped him when he got lost on the instructions. The teacher said, “She is just so patient with him. It amazes me.”

The other night we were at the school for an open house, and we were hanging out talking. One little boy said to Stefani, “You were saying the other day how much you were screaming about something. That’s weird. I just can’t picture you screaming about anything. Stefani. Screaming. They just don’t even go together.”

I can’t say that I did it, but I’d like to give some credit to Mr. Mandino for helping me to decide to be a ragpicker myself. I think it was the key to teaching me to raise ragpickers, and I will forever be grateful for that lesson.

 

Staci Stallings, the author of this article, is a #1 Best Selling author and the co-founder of CrossReads.com, a new website that gives Christian readers and authors a place to meet and fellowship. With a newsletter, a blog, a forum, and other exciting, inspiring areas to visit, CrossReads visitors can find fabulous Christian books they never knew existed. Come over on Feb. 12-14, and enter to win one of 169 virtual baskets of ebooks, gift cards, and other prizes!

 

Click here to enter the CrossReads Rafflecopter giveaway


Staci's article made me think about my own attitude–is it more important to me to belong to a “group,” or to be the person who sees those around me in need of love and understanding? What about you?

 

Laura
Greenville, Texas
I Was Just Thinking . . . 
Legal Blog: Real Estate Law Blog
Twitter: @LauraMcMom
Email me

Productivity AND Peace of Mind?

top-10-productivity-tipsI'm blogging today at Lifehack on my Ten Top Tips for Productivity and Peace of Mind. I hope you'll pop over there and read it, then leave a comment there to let me know what you think.

And stay tuned for tomorrow's inspirational guest post from author Staci Stallings!

What's new in your world?

 

Laura
Greenville, Texas
I Was Just Thinking . . .
Legal Blog: Real Estate Law Blog
Twitter: @LauraMcMom
Email me

Free Book Winners–and Coming Events

I love sharing books. A couple of weeks ago I announced a book giveaway in celebration of some great news I've received recently (see the description of the contest here). I'm pleased to be able to offer a free book to each of the commenters from that post (that is . . . each person who commented before February 7, 2013).

The books you get to choose from are:

  • Out of Control by Mary Connealy
  • Love Amid the Ashes by Mesu Andrews
  • Desert Gift by Sally John
  • Bandit's Hope by Marcia Gruver
  • Who Is My Shelter? by Neta Jackson
  • Love Finds You in Nazareth Pennsylvania by Melanie Dobson
  • Necessary Deception by Laurie Alice Eakes

Based on a random drawing, first choice of the listed books goes to . . .

Cheri Swalwell!

 

Cheri, email me to let me know which book you want.

For those commenters who left email addresses, I'll be in touch via email when it's your turn to choose! For those readers who missed out this time, stay tuned, because I'll be giving more books away in the weeks and months to come.

In the meantime, please be sure to check back here next week for more fun, including an inspiring and thought-provoking guest post from author Staci Stallings on Wednesday, February 12. Remember that you'll never miss news or an opportunity to win if you subscribe by entering your email address in the subscription box near the top right corner of my blog. Subscribe here.

I appreciate those of you who share this adventure with me.
Laura
Greenville, Texas
I Was Just Thinking . . . 
Legal Blog: Real Estate Law Blog
Twitter: @LauraMcMom
Email me

Ready to Make a Mistake?


English: Albert Einstein Français : portrait d...

Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.

―Albert Einstein

I don't like making mistakes. I spent a good chunk of my life not trying new things out of a fear of looking dumb in front of other people. But the year I turned 50, I realized that I likely have more years behind me than I have ahead, so I'm sort of running out of time to do the things I've always dreamed of.

That forced me to to make a choice:

  1. Give up those dreams OR
  2. Learn to be okay with making mistakes in front of other people.

I'm too young to give up on the dreams, so I'm working hard to allow myself to jump in and try things I don't know how to do. It's not about waiting until you're not scared; it's about being scared and doing it anyway.

What are you afraid to try? What would help you get past that fear just enough to go for it?

Laura
Greenville, Texas
I Was Just Thinking . . .
Legal Blog: Real Estate Law Blog
Twitter: @LauraMcMom
Email me