Tracy's Blog

Christmas lights are starting to come up all over town and some of my friends even have their Christmas trees up.  The kids are preparing for the Advent Pageant at church and writing their Christmas list.  And here I am just trying to make sure that I know what today's date is as time seems to be passing so quickly.  I admit it.... I am feeling a little disoriented.  It has been over a month since my watch broke so I'm not wearing one (and I normally don't go without a watch for more than the 15 minutes of my daily shower!)  We were having a pretty mild November last week and then I woke up on Sunday morning to snow that is here to stay and temperatures are dropping into the -20's overnight tonight.  Somehow it feels like it went from October to January!  Both time of day and season of the year are things that I rely on to keep me grounded. Why am I telling you all this?!?  Well, because I am excited this disorientation will soon b...

Currently I'm reading Beth Moore's book, " So Long, Insecurity ," with a group of friends.  Beth was talking about pride being one of the main roots of insecurity and how it drives perfectionism.  In her discussion on this topic, she quoted a psychiatrist and theologian, Richard Winter.  I was struck by the quote so I wanted to pass it on to you as it raises some important (and challenging) issues about how we view our insecurities. " Although perfectionists seem very insecure, doubting their decisions and actions, fearing mistakes and rejection, and having low opinions of themselves, at the same time, they have excessively high personal standards and an exaggerated emphasis on precision, order and organization, which suggests an aspiration to be better than others. Most psychological explanations see the desire to be superior and in control as compensation for feelings of weakness, inferiority and low self-esteem.  But is could also be that the opposite is ...