life Archives - Spoonful of Imagination

The Making of a Mini Mural

August 29, 2022 By Erica Deuel 2 Comments

Mister Rogers. Was he a part of your childhood?

I watched the show a little growing up, but I think Mister Rogers really became a hero for me more as I was an adult. His philosophy and perspective for children and their development is one that I just really respect.

I recently read Fred’s biography, as I was wondering what made this man into who he was.

I have been in a season of change with my own work. As we worked to close down our non-profit studio, I have been thinking through what do I want to do now!? I really still want to help people tap into their imagination, be creative, and feel empowered to bring their ideas to life. So, not much has changed in my passion. I just want to go about it differently.

You can imagine how encouraging it was to read about Fred’s life and how every 5-6 years he changed the work he was doing. Did you know that!? I’m not going to get this perfect but in a quick summary…

He left a growing career at NBC to work on a free children’s program in Pittsburgh.
He began and worked on the Children’s Corner for 6 years
He stopped that and went to seminary
He then did not get a church after seminary, but he wanted the TV to be his pulpit
He then moved to Canada to begin Mister Rogers in a 15 min show
He moved back to Pittsburgh to begin the Mister Rogers Neighborhood that we know
He quit that to work with adults -wanting to help them, so they can better help kids
He went back to Mister Rogers Neighborhood

I’m not sure how you sum up Fred Rogers work, but I tried. One theme that I took away from his life is he stayed true to two core principals.

He knew who he was and what he cared about and loved.
He had a passion for children development with education.

He might have changed how he went about his work, but he never stopped trying to help children imagine, learn, and walk through big emotions and situations of life. That was so encouraging to read, as I still want to do a lot of the work I used to do. It just needs to be different in this season.

Fred’s mom often said to Fred, “Look for the helpers. There are always people helping”. That phrase helped Fred through scary times and he used it to help others. As I process the world and how many people’s lives have changed drastically the last few years, I wonder how ok people really are? This concept can go lots of directions, but without talking politics, pandemic, or work force, we still know there are heroes all around us. Heroes on the front lines.

The concept of a “hero” can be a big pressure to feel or believe is impossible to reach. How do you become a hero? Maybe you don’t want to be a fire fighter, nurse, doctor, policeman, or teacher, but you can be a helper.

We can be helpers by doing simple acts like…

smiling at a stranger in the supermarket.

holding the door for an older citizen.

taking the trash out for your family.

pushing the shopping cart.

playing a game with a younger child.

making a meal for a hurting family.

sitting with someone grieving.

writing someone a card.

There are so many ways we can be helpers. In this simple ways of being helpers, we really are being heroes too. I love how Fred used easy words to say powerful concepts.

This quote stuck with me and I imagined how inspiring it could be to live on a big wall in a community. I took Fred’s whimsical, childlike heart and paired it with his mom’s powerful words and dreamed up this mural.

I had to get the idea out of my head, so I painted it on a sign and got my talented friend, Beth, to do the words. It’s our mini mural.

We can all be helpers. We all have that power. Being a hero might seem intimidating, but we can all do simple, everyday acts to show the people we interact with that they matter. Taking the time to really “see” people is what can help heal whatever we all just went through these last few years.

We are better together.

Now, don’t you see this painting on a city wall!? Where should it go??? Do you relate your life to books and back to real life again? Go out and be a helper today. I am off to make my family dinner ;).

Saying Yes

July 25, 2014 By Erica Deuel 11 Comments

I sit here and I don’t exactly know what I want to say. I know my heart is raw and tender, and I want to always remember this feeling. The moment I am empty of myself, I find the most beautiful. It is these moments where I find it easier to rely on God, stop trying to do it all on my own, and surrender that I don’t have control.

I think it would be safe to say these last five months with our sweet foster son, my heart has largely been in this sweet, yet difficult place.

Yes, it is very hard to live day in and day out with such raw, heavy emotions, but it can be beautiful. Let me explain. When we said “yes” and brought a child in crisis into our home, we were bringing brokenness, hurt, pain, lies, bad habits, etc with him. It is a very trying experience to walk day in and day out with love in the midst of these circumstances. Not to mention having three other children in the home, who are little sponges. It was a constant balancing act of our hearts to care for everyone well.

There were many days where I was exhausted and cried. I couldn’t do it on my own. I learned that from our last foster experience. So, I think I was set up better this time around, but it didn’t change that it was still hard. The truth is though, all those things that lived in our FS, also lived in me. I have just perfected the art of putting up masks and shields.

This experience had me running to Jesus. I needed him. I relyed on him to get me through conversations, to give me grace, to not expect changes overnight, and to give me the qualities like patience, compassion, and mercy. I wanted to instill these in my kids, but couldn’t before emptying of myself.

This sweet, sweet boy was used to change me. He made me see Jesus in a desperate way. Jesus is real, he is alive, and I saw him move. He moved my heart. I went from wanting a 1-year-old girl to saying yes to a 4-year-old boy. I went from wanting to help him to loving him like my own flesh and blood children.

Even in this moment, I type through tears as I hear one of my son’s saying “where is _______” and another eating his granola bar the exact way our FS always did. He has parts of our heart and we will always love him.

Yesterday, was a hard day as it was our last one with him in our care. We all cried heavy, hard tears as we said goodbye. It was real. I got to hug his great-aunt with my tears streaming onto her back and whisper she’s going to do a great job, and I believe it. We then went out to dinner as our little family of five again. We told stories, joked , and I laughed so hard till my belly hurt. It was a beautiful moment to realize that even through pain…there can still be joy. God has not forgotten us and did not leave us in the moment when we said good-bye to our FS.

I feel like we have been grieving him leaving for a while, so now that the band-aid is officially pulled up, it is a mix of emotions. In sorting all these out for a few days, I have felt scared. Not scared for our FS, because I believe he has an amazing team around him to watch over and make sure he is safe and he is in the palms of our mighty God, but scared for our hearts. This boy was used to move blinders on my eyes and rocks in my heart. I needed him just as much as he needed me. But, laughing with my family, hanging on our bed all cuddled up together till we all crashed, and waking up today knowing and believe that God is still with me, I have a peace. God has never left me. We have hope. We have faith. God is not through with us yet. This was just another beautiful part of our story and the journey God is taking us through in this world.

One way I see God move now, is in the caring of our hearts through all of you. Thank you for the sweet texts, emails, comments, drop bys, hugs and messages saying you are praying for us. I can’t tell you how much I have felt them and you are being used to carry us. Although we were on the “front lines,” it was a team effort and we couldn’t have done it without the support of so many.

We will miss this sweet boy, but we will see him again. Looking back now I feel like when we said “yes” to that phone call five months ago, we were largely saying yes to God having the controls of our life in a raw, trusting way. It should be that way daily no matter what is happening or who lives in our home. I want to still wake up today and say “yes” to Jesus. We gave of ourselves, but really in that giving…we were blessed and changed far more than we could have ever expected.

It is a continued prayer that we will have strength to say “yes” to hard things and give love through it again and again.

As we reflect on our experience, the song posted below has become like an anthem for us. I hope and pray wherever you find yourself today that you would know there is a faithful God you can cry out to and find hope.

We Went Camping

November 14, 2012 By Erica Deuel 6 Comments

Last Friday, we were having a rough homeschool day. Caleb was not being focused, and I was getting frustrated with him not “trying.” We both were getting edgy and not at all acting out “a gentle answer turns away rath,” but rather had hearts of “harsh words stir(ing) up anger.” We needed a time out. We needed to go camping.

We had said for weeks that we were going to go camping that weekend, but now that the day was here we had cold feet. I think the cold feet was the defense of NOT WANTING cold feet. As Caleb and I got more and more exhausted by each other and ultimately frustrated, Matt pulled me out of it. I don’t know what I would do with out him. He calmed me down and helped me to see the big picture perspective that I needed in that moment. I have a smart boy in Caleb, and he knows his stuff. He just needed a “break.”

The further and further we get into our school year, the more and more I am learning about my son. He loves school, and that was one of the many reasons why I wanted to keep him home to homeschool. I wanted to be a part of that and see his excitement. Although he does love to learn and do school, he also loves surprises and adventures. He needs a certain amount of routine with knowing what to expect, but he also loves for days to be switched up and “out of the norm.”

Matt and I knew we needed to go through with our plans to go camping, so right there in the middle of kid break downs all around us (and a mama on verge of losing it), we packed up our whole herd and headed north.

As we slowly decompressed on the drive and processed more about what matters in life and the important things to learn, I knew we made the right decision. Caleb was on cloud nine. He talked endlessly all 45 minutes to our camp site at Red Top Mountain. His attitude was a 180 degrees different, and he was my sweet boy once again.

We had plans to do math by counting sticks and throwing rocks, etc. I was going to draw words in the dirt for him to “read.” They were good ideas and intentions, but once we were there, we just played.

My kids can play, imagine, create, and dream. Those are equally important things to instill. Instead of talking about the ABC and 123 of school, we talked about the trees, nature, team work (that is so needed to set up/break down camp), God’s creation in the beauty around us, how to build a fire, the patience needed to fish, and the presence of love and humbleness needed in a family.

Caleb quickly learned how to fan the fire as it started to die down. I know there were countless other things we talked/demonstrated on this adventure, and it was so worth the change of routine.

My struggle with homeschooling is the temptation to compare what we do to what happens in normal school (the ways/routines and things that are taught). Every once in a while, I start to question and beat myself up that I am not doing enough. Those are lies I know Satan wants me to believe and leave me discouraged.

Unplugging and getting away does so much to set my heart at peace. The reason we are not doing traditional school is to be able to do different things and have different ways to learn and experience life. Why do I beat myself up for the very things I believe are right for my kids?

Life is so confusing and yet so beautiful. There are so many lessons to learn beyond sitting in a seat at a desk. It’s ok to be different at times and to do what is needed for your heart.

Experiencing nature by walking through the woods, skipping rocks in the lake, and freezing our tails off in a tent was so good for my family’s souls. We had a lot of fun laughing and being together. We were also so physically reminded how thankful we are to have a warm house to go home to!

Matt and I have joked several times since we have been home about how so many miserable moments (like freezing in a sleeping bag with like three layers on each and trying to get a baby to settle down in a tent) also have so many incredible moments intertwined. We decided that is the definition of camping.

So, although we had a blast and are so thankful we got away and camped, we will probably enjoy the rest of the fall and coming winter from home. Next year, we’ll probably find ourselves needing another moment of escape and pump ourselves up to do it again. I’ll re-read this post and remember how good it was to pull away for a night.

I am thankful for routines and also for spontaneity and the beauty of life when the two are paired together. This week we have been back doing our “traditional” school methods with reading, writing, mathematics, and everything in between. Caleb is nailing it. Everything that I knew he could do and so much more. It’s as if the weekend helped him to reset.

He has caused me to giggle to myself because he has been doing “harder” things than I was asking him to do on Friday, and in some situations showing me things on his own. He is so smart, and he is teaching me so much about myself through trying to teach him. Humility is at the top of that list.

What sort of ways does your family unplug and regroup? Do you have any secret tips on how to not find yourself “comparing”? I’d love the insight!!

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