Canadian Mennonite
Volume 9, No. 17
September 5, 2005
Mom learns to Treasure the Moments
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Abbotsford, B.C.
For Laurel Hildebrandt, being a wife and mother to two children while juggling a counselling career means life is full. But Hildebrandt found that in the midst of it all, she wanted to be able to treasure the moments with her husband and children—especially when she had had a particularly rough day. One of her habits is to journal and to find the blessings in each day. The result of this habit is a new book entitled Treasure the Moments, Spiritual Insights for Motherhood.
“Some moments were scary, funny or just wonderful kid moments, but the important thing was, ‘What can I learn from this? What is God teaching me?’” she says.
“At the time it was being written I was in the midst of two years of severe sleep deprivation…. Joshua, our youngest,…was severely colicky and just wouldn’t sleep,” Hildebrandt recalls. “I wanted to hold onto moments. Those moments and the writing of them became my sanity because I was looking for the next chapter, I was looking for treasurable moments which added much joy to being a mother.”
Using a storytelling format and sharing from her own experience, Hildebrandt connects those moments to the lessons that can be learned from them. Chapters with titles like “A higher calling,” “Feeding time at the zoo,” and “Super Mom,” highlight a humorous approach to topics that hit home to most mothers.
In the chapter titled “A day in the life of…,” Hildebrandt shares the experience of a sleep-deprived day when she questioned her sanity:
“My tired brain runs through the juggling act I seem to be performing. I have a two-year-old. I have a baby who refuses to sleep and cries much of the time. I have a private counselling practice that I can’t keep up with because of my lack of sleep…. I can barely stay awake to supervise my intern counsellor and have zero time for any administrative work. My self-analysis seems to ring true in my very tired brain. Diagnosis: crazy mom.”
But as she considers her diagnosis, she also wonders if Jesus’ mother, Mary, ever felt like she was losing her mind. Considering all that Mary had to deal with in simply bearing the Son of God, it would be understandable if Mary felt at loose ends. Yet, Hildebrandt says, all indications are that Mary accepted her calling with grace: “Mary understood that she had been called for this purpose in her life and completely trusted God with her calling, no matter what the consequences.”
It is this simple insight that has made the book popular with mothers.
“People are telling me that they love the book and are encouraged by it,” she says. “People are telling me that they are now okay with just spending some quality time with their kids rather than fretting about cleaning up all the messes that little ones make—with balance of course!”
Her greatest hope is that the book will draw people closer to God, whom she sees as the perfect parent. She felt that God was with her throughout the writing of it. “I asked God how I should pray for this book,” she says. “His answer was simple, ‘Pray that it gets published and widely read to my glory.’ Praise God for the first part of answered prayer. Now I am on the second part of that prayer—to God be the glory!”
Treasure the Moments is published by Tate Publishing & Enterprises. Ordering information is available at Hildebrandt’s website: www.laurelhildebrandt.com.
Baritone sings of peace, understanding in East Asia
Nanchong, China, and Sapporo, Japan
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As the last note hung in the otherwise silent auditorium, listeners sat in wonder of Anthony Brown’s voice, wiping tear-damp eyes. Then the crowd burst into applause, the sound of their hands ringing into the building’s rafters.
Brown, well versed in opera, oratorio, art song, contemporary works and spirituals, made his Asian debut on a tour May 9 through June 13. Hosted by Mennonite Church Canada Witness partners China Educational Exchange (CEE) and Mennonite Mission Network (MMN), the baritone gave concerts and lectures in China and Japan at universities, concert halls, churches and Mennonite centres. In each venue, Brown’s goal was to connect across race, language and culture to promote peace and help his audiences focus on their oneness in the family of God.
“If I can go to a very different part of the world and connect deeply with others and find in our meeting our common humanity, something very significant has occurred,” Brown said.
According to Teresa Sherrill, Witness worker in Japan, Brown’s presentations allowed for self-examination, encouraging listeners to look deeper at their own attitudes and see beyond others’ exteriors to the Christ inside.
“As Japanese society continues to be confronted by their Asian neighbours for their past and ongoing racial tensions, Tony’s words were thought-provoking and led us to consider the power and presence of the transcendent one,” Sherrill said.
In Japan’s busy and competitive society, current trends have brought “a relativism and freedom that was not tolerated or encouraged in the past,” Sherrill said. “Allegiance to the group identity has been diluted and more people are expressing their own preferences.”
In Nanchong, a music professor expressed gratitude for the baritone’s willingness to learn from the Chinese. Audience members were delighted to join Brown in singing several African-American spirituals, as well as a Chinese folk tune the singer learned on the road. He also visited the Nanchong church, leading a Saturday afternoon choir workshop, singing in the Sunday morning worship service, and then visiting with Chinese Christians.
According to Gordon Janzen, who oversees Witness ministries in Asia, the Anthony Brown tour illustrates the benefits of working with partner agencies. “In this case, Tony Brown, through Hesston College [where he is artist-in-residence], was able to minister to people of another culture in another continent. The world of international ministry would be so much smaller without these networks,” said Janzen.
Brown said the tour helped him understand and feel solidarity with the Chinese and Japanese. “My family has been increased and I thank God for the opportunity to share my life and to receive the gift of new brothers and sisters,” he explained. “Hearing their stories only confirmed for me just how much we are alike and just how much we need each other.”