This could be deemed the year of coming forth with your deepest most painful secrets. It would seem that some put themselves up for public positions knowing there shouldn't be dirty secrets in your closet. SO I did some serious soul searching about whether I had secrets I would be embarrassed were they exposed. Anything I might have done would be mild by today's standards.
However, there are some things I am not totally proud of and wish I had never been a part of.
How about you?
I have never smoked nor have I been an alcohol drinker not even wine. So I can't claim I did it because I was inebriated. Therefore, I would need to take the blame for my own stupid acts. This is just Me 2 fessing up.
I am no saint.... but I am no.............either.
Thursday, October 4, 2018
Tuesday, September 4, 2018
My gracious, it has been a while since I wrote here. Not that there has been much to write about. Sometimes having so much to write about makes it even more difficult.
So time has passed and using a blog as a way of journaling seems out of "vogue" in 2018.
Since I last blogged I have two new bionic knees. Though the pain is gone I don't feel so steady all of the time and fear falling a bunch. Could be bcause my surgeon told me it takes 18 months for each knee to completely heal and I am while from 18 months on the first surgery.
At this point we have the craziest disobedient non law abiding president I have known in my lifetime. Only tie will tell how this presidency turns out.
So time has passed and using a blog as a way of journaling seems out of "vogue" in 2018.
Since I last blogged I have two new bionic knees. Though the pain is gone I don't feel so steady all of the time and fear falling a bunch. Could be bcause my surgeon told me it takes 18 months for each knee to completely heal and I am while from 18 months on the first surgery.
At this point we have the craziest disobedient non law abiding president I have known in my lifetime. Only tie will tell how this presidency turns out.
Sunday, April 2, 2017
I love this from Lloyd Newell of Mormon Tabernacle Choir Broadcast today. Describes so aptly my love and need for light.
Look for the Light
The world thrives on light. Just about every living thing seems to do a little better when the sun is shining. The natural world comes alive at dawn, as the light of a new day chases away darkness, and earth awakens with hope. And when spring brings longer stretches of light, it seems as if all of creation, surging with new life, rejoices in the victory over winter’s darkness.
Light allows us to see life more clearly. In the light, we can distinguish truth from error, we can make better choices, and we can plan our lives with greater purpose. But there is also darkness in the world, and darkness obscures our path, hides both danger and goodness from our view, and hinders our growth. No wonder, then, that so many of us, at some time in our lives, are afraid of the dark.
One child who felt this way learned to overcome her fear by looking for light. She would sit in bed at night and look out the window until she found some light—somewhere. Sometimes she found it in a home across the street with its lights still on. Sometimes she could see a street lamp in the distance. When all else seemed dark, she would look at the stars or search the sky for the moon. Somehow knowing that a light was shining somewhere calmed her fears and helped her settle into peaceful slumber.
When the darkness around us seems overwhelming, when we can’t seem to find any light, it helps to remember that even when we can’t see it, the sun is always shining. It may be hidden by the shadowy clouds of daily living, but it is always there. Perhaps night has made light seem like a distant memory, but darkness is ever the herald of dawn. No matter the darkness in our lives, the light of God’s love still shines, and it can fill our hearts. It gives us hope in our suffering, joy in our sorrow, and light in our darkness.
Yes, there is much in this life that brings sadness and distress. But God has also filled the world with an abundance of His light and love. If we seek it and receive it, this light can fill our lives like “sunshine in the soul.”1
1. “There Is Sunshine in My Soul Today,” Hymns,no. 227.
Light allows us to see life more clearly. In the light, we can distinguish truth from error, we can make better choices, and we can plan our lives with greater purpose. But there is also darkness in the world, and darkness obscures our path, hides both danger and goodness from our view, and hinders our growth. No wonder, then, that so many of us, at some time in our lives, are afraid of the dark.
One child who felt this way learned to overcome her fear by looking for light. She would sit in bed at night and look out the window until she found some light—somewhere. Sometimes she found it in a home across the street with its lights still on. Sometimes she could see a street lamp in the distance. When all else seemed dark, she would look at the stars or search the sky for the moon. Somehow knowing that a light was shining somewhere calmed her fears and helped her settle into peaceful slumber.
When the darkness around us seems overwhelming, when we can’t seem to find any light, it helps to remember that even when we can’t see it, the sun is always shining. It may be hidden by the shadowy clouds of daily living, but it is always there. Perhaps night has made light seem like a distant memory, but darkness is ever the herald of dawn. No matter the darkness in our lives, the light of God’s love still shines, and it can fill our hearts. It gives us hope in our suffering, joy in our sorrow, and light in our darkness.
Yes, there is much in this life that brings sadness and distress. But God has also filled the world with an abundance of His light and love. If we seek it and receive it, this light can fill our lives like “sunshine in the soul.”1
1. “There Is Sunshine in My Soul Today,” Hymns,no. 227.
Friday, February 24, 2017
Growing Together
Growing Together
Many years ago, a young boy visited his uncle who worked in the lumber business. They were looking at the trees in the lumber camp when the boy noticed a very tall tree standing alone on the hilltop. Full of excitement, the boy showed his uncle the towering tree. “Look at that big tree!” he exclaimed. “It will make a lot of good lumber, won’t it?”
To the boy’s surprise, his uncle shook his head. “No,” he said, “that tree will not make a lot of good lumber. It might make a lot of lumber but not a lot of goodlumber. When a tree grows off by itself, too many branches grow on it. Those branches produce knots when the tree is cut into lumber. The best lumber comes from trees that grow together in groves. The trees also grow taller and straighter when they grow together.”1
It is true of trees, and it is true of each of us. We grow into better people when we grow together rather than alone. While there’s value in independence, there are also critical lessons to learn from interdependence. The personal growth that comes from giving and receiving help can happen in no other way.
We were not meant to be solitary, to stand alone, apart from one another. We need other people to love and care about, and we thrive when others love and care about us. Each one of us is needed, and each one of us has something to offer. Together we are better than we would be alone.
All around us are those who are lonely—those who need a friend, a word of encouragement, a kind outreach. So many people are looking for the light of love, the warmth of friendship. We can resolve not to let them stand alone in the dark or the cold. We can reach out to them. We can take an interest in them and include them. We can help them stand taller and grow straighter, and like trees that grow in groves, we will find that we too can stand taller and grow straighter. This is what happens when trees—and people—grow together.
To the boy’s surprise, his uncle shook his head. “No,” he said, “that tree will not make a lot of good lumber. It might make a lot of lumber but not a lot of goodlumber. When a tree grows off by itself, too many branches grow on it. Those branches produce knots when the tree is cut into lumber. The best lumber comes from trees that grow together in groves. The trees also grow taller and straighter when they grow together.”1
It is true of trees, and it is true of each of us. We grow into better people when we grow together rather than alone. While there’s value in independence, there are also critical lessons to learn from interdependence. The personal growth that comes from giving and receiving help can happen in no other way.
We were not meant to be solitary, to stand alone, apart from one another. We need other people to love and care about, and we thrive when others love and care about us. Each one of us is needed, and each one of us has something to offer. Together we are better than we would be alone.
All around us are those who are lonely—those who need a friend, a word of encouragement, a kind outreach. So many people are looking for the light of love, the warmth of friendship. We can resolve not to let them stand alone in the dark or the cold. We can reach out to them. We can take an interest in them and include them. We can help them stand taller and grow straighter, and like trees that grow in groves, we will find that we too can stand taller and grow straighter. This is what happens when trees—and people—grow together.
* Credit given to L Newell, Mormon Tabernacle Broadcast
Monday, October 10, 2016
Worry
Since I have spent a goodly portion of my life in the exercise of worry I was pleased to find these words from the Music and Spoken Word Broadcast. Seems worth a try.
Putting Worry in Its Place
Nobody’s life is worry free, but that doesn’t mean our worries need to run our lives. Learning how to manage our worries can make all the difference in our well-being. This is what a busy young father learned. He had a challenging career and was feeling overwhelmed with his many responsibilities. He would come home from work every night feeling anxious and even physically ill. He found it very difficult to sleep at night. He went to his physician for help; he prayed and pondered about what to do. The man soon realized that he needed to stop worrying so much. But how would he do that?
In time, he was inspired with a simple idea: he got two baskets; one he labeled “worry” and the other “concern.” Then he organized all of his challenges and responsibilities into one of the two baskets—even if only mentally. The things he could do nothing about went in the worry basket, and those he had some ability to resolve went in the concern basket.
In this way, he could focus his attention on concerns—issues over which he had some power. He could prioritize these issues and do his best to resolve as many of them as possible, without wasting time on worries that were outside of his control. Of course, just putting something in the worry basket didn’t make it go away, but he did find that, if he was patient, solutions emerged—very often with divine help or even just the passage of time.
The anxiety didn’t vanish all at once, but whenever he felt it stirring inside him, he stopped what he was doing, prayed for support, and said to himself, “I am not going to do another thing until I begin to control my emotions.” Over time, as he learned to put worry in its proper place, his health and well-being improved, and what was once a weakness in his life became one of his strengths.1
Worry can be disheartening, leading us to feel overwhelmed or powerless. But when we put our worries in their proper place—whether in a basket or simply out of our minds—we can take purposeful action, be resourceful, and tackle the problems within our control. Eventually, instead of being filled with worry, our lives will be filled with patience, perspective, and peace.
1. Richard G. Scott, “Making the Right Choices” (Brigham Young University fireside, Jan. 13, 2002), 2-3; speeches.byu.edu.
 | This Week's Broadcast August 21, 2016 | Broadcast Number 4536 |
Nobody’s life is worry free, but that doesn’t mean our worries need to run our lives. Learning how to manage our worries can make all the difference in our well-being. This is what a busy young father learned. He had a challenging career and was feeling overwhelmed with his many responsibilities. He would come home from work every night feeling anxious and even physically ill. He found it very difficult to sleep at night. He went to his physician for help; he prayed and pondered about what to do. The man soon realized that he needed to stop worrying so much. But how would he do that?
In time, he was inspired with a simple idea: he got two baskets; one he labeled “worry” and the other “concern.” Then he organized all of his challenges and responsibilities into one of the two baskets—even if only mentally. The things he could do nothing about went in the worry basket, and those he had some ability to resolve went in the concern basket.
In this way, he could focus his attention on concerns—issues over which he had some power. He could prioritize these issues and do his best to resolve as many of them as possible, without wasting time on worries that were outside of his control. Of course, just putting something in the worry basket didn’t make it go away, but he did find that, if he was patient, solutions emerged—very often with divine help or even just the passage of time.
The anxiety didn’t vanish all at once, but whenever he felt it stirring inside him, he stopped what he was doing, prayed for support, and said to himself, “I am not going to do another thing until I begin to control my emotions.” Over time, as he learned to put worry in its proper place, his health and well-being improved, and what was once a weakness in his life became one of his strengths.1
Worry can be disheartening, leading us to feel overwhelmed or powerless. But when we put our worries in their proper place—whether in a basket or simply out of our minds—we can take purposeful action, be resourceful, and tackle the problems within our control. Eventually, instead of being filled with worry, our lives will be filled with patience, perspective, and peace.
1. Richard G. Scott, “Making the Right Choices” (Brigham Young University fireside, Jan. 13, 2002), 2-3; speeches.byu.edu.
Saturday, July 16, 2016
As It Is
My gracious how things seem to have deteriorated in our country our world over the last while. As citizens we (well most of us) find this very unsettling and it sends our worry meter sailing off the scales.
An impressive way of expressing how we should feel toward our brothers and sisters who inhabit our planet was once said or credited to Nelson Mandela --
"No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally." - Nelson Mandela
This brings me to wonder what so many have experienced to have learned to hate so deeply. While being aware that my life experiences have been totally different from that of others, some folks evidently have experienced some really tough abuse and mistreatment, Or could this be indicative of propaganda, lies, and evil acts, being spread throughout the universe.
An impressive way of expressing how we should feel toward our brothers and sisters who inhabit our planet was once said or credited to Nelson Mandela --
"No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally." - Nelson Mandela
This brings me to wonder what so many have experienced to have learned to hate so deeply. While being aware that my life experiences have been totally different from that of others, some folks evidently have experienced some really tough abuse and mistreatment, Or could this be indicative of propaganda, lies, and evil acts, being spread throughout the universe.
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Irritating Rationalizations
Ever have situational things dangled or flaunted in front of your face that are just plain irritating? Guess I just have my underwear in a wad! BUT and However....since I have already mentioned it.
This about sums it up: However you have chosen to live your life, or whatever choices you have made let them be yours. You were given the agency to make your choices or as the song says " choose your life and how it will be!". Do it and move on with your life. Don't proceed to try to rationalize your choices to everyone else as if you are trying to convince us that your are correct or that we should all be as happy with those choices as you are. Chances are we don't care or if we were interested we would have asked or made the same choices in our own lives.
And don't bother giving up updates about how hard the choices you have made are ---they are yours, remember?
That's All.
This about sums it up: However you have chosen to live your life, or whatever choices you have made let them be yours. You were given the agency to make your choices or as the song says " choose your life and how it will be!". Do it and move on with your life. Don't proceed to try to rationalize your choices to everyone else as if you are trying to convince us that your are correct or that we should all be as happy with those choices as you are. Chances are we don't care or if we were interested we would have asked or made the same choices in our own lives.
And don't bother giving up updates about how hard the choices you have made are ---they are yours, remember?
That's All.
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