Weary In Well Doing
March 18, 2024 by admin
Filed under Personal Growth
Here's my confession: I am weary. My to-do list is a mile long and my energy is depleted. I'm overwhelmed by all I need to do and desire to do nothing at all. I just want a day (or a week) to play hooky from Life. Would anyone miss me if I checked out for a short sabbatical? Life would go on without me, and not miss a beat. The clock would keep ticking and the calendar pages would fly off. Time stops for no man (or woman).
Changing
By Joy Thomas
When I bought the house, the fruit trees were already dying. The wild grapevines overwhelmed them and had blocked the light. I wanted to put in new trees, but clearing the vines and killing the grapevine roots proved too big a job for me. I prayed for help. One day, my neighbor hired a tree service to remove some trees along the fence. Here was help coming right to my backyard! I walked out to the pasture and asked the tree man to remove the dead trees. He gave me a good price. He also encouraged me to get a few goats to keep the ivy under control.
Come and Get It!
When I was growing up my mom bolted an old iron bell to the backside of the house. When it was time for dinner, chores, or some other event that she needed us home for, I heard that bell from anywhere in the neighborhood and knew I had about five minutes to get myself home. I raced from the neighbor’s house where I was playing and arrived back home out of breath, panting, waiting to see what Mom needed.
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A Merry Heart
March 15, 2024 by admin
Filed under Family Focus
By Jane Thornton
One rainy afternoon, I popped some corn and settled into the corner of the couch for a good read. Alone, I couldn’t quite finish the whole batch—not for lack of trying. The cooling kernels lost their appeal, so I lowered the bowl to the floor to be dealt with at a slow point in the plot. Soon my itchy, runny nose demanded attention. But I was cozy and warm. No box of Kleenex sat on the end table. What to do? The only slightly greasy paper towel on top of the popcorn made a handy hankie. The jangle of the phone roused me from my engrossed perusal of the novel. After tending to the call, I made a pit stop for a drink and headed back to the sofa, immediately re-involved in the story. My teenage daughter Meredith plopped onto the other end and flicked on the television. I barely looked up. A crunching sound infringed upon my consciousness. I transferred my attention.
Hot or Lukewarm?
My four-year-old buddy, Ethan, has discovered the joy of chewing gum, and now begs anyone he sees for a piece of gum. Recently, someone gave him a stick of cinnamon-flavored gum. Others warned him that it might be too hot for him. He placed half a stick in his mouth. I n seconds, his eyes watered and he waved his hand in front of his mouth. All of a sudden he screamed for the gum wrapper and just as if his tongue was on fire, he spit the gum out. He said he wanted to give it time to "cool down" a bit before chewing it. I guess he confused spicy hot and warm hot! His mom was always telling him to blow on his soup if it was too hot, so he figured it would work for spicy hot gum!
