When Life Keeps You Busy

When life keeps you busy and you have too many things going on at the same time.... you can sometimes miss a whole year!  Too many pathways, too many footprints. Multi tasking sometimes isn't possible when there are just too many things going on that you have to take care of.
Yep, it's been a year since I've worked on this blog, but tonight decided to make a change or two and get it up and going again. 

I've added a new page: "Poetry of my Childhood". I was reminded the other day of my teachers growing up. So many teachers, so many that touched my life in one way or another. Most in a positive way. (Two or three - counting college years that weren't so positive, but still learned from them). 

One teacher that touched my life was Mr. Tom Kennedy. He recently passed away at only 68 years of age. He was my English teacher. I grew my love of English, grammar and respect from him. I learned to love to diagram sentences!  To me it was a way of adding art to words. I got to draw lines and put words on them going different directions!  

Thoughts of him brought up thoughts of other teachers. One I had to research somewhat to remember his name, but thanks to Facebook.... and others remembering... Mr. Jacobs!  Yes, he was a dear old man. (in his 80's when I knew him). He was a substitute teacher who would recite poetry in our class instead of going over the class assignment we were studying. I loved what I considered rebelling against the regular class and loved the poetry. I only wish I could remember more of them that he recited.  I have included the two I recall in my 'Poetry of My Childhood' page. 

To all the teachers out there..... treat your students well. You never know how you will touch them in ways that it will last a lifetime. Be a positive influence on them. You may never know who you touched nor how because as young people we don't appreciate what we have, how we are being influenced, nor what we are being taught.  The things you, as teachers, are teaching your students may have little or nothing to do with the actual book learning you are teaching. The memories are seldom about how you had them read an assignment and do particular homework. The memories are about the way your treated them and others. The memories are about the things you did out of the ordinary. Even if it is just a smile you give everyday, an extra helping hand, or just being yourself in general.  Be positive. 

On that note.... each of us needs to be a positive influence to others. Children and adults alike. I am often writing in my Facebook posts to share your smile, be an encouragement to others. Let's also be positive. And on those days you don't feel like the positive one, reach out to someone who is. Let them help you through the down times. 

Sometimes it may just be a memory from your childhood that will bring a smile and change your day. And that is when you realize that you will be someone's memory someday.  Let them be able to smile when they remember. 

Til next time.... 

and I promise it won't be another year --- Lord willing and the creek don't rise---- til I'm back posting.....

Happy memories! 

Phyllis

GOD KNOWS THE TIMING

In our daily life we wake each morning to face a new day. We have ideas and plans for what the day will bring. We know what is 'supposed' to happen each day. Our calendars are full with the details. Some of us have calendars so full that we have to write down a time to eat and sleep. 

That may sound a bit extreme, but I find it more and more the truth when I see and read what some families are busy doing even all through the summer. 

And yet, in the middle of it all God throws in a monkey wrench so to speak with a detour. Sometimes it is a welcomed detour, sometimes it is a sad and not welcomed detour. But, they all make us take a step back and reconsider what we are doing. 

I just heard of a former classmate that died suddenly. And I have had other friends pass away suddenly or after long illnesses. All of these are in God's timing, but not our time. We question the timing. We ask why at all did it happen. So many are still so young. But they all make us take a step back. We stop what we are doing even for a few moments and say a prayer for the family, for those affected and we think about our own lives. We may even change a few things we have on our full schedule to give ourselves a chance to breath and to enjoy the life we have.

God has blessed us all. Some seem to have an easy life. Some go through many struggles over time. Some struggle on a daily basis. Some have pain that never goes away. Some face difficult situations that change the life they had planned.  

We all can be thankful for the life we have, even through the struggles. We know that God is there for us all the time. At times we feel He isn't there because of the tough situation we are facing. But it isn't He that is not there, we are the ones looking away. We try to do it all on our own. We think we don't need Him. But, in ALL things we do need Him. It is through our faith and trust in Him that we can rest in peace. 

Yes, we all face hardships. We worry, even though He has told us not to. We stress out when we don't know how we are going to make it. And yet, He is always on time. 

Repeatedly we face this and we are able to look back and wonder why we were worried. We knew He would be there, that He would answer our prayers, that He would supply what we needed. 

Yes, there are times when the answer He gives may not be the one we wanted to hear. As in someone passing away instead of being healed in our earthly idea of what healing is. In reality they got the ultimate healing from Him and have no more pain. we are the ones who feel the pain and sorry. We ask why when we should be praising Him. 

We want things done on 'our' time, but He knows best and when we look back at answered prayer we see that if it had been done on 'our' time it would not have worked out as well. 

And so, today for many things we praise Him and give him the glory. He has many many prayers. 

I pray for you all that you keep your faith and trust in Him and talk to Him. He is there for us and loves to hear from us. We also need to listen for He will answer us. 

Phyllis

SUMMER TIME

Summer has officially begun. It brings with it many changes to what we have known as our normal routine. The routines of daily life start to change with the dawning of spring and continue to blossom into summer. 

Our time of feeling cooped up inside all winter are long gone. We are able to open the windows and doors to let the fresh air in. We then close them and turn on the air conditioning because the warm air has become hot and humid. 

The gardens are planted, the flowers are in bloom. The vegetables are growing.The leaves are full on the trees, the birds have built their nests and baby birds have already flown away to be on their own. 

Vacation time is here for some and resorts and tourist attractions are fulling up. Families are excited to be spending time together away from home. Kids are thrilled as they jump in the lake/pool or into the ocean. Others enjoy a hike up the mountains, or time in the wilderness exploring. 

Others who can't afford the time away from home, who don't have vacation time, are finding at least some time to sneak away for a day or two, or even for an hour or two as time allows and they take it. 

It is all a mater of priorities. We spend our lives doing what we have to do mixed with what we want to do. Yet, at times what we want to do just doesn't fit in between what we have to do. 

It's at times like these that we learn to appreciate the moments in life - one moment at a time.  

We wake in the morning thankful to be alive. We look around us and praise Him for all the blessings. We become aware of the beauty of God's creations we see outside and as we drive to our work. 

Each new day brings a new beauty. The birds singing their songs. The sunshine, clouds and yes, even the rain produce beauty.  The flowers bloom and share their fregrances. 

To enjoy and feel the blessings God grants us we need to take time out each day to, as the saying goes: Stop and smell the roses." 

May you all be blessed with all the beauty that summer has to offer. 

 

 
 

"WHAT IFS"

LIFE

How many of us look around at our life and wonder what it would have been like if it was just a bit different, or even a lot different?

Want would our ‘today’ be like if we had made different decisions along our road?

If we have made a right turn instead of a left turn at that intersection both figuratively and literally, what a different life we could be living. 

Would it be better? Would it be worse? 

The classes we chose to take in college or even in high school for those who had a choice in those classes – why did we choose the ones we did? What lead us to make those choices ?

What if we had listened, or not listened, to our parents and their advise or their corrections, or at least their thoughts on what was going on in our lives at any given time in our life?

Many people are faced with negative comments from others for a wide variety of reasons.  The teacher who told you that you could ‘never do….”; you could ‘never be…”.  The parent who told you your were not allowed to do something for whatever reason. Or even the friends who told you that you should try something else instead of what was in your heart. What if you had listened to them and took them at their word that you could, ‘never…’?

Some take those nay Sayers at their word and make changes to make others happy. Later in life some of those look back and wonder, “what if…”  Their heart still wants to try what they were told they couldn’t/shouldn’t do. Some have the time and the ways and means to attempt it. Some just shrug it off and figure the life they have now is the life they were meant to have and just put the past away inside an invisible book they lock away in an invisible hiding place – called their heart. 

Many face that same negative feedback at a young age and use it as a reverse psychology and turn that negative into a positive. They excel at what they set out to conquer.   The people who provided the negative feedback are amazed at the accomplishments made. A few shake their heads and continue to wait for that person to fail. Some voice how thankful they are that the person didn’t listen to them.  Some just hide and pretend they never were negative in the first place. 

As we all age and go on with our lives we step back from time to time and see what we are blessed with. We see the joy others bring into our lives and how we bring joy into other people’s lives.  Each new day we set out to get through the day. We make our right turns and our left turns until we make it back into the safety net of our homes and fall to sleep content that another day is done. We feel that this is the life we have been dealt and this is the life we will live out.

BUT! What if??????  Can we honestly say it is bad to say, ‘what if?”  Is there enough time in a day to dream and wonder, from time to time, ‘what if?”  We are not able to go back to any time in our lives and relive it in a new way. We can’t literally go back and erase any of our yesterdays. We have lived through them and made our decisions as we went along. Those decisions can’t be changed. 

On the other hand…. What if? Our imaginations are full of day dreams, a few nightmares and yes, admit it we get led to the ‘what if’s’ as we age. 

What if we had lived in a different town? 

Made different friends in grade school, high school and college? 

What if we had/or had not gone to college when we did? 

What if we had gone sooner, or later? 

What if we had worked at different places than we did? 

What if we had taken a different direction on our road of life? 

What if we had dated someone else?

And can any of our, “What ifs’ be changed now? Can we change our today and our plans for tomorrow to include a portion of what may have been?  

Go back to school? Move? Change jobs? A desire you had as a child to be an artist, a writer, a doctor, a nurse, a great poet, a great musician. Is it ever too late to try something new? If the thing you are wondering about truthfully cannot be done, let your imagination run and play through your idea of what your life may have been like. 

If you had had a different job – you wouldn’t have the work experience you have now. Your friends you met at work would not be there. If you met the love of your life at the job you did have you may not have met them if you worked elsewhere. 

If you had gone to a different school, at a different time in your life – a lot of the same as above. Your life as you know it would be different. 

If you had dated and married a different person – your kids and grandkids would not be who they are. You may have had more kids, fewer kids, no kids. 

If you had pursued a different pathway at any part of your life, the life you have now would be totally different. For good or bad it would have been different. Some people feel the life they have is not great. They wish it had been a better one. Other people feel they have a wonderful life and to make any other choices along the way feel that their life would be horrible. 

For those who wish things had been better – it may be time to make some changes now to improve it. Take up that hobby you always wanted to do. Go back to school, or at least take a class or two. 

Always know that looking back and wondering what your life would have been like and dreaming of what could have been…..realize that in your day dreams you are going to make that life better than it actually may have been. 

God has His plans for us. And when we seek Him and follow Him our life is and will be what it was supposed to be. 

O.k. I’ll admit that  I have gone through times of wondering what if.  Usually it was wishing I had not made some of the bad choices. However I’ve learned that by living through those bad choices and rough times in my life I have been able to help others through their rough times. 

Your life experiences are there for a reason. Don’t feel down for the struggles you have gone through. If you are struggling now, make the best out of it that you can. See the positive in it. Use it to help others.  

How boring life would be if life was perfect for everyone. And what is ‘perfect”? Life has its ups and downs. It has the negative with the positive. It has good and its bad. We are able to use it all to learn, grow, share, appreciate and love.

What are your ‘what ifs’? 

Til next time ---

As you experience your day, 

enjoy it so that tomorrow 

won’t be another day 

to wonder,

 “What if…”.

Phyllis

LITTLE THINGS

Each and every day we notice the big things around us. We go about our day with all the things we 'have' to take care of. We have work, we have meetings, we have obligations, we have household chores, we have family. And we have ourselves to take care of as well. Often taking care of ourselves is the last thing we pay attention to. We don't think we have time to take care of everything and everyone else AND ourselves. So we put ourselves on the back burner. 

We feel fine, we either don't get sick, or we heal quickly when we get sick even when we don't see a doctor. We keep going. Day after day after day. We eat poorly, sleep less and less and not as well as we should when we do sleep. And exercise? Who has time? We have stresses, we have worries. We pretend all is well even if it isn't sometimes. We smile and tell those that ask that we're "doing great!" 

Deep inside we may know better about ourselves. We're not so great. Life has handed us what we feel is a raw deal. But we don't want to burden anyone with that.  Or we truly are 'doing great' and feeling fine and then suddenly - life changes. In an instant the life we know as our normal day to day life; the one we thought we had control of - changes. 

Those changes may come in the form of a sudden illness; a major illness of a loved one; a sudden death of a loved one. We loose our job, hours get cut, bills get higher, or so many other things. 

In the day and age we live in so much happens so fast. We repeatedly are shocked by world events. Some may have happened in our 'back yard' or across the country from us, but they happen. Some may personally affect us. Some just affect us as we wonder what the world is coming to. 

The world as we knew it will never be the same as it was just the day before let alone the same as it was when we were children. Yesterday is past, tomorrow is not promised. What we have is the present. Our gift from God. 

Let us all try to take time to enjoy the little things in our lives. It's the little things that mean the most sometimes. As in the picture I posted with this writing. It is a tiny rose on a bush that I received from my sister that was part of our mother's bush, that was part of our grandmother's bush that came from our great grandmother!  So each year when that tiny rose blooms (and the bush is again full of buds) I am reminded of my family and a life time of memories of all those affected by that rose bush. The love of family. 

I also think that seeing the 'little things' in life make us slow down just a bit and spend a quiet moment or two as we look for them and see them.  A beautiful butterfly, a flower, ripples in the water from a tossed pebble, lightening bugs, the laughter of a baby or young child. The list goes on and your list may be different than mine. 

Whatever your 'little things' are, I hope they bring a smile to your face. I hope they bring wonderful memories. Memories that you either share with others or cling to yourself to enjoy in deep private happiness. 

Our lives are full. But they should never be so full that we miss the joy of 'Little Things'.

Til next time - 
May God bless you

Phyllis

Unseen Miracles

Often in life we see or hear of circumstances that we have no control over and we stop and pray. We ask others to raise it up in prayer as well.  Sometimes the circumstances are close to our heart and we witness God's answers and His blessings. 

At other times we are part of the group who have been asked to pray and we don't know all the details, but we know God knows and we obediently pray. Time may go on and we never know the outcome that our prayers have had, but we trust God and have faith that He knows best and through Him all is well.

Then there are times in our lives when we hear of a circumstance that is close to our heart. We hear about it after the initial occurrence. But we start praying as soon as we hear. We find ourselves mixed with fear, worry, faith and trust. We also find out that He has been playing a part in the circumstances even before we knew what was happening. Long before we knew - He knew. He had been there all along watching out for that person and making sure that even through this event all would be well.

Miracles happen every day. We don't always give them credit as miracles. Some figure it just 'is what it is'. It would have happened the way it did no matter what, with or without so many prayers. I believe it was because of prayer before and during. Faith and trust before hand with continued faith and trust to see it all through. 

Through love, faith, trust, and sharing God we are able to witness His love, comfort, healing, blessings and miracles in our lives.  

His blessings are many. We take them for granted so often. We see the beauty of the seasons, of the world just outside our windows yet close our eyes and heart to it as we are busy with our active lives.  Let us all take time to slow down, pay attention and stay in prayer. Let us share our love for Him with others.  Let us stand in awe of Him. 

Praying for everyday miracles, once in a life time miracles and blessings beyond what we all could imagine. Praising Him for unseen miracles that touched our lives.

Til next time......
Phyllis 
 

THE BEAUTY AROUND US

Warm temperatures mixed with brilliant sunshine make for the perfect spring day. Some are having a difficult time finding the warmer temperatures this year. And even we will be reaching near freezing tonight. 
And yet - 
As we go about our day, if we slow down just a little bit we can see the beauty all around us and count our blessings in what God has given us. 

This week I've been getting up at 3:30 to be to work at 5AM.  Not a time I'm used to being out and about. Yet, in taking it a bit slower, as there is no traffic to fight with, I was able to see things I never noticed. I enjoyed the quietness of the early morning. I looked at houses along the way with no lights on as they were still in dream land. I saw houses with just a dim light on as someone was up, but trying not to disturb the rest of those inside still sleeping. A few houses you could tell people were up as I could see TV's on as they watched the early morning news. 

Approaching the city the lights of businesses that stay on 24/7 seemed to shine brighter in the darkness of early morning. Rabbits and Raccoons scurried across the road in front of me as they escaped into the taller grasses on the other side. Parking lots were nearly empty of vehicles as were the roads I traveled. 

As dawn was waking up around me and the lights near houses illuminated the yards and the flower gardens I was cheered with the beauty of the colors we are so blessed with in nature. 

May we all be able to see the beauty around us. To enjoy the blessings God puts before us. We often look for the big blessings in the things we wish for and pray for while we seem to ignore what is before us if we just take time to notice. 

Til next time -- take life just a bit slower and see the beauty that is around you.

Phyllis