Think About It

Do you remember when you were young and in love?   During those early days it seemed like everything was fun and exciting.   The first kiss, the first rose, the wedding, the honeymoon, the first trip over the threshold, your first vacation together – all of these things were steps towards a deepening relationship with that special person in your heart.   Then, something happened – life.   Pretty soon there were fewer and fewer “firsts” meaning that your marriage and your lives began to become routine.   Sure, periodically something special (like an anniversary or Valentine’s Day) would pop up, but all-in-all you began to take on the personality of an old married couple.   For those who had hoped that it wouldn’t happen to them, they began to feel the strain of the mundane and the disappointment of everyday life.   While I hope that the previous paragraph does not apply to any of our readers, I would imagine that at least of a few of us might have wr...

Each year I look forward to the coming of autumn.   After experiencing the Dog Days of August (and September) I can’t wait for the cooler weather.    I even get excited about the first snowfall.   Despite living so many years where snow is commonplace, there is something special about seeing everything covered in that white blanket for the first time of the season.   Yes, I do enjoy the coming of the cooler weather, but by this time of year I am over it!   I am tired of the gray skies, cold precipitation and the wind.   I need a Spring Break! When I was in college we didn’t have an official Spring Break and that trend as continued through the years.   Sure, I have taken a trip or two this time of year, but I don’t like crowds on my beaches (much less paying a premium price to be in the midst of them), so I generally don’t do a traditional trip down south.   However, for the sake of sanity – and to avoid a grouchy personality – I still need...

Growing up when and where I did (and topping out at 5 feet 8 inches tall) I have never really been a big basketball fan.   Like most kids I played basketball in elementary school, on the playgrounds and was in a league at the local youth center, but that is about the extent of my basketball experience.   However, even without much technical background, I still enjoy March Madness!   Honestly, I can’t tell you which NCAA teams have had good years so far, but I will begin to have a little bit of interest today.    When I think about what excites me about the Tournament it isn’t as much the games as it is the Cinderella stories.   Beginning today, there are 68 teams – schools of all shapes and sizes, from all over the country – who believe they have a shot at winning it all.   Sure, the pundits have made their picks, but the people who lace up their sneakers believe this could be their year. Most of us like Cinderella stories, we like to see the underd...

          When the teenagers from our church went bowling the other night, I thought I would go along with them ... after all, what could it hurt, right?  (Hang on to that thought for a moment, we’ll return to it.)  I used to bowl in league several times a month and, while I wasn’t the best bowler on the team, I did okay.  Well, that was then and this is now.  What began as a fun-filled night turned into some frustration and a lot of aches.  First of all, my mind knew what to do but my body was uncooperative.  I think my first roll was a gutter ball and, even though things got better, I constantly found myself intellectually knowing what to do, but physically unable to do it.  About mid-way through the second game I began to feel the physical strains.  By the end of the second game my fingers were hurting and when we finished the third game I was dragging – which turned into aching later that night an...

I recently accompanied my granddaughters to a water park.   Now, a superficial reading of the above statement seems to be a rather innocent (and even fun) revelation, but let me fill in the blanks.   Along with hundreds of strangers, I swam, picked-up and carried two girls, climbed three flights of stairs (a half dozen times), got on and off a tube dozens of times, climbed more flights of stairs, pitched a seven and eight year old into the pool, got dunked several times, had water shoot up my nose, rode and got thrown off a body surfing ride, traversed a rope bridge, got dumped on by a huge bucket of water and climbed a few more flights of stairs in a building that was heated to 82 degree and contained 100% humidity!   Yep, that about covers it.   Let’s just say at the end of the day I was beat!   As I walked out of the facility I was feeling a little guilty about not doing a workout until I took an inventory of my body – I may not have done a formal exercise ...

If you are looking for a fun way to ruin you day just go to an antique store.   I hadn’t been to many antique stores until my daughter and her family took me to one last weekend.   On one hand it was a fun walk back through time, but I quickly realized that many of the things that appealed to me were from MY lifetime.   Things they called antiques were items I had played with or I had used.   Wow – that was disheartening! There was a little bit of vindication though ... some of the vintage things in the store were items from our daughter and son-in-law’s eras.   (I don’t know if that should make me feel better or cause us all to feel old.) I have nothing to complain about in my life.   While there are still several things I would like to accomplish, I have been blessed to live as many years as I have.   As soon as I think about fussing about growing old(er) I am reminded of many of my contemporaries who didn’t make it this far.   I am thankful...

Where do we get our spiritual training?   Some of us grew up going to church and learned a lot of the basic Bible stories.   Many of us continue to seek out spiritual education through personal Bible study, Mid-week Bible Classes and weekly lessons and worship services.   All of these are great choices for developing our spiritual selves, but we must be cautious about how we supplement this training.   You see, there is a lot of religion being taught all around us.   While some of it is good, there is a lot of it that just flat misses the mark.   It seems like a lot of people are happy to share their religious expertise, but not all of it is accurate.   Politicians, spiritual leaders, entertainers, athletes, busybodies, store clerks ... and a number of other people are quick to speak for God and godliness, but we must be careful because not all the self-proclaimed experts really are that – experts.   They may have a college degree or have merely ...