Sometimes, it’s not even a Friday, but you just need a FUN DAY!!
Yet today IS Friday; so, you have double the excuses!
Forget your troubles today like those belated cards.
Let all the worries float away like a beautiful balloon.
Set a fire to your passions like those melting candles.
Grab your love by the hand and make a wish.
Go have a Friday Fun Day today!!
To me, pondering is like a rolling tide, swirling in loads and loads of seashells and sand. It’s like falling back into the deep, fresh fallen snow, sinking lower and lower till you almost have to dig yourself out. It’s the billowing clouds above shifting and turning with the wind, the jet streams drawing one near while sending another away. It’s the swirling of autumn leaves as they gently fall off the oak tree and spin and twirl toward the dirt in a waltzing dancelike motion.
You see, I ponder things. I wonder. I analyze. I muse. I imagine. I postulate and theorize until all facts and thoughts are gathered and brought to conclusion, and resolution, yet, attempting to not assume, surmise or conjecture. I meditate on scriptures, contemplating their meanings for my life and the course I might take. I cherish memories and reminisce of days gone by, how things were, how they might have been, and, sometimes, even how they should have been if the outcome was less than desirable.
It makes me think of the scripture spoken of the mother of Jesus, “But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19) I am by no means aligning myself with Mary, as she was much more meek, humble and chosen. Yet, I think of how she might have pondered all the wonderful things about Christ, even from his birth, and I aspire to be like that. She seems to be a woman who pondered and mused the things that happened to her, to her family and to her children. She seemed to be a woman of deep thought, possibly even, a woman of few words. Taking things as they come, adjusting as she must, and living life with faith and strength through the good and the bad.
Yeah, I think I’d like to be like that, a person of that same character. And so, I ponder. I treasure. I cherish. I reflect. I nurture and cultivate the thoughts and happenings around me. I study, deliberate and reason why His Word tells me what it does. I pray these wonderings lead me deeper and deeper in my walk with Him.
So, I will ponder.
Will you?
I saw a list of questions today on a delightful blog post here, and as easy as the questions seemed while reading, I began to ponder them for myself, and I realized they’re not as easy as they first appear. I’d like to share them with you now and see if you might want to share your answers as well…
If you had a shelf for your three most special possessions (NOT including photos, electronic devices and things stored on then, or people or animals) what would you put there?
I don’t consider myself a real materialistic kind of gal; so, this question took me a little bit of time, because my first thoughts were of my family, all the photos I cherish, and one special book that I treasure. Since, I wasn’t allowed to include people or photos, my list shortened, and since my treasured book will be placed in the ‘happiness’ box below, I was back to square one. I, then, thought of my wedding band, but I could never leave that on a shelf, I would always be wearing it; so, again, I pondered. The next three things I treasure in life would be these: my journals, my camera and my gun. That may seem like a very strange combination, but let me explain…my journals for all of my writings of thoughts, goals, dreams, feelings and agonies of life. Here is where I work out my emotions and seek out the depths of my heart…my camera for all the many photographs I take to try and capture the moment and document the memories forever…my gun for a sense of security and protection, for if this world goes crazy one day, I will protect my family with everything I have and more.
If you had a box labeled ‘happiness,’ what would you put in it?
This one was pretty easy for me to decide, because I believe true happiness can never come from a thing or even a person. True happiness can only come from within, and it can only be found, and be found everlasting, within the joy of the Lord. The One True God is the only one who can bring us perfect peace in a storm, beauty from ashes and joy through morning. So, my Bible would go inside this box, but it would be opened everyday; so, I might read, listen, learn and commune with my Heavenly Father.
What do you want more of in this life?
There’s really not a whole lot more that I want more of. I feel like I have been blessed so much that I don’t really have a right to ask for anything more. I guess, if I had to choose, I’d say I’d like to, personally, have more discipline and confidence I my life. I get so frustrated with myself when I get lazy and when I back up or hesitate due to a lack of confidence.
Daily Life List: What do you do on an average day? Make a list of your usual activities that you do each day.
When I read Paardje’s daily life list, I have to admit I was quite jealous of her disciplined routine. I cannot say I am that precise in my daily agenda; even though, I so long to become that way. My daily life list is more like this:
1. 6:30am Wake up call
2. Devotions/Bible reading
3. New found exercise routine (Mmm, working on the consistency of this one…As of this post, Day 5 in progress)
5. Shower and get ready
6. 3 days a week – Make sure the boys are up and getting ready for school…make sure they have lunches, and take them to school (2 days a week are home days; so, it’s a focus of schoolwork during morning hours)
7. While the boys are in school: 2 days of the weeks, we have a staff meeting and a prayer meeting, both ending around lunch time … And 1 day, I either work at the church or stay home to take care of “home stuff,” depending on the week and what the needs are
8. Lunch with hubby
9. Pick up boys from school
10. Run errands or return home and straighten/clean as needed
11. Dinner
12. Evenings vary but are usually centered around family activities or down time
13. 8pm All video games and devices off…Tv/movies allowed if doing together
14. 9pm Boys to their rooms to read and settle down for bed…All electronics off and put up
15. 9:30/10pm Lights Out for boys 😴
16. Bedtime varies for me… unfortunately, I am a night owl attempting to go to bed at earlier hours these days. 😁
Bonus Question: What are you grateful for from this last week? – and what are you looking forward to in this coming week?
This last week, I am grateful for the beautiful patches of snow we have had. It wasn’t much to speak of, only a dusting really, but I just love snow so much that even a little white dusting makes me feel like a kid again!
This coming week, Sunday, is Valentine’s Day. My husband always says I’m a “sucker for love;” so, naturally, VDay is always a fun day for us! 😊❤️
I do hope you’ve enjoyed my little “heart and soul adventure,” and I do hope you’ll send me a few responses on some of your own answers. Or, maybe like me, it will inspire you to write up your own blog with your answers to these pondering questions. Please, be sure to link my blog; so, I can venture over to read! I’d love to learn more about you and what makes you who you are! 😊 I hope you have a great day today!!
Friday, some good friends of ours lost two of their nephews in a tragic car accident. Today, another family will be saying goodbye to their father, grandfather and husband, whom they lost suddenly about a week ago, and yet, another family just laid to rest their family matriarch, yesterday, after her sudden illness in just the last few days. There are several more I could mention who are going through a season of grief or who are just on the verge of it. Sometimes, when it rains, it pours.
Life is so short. It slows down for no one. Stop. Inhale. Breathe. Make the Moments Last. Cherish those you love longer. Treasure those around you, even when you feel like they’ll be there forever. Don’t let those memories be lost, simply, because you haven’t the time to remember. Don’t brush away the tears, simply, because you don’t want them to see. Pause and ponder. Look up and wonder. Gaze into the eyes of a child, and remember what matters most.
Sometimes, life can be a fierce reminder of what can be lost in an instant. We are never guaranteed tomorrow. We are never promised our next breath. This why it’s so important to savor the dimming light in a sunset, to treasure those last embers around the campfire. We never know what may be around the next bin or beyond the next horizon. How we handle “right now” may determine our regrets and our joys for tomorrow.
We can live our lives letting life happen, or we can choose to make life happen. We can roll on, allowing life to impact us in whatever fashion it comes, or we can choose to make an impact on the life around us. We can be a victim, or we can be the victor. What we do with the time we are given may very well become our anthem or our lament.
If you’ll indulge me, I’d like to share with you what King Solomon said about this in Ecclesiastes 3…
“To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
2 A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
3 A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
4 A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
5 A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
6 A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
7 A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
8 A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.
…(14) I know that whatever God does, It shall be forever.“
From the wisest King who ever lived, we are given confirmation that time never stops; there are seasons for everything, and that whatever God does, that is what will last forever. So, I leave you with this question, ” What things or people do you hold so dear, and for whom are you living your life today?”
![IMG_4213[1]](https://thegrizzlegrist.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/img_42131.jpg)
I read this article the other day, and it really hit home…
18 Things That Are Hard to Explain to Third World Country Friends
Please, know I’m not bragging at all, but I have to say, I consider myself an incredibly blessed person. God has blessed our family so much that, many times, I am simply overwhelmed to tears because of the favor and blessings we have. Please understand, I’m not going to be one of those “prosperity preachers” who claim you will always have favor, you will always be blessed if you just do (blank) and (blank). No, you don’t give to get.
That’s not how God works, but He does honor obedience. He does give wisdom, and when you walk in it, you find blessings. He does honor prayers when you diligently seek Him, and, sometimes, He simply blesses; so you can, in turn, bless another. I can’t tell you all the reasons our family is blessed; I’m sure I could write another post on that later, and I won’t tell you that I’ve never gone through sufferings and pain. That, too, can be saved for another post…and another, and another… but all I am saying is I count myself a very blessed woman.
With that being noted, I really try to keep a grateful heart at all times, and I guess I do pretty good most of the times, but there are moments in life when I forget to be thankful. I forget to remember there are greater struggles in this life than the ones I am facing. There are people in this world who do not know from where their next meal will come, or even, if it will come. There are those who don’t even have a roof over their head, much, much less, an abundance of stuff that they’re needing to throw out!
I read this article the other day, and what the author described reminded me, again, of how very blessed I am…
Each of our family members sleep in their own beds every night.
When I’m hungry, I simply walk over to our refrigerator and decide what I’d like to eat.
When I’m cold, I put on a jacket, cover up with a blanket, or turn the heat up.
When I’m hot, I pour a glass of ice water, go outside and feel the cool breeze, or in the summertime, go stick my feet in a creek or waterfall.
Both of our boys have all the clothes they need, food they can eat, and even too much of material things they want.
When I want to go to the store, I simply jump in my car and drive over to the nearest store.
If we want to travel, we drive the car, fly in a plane, rent a boat, or ride in a train.
I take all the pictures my heart desires on my little smartphone and download them onto a “cloud” program to be retrieved at a later time.
When I want to share with the world what’s going on in mine, I simply sit here at my desk and begin to type, clicking the little blue button when I am finished.
When compared to our daily lives in America, these things I’ve listed seem like little, meaningless things, things that we each take for granted. Yet when compared to the daily lives of those from a third world country who don’t even live at the level of poverty, these simple things seem monumental. We all have something for which to be grateful. We all have someone for whom we can be thankful.
Can we take a few moments today to remember what and who those might be?
Appreciate the things you have. They are just things, and we should never be obsessive nor materialistic; yet, we can acknowledge the ease those things bring to our lives. We can enjoy them and not take them for granted.
Cherish those whom you have in your life. You never know which moment may be the last. Never let the sun go down on your wrath, and never let a moment to be cherished be one forgotten. Live. Love. Laugh, and remember what and who is most important. ❤
Originally posted January 31, 2015…
Just came from the hospital… thankfully, not as a patient today, just a simple visitor. Yet, my heart aches deep inside for those I met, those I passed as I walked the halls. A wife praying over her husband, doctors can’t seem to find the source of infection. A mother, elderly, awaiting dialysis and hoping to heal from her fall. Others along the way, broken, battered and bruised. Some dying to live, others living to die.
You never know someone’s journey unless you walk alongside them. Some come in smiling, only to leave weeping. Others come in desperate, scared, only to leave rejoicing for one more chance. We are none guaranteed our tomorrows. We are not promised our next breath.
Are you ready for the end? Are you prepared for that last sigh of life? Some live like there are no goodbyes. Some trade the beauties of today for the sorrows of tomorrow. Some just wander aimlessly, never really living, not immediately dying, just simply existing in the nothingness.
Can I challenge you today? Can I spark a flame within? Live deliberately. Make your choice to breathe. Die with grace. Never give up a moment simply to clutch what might have been. Never let a minute go by that you forget the joy of living for the sake of sorrow, regret or even fear.
Grasp today by the neck and don’t let go until it’s done. Drink in the sun. Soak in the rain. Take it for what it gives, and make the best of it. Don’t shrink away from the pain. Don’t boast in the joy. You may see it change in the next millisecond. Appreciate and love those around. Forgive and forget when you can. Impact your world for good. Love deep. Laugh much. Live full.
This moment is a gift! Open it. Enjoy it. Share it with those around you. It can never be returned. It can never be saved for another time in space. It is this moment. It is this day. Live it to the fullest in every way!
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Just thought I’d give you another glimpse into my world today. I did this last Thursday, and you all seems to enjoy it; so, I thought I’d share some more this week… 
Truth. (sums up my life with my husband ❤ )
True Story. (*I did not take this pic – off internet*)
Love of My Life…doing what he loves to do
“It’s not the end. It’s only a new beginning…”
A good friend shared this revelation with me as he had just been diagnosed with a curable sickness and was beginning to learn to eat differently and take some new medications in order to feel better…all at an age well over 60.
I said goodbye to a precious woman the other day, a goodbye that will last until I see her again in eternity. She was a strong lady of character, dignity and grace. Her family is starting each new day with her absence, learning to grieve, to cope, to live again.
Some great friends of ours moved away to another state months ago. We probably won’t see them but maybe once or twice a year now. They are greeting new friends and learning to grow and adjust in a new home, city and surroundings.
Our sons started a new school endeavor this year. They are no longer taught in the classroom but now receive all their instructions virtually through the Internet and tutoring videos. They are beginning to transition and learn new ways of communication and knowledge gathering.
In all these things, and in so many more, we close one chapter in our lives; yet, another is quickly opened. We may no longer have the comfort zones of our past, but in the new, we learn to thrive. That’s what life is all about.
So, when changes come and transitions must be made, try not to be drowned by losses; look to what is ahead. Those things, and those people, will surely be missed, but if we remain stagnant in our grief, we will never be able to embrace the new which is ahead. We will never be able to start on the new beginnings, and growth will fall beyond our grasp.
So, reminisce over what was; cherish those memories. However, don’t stay there without forward motion, or you will surely miss the sweet moments which can be treasured ahead.
One of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite authors might sum up this little thought…
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” ~ Dr. Seuss
In light of this being our anniversary week, I hope you will forgive me for not posting something yesterday, and I hope you might indulge me today as I repost something I blogged a little while back for my sweetheart (as you will see by the “info” given). We celebrate 19 years this week, and I am more in love today than I’ve ever been! 😉
We sat in the empty house, the boys away for the evening. He sat at the computer playing chess. I sat in a chair opposite him, reading on my Kindle. He said, “Ya know, this is what old people do. This (silence) is what it sounds like to get old. … What are we gonna do when little bit goes off to college?” I said to him, “Cry…..Cry a lot.”
This started me thinking…
We’ve been together for over 22 years now…8,079 days of my life.
We’ve been married for 18 1/2 of those…over half of my lifetime.
We’ve lived in 2 states and, together, visited 10.
We’ve worked at 5 churches and gone to 2 colleges.
We have 2 sons, numerous “spiritual kids” and no daughters or grandkids.
We are both Southern born and bred, in 2 (technically 3) different states,
and we’re both very proud of it!
I love you more today than that first day I met you,
and even more than the day I said, “I do.”
Yet, I love you less today than I will love you tomorrow or even this time next year.
In a world where the rings come off too quickly, and the marriage vows become negotiable, I have decided our love is here to stay, and even if you wanted, you couldn’t get rid of me without a fight.
This love we have was birthed in wonder and refined in distance and time. All those years we said, “hello” each day, but only held hands once a week, deepened our commitments rather than making them shallow. This love we share has stood the test of time, and even though, I know that test will be retaken again and again during this lifetime, I believe we will remain true. For I don’t belong to you, and you don’t belong to me. We belong to the One who holds this thing together. He is the only One who will see us through.
So, I gladly look to tomorrow and cherish our yesterdays. I hold onto the present and love like it’s only the beginning. I treasure our times together and laugh at our silly mishaps. I glance over your failings and pray you’ll do the same as we reach together, hand over hand, to move beyond what could destroy and stretch our hearts toward the One who would restructure what could have been lost.
Love is not a feeling. It cannot be bought or borrowed or even stolen. Love is a choice that we each choose to uphold and to protect. Love is a choice that we can choose to embrace when we look past our own selfish ways and desires. Love must be cultivated, cherished and cared for. Love must be allowed to bloom.
Blooms do not happen instantaneously. Growth does not happen overnight. Love takes years of tenacity in trials, forgiveness of flaws, blindness to annoyances, perseverance with the little things that really matter. Love doesn’t fail when it is the love from the One who created love. Love lasts forever when it is the love of the Father.
So, today, I say, ‘YES.’
Yes, I will choose to love. Yes, I will choose to forgive.
Yes, I will choose to laugh. Yes, I will choose to cherish.
Yes, I will choose to live. Yes, I will choose to treasure.
Yes, I will choose embrace. Yes, I will choose to uphold.
Yes, I will choose to cultivate, nurture and protect this love.
Yes, I will choose you for life, for love, for laughter.
…Yes… I’ll grow old with you.
Since today marks my 10th Wednesday’s Ode, I’d like to dedicate this one to YOU. Without your desire to read my odes and my blogs, without your encouragement and enthusiasm along the way, these wouldn’t really have much of a point, except to maybe fulfill my own inner need to write and express through those words…
So, today, I say, “Thank You” to all of you who follow these posts and for all who are just now finding my blog. It really means a lot that you would take time out of your busy schedule to read something I’ve written down, and you’ll probably never truly know how deeply you’ve touched my heart.
With this in mind, I have to give my highest praise and tribute to my God who has read every single word and knows every single syllable before it’s even formed on my heart. Through these moments, here on this blog, He has chosen to breathe on me, inspire me, and even heal me through the “pen and paper” in my hand. So, I say, “Thank You, Lord,” for all You’ve done, all You’re doing, and all that You’re going to do!
I am humbled, and I am grateful. Words don’t seem quite adequate to describe. My heart is full. Thank you all. ❤
Scripture Musings
Writing is my midnight train going anywhere… Thanks for the Journey -hdtj
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My journey didn’t stop with mere time travel or writing; it led me to become one of the most sought-after empaths, a soulful psychic who reads the hidden depths of the human spirit. I’ve been blessed—or perhaps burdened—with an ability that allows me to feel the emotions of people from every corner of time.
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I am a licensed psychologist based in Greece. My love for housekeeping has inspired me to create this blog about home management and family relationships. I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing!
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Dedicated to movie nerdom, nostalgia, and escape. In the late 90s, I worked at Blockbuster Video where they let me take home two free movies a day. I caught up on the classics and reviewed theatrical releases for Denver 'burbs newspapers and magazines. Today, while raising two young, beautiful daughters with my amazing wife, I look forward to anything rated R and not Bluey. Comments and dialogue encouraged!
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