It is still my least favorite job in the history of the whole world. Standing in the back of dad’s 2-ton red truck during harvest, shoveling the grain down into the corners of the truck as fast as I could as it poured from our John Deere combine’s auger. It always seemed like it was 134˚ on those days. With no shade. And did I mention the crickets? Those horrible little creatures joined the ugly old grasshoppers and took up considerable space in the back of that truck. And on me.They landed EVERYWHERE. No body part or piece of Continue Reading
Enjoy Where You Are
The encouragement phrases like, “Live in the moment” and “Be fully present” can be a bit … uncomfortable sometimes. Perhaps even annoying. Right? But there is truth in them for sure. There is power in those statements. I share them with friends and groups. They are little lights along our path that lead us to living a full, rich life. I’m a fan. Here’s the deal … Showing up fully present, paying attention to the people and activity around me? It makes me a better person. A more alive person. A more grateful person. But I admit Continue Reading
Purple Hot Pants
School Carnival. Climax, Minnesota. 1973. It was an annual event where a king and queen were crowned, teachers got soaked in the dunk-‘em booth, cheap game prizes were won in the gym, and the cake walk was celebrated in the cafeteria. I wore a purple hot pants outfit. With a purple headband. And purple tights. The outfit was…purple. Good grief. Whatever was I thinking. Back then, I felt like royalty. Royalty wearing purple. The look made me feel beautiful…even a little trim. Now, it’s one of those memories that makes me Continue Reading
Thermostat or Thermometer?
Last week I wrote a little note about grumbling. As in, we aren’t to do it. Here’s a follow-up thought. My sisters and I are very grateful that we can stay with mom as caregivers, walking this Alzheimer’s journey with her. AND … some of my best grumbling (which is actually my worst grumbling, if you know what I mean) takes place in her apartment. You see, mom likes it warm in her apartment. Very warm. Like in 80˚ warm. In the middle of summer. Have mercy. We set the thermostat lower, but she gets so cold that she shivers. Continue Reading
Blessings or Burdens?
Oh my. There are some verses in the Bible that I wish … Well, I just wish that they weren’t in there. They make me uncomfortable. Here’s what I’m thinking about … Life would be easier if grumbling was a spiritual gift. Anyone else think so?? But no. Grumbling is not a good thing. It’s not attractive. It’s not helpful. It’s not encouraging. And it certainly doesn’t acknowledge and honor God’s faithfulness and love for us. It breaks the heart of God and makes us only more miserable. Not good. But … Sometimes it just Continue Reading
Let’s Bring the Sunshine!
He was one of the happiest guys I’ve ever seen. He bounced into Culver’s Restaurant with a broad smile and eyes that said, “Today is awesome!” This guy ordered a sandwich and fries and the ice cream of the day. Before his order was up, he was savoring his ice cream treat while waiting for the rest of his food. He leaned against the counter, clearly enjoying every lick and spoonful of that Snickers Swirl. He didn’t have earbuds in, but he seemed to be listening to tunes because he just kept bopping! Nothing extreme, just moving in the Continue Reading
Wait Like a Farmer
Give me a gravel road with deep ditches on either side surrounded by golden grain fields, long, dusty driveways, sugar beets that have fallen from the big trucks on the highway, and I’m in my Happy Place. There’s something about farming and small towns and pick-ups and cafes and farmer tans and John Deere tractors that lower my blood pressure just thinking about them. Life in small town USA wasn’t, and isn’t, easy. Good grief, no. But the pace is different than what I feel in the city. Life seems simpler. Less striving. More Continue Reading
Fixing My Eyes
I wonder what kept some of our faith heroes from rolling their eyes at God. Like when God told Noah, “So make yourself an ark...” I think I would have muttered a quick, “You’ve got to be kidding me” somewhere in that conversation. But “Noah did everything just as God commanded him.” And when God appeared to Abram, who with his wife Sarai so badly wanted a child. God told him to “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them...So shall your offspring be.” (Abram was 99 years old; Sarai was 90.) I think Continue Reading
Be the Sunshine
When I take the time to consider the influence we have on the hearts of others, it boggles my mind. And it’s a little scary. And amazing. But mostly mind-boggling. Just think about it. We can literally change the course of someone’s day by one word. Or one action. Or one smile. And boy, let’s do our best to change that someone’s day for the better, right? Our ability to influence someone’s heart – change their day – doesn’t happen because we “have a big platform.” Or because we’ve got all our ducks in a row and they’re Continue Reading
Start Again
I think it’s one of the best parts of being alive … We can always start again. Let’s face it. We’ve all messed up. Made mistakes and unfortunate choices. We’ve said things and done things that make us wonder … Really? Why did I think that was a good idea? And yet, we can get up the next morning and start again. Sometimes it’s helpful and encouraging to remember these truths … • Everybody’s got something. Nobody has it all together all the time. • We can change our story by changing our actions or changing our reactions. We Continue Reading
Life is a Parade!
What is it about parades? They make us cheer and clap. Wave at people we don’t know. Bounce to the music. Hope that some of the candy gets thrown our way. And some of us get misty when the nostalgia passes by. The “professional” parades are OK to watch, right? Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade brings out our inner parade critic from the comfort of our couches. We pick the floats we like best, worry that the girls carrying the flags are going to freeze to death, and wonder who has the money to pay for all of it. BUT! The REALLY COOL Continue Reading
Game Changer!
My intention is to live a full, fun, faithful, joy-filled life. My dad would call it a “This is livin!” life. (And he sure knew how to do that!) But you know what? Things get in my way. Things like complaining. Whining. Stressing. Yea. The silly things that can slurp the good right out of everything. Know what I mean? But. I’ve started responding to life’s moments a bit differently, and it’s a game changer! Here’s what I’m doing … I’ve added this phrase to my vocabulary, and I say it a lot: What a great Continue Reading
Can You See Me?
It was not my finest moment. It was worse than a bad moment. It was a “You’ve got to be kidding me!” moment. Some years ago, I worked as the Corporate Employment Manager for a big firm in downtown Minneapolis. I interviewed job candidates all day. Loved it. But. One day … I was interviewing a young man, and in the middle of the interview, I woke up. Yes, that’s right. I woke up. Somewhere between “Why are you interested in this position?” and “Tell me about a time when …” I fell asleep. But I kept asking the questions. Continue Reading
Patience of a Saint
Perhaps you’ve heard the saying, “He has the patience of a saint.” I was thinking about God today, and how patient He is with me, and I used that phrase to describe Him in my mind. But then I thought, well, that doesn’t make any sense. Because He IS a saint. Or, He’s the Saint of All The Saints. And then I started worrying that I was really getting my doctrine all mixed up and I was losing track of where I was going with that thought process, so I just went back to ... God is patient with me. Very patient. Have you read verses Continue Reading
The Gate is Open!
I don’t remember where I saw the photo, but the moment it captured has stayed in my memory. The picture caught a large group of parade-watchers crowded onto a city sidewalk. Too many people in too little space. The scene highlighted an elderly woman calmly resting her arms on the street barrier, leaning into the scene, watching the parade go by. Smiling. Relaxing. Soaking it all in. Standing around this woman were a whole lot of others taking selfies. Posing. Finding the right light. Looking at their phones/cameras with their backs Continue Reading
Heaven is Cheering You On!
YAASSSS! Spring has arrived in Minnesota!The usual clues are showing up. Most noticeably, the orange traffic cones reminding us of the road construction we have to maneuver through. Parkas have been replaced with rain jackets and the icicles hanging from our roofs have melted away.Another clue is the swarm of runners. You can tell they’ve been itching to get out running without the icy roads and sleety weather. They are everywhere! Very cool.Do you enjoy running? If you do, I applaud you! I’m truly impressed. Consider yourself high-five’d. Continue Reading
The Day I Lost a Day
It was three years ago this week that I lost Tuesday.One moment I was doing lunges and burpees at the Y, and the next moment everything just got … lost. I have no memory of that afternoon.The doctors said I had an episode of transient global amnesia. (When the doctor told me that was her diagnosis, I started to laugh. Because, really. Who gets amnesia when they’re doing burpees at the Y?)An overnight stay at the hospital and lots of tests indicated that it was only amnesia; no stroke or anything else that we’d already started worrying Continue Reading
My Faith Journey
My faith journey has been filled with lots of joy, a whole bunch of tears, and more questions than I can count with fewer answers. Mom and dad told my sisters and me in our most littlest days that Jesus loves us. It is the most simple message…that carries such profound weight behind it. I’ve held that promise close to my heart for over 60 years. I’ve always had a strong need to follow the rules. {Well…that was probably more true in my younger years.} Following the rules has kept me out of more trouble than I could have had. But when Continue Reading
I’ll Take a Memoir, Please
I’ll take a memoir, please. One preferably written by a not-so-young woman whose story reads something like this... Her life was filled with hope-filled dreams. Exciting expectations. Blue skies and sun-filled days. She had energy that made skipping in her summer slip-ons easy-peasy. “Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows” was a theme song. (And yes, that really is a song. Our little “Vicki’s Girls” group sang it back in the day. Now you’re really impressed, right?) Then life happened. Her skies got cloudy. Disappointment replaced those Continue Reading
Not in Charge
The joke is that Minnesota has two seasons: winter and road construction. Well, we are well into road construction time here while the snow still melts. There’s a big highway overpass project just down the road from us. Heavy equipment that’s taller than the trees. Trucks that look like they can haul 50 tons of stuff. And the dirt. Oh my, the dirt. And the cement. Lots of it. Driving by it the other day (using the annoying detour, of course), I said to Steve, “I’m so glad I’m not in charge of that project.” A short time later we Continue Reading
Love God. Love People.
Picking a “word for the year” has always been a challenge for me. As I’ve considered an annual word, I’ve never gotten clear on if it’s a word/action that I should focus on, or want to focus on, or if it just seems like a cool word. Then January would roll around…February…and I’d still be thinking about the word. Sigh. But this year, I really wanted to identify a focus. A truth that would lay a foundation for how I live my life in this particular season. How I move forward with my business … in this particular season. And without Continue Reading
Who Needs a Chin Lift?
I was walking past the graham crackers in Byerly’s grocery store when the elderly woman in the blue wool coat pushing a grocery cart rushed up to me. “Where are the paper towels?” Her sense of urgency really caught my attention. It came through her voice and her eyes. Panic. Anxiety. Lots of it. “My husband had an ‘accident.’ He’s sitting in the car. He’s so embarrassed. We’re on our way to a quartet reunion and they’re waiting for us.” Oh my. Can’t you just imagine all the emotions her trembling heart was experiencing in those Continue Reading
The Really Bad Day
It wasn’t pretty. Not at all. In fact, it was just plain ugly. What was ugly, you ask? Tuesday. Tuesday was ugly. Call it a bad day. A meltdown day. A day when nothing seemed to go right. Or as one of my storybook heroes, Alexander, referred to it, “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.” * The sad thing is, I’m not even sure what was wrong. It just seemed like everything was. (Cue “Poor Me” music here.) Nothing was wrong but everything was wrong. Nothing was right. I wasn’t right. The world wasn’t Continue Reading
Rest. Take a Break.
I’m starting a new workout program. Have mercy. It involves a lot of fancy steps and it moves faaaaast. I spend most of the time trying to stay on my feet, watch the online trainer, listen to the instructions, and breathe. There is nothing pretty about my performance. The program only lasts 20 minutes, but I’m exhausted when it’s done. All I want to do is cry. It’s hard to find the rhythm when the exercises change so fast, and the online coach Just. Keeps. Talking. (I know he’s trying to motivate us, but oh my word. His incessant Continue Reading
When Life Gets Messy
Easy. Carefree. I think about those words and in my mind I see a sandy beach with gentle waves lapping, a cool breeze that doesn’t mess up my hair, bright sunshine that warms my skin, and a good book with a happy ending. Yup. I sure could be content there. If only life was one big sunny beach. Real life happens and sometimes my hair gets mussed and my skin sunburns and there’s not a happy ending in the book. There are moments when I think, “This isn’t what I signed up for.” My sisters and I take turns staying with our mom. Continue Reading
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 5
- Next Page »