What was I thinking?

Not sure if you can tell, but that is a SNAKE! At my front door! I was walking out and before I opened the door, I saw him resting on my stoop. I immediately shut the door. That is a big NOPE for me!

But then I did what any sane person does, I went out the garage so I could video tape it! Looks like about 3 ft long.

After all the excitement and trauma calmed down, I got to thinking about growing up and all the times I could have come face to face with snakes. Let me share some of my experiences growing up.

We would go out and visit my g.ma and when I was young, they had a farm. It included a corn field. My mom and aunt would warn us and tell us not to go in the corn field. Even my g.ma told us to stay out of it. But did that stop us? NO. You already know if you tell a 10 or 11yo not to do something, we are going to do it! Me and my cousins and friends would go play hide and seek in that field. We would run up and down those rows. I think if the movie children of the corn was out and mom would have allowed us to watch it, we would have definitely stayed out of that field. 

Well one day, we were all playing in field, shhh, secretly! And then we hear our parents yelling for us. So we all started running toward the house so we wouldn't get caught. Well guess what, we got caught. But it was a traumatic way to get caught. I think I would have rather seen a snake that day. I got "clothes-lined" by the barbed wire fence! Right between the eyes! I still have the scar to prove it. Growing up can be rough but it only makes us stronger...right?!

Another time when I was around 13 yo, was when our parents and even my g.pa telling us to stay out of the barn. BUT...you already know, Yep, we went right into that barn. There was probably a ton of snakes in that old barn. But we didn't seen any.  The barn was falling apart, the floors on the top floor, well if you want to call them that, you could see right through them to the bottom of the barn. If we fell through it, we would have been hurt badly. But as teenagers, you know it, we didn't listen and went in that barn! And I bet you already know something happened. When we were trying to get out of the barn, we had to climb down the side wall. Well, it was not really a wall, it was planks barely hanging. When we did, my friend started screaming. We didn't know what happened. I would have bet it was a snake, but it wasn't. We had to go to mom and tell her where we were because my friend disturbed a bee or wasp nest and they got into her shirt and stung her a bunch of times. Not only did she get stung, we got caught and worse, got in trouble.....a talking (yelling) too, then grounded because we didn't listen. 

I have many other memories of where I could have come face to face with a snake, and that probably would have been better than the outcomes I experienced, but I won't bore you!  And really, I was a good kid! I think I will blame my disobedience on my cousin. She was a bad influence on me!! haha. (or maybe I was, you know it is always the quiet ones!). 

So I will leave you with some great knowledge from the book of life, no matter how old you are:

Ephesians 6:1-3 "Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. Honor your father and mother. This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth.”

Love to all, 

Rest is not a bad word

 

Rest.. Sometimes, do you feel like it is a bad word? I mean, if your like me sometimes, I feel that I have way too much going on to stop and take a breath, let along take a nap. But, what I really should do IS to stop and rest. I know I have talked before about how the enemy causes so much to keep you busy that you neglect what is important to you.

Rest is important and I have learned that valuable lesson. It has just taken me, oh....a few years to figure it out. The things that I felt were so important and NEEDED to be done, can wait. I now rest. This doesn't mean I take naps or sleep all the time. Rest can mean taking a walk, sitting outside and just soaking in what is around me. Behind my house is a nature preserve and we get a lot of wildlife. It is so amazing to me to see all the deer and rabbits.....SO MANY RABBITS! And the birds, all kinds of them. So relaxing. And I may, or may not, have a beverage with me sometimes!

OR I may be canning pickles! That is a lot of work, but I enjoy it. It is just frustrating sometimes (like today!) when my stinking jars won't seal right. But that is ok. I only lost 4 jars today. 

So I may not be napping like Riley is in the picture above, but I do relax. I spend time with the hubs, I enjoy our conversations. Before it was him listening to me complain and now we just talk about life, things we enjoy, and our house that is being built!

Enjoy your life, love the life you have....you only have one.

Psalm 127:2 "In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to[a] those he loves."

Philippians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Love to all,

Pick your hard

 

I was recently on IG, mindlessly scrolling and came across this video that stopped me in my tracks and caused me to think. The video was simple, about taking charge of your health now so you can be healthy and live longer. He said the average woman lives to age 79 and if you put in the time to work out and exercise your body, you can extend your life. I think we all know that, and the problem, at least with me, is that I don't want to work out! (insert the whiny voice). I have to make myself do my walks and workouts. I do have someone that helps hold me accountable....Riley my boxer. She thinks that we must go for a walk EVERY DAY! Well, I guess she knows best, haha.

But....This isn't what caused me stop and think. What did was what he said. He said, pick you hard. Hmmm. Do I want to have a hard life as I get older with decreased mobility, strength and flexibility or do I do the hard work now, so that I can continue to do the things I want to do as I age.  I want to live to a old age, to enjoy life, experience things that I can't do now, and to be old to aggravate my kids, like my g.ma did!

This is good food for thought and it can be applied to other aspects of my life. I need to "Pick my hard" now. The choices I make now, will have long lasting effects in my life. I think when we are younger, we do not think that life will be hard and that our choices can have an affect on us. Like, what we eat, drink, lack of physical activity.  This also can affect how we feel and think, how we see ourselves. The mind is powerful! I was letting life pick the hard times for me instead of me managing the stress of life. It just took some time for me to realize what I was doing and weed out the craziness. 

When I am talking with others that I may not agree with, I think, is this a fight or battle I want to have. Pick your hard. 

When I have decisions to make that may affect others, or affect me in the future, I Pick my hard.

Is it worth losing a friend or family over a difference of opinion? Is it worth not being healthy just to have that donut? Is it worth killing yourself to work a job that you dread going to? Is is worth to not live a healthy life, just to have to take a bunch of medications as you get older because of the choices you made when you were younger? PICK YOUR HARD. 

The start is simple, start small. This will take time. I choose first to have a daily walk with God. Get in his word everyday. Have a relationship with Him and he will never fail you. When life gets hard, He will be there to help you through those times when you have to Pick your hard. 

I choose to exercise, yes I will! At least 3-4 times a week so that I can keep off the weight that I lost. I do not want to gain it back.

I choose to lay off the sweets, and yes, those delicious donuts! It is hard, but I know the reward I will have if I choose to lay off of them!

I need to be better and stay off IG and FB. I am aware that I am on it way too much, but that is a work in progress. I have started reading and now have opened the kindle app with books to enrich my mind. Guess what I am starting with.... the Harry Potter series!

We all know what we have to do, it is just a decision we have to make to get it started and stay with it. Surround yourself with a community, with people who support you and are a positive impact on your life.  We all will have different battles, different "hard" times. We all must "pick our hard" in life and make choices. I wish many blessing to you all as you work through your "hard". 

Hebrews 13:5; Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

Deuteronomy 31:6 reads, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

Love to all, 

Kind words

 

Never underestimate the power of a kind word. I was the recipient of just those kind words this week.  A coworker told me how they appreciate my positivity and that I was a "breath of fresh air". Another coworker said I was "a ray of sunshine". When I heard those simple, small compliments, I felt such joy in my heart. I am glad I was able to overcome my sleepiness today to be that ray of sunshine! The hubs was up most of the night coughing out a lung! Those words drove away any grumpiness I had starting today. 

You would never think that something simple would make such an impact. But yet some people only complain and say hurtful things to bring others down. I never understood why some people just enjoy hurting others. Well, I can say I have been on the other side of both, receiving hurtful words and receiving kind words. I have to say that the kind words do make a difference in how you feel. I had also been that person that complained a lot. In the past, when stressed at work, I would complain. It wasn't pretty and I am not proud of that. I complained mostly because I didn't have a lot of control of certain situations. I learned that if you do not have any positivity growing in your life, it is difficult to give to others. It just took awhile for me to realize this and make the changes I needed. 

What changes did I make? Well, I started with taking it to God in prayer. Fully trusting him to guide me in my decisions. The BIG scary decision to change positions at work was the start. That giant leap of faith and trust that God will support me and guide me, was the foundation of my new joy. I now look for joy and happiness in everything I do. I find myself loving myself more and the person I am. I no longer hate who I was becoming, but changing who I am...my mind, my spirit. I now have found a way to start liking and loving the person I am.  

So when you see someone complaining or a little grumpy, they may just need a kind word to turn it all around. You never know what someone is going through and they may not want to let anyone know, but the stress of it may be shown through anger or complaining. The "it" they may be going through may be from work, family trauma, health concerns.

 Scatter those compliments like confetti. Just the small things that are noticed make a big difference. Not only will you build up others, but you will also be on the receiving end of lifting up someone. And nothing feels better than being a part of helping others. 

Ephesians 4:32 instructs, "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." 

Romans 12:10: "Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor." 

Love to all,