What could you let go of, for the sake of harmony?
All we have to do is read the statistics on this one, and I actually agree for the most part…
Money is most often found at the heart of strife…
Divorce… Money
WAR… Money
Suicide… Money
For me, if I could survive off of trading goods and services, I would… back to a time when a man was good for his word. I know, not too realistic… But a girl can hope, can’t she?
Sorry for no pics this morning… working remote today… 😫
Sometimes the path ahead seems so clear and easily navigated, right?
On one hand, it is great to have an outcome, in our minds, of positivity to fuel us for the journey.
On the other hand, if we get too distracted with stuff, we get lax about focusing on the path ahead…
Maybe we get a bit too close to the edge of our path, and are not focusing on what we should, so we don’t see hazards before us…
Sometimes, we get so sure of our own abilities, that we are deceived into thinking that a cliff or major fall is no more than an easy step off the edge…
When we are so focused on our feet, and not looking up, we miss all the warning signs that could have signaled us to pay attention…
Perhaps if we pay more attention to the small warning signs, just a bit ahead of us, by simply popping our heads up…
We may find that Looking up was all that it took for us to see clearly the words of truth and safety, placed there to assist…
My verse for the day…
Psalm 25… and yes, all of it! My favorite part, though, is
” Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.” vs 4,5.
Today, we say good bye to Royale, dear sweet fridgy… you served us well, with narry a complaint when things flew against your walls when we drove down the highway… you faithfully held our food, even the smelly stuff in the back that we forgot…
Anyway…
Onward and upward…
Welcome home Vissanni, may you enjoy the life ahead… no more need to cry because nobody loved and wanted you… just because of your scars… I knew when you came through the door, we were going to be fast friends, fast fresh and frozen friends! I don’t mind your scars, as you still chill… hehe… see I am funny…
When I was a small girl, we went on a camping trip with about 10 to 15 other families, up into one of the wild mountain ranges of this great country. I was young enough that I cannot place the where, but I remember it being remote, as we had pack mules and horses to ride into our camp. Said camp rested within an upper meadow between two mountain peaks. If my memory serves well enough, it took an entire day of horse back riding to arrive at our destination.
My family and all the others were avid hunters, fishers, and the like so it was a lively bunch of folks. There were a mix of extended family, church friends, and close neighbors within our small city of campers, and man were they organized… it looked like a military fort when they were set up! Large campfires within and around the sleep areas, cooking pits, and tents set up in fashions meant to house children in the center, and adults camped on the outer ring that encircled the little ones during the night.
The reason that I remember this particular trip more so than others is a funny, and somewhat insidious reason… This is where I learned that parents develop that funny gramma and papa sense of humor, by practicing on their children when they are too young to know any better.
This particular camping trip was at the height of the hunting season, and the Elk were absolutely huge that year; the tags given out had been generous, as the numbers were too high at that time. I want to say that the norm were 5 point bucks. Please don’t judge my ignorant wordage, as I was young, and I have not been hunting since then, so my memory is jaded. Big Big Antlers!
Anyway, it was night time around the fires, and the parents decided it would be a great idea to tell scary stories to the kids… right before bed… in the dark… in the mountains…
I think it started as a way to keep kids scared enough to not wander outside of their tents in the dark without a parent, maybe, but that was when the insidious part began… Cretans…
The story was about a Ghost Elk that haunted the ranges where we were camping… sorry, I can’t remember the story, the horror was too real… lol. Basically, they put us to bed, waited for us to fall nearly to sleep and then play acted like a huge elk with a big rack, hollering and scratching its antlers against our tents…
Which by the way… we were able to only see the antlers through the reflections caused by all those ridiculously big fires placed all around the camp… realization right now, tells me they built those fires for effect, the big Turd Blossoms…
They got their come uppins though, since nobody ended up getting much sleep that night. All the parents ended up having to sleep in our tents to stop all the cryin and bellyaching…
***Lesson to learn here for parents is, with great power comes great responsibility… if you want to torment your children, You should always bring babysitters sillies***
While I am collecting the equipment for the next live novel project, which is in the works at the moment, being framed for use basically, since the content comes in live…
Until then, however, feel free to join in on our Investigating Truths thread for a fan fic adventure of truth, if that can even make sense in the same sentence… while I am a storyteller, and an avid writer, I did not claim any level of competence, just a passion. The rest is up to you…
Every Wednesday our adventure will be playing out live for all who are participating… that just means reading… lol… all you have to actually do is show up and share a laugh, or maybe a tear, and/or many many joys to discover. Who knows, you might even make a friend or two along the way… the more the merrier…
Sorry if all I did with this picture was to make you hungry, but actually that works…
If you are hungry for knowledge, well then learn away friends. I simply used the pie picture as an analogy, if you will, for being Humble…
You know… humility, that thing that opens many doors in a world filled with selfishness, arrogance, and Pride… yeesh lady… lay off the HEAVY, right?!?
No worries, I have no intention of jumping onto some soap box to shout out crazy lady opinions. I basically saw the prompt question and thought, Hmmmm, I have taken a lot of said “PIES” in my face on the good ole walk of life, and it has sort of made me pretty good at bending a knee and letting God carry me through to the other side.
I got this definition off of Google:
Humility – freedom from pride or arrogance : the quality or state of being humble. accepted the honor with humility. The ordeal taught her humility.
Also found this off the computer:
The meaning of AUTHORITY is power to influence or command thought, opinion, or behavior.
I guess if I go off of the definition of Authority, I have power to influence or command thought, opinion, or behavior… IN MYSELF!
I will not go as far as to say that I have authority over others in this regard, simply my own attitude and behavior…
I know I made you hungry with the picture of the pie, so, here…
I even gave you milk this morning, see how much I love you…
Meet Cordelia…
More specifically Lady Cordelia Sunflower Acorn III. Before you scoff, this so happens to be the first born daughter to THE Acorn King. If you are at all wondering how I came to know this information, she shouted it at me from that branch, shortly after she fully attempted to hit me with the very peanut I left at the base of the tree for her. I guess that offering peanuts to the lowland squirrels, is fine, but under no circumstances will a lady of the courts deign to eat any gift that had not been first properly prepared by her ladies in waiting…
Fine!
I walk my path almost daily, and while I see creatures wherever I go, I did not realize the complexities of kingdoms other than my own… it was a little insensitive of me, I guess… but how was I to know.
There has seemed, of late, to be a bit of tension between the different woodland creatures within this area. I try to gather as much valuable information as I can, whenever the locals will stop to share a peanut with me…
Remember my friend, Pfhlurtt the squirrel, that I told you of some time ago? Well, since then I have been a little more conscious of the goings on around these parts, and it is concerning me. I am needing to find him again to inquire of this, as well as relay my concern over the growing absence of squirrel families just on the other side of the bridge. It is more than just a simple question, as my friend Bob and his family have simply vanished!
I will have to let you know what I find out when I get in contact with my friend again…
Now that I have finished laughing at myself for some of the silly thoughts that flash through my brain…
Yup! Something as small as takin out the trash…
Hang on, I am just getting started so as not to let anyone off lightly…
Don’t leave yet… I know that you are thinking you know where I am going with this, but come on… it’s me… in the words of Castle, “It’s what I do!” Besides, you get a cookie at the end, so it is a win win.
Oh, come on, babies are cute Always, so this should be doable…
I chose a burger, not because I want to go out, but because I wanna cut a guy some slack if he ain’t got it in the food prep department… us girls just want to sit down for a hot minute, so if ya wanna chuck some frozen nuggets in the microwave, pop a beer, and squirt some ketchup in the broad vicinity of said nuggets, we good!!!
If you think I am going to be drawn and attracted to my man, based on works, well in this instance, YES! I say this because it is not the actual works at all, but if he is willing to be there in the dirty, tired, and hard times… well, then I feel Valuable to him. He will know me enough to know that my heart is held by attentive hands, not spendy ones!
See that wasn’t so bad…
Here, have a cookie…
I promised, remember…
So, I did the ole Google is our friend play for this prompt, just to see how helpful the www can be in seeing what the collective minds came up with, before I try to answer…
The first thing I typed was “ways to express gratitude”, and the first thing that popped up was a list of the top 10, and as I suspected, they were all actually words of action, or Verbish behavior…
Lets break this list down a bit…
Ok, I gotta ask… who should I write a letter to and why…
I spend all day alone, for the most part so the active listener has to be loosely interpreted…
I do walk most days…
And I am not sure it fits here, as one may not consider it a thoughtful gift, but I have given away my coffee cup to a homeless person… with coffee and my favorite creamer still in it, so I am going to say it fits here…
I do actually keep a gratitude journal, and I do write in it, but I also do a lot of other writing… on the computer… in a journal… all over in my bible… Lets move on, as I am beginning to sound like a Doctor Seuss story…
Come on Google… Be specific??? How ambiguous is this? Be specific about what… where… when… who… and how… really?
My husband and I try to be consistently offer help to others, but as I am most often very secluded, my opportunities are limited, but certainly ready to be employed if someone is in need…
Cook something I love… hmmm… I got nothing here…
Overall, this list seems “alright” I guess… some pretty good suggestions here, though there were a few that have left me perplexed.
So, I changed the question a bit, by asking Google “ways to express gratitude from Scripture”. I got another list, shorter this time…
Sorry Google, this one was just awful… The bible is not nearly as boring and ambiguous as you have tried to make it seem. This list has to be the laziest list for such a smart computer engine. This is it? Thank this and thank that… no action at all… maybe that is why the world seems to have an absence of love for ones fellow man, more often than not.
When I changed my question up to simply ask for a number of verses in the bible that use the word gratitude or write about being grateful or thankful, that was when the good ole www went nuts… it loves numbers. I am not even going to attempt to quote all of the different numbers thrown out there, but it is safe to say that the bible has a LOT to say about this subject.
Long story short, in an effort to answer the prompt question, I have come to an insight, for me, about how I express my gratitude.
It is you… It is this blog… this is my action, my verbage of Gratitude. When I write here on this site, telling my silly stories, offering virtual cookies (hugs), chatting and commenting on others written thoughts, this is my way of acting out my gratitude to God, for His protection, guidance, and grace for me. I share it with you…
Calling all adventurers!
What follows might not be thought to investigate anything about truths. I wish to expand things by Investigating Fiction Filled with Truths, so in a way it really is in the right section. Every time I write anything for another soul, I can see reflections of truths in myself. With each comment offered to me, I am hopeful that we share truths among us. It might not seem apparent yet, but trust me when I say, we definitely WILL be investigating truths, even if the story is not real…
Just a Bag
I wish to take you on an imaginary adventure. This is a special adventure that requires your mind, as well as mine, to get to the treasure at the end. The first thing one must do is find a comfortable space and gather up our favorite relaxing snacks. I’m sipping on a cup of hot coffee, sweetened with rich French Vanilla cream. Ready? Ok!
Close your virtual eyes to the distractions that cloud our thoughts…
Imagine if you will a well-worn path before you. On your arm, you carry a bag. I want you take a moment to create within your mind a bag of your choosing, but let me give you some information you will need in designing your bag. This adventure requires that you must carry only one item, the bag. You can imagine it to be of decent size, as one can place anything desired within its depths. But there are rules surrounding this bag. Anytime we move from one place to another, we must only carry one item. Since we cannot leave the bag behind, it should be pretty clear that it will be our only equipment.
**A beautiful thing about this bag is its ability to always know our needs, therefore we need attempt to pack any necessities, nor dig around searching within its depths. One must simply reach in and grasp! I love this feature!**
Now, whatever you need out of the bag, it must be retrieved only after you put the bag down. Once you no longer need the item, you must either dispose of it or you can place it back within this bag. It gets a little tricky though, because even if you pulled the item out, it may disappear after you return it to the bag, never to be seen again.
This bag will sustain you, from now until we reach the treasure. Meaning everything from food, clothing, and sleeping materials can be retrieved from within your bag. The truths about your bag is revealed each and every time you reach in for anything. The bag shapes itself to fit the needs of the one bearing it! It has a love for you, far from any other bag you have ever had!
With this mental picture, create a bag in your mind that has been crafted by someone so very in love with you! Would they not painstakingly design something of great beauty for you? Take the time to memorize each loving stitch placed on your bag, and the pattern etched carefully upon its surface. Imagine your loved one, if you will, as a masterful tailor; designing a bag just for you!
As we journey, there will be some adjustments in the beginning, as we get used to stopping every time one needs something out of their bag. Sometimes along our adventure, it may seem difficult to only carry one big bulky item, but you will also discover that your bag weighs nothing at all! Please enjoy the peace of not worrying about what to wear or eat. Also, appreciate no dishes, dirty laundry, or grocery shopping; not to mention skipping out on the two days needed for planning and packing said bag. Don’t forget that we travel together, so there will be benefits to relying on each other, and sharing tasks.
There will be times one may become frustrated, not being able to juggle more than one item. These may be times that draw us all to slow down, stop, and possibly sit down. We will only be as fast as our slowest members. Have faith that your bag carries wisdom, so we can trust in something other than our own strengths …
I will meet you here in a full 7 sunrises…
P.S. If you might drop me a note to confirm your desire to assist me, it will strengthen my resolve to depart on the date chosen…
Journey With Me! 