let us give thanks for all our blessings
Trees
Happiness
Angels (human ones)
Neighbors — both far and near
Kindness
Sunshine and my Savior
Geese
Ideas
Victories
Icicles
Nature
Gifts in all sizes
~ And of course, I am thankful for all my friends and family. I wish everyone out there a fantastic holiday!
Debb
Labor Day Weekend – NARA – 543450 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Labor Day Parade, Union Square, New York, 1882 (Lithographie) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Since we are already in the Labor Day weekend, I thought I would list ways how we labor other than working at a job.
It is hard work figuring out the opposite sex, if indeed that were even possible. 🙂
The therapist suggested that her client work out the details of her goals.
Those who work out their bodies are one step ahead of the game.
He was working on writing a book.
“Concentrate! Work!” exclaimed the mathematician.
The husband and wife worked on their relationship.
It is easy to work up a sweat on a day like this.
Discipline and work go hand in hand.
I wish you all a very good weekend. Work at making it a good one! 🙂
English: Breast Cancer ribbons (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AGAIN
Many August twenty-fourths ago
I lost my dear sister to cancer
Then on that same day four years ago
I received my breast cancer diagnosis
August 24
is my second birthday of the year
I got a second chance at life
so I can call it a rebirth.
The only problem is
Sandra couldn’t be cured of her cancer
So now I live life for both of us
waiting patiently to see her again in heaven
Trying to live fully
so that my life counts
Forgetting the bad and the have-nots
and remembering with gratefulness the haves and the good
Happy 4th Birthday!
Christmas Tree (1) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Our Christmas tree is still up, and I don’t have plans of taking it down anytime soon. I am fortunate it is a tall, good-looking artificial tree! With the month of December being a blur with my wedding and Christmas, and doing more writing lately, I just haven’t had time to enjoy the lit tree as I normally do. So, I will leave it up a little while longer.
It wouldn’t be the first time our tree was up for a long time – one year my mom got deathly ill in January, before our tree was taken down, and I had to fly out of state to take care of her for three weeks. Then, she died the following month so it was another trip back to Michigan. That year, the Christmas tree came down in March, I believe.
I’ve even entertained the idea of leaving it up all year – replacing Christmas-y looking ornaments with plain colored ornaments representing the holidays – red for Valentine’s Day, green for St. Patrick’s Day, spring colors for Easter, etc. But even that is a bit beyond my comfort level.
One time, my pastor at my home church had a sermon on “Christmas in July”, indicating that the Christmas message and joy is for all year long. We sang Christmas carols at that service. My leaving the Christmas tree up now would be a slight take on that theme. But really, Debb?
I’d be interested to find out what is the longest time you have ever left up your Christmas tree in the new year. Please comment.
The text of an ancient Jewish prayer alongside a poem by Gustav Gottheil. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Dear God,
I look out at the white snow in this below-zero place,
wearing my all-white, terry cloth-lined bathrobe to signify a fresh new slate.
The year is new
but most of my hopes and dreams have been with me forever.
I still want to follow in your footsteps
(you know how my own can falter sometimes)
and at the same time,
learn how to be a better person.
I still want corruption and violence to cease,
mental illness understood and treated,
and your peace to be accepted and taken in by all
and practiced by all.
Let your love light our way
and bring us out of the darkness.
The year 2012 was a very good year for me;
I didn’t realize there would ever be a year like that.
I didn’t want 2012 to end for this reason,
but I know that time marches on.
Lord, as I march forward in my life
give me clear direction for my new dreams
and while marching to a different drummer
still follow you.
I dedicate 2013 to your glory.
Amen.
English: A Common Raccoon (Procyon lotor) . (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Eastern Wild Turkey (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Close-up of a front paw of the raccoon Molly. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This Thanksgiving was quite a bit different than past holidays.
We went out to eat at 11 a.m. This left us several hours to relax afterwards and with the ability to not be dressed up all day.
It was my first Thanksgiving that I wrote for several hours as part of my festivities. Sweet!
It was also a time of weather change in my Midwestern suburb.
I wore no sweater or jacket to the restaurant; there was a high of 60 degrees. Within a couple of hours it was very cold and windy, and my thin jacket (with no hat or gloves) was not warm enough at all. Likewise, I decided to make my walk short, so I used the city trail that veered off into a “wetlands barrier” area, a marshy place at the center of the new housing development of what I call “mansions”.
Yay, a wooden walkway had been placed at the edge of the marsh, and it led to the street at the top of the wetlands. I am so glad this has been installed! I bent over and picked up several large, barren tree branches that had been torn off of their home and landed on the walkway. Once I threw them back into the marsh, I noticed very curious things…
At one end, near the street above, were large raccoon prints – right on the wood of the pathway. In other words, this raccoon must have walked right through wet blacktop that hadn’t cured yet, thereby leaving imprints on the wood he then walked on. A little way down from where the raccoon (possibly “Racc” from my story the other day?) tracks were, I found turkey prints. Then, at the opposite end of the “bridge”, I saw baby raccoon prints – just going across the walkway and not on it for very long as the big raccoon and turkey had. These prints were very cute, tiny little “hands”, but with no claws as the bigger raccoon prints featured.
I have no camera, but I sure wish some of my WordPress friends, the great photographers, had been with me!
This bit of nature made my day. I hope your Thanksgiving Day was lovely, too!
The Sunshine Factor 