Self-portrait – photo above.
So, how do we add some unexpected color to our lives?
(How do you need to add some color to your life?)
Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! . . . (Don’t you see it?)
My writing reaches people in 65 countries, so be uniquely you and join in with what everyone else is doing!
I wrote something sappy about kids growing up last time, and another time about sending our first kid off to college.
If you haven’t read those Newsletters yet, I’ll summarize them for you: Whiny, whiny, boo-hoo, cry, send our kid away… boring, boring. But this is the thing that really bothers me, as I think about it a bit more.
Click HERE to continue reading.
Thank you for liking me! I like you too! Let’s journey together!
If you wake up in a terrible mood, the best piece of advice I ever received is to ensure that day that you:
And then the second half of this advice is to:
So, when my husband took a random, impromptu picture of me today against a bright yellow background, holding my bright yellow coffee mug and my bright yellow backpack (You can’t see it in that picture, so here is the next picture!), I finally understand why people were staring at me so much today.
It must have been because I look so awesome!
Anyway, I hope that people know that you’re awesome, too, as you stroll through life!
Oh! And so how can you look super awesome like me, you ask? Well, the only trick I know is to wear what you want! I hope that helps!
And more related advice HERE!
You’re welcome!
Good luck!
So I was a bird, soaring in the clear blue sky, when someone down far below aimed their shotgun towards me (or towards something close to me?) and fired. I fell like a lead weightto the ground and landed with a painful “thud”. When I carefully examined myself, I couldn’t find a gunshot wound.
The shot must have just grazed my ear (Wait – Do birds have ears – WHATEVER!).
Click HERE to continue reading.
Thank you for liking me! I like you too!Let’s journey together!
Need some looove?
Get a bunny!
Yes! If you put a bunny upside down, like in this photo, and hold her “snugly,” we can be sure that the bunny IS loving us back – of course!1
Another option is to quiet yourself down and align yourself with the love God has been pouring out over you your entire life!
Cost: $0-$59.99 (Our bunny was LESS than 60 bucks!)
You’re welcome!
Good luck!
Thank you for liking me! I like you too! Let’s journey together!
1 By the way, it’s the same with my dog – I find that if I put one arm around my dog’s neck and squeeze him tight, he also likes to cuddle with me!
This is the 50 foot homemade boat that took our Uncle Peter 18 years to build.
He worked on it every day.
There’s only one rule to success: Never give up.
Uncle Peter
(Like going to the gym, or taking another step on your spiritual walk.)
(What are you building?)
Thank you for liking me! I like you too! Let’s journey together!
I have already written my best advice on this topic HERE, where I clearly explain that the way to sidestep being a complete JERK is to PRETEND to be someone you’re not.
Today, we continue the same theme with more helpful advice on how to NOT be a jerk when you Homeschool.
Click HERE to continue reading.
Thank you for liking me! I like you too! Let’s journey together!
Don’t you want to honor this tree?
I mean, it’s trying so hard to produce fruit that its little arms are literally breaking from the effort!
You want to put your arms around the little tree and say, “Dude! Chill! You’re not going to make it long term if you bear all this weight!”
Sort of (exactly) like going to the gym.
Don’t try so hard, but show up consistently to find your stride at the gym!
Sort of (exactly) like your spiritual life.
You’re welcome!
Good luck!
Join people in sixty countries who read this! (What? Hey, I don’t know why they read this, either! I think it’s because I’m cool.)
Previously, we proved definitively that we need to KEEP GOING BACK to the gym.
“But HOW do we keep going back to the gym, given that we got tired from our workout yesterday?” you ask.
No problem! That’s easy, friend! We fake our work out SO THAT we are rested enough to get back in the car and drive to the gym again tomorrow!
Join people in sixty countries who read this! (What? Hey, I don’t know why they read this, either! I think it’s because I’m cool.)
“But HOW does one fake a workout?” you ask, still puzzled. Oh, that’s easy, too! Here are four (easy!1) tips you can use to fake your workout! )
1.My favorite hack is to drink a LOT of water.
And by a LOT, I mean, a LOT!
You’re a thirsty person! Every rep, you may need another drink or two! The bonus of this approach is that what goes in must go out, and so you actually have a VALID (!) excuse to go to the bathroom.
Stay there for a while.
Maybe text someone while you’re in there! Then check your hair. Did it fall out of your hat while you worked out? Re-adjust it.
2.Wear a hat or a shirt that doesn’t quite fit right, so you keep stopping to adjust it.
Like maybe your hair keeps falling out of your hat, and you have to keep stopping and being annoyed at it.
This doesn’t work if you’re bald, but you can still choose a hat that’s the wrong size and keep stopping to adjust it. You can even curse your item as you do so, which makes you appear more authentic.Take a break and drink some water while you adjust your clothing items!
3.Listen carefully for exercise adaptations, such as when the instructor says, “Do this type of harder exercise if you are feeling very strong today.” Make a mental note of that. Then choose the lightest weight that you possibly can and the easiest exercise that you possibly can.
Wait until everyone else has almost finished their set.
Then, while they are standing around watching the (slackers – like you!) FINALLY finish up, do the exercise with the added spice, the one that is a little bit harder. Let them look at you. Humbly keep your gaze away from people so that they don’t suspect you of tricking them.
4.Choose the exercise bike that is the “easier” type. For example, at our gym, the “assault” bike is significantly harder than the “spin” bike. They’ll give you a higher goal for the easier bike because it’s easier to achieve.
Then, when you’re standing around tomorrow, waiting to start a new exercise class at the gym, you can casually mention what you pedaled or what your other such number was.
Remember to leave out the fact that you were on an easier bike. And they will surely be impressed!If they catch onto your tactics and ask you what kind of bike you were using, feign confusion or change the subject right away.2
Remember: If we keep going BACK to the gym, we will (eventually!) get (a bit!) stronger!
Oh, and our spiritual journey works on the same principle!
(What is the nudge from Holy Spirit that you sense may be your next step on your spiritual journey, friend? Let’s encourage each other to keep going, on our physical, spiritual and emotional journeys, to learn to soar in life.
So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit.
And I wish you every success as you get more S.T.U.P.I.D., friends. (S.T.U.P.I.D. is an “acronym”, which basically means, get more AWESOME. See HERE or HERE for clarification.)
I hope this helps you again today!
You’re welcome!
Good luck!
Thanks for liking me! I like you too! Let’s journey together!
Photo Credit: Is He Faking His Discouragement? (Who Knows!) by Sander Sammy on Unsplash
1 Anyone can do this!
2 Pro-tip: This tactic works well for avoiding a lot of other annoying additional clarifying questions on other conversation topics as well!
Adult giraffes sleep for approximately 30 minutes to 2 hours per day, one of the shortest sleep requirements of any mammal.
“Given SUPER COOL animals like giraffes barely sleep, why do humans have to sleep so long?” I asked my Biology professor.
“We still don’t really understand why humans sleep so much1,” was his honest reply. We spend 1/3 of our lives SLEEPING, and predators could take that opportunity to eat us! Bad idea, body!
But I discovered the answer to this question, which has plagued me for decades, in the most surprising place this week!
People in 60 countries read my online writing, so why not be uniquely you and join what everyone else is doing?
I was reading a book by former New York Times writer Trish Harrison Warren yesterday, and this is what she said, solving the mystery about sleep!
In the Christian tradition, sleep has always been seen as a way we practice death. . . When we go to sleep, we get as close as we who are alive and healthy come to the helplessness of death. And we do it every night.
Tish Harrison Warren in Prayer in the Night
So THAT’S why we sleep so much!
That finally makes sense! But Ah! I did it AGAIN!
I talked about death!
Oh no! That’s culturally inappropriate! Ah! Sorry about that. However, I knew you would also appreciate having this mystery solved!
“But wait, where is the hope of a better life in thinking of sleep as a practice for death?” you ask me. Great question! Being forced to remember bad news that EVEN I (might!) die one day (sorry for the shock!) awakens our eyes to the possibility of good news!
For example, in the song below, Jeremy Riddle reminds us that even death can be swallowed! That’s pretty cool! And that sounds hopeful to me!
Death swallowed by triumphant Life! . . . now in a single victorious stroke of Life . . . death [is] gone, the gift of our Master, Jesus Christ.
Also, when we live with the end of our lives in mind, we find joy in remembering that we are alive (again!) today! It’s helpful to remember things you forgot, like that being alive is a gift. Every other petty annoyance comes into a (slightly) more proper perspective when we remember these kinds of facts.
And then comes the joy. (Wait for it, friend . . . )
After your morning coffee, we can discuss some more helpful things about death together!
You’re welcome!
Good luck!
Thanks for liking me! I like you too! Let’s journey together!
Photo Credit – Now THERE’S Sleep Wisdom! by Selenay Balkan on Unsplash
1 If you are “researching” the answer to this question, remember to discern the difference between the two questions: “What do we do when we sleep?” and the deeper question, “Why do we sleep so much?”
Restoring Life 