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Archive for May, 2020

Where ya Headed?


Philippians 3:13

“… forgetting what is behind
and straining toward
what is ahead,
press on toward the goal
to win the prize
for which God has called me
heavenward…”


Looking Back

I need you to see a photo of my youngest granddaughter when she was a little baby. Read on and I’ll tell you why I want you to see this on a post that’s all about where you’re headed. Here’s Faith Austynn Beekman:

Faith was adopted at birth by our son, Ty, and his wife Monika. The story of her adoption is a good one for another day. But for now, let me fast-forward:

Ruthie, Faith, Jan (me)

Faith has grown to be a woman of great faith. This photo of her between her two grandmothers was taken two years before she graduated from High School. I tried to find my photo of her at her graduation, but this was as close as I came to it.

Ah, tenacity… it paid off… I found it! Here Faith is with us on the day of her graduation. Look at how much taller she is! Or did I just shrink?

Why do you think it was so important to see Faith on her graduation day – on this post titled, “Where ya Headed?” Well, a scripture with ta similar message as Philippians 3:13 – was printed on the top of her commencement hat! Hebrews 12:1 …

Looking Ahead

Fast forward again. Here is Faith with her fiance’, Kyle McSparron, on the day of their engagement:

And here they are at the rehearsal dance the day before their wedding:

Faith’s life so far is a fairy tale of love and success and faithful direction. Obedience to God and to her parents’ teachings, adherence to Biblical Principles, and the tenacity to “run with endurance the race God has set before [her]” are criterion that characterize her young life.

Living the Race

Faith and Kyle joined her parents (our son) Ty and Monika with their dog, Nakota at our home for Thanksgiving last year. Kyle has an electrical business that is suffering the downturn caused by this COVID-19 pandemic. He needs our prayers as he works to keep the company afloat.

Faith is working for the state of Nevada as a “Disaster Preparedness Advisor” (that may not be the exact title, but you get the idea. Her job is particularly vital right now… and much can be done on-line. Moving forward, we can see the two of them are living Hebrews 12:1 as fully as possible.

Bob & I are in our pj’s in that photo because it was very early on the morning they were leaving to head back to California.

“Don’t look back. You’re not headed that way!”

Looking Forward

“I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future.”

I don’t know to whom I should attribute that quote, but it sounds like somebody like Billy Graham would have said it… or Mother Theresa.” And I know it is so true. God is in charge of where I’m headed. If today’s world and our circumstances are any indication, then we know the path to where we’re going is a rocky one. The only way to navigate it is through faith and prayer.

See that moose on my bed? When Faith was about 6 or 7, she and her family came to visit us. We spent a day in Yellowstone National Park. It’s ony an hour’s drive from our home. At the end of the visit, she and her three siblings were given the opportunity to go into the gift shop and buy themselves something to help them remember the trip. Faith bought this moose – and then gave it to me! She has such a loving heart!

If you saw my tribute to Ken Hall on my blog
a few days ago, you saw that photo above the bed,
but I didn’t show you “Faithful” – my moose.

Each morning when I make my bed, I place “Faithful,” this little moose in front of the pillows, and I say a prayer for Faith and Kyle. I thank God for Faithful, my reminder of my granddaughter Faith – and I thank Him for her and her faith, for her beautiful marriage to Kyle, and I ask God to watch over them.

May God watch over you today, too, my friends.
And may He guide you as you
“Run with endurance the race He set before you.”
Look to a bright future…
It’s coming!
Face Forward –
That’s where you’re headed.

See ya tomorrow.
JanBeek

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Belief, Bible Lessons, blessings, children, Faith, Family, God, happiness, life, Love, Memories, Montana, prayer, relationships

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Let the Shepherd Lead Us

Rev. Steve Hundley
delivered the prayers and
inspirational message below
by way of ZOOM to a “screenfull”
of appreciative worshipers this morning.

Fran McNeill
selected the songs.
I am pleased to share
parts of this service with you today.

Come, let us worship!

Call to Worship:   Psalm 116: 12-13

God invites us into His healing presence with these words: “I am the Lord, who heals you.”

Diseased, depressed, dysfunctional, defeated, we come hungering for health that only God can provide.

God calls us to bring open eyes, hearing ears, and tender hearts turned towards Him, the Great Physician.

We worship our God with faith and expectation.

Come and sing along!

Opening Prayer

O God, our Rock, our refuge, our resting place, we come to You out of another week of mostly sheltering in place.  We come out of our desire to find some meaning in this strange, unusual, and frightening time.  We come out of our desire to meet You and know You as the center of our being.  We gather in spirit and in the security of Your love.  Fill our hearts and prepare us for service and for the living of these days.   Amen.


Isaiah 53:6
All we like sheep have gone astray – Bible Hubbiblehub.com › isaiah
“We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”

A Children’s Message for Adults, too!    
(a true story)

When we were teenagers, my brother bought an old wooden canoe with the intent of restoring it.  Ridge spent one entire summer re-conditioning it.  He stripped the wooden ribs and re-varnished the interior.  He “re-fiberglassed” the outside and even painted it to resemble an Indian birch bark canoe. 

For its maiden voyage we decided to take it out on the James River for a day of fishing.  After what turned out to be a banner day of catching a passel of smallmouth bass and sun perch, we reached the designated take-out point.  Pulling the front of the canoe up on the shore, we jumped on my brother’s motorcycle that we had left there and headed back up river to retrieve the pickup truck.

When we drove back to get the canoe, it was nowhere to be found.  Searching the river bank, we spotted it floating off downstream.  Running along the bank and crashing through the underbrush, we were able to draw even with it.  Grabbing the longest tree branch we could find, we strained to reach out to it, but with every attempt, it moved further out into the main current of the river, gaining speed as it drifted away.

Then came the moment of truth!  It was clear that one of us would have to strip down and swim after the canoe.  Looking at each other, we knew who it would be.  HEY, IT WAS NOT MY CANOE!  Don’t look at me like that!  If I had offered to strip down and drive into the icy water to recue “his” canoe, he would not have learned anything about the responsibility of ownership.  I did, however, cheer him on as he dove into the frigid water.

There is no greater blessing in life than to have someone who is willing to strip down and dive into the dark and icy waters of this world; particularly when what is disappearing down the river happens to be us. especially during this life-altering virus outbreak. Yes, we belong to Jesus, who has redeemed us with His life on the cross.  Like my brother who was willing to dive into the icy waters to save his canoe, Jesus said: “I am the Good Shepherd, and I lay down my life for my sheep.”

SONG:               Shepherd Me O God                          Sm 2058 

Prayer for Illumination:

Lord, open our hearts and minds by the power of Your Holy Spirit, that we may hear Your Word with joy.  Amen.

Pastoral Prayer:

O Lord, our Shepherd, who leads us by still waters and into green pastures, we thank You for the times in our lives when life is strong, good, affirming and everything happens for the best.  Teach us to remember, though, that You are with us at all times, even in the midst of this ongoing pandemic when the waters are not still and the pastures are not green, when our days are fraught with danger and difficulty and we eat our bread in the presence of a silent killer called COVID 19.

            Remind us that Your loving kindness surpasses even this and Your faithfulness is to all generations.  Help us to recall Your undying love for us in these days of adversity and disappointment, so that even this misfortune may but strengthen our sense of Your presence and encourage us in faith.

Though we are still sheltering in place, O Lord, we continue to pray for each other.  Hear our individual prayers as we lift up to You all those we love who need your comfort and strength and healing today.

In Jesus name, Amen.

Go now – and bee the heart, ears, and hands of love.
Thanks for joining us in worship today.
God bless you!

See ya tomorrow.

{{{{HUGS}}}}
JanBeek

Category:

Belief, Bible Lessons, Faith, God, Living in Christ's Family, Love, music, peace, prayer

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Doing Your Best

Parents As Teachers

In today’s COVID-19 world, a lot of parents world-wide have become their child’s primary teacher. Even though many of the students have access to on-line classes, still parents discover they must oversee the learning process. Most parents are not prepared for this role. Are you one of them who sometimes feels overwhelmed by it??

Do Not Despair

Photo by Julia M Cameron on Pexels.com

You’re not alone! Many parents who are on this “Stay at Home” routine find themselves thrust into a much more intense teacher role than they ever bargained for. Your time spent with your child/student during this time is precious. You’re making life-long memories. Make them happy ones!

I am a retired educator. I spent more than two decades as an elementary teacher and administrator. During that time, I had the opportunity to experience first-hand how the expectations of others affects our self-evaluations. Our expectation for ourselves affects our self-esteem, too. Just know you are doing your best! Hang in there!

Do Your Best

How do you know when you have done your best? Who helps you determine what your best is?

I learned from a wise educator (Madeline Hunter) in an in-service once upon a time eons ago that the question is not, “Are you smart?” The question is, “How are you smart?” What a difference that makes!

As teachers, coaches, mentors, parents, friends, our task is to look for the natural strengths in others (as well as in ourselves). We all have them. Dig! Find the positives. Build on successes. Learn from, but do not emphasize, failures. Reward achievement.

Build On Strengths

Photo by Oleg Magni on Pexels.com

Did you read my blog a couple days ago when I told you about our adventures on “Lucille” our Polaris Razor? She is a red-head who is a “Ball” – but she required a whole new level of “Do Your Best” when Bob took her into snow that was too deep for her body. Lucille high-centered and Bob was stuck. His best efforts at digging I her out were not good enough. She was not budging!

Nope, Lucille wasn’t going anywhere. She was stuck!

What does this have to do with “Build On Strengths?” Well thank God, we had friends with us – and one of them, Rex, has a wonderful Boy Scout skill: “Be prepared.” He had the necessary equipment to hook up a rope to his ATV and latch the other end of it to Lucille. He pulled our ATV out of that snow… and “saved our bacon!”

Bob & I can learn from Rex’s strengths. Be prepared! Carry a rope and the necessary winch in case of emergency in the future. And when the rope came loose at the end of the reel, Rex taught Bob how to secure it with a set pin so that it would not come loose again. God bless Rex! And as for us… we’re never too old to learn!

Focus on the Positive

My favorite expression when I was counseling teachers was one with poor grammar, but with great truth: “What you pay attention to is what you get more of.”

Want success? Find the best effort and praise it! Find what the student does best and teach through that strength. Sometimes our teaching is by example – people just watch what we do. Certainly our kids are perfect examples of that! It doesn’t work to tell them “Do as I say, not as I do!” They WATCH!!

Teaching is a JOY!

After I retired, I had the fun of teaching adults who had not learned yet how to read. I joined the volunteers in the “Stanislaus Literacy Program” in Modesto, California.

When I met her, Grace was an illiterate adult. She was nearly 40 and she had spent the last 30 years avoiding the world of print. Her “best” was sorting clothes from the dressing rooms at JC Penney and putting them back on the proper racks. No words needed for that task. But she hated being unable to read. She hid it well, but it made her feel “less than.” You can imagine!

Grace enrolled in the adult literacy program and I had the privilege of working with her to unlock the world of print. Sorting letters was a lot like sorting clothes. Matching capital to small case letters, sounds to letters, classifying vowels and consonants. One step at a time, backing up to the beginning, building on her strengths, we did it. The joy in Grace’s life when she discovered she could read menus, street signs, and billboards was palpable! Next step: books. A whole new world opened up to her.

Have you ever watched the light glow in a learner’s eyes when the key to a previously locked skill is found and the door opens? “I did my best” took on a whole new meaning for me!

You can watch that key unlock new learning, new ideas, new attitudes for your child. These days offer parents great opportunities.

Photo by Ylanite Koppens on Pexels.com

Help Break Down Tough Concepts

When anyone is asked to perform at a level above their capabilities, frustration abounds. I’ve had that happen to me. I was put in a place where I was supposed to lead a ZOOM group. Be the host. What? At that time, I didn’t even know what ZOOM was!

But, I WOULD have been capable of that performance, if somebody took the time to show me how.

You have a chance to be that somebody for your child… or for a neighbor or friend. With love and patience, and confidence in his/her ability to catch on, be the somebody who breaks it down. Step by step, lead him/her through the process of knowing how, trusting that s/he CAN.

People need to know that we believe in them. Believe in yourself as a teacher. Do your best! Watch the light dawn. It’s a thrill!

Learn Something New

Everyday is a new opportunity to DO MY BEST. My mother-in-law always said, “No day is complete until you have learned something new.”

There is no better way to encourage a student to continue learning than to be the example who is a life-long learner.

What will I tackle with confidence today?

How about you?

Photo by Tim Gouw on Pexels.com

Tell me about a skill you want to acquire.
Then, Just do it!

See ya tomorrow.

Category:

children, Giving, happiness, learning, Life's Challenges, Love, Serving One Another, teaching, work

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The Change

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It was a snowy, blowy day –
How the wind blew!
How the trees shook!
How the temperatures dropped!

It was a calm and blue-sky day –
How the icicles hung!
How the snow sparkled!
How the birds sang!

It was an emerging, awakening day –
How the earth breathed!
How the buds swelled!
How the world smiled in relief!

Spring is here!!

Praise God!
The daffodil tells us
The welcomed change
is here at last!

Photo by Anthony on Pexels.com


Have a Beautiful spring day.
Thanks for visiting JanBeek.

Tell me how the changing seasons affect you.
I love hearing from you.

Category:

flowers, Haiku, Love, Montana, nature, Poetry

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Remembering May Poles

The Way it Was

When I was a child at Bonita Elementary School in Crows Landing, California, May Day was a very special occasion. We always created a May Pole around the flag pole at the front of the beautiful, two-story brick building. We dressed in colorful clothes and practiced days in advance to be sure we knew how to weave the ribbons properly. Parents came to watch as students assembled in the front of the school. The band played. The principal spoke, and teachers did special art projects in the classrooms.

I especially remember Mrs. Horwedel, my 4th grade teacher, who had us go out into the fields near the school and pick wild flowers. Then we made paper baskets, filled them with the flowers, and created unique cards.

They weren’t as pretty as the one pictured here, of course, but we thought they were! Some of us took them home to give to our mom. Others hung them on a doorknob of a friend’s house as they walked toward home. (You hang it, ring the doorbell, and run to hide). It’s a surprise! A few decided to hang them on the door of a favorite teacher’s classroom.

Today’s World

In today’s world, there are few schools surrounded by fields with wildflowers, and buying flowers is too expensive. So, the tradition of the May Day baskets has pretty much gone by the wayside, right?

But May Poles didn’t cost much. Just a few bucks for some crepe paper or ribbon strips, and time to practice. I think it’s a shame that in most places we seem to have forgotten this day’s history and we have failed to preserve it.

History of May Day Celebrations

According to Wikipedia, “May Day is a public holiday usually celebrated on 1 May or the first Monday of May. It is an ancient festival of Spring[1] and a current traditional spring holiday in many European cultures. Dances, singing, and cake are usually part of the festivities.”

Moving Forward

Let’s get back to dances, singing, and cake! Let’s reinstate the celebration of spring. Let’s recreate the May Pole. Let’s make it a part of our “new normal” once this VOVID-19 pandemic allows us to go back to our schools and hug our neighbors. What do you think?

I hope your day was a happy, memorable one.

What are your favorite May Day memories?

See ya tomorrow.
JanBeek

Category:

art, children, flowers, friendship, Giving, holidays, Living in Harmony, Love, Memories, relationships

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A Fascinating Job

Bob had a student at Hillsdale High School
Back in the 1960’s who now lives in Australia.
Pat Martin-Vegue worked at Marine World USA.

He now lives in Gold Coast, Queensland
He trains and cares for the tigers at Dreamworld Australia
This is a magnificent tiger that Pat raised in his house.

Here is Kai… Pat raised him as a cub …
in a padded, secure, special room in his house.
Pat took this photos of Kai
with one of the other trainers.

You can see more of Pat and his tigers at Pat’s FB page: https://www.facebook.com/patrick.martinvegue

Doesn’t that look like a fascinating job?
I love it that we personally know this great guy!!
Job security during the COVID-19 pandemic:
The tigers must be fed and cared for.
Not just ANYBODY can do that!

Heck, you just throw the meat in his mouth, right?
Ah, there’s more to it than that?
Uh… ya!!
It’s not a job I could handle.
How about YOU?

Coronavirus Springtime at DreamWorld Australia
Social Distancing!

What’s the most fascinating job you’ve ever had?

Mine was teaching K-8
in a juvenile hall near San Francisco,
It was back in the days when
kids waiting for foster care placement
were incarcerated along with older kids
who were jailed because of violent behavior.

But that’s a fascinating story for another day.

Tell me the story of your fascinating job…
or one you know about
because a friend or family member had it.

I’d love to hear from you.
Have a Fabulous Friday.
See ya later.

Tiger hugs from JanBeek – (and Pat ‘n’ Kia)

Category:

Animals, friendship, Love, Memories, pets, photography, relationships, teaching, work

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