Spreading love, joy, peace, faith & unity

Archive for June, 2020

Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams

“… So wrap your troubles in dreams,
and dream your troubles away!”

Do you remember that song? I thought of it today because it has something in it about “no matter if it’s sunny or gray” – and today is another gray day in s-w Montana. We’ve needed the rain, but enough already! I’m ready for summer sunshine and no “w.” (We never say that “w” word for fear the gusts will follow and blow us right off our Pintail Ridge!).

We had gusts up to 52 mph last week. Oh my! I was praying to God that our hanging baskets wouldn’t blow off to the end of our Madison Valley!!

Sing Your Troubles Away

Both Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby sang this song… I like the Sinatra version because I love the swing! But listen to the original, too… that’s Bing Crosby waaaay back in the beginning of his career. Doesn’t even sound like him. Accompanying music is 1930s melancholy stuff…. but yup, it’s the Crosby whistle! He had it perfected even in the late 30’s.

Oh, if you hang on, following Sinatra, we hear Doris Day’s version on this first link. She was a favorite of mine, too. (Wasn’t that his whistle I remember in “Singin’ in the Rain?”)

“Just remember that sunshine
always follows the rain,
so wrap your troubles in dreams,
and dream your troubles away.”

Sing along:

I don’t know about you, but I really enjoy hearing various versions of the same song. It’s fun to hear how different artists take liberties and make it their own.

Another popular artist back in the 40s and 50s was Perry Como. Here’s his version of the song:

By the time you heard that last one, you HAD to sing along, right?

Have you wrapped your troubles in dreams
and dreamed them all away?
I wish it were that easy!

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Do you remember dreams?
If not, maybe you need a dream catcher by your bedside.
Catch your best dreams – and live them!

I have a dream catcher by my bed …
and a nice big one in the window
down in the guest bedroom.

This dream catcher is really special.
It was a gift to us from my sister, Sally.
(If you’ve followed my blog for awhile,
you know my only sister, Sally,
lives in a care facility in PA near her daughter.

Sally has Dementia.)

Come and dream your troubles away here in Montana.
It’s a perfect place to do so!

Do you have troubles you want to “dream away”?
Tell me about ’em and I’ll add ’em to my prayer list.
No better place to put your troubles than in the hands of God!

Pray your troubles away!

Thanks for singing with me.
Share your troubles.
I care.
I’ll pray for you.
Hugs, Jan

One More Sunset

After I posted a few sunsets tonight, my friend, Fran, sent me this photo of her sunset! She lives on the Madison River half way between me and Yellowstone National Park.

Take a look at this!! How would you like to have THAT view out your back door tonight?

Thank you Fran!

Wordless June Sunsets

Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh on Pexels.com
Photo by Sebastian Voortman on Pexels.com

Good night!
See ya tomorrow….
JanBeek

Where the Deer and the Antelope Play

What did you do today?

We spent the day in Bozeman, Montana. Bob & I had much-overdue dental appointments to get our teeth cleaned. Then we did our grocery shopping, bought a tree to plant at our church where a tree died and needs to be replaced, and then had “linner” (lunch + dinner) before heading home.

It was a rainy drive home.

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Got rainier as time went by.

Raindrops on window.JPG

When we arrived home, our neighborhood antelope were there to greet us.

Bob w antelope in field.JPG

Look carefully – there’s mama antelope followed by her two babies in the field.

Yesterday I watched them out my living room window.

antelope doe w 2 babies.jpg

A second antelope joined them. She has little ones, too, but they weren’t with her. Probably hiding in the grasses – not too far off.

2 does w 2 baby antelope.jpg

It is such fun to watch them.

A Fun Place to Live

In the picture below, our house is behind those trees… a wonderland for birds – and a haven for us. That field on the left is where the antelope were today.

Home - golden field -Mallards Roost.JPG

Isn’t it fun to live in a neighborhood where the deer and the antelope play? You know that song, right? Home on the Range, a favorite from my childhood.

“Home, home on the range,
Where the deer and the antelope play,
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day.”

Sing it with Roy and me:

Do You Remember Roy Rogers?

You may be too young to remember this cowboy – or you’re living in a different part of the world. Roy Rogers was my favorite when I was a child back in the 1940s. As a real treat, my sister and I would go to the Saturday matinee at the little theater in Newman, California. I loved Roy Rogers even more than the Micky Mouse, Bugs Bunny, and Popeye cartoons! That’s really saying something.

Roy’s sidekick was Trigger, his beautiful palomino. His wife, Dale Evans, was his singing partner. As a child, I was sure Dale Evans would grow old and die – but Roy Rogers would never grow old. And after is wife died, then I intended to marry him!

Did you ever have childhood fantasies like I did?

Photo by Donald Tong on Pexels.com

Did you dress up and pretend to be a princess when you were a child? Or did you imagine yourself to be Roy Rogers’ wife and ride away into the wild blue yonder?

Photo by Brett Sayles on Pexels.com

Well, if you dreamed of being a princess on a horse riding off into the wild, blue yonder, come to Montana. This is the place where such dreams come true!

Join us where the deer and the antelope play!

Hope you had a good day.
Tell me about it...
or share a childhood fantasy.


See ya tomorrow.
Hugs, JanBeek

Love the Stranger

Who is “the stranger”?

We all look pretty strange these days!

Leviticus 19:33-34

“When a foreigner (stranger – xenox) resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself…”

Following the reading of that scripture this past Sunday in church, our pastor, Rev. Steve Hundley, spoke to us about the issue of strangers…. people who are different from us… folks we don’t know yet.

As usual, I took my sermon notes in poetry. This is what I heard him say through my poetic filter:

There’s been a barrage of news
This week about how we can’t get along.
Our Utopian society idea of equality
Is a myth; we can’t seem to join in song.

Xenophobia – the fear of the stranger –
Is rampant in our society today.
But the Bible tells us clearly
To love the stranger in every way.

Provide the stranger with food and care.
Treat the stranger with hospitality.
Yes, the stranger is different from us,
But she or he is more like you and me.

When we fail to notice someone,
When we treat them like they’re not,
Remember this lesson from Leviticus:
Love all people as you’ve been taught.

God can turn the world around
One heart, heart-by-heart, at a time.
God can take away our fear of strangers.
“Different” is not a crime.

We may harbor an innate need to feel
Superior to those around us,
But Jesus taught, “No, you’re not better
Than all the strangers who surround us.”

We all are strangers somewhere.
We all are different and have need.
But God says, “Love the stranger!”
Love or hate? Which do you feed?

Feed the stranger with love! <3

Photo by Valeria Boltneva on Pexels.com

Mmmm… I had a hamburger for my lunch today.
First hamburger I have had in ages.
It was so delicious, oozing with cheese and yummy sauce.
I would love to have shared it with you!

#hugs4happiness – and I’d love to share a hug with you, too.
We’re not strangers! We’re fellow humans, traveling this earth together.
And we’re doing the best we can to love one another.
God says we gotta step up the pace, though. Show that love more fully.

Our love may be small and superficial compared to
The wonderful, magnificent, perfect love of God.
But, in our own small, imperfect way, we gotta keep trying.
Love the stranger. In the process you know, you may be…

… entertaining angels!

The Bible tells us so!

Psalm 91:11

“For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;…”

Beware!
That stranger just might be
God’s angel sent to guard you!

Photo by Kyle Loftus on Pexels.com

Love the Stranger!

See ya tomorrow.
Virtual Hugs,
JanBeek

To God Be the Glory

(You can sing my poem to that same tune…
Try it!!)

To God Be the Glory
Great things He has done.
In God is my hope
For the vict’ries yet won.

We all are a work
In progress with Him.
He’s not finished with us yet.
The future’s not grim.

Just look at this seven-year-old.
Hear the joy in his voice.
See the future through him.
In his future, rejoice!

To God be the future…
In Him I can trust.
In Him we can place hope.
His promises are just!

Because He lives,
And I’m connected to the vine,
Because I know He lives,
All hope is mine.

Because He taught us
How to live for others,
I can do my part
With my sisters and my brothers.

Let His love guide your actions;
Let His teachings fill your soul.
To God be the glory –
In Him, let’s be whole!

Let Him heal us all so
We can turn to Him and sing
It is well with my soul…
Whatever life may bring.

God bless you, my friends.
Have a peace-filled week.
Pray to God for health and peace and justice.
Be the love you wish to see and feel in this world.

See ya later today, I hope.
I will post my sermon notes from Sunday
on my next post: “Love the Stranger.”
Be sure to check back.


Thanks for being part of the solution,
not the problem.


Love,
JanBeek

Everyone’s Hurting

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Remember that everyone’s hurting
In one way or another.
Everyone has burdens deep
Some under long-buried cover.

Remember everyone’s in need
Of our love and empathy.
They may not tell us why;
They may try to hide it from you and me –

But everyone is hurting.

Photo by Aloïs Moubax on Pexels.com

“We may all be in the same storm, but we’re not all in the same boat,” said Inez Barron, a New York City councilwoman.

Photo by Nick Kwan on Pexels.com

As I sit in my comfy living room
Far away from a march or a riot,
I feel the storm from a distance.
It adversely affects my daily diet.

I taste the bitter injustice
As I watch discrepancies on screen.
I see the deaths, feel the pain,
And cry at how it demeans.

Demeans the dignity of life,
Demeans the intent of our Maker,
Affects the vulnerable poor, marginalized –
Slams them down with each breaker.

Photo by Philippe Donn on Pexels.com

Lightening may strike my neighbor –
But it doesn’t leave me unscathed.
I feel the storms all around me.
I understand the outraged.

I, too, am angry at COVID-19
For the way it has taken its toll
On the most compromised among us.
But the virus does not pigeonhole.

Like the injustice of racism,
The virus and the prejudice tumble
Across everyone in the storm’s path.
We all feel the hate of their rumble.

Photo by Johan Bos on Pexels.com

As we work to eradicate COVID
By our adherence to following guides,
May we work to eradicate prejudice
By the way that we live daily lives.

May we live with respect for each other.
May we notice and feel each one’s pain,
And remember that everyone’s hurting.
Share love and shelter – come walk with me

out of the rain.

Photo by Flickr on Pexels.com

Lord, help us see and understand
Each other’s pain,
And help us be part of the solution
Not the problems.
Amen

Have a healthy, love-filled Sunday.
See ya tomorrow.
Hugs,
JanBeek



We Need One Another

None of us on earth lives alone.
Each of us is kin the the other.
We need one another –
You are my sister, my brother.

I will defend your right
To live in peace and justice.
I will work to be an example
Of the love we need, so you can trust us!

Trust us to work together
To make this earth a place of care,
Care for all God’s creation –
A place we equally share.

No man is an island
No man stands alone.
Each man’s joy is joy to me;
Each man’s grief is my own.

We need one another,
So I will defend
Each man as my brother,
Each man as my friend.

We need one another
So I will defend
Each woman as my sister,
Each woman as my friend.

Recently I posted this picture on my blog along with a series of photos that exemplified random acts of kindness. This woman could easily be me. The man she is standing beside is a friend from across the world whom she met playing Words with Friends.

I play Words with Friends with a myriad of people from all over the world. Some of them are busy chatting with me between plays, asking questions, helping us get to know one another.

I’d like to picture one of them wearing a “Love Felt” heartfelt t-shirt like that fellow … and then coming to visit me. I have WordPress friends that I invite to come to Montana and visit me, too.

Might you do that someday?

Each one of you is my brother/sister … each one of you is my friend. We need one another. What would it be like to be writing a blog everyday and have no one out there to read it and respond? Pretty sad!

Photo by Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels.com

Thank you for reading over my shoulder.
Thank you for being my friend.
Thank you for being the holder
Of my heartfelt thoughts that have no end!

We need one another.

See ya tomorrow.

Virtual hugs from
JanBeek

Let Your Light Shine

We each have a light
Shining brightly within us
My friends, let it out!

We each are unique.
We’re each individuals,
But we’re connected.

The best examples
Of humanity’s bright lights
Are in the Bible.

Do our very best
To emulate examples
Of God’s good people.

Here are some women of the Bible whose examples of letting their lights shine are worthy of emulation. Let’s try to be like them as much as possible:

  1. Abigil was wise
  2. Dorcus used her talents
  3. Elizabeth believed
  4. Esther boldly spoke the Truth
  5. Hannah prayed ceaselessly
  6. Lydia shared generously
  7. Mary Magdalene experienced great joy
  8. Rehab gave God her best
  9. Rebekah exhibited Christ-like character
  10. Ruth remained always loyal
  11. Sarah trusted
  12. You and I learn from their examples – let our lights shine brighter because of the way these ladies lit their lamps to light our paths.

Our paths are brighter;
These ladies of the Bible
Lit bright lamps for us.

May we in return
Illuminate the pathway
For those who follow.

Photo by André Cook on Pexels.com

Bee well, my friends.


I send my love and light to you.
Hugs,
JanBeek

Fun Blog Award

I was nominated to participate in this fun blog post. I was nominated by https://charlotteannrobinson.com/ Check out her blog. It is fun, inspiring, upbeat, and always worth the read.

When she answered the question, “What are your ten favorite feelings?” she added graphics to each answer. She made it fun to learn these things about her. You will enjoy seeing them.

Rules:

Simply list 10 of your favorite feelings and then pass on the nomination to one or more of your favorite bloggers!

JanBeek’s 10 favorite feelings:
  1. peacefulness
  2. loving and being loved
  3. compassion
  4. empathy
  5. faithfulness
  6. gratitude
  7. generosity
  8. joyfulness
  9. self-confidence
  10. interdependence

I find peacefulness in Derrick’s garden. He shares wonderful pictures of the work he and Jackie do almost every day there. Their relationship demonstrates the reality and importance of interdependence. We all need one another!!

I love looking for Nugget, their feathered friend. When Derrick’s not in the garden, he shows us his travels through the countryside in his area of Great Britain. I nominate him for best daily inspirational post… derrickjknight

Hello Nugget!

.

Have a beautiful day, my friends.
Enjoy Singing Sky Photography at
https://www.facebook.com/singingskyphotography
His is one of my favorite Facebook sites.

See ya later.

Thank you, Charlotte!!