Spreading love, joy, peace, faith & unity

Archive for the ‘Fishing’ Category

Favorite Place in My City

Hmmm… the prompt for today
asked me to tell what is
my favorite place to go
in my city…

Is that question assuming we all live in a city?
Thank God, I don’t!

cars on road in city during night time
Photo by KEHN HERMANO on Pexels.com

Now, I don’t mean to offend those of you in cities
who love living where there are bright lights,
lots of traffic, big buildings, and crowds of people.
BUT,

Give me one main street,
cars I can count on my two hands,
businesses who know customers by name,
plentiful opportunities for building friendships
as well as volunteering to help others,
mountains in the background,
and a river that runs through it…
and I’ll be happy!

My favorite places to go in my little town?
1. Our independent version of McDonalds is “Sugar High”
(It has great burgers and terrific huckleberry shakes)
2. The Manor Nursing Home
(I love helping the residents there – it’s such a loving place)
3. The Madison Valley Library
(We have a five star library… doesn’t get any better!)
4. Lion’s Club Park
(The walking trail bordering the Madison River is divine)

In a little town like Ennis,
you can see the stars at night.
No bright lights to block out their beauty…

Now, why would I want to live in a city?

What’s your favorite place to go in your “city”?

Hugs to you wherever you are…
JanBeek

New Adventures!

We got a new truck!
Well, it’s not really brand new,
But it’s new to us.

Nolan Kemp, salesman
Did a great job at Kendall
Sold us our pickup

We named him “Charlie”
Because he’s “Charlie Blue” blue
We like Charlie lots!

Name your vehicles?
It’s a habit we started
With our ATV

We named her Lucille
Because she is red-headed
And she is a BALL!

We took Lucille up
High into Montana’s sky
Great times with our friends

We also took friends
In our lovely Clack-a-Craft
Fishing the rivers

Notice the trailer
And the help hooking things up
Those days are over

That’s why we sold them
The boat and the trailer, too
Traded the pickup

Don’t need something big
Don’t need a diesel engine
“Charlie’s” gas one’s fine

Without the boat and
Without the big pickup, too
We’ll rely on you!

When you’re heading out
To go fishing for a day
Let Bob ride along!

“Charlie” will give us
Many more years of great fun
They’ll just be different

TazE’s not with us
Crossed over the rainbow bridge
She’s gone – but not us

We’re hangin’ in there
Looking for new adventures
“Charlie” will show us!

It is a new day
Lots of opportunities
Waiting to explore

Travel in “Charlie”
Seeking out new excitement
Got some fresh ideas?

Share!

Cheers!
Love to ya,
JanBeek

Should We Jump Ship?

My last couple of posts dealt with the theme of shipwrecks and lifeboats. Today’s sermon at Madison Valley Presbyterian Church seemed to contradict the idea of jumping from the ship and hopping on the lifeboat. Or did it?

Photo by Nuno Obey on Pexels.com

The boat in today’s scripture lesson was in a storm (“…beaten by the waves …the wind was against them,” Matt 14:24b). The boat was filled with the 12 disciples. Jesus was walking on the water to come to them.

Matthew 14:22-33

Jesus Walks on the Water

22 Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way[a] from the land,[b] beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25 And in the fourth watch of the night[c] he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind,[d] he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

In his sermon today, Rev. Steve Hundley took me on a new journey through that scripture. Instead of focusing on Peter and his desire to also walk on water – and his doubt which caused him to begin to sink, Pastor Steve invited us to take a closer look at the eleven disciples who remained in the boat. I had not done that before. In fact, I am not sure I even realized the boat was big enough for eleven of them to fit in there!

If you have followed my blog for a while, you know I have a habit of listening to the sermon and taking notes in poetry. That way I can share the message with Bob on our way home (since he has trouble hearing and following the sermon during church). Well, I did that note-taking today. Here is what I came away with:

Is this a story about faith?
Is it about Peter’s doubt?
Or, is it about the eleven who
Stayed in the boat without a shout?

They saw Jesus walking on the sea.
They thought He was a ghost.
Jesus said, Never fear, it is I.”
Peter: “… if it is You…” Not the eleven, though.
Who believed most?

Peter doubted – and he asked to be
Set apart so then he’d believe.
Like the rest of us who ask
For exemption – “Give me special power – relieve!”

Relieve my doubt. Let me ask for help.
Do you have trouble asking for help?
Do you like playing the hero?
Unlike the eleven disciples, do you yelp?

Peter yelped, “Let me walk on water, too.”
Jesus gave him the ability to walk.
But Peter continued to doubt
And so he began to sink. Walk the talk?

No, the church doesn’t need heroes.
It needs disciples like the eleven were.
Stay in the boat – Wait for Jesus to come.
Don’t try to be a hero and cause a stir!

We’ve got a storm of constant change
Going on all about us. We need
To stay in the boat and pay attention
To the eleven. Don’t be a Peter of greed!

The wind and waves stirring up change
In our world can eat a person alive.
It’s easy to jump ship, but Jesus says,
Stay the course. Stay in the boat. Survive!

Take heart! You are not alone.
I am with you in the boat. Sing!
Know that this is your lifeboat.
Wait for the peace and calm that I will bring.”

Amen?
Amen!

In his “Prayers of the People”
after the sermon and a hymn titled,
“Eternal Father, Strong to Save,”
Pastor Steve prayed,

“Take us by the hand
And rescue us in our darkest hours.
It is You who rescues us.
We pray You will not leave us alone.
As we strain at the oars,
protect us when we find ourselves adrift.
Strengthen our hands
when we are weak.”


I would add,
“Strengthen our faith
when we are weak.
Keep us on the boat.
It is not a shipwreck,
not if You, Lord,
are our Captain.”

Don’t jump ship!
Life may be a shipwreck,
but with Jesus as your Captain,
your boat is a lifeboat!
You can trust Him completely.
Sing in the lifeboat!

Sing,
“I will make you fishers of men,
fishers of men,
fishers of men…”
(and of women, too!)

Thanks for visiting JanBeek
this lovely Sunday afternoon.
I hope you had a great day.
Bee well, and Bee safe!
And stay in the boat!!

July 4 in Ennis, MT

This coming week is a big one in Ennis, MT. People come from all around to enjoy:
1) the Fireman’s Pancake breakfast 7:-10:am at the FireHall,
2) the old fashioned (step back 50 years) parade at 10:00 am,
3) a walk around our quaint little town for a couple hours,
4) the Lion’s Club BBQ at Lion’s Club Park at noon, and
5) the rodeo at 4:00 PM … or is it later? (there’s also one the night of the 3rd)

Here are a few pictures from years past to help you see what a great set of events it is:


The parade is an event not to be missed!

The rodeo is always fun!

I love the way little kids dress up for the holiday!
The adults go all out, too!

Photo by Brett Sayles on Pexels.com

Fortunately, this year we don’t have to wear face masks!

The Boy Scouts, the 4-H Club,
various churches, the Lion’s Club,
cowboys, and our school kids
all join in the fun!

This year, I will again
help the folks
in our nursing home
(the Manor)
get front row seats
on the parade route.

Come to Ennis this week!
Enjoy the festivities!
I wish our daughters
could be here again this year.
Alas, they’re too far away!

DeDe & Laina,
we’ll miss you!

Ray Easter will be in the parade
with his pristine old convertible!
Look for him!!

Of course, little kids on their ponies
must always be a part of the fun!

Carts, dogs, clowns, fire trucks…
you name it! They’ll all be there!

Will we see you?
I hope so!!

You’ll love our little town!!

And our neighborhood celebrates, too!

I send my Love to you,
JanBeek

Alacrity

Do you know this word?
Alacrity!

happy sportspeople of different ages preparing to run in forest
Photo by Gustavo Fring on Pexels.com

Alacrity = cheerful readiness

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

When I chose my word for 2023, “Ready”
back on January 1, 2023,
I did not know what I needed to be ready for.
But I told myself, “Whatever comes my way,
I will be cheerfully ready!”

This past week, we had the privilege
of hosting my niece,
her husband and 16-year-old son,
and her bff from Utah, Melissa.
And mid-way through their visit,
our son and his wife came for
3 days and 4 nights.
A house full!
Was I ready?

Yes! When your guests are happy, helpful, and relaxed, it’s easy to be cheerfully ready for them!

A day in Yellowstone was a highlight. We all were ready for the bubbling geysers and pools, bison and other animals. Old Faithful always was a hit!

Are you ready to visit Yellowstone? Are you ready to ooh and aaah?

That photo captured only about 1/4 of the herd. It was the largest group of bison mamas and their calves that I’ve ever seen!

We were ready to see the elk and deer 🦌 So, yes, they did not disappoint us! We even saw a black bear. Rare!

My grand-nephew, Liam and I were ready to have our memories of “Artist’s Point” captured by a kind tourist. It’s my favorite Yellowstone spot!

And the guys were more than pleasantly waiting with alacrity for their day of fishing on the Madison. Each of them caught at least one fish … some caught three. No, we didn’t have a fish fry! The Madison River has a “catch & release” policy.

What are you ready for today? I hope you’re anticipating it with alacrity!

Have a Marvelous Monday!

Live, laugh, love ❤️ JanBeek

Shared Talent

Today I was introduced to an artist I had never heard of before.
Tin Yan Chan’s art astounded me.
Here’s a sample:

Nature’s Wonders by Tin Yan Chan

To see more of his art, check out today’s post
at “Humoring the Goddess”
https://wordpress.com/read/feeds/4496017/posts/4509265488

Tin Yan Chans art is amazing.
I was inspired to create this poem after enjoying his works.

Deep within the Rockies
Where no traffic flows
Is a peaceful hidden lake
Where gorgeous lupine grows

The lake is filled with fish
And if you know your way,
You can walk to find real joy
Come join me friends, let’s play

The lake is beautiful in every season
You can visit it for no reason
Other than to enjoy its beauty
Ot wait til its trees are fruity

It’s an artist’s paradise
The scenery is always nice
Sit quietly and wait for the butterflies
Look carefully – they’re a sight for sore eyes!

Claudia at Humoring the Goddess did some research and shared the fact that Tin Yan Chan, a master artist, had his God-given talents recognized in Canada in the late 20th century. She wrote, “… at 16 he was admitted to the Wuhan South Central China Academy of Fine Arts.”

I am so fascinated by this artist’s work that I intend to do a little research of my own. His website shows several additional paintings and about a dozen in a section labeled “sold.” Wouldn’t you enjoy having one of his masterpieces in your home?

Tin Van Chan has developed his artistic talent and made his creations available to the world. What talent do YOU have that you’ve developed and generously shared?

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, ‘I used everything you gave me’.” Erma Bombeck

Today I used my rusty talent (playing the accordion) at church. Our pianist was unable to attend, so I was asked to step up. My accordion has been dropped and some of the keys sound a bit weird – but I stepped up and did my best. Hopefully it was better than trying to sing all the hymns A Cappella!

An easier talent to share is the one that has a harder time getting rusty: Teaching! On Tuesdays I share my love of scripture with my 10-year-old friend, Hailey, and in the evening with my lady friends at our local nursing home. Through the years I have developed my spiritual gift of teaching, and as you have heard many times, I’m sure, “Once a teacher, always a teacher.” Like Erma Bombeck, I want to “use everything [God] gave me.” Our talents are given to us to be shared.

So, share your talent
Your talent’s God’s gift to you
It’s meant to be shared.

For many of you, it’s writing prose or poetry.
For some of you, it’s photography.
For others, it’s music or public speaking.
I really appreciate those whose talent is
fixing my car or unplugging the drain on my sink!
Some are math wizards or skilled carpenters>
All God’s gifts of talent are meant to be shared,
What’s yours?

Share with me what talent you thank God for giving to you.
How are you sharing it?

Musically Yours –
With Love,
JanBeek

Reblog #8 – Be at Peace

Seek the stillness
Seek the tranquility
See the peace within
The calm in you and me

Photo by Lisa Glines

Imagine a peaceful lake
Breathe contentment into your life
Relax and be a gentle presence
Turn away all stress and strife

Don’t try to hear me –
The wind drowns out my voice.
Just enjoy the scenery!

That is a video
Taking you down the driveway
to our home behind the trees

Photo by Nick Kwan on Pexels.com

Do not let the wind
Disturb your tranquility
The wind moves the clouds

The clouds paint pictures
The clouds bring much needed rain
Wind whips them away

Let the wind help you
Blow away any distress
And just be at peace

Smile, my friends!



When this post was first written,
Bob & I were headed out in the boat
to float the Madison River.
Since then, we have sold the boat.
A lot has changed in our lives.

I took this photo on my walk earlier the day this post was first written.

I took TazE for a walk by the river.
She loved it.
Today it is snowy and blowy here…
No river walks.
But I will post a few pictures to show you
what peaceful scenes our Madison River provides!

Many thanks to Ed Coyle for his talented photography

.

Come and visit us here someday!

Be at peace, my friends.

I gotcha covered in prayer.
Have a peace-filled day.


Love,
JanBeek

Wonderful Weekend

Enjoying Sunday
Remembering Saturday
And Fish on Friday

Sunday began
with this prayer-filled
good morning photo
from my friend Lisa
in North Carolina

After church,
Sunday continues
with our TazE
needing attention
and us
trying to
just relax!

Saturday memories
include a wonderful evening
shared with Bob
and dozens of friends
at the Madison Valley Ranchland’s
annual “Noxious Weed Dinner and Auction.”

Check out
Bonny Morningstar Guzzo
on Facebook
to see her wonderful pictures
of that highly successful event.

Friday memories
include our walk
along the Madison River
in Lion’s Club Park
where this beautiful
painted fish sculpture
greets us.

The painting on the fish inspires the Haiku poet in me.

“Father, please teach me
I want to learn how to fish
To fish like you, Dad“

Back home, the clouds keep the day cooler
as the sun plays peek-a-boo
The trees provide welcomed shade
And the birds serenade you

The breeze causes the wind chimes
To sing a lullaby
Reminding me of my sis, Sally
She’d love this place as much as I

The deer come quietly to rest
Beneath the shade of verdant trees
They promise not to nibble
But who can trust deer like these?

Time to think about a meal
Don’t know what I’d like to cook
Need to go check out the fridge
Maybe left-overs -Have a look!

Mmmm… I can see shrimp
Waiting for the coconut
Time to make the sauce

Hope all is well with you.
Thanks for sharing
my weekend memories
vicariously with me.

Now it is your turn
What are your best memories
Of this great weekend?

Sending love your way…
Hugs,
JanBeek

Come Visit Us in Montana!

If I had space in my WordPress photo gallery, I would show you a series of photos of this place in Ennis, Montana where we are blessed to live. BUT, to add more photos, I have to erase older photos. The program tells me I am at 100% capacity! How does Derrick Knight manage to post so many beautiful photos of his garden on https://derrickjknight.com every day without running out of space? I need to discover his secret!

Meantime, what I did was put the photos on a Facebook post – and give you the link here so you can go there to see where we are inviting you to come visit. I hope you will/can check it out!

https://www.facebook.com/jan.beekman/

I’ll put one here as a teaser – hoping you’ll click that FB link and go see more, OK?

Bob & Jan love company… and now that my hand is better and I can be a hostess again, I hope you will consider a trip! We are just one hour from Yellowstone – and the entrance (nearest us) to the park is open now – and the road that takes you to Old Faithful is open, too… following those terrible floods a few weeks ago. Beekman B&B is full July 2-6, but after that, July is clear on our calendar!!

Our kitchen windows with the gorgeous lilac bush

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend. It’s our daughter’s 35th anniversary this weekend… DeDe, the one who lives in Switzerland. We look forward to visiting them in the end of August.

Meantime, my devotional today in “Mornings with Jesus” encouraged me to “Find a quiet place. Write down any problems that surround you. Thank Jesus for being bigger than those problems.” It is not hard to find a quiet place here… and it is easy to live gratefully for daily healing of my broken finger and hurting hand, and to thank God for the beauty of nature and the peacefulness of this place. Come see for yourself!

Thanks for visiting JanBeek

Tell me what you’re doing this lovely weekend…
See ya Monday (I’m taking a day off tomorrow)
Hugs,
Jan Beekman

Embrace Respect

At the doctor’s office this week,
the physician asked us how long we’d been married.
As a couple in our 80’s, that’s a question we hear
Often in these days of hurry and scurry from the harried.

When we say it’ll be 60 years next February,
they say, “Congratulations, Wow!” and then they ask,
“What’s the secret to such a long relationship?”
They can see our smiles through our masks.

“Mutual respect,” I say. “And Faith,” Bob adds.
“We pray together daily because we believe
those who pray together stay together.”
The doc asks, “Do you have other tips up your sleeve?”

“Of course,” Bob responds with a twinkle,
“Never stop showing how much you care!”
And I reinforced the idea, “Mutual respect is a must.
Add the element of trust – and be willing to openly share.”

“At the same time,” I must add, “Remember this:
We are individuals who need to be allowed space.
We’re not connected at the hip, and we can go
our separate ways while sharing this place.”

Respecting one another means we value
the uniqueness each of us brings
to our marriage relationship – and its OK
for one of us to fiddle while the other one sings.

It’s OK for me to be in the bell choir and blog
while Bob watches Monday Night football.
It’s OK for him to prefer history or sports
while I read a novel or make a phone call.

It’s OK for Bob to sit for a while and read
while I clean off the table after dinner.
But when it comes time to do the dishes,
Get up and help if you wanna win her!

It’s Ok to divide some of the chores.
I don’t wanna learn to mow the lawn!
And Bob can’t turn on the washing machine;
but share some tasks – don’t be withdrawn!

Does that mean we always agree?
That we never argue with each other?
No, not at all… we’re human after all!
But we don’t fight with one another!

You can disagree with mutual respect.
The key to that statement is to listen.
Honor your partner’s right to an opinion –
and enjoy equality – not one forcing dominion.

What’s the secret to a long, happy relationship?
Mutual respect, shared faith, and trust –
equal rights, space, avoiding fights,
and time apart every now & then – if you must!

Bob enjoys fishing… I don’t!

I enjoy volunteering at the Food Bank or Nursing Home –
that’s not in Bob’s sweet spot!

We both enjoy a nice glass of wine
with a tasty meal – and occasionally eating out.
It’s important to find some common ground
otherwise you’ll smile less and increase your pout!

So, my friends, what’s the bottom line?
God helped us find each other from the start –
And through the years we’ve leaned on Him for help.
We thank the Lord for His loving heart!

Gratitude can’t be left our of the equation.
Don’t forget to thank Jesus and remember to say
“Thank you” to one another every day.
Thank Heaven, our love is here to stay!

Hah!
Do you think I should learn to fish?

What are your secrets to a long and happy marriage?
I wish you a life-time of mutual love and respect.

See ya tomorrow (God willing)
Love,
JanBeek

Tag Cloud

%d bloggers like this: