Loving One Another

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Positive Language


Positive Language

Recently I saw this posted on FaceBook:

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One FB reader responded to this post by writing, “Hmmm. Sometimes no words are needed. If in public hold child sideways around their middle (so feet and arms can’t wack you) and calmly walk out and go home. Child quickly learns after this is done several times that this behavior means going home without the fun or the goodies. (Best advice a pediatric doctor gave me). Even if it means leaving a cart full of groceries in the store.”

Another reader said it applies to toddlers and the elderly!

I said I think some of these may apply to us ALL!

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Ask Me Any Day

  • How may I help you?
  • Are you okay?
  • Why are you feeling sad (angry – hurt – upset – etc.)?
  • Can you tell me what happened?
  • Do you need a hug?

photo of boy hugging his mom

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Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

Always!!

We’re never too young or too old to be treated with compassion. I ALWAYS need a hug!!

The ROCKITMAMA.COM post suggested this positive language might “tame a temper tantrum.”

I suggest it might avoid one, too. And – regardless of the age –  it might help avoid hurt feelings, misunderstandings, and callous attitudes.

I will try always to use positive language in the face of agitation.

How about you?

Have a Wonderful Wednesday!

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See ya tomorrow.

 

Category:

children, friendship, learning, life, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love

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Everything Happens for a Reason


A Reason for Everything

I believe everything happens for a reason. Do you?

We may not see the reason at the time, but eventually, if we are perceptive, if we are thoughtful, if we are open to it, the reason will become apparent.

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Synchronicity

I believe in coincidence. Do you?

I think coincidences are God’s synchronicity. In fact, it’s not “coincidence” at all… it’s part of a Master Plan.

Bear with me.

Let me tell you what happened this week while our grandson, Chris, was here in Ennis visiting us – on a ten day leave from the Anaconda Job Corps.

Chris took the leave because his parents (our daughter, DeAna, and her husband André) are here from their home in Switzerland. Chris (who has dual citizenship, by the way) hasn’t seen his parents in six months, so of course he wanted to have this time with them.

We are at the end of the ten days now. The three of them will leave today. De & Andre’ will drive Chris back to the Job Corps. Then they will be on their way to Los Angeles to fly back home to their place in the Alps.

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Meanwhile…

Two days ago we learned that the USA government is reorganizing their Job Corps program AND in the process, they are closing nine training sites across the USA. The Anaconda Job Corps training site is one of nine sites scheduled to deactivate by the end of 2019.

In fact, one news article indicated Anaconda will be closed by the end of August 2019!

Chris is not scheduled to finish his Heavy Equipment mechanics program  until December or January.

Where is the Coincidence?

What does this have to do with synchronicity?

Well, Anaconda Job Corps opened its doors in 1966, the year DeAna was conceived. For 53 years it has trained thousands of young people between the ages of 16 and 24. This particular year when it is scheduled to close –  is the year DeAna’s youngest son is training there.

I believe it is no coincidence that Chris is here at this time – – – and that he was gone when the shocking news was announced. There is a reason. There are reasons. But, we don’t see them yet.

Two days ago we received this e-mail announcement from a friend:
The Chief posted more information on the Job Corps Centers this morning on “Inside the Forest Service”.   Click on – www.fs.fed.us/inside-fs

 

Leadership

Chris has been in Anaconda four months, and has moved rapidly through the ranks to become a leader among the other trainees. His experience there has helped him grow in maturity, self-esteem, and self-confidence. He has gained “alpha” status, and the respect of his fellows.

We are so proud of what he accomplished so far there at Job Corps!

Us w Chris

The experience and the training he has received in Anaconda so far will not be lost.

The announcement of potential closure more than likely was made while Chris was away from the site this week (I can’t imagine with it being in the local newspapers and on-line that it was not a major topic of discussion there). I anticipate that he will return today to a lot of friends who are in turmoil.

He is a level-headed, compassionate young man – – – and he can lend a listening ear, and a voice of reason.

Unknowns

There are so many unknowns.

  • Where and when will the 150+ students be transferred to other sites to finish their training?
  • Do they WANT to transfer to another place? Will some just quit?
  • The Job Corps sites that were contracted out and run by the US Forest Service are being transferred to the Department of Labor (if they are not targetted to close). What will happen to the staff hired by the Forest service?
  • Will their years of service and their retirement plans be honored by the Dept. of Labor?
  • Will they have jobs offered to them at other locations? If they live in Anaconda, will they WANT to transfer to Butte or Darby, Montana or one of the other Job Corps locations?
  • What will happen to the little town of Anaconda? The Job Corps is one of its greatest employers!
  • How does this fit into some Master Plan that will ultimately be beneficial?

Choices

When one door closes, another opens. I have heard that all my life. Have you?

Do you believe it?

Everything happens for a reason.

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Stay tuned in!

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See you tomorrow

Category:

Family, learning, life, Life's Challenges, Love, Montana, work

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Z = Zeal!


Zeal!

Zeal is the zest of life!
It’s the spice that adds joy to our days.
It’s the the ingredient that allows our passion to take the reins.

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Photo by Sebastian Voortman on Pexels.com

What are your passions?
What are you zealous about?

As we wrap up this A-Z series designed to help us
add more meaning and find more purpose in life,
what is your take-away?

 

I often have quoted Frederic & Mary Ann Brussat
from their book, Spiritual Literacy.
Here is what they had to say about ZEAL:

“Be passionately aroused by life.
Cherish every moment,
honor your commitments,
and treasure your kinship with all.”

Be Passionate About Life

What are you passionate about?
Make a list of those things, people, ideas, places
that arouse your passions.
Prioritize them, if you can,
and decide to
zealously do something positive
about each one of them this week.

 

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Here are a half a dozen things I am passionate about:

1. FAITH

2. FAMILY

3. FRIENDS

4. COMMUNITY

5. NATURE

6. SERVING

To “zealously do something positive about each one” of them this week, I will:

1. Practice my faith by attending church and teaching Sunday School, singing in the choir, and leading as moderator for our Presbyterian Women. I will “walk the talk” as I strive to apply the principles Jesus is teaching me in His Word. Practice the principle this JanBeek.blog is built on: “Loving One Another.”

2. Devote time and energy to keeping in touch with family far and near. Treasure time with those who are here now… my husband, our daughter and son-in-law, grandson, granddaughter and her family. We are so blessed! Let the ones far away know they are precious to us, too. Write them, pray for them, call, text, or visit them. Never take them for granted.

3. Exercise hospitality as I invite friends to come for dinner, or treat a friend to lunch. Write cards of appreciation, those “Just Because” kinds of cards… not waiting for a birthday, anniversary, illness, or some other “expected” time to get a message. Pray daily for my friends, just as I do my family and our community and world leaders. Put their faces up to God and ask His blessings on them. He knows their needs better than I do.

4. Serve my community in the ways I am able: Food Bank, volunteer sous-chef at the Sr. Center, “man” the desk at the Medical Center as a “Purple Lady,” and visit friends at the nursing home (sometimes with my accordion in hand so we can sing “Oldies but Goodies” together). Shop locally – and express appreciation to our local merchants.

5. Appreciate and help to preserve nature. Pick up after myself. Give to the Wildlife Preserve, the Nature Conservancy., and other worthwhile organizations that work to enhance and protect our environment. Admire the mountains. Appreciate the deer and antelope who roam our grasslands here on Pintail Ridge, and admire the beauty of our birds – and even the cute little rodents (the hawks have to have something to feed on!).

6. Give Time! By now you know serving is a passion of mine – because I am retired and I am blessed with good health and TIME. In the list above I mentioned many ways I intend to serve. One I didn’t mention was my friend, Raymond, whom I visit weekly. He lives alone and his family is out of state. As long as I am able, I hope to look for those in need of what I have to give, and to serve in whatever way the Lord leads me. I am zealous about serving!

Cherish Every Moment

Honor Commitments

Be Zealous About Life (every day is a gift) – unwrap it!

 

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God Bless You, dear blogging friends.

Thank you for journeying with me through this A-Z series.

See you tomorrow!

Category:

blessings, blogging, Faith, Family, friendship, Giving, Gratitude, happiness, life, Living in Harmony, Love, Montana, prayer, Serving One Another, Spiritual Gifts

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Walk in Wisdom


WELCOME!

Let’s take a WALK in WISDOM together today.

This wheat field offers opportunities
to wander a while:

woman in black hijab headscarf walking on field

Photo by Samuel Silitonga on Pexels.com

“W” is a letter with
a wealth of opportunities for
words that encompass
the qualities we need to
add more meaning
and
find greater purpose
in life.

With WONDER and WHIMSY

Fill your eyes with the wide-open wonder of the world. It is a magnificent place, isn’t it? The water is one of the wonders that brings the whimsy to my surface. Makes me want to run in the waves and wiggle my toes in the sand. Makes me want to explore the wishes I would love to see come true.

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Photo by Loe Moshkovska on Pexels.com

Explore WISHES

To live a more meaningful life and find greater purpose, we need to open our hearts to explore our wishes, make our bucket lists, and dream big!

Bob Goff is one of my favorite whimsical people.
I have not met him in person, but I love his book, Love Does,
and I am a huge proponent of his life’s purpose:
to help people Dream Big and fulfill their
heartfelt wishes.
Check him out:

https://dreambigframework.com/

On his website it says,
“Bob has inspired millions to dream big and make life more awesome. He is driven by a desire to help others unlock their potential to love and be loved greater. What goals and dreams have you been putting off out of fear or the thought that you can’t do it, that it’s too hard? Chances are, Bob could talk you out of those thoughts and send you charging into your next adventure.”

Let WISDOM Guide You

Sometimes wisdom is found in silence.

Prov. 17:28 in The Message, Bible translation by Eugene H Peterson reminds us:
“Even dunces who keep quiet are thought to be wise; as long as they keep their mouths shut, they’re smart.”

The wisdom of the Bible guides my prayer life, my daily walk, my associations with others. That particular verse in the NIV (New Revised Version) says, “Even a fool is thought to be wise if he keeps silent.”

Mom’s version of that was,
“It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool,
than to speak and remove all doubt!”

Mom was always trying to get that message across to me. As a child I must have been quite the blabber-mouth. Bob will tell you that I still am, but I think I have improved through the ages. I hope I’m not as big a motor-mouth as I once was. My third grade teacher wrote on my report card, “Janet must learn, she can’t talk ALL the time.”

I’m still a work in progress. Aren’t we all?

A good part of walking in wisdom is learning when to speak and when to listen… and developing the habit taught in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, “Seek first to understand, and then to be understood.”

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With wonder and whimsy,
Explore wishes.
Let wisdom
guide you.

Thanks for walking this journey with me.

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SEE you tomorrow.

 

Category:

Bible Lessons, learning, life, Life's Challenges, Love

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You Deserve It!


You Deserve It!
Go for it!!
You’re #1!!!

Welcome back to the A-Z series
devoted to ideas for
Adding Meaning
and
Finding Greater Purpose
in Life

Today’s letter is “T”

I could have chosen

  • tenderness
  • trust
  • truth

or any one of several words that represent the important qualities we need to exhibit and value in our lives in order to add meaning and fulfill our purpose more fully,
but I didn’t choose one of those.

It’s not a word that centers on “You Deserve it!”
It is not “You’re #!”
It is about being “right-minded.”

Today, Mother’s Day, I have chosen a word in honor of my dear mother-in-law, Laura Belle Beekman. It was her favorite word. She once wrote an essay on the topic for “The Daughter of the American Revolution.” The word is an old-fashioned one:

TEMPERANCE

It means constraint or discretion,
moderation or prudence,
self-control or sacrifice,
self-deprivation,

tee-totaling!

 

My husband, Bob, said his grandmother was a faithful member of the Christian  Temperance Union. So, no wonder his mom identified so much with the word! But, as you see above, the word has many meanings above that of non-alcohol consumption.

Temperance in Parenting

At yesterday’s birthday party, our sweet little Victoria had a melt-down. If you read my post yesterday, titled Happy Birthday x2, you met Victoria. I told you she was a little girl of many moods. One of them is depicted here in this video. Her mom stood nearby, wisely watching, but not responding to this temper-tantrum!

Meantime, inside the house two moms are busy teaching their 2 year olds to eat properly. Another toddler (Oh my! That’s my great-grandson, the birthday boy!) is independently making a mess, throwing as much food on the floor as he puts in his mouth! It was a busy day, my friends. You can get a minute’s glimpse of it – and our patio & dining room here:

 

Living with Temperance

The concordance tells us that temperance is a virtue – “a cardinal virtue” synonymous with faith, hope, and charity! It is to “be good.” It is to “do no evil.” It is to “keep the right path, and walk the right path.” Follow the straight and narrow. Fight the good fight.

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Teaching Children Temperance

How do we teach our children Temperance? There is not just ONE WAY, of course. But, on this Mother’s Day, it is good to remind ourselves that there are some “cardinal virtues” worth teaching … and the ONLY way our children will learn them from us is by example!

We must be the ones who “walk the talk.” We must be willing to stand by and watch the temper tantrums – and not give in! We must be the examples of following the straight and narrow! Our children will most likely not do as we say for a life-time, but they may do as we do. And we want that “doing” to be PRUDENT, right?

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Photo by Emma Bauso on Pexels.com

 

Leading The Way

Take children by the hand – by the heart – and lead them on the virtuous, good, and moral way.

Add meaning to your life as you make meaning in the lives of others. Add meaning to the lives of your children, grand-children, great-grandchildren, neighbors, friends. Demonstrate every day the faith, hope, and charity you hope to see in this world. That is our PURPOSE in life!!

Only by example can we make the world a better place.

Go out and JUST DO IT!

Happy Mother’s Day

See you tomorrow!

Category:

children, learning, life, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, truth

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Optimism Brings Positivity


Thanks for joining me on our A-Z journey
to find ways to
Add More Meaning
and
Discover Clearer Purpose
in Life

Today we’ll explore the letters “O” and “P”
Optimism and Positivity

Optimism Brings Positivity!

Or, is it the other way around?

Does Positivity bring Optimism?

I couldn’t separate these two!

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Like so many of the concepts we’ve explored in this A-Z series, these two (optimism and positivity) go hand-in-hand.

When you live with the “Positivity Potion” in your life, optimism is a natural by-product!

I am reminded of a story I have read more than once in various places. It’s about an elderly lady who is being guided down the hallway of a nursing home. The CNA (certified nurse’s assistant) says to her, “Your room is at the end of this hallway.”

The lady smiles at her and cheerfully exclaims, “I like it!”

“But you haven’t seen it yet,” the CNA responds.

“Oh, I know, but I like it.”

This lady had more than a sprinkle of acceptance.
She had more than a hint of gratitude.
She lived with more than a feather of hope.
Her positivity potion was overflowing with optimism about life and her future.

She is someone you’d like to have as your roommate
should the day come when you need to move into a nursing home.

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These items of advice don’t suddenly become obsolete when you’re retired and don’t have to get up and go to a job every day. In fact, as a person who is aging (aren’t we all?), it is more important than ever that I remain positive in order to be happy.

When I was recovering from a knee replacement and struggling with more pain than I anticipated in the recuperation process, it was more important than ever that I remain positive, keep hope for a better outcome ahead, and work hard to remain happy.

Challenges keep coming.
Life is not a bed of feathery frolicking through the tulips!
It is more important than ever that I continue to work hard
(find meaningful work to maintain a sense of purpose),
and give my days reason to hope.
Not just a feather of hope,
but the whole chirping, red-breasted robin!

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Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

I never can let myself become so rigid, and set in my ways, and sure of my own way of doing things that I grow beyond the need to accept criticism. I must always keep learning. With a positive attitude, I can thank the one who offers the criticism –  thank him or her for sharing an opinion with me – for caring enough to speak their words of correction. Take it in – try the shoe on and see if it fits! And weigh its merits. Keep learning and looking for ways to improve. Always!

With an attitude of optimism
and a demeanor of positivity,
I will attract happy, warm, and generous people.
And I will be one of them.

What better way to approach my 80th birthday – and the days ahead?

 

Bring Optimism and Positivity with you into your tomorrows!

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Category:

Aging Gracefully, blessings, contentment, Gratitude, happiness, learning, life, Life's Challenges, Love, mental health, self-acceptance

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Adding Meaning to Life … B = Beauty


B = Beauty

How does

paying attention to

and creating beauty

add meaning to your life?

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Photo by Nripen kumar Roy on Pexels.com

 What IS Beauty?

One dictionary says,
1) the quality present in a thing or person
that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind,
whether arising from the sensory
(as shape, color, sound),
a meaningful design or pattern,
or something else (as a personality
in which high spiritual qualities are manifest),
or 2) a beautiful person or thing
(as work or art or building),
or 3) something excellent of its kind
(My old car was a beauty)

selective focus photography of black car

Photo by Maria Geller on Pexels.com

In their book, Spiritual Literacy,
with a sub-title of “Reading the Sacred in Everyday Life,”
authors Mary Ann and Frederic Brussat wrote:
“Walk the path of beauty.
Relish and encourage its inward and outward expressions.
Acknowledge the radiance of creation.”

Find Beauty in Others

Observing and appreciating beauty
is a spiritual practice for me.
It enhances my ability to see the world
through Jesus glasses!
There is beauty in each of us.
Look for the beauty in others
and watch your happiness factor increase.

 

Find Beauty Within

Last weekend my grandson, Chris, and I went to see “Breakthrough.” It’s a new movie starring Chrissy Metz, a true story of a high school-aged boy who fell through the ice in a lake and was underwater for ten minutes before being pulled out. Presumed dead after a long and arduous attempt to resuscitate him, the story focuses on the power of prayer and the results of a loving, passionate mom who would not give up. The beauty of Chrissy Metz as she superbly played the role of the mom was undeniable.
(You may recognize her… she starred in the TV series, “This is Us” and told her personal story in the April edition of Guideposts Magazine.)

When we see compassion and love in the eyes of another, in the behavior of another, we see the inner beauty that shines through. We are encouraged to emulate that behavior.

Chrissy’s ability to passionately demonstrate the power of
unconditional love and an unwavering faith
showed us what beauty there is
in the treasure of life.

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Find Beauty in Nature

While looking for greater meaning in life, I find inspiration in the beauty of nature. A week ago as we were experiencing snow in April, and last Sunday when our Sunrise service was drenched in rain and no sun was visible, I wondered if spring would ever come to my part of the world. Yesterday we had a gorgeous sunny day. Hooray! This morning, look what I found outside my kitchen window:

Yes, this is a sign of spring… it’s here! Never give up hope!

Enjoy the beauty of nature

Let it remind you of God’s unfailing love for our earth and for us!

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Photo by James Wheeler on Pexels.com

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Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

 

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animal bee bloom blooming

Remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

What beauty catches your eye – and adds meaning to your life?

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Photo by wendel moretti on Pexels.com

Category:

Faith, flowers, God, life, Love, nature, prayer

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