Memorial Day
God bless all those who sacrificed their lives that we might live in freedom. I never take that for granted. Have a blessed Memorial DayđŸ¥°, my fellow Americans.
Love,
JanBeek
Posts tagged ‘freedom’
Just Sing!
While waiting to find
A reason to keep singing
It occurred to me
Don’t need a reason
Just sing because I want to
Let my song cheer me
Don’t need a reason
I sing because I’m happy
Sing because I’m free
Sing to chase away
The troubles that surround us
Help them go away
I love that version
It makes me happy to sing
I’m so happy – YES!
Blind and autistic
He sings, “I Want to See You.”
He opens my heart!
Sing because you can.
Don’t worry if you’re on key
Just open your heart
Sing, Ukrainians
Stand in solidarity
Sing for your freedom
Let’s sing and pray, too
Sing for their liberation
Join hands for freedom
Everyone join in
Sing a song for their freedom
Help the innocents
Sing for their freedom
Pray for peace in the Ukraine
Sing because you can!
Love to all the people of Ukraine
and all those who are helping
to keep them free from foreign rule.
Sing for freedom!
May your Friday be devoted to freedom’s song…
Love to you all…
JanBeek
Embrace Freedom
God Bless America
Land of the Free…
God Bless America,
My home sweet home.
From Detroit to Houston
From San Francisco to New York,
It’s time to say,
“I love this land!”
There’s nothing like
a good ole hometown parade…
Celebrating our freedom –
Celebrating our love of this land.
Our little town of a thousand
Saw about 20,000 pour in today
To watch our old fashioned parade.
It’s like stepping back 50 years!
No fancy floats worth thousands
With hundreds of hours donated
To create a great big splash…
No sireee! Just good ole home-spun fun!
The Grand Marshalls were ladies
From the Madison Valley Woman’s Club
Celebrating one hundred years of
Service to this wonderful community.
You know you’re in Montana when
The town’s physician and his wife
Enter the parade on horseback
Celebrating their equine family!
Thanks, RJ and Andy!
We’re so blessed to have the MVMC
(Madison Valley Medical Center)
In our little community… so blessed!
Our nurses and doctors’ kids donned the float.
Bob & I had the fun of front row seats
Because our friends who live
Right on the parade route invited us to join them.
Main Street would not have allowed us these views!
Their darling grandkids kept us entertained
As they watched the parade, too –
And ran to gather up the candy
That some of the participants threw to us!
We saw vehicles of every kind,
Decorated with flags and competing
To be chosen as the most unique
Or most beautiful, or most aged.
as an opportunity to advertise.
A native of Ennis – a rare breed, indeed!
on your calendar for July 4, 2022.
Come and enjoy the fun!
De & Laina, were able to be here.
Of course, we missed the parade
in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Maybe they can return to enjoy this holiday with us next year!
So nice to have this fun event back again
And the weather cooperated.
Parade was 10: to 11:30 and the
Rain didn’t come until later this afternoon!
Rain? Yup, surprise!
It was not predicted…
.
.
If you’re in the USA,
what did you do to celebrate
this special Independence Day today?
In another country?
Do you have parades like this?
Time for dinner…
Thanks for celebrating with us!
See ya tomorrow (God willing)
Hugs,
JanBeek
Embrace Flexibility
Being flexible:
A sign of a healthy soul!
It’s well with my soul.
Rigidity means
There’s inflexibility…
Like old, wrinkled skin.
Rigidity lacks
The ability to spring –
Spring up and bounce back.
Flexibility
Is living life on the edge –
Edge of Adventure!
When Bob & I were much younger, we were living in the San Francisco Bay Area. I was happy in my teaching job, but Bob was restless. He had been coaching wrestling and teaching drivers’ education for about nine years. He’d had the “Seven Year Itch” for a couple years… looking for a way to feel compensated for the tons of extra hours he put in as a coach. But, coaches don’t get paid more than a measly $500 stipend for the gajillion extra hours. They watch the guy who comes and goes with the bells. In at 8: am and out at 3:00 pm. It was discouraging after a while. Love his students as he did, it was not “well with his soul.” He wanted the freedom to be compensated fairly for his efforts. So, he left teaching and returned to the family farm. Farming allowed him the flexibility he was craving.
He went back to the family farm … almonds, walnuts, and mainly – beekeeping. Producing honey, selling his bees’ product, scheduling his own time… Ah yes, the flexibility was good for his soul. He thrived!
Flexibility
Is important for your soul.
Keeps your life limber.
The freedom to fish
Or go four-wheeling with friends:
Retirement JOY!
Are you flexible?
Can you readjust your life
When it feels too stiff?
Do you feel you’re trapped
In a spot not fulfilling?
Make your soul feel well.
Listen to your heart.
Life’s too short to be rutted –
Stuck and unhappy!
Just dig yourself out.
Uncover many options –
Start digging today!
There’s a world waiting
For the flexible and strong
To step out in faith.
Know you are not stuck
In an unfulfilling place.
Exercise options!
Do some exploring.
Embrace flexibility.
You have just one life.
Look for your purpose
Find it in your prayer-filled time
Embrace Flexibility.
You were born to start
The work set out just for you.
God bless you today!
Just live your own dream –
Not the dream of someone else.
Step out in faith now!
Yup, that’s right –
Flexibility means JOY –
Jump into it NOW!
We’re living in joy!
Thanks for visiting JanBeek
See ya tomorrow.
2 years + 9 months + 3 days
He went into the army because
He didn’t know what else to do.
He was in two years, nine months,
And three days. Does that count to you?
It was during a time of peace.
No, he didn’t have to serve in a war.
But that time in the army
Changed him to his very core.
Today is Veteran’s Day in the USA,
A time to honor our veterans’ sacrifice.
Some serve now, others are retired,
While many gave their very lives.
So, it’s important to recognize
All the men and women who gave
Of themselves to keep us free.
Today flowers went on many a grave.
Whether days, years, or a lifetime
Were spent in the service of country,
Today we reach out to say to you,
Thank you! Your sacrifice keeps us free.
God Bless Our Veterans.
Thank you, Bob!!
I’m glad I got to serve those last
9 months and 3 days with you!
I love Germany and the friends we made there.
And I loved teaching in the school on the army base.
Thanks to all our veterans!
Your sacrifice is sooo appreciated.
I will never take our freedom for granted.
Thanks for visiting JanBeek today.
See ya tomorrow.
Do you have a veteran in your family?
If so, name them in the comments below.
I want to thank them, too!
Celebrate!
Every day’s a celebration
If you just know where to look.
Look at all your many blessings.
Take a look in the Good Book.
Galatians 5:1
“Christ has freed us so that we may enjoy the benefits of freedom.
Therefore, be firm in this freedom, and don’t become slaves again.”
Unlock the gifts of freedom
With the key of appreciation.
Be grateful for our liberties –
We’re a very blessed nation.
We enjoy liberties that people
In many other countries will never see,
But will long for their whole lifetimes.
Thank the Lord that we are free!
Free to vote and free to protest;
Free to shout when we disagree.
Free to love and be loved in return;
Free from the oppression of tyranny.
Lamentations 3:22-24
“Because of the Lord’s great love,
we are not consumed,
for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
I say to myself,
‘The Lord is my portion,
therefore I will wait for Him’.”
With my morning cup of coffee,
I will wait in my sanctuary.
I will read and pray and ask the Lord
For hope to live in you and me.
I will seek the peace that God can give,
And put the results in His hands.
I will seek His strength for today
Ask Him to heal the hurt in our lands.
I will celebrate the right to vote
As I listen for the results to come.
I will celebrate the eternal joy
That I can claim. It’s denied to some.
If you are feeling disgruntlement
And joy seems strangely aloof,
Ask Jesus for His divine power
To shine His joy – and Celebrate Truth!
Thanks for visiting JanBeek today.
I’ll see you tomorrow.
(By then, we may know a bit more of the election results!)
Celebrate Freedom!!
…And defend GER? Yes, defend HER!
God Bless the USA.
Preserve freedom.
Celebrate your right to differ –
Celebrate the ways we agree!!
This Cliff-Dweller is Heavy-Hearted
My heart is heavy.
God answered my fervent prayer.
So why am I sad?
My cousin, Cliff, died.
I received the news today:
God answered my prayer.
I prayed for freedom –
Freedom from this earthy pain.
Our God is faithful.
His family gathered;
All his loved ones surrounded,
And God took him home.
God of Great Mercy,
Thank you for answering prayer.
Now, heal my heart’s hole!
Cliff & Janine
with their two daughters
and sons-in-law,
two sons,
daughter-in-law,
and three grandsons
Cliff and Janine are two of my favorite people in the world!
And now Cliff has left this world…
but he lives on in the hearts of all of us who will always love him.
Janine’s mom is my second cousin, Betty.
Her mom was my mom’s oldest sister’s oldest daughter.
That sounds rather confusing and maybe like a “distant relative”… but there is nothing distant about my relationship with Janine. I was twelve when my family drove from California to Washington to visit mom’s family near Seattle in Issaquah…
and to meet Aunt Evelyn’s first grandchild.
Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Hans were my first connection to the land of Switzerland which claimed our daughter DeAna about two dozen years later! Uncle Hans immigrated from the German part of Switzerland to the state of Washington. Their daughter, my cousin, Betty, with her husband, Nick, lived right across the alleyway from her parents. Knowing we were there, she came over with her new baby, Janine. You know my name in JAN – and so I immediately claimed JANine as my own!!
I was there for Cliff and Janine’s wedding. I claim Cliff as my cousin, too!
Cliff was “Opa” to his three grandsons.
A more doting and loving grandfather never graced this earth!
I am so sad that those three boys will not have
the presence of the Opa as they grow into adulthood.
And the youngest one is too little
to have lasting memories of him.
It makes me cry!
Cliff was a robust man
– a former University of Washington champion rower –
weighing over 200 pounds most of his adult life.
Cancer and the chemo treatments
wasted away his body and took away his strength
– and eventually his life.
But his spirit lives on.
He’ll remain strong and robust forever
in all of us who knew and loved him.
We are a vast array of Cliff-Dwellers!
Hans, Stefan, Janine, Heidi, and Erika
God bless you, my Word Press family.
Thank you for praying for my cousin, JANine, and her family.
See ya tomorrow.
JanBeek
The Story of Our Freedom
We had a wonderful outdoor church service today.
God blessed us with the most perfect weather imaginable!
Only a few scattered puffy clouds over there.
He has spent hours weed-eating under those threes!
And we have a team of volunteers who mow the lawns.
Looks lovely, huh?
I didn’t take any photos til afterward
when all the chairs were put away and
only one couple remained
talking with Bob.
Rev. Steve Hundley delivered a great sermon
titled “”Peter Pride and Dana Defeated.”
He assured us the names were not gender specific!
If you’ve followed my blog for a while,
you know I take sermon notes in poetry as I listen.
I changed the title to “The story of Our Freedom.”
The story of our freedom
Is written on the Statue of Liberty.
We believe in that freedom, but
It can make captives of you and me.
We can be captivated by
Our need to be totally free.
Our need to be gregarious
Causes us to share with you our glee.
We strive (like Peter Pride) to be
At the top – – – the Number One.
But sometimes Peter Pride’s goals
Get in the way of following God’s Son.
We resist the role of Dana Defeated,
Who is a critic of her own.
She usually feels unworthy
And tries so hard she’s tired to the bone.
Jesus says to give Him your burdens.
He’ll put His yoke upon you
And help you carry your troubles.
Let Him take a pound or two.
Peter Pride sees life through self-effort.
He keeps religion in its place.
He knows Jesus has a point,
But you gotta work to stay in the race.
Peter doesn’t believe burdens are light.
He sees Dana Defeated as sad.
She walks humbly and asks for help,
But seldom looks contented or glad.
Peter found the glory of being on top
Often is overshadowed by loss.
Way up there, it’s sometimes lonely;
No one to help carry our cross.
Jesus said, “Come to Me, I’ll give you rest.”
He’s talking to Dana and Peter, both.
Life should not be a journey to death.
Instead, accept Jesus’ helpful yokes.
Jesus will provide the yoke for us.
He’ll join with us and help us carry
Our burdens of pride or defeat.
Let Him lift you – and be merry!
Amen!
Have a Wonderful Sunday, my friends.
See ya tomorrow.
Love ya,
JanBeek
Free to “Bee”
It’s a different kind of Independence Day weekend in the USA. Our little town of Ennis WILL have its annual rodeo tonight. Social distancing is easy in that outdoor venue. But we will not have the 4th of July parade. Our population of 1,000 grows on that day to about 6,000 typically – and the sidewalks are wall-to-wall people. So for public safety, it was cancelled. We are free to just BEE this year… and grateful to bee alive!
The rodeo will happen as usual, but the crowd will be greatly diminished.
We’ll miss the parade, but we’ll celebrate here at home –
quietly thanking God for our freedom and renewed health.
Yesterday Bob was delighted to be able to spend a day on the Madison River with our friend, Scott. The fishing was good – and the weather was beautiful. The wildlife were out enjoying the sunshine, too.
Scott took this picture of the moose who entertained the fishermen.
Yesterday while Bob was out fishing and I was recuperating from my surgery, a couple of my girlfriends and a dear couple from our church made sure I was well taken care of. Terry (on the left) made bran muffins for my breakfast and gave me a darling, soft and cuddly angel blanket. Elaine (on the right) brought lunch and we shared it as we visited for a couple of hours. Then later in the day other friends brought us a delicious dinner of ham and scalloped potatoes, salad, and cookies for dessert. Yum!!!
I know I am super blessed to have such wonderful friends.
I hope you are equally gifted.
On another topic, you may have noticed that yesterday’s blog “Learn to Say NO,” with a series of Haiku was all in capital letters. I was not intending to shout at you. I was just trying to enlarge this font that WordPress suddenly has decided to use as a default. I found out how to enlarge the first letter in each new text entry. That’s fun, but do you have advice for how I can default back to a larger text for the body of my posts?
even if it’s not the typical Independence Day celebration.
Celebrate your FREEDOM to BEE!
See ya tomorrow.
Love from JanBeek
Free to Do, Free to Bee…
Thank you, Guideposts, for your inspirational daily messages. On this Memorial Day that is so different from those past, I am grateful for the men and women who sacrificed for our freedom.
Free to Live and Build
I am grateful for the freedom to live in this beautiful place in Montana where the robins sing, build their nests, lay their eggs, and feed their babies right outside my dining room window! I’m free to just bee… free to do nothing but sit and watch today… if that’s my choice!
Free to Bee… Free to Recover…
I found this beautiful, stunned bird sitting on the front porch this morning. Is it a wren? It’s really tiny. Even when TazE (our Boston Terrier) went out to sniff at it, it didn’t move. It was free to just bee… bee still for a while. A half hour later, it was recovered – and thankfully flew away. Free to recover. Free to fly.
Free to Marvel
As I sit here and watch the robins take turns in the nest, I am eternally grateful to those service men and women who gave their lives that I might enjoy the peace I have today. Peace to sit here and marvel at nature. Free to enjoy the peace, and to FaceTime with my daughters across the continent and across the Atlantic.
Peace to watch Bob head off with a neighbor to fish the Madison today.
I hope he is free to catch a big one, like my friend Susan Phillips did this week… and then free to catch and release so someone else can be free to have the thrill of catching this beauty! Our Madison River has a “Catch & Release” policy because the trout all are natives… no “planting” allowed. It’s a world-class fly-fishing mecca!!
What are you free to do today?
Tell me about it.
And what are you most grateful for?
You are free…
Free to
Bee silly…
Free to just Bee!
See ya tomorrow.
Have a Meaningful, Peaceful Monday.
