Spreading love, joy, peace, faith & unity

Posts tagged ‘travel’

Treasure the Journey

Life is a wonderful journey
Of ups and overs and downs
It’s filled with joy and sorrow
With more smiles (I pray) than frowns!

As I travel this road of life,
I weather the storms and bumps
I look for roses and buttercups
And try to jump over the humps

I look for butterflies and bees
And appreciate the beauty I see
I share the joy and the peace
That God daily gives to me.

Our WordPress friends
share their joy with us everyday.
For example:
Roth Poetry.com
posted about butterflies today.
He wrote:

“I just could not help myself today, when I saw these beautiful butterflies on my Zinnias. I kept shooting and shooting. and they stayed around flitting from flower to flower, poetry in motion! With my 200mm zoom, I was able to focus all the way in on them. These are some of the most beautiful butterflies I have seen!

Beauty flits lightly
from yellow to red buffet
Basking in sunshine

Check out Dwight’s gorgeous photos at:
https://wordpress.com/read/feeds/50171962/posts/4138042931

Life is a journey of beauty
Take time to allow it to sink in
Don’t let the ugliness and discord
Make your vision a stink-in!

There’s plenty of garbage out there
It’s not what God asks us to see
God says to focus on the beauty
There’s plenty of it in you and me!

Don’t let anyone tell you
You’re not up for this journey!

You might have to take a few pit stops,
you might get a flat tire here and there,
you might go through a few thunderstorms,
but through all your experiences,
fruit is being built.
You are becoming stronger,
and your faith and reliance
on God is growing.

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=4cugbmQVHyw&feature=share
I hope when you click on this link,
you can hear this wonderful song
by Jake Owen.

Laugh a lot and keep it light
Let sorrow just roll off your back
Turn a blind eye to the ugly sites
And give the love that others lack

“And no matter what dreams you’re chasing,
Never get above your raising.
May the simple things be amazing
On the journey of your life.”

Treasure the journey!

“The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.”

Proverbs 3:5–6

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, 
and do not rely on your own understanding. 
Acknowledge him in all your ways, 
and he will make your paths straight.”

Years ago I wrote a poem that was published in the International Library of Poetry annual publication. The title of the book in 2002 was “Chasing Revelation.” My poem was titled, “Have Faith and Step Out.” You can find it here: https://janbeek.blog/2020/01/02/have-faith-and-step-out/ It is as poignant in my life today as it was 20 years ago… maybe more so. How about you? Does it apply? Are you up for the next step of your journey?

Step Out!
And Treasure The Journey!

See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

Aging Gracefully, Bible Lessons, courage, Faith, flowers, God, happiness, Life's Challenges, Love, music, peace, Poetry, prayer, relationships

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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

Category:

blessings, blogging, Fishing, flowers, friendship, Gratitude, happiness, Love, Montana, mountains, peace, Travel, trees

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Changing the World

How am I changing the world?
That was the question for
today’s January 29th #Bloganuary prompt.

How would you answer it?

I changed the world when I was born
Because I am as unique as one can be
I change the world I live in
Because there’ll never be another me

I changed the world when I gave birth
to my first child, Tyronee Bee.
He changed the world around him, too,
Because he has deep faith, the same as me.

Ty is letting Jesus take him and Monika
To the place God has for them both
They tackle each day with perseverance
And let God guide their daily growth

They reach out to those around them
And share their wisdom with finesse
Their hearts are full of love and wonder
It’s obvious, those they touch, they bless.

I changed the world when I gave birth
to my second child, DeDe Bee
Her nickname is Miss Sunshine
Her sparkle touches you and me

She smiles at life through thick & thin
And “Carpe’ Diem” is her motto
Her days are filled with sweetest song
A smooth, clear tone with no vibrato

I change the world when I can travel
To see my kids and encourage them
I know the Good Lord guides their paths
And nothing can discourage them

I know if I am weak and needy
They’ll help me out however they can
They’ll do the same for all they meet
They know no stranger – child, woman, or man

I change the world when I reach out
To gather friends and take them in
Enlarge our family with additional members
Reach out, expand, let others just blend in

They change their worlds in return
And the circle just grows larger
Connecting lives where e’re they go
Giving others energy – a super recharger

I change the world when I give hugs
Virtually or in gentle person
Without the care and love of others
The world of loneliness would worsen

So, never doubt your worth, dear friend
Never imagine that you don’t matter
Every kind word that you speak
Is like seed in wind – let them scatter

Influence
You matter
You change lives
Of those around you
Love

Your world may involve only one
One other person to interact with
But that person means the world to you
And that’s the world you’re packed with

So never underestimate your worth
To just one – or to a world of plenty –
You change the world where you are
Folks who do not matter? There aren’t any!!

Many thanks to my faithful long-term friends here –
And a hearty welcome to my new followers!
You make me smile…
You change my world.

Have a great weekend.
It’s so good to be home!
Go out – or stay in – either way,
You change the world around you.

Never doubt it!

Thanks for visiting
JanBeek today.
See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Category:

blessings, blogging, children, Faith, Family, friendship, Giving, God, happiness, Jesus, Life's Challenges, Living in Harmony, Love, mental health, music, Poetry, relationships, self-esteem, Serving One Another, writing

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Our Trip to Mayo Clinic

Site icon
Our Trip to Mayo Clinic

Category:

blessings, Gratitude, health, Life's Challenges, Love, prayer, Travel

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Interview

Good morning, Good Fairy. Thank you for flying on Delta with us this morning. You guided us onto this flight just in time. Do you guide the elderly often?

Ah yes! It’s my job to keep people safe and to grant their every wish

Well, you did a good job so far for us. We got the car into long-term parking and made it onto the plane on time. But what about those two guys who were sitting in our seats?

Heavens! They just wouldn’t listen. Maybe they don’t know how to tune in to their inner fairy. My buddy tried telling them those seats were taken. They wouldn’t listen.

So sometimes Good Fairies need help from earthlings?

Yes, in order to grant my earthling their wishes, often my friends have to run interference for me.

Well, I’m grateful for your assistance. Now, can you keep us safe and comfortable all the way to Rochester?

My privilege! Relax – and enjoy the flights.

Will do!

Thanks for your care, Good Fairy. I love you!

Love my blogging friends, too. Hugs, JanBeek ❤️👍🏽

Category:

blessings, Love, Serving One Another, Travel, writing

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The Rhone River Valley

We went down the Alps

On public transportation

Spending the weekend

Don’t let the sheer cliffs scare you. This driver knows what he’s doing! Thank God!!

You’d enjoy the ride

Putting trust in the driver

He’s quite talented

We’re just relaxing

In Grandmaman’s lovely home

So blessed to be here!

Here’s Nick & Céline

They treated us yesterday

Pink Asian in Sierre

Great breakfast again

At Grandmaman’s lovely home

Sierre, Switzerland

Listening to bells

Is such a rare privilege

I wish you were here!

Our DeDe is such a blessing!

This is a typical scene of flower boxes in Vissoie. They are beautiful at De & André’s chalet.

Did I show you that brief video earlier? It was in my saved drafts.

This afternoon we had a wonderful lunch with Theu and Célia. Their son, Aurélien, lived with us in 2004-5 when we took a motorhome trip from CA to MT and UT and found our Ennis home. We have such wonderful memories of that year with him as he gained air hours to get his pilot’s license 

Live sweet memories 
of beautiful days gone by 
cherish the friendships
Thank you, Theu & Célia!

There you see Denise happily engaged in conversation with Célia who was across the table from her. They hadn’t seen each other in a while. We had not seen Theu & Célia since Aurélien’s wedding 8 years ago!!

I hope you are able to maintain long-term relationships like this one. Tell me about a special one you treasure.

Did I tell you yesterday about Sylviane? We started calling her Syli in 1982-3 when she lived for a tear with us in California. She took DeDe to live for a year with her family after she left us.

Young, naïve, beautiful, impressionable DeDe!

The lesson learned here: unless you want your daughter to go off to a foreign country to live the rest of her life, do not invite a foreign exchange student into your home when your dollywolly is young and impressionable!

Here I am with ZuZu, our 1980-81 Swiss son.
So… on the other hand…

… if you want to enrich your life exponentially, you might consider just that! Check out AFS and tell them what country you’d like to have change your life!!

My friend, Dana, said she wanted to hear more alpenhorn. Here you are, Dana:

Thanks for vicariously traveling with us one more day! See ya tomorrow. Meantime, have a blessed Saturday.

Love, JanBeek

Category:

children, Family, Haiku, holidays, Love, mountains, music, Poetry, Travel

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Safe Traveling

Thank you for your prayers for our safe travel from CA to our home in Montana. The weather couldn’t have been better. The roads were clear. The traffic was not too bad. We’re halfway home. We feel your prayers! Keep ‘em flowing. We should be home by tomorrow late afternoon.

Thank God for improved health and answered prayers. See ya tomorrow (God willing) … Good night!

Nothing makes the cough disappear and the body feel better than a relaxed evening – half way home – a yummy beef and prawn fajita, an attentive waiter, and a delicious margarita!

Hugs,

JanBeek

Category:

blessings, health, life, Love, prayer, Travel

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Update on 2Beeks

Bob & I have “2Beeks” on our car’s license plate.
With the last name of Beekman, the nickname “Beek” is a natural.
Sometimes we catch people driving past us, looking strangely at us.
I imagine they are looking to see if we have particularly long noses!

I have a few new followers who joined JanBeek this month.
I think WordPress’s “Bloganuary” has brought them here.
Thank you!

If you are one of them, you may not have seen the post
where I showed our family a few evenings ago
sitting around the dinner table discussing our ancestry.

We gave Bob a bad time about his “honker” (beak by another name)
and we showed him how he inherited it from his great-grandfather!
Tonight we are giving Bob a bad time for another reason:
His honker is doing a lot of honking! He has RSV.

This respiratory virus put him in the hospital in Napa on January 1st.
What a way to start the new year, huh? RSV is nasty!
After spending the night there, he was dismissed Jan. 2nd
and we were able to travel back to our son’s to recuperate.

This is not the way we hoped to begin the new year.
But the good news is we had the option of coming
back to Placerville – it was a sunny CA day today.
The recuperation time is greatly appreciated!


Bob’s cough is getting better… and soon we will be
able to hit the road and return home to Montana.
It’s not what we intended, of course, for this “vacation.”
We wanted to visit friends in Pebble Beach –
and spend time with Bob’s brothers in the CA valley.

But, we are grateful that when this curve ball
was thrown at us, we had a beautiful alternative.
Thank God for loving family and friends, right?
God has a plan for why this has happened!

“And we know that for those who love God
all things work together for good,
for those who are called
according to his purpose.”

Romans 8:28

God knew we needed more rest and relaxation!
Our house isn’t ready to return there now anyway!

Our soft and marred fir floor’s being replaced with amazing old wood from a 1921 silo!

We hope your year has started off happily.
We pray you’re healthy and dong what you want to do.
We trust the Lord has us right where He wants us.
And we hope, dear friends, the same is true for you.

Happy New Year!

What’s an update on what’s happening in your life?
I’d love to know how your New Year began.
Thanks for visiting JanBeek.
See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Category:

Bible Lessons, blessings, Faith, Family, God, Gratitude, health, holidays, kindness, Life's Challenges, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, Poetry, prayer, relationships, Serving One Another, Travel

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Embrace Christmas Memories

Time with family is memorable, indeed
We’re grateful for the ones who embrace the holiday mood
We’re blessed to have them open their home
And share their love and delicious food.

Our daughter, De, in Switzerland
shared photos of their beautiful meal
Imagine how plates like these
enchant your guests (think how they feel)!

The family in far-off Europe
included our grandsons with our De
I’m grateful for the internet
and the pictures she shared with me.

Nick, De, Mike & Chris

Here in California
Eleven of us gathered round –
add two big, rambunctious dogs
and laugh as kids and animals clowned.

Christmas Day was a time for fun
with love and gifts exchanged
Friends shared photos of their day
Our family did, too … we got arranged!

Thank you, Ty & Monika
for your gracious hospitality –
we’re blessed to have our son & spouse
share their life & love with Bob & me.

I pray your day was blessed
and you celebrated Christ’s birth
with those you love gathered round –
good food, warm hugs, and lots of mirth!

A note for this day-after-Christmas-morning: Faith (our granddaughter) and Kyle were headed home to S.Lake Tahoe last night and about 3 hours later had to turn around and come back to Placerville. The road ahead was closed due to heavy snow and lots of accidents ahead. The good news is that they were not involved in one of them… and we’re all safe and sound… feeling blessed!

Merry Christmas!
Bee 🐝 well!
Bee blessed!

Keep the Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love in your heart year-round! May Jesus remain alive in you!

See ya tomorrow (God willing) –

Love,
JanBeek

Category:

blessings, children, Christmas, Faith, Family, food, God, Gratitude, Jesus, Life's Challenges, Living in Christ's Family, Living in Harmony, Love, Memories, music, Poetry, prayer, relationships, Travel

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Embrace Clear Roads

The sky is gray – The roads are clear – Your prayers are felt – our God is so dear!

Our Creator is magical- This world is astounding – We see His handiwork – His care is resounding!

Everywhere we look we marvel – at the beauty everywhere – So travel with us, dear friends – We’re happy we can share.

See ya later.

Love, JanBeek

Category:

God, Gratitude, Love, nature, photography, Poetry, Travel

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