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Uneventful Halloween

Posted by eph21920 on October 31, 2017 in Family, Fun, Happiness

It was a creepy looking Halloween morning, but the sun came out a few hours later. There aren’t usually any kids who come trick or treating in my parents complex, so we counted on a calm evening. My dad and I finished putting together the exercise bike and we all tried it out. It works great. Before it got completely dark, we were able to see many families touring the neighborhood in search of goodies. One of the houses that we can see from the large window had a fire blazing in their pit. Needless to say, it was very popular. After dinner my mom worked her way through a difficult piece of music that she would play at Halloween. Then we started a Halloween puzzle that my mom bought at a church bazaar. We got it about half done. The night ended as expected – no kids. But that was OK – we enjoyed the quiet – and no tricks as far as we know!

I Found God today in an uneventful Halloween.

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Project in the Making

Posted by eph21920 on October 30, 2017 in Family, Job, Patience

My parents’ exercise bike has been broken for a while and they were debating on what to do with it. Last week we decided to buy a new one. After my mom’s exercise class, we went to the store and she tried them all out until she found the one that would work the best. Needless to say, she slept really well that night. But we found that to have the bike delivered and assembled would cost half of what the new bike cost. So, we decided to forgo the additional expense and take care of it ourselves. My dad took the old bike apart and took it out to the trash. He waited for the worker to come to pick up the trash so he could talk to him about it. My dad actually talks to him rather frequently. When he came, my dad explained the bike situation and the man said there was no problem hauling it away. My sister and I picked up the new bike at the store the other day. Of course, it was put into the SUV by a man with a dolly. Once we got home, we discovered it was just too heavy for us to carry it in. So, with my dad’s help, we opened the box and brought it in piece by piece until only the frame was left in the box. We managed to heave ho that into the basement. Today, my dad and I got to work on the assembly. Between the two of us, we figured out what pieces to use along with the hardware. That wasn’t difficult, but getting the screws threaded in tiny places that were awkward to reach was challenging. I was pleasantly surprised at my dad’s patience – and my own. We got it about half done before we called it quits for the day. It has been a fun adventure so far and I look forward to completing the job and having a new bike for us to use.

I Found God today working on a project with my dad.

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Blessed by People

Posted by eph21920 on October 29, 2017 in Connected, Friends, Fun, Opportunity, Relationship

This evening I went to another party – 2 in 1 weekend. Today’s was a soup tasting party with the group from the pool exercise class that I attend. When I started going to the class a couple of months ago, I never would have guessed it would be such a social group. One of the ladies hosted the party in her home. Families were also invited, so some people brought their children and/or spouses. Everyone brought a different kind of soup. Some also brought bread and desserts. It was fun to get to know people a little better, as I feel I have just met them. They are all just so nice and genuinely concerned for one another. Yesterday’s party was re-connecting with long time friends and their families. Today’s party was getting to know brand new people. I really enjoyed the opportunity to be social, go to both events, and was blessed by the people I was with.

I Found God today in the blessing of people.

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Grown Kids

Posted by eph21920 on October 28, 2017 in Children, Friends, Fun, Life

Tonight I went to a party with some of my friends that I knew from 25 years ago. I especially enjoyed getting to see and talk with some of their kids that I haven’t seen in about that long. Of course, they are no longer kids and some have kids of their own. But it was great fun to remember the things we did together and see how they have grown up.

I Found God today seeing “kids” grown into young adults.

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Successful Surgery

Posted by eph21920 on October 27, 2017 in Answer, Healing

A woman I know fell and broke her arm a few weeks ago. The doctors decided that her whole shoulder needed to be replaced. She had been on my mind and in my prayers. I found out today that she had the surgery and it went better than expected. That was very good news.

I Found God today in a friend’s successful surgery.

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Respectful Grocer

Posted by eph21920 on October 26, 2017 in Connected, Hope, Stranger

Today as I was having my food rung up at the grocery store, I was watching an elderly gentleman in the adjacent lane. He had a Veteran’s ball cap on. The two young men who were helping him were chatting with him and very patient as he dug for his change. When he was finished, the young man who bagged his food passed the full cart to him. Then I heard him say, “Thank you for your service,” as he shook his hand. I couldn’t hear what the elderly man had to say, but the handshake lasted a while and they looked intently at one another as the man responded. I was impressed with the sincere and respectful young men and thought the exchange between the two generations was beautiful.

I Found God today in a respectful young grocer.

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Enjoying Projects

Posted by eph21920 on October 25, 2017 in Family, Grateful, Home, Knowledge, Life, Past

My sister is very creative and has made several beautiful scrapbooks. She has helped my mom complete her family history book and is now helping my dad put together some of his treasured memories. A couple of weeks ago, they completed a page honoring my grandfather and nephew who trained in the same Navy base 100 years apart. My dad decided the next subject matter should about his father as a magician. My grandfather was a hobby magician since before my dad was born – and a pretty good one. He also owned a car sales company. His business cards read, “Magic is my hobby. I sell cars to make a living.” He did shows for several events and co-founded the Houdini Club of Wisconsin. My dad tells stories of the animals that he had in the house that were used in the shows. I remember many of the tricks and shows he did for us kids. My favorite was his zippered banana. Today my dad pulled out some of his old slides. He found pictures of his father performing and many other old pictures from the 1940’s and got busy printing. He very much enjoys working on these types of projects. This is one of the times when I am most grateful that I am able to be with my parents in their house. They can continue to do their things and I get to learn so much about their history – my history.

I Found God today enjoying my dad enjoying his project.

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Holds Me to Task

Posted by eph21920 on October 24, 2017 in Children, Family, Grateful, Life, Relationship

Today one of those reminders popped up on my computer that shows what you did so many years ago. It was the blog post I wrote 4 years ago on my son’s birthday. I loved it – it brought back memories and at the same time I realized how some things don’t change. Among other things I wrote, “Of all my friends and family, he is the one who will call me out and hold me to task. He makes me want to be a better person.” This still remains true. He isn’t afraid to tell me when I am off track and/or out of line. Most of the time this is done in a loving manner, so I don’t feel too bad. I know I can get his truthful opinion and appreciate his honesty. I am continually grateful for our relationship.

I Found God today appreciating my son’s honesty.

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Love Yourself

Posted by eph21920 on October 23, 2017 in Answer, Faith, Life, Love

Tonight I met with a “Small Church Community” that I connected with a few months ago. I really enjoy being with them and discussing faith. Tonight we talked about the scripture when Jesus announces the two greatest commandments – to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind; and to love your neighbor as yourself. I remembered a young woman who asked me what if you don’t love yourself? That led to a whole other discussion about loving yourself. Sometimes people feel like if they have faith, everything will work itself out. However, sometimes people get very depressed or struggle during a difficult time in their lives. Then, if they can’t pray their way out of it, they think there is something wrong with them. Sometimes we just need to go get help from others to make it through. One of the people in the group pointed out that even doing that is loving yourself. You find yourself worthy enough to seek the help you need instead of doing nothing about it, or just worrying. You want what is best for you. That made so much sense. One thing I love about meeting with the group is it helps me to see things in a different perspective.

I Found God today in a reminder of the ways to love yourself.

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What Belongs to God

Posted by eph21920 on October 22, 2017 in Answer, Creation, Faith

Today, the Gospel reading at church included Jesus’ famous response, “… repay (render) to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” I thought the priest gave a great interpretation of the message. Perhaps I had heard it before, but it really struck me. The coin that was used to pay the Roman tax had the image of Caesar on it. Jesus acknowledged that belonged to Caesar and should be given to him. However, what belongs to God? Those with God’s image. What is that? All of US. We are told in the very beginning of the Bible that God made man in His own image. Every person in the world bears God’s image and belongs to God. It should be our response to first give ourselves to God in prayer, contemplation, and a loving heart. Then we can help give others to God in prayer and action. The message just touched my heart and reminded me that all of us regardless of race, income, physical ability, age, political ideas – we all belong to God and should be treated as such.

I Found God today in the reminder that all people were created by God for God.

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