Hello and welcome to the last Team Saturdazzle post for January 2025. Last April for the A to Z Challenge I wrote about Holidays. On most day of the challenge I found an event that was already taking place on that day and pair it with the letter of the day.
Writing about made up holidays turned out to be not enough for me. SO, I actually made up 5 holidays and added them into the challenge for all the letters that were vowels. Now that it is 2025, It has come to my attention that these holidays are coming up again this year.
A chart or graph of some kind might be helpful here:
Name of Holiday with link to 2025 Date (When it occurs)
I'm sure I have written a post like this before with a similar title. I am taking another stab at the subject. My youngest brother Keith was born on Nov 11th 1970 aka Veterans Day. . This is the 54th anniversary of his birth. I was born in September of 1964, so I was already 6 years old when he was born.
. Keith's last Veteran's Day was 16 years ago when he turned 38. He died 5 months later in an Elgin nursing home when I was 44. Since then I've turned 60 and he's perpetually 38. Keith loved math and I'm pretty sure if he was still around he'd call me up today to announce that he had now been alive for 90% of my lifetime. The truth is that he was on;y alive 63.33% of my lifetime time and that number goes down each year I outlive him.
Now Keith would want me to provide a more accurate accounting of that number by factoring in the 5 months between his 38th birthday and that day in April of 2009 when he shuffled off this mortal coil. Let's be real, Keith would want me to calculate the percentage down to at least the day, factoring in the leap days as well. He probably wouldn't be satisfied with even that and want it down to the last minute.
But That's not what I would want. What I would want of course, is that his multiple health problems were all resolved and that he was here with us celebrating his full deck plus 2 jokers (that's 54th please try to keep up) birthday with us. What I would want is that his children now in their 20s would still have their Dad with them instead of hardly remembering him or not remembering him at all. What I would want, is that instead of struggling to recall his legendary dumb jokes, there would be another 15 1/2 years worth of them to smile and nod at. But I did not get what I wanted. Instead, I got grief. Now Veterans Day means more than just Keith's birthday to me. It reminds me that I'm a veteran, a veteran of grief.
I'm going to spend the rest of this post unpacking the last sentence of the previous paragraph. When Keith died Amy and I had been attending a small group at our church for only a few weeks. We knew the leader of the small group pretty well because he was the children's ministry pastor and all our children were in the children's ministry at the time and we were both volunteering there. So when he showed up at Keith's visitation I wasn't too surprised. What did surprise me, however, was that the couple whose house the small group met at came to the visitation. We had just met them a few weeks before. They didn't have children, and they didn't attend the same service as we did. It really meant a lot that he came. He explained to me that a few years before when his father had died, he had a similar experience. Some people he hardly knew came to the funeral because they had lost someone and knew how important it was having people there not only to pay respect to the person they lost but to also be there for those who had lost someone. Both the couple who came to Keith's visitation and the people who had gone to his Dad's funeral had one thing in common, they were veterans of grief.
When I think of a war veteran I think of someone who's been through something devastating and life-altering and has been permanently changed by it. Grief has that same effect on you. There is something else I've learned about veterans they try to be there for each other. There is a camaraderie, a family bond. It's a community that doesn't require serving in the same unit or even the same war. The same could be said about a veteran of grief. I don't know if this is true of all veterans be it war, grief, or something else. But as I dealt with losing Keith, empathy for those encountering the same thing grew in me. I was never one to shy away from the funerals of people I knew, but I started gravitating to the funerals of family members of people I knew. As a veteran of grief, I have been able to comfort people and try to help in tangible ways as people begin their journeys with loss and grief.
Keith is often front and center in my heart and mind during these times. I have not yet lost someone closer than a sibling and have not experienced what it is like to lose a child, a parent, or a spouse. I have done my best to comfort those who have lost more significant people in the time since Keith's passing. A dear friend lost his father and wife in short order. I have to be honest I can't imagine losing Amy. I know it would devastate me completely and while I know God would bring me through it, I know it's just a drop in the bucket in comparison to losing Keith. Amy herself lost both her parents within a few years of each other. It broke my heart to see her "orphaned" knowing that her loss was far greater than mine. Yet knowing how God has helped me through this lesser loss of Keith has helped inform me how I can minister to others as they become more experienced with grief.
I still miss Keith, especially on days like today. Tomorrow my remaining brother and I head over to Keith's house to help his widow with some practical needs. It will be bittersweet just a day after his birthday. All my siblings have tried to look out for our sister-in-law and our niece and nephew and I think we would all say that we wished we could do more. In sports veteran players often act as a surrogate coaches to rookies and other new team members. Grief is not a team that anyone chooses to play for. Isaiah 53:3 prophesies about Jesus describing Him as a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Jesus, His word, and His people have equipped me as a veteran of grief. I'm not sure if I'm paying forward, or pointing backward but regardless of the direction I'm so glad to try to be there for others when grief has them upside down.
That's what my father-in-law would say when our family would come to visit. My father-in-law and my father, as I mentioned in my last post, were both the oldest of 7 children and were both raised Catholic. I was thinking of my F-I-L today . There is a student in my school with his exact first and last name, and I was subbing in that student’s first period class today. Their first name is Donnell so it's not exactly an every day name.
My wife's Dad was not only raised Catholic, but he also was a Benedictine Brother living in a monastery before he gave up his vows and married my mother-in-law. So when he called us Protestants, this was a little more than the average layman's opinion.
This opinion was true. We were in fact, Protestants. We never referred to each other as such. While it was true that both Amy and I had grown own of our Catholic beliefs and were attending a Bible church when we married, we simply referred to our selves as Christians.
It was on this day in 1517 that a professor of moral theology at the University of Wittenberg by the name of Martin Luther is credited for changing the course of religious history and making a distinction between Protestants and Catholics.
What's A Catholic?
The first use of Catholic dates back to 110 A.D. It basically means universal. Saying the Catholic Church in it's original meaning was talking about all Christians. In AD. 380 Christianity became the state religion of the Roman empire. In essence the Roman Catholic church just means the Christian church operating in Rome.
What's a Protestant?
A Protestant is called this because historically they protested against the teachings of the Catholic church. These protests led to the Protestant reformation. The reformation was meant to reform the Catholic church not to necessary split from it,
Martin Luther was one of the original reformers. He nailed 95 theses on the wall of the Wittenberg Door. These theses were protesting Catholic practices like indulgences.
What's an indulgence?
In the medieval church, a system developed of how to earn your way out of purgatory into heaven. It began as a series of "good works" like fighting in the crusades and then devolved into a practice of purchasing indulgences from the church in order to get sins forgiven. Lost in all these practices were the biblical teachings of Grace, Faith and Redemption. One of the myriad reasons for this is that the truth of the Bible was not accessible at time to the masses. The Protestant reformation that followed changed
Christianity back to its Biblical roots.
What Separates Protestantism And Catholicism?
The Reformation highlighted 5 core beliefs that distinguished it from the Catholic church. These are often referred to as the 5 Solas (Latin for Alone).
Sola Gratia - Faith Alone
Salvation is in no way deserved, cannot be earned and is entirely from God.
Sola Scriptura - Scripture Alone
The Bible is God's authority on how we are to live.
Sola Christus - Christ Alone
The Bible teaches that salvation comes from Jesus Christ.
Sola Fide - Faith Alone
Faith (not works) in Jesus Christ is the only way to Salvation
Soli Deo Gloria - Only God receives the glory
There is nothing special in us that allows us to be saved.
My Father In Law would often use the phrase Sola Scriptura but not in a positive sense. He disagreed that scripture in itself was enough. This is not only a typically Catholic belief but it is also present in all of us. It is in our nature to think more of ourselves and our traditions than actually exist. The truth is that we as individuals and institution are always in need of Bible based reformation. I hope today on Reformation Day and every day you endeavor to let God reform you into his image. The image of God who created, lived for, died for , and redeemed you. It sometimes may seem tricky but it really is a treat.
For The A to Z Challenge this year, I am focusing on everyday holidays. Each day there are multiple unusual things to celebrate. Every day of the challenge I look for an event taking place that day and pair it with the letter of the day. I have also made up 5 holidays to coincide with the vowel days of the challenge. At the end of each post I will share a special song of the day for that day's letter. At the end of the month, these songs will be assembled in a to z keepsake playlist on Spotify. Every day is a celebration, let's unwrap today's together.
April 20th is National Lima Bean Respect Day.
Lima beans the well deserved Rodney Dangerfield of vegetables
I do not need an entire day to respect lima beans. For me a minute would be too much time. To misquote Snoopy in Your A Good man Charlie Brown: I am a Lima Bean hater, a Lima Bean despiser and a Lima Bean loather. Or to misquote Greg Brady in the Brady Bunch episode," My sister Benedict Arnold": Lima beans are on the top of my bad vegetable list, the bottom of my bad vegetable list and every bad vegetable in-between.
I grew up in the 70's and we were all members of the clear your plate club. If my parents served it we ate it, or we hid it, or we fed it to the dog. I've always been a big fan of food, and there's hardly a food I don't enjoy. Growing up, I was not really big on most vegetables, I could eat corn or carrots but anything else was a stretch for me. But the worse of the worst was the lima bean.
I absolutely hate lima beans. I would not eat it on a bet. As I've got older I've learned to enjoy most vegetables and tolerate the ones I don't enjoy. I am actually a big fan of most beans black, pinto, kidney, garbanzo. Generally I lead the league in legumes. But I can not bring myself to eat a single lima bean. It is probably the only food I won't eat. I have strong preferences against some food like olives, but in a pinch I can eat one. Luckily my wife loves olives, so it never comes to that.
My hate for lima beans is legendary in my family. Just like my kids grew up knowing that I love The White Sox, Randy Stonehill, Libraries, and diving off the high dive, they also discovered I hate lima beans. So each Christmas for several years I could always count on that they would wrap up a can of lima beans for me.
I'm not sure why April 20th is National Lima Bean Respect Day. If it were up to me I'd ban the Holiday all together. If I can't do that I would just make it 19 day earlier. Because a day honoring lima beans has to be some sort of April Fools Joke.
To go to the home of the A to Z challenge click here, to see the 2024 master list of participating blogs click here. Enjoy the 2024 A to Z challenge, and Happy Holidays!
For The A to Z Challenge this year, I am focusing on everyday holidays. Each day there are multiple unusual things to celebrate. Every day of the challenge I look for an event taking place that day and pair it with the letter of the day. I have also made up 5 holidays to coincide with the vowel days of the challenge. At the end of each post I will share a special song of the day for that day's letter. At the end of the month, these songs will be assembled in a to z keepsake playlist on Spotify. Every day is a celebration, let's unwrap today's together.
The Fist Friday in April - Wedding Planning Black Friday
Since today's letter of the day is a vowel it's time once again to create a new holiday.
Wedding Planners Black Friday is held annually on the first Friday of April. It was created by Dave Roller for his 2024 A to Z challenge and was first celebrated on April 5th 2024. The date was chosen for 3 reasons. First because the first Friday in April takes place 4 to 10 days before April 11th, the day Dave married his friend Amy. Second, because April is already National Couples Month. Finally, because the first week of April is 2 -3 months before June weddings take place.
Wedding Planner's Black Friday is the perfect day for engaged couples to call off work and spend some couple time before the big event. It is also a great time for the wedding professionals (dee jays, florists, ministers, venues, travel agencies, photographers, etc.) to have seasonal specials ala Black Friday.
Wedding Planner's Black Friday could also be a great day to hold either an engagement party or a wedding shower. It is the first week of April, so there might be a shower anyway.
Today's song of the day is Emma by , Jonathan Edwards
Emma is a song from the 1971 self titled debut album by Jonathan Edwards. This album featured the hit Sunshine. Jonathan Edwards music is often recommended to me on Spotify. I originally listened to this song because my oldest daughters name is Emma. The video below is from a concert almost 10 years ago. Edwards, 84 released his most recent album in 2021 and was performing as recently as March 2023
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My Leap of Dave 2024 A to Z Blogging Playlist now looks (and sounds) like this
Engaged, Married, or whatever degree of single you find yourself. I am glad you stopped by today. Please leave a comment. Perhaps you can answer this question: What is the best Wedding Present you have ever given or received?
To go to the home of the A to Z challenge click here, to see the 2024 master list of participating blogs click here. Enjoy the 2024 A to Z challenge, and Happy Holidays!
For The A to Z Challenge this year, I am focusing on everyday holidays. Each day there are multiple unusual things to celebrate. Every day of the challenge I look for an event taking place that day and pair it with the letter of the day. I have also made up 5 holidays to coincide with the vowel days of the challenge. At the end of each post I will share a special song of the day for that day's letter. At the end of the month, these songs will be assembled in a to z keepsake playlist on Spotify. Every day is a celebration, let's unwrap today's together.
When I first started this blog in 2009 (click here for the inaugural post), I had 3 children between the ages of 3 and 9)
Back then they looked like this ...
Since then ,life happened at a brisk pace and my wife and I soon had 1, then 2, and then (for 9 glorious months in 2018-19) 3 teenagers. Now we are down to one teenager and we find ourselves the proud parent of 3 adults. Babies having babies is one thing, but adults raising adults is quite another.
Today is the first of 5 days that I will make up a new holiday. It is going to be called Adult Children Appreciation day. Here are some facts about the Holiday that I am making up right now.
Adult Children Appreciation Day was created by David Roller in 2024 to commemorate that all his children were now adults as the youngest had turned 18 that winter. Adult Children Appreciation Day was first celebrated on April 1st, 2024. Adult Children Appreciation Day is held the Monday after Easter. Mr. Roller (That's Me.) says he chose that day because it had been a family tradition for him to go to Walgreens the day after Easter and buy Easter products for 1/2 price or less. Dave's oldest daughter loved Bunnies and this was the most cost effective time to buy bunny themed gifts,
Even though the first Adult Children Appreciation Day was on April 1st, it is not associated with April Fools Day at all. Mr. Roller chose Springtime to celebrate this holiday as spring is associated with growth and all growing things mature to some sort of adulthood.
Since The original ACDA was on April 1st and April 1st is also National Greeting Card Day, the creator of Adult Children Appreciation Day gave greeting cards to each of his adult children telling them about qualities they are developing that He appreciates.
If you and your adult children are together on Easter Sunday that is a good time to give them a note or a card showing how much you appreciate them. The Next 3 ACDAs will fall on April 21, 2025, April 6, 2026, and March 28, 2027
I happen to be typing this post at a local library a few days in advance of the challenge. In the past 2 months I have visited 14 local libraries as part of the Library Lover's Expedition. I mention this because April 1st is also Library Snapshot Day an annual day that celebrates the importance of libraries. I am planning on writing apost for each of the 14 libraries I visited for the challenge later this year. For today I will just post a few of the snapshots I took at some of the libraries.
Today's Song of the Day is Any Other Way by Andy Gullahorn
Andy Gullahorn and Jill Phillips
I am a big Spotify guy and have soooo many playlists that I have created. I have made a special play list for the A to Z challenge. By the end of the month it will contain all 26 songs featured here. For now it just contains the A song.
Every good beginning must come to an end. Hopefully you have appreciated Adult Child Appreciation Day. There are still (at least) 25 more holidays to enjoy and a few more for me to make up. In your comments if you have adult children let me know what you most appreciate about them. I will try to make some guide comment solicitations for each day, but feel free to comment anyway you want.
To go to the home of the A to Z challenge click here, to see the 2024 master list of participating blogs click here. Enjoy the 2024 A to Z challenge, and Happy Holidays!
I went to the Elgin 4th of July Parade and took this footage of the Jesse White Tumblers. Jesse White started the tumbling team in 1959 as an positive activity for youth. I first saw the tumblers when they performed at Taste Of Chicago in the mid 80's and have seen them at least 20 times over the years. Jesse White served as an elected official in the state of Illinois from 1975 to earlier this year when his final term as Illinois Secretary of State came to an end.
I have a routine when it comes to my A to Z challenge posts. I schedule the time of the post for the date of the post. For example, today is April 11th or numerically 4/11 so I would generally schedule my post for 4:11 a.m. so people could see it as they were checking their computers in the morning.
This by the way is not an A to Z post but I am posting this at 4:11 in the morning because April 11th is a very significant day in my life. It is the day I married my wife Amy. Today is almost as significant as that day as it is our 25th wedding anniversary.
I have scheduled my A to Z post at 4:11 p.m. It talks about my favorite movie It's A Wonderful Life.
In that film, the main character gets a glimpse of what life might have been like if he was never born and gets to realize what a wonderful life he had.
In December of 2005, our 3rd and final child was born and 2 days after they were released from the hospital I rushed Amy to the emergency room. They did tests and her heart was working at 10% capacity. I remember driving back from the emergency room to my house with 3 children between the ages of 3 days and 6 years old and I got a glimpse of what my life might look like If Amy was gone. I prayed on the way home and asked God to restore her to health.
Thankfully Amy was back to 100% use of her heart and her kidneys and was home to our family in a few short days. We were never given an adequate reason for the occurrence but we believe it was due to a lack of proper hydration after the C-section.
I really didn't need an angel to show me the worth of my wife. We were best friends for 8 years before she signed the Marry Dave Agreement. She takes the best care of me and our children. Often preparing and perfecting foods for us that she doesn't even like to eat. While she is just a sinner that said I Do, she is a loving, Godly influencer on me and our children.
I have had the opportunity in the past 5 years to substitute teach in the same building where she works as a school psychologist. I have never seen anyone take their job so seriously and still love on the children and show compassion and concern to the teachers, administration, and parents. We also have worked side by side the last 2 summers working concessions at a ballpark where she would bring sunshine even in a two-hour rain delay.
So you see she really is a wonderful wife. Happy Anniversary Amy. You really do complete me.
I saw this on Bob Bennet's website just about 30 minutes too late for Father's day. I worked Father's Day at a K.C. COugars game selling concessions. Kids were playing catch with their Dads. I watched them do it and remembered playing catch on that field with my son just a few years ago.
I really enjoyed this new look at one of my favorite songs.
Today is Easter Sunday. Well it still is in my time zone. After church today I was driving to a family gathering and I heard this song. The song is over 30 years old and I have heard it plenty of times. As I listened to it today and reflected upon the lyrics and thought about it in the context of Easter. I realized I'm accepted by Christ, and He loved me so much to die for my sins and his resurrection shows that His love is packed with power. I hope these lyrics minister to you today as much as they did to me .
"I'm Accepted"
by Degarmo & Key | from the 1989 album The Pledge
I May not be rich Don't wear fashion clothes Don't live in a mansion Don't have much that shows Never won a contest in popularity Don't have much to offer But Jesus still loves me
I'm accepted, accepted I'm accepted by the one who matters most.
Never set a record in sports agility Never was magnetic in personality That don't really matter I'll do the best I can 'Cause there's a God above me Who loves me like I am
I'm accepted, accepted I'm accepted by the one who matters most. If you think you're a loser When you fail it seems at everything you do Just remember there's a Savior And you are worth enough He gave his life for you
I'm accepted, accepted I'm accepted by the one who matters most. I'm accepted, accepted I'm accepted by the one who matters most. I'm accepted, accepted I'm accepted by the one who matters most.
Hello A to Z Bloggers. The A to Z Blog had been maintaining a bit of radio silence since last year's doings, so I asked the team if I could write a guest post. To my surprise and delight, they said yes. Before I get into full A to Z mode, let me tell you about myself.
My name is Dave I'm a 57 year old Midwesterner, who's been happily married to my best friend Amy for almost 24 years. a father of 3, an educator, an avid blogger someone who absolutely loves the A to Z Challenge
My first year in the challenge was 10 years ago. It was the first and only year that I did not have a theme. On Sunday April 1st I wrote this post about not fooling around. Si nce then I have participated in several of my blogs. At least one year, I did 3 at the same time.
That's probably a good enough introduction about me for now.
I love a good palindrome. A palindrome is anything that is the same backwards as forwards.
I am writing this on January 31st 2022 or 1/31/2022 or 1-31-22. Tomorrow is 2-1-22 and Wednesday is 2-2-22, a palindrome. Could you imagine an alarm clock next to a calendar at 2:22 showing 2-22-22? If that's not enough awesomeness for you, it's also groundhog day!
But wait there's more ...
There is another spectacular palindrome filled day coming later in February. February 22nd 2022 otherwise known as 2-22-22 it's a twosday that falls on a Tuesday.
(If this isn't a place for a mind blown emoji I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS!!!!!!!)
So what does this have to do exactly with the A to Z challenge? Well, let's put it this way:
If you guys are going to get back into the challenge you probably need to do some forward thinking at the same time. What will you write about? Who will you invite to participate along with you? How will you make this the best A to Z year ever?
I may do more than one theme this year, but one of them is definitely going to be limericks. 8 years ago between my 49th and 50th birthday I wrote and posted a limerick a day on my Facebook page. For the challenge, I will be recycling about 10 of those limericks, writing about 10 new limericks prior to the challenge, and creating approximately 10 more during the challenge, generally on the day of the entry.
Here is a palindrome based limerick I wrote for this post::
I have a dear friend named Jerome
Who sure loves a good palindrome
on 2-22-22
in a racecar he "flew"
both backwards and forwards towards home.
I am really hyped up about this year's challenge. I hope that many of you are getting ready for it as well. I'd like to thank the team for letting me do this guest post.
Shameless Plug: Please check out my blog Leap of Dave, it was called Home School Dad for many years but since our home schooling days have been over for a few years now, I decided to at long last change the name and consolidate my other blogs into the flagship. This means that you can see all of my a to z blog entries over the last 11 years in one place.
I am sort of participating in Feline Friday at Comedy Plus today, I say sort of participating because I am not following their prescribed rules of posting a picture, cartoon or video of a cat. What I offer instead is a cow eating grass style anecdote of why our scaredy cats hide when ever people and especially dogs visit our abode as they did yesterday for Thanksgiving. 6 relatives and a dog-in-law partook in turkey, ham, cranberries and yams yesterday and our cats blipped off the radar into the basement as they are wont to do. I could take a picture of them now as they are in full post holiday hover mode in the next room but in this case no picture is the best picture of what happens when visitors come to call.
For some legitimate Feline Friday entries click here.
Today is Veteran's day. It happens each year on the 11th of November. November 11th has had special significance to me since 1970.
I was in first grade at Queen of the Rosary school in Elk Grove village and Mrs. Newman was my teacher. Some of my classmates were Dennis Morrison, Bob Gore and Dick Lynch. The special significance of 11/11 has nothing to do with Veteran's day but with the birth of my brother Keith.
Keith was the 4th child in our family and was born when I was 6, my older sister was 7 and my brother Chris was 4. In 1970 Keith was the 38th most popular boys name. That statistic would have been meaningless to me except that my brother Keith died in April of 2009 at the age of 38. Today he would have turned 51, but to me he will perpetually be 38 until we are reunited in Heaven.
My parents are still living and as of this writing live in the same house as they did when Keith was born. I was visiting them yesterday and I forgot all about it being Keith's birthday today. It wasn't until this morning at announcements at school that I realized it was Veteran's day. My first 3 classes today were teaching 2nd grade, kindergarten and 1st grade art classes. It was strange to remember that I was in first grade when Keith was born and unsettling to realize Keith's children were in Kindergarten and 2nd grade respectively when he passed away.
I used to think of Keith all the time after he passed away. Over the years I haven't forgotten him or anything like that, but 12 1/2 years of life has moved on while Keith remains more or less at a fixed point in time. I'm feeling a bit of survivor's guilt today. My children have grown up or are in the process of growing up with both their parents. My niece and nephew lost their Dad before they were even tweens. I remember what a loving father Keith was to his kids but it makes me sad that they don't have many memories of him at all.
Over the years I have endeavored to stand in as much for Keith as I could for his children. I will continue to do my best in that regard, but today I'm just a guy who misses his brother.
It's been quite a while since I've posted here. So I have set my timer for 15 minutes have put on Larry Norman radio from pandora on Alexa which is playing Rich Mullin's oddly enough. I am going to just type for 15 minutes and see if I can produce a short message.
As the school. year started this year, for about 3 weeks I was working 3 jobs. I have had a long term sub assignment as an art teacher at my favorite elementary school. I also had been working along with my wife and daughter at a minor league baseball park selling concessions. There was a section in the employee handbook that said I had to disclose to my supervisor if I wrote in a blog, but I think that was written 20 years ago when blogging was more common place. The problem was that my supervisors would change with almost every shift and the supervisors I did tell didn't know what a blog was. I also continue to work 2 nights a week at the movie theatre. I was very glad when the baseball season ended in early September and I could get back to the relative ease of working only 2 jobs.
The problem with getting back into blogging was 2 fold. The first our family has 3 birthdays in a 3 week period in September which kept us all on our toes. The 2nd is that once you get too busy to do something like blogging or reading which both came to an abrubt halt it's hard to get them back going again.
I lost 30 pounds this Summer. The trick will be not to find it again this winter. I am counting calories consistently for the first time in my life and it seems to be working okay for me. My wife and I are doing it together which is better than going it alone.
My timer just went off so I will continue this again hopefully soon with the opening sentence. I always told myself that when I got under 250 pounds I would start running again.
Sundays are traditionally days off for the A to Z challenge and while this Sunday is no exception, I have decided to include an A to Z Easter egg today by listing all the presidents of the U.S. who were alive in 1921 either before, during or after their presidency. I have the two presidents who were in office in 1921 in bold.
1921 President Chart
#. President (date of birth-date of death)
Time in office
Years lived prior to 1921
Years lived after 1921
26. William Howard Taft (9/15/1857-3/18/1930)
1909-1913
64
9
27. Woodrow Wilson (12/28/1856-2/3/1924)
1913-1921
65
3
28. Warren G. Harding (11/2/1865-8/2/1923
1921-1923
56
2
29 Calvin Coolidge (7/4/1873 - 9/5/1933
1923-1929
48
12
30. Herbert Hoover (8/10/1874-10/20/1964)
1929-1933
47
43
31. Franklin Roosevelt (1/30/1882 - 4/12/1945)
1933-1945
39
24
32. Harry S Truman (5/8/1884 -12/6/1972)
1945-1953
37
51
33. Dwight D. Eisenhower (10/14/1890 -3/28/1969)
1953-1961
31
48
34. John F. Kennedy (5/29/1917 -11/22/1963)
1961-1963
4
42
35. Lyndon B Johnson (8/27/1908 -1/22/1973)
1963-1969
13
52
36. Richard M. Nixon (1/9/1913 -4/22/1994)
1969-1974
8
73
37. Gerald R. Ford (7/14/1913 -12/26/2006)
1974=1977
8
85
39. Ronald Reagan (2/6/1911 - 6/5/2004)
1981-1989
10
83
The A to Z challenge will resume on Monday with the letter D. Before I go, speaking of Monday, Easter Eggs and the U.S. Presidency, traditionally the Monday after Easter is the Egg Roll on the lawn of the Whitehouse. It has been cancelled this year but the White House Historic Association is hosting virtual online egg roll activities including this Easter Egg Roll Bingo sheet.
Enjoy your Easter Sunday. Remember that it was a stone not an Easter Egg that was rolled away That Jesus was risen, He was risen in deed,
I volunteer with our church youth group, It is for 6th graders through 12th graders. Until recently it was two separate youth groups one for 6th 7th and 8th graders and one for 9th through 12th graders meeting on separate nights of the week. During the Summer we would allow the incoming 6th graders to join the middle school group and the outgoing 8th graders to attend both groups. As the Summer would draw to an end I would give the outgoing 8th graders a short (2-3 minute) commencement on their last night of the younger group.
In 2016 my son Charlie was one of the kids moving up to the high school group. I challenged the students to have a "2020" vision of what they hoped to achieve in High School especially how they could be used by God in their new schools.
Little did any of us know about what the year 2020 held for us. In fact my son's senior year was progressing quite normally until March 13th turned out to be his last day of high school that actually met at the high school. Since that day, 2020 was a rather tumultuous year (Understatement Alert).
The events of the past 2 weeks make 2021 look like it's going to be more of the same. How do we get through another year like that?
The answer both figurarively, literally and musically is
Day By Day
As this great song suggests we can not only get through 2021 but thrive in the midst of it by doing these 3 things from Day by Day, day by day.
Seeing God more clearly
Loving God more dearly
Following God more nearly.
So like I told the YG in 2016 vision is important. The vision that God is showing me for 2021 requires more time Seeing God through time spent in his word, Following God through obedience to his word and Loving God by loving his creation. I hope to expound on this more in further posts. Right now I'm just taking it day by day.
I was at work yesterday, and since I was working a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m shift at my local supermarket, yesterday became today rather quickly. While I was restocking the grocery shelves, a couple of songs played on the sound system that reminded me that the today that yesterday had just become was Father's Day.
Neither song was being played in particular because it was Father's Day. Each of the songs is played at least twice a week as I go from aisle to aisle stocking groceries and straightening them so the customers can easily get what they need. I don't believe I had ever heard either song until 3 months ago when both my previous jobs were put in a holding pattern because of a certain pandemic playing through on the golf course of life.
The first, Something to be Proud Of by Montgomery Gentry makes me cry every time I hear it. I think part of that is context because most of the times I hear it when the lyric "When you're doing what you're able and putting food upon the table." I am standing on a milk crate literally and figuratively in the process of putting food upon the table.
I may have never made a living using the degree I obtained from university. However my Dad raised me with a work ethic that I still have to this day and even though I've had my share of "nothing" jobs, they have always meant something to me and the people I work for.
"Something To Be Proud Of"
There's a story that my daddy tells religiously Like clockwork every time he sees an opening In a conversation about the way things used to be Well I'd just roll my eyes and make a bee-line for the door But I'd always end up starry-eyed, cross-legged on the floor Hanging on to every word Man, the things I heard
It was harder times and longer days Five miles to school, uphill both ways We were cane switch raised, and dirt floor poor 'Course that was back before the war Yeah, your uncle and I made quite a pair Flying F-15's through hostile air He went down but they missed me by a hair He'd always stop right there and say...
That's something to be proud of That's a life you can hang your hat on That's a chin held high as the tears fall down A gut sucked in, a chest stuck out Like a small town flag a-flyin' Or a newborn baby cryin' In the arms of the woman that you love That's something to be proud of
Son graduatin' college, that was mama's dream But I was on my way to anywhere else when I turned 18 Cuz when you gotta fast car you think you've got everything I learned quick those GTO's don't run on faith I ended up broken down in some town north of L.A. Working maximum hours for minimum wage Well, I fell in love, next thing I know The babies came, the car got sold I sure do miss that old hot rod But you sure save gas in them foreign jobs Dad, I wonder if I ever let you down If you're ashamed how I turned out Well, he lowered his voice, then he raised his brow Said, lemme tell ya right now
That's something to be proud of That's a life you can hang your hat on You don't need to make a million Just be thankful to be workin' If you're doing what you're able And putting food there on the table And providing for the family that you love That's something to be proud of
And if all you ever really do is the best you can Well, you did it man
That's something to be proud of That's a life you can hang your hat on That's a chin held high as the tears fall down A gut sucked in, a chest stuck out Like a small town flag a-flyin' Or a newborn baby cryin' In the arms of the woman that you love That's something to be proud of That's something to be proud of Yeah, that's something to be proud of That's something to be proud of Now that's something to be proud of
The second song was Busy Man by Billy Ray Cyrus which warns about the other side of providing for your family and that is losing focus of why you're working in the first place. I'm more of a Cat's in the Cradle kind of guy, but this has a happier outcome.
Billy Ray Cyrus Lyrics
Play "Busy Man"
on Amazon Music Unlimited (ad)
"Busy Man"
There's a little boy out in the driveway his basketball in hand Saying Daddy could we play a little one on one You pat him on the back and say not now son I'm a busy man
His sister's out on the sidewalk settin' up a lemonade stand Hey daddy don't you want to buy a glass from me You say maybe later can't you see I'm a busy man
You got to go got to run hit it hard and get it done Everyone can see you're going far You got responsibilities a crazy schedule that you keep And when you say that time's a wastin' You don't know how right you are busy man
There's a woman in the bedroom crying sayin' I thought we had plans You say honey I'm sorry I'll make it up When the job slows down and I'm not such a busy man
You got to go got to run...
Have you ever seen a headstone with these words If only I had spent more time at work
There's a call one day from the office they need you down in Birmingham You say no way the weekend's mine I got plans with the kids and a date with my wife I'm a busy man
You got to go got to run take a break and have some fun Those that love you most say you've come far Got some new priorities in that schedule that you keep And when you say that time's a wastin' Now you know how right you are busy man busy man
