Son-shine on Your Shoulders

Happy Son-Day A Scorching Hot Day better than anything in Mid-January Work Hard Play Hard! Hate Busting Today's Star Tribune headline: "Devout Christian, Alleged Assassin".  The title refers to the man who murdered a couple last weekend and shot another couple. One of the persons killed, Melissa Hortman, was a Minnesota state representative.  I knew the Hortman's quite well. I coached their son.  He played a few years for me. The murder obviously has mental health issues.  There is absolutely justifiable reason for his actions. Sadly, he proclaims he is a Christian.  My guess is that at some point he will declare he was doing the work of God.  He will state he was eradicating sin of man. I will note here a common phrase I hear time to time, "More people have been killed for the sake of Christianity than any other religion", or "Christians are the most hateful people on the planet".  The first phrase I cannot confirm because in America we only study...

Happy Son-Day!!!   Let's Celebrate the US's 20th most  Halloween (monsters & creatures) and Arbor Day (trees) are listed above  Father's Day . Dad's Day Adventure A Sign of Life All Around Us In the aftermath of losing a cherished family member, I am coping with grief through multiple means including prayer, conversations, and fond remembrances. One other method has been taking walks with Jo or alone. Walking in nearby parks achieves both mental and physical fitness.  Typically, what I try walk is 5 kilometers (5K), which equates to 3.11 miles.  Here is where all the IWatch gadgets come into play in terms distance, heartbeat, time, calories burned, steps and now electrocardiograms.  Lots of health toys to push towards wellbeing. Call me goofy but I recently downloaded a free app that identifies bird calls.  It's called  Merlin Bird ID.   I am a casual birder.  I absolutely love this app.  In a walk to the Coon Rapids d...

 Happy Son-Day!!! Ah, early summer. Robin, Cardinal, Blackbird,  & Starling chicks foraging in the front and back yards. A place where you will always find good news. Noteworthy First a shout out to my sisters and their husbands for their anniversaries.  Yvette & Will celebrate 35 years, and Roma & David 25 years.  Much love to your unions. Second, some time and space for the location of my nephew, Maurice.  Love and prayers to my sister and brother in this time of closure and rememberance. Birthday cellies for Phillip 8th, Benita 10th, and Josephine 16th. Congrats grads: Jayden and Jayah Mixed Bag "My Father is always working , So Am I"  Words for Self-healing when your are alone I'm back after the Memorial Day weekend to do some serious spring cleaning in our backyard.  I made six trips to the Maple Grove yard waste facility.  I even had to rent a Menards pickup truck.   The aftermath of all this was that I was sore all ove...

Happy Son-Day,  Winter's Last Harrah! A place where you will always find good news. Westside Ear Candy No Sugar Please I am continuing the storyline on loving yourself.  Previously, I touched briefly on taking time and rewarding yourself.   Today, I tackle the physical part of taking care of yourself.  And yes, the Bible goes there. First, a public service message from your Creator and Curator Psalm 139:14 "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."  Self-care Please 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies." 3 John 2 "Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well." 1 Timothy 4:8 -  For while bodily training is of some value, godl...

Happy Son-Day and Happy Mothers' Day First Bass Your Mother Surpasses Them All! Isaiah 66:13  As a mother comforts her child, I will comfort you.   I must confess my sin.  I am jealous of the love, adoration, care, and attention mothers get on their day.  Not because they're undeserving and lavished with gifts and pampering all day.  It's because Father's Day is not the same. And it should not be.  Other than the gender, there is a stark difference in the love a mother gives a child as opposed to what father gives.  Viva la difference.  Notice in the opening scripture above the prophet Isaiah did not reference a comforting father.  I am not saying a man cannot provide comfort, but we have to work at.   Sadly, the people we are trying to comfort can tell our effort is not as organic as from a mother. A mother's comfort is welcomed warmth that soothes to the bone.  All the pain and stiffness from the cold harsh reality melts...

Happy Son-Day!   Feliz Cinco De Mayo A Host of Fun Is It Football Season Yet - Loving Yourself  with a Little Self-Indulgence  The base scripture:  love your neighbor as you  love yourself  (Matthew 22:39) .   This series of messages is about loving the many facets of yourself so that you can love others better than yourself. Philippians 2:3-4 3: Don't be jealous or proud; be humble and consider others more important than yourselves. 4 Care about them as much as you care about yourselves . Caring about yourself is permissible.  This can get lost when in our love for others.  We can love so hard that our tank storing your selfless ability runs low.  To resupply it, sometimes you need to do for yourself.  Indulge yourself. Doing for yourself does not need to be expensive.  It means reading a good book, watching a movie, listening to tunes, napping, gaming, traveling, hiking, and working on your hobbies.  ...