It’s that time of year again when high school and college seniors are walking across the stage, receiving diplomas, and embarking on a different life than they’ve had for most of their lives. It’s an exciting and a bit frightening rite of passage for them and their parents.

This year it’s personal as our grandson will be walking that stage as a high school graduate this week. Soon he will leave for his next educational experience and hopefully fulfill his dream of playing college football. Our family get-togethers will look different and this Grandma will miss those 6’3″ hugs! My prayers go with him.

So Godspeed to the class of 2024 – may you remember that achieving your goals will require hard work, keeping on schedule for your assignments, and lastly, having fun. The next four years will pass quickly; use them wisely.

God bless – Sue

Yesterday I changed the perpetual calendar by my chair from May to June, and it dawned on me that it is indeed almost summer. College graduations are over, many high school ones as well, as the prom and graduation pictures on social media prove, and the bedding plants are enjoying the warm weather. When my husband and I taught school, this time of year held all kinds of relaxing possibilities – travel, catching up on household chores, and restocking our personal reserves with afternoon naps!

What is on your calendar for the next few months? Will you appreciate the summer days and recharge your life? Even though I’m retired, my hectic schedule can stand some extra power that comes from down time. I can finally begin to read some of the books on my “to do” list, try to tackle home chores, and plan for some days away from home during the next few months. I want the summer of ’24 to be a blessing of refreshment for me and my husband. I wish that for you as well.

God bless – Sue

My husband and I just returned from a relaxing camping trip in a beautiful RV park in Virginia. We enjoyed the peacefulness, the beauty of our surroundings, and the recently hatched ducklings swimming in a nearby creek. Even though wifi was available, I didn’t use my devices much. Our camping unit has a TV, but reception was faulty, so we just used a portable radio instead. Lack of visual stimulation was beneficial as we just enjoyed the outdoors, cards with the family members who had joined us, and daily afternoon naps.

It got me thinking that maybe everything that is available at home – endless TV programming and 24-hr news broadcasts, online tablet and phone devices, and the busyness of weekly commitments or appointments – isn’t really good for us. But that’s life, isn’t it! Very few people would choose to work if they had the resources to live comfortably w/o the 9-5 grind, and everything that goes with it. However, we do have the ability to choose what we do when we’re not working. As I mentioned in the title, slower is better, and that applies to our daily life. I’m going to try to follow my own advice. How about you?

God bless – Sue

Wow! It’s been a some time since I’ve posted. I guess kidney stones and Dr. appointments will get in the way of creativity.

The news has heated up while I was unavailable to comment on it. Our country is in turmoil, and I am amazed and disheartened at the level of antisemitism that continues to spread across the country and our college campuses. Who in their right mind supports barbaric terrorism against a nation that simply wants to exist? My guess is people who don’t know history.

Over the board in my Social Studies classroom was the quote: “Those who refuse to learn from the past are condemned to repeat it.” (Santayana) We are seeing evidence of that truth every day on the news broadcasts. Students and others who do not know or haven’t been taught the history of Jewish persecution are continuing to believe the lies they ARE being told/taught. The same mindset that led to the Holocaust is alive and well in America today.

You and I have a choice – which side will we support? I will support Israel, the nation established by God in the Old Testament. He set the boundaries of that country: “And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river, for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee.” (Exodus 23:31) The borders of Israel were also described in Joshua 1:1-5: “After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites.  I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.  Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Israel is the land God promised to give to the descendants of Abraham – the legitimate heirs of His promise. I support Israel’s right to exist in peace despite being surrounded by Arabic nations that want to eradicate them.

God bless – Sue

I’ve been studying the book of John since September with my Bible Study Fellowship group, learning or being reminded of many things. Through Jesus, referred to as the “Word,” the world was created, but that world did not recognize its Creator. He came to a group of humans referred to by many as “God’s chosen people,” but they did not accept or receive Him. Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist, called him the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world,” and that prediction happened during this time of year when the Jewish nation celebrated Passover.

Today is called Maundy Thursday, also known as Holy Thursday, believed to be the day that Jesus ate His final Passover meal. During this meal, the Last Supper, Jesus established the ordinance of communion by breaking bread and saying, “This is My body which is given for you, do this in remembrance of Me.” He repeated this request when He shared the wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” Bread and wine, body and blood, broken and shed – this is what Jesus Christ did for me and for you. I will remember and be forever grateful.