Life...to the max!

Mentoring Mondays...#21

This begins a 4-6 part series on kinds/types of mentors that easily encourage living fully into the Circle of Life...he types with a grin and some forward thinking, hoping and planning for where this blog is headed.  Therefore, you are invited to travel along for the next several Mondays.  Hearing your own unfolding story, and dialogue, sincerely is always welcome.

This Monday?  Today?  Primary Mentors--Part A.......

...remembering is hard, some times:

    Here in the US of A this weekend is a time of remembering those who have served our country in the military...some losing their lives in doing so...and in remembering those they left behind.  These days, we dare not forget those still serving...and who have paid with their own lives and/or life-changing injuries.  It is good to remember...sometimes it is hard to do so.

    We don't know, exactly, who does this, but the Friday before every Memorial Day in the fifteen good years we've lived in this neighborhood...rain or shine...we've awakened to a flag poked into every front yard.  It was stunning this past Friday to look up and down the street when I went out for the paper to see this.

    Memories can be filled with deep joy...and deep sorrow.  We live life in that in between, if honest with ourselves.  That is where I, too, have been all weekend.  Remembering.  Wondering.  Being grateful.  Being sorrowful.  Through it all, as promised, the Triune God has been here carefully, quietly.

    If we are to be healthy people, we need to live into and beyond all the emotions that memories bring to mind.  For it is to life...as it is tomorow here in the US of A in honoring those who gave their lives...that we are able to live free.

    Whether one has served in any military, or not, life is sometimes a battle no matter where one is doing life.  The Spirit also longs for us to live free, because of another sacrificed life, who came back to life so that we may overcome and live with nourishing freedom beyond any obstacle or circumstance that may show up in our own lives.  I'm remembering Moses' last words to Israel before he died...and before they finally were able to move into their promised land..."Choose life.......!"

    So I sit here in the quiet of this morning honoring all those who have gone before...who joined that great cloud of witnesses the Bible speaks about.  Even in my own moments of grief...and joy...and wondering...and hope.......I believe fully in and trust the One who came to thoroughly redeem the whole of creation past, future and present from any pain one might be experiencing.

    Amen...........

    PS...and I kid you not...I get a daily Bible text sent to my iPhone.  In the process of typing this blog post...this showed up.  The whole Psalm is worth the read, expecially in The Message, on this day:

The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear.

What can mere man do to me?

...Psalm 118:6

 

 

...thank you, Morrie:

 

 

"All endings are also beginnings,
we just didn't know it at the time."

...Mitch Albom...Tuesdays With Morrie...

 

 

 

Mentoring Mondays...#20

 

How do you let people into your space?

        Modeling mentoring, not just “doing” mentoring is a crucial component to any mentoring encounter.  Again, let me emphasize that the best of mentoring keeps continually in mind...

...getting ready for summer #3:

        Life has certainly had it's twists and turns for us.  Maybe even you, too.  But this I will say before I turn in for this day, and gain the rest needed for tomorrow...what is taking place in our lives...and yours...is wrapped up in an ancient saying that is still true, even after all these centuries...and always will be.

AMDG

...getting ready for summer #2:

How are you doing with keeping your promises?

        This could start out sounding morbid...but it isn't...so hang on.  Way back in January of 1980 one of our closest friends, to that point in our younger lives, was found to be dying of a malignant, inoperable brain tumor.  It was a hard series of days for all of us, beginning with his precious wife of only seven years

        As that very odd tumor began to take away his senses...sight, speaking, etc....one of the last conversations I had with him, when his voice was only a whisper, went something like this when I was sitting by his bed late one night (we, and others were taking turns being there with him 24/7):

...getting ready for summer #1:

 

...our back yard "zoo" of two...

 

    If you look very carefully, you can see our "non-pets" have been persistent in finding some refuge in our patio area (which constitutes our back yard).  They are crazy little animals...and I do mean persistent...burying into the flower beds (the hare)...and running all over the fence and tree limbs (the squirrel), even chasing another squirrel friend all over our Aspen trees...we laughed at their antics...and their freedom.

    I took this pic of these two "friends" yesterday as we were preparing to put in the annual flowers.  The rabbit had been working hard digging a hole in that flower bed.  The squirrel, being ever nosey, had to investigate.

    We were fascinated with the interactions...and how they carefully ignored each other...while, at the same time being very aware of each other (but not us, I was taking the pics out of our bedroom window).  There's a metaphor in there for how we humans even exist together.

Think about it...and let me know what you think.

 

© Three3rdsMedia 2011...in association with LeadershipDesignGroup

...thank you, Brian:

 

...from StoryPeople

...and Brian Andreas

There are lives I can imagine without children

but none of them have the same laughter & noise

 

...ahhh...the special delight this week of watching a vibrant bunch of 4th and 5th graders at the DiVinci Academy in District 20 in Colorado Springs do amazing and creative justice to the musical...Alice In Wonderland!  Giggles, outright laugher and applause were frequent.  And our young friend, Claudia, who began as a fun-flinging catapillar and emerged as a beautiful, winsome and lively butterfly brought the house down, along with a few dozen other extra talented kids.

They were all exceptional...still going, wow...what a performance!!!  Kudos to the teachers, parents and kids who made this all possible!

What a grand experience for all of us who where there...........!

 

© Three3rdsMedia 2011...in association with LeadershipDesignGroup

...the power of well intentioned words:

        This has been one of those days when we had an extra important appointment change, one that will determine some of our near future.  OK...so it got rearranged to this coming Monday.  Now what?

Mentoring Mondays...#19:

 

Just how deep are you willing to be?

        Well...here we are...just under the wire.  It’s barely still Monday here in Parker, CO (10:37pm)...but it is still Monday.  I told Judy, when we took a break earlier today from some extra busy hours and took a walk, that this Mentoring Monday, in some parts of the globe where this is read and pondered, will be a “Timely Tuesday.”  It has been an extra challenging, full and good week since last we “chatted.”