Just Do It

I’m in the process of deciding if I want to invest in a treadmill. I love to walk, but this winter, I just can’t seem to get out on the walks I say I love to take. Oh, I can think of a zillion excuses – it’s too cold, too slushy, too icy, too late. Maybe if I had a way of walking inside, I would do it.

This week, my husband has been taking a course in the city, and I tagged along to enjoy a hotel stay/holiday. Well, I spent most of the day on my laptop (I teach an on-line course for a university) but I did manage to take 30 minutes a day in the hotel gym. I thought if I could make myself walk on the treadmill here every day, I’d have a better idea if it would work for me at home. Besides, with no horses to feed or stock waterers to check, and with the wonderful restaurant meals I’ve been enjoying, (not to mention those desserts!) I really needed to get some exercise! So down I went, in my prettiest exercise gear. I cranked the tunes and walked.

It wasn’t so bad. In fact, it was a nice break from my marking. And it gave me a great appetite for those rich desserts!

But will I keep it up at home? It is pretty easy to find other things to do. If only I could take a pill or a supplement to get ‘fit’, I’d be the first to sign up. Unfortunately, getting physically fit requires discipline, and that’s something no pill or potion can offer.

Proverbs 25:28 says, “Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control.”

When you think of it, city walls protect the residents from attack. When we lack self-control, we leave ourselves open to attack, as well. So, self-control is like a wall of protection.

“Father, it is only with Your help, that I can cultivate healthy habits of self-control. Help me today, to take one step toward that goal.”

I think I will get a treadmill – but not the kind that tells you how many more miles you have to walk to burn off the calories of a piece of Rolo Cake. I don’t really want to know that!

Keen Minds

For the past week, I’ve had my neighbours’ kids staying with me here at the end of the road, while their parents flew south for a well-deserved vacation. I can’t speak for the kids, but I’ve had a blast. Nothing like young minds and bodies to keep you going!

We went sledding, and I pulled them on a toboggan behind the quad leaving a trail that would put to shame any ‘drunkard’s path’ quilt! Daily, we fed our horses and travelled to their farm to feed 4-H calves and other assorted creatures, including a huge white feline they call ‘Jolly Old Cat.’

One night after completing both sets of chores, I thought they might need a break from my cooking so I offered to go for pizza. The only problem was that I was in my barnyard clothes and didn’t want to run into anyone I knew. They offered all kinds of advice including:

“Just tell them you are starting a new style,” and

“Yeah, ‘barnyard’ is the new black!”

We really enjoyed that pizza!

I took them to and from school, asked what they learned, and teased them that the teachers must be overpaid because they always claimed not to have learned anything. At mealtime, we discussed the day's events, history, and politics. After the inauguration, we talked about President Obama’s future popularity rating. I expect we'll re-visit that conversation several times over the next few years.

But my favourite part of each day was the bedtime reading. We started with The Highwayman and moved on to a modern version of Horatius at the Bridge. We had a couple of nights with Robert Service (Dan McGrew and Sam McGee) and finished up with Casey at the Bat, and Tom Sawyer. Last night I was at a loss, until the ten year old found a large old text on the bookshelf called A Treasury of the Familiar. He checked the index at the back and asked for “President Roosevelt Asks Congress to Declare War on Japan.” That was a first for them, as well as a first for me!

I marvel at these kids and their keen, open minds. And I’m so glad to have had this time with them.

Psalm 3:23 says, “Wisdom is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed.”

Lord, help me to embrace wisdom and to realize that true wisdom comes only from You.

Stumblin' in the Dark

I’ve been walking around with a sore toe for almost a week. It’s an ‘old housecleaning injury’ -- somehow that just doesn’t have the same ring as an ‘old football injury’ but anyone who knows me, knows that I could never survive playing football. If I wasn’t creamed by the players physically, they’d ban me from the game because I'd ask too many questions about how it works.

Anyway, back to my toe…

Late one afternoon, I noticed that the moon was unusually large and bright, so I snapped this picture while it was still quite light, and made a mental note to check it out again later. After I turned out the lights for bed, I saw that the coulee was flooded with moonlight. It bounced off the snow and seemed to fill all the nooks and crannies with a mysterious glow. Although it was really bright outside, the moon was high in the night sky, and it didn't stream in through the windows. The house was pitch black. In my hurry to check another view, I walked right into my little kitchen step ladder and stubbed my toe (really hard!)

I was so mad at myself – I knew that ladder was there. Why in the world didn’t I just turn on the light? To make matters worse, it’s my previously injured toe (from the housecleaning incident of long ago), and that seemed to increase the pain.

Well, that was the end of the moon watching. I sulked to bed and thought about my sore toe and how silly it was to try to navigate in the dark, when light was so available -- just a flick of the switch away.

By morning my toe was a bit better, and I remembered this verse:

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

Psalm 119:105

This light is as readily available to me as the electric lights in my house, but for a variety of reasons, I sometimes fail to use it.

Sometimes, I forget it’s there;

Sometimes, I think I know the path and don’t need the light;

And sometimes, I wonder if the light won’t be just a little too bright – that it will flood the nooks and crannies of my world and be too disturbing.

I’ve had a few wrecks because I failed to use the light. But I’m thankful that each time, Jesus gently reminded me where the light is and how to use it.

Thank you that Your word is a light in every kind of darkness.
Help me to choose Your word as a light on my life’s pathway so that I don't stumble in the dark.

It Only Takes a Spark...

It only takes a spark…

That song came to my mind tonight when I tried to ‘get a fire going’ in our woodstove. You’d think I’d have it figured out by now, since this is our third winter here, but I’m still having trouble.

If I catch it before the fire has completely gone out, I’m fine. I pile on a few more logs, and soon it starts to roar. But today was so warm, I didn’t notice the fire had gone out, and by the time the house cooled off enough to notice, there was not an ember in sight.

As I struggled to coax a flame, I started humming…

It only takes a spark to get a fire going…

And soon all those around will warm up in its glowing;

Oh that sounded good – to warm up in its glowing. I started to think about hot chocolate…

That's how it is with God's love,

Once you've experienced it,

You spread the love to everyone

You want to pass it on

I guess I hadn’t really thought much about those lyrics before. In fact, it’s been years since I sang that song.

Way back in the 70’s, I remember groups of kids sitting around a campfire, singing it. We were so young, and God’s love was very real. We really did want to ‘pass it on’.

The years went by, and life got busy, and as I raced through it, I didn’t spend a lot of time thinking about those things that really matter most…

I wonder what ever happened to some of those kids?...

I wonder what happened to me?...

Well, the fire did get going, and I did warm up in its glowing. And as I paused to enjoy the warmth, I thought about that line, “you want to pass it on.”

I Corinthians 13 is such a great passage. It closes with verse 13:

And now these three remain:

faith, hope and love.

But the greatest of these is love.


“Father, help us not to keep Your love to ourselves.
But to pass it on to all who cross our path this day.
Through word or deed, may others know Your love as we pass it on.”

Cookies From California

It’s been so cold for so long, here at the end of the road, that I haven’t left the place. But today a Chinook blew in and I finally got to town. Hooray!

Going to town is a pretty big deal here. It doesn’t happen often – especially in the winter months. One of the real treats about finally getting to town is picking up the mail. Today was no exception. Lots of Christmas cards that hadn’t made it before Christmas, some newspapers, and even a parcel. I ripped into it as soon as I got home and found two packages of ‘treats’ – treats for people (chocolate) and treats for horses (cookies). What fun! Who knew there was such a thing as horse cookies? And they came all the way from California!

Because the weather was so mild, I took a little extra time with the horses this afternoon, to see what they thought of their Christmas gift from California. I felt like the woman in Proverbs 31. You know the part about “She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar.” Well, I didn’t really bring the cookies – our cousin sent them. But the horses loved them, just the same.

It made me think about treats, and how we all need a treat every once in a while. Life can become drudgery if we don’t find joyful moments. I’m not talking about major expenditures – just simple pleasures in daily living. David Greer wrote, “the secret of happiness in today’s helter-skelter technological world is to learn how to enjoy less than we can afford. We need to rediscover the pleasures our grandparents knew when life was quieter and slower, when children without TVs knew how to amuse themselves, when pleasures were made, not bought – and enjoyed all the more because of it.”

“Father, help me to find simple pleasures every day this year. And help me to remember that You are the Giver of all good gifts.”

New Dawn...New Year

The New Year dawned with this lovely pink sky. I smiled. And I think that God smiled, too. I sat in my sunroom sipping Crème Brulée hot chocolate, (that Santa knows just what to leave in my stocking!) thinking about all there was to smile about.

Our little granddaughter, for one. She has a new trick called the ‘herd of elephants’. Pretty sure that Daddy is behind this one. They stomp all over the house making as much noise as possible, then lift their arms high and make the elephant’s noise. SNORT!

My husband makes me smile, too. We recently enjoyed a wonderful meal in an upscale city restaurant. After insisting that I couldn’t eat another bite, I managed to polish off a rich dessert while he took a call on his cell phone. When he returned to the table, he teased me about how quickly it disappeared. Adding that sucking, vacuum noise just for clarity.

I said, “When I’m dead and gone, and you’re looking for another wife, don’t do that to any of the prospects. I’m just giving you some sound advice – you’ll appreciate this knowledge, when the time comes.”

His response, “Too late. I’ve used all my charm on you, hon.”

I thought I’d die laughing. And I still chuckle when I think about it. This guy who is far more comfortable in jeans and boots at the ‘end of the road’ than in ‘dress up’ clothes at a fancy restaurant, had used up all his charm on me.

It’s good to laugh, isn’t it? Some days, laughter seems far away, but we all feel better after a good old, ‘from the boots’ belly-laugh. Even scripture tells us this:

“A cheerful heart is good medicine.” Proverbs 17:22

Thank you, Father, that you created laughter. Help me to find joy in some small way, every day this year.

I hope that 2009 brings you many opportunities to laugh. But if they don’t present themselves, don't be afraid to create them. Try the ‘herd of elephants’ for yourself. And after the SNORT, enjoy a rich dessert. Elephants love Crème Brulée!