Spring has arrived and next week is spring break. We will probably have another cold spell, as we always do at Easter. I thought I was going to get off for spring break; however, there are several things I want to get caught up on. I have a group powerpoint presentation in April, and the group decided to meet on Tuesday night during break. Sunday afternoon and Monday night, I will be doing more research to get ready for Tuesday night. We need to meet, but I sure do wish there was a date that would work out for us after spring break. I have to be a team player and go with the flow.
I plan to take off this Friday, Saturday, Wednesday, and next Friday night. For the most part, I will just be spending time with family on my days off. I plan to go to church on Sunday morning and to cell group on Sunday night. On Wednesday night, I will be at church and I agreed to teach my class of four and five year olds. I have been teaching for a while and had to take a break because of my Wednesday night class. Many thanks go out to the individuals who have been filling in for me.
Thursday night I will probably be doing school work as well. If I am not doing school work, I have three sets of accounting to do. I keep books for my husband's company and for a construction company and I am behind. On Saturday, we have an easter egg hunt for the kids at church from ten until noon. I will probably be helping with that. Hopefully, we will be spending Easter with family. Sunday is also my mother-in-law's birthday, so we will most likely have them over to celebrate. We will probably invite my family as well to celebrate Easter.
So my break is pretty well filled up with all kinds of activities. The important thing is to spend time with family.
The slate article I chose was "Stopping Suicide 101" URL http://slate.com/id/2248242.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Minister's Sermons
About three weeks to a month ago, I went to a funeral for a lady that had worked with my husband. I had met her before as she was an art teacher, and my husband had helped her several times to get ready for art expositions. Although I had met her, I did not know her very well. I listened intently to the minister's sermon as the way he delivered the sermon was very interesting. He also read what I now call an essay that her daughter wrote about her mother along with the help of her father. The minister did an excellent job on his sermon.
As my husband and I were leaving the funeral, we talked about the minister's sermon, and I told him I felt like I had just read a creative nonfiction essay about his friend. It gave me a new perspective on minister's sermons and how they put them together. His was not an academic essay with two or three points. Instead, he told stories and then related them to her life. When I left, I felt like I had met her all over again and knew more about her life. I also thought the writing her daughter and husband wrote was a memoir.
I attend church every Sunday, but now I have a new perspective when listening to the sermons. The pastor at my church almost always delivers an academic essay in his sermons. He may have more than three points, but he always has an introduction and a conclusion. He does tell stories and give scriptures to relate the points and help us to better understand his message. However, he seems to have a style of writing different from the one I heard at the funeral. I have to say though, I have never heard my pastor deliver a sermon at a funeral. Nor have I heard the other pastor preach a sermon on Sunday to the congregation. There may be different times for different sermons.
This is not to say one style of sermon is better than the other. I believe if a minister is teaching from the Bible, it is all creative nonfiction to me.
As my husband and I were leaving the funeral, we talked about the minister's sermon, and I told him I felt like I had just read a creative nonfiction essay about his friend. It gave me a new perspective on minister's sermons and how they put them together. His was not an academic essay with two or three points. Instead, he told stories and then related them to her life. When I left, I felt like I had met her all over again and knew more about her life. I also thought the writing her daughter and husband wrote was a memoir.
I attend church every Sunday, but now I have a new perspective when listening to the sermons. The pastor at my church almost always delivers an academic essay in his sermons. He may have more than three points, but he always has an introduction and a conclusion. He does tell stories and give scriptures to relate the points and help us to better understand his message. However, he seems to have a style of writing different from the one I heard at the funeral. I have to say though, I have never heard my pastor deliver a sermon at a funeral. Nor have I heard the other pastor preach a sermon on Sunday to the congregation. There may be different times for different sermons.
This is not to say one style of sermon is better than the other. I believe if a minister is teaching from the Bible, it is all creative nonfiction to me.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Daylight Savings Time
Everyone will move their clocks forward one hour this weekend as daylight savings time begins on Sunday, March 14th. Have you ever wondered why they do not move the clock thirty minutes and leave it? Most people do not like the time change in March because we lose an hour. Despite that fact, personally, I like the time frame we are moving into the best. There is more daylight when you get off of work at five o'clock, and you can enjoy the rest of the evening outside if you want.
When I was playing softball, we would practice in the evenings and most of the games were early. Of course, at the games, they would have to turn on the lights eventually; but it did not get dark as early. So it is good for those who like to participate in sports. If they would leave the time this way throughout the year, hunters could enjoy an hour longer on the stand in the evening. It also allows children to go trick or treating at Halloween before it gets too late. I remember as a child, we would go trick or treating when it was dark.
I also like the time better because I can enjoy evening walks through the neighborhood before it gets too dark. Now that hunting season is over, we can go to the deer lease and enjoy riding four wheelers. Also, we go camping in the summer and just enjoy being outside. There are several things I enjoy doing outside and this time frame gives us some extra time to enjoy them in the daylight. We get to enjoy it until the fall. Then everyone will get their hour back as we move the clocks back an hour as daylight savings time ends in November. Do you think this will ever change?
When I was playing softball, we would practice in the evenings and most of the games were early. Of course, at the games, they would have to turn on the lights eventually; but it did not get dark as early. So it is good for those who like to participate in sports. If they would leave the time this way throughout the year, hunters could enjoy an hour longer on the stand in the evening. It also allows children to go trick or treating at Halloween before it gets too late. I remember as a child, we would go trick or treating when it was dark.
I also like the time better because I can enjoy evening walks through the neighborhood before it gets too dark. Now that hunting season is over, we can go to the deer lease and enjoy riding four wheelers. Also, we go camping in the summer and just enjoy being outside. There are several things I enjoy doing outside and this time frame gives us some extra time to enjoy them in the daylight. We get to enjoy it until the fall. Then everyone will get their hour back as we move the clocks back an hour as daylight savings time ends in November. Do you think this will ever change?
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Retirement Life
My grandmother retired in 1981 when my cousin was born. She retired early so that she could help my aunt by taking care of him while she worked. My grandmother stayed busy after retirement and she has always been very active. When my aunt was sick with cancer, she would go to their house and help my uncle with the house and do the ironing. She also likes to cook and can make the best homeade bread. She has always done the cooking for the family on the holidays. She likes to read; mostly her Sunday school lesson and the Bible as she was a teacher. She is still active in the church and always likes being with the family. You would not know by looking at her that she is ninety years old. She is very healthy for her age.
My father in law retired in 1992. He also retired early due to circumstances on his job. When he first retired he enjoyed his time off and his hobby was hunting. My husband, his brother and their father would take a trip every year to Arkansas to deer hunt. His favorite past time is shooting targets. After my brother in law died in 2005, he lost interest in hunting. He is 77 years old, and this last hunting season he only went hunting with my husband once. Now his favorite thing to do is watching television and sleeping; mostly sleeping.
My father retired in January 2005. When he first retired, he was so excited about retirement. He was an inventory auditor so he travelled very often. Now he could take some time to visit friends and family. The only thing bad about my father's retirement is that he has more health problems now than he had in the years he was working. He has not been able to enjoy his retirement as much as in the beginning because he feels so bad. The only thing he does now is stay at home watching sports and game shows on television. If the news gets too bad, he will turn it off and sit at home in silence all alone. The highlight of his week is when my siblings or I come to visit. Then he does not want us to go home.
Retirement is a long way off for me; however, when I retire I hope I can be like my grandmother. I want to stay busy and maybe do some travelling. I hope when I am her age I can say I have been as healthy as she is. A person can enjoy so much more of his life if he feels good. Retirement should be a time in life that you can do all the things you wished you could have done while you were working. It should be a happy time in your life.
My father in law retired in 1992. He also retired early due to circumstances on his job. When he first retired he enjoyed his time off and his hobby was hunting. My husband, his brother and their father would take a trip every year to Arkansas to deer hunt. His favorite past time is shooting targets. After my brother in law died in 2005, he lost interest in hunting. He is 77 years old, and this last hunting season he only went hunting with my husband once. Now his favorite thing to do is watching television and sleeping; mostly sleeping.
My father retired in January 2005. When he first retired, he was so excited about retirement. He was an inventory auditor so he travelled very often. Now he could take some time to visit friends and family. The only thing bad about my father's retirement is that he has more health problems now than he had in the years he was working. He has not been able to enjoy his retirement as much as in the beginning because he feels so bad. The only thing he does now is stay at home watching sports and game shows on television. If the news gets too bad, he will turn it off and sit at home in silence all alone. The highlight of his week is when my siblings or I come to visit. Then he does not want us to go home.
Retirement is a long way off for me; however, when I retire I hope I can be like my grandmother. I want to stay busy and maybe do some travelling. I hope when I am her age I can say I have been as healthy as she is. A person can enjoy so much more of his life if he feels good. Retirement should be a time in life that you can do all the things you wished you could have done while you were working. It should be a happy time in your life.
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