We all need family!

Our family’s motto is, “FAMILIES ARE FOREVER!”

Although comprised of imperfect people, it is our refuge.

Families come in various shapes and sizes.

Most are the traditional type, some are not.

Some are created by circumstances, others by birth.

For the sake of this discussion, let’s include all types.

Families don’t always stay together without weaving the THREAD OF LOVE.

Every family member should decide to become a weaver.

Even in times of this pandemic, we have tools available for weaving ourselves together.

We have computers and cellphones which magically can help us talk, text. email or Zoom loved ones.

Recently, one of our family members created a texting address that reaches all our family members.

This THREAD OF LOVE keeps every member informed on all the issues that are front and center.

Don’t take your family for granted.

Get and stay involved by weaving the THREAD OF LOVE that holds you all together!

If not today, when?

All of us experience fear from time-to-time.

Sometimes it is justified by events.

Sometimes it is created by our imagination with no basis in fact.

JUSTIFIED FEAR

A very prevalent justified fear is fear of losing a loved one to Covid 19.

I met a man two days ago who had lost four family members to the pandemic.

If the fear is based on real facts, all we can do is ask ourselves if we can solve the problem in some way.

I am also a firm believer in the POWER OF PRAYER

IMAGINED FEAR

I refer to this kind of fear as WHAT IF.

This type of fear is created without a basis in fact.

Yet, many people live with these DREAMED UP fears all their lives.

Don’t do that!

There are enough actual happenings to be concerned about without dreaming up new ones!

If you’re going into marriage with the idea that each partner must contribute 50% of the effort required, the marriage is DOOMED!

There will always be situations in which one partner must give more than 50%.

For a good marriage to prosper, each partner must be “ALL IN.”

This definitely means NOT KEEPING SCORE!

If the marital relationship is real love, then the focus should not be on satisfying your needs as much as satisfying the needs of your loved one and any children that may come along.

Is your married partner “THE CENTER OF YOUR UNIVERSE?“

And do you ACT LIKE IT?

The promise to love for a LIFETIME is the biggest commitment a person can make.

A promise of that magnitude deserves an “ALL IN” effort by both parties!

If not today, when?

Today, there are an abundance of lies, deliberate misinformation and crazy conspiracy theories.

What are we to believe with this deluge of nonsense?

Well, for me, it’s an easy choice.

I BELIEVE IN LOVE!

It’s the only thing that’s real and lasting.

Love takes many forms.

There is the love of KINDNESS!

There is the love of LOYALTY!

There is the love of FORGIVENESS!

There is the love of COMPASSION!

There is the love of INCLUSION!

There is the love of a PARENT!

There is the love of OUR CHILD!

There is the love of OUR SPOUSE!

There is the love of a SIBLING!

There is the love of a PATRIOT!

There is the love of SELF!

There is the love of OUR GOD!

There is the love of a STRANGER!

There is the love of the OUTCAST!

There is the love that is UNCONDITIONAL!

Jesus said: “LOVE ONE ANOTHER AS I HAVE LOVED YOU!”

So, what are we here for if not to love?

If not today, when?

There is no better teacher than failure!

It hurts so much that it gets and retains our attention.

Why did it happen to me?

Was it just bad luck?

Who can I blame?

What did I learn from the experience and how should it impact my future?

Should I keep my failures a secret or use them to teach others?

What does it say about me if I repeat my failures?

I think failures are just another necessary experience of growing up.

The most important reaction to failure should be FORGIVENESS OF SELF!

Don’t carry it with you.

IT’S TOO HEAVY.

Just understand that failure is another teaching moment like: Success, Joy, Sorrow and Disappointment.

If not today, when?

Why not?

Our mothers continue to live their role each day.

So, shouldn’t we treat them with love and appreciation each day?

We, as men, really have no idea what the role of motherhood demands.

And all the moms I know accept their lifelong role with dignity and humility.

As long as she is alive, it’s not too late to rethink how we treat our moms.

I’m a big believer in attempting to live my life with as few regrets as possible.

I have not always succeeded.

Looking back on my almost 80 years of life, however, I hope I gave my mom all the love she deserved.

Moms are usually quite UNSELFISH.

She told me at my dad’s funeral that she was glad he wouldn’t have to live alone.

She outlived him by four years while living a lonely life of quiet dignity.

Let’s make every day “MOTHER’S DAY!”

For the man, love making is an instant pleasure.

For the woman, it may be the beginning of a lifelong commitment to the nurturing and wellbeing of another human being.

Mothering begins with discomfort and unequalled physical pain while birthing.

From the beginning, the child requires nourishment only a mother can give.

So, the relationship between mother and child grows from physical dependency to emotional and psychological dependency.

The mother’s life is never the same as it was prior to the birth of a child.

Her personal needs become secondary to the needs of her offspring.

It begins a life of giving unconditional love to another person.

Hopefully, but not in all instances, the child loves her in return.

Although the father has the same responsibilities as the mother, there are no guarantees.

The world is full of single mothers left to fulfill the the dual roles of mom and dad.

In many ways the mother’s sacrifices overwhelm those of fathers.

Dear GOD, thank you, thank you for our mothers !!!!!

Our lives are being built one day at a time.

Just as a building is built one block at a time.

How solid is the foundation of your building?

Is it based on a system of values that you believe in and practice?

Are there any values (blocks) that should be added?

Are there some that should be dropped?

In times of stress or disappointment, a strong foundation of personal beliefs can help you cope.

It’s NEVER TOO LATE to review the values you are living by and make corrections.

And if you have children, are they building a solid foundation that will serve them as adults?

Most kids imitate the values of their parents.

So, you have a responsibility to yourself and to them!

If not today, when?

The statue (above) is a memorial to a dog named HACHIKO who lived in Japan in the early 20th century.

Every morning he would walk with his owner to the train depot to see him board the commuter train that took him to work.

Every evening, precisely at 5PM, HACHIKO would return to the depot to walk home with his owner.

One day, his owner suddenly died of a stroke while at work.

For the next ten years, HACHIKO, until his death, returned to the depot at 5PM every day while waiting for his owner to return.

This is a true story which dramatically reminds us of the power of LOYALTY!

Loyalty must be the CENTERPIECE of our relationship with friends and loved ones.

If not today, when?

On November 29, 2020, in the first lap in the Bahrain Grand Prix, Formula 1 driver Romain Grosjean hit the wall.

His race car broke in half and exploded in flames.

Trapped in the front half for 2 minutes, 43 seconds, he thought he would die.

He suddenly had a vision of his children saying, “Daddy, get out.”

He was finally able to free his foot from the wreckage and escape.

He had burns on both hands and his right foot.

HE IS SO THANKFUL THAT GOD HAS GIVEN HIM A SECOND CHANCE AT LIFE!

How about you?

When you awoke this morning, GOD GAVE YOU A SECOND CHANCE AT LIFE!

How are you going to use it?

GOD has given you many wonderful attributes.

ARE YOU LIVING UP TO YOUR POTENTIAL?

If not today, when?