Peace on a Hot Summer Day

 

Summer is nowhere near the finish line here in Florida. August is when we continue to run the AC at full blast while leaning closer to the TV weather forecasts regarding tropical storms (hurricanes). Although storm surge and flooding are not the biggest concern for us. We are far enough inland (about 90 minutes both east and west from the oceans) so that wind, rain, and lightning are the bigger threats.

The following are my responses to Joyce's Hodgepodge meme for this week, and then a summary of my current thoughts. If you want to link your answers to your blog, click here.

1. I saw a meme on Instagram that went like this-'The movie Dirty Dancing came out in 1987 and was set in 1963, so if remade in 2026 it would be set in 2002. Now I need a little lie down in a dark room for a while." 

Time is crazy isn't it? So...what were you up to in the year 2002? 

My current photo program doesn't allow me to readily retrieve many pictures from 2002. Here's one I took in 2018 that can illustrate the thought of "looking back."

a boardwalk along the Florida Atlantic coast

In the year 2002 my "nest" had been empty for 5 years. My second grandchild was born (out of an eventual total of eleven). We were living in Colorado in a two-story house with 2 cute Cocker Spaniels named Buddy and Pal. Most days I got my housework and other necessities of life done as early in the day as I could so the rest of the time until late afternoon could be devoted to sewing quilts. I kept very busy for years making baby quilts for all of my grandchildren, those of my sister, and for friends and baby showers. 

That was 7 years before I began writing a blog (I didn't even know what a blog was at that time).

2. "Me? I'm scared of everything..." What's something that scares you that you'd like to try anyway? 

I have a healthy fear of a lot of things and I can't think of a one that I'd like to try. 

3. Watermelon-yay or nay? Which melon is your favorite-watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew. 

Cantaloupe is my favorite of these listed, but it's hard to find a good one. You just never know how tasty it is until after you've brought it home and sliced into it.

Of the watermelon food/beverages listed which would you say yes to...

watermelon salsa~watermelon feta salad~watermelon sorbet~

a watermelon Jolly Rancher~a watermelon margarita 

me at the Watermelon Festival 2025
Chiefland, Florida

I prefer my watermelon plain, all by itself, leaning forward to bite off a juicy wedge while the sweet juice drips on my shoes the grass. Watermelon is said to be very nutrient-dense.

my Gary at the Watermelon Festival 2025
Chiefland, Florida

4. August 12th is National Middle Child Day. Are you a middle child? If not, where do you fall in the birth order in your family of origin? Do you think this has influenced your personality? Elaborate. 

I am the first born of two daughters, but I gave birth to a middle child. My husband is a middle child. 

Middle children are blessed to observe the mistakes and successes of the older siblings and to make good choices for themselves.

a recent photo of my middle child
who has officially entered "middle age" 

It has been said that the first-born tends to be bossy. (They are wrong, of course. 🤭)

click here for movie trailer

There is a line in the 2006 biblical movie, The Nativity Story, where the three wisemen have a lighthearted moment. While gazing at the night sky, one of them says, 

“..... if I’m right.. and I usually am....” 

I have quoted that to my family about myself on several occasions, but instead of agreement, I get raised eyebrows and wry smirks! 🥴

5. Would you rather talk to everyone at a crowded party for a short time, or have a significant conversation with two people? Explain. 

I'm okay with attending a "sip 'n smile" (as Gary calls them) but during his career days, he had to attend too many and now avoids them if at all possible. 

I get along well enough at such occasions because I make friends easily. But short conversations at those parties are preferable. It's good to keep the topics light because many times the room is much too noisy to accurately hear everything that is being said. Even my $$$ hearing aids cannot really drown out enough of the background noise to catch all that is being said. 

A significant conversation with just one or two people is best done in a much quieter atmosphere, and yes, I definitely enjoy that, too. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

In 2017, when my late husband shocked me with the idea of a cross-country move from Colorado to Florida, I bought a sign that looked exactly like the arrow below. It was meant to be a rather tongue-in-cheek marquee of our late-in-life change in retirement plan.

However, as time moved on, the sign began to sort of taunt me every time I passed it on the wall in our new home. It reminded me of the multitude of changes, good, bad, and blended somewhere in-between that were building the story of my life.

I began to see the value in the popular term, "mindfulness," directing my mental attention to "right now" instead of mentally chewing on the past or worrying about the future. 

No matter which direction our lives go, our mental state has a huge bearing on our happiness and contentment. 

Since I am a devoted believer and follower of Jesus Christ, the Bible has been my rescue when my thoughts tend to spiral downward into dark places. This one is a favorite with me and covers a lot of ground:

Don't worry about anything;

instead, pray about everything.

Tell God what you need,

and thank Him for all He has done. 

Then you will experience God's peace,

which exceeds anything we can understand.

His peace will guard your hearts and minds

as you live in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7 New Living Translation

Until next time, grace and peace.

Barbara