Search Results for: gifts

Surviving Our Parents

Hey you kids out there, born and raised in the 40’s, 50’s or 60’s! Have you ever wondered how we managed to survive this far?

We were born to mothers who smoked or drank while they carried us. Our baby cribs were covered with bright-colored lead based paint. We had no child proof lids on medicine bottles or cabinets. We shared one soft drink among many friends and ate white bread and real butter. We spent pennies on candy and drinks that were pure sugar. But we stayed slim because we were always outside playing.

Boys got a BB gun for their 10^th birthday and nobody got their eye knocked out regardless of what your mom predicted. We rode our bikes without helmets, and hung our heads out car windows, untethered by seat belts. We even rode by the dozens in the open backs of pickup trucks whoopin’ and hollerin’ all the way to the swimming hole. And once there we swung by ropes from trees and dropped into the water wearing no water shoes.

Now, I’m not advocating this kind of fearless shenanigans. Just marveling at how we all survived them to tell about it. Things sure have changed.

But one thing is sure; kids, one day you will find that you survived your parents too!

[Show #214]

Raising Honest Children

Raising honest children today, I believe, is really difficult. There are times I think there is no more truth. Everything has a spin on it that benefits one group or another.

Telling the truth can get you into trouble. It can make your friends mad at you. It seems people want you to say what they want to hear, rather than what is honestly the truth.

If we are to teach our children to tell the truth, we have to create room for candor – for an authentic voice. We have to allow children to speak their mind, even if their thoughts or values differ from ours.

But when the value they are moving toward is not the truth, we need to show them how to grasp the truth and face it.

What happens when a child is caught in a lie? I believe we have to hold them responsible. We need to set firm, fair consequences and limits. The child who lies must suffer the consequences.

Discuss honesty in words the child can understand. Stories of rewards for telling the truth are effective.

The best lesson is MODELING honesty. Be willing to admit your own mistakes with the truth. Beware of hypocrisy – Don’t preach one thing and do another. Avoid calling the child a liar. Teach rather than scold. It works better . . . and that’s the truth!

[#426]

Fantasy Decorating

Some years ago, we bought an old, tumble-down farmhouse out here in the country as a week-end home. We could not afford to furnish it and my mom pitched in with extra pieces of furniture stored for years in her basement.

We bargain hunted at yard sales, estate sales and auctions and in a few months, the place was habitable. Some might call it shabby chic. Others might not be as kind. In any case, it was fun.

But perhaps the most fun was my mother’s nightly fantasy decorating for the house. She said she went to sleep many a night, mentally moving this painting to that wall . . . then this wall . . . then moving the couch in front of the window . . . trying it next to the fireplace. What pleasure she took in her decorating dreams.

I invited her to come out and help us turn it into reality. For all the years she was my mom, I think those first few years in the old farmhouse were our happiest together.

We laughed and shared and put up with the inconveniences that seemed endemic to country living. We got up early to hear the birds and stayed up late to see the stars and marvel at the quiet. We watched the deer at twilight.

Such happy times to remember doing not much of anything exciting or expensive – just joyful and memorable creating a country nest full of love.

[Show #302]

Will Today’s Veterans Become Tomorrow’s Leaders?

Time magazine had a cover story about The Next Greatest Generation. It was about veterans returning from war and the skills they bring to civilian life. I found it fascinating.

The new Army, it explained, is not a place where soldiers follow orders mindlessly. It is a place where important decisions are being made by individuals; a place where true leadership is being taught and where all-American values are supported. Loyalty . . . fairness . . . balancing benefit with risk.

When these young men and women come back from duty abroad, they seem to find themselves politically homeless. Neither party seems on the path of leadership they have learned. They see programs being conceived to insure votes; short term solutions being painted as change, without consideration of their long term effects. They are looking for the leaders willing to make hard choices that will guarantee future liberties.

Not seeing such leaders, will they take the path to become them? Could these returning veterans be the people we’ve been waiting for? Do they have the skills and values to end all the nonsense and get things going again? Can they break through the ingrained structure and traditions that are holding us back?

What an exciting possibility! Let’s watch them carefully and see what happens.

Show #372

The Business Owner

The employer seemed to be apologizing to his staff, for his big car, fine house and icons of luxury that he owns.

Then he told what it was like to start the business; how he lived in a 300 square foot apartment for years, ate Ramen noodles, shopped at the thrift store and drove a rusty Toyota, all to get his business started.

Meanwhile friends were taking jobs and earning well. Yet he saw them spending far beyond their means, showing no discipline to save up for a rainy day.

When his business finally took off, the sacrifices were not over. He lived the company every day, and every weekend. He had to guard against the competition, hire the right people, start all over again when they didn’t work out, build benefits to keep good people and always spend the money wisely.

Today, he explained, he is being taxed to death; and is expected to bail out the friends who refused to live within their means, even though he did. He asked his staff if they would work, if he took away half of their paycheck. Well, he explained, the government takes away half of his company’s earnings. If they did not, he would be able to offer promotions, increased salaries and new jobs.

Instead, he plans to shut down his company, move to a Caribbean country and retire. I was sad to hear his final comment – I’m done!

[#441]

Hearing God

The man whispered, “God, speak to me: and a meadowlark sang. But, the man did not hear.

So the man yelled, “God, speak to me” and the thunder rolled across the sky. But, the man did not listen.

The man looked around and said, “God, let me see you.” And a star shone brightly. But the man did not see.

And the man shouted, “God, show me a miracle.” And a baby was born. But, the man did not notice.

So, the man cried out in despair, “Touch me God, and let me know you are here.” Whereupon, God reached down and touched the man. But, the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on.

I found this to be a great reminder that God is always around us in the little and simple things that we take for granted… even in our electronic age.

So, I would like to add one more:
The man cried, “God, I need your help!” And an e-mail arrived reaching out with good news and encouragement. But, the man deleted it and continued crying.

That email that just lifted your heart with its loving sentiments – – Did it just occur out of the blue? Or was it the act of a power larger than we, a power that shows us miracles daily, if we just watch and listen and believe.

[#439]

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