Monday, May 29, 2017

A Prayer for Deployed Soldiers


Heavenly Father,
inspire those who are overseas for the cause of peace.Send your Son, Jesus Christ, as the Prince of Peace.
Bless the men and women of our military
who respond to the needs of peacekeeping.
Keep them safe from harm.
Let them be models of discipline and courage,
and bring them home safely to their loved ones.
We ask this in your name.
Amen.

Sunday, May 28, 2017

Memorial Day weekend

Memorial Day has gone from a single day holiday to really a weekend holiday.  Special events and activities are spread throughout the long weekend instead of being crammed into the day on Monday. This gives people more time to enjoy more than one event and perhaps have a more relaxing weekend, if that's possible.  There is still a strange juxtaposition of thanking all those servicemen and women who have died to keep this country free and using the holiday weekend to promote the sales of cars and mattresses and other items.  In the last few years I have noticed some retail outlets closing on Memorial Day to let there employees have a day off to be with their friends and family.  I think this is a good thing.  Major league baseball has special uniforms and hats that their players wear to honor those who died while serving in the five branches of military.  While Memorial Day weekend is for many the unofficial beginning of summer, it is important to remember those that did give their life so that we may have the freedom to do the things we do in this great country of ours!

For information on the history of Memorial Day, check out: US Memorial Day

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Mother's Day

The fact that there is a Mother's Day holiday is a sad fact of reality for most men, including me.  We too often fail to recognize the women in our lives, especially those who happen to be mothers, that they are appreciated and loved, so we need a special day on the calendar to make sure we do this at least once a year.  Men tend to think that they are doing a good job at this when really they are not, or they think that they can do it later.  When you are married, you have two women to think about on Mother's Day.  There is of course, your own mother, who gave birth to you.  If she is alive, it is important to let her know that she is loved and remembered on this day.  After all, she brought you up the best way she knew how, and helped to make you into the person you have become today.  In most cases, she probably did a lot more than you realized to make your life happy.  There were lots of sacrifices that she made for you over the course of your childhood.  Then there is the mother of your children.  Obviously, you might have a better idea of the things that she does on a daily basis to take care of your children and manage the house, but there are still things that go unnoticed.  She too, probably makes many sacrifices throughout the year, to meet the needs of your family without regards to her own wants and desires.  There is really no way that we can sum all of this up in a card or with a bouquet of flowers and some candy.  Hopefully, a hug and a kiss will go a long way in letting these important women know that they are truly loved and cherished and we would be in big trouble if they were suddenly removed from our lives.  Let's try to recognize the mothers in our lives more than just once a year!