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Three secrets to get a good night’s sleep. | Janet Perez Eckles

17 Oct

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

Turken

Naked Neck Chicken (Turken)

“Wait a minute,” I said, “let me put on some lipstick before you shoot that video.”

Why can’t I toss vanity out the window? But dare I say that we all have a trace of that from time to time, don’t we?

Some of us are way too conscious. We dress well to look sharp, dress up so we look great, wear black to look thin, fix the hair so we look young, and dress down to look cool.

And beyond how we look, we strive to do what might be impressive. We try hard to reach the top, get busy doing good stuff or even go places to rave about what we did.

Those efforts aren’t bad, unless they rule our lives. Or unless they stir electric signals to the brain, keeping it awake when it should be resting.

Jan-TurkenThis past Saturday, at the Access Life event for individuals and their families living with disabilities, a sort of strange animal taught me a big lesson about total trust and rest. I got to hold a “turken” or naked neck chicken. This peaceful little creature is half turkey and half chicken. The body of a chicken, the neck of a turkey and the head of a chicken. Since I’m not able to “see” it, I imagine it to be a sort of ugly creature.

But does it even show concern about its looks? You tell me. As I held it, it fell asleep. It had no clue a blind woman was holding it. It didn’t care how it looked, what appearance it displayed or even care about who took its picture. It showed no worry about others staring at her.

Why can’t we be like that? Why can’t we rest in peace just the way we are—with failures that might be known. With flaws that stand out. With weaknesses that are evident, or things left undone? And in face of it all, we, dare to live in complete trust. In total peace. And undisturbed confidence, the kind of confidence that we too fall asleep in God’s arms.

But we can. And here are three steps to enjoy sweet sleep in those long nights:

Visit Janet’s website to read more:  Three secrets to get a good night’s sleep. | Janet Perez Eckles

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Positive Mind, Healthy Heart

16 Oct

From the Heart
Louise Gibson

Louise Gibson

 

 

A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but a downcast spirit dries up
the bones.”
Proverbs 17:22

 

Old age is not all downhill.
She was 80 years old still
walking on a treadmill.

 

As Robert Strauss, diplomat and
advisor to U. S. presidents, once
remarked,
“It’s a little like wrestling a gorilla.
You don’t quit when you are tired,
Your quit when the gorilla is tired.”

 

What we do to and for our body
is a personal responsibility.
No one can change your life style but you.
There is no quick fix.

 

You simply need to keep plugging on,
no matter what happens in the course
of any particular day. It is said that when
his crew grew discouraged after three weeks
at sea, Columbus urged them on by shouting,
“Adelante”, “Adelante” “Sail on!, “Sail on”!

Persevering means stopping not when you
lose heart, but when the task is done.

 

“Challenges are what makes life interesting;
Overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”

 

Joshua J. Marine,
Writer
Quote from Yoga Barra:
“I cut my pizza into 6 pieces.
I don’t think I could eat 8!”

 

You can’t get much done if you can only work
when you feel good.

Have a GREAT day!

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Flying Legends Airshow~Part 8

14 Oct

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

Flying Legends

 

Day 8 – Wednesday July 8th

 

When I checked in at the “Ye Ole Red Lion Hotel” the evening before, the hotel proprietor was very efficient and explained everything to me, including Wi-Fi password, dinner and breakfast menus & hours. I asked him if breakfast was to be served in the same dining area where I took my dinner (Fish & Chips) and he said, “Yes.”  I woke ready to dig into my English breakfast (served from 8-10) that was included with the price of my room. But when I arrived at the breakfast room, at 8:30, the door was locked. I knocked on the door but nobody came. I knocked on a window and still no one came. After waiting for about 15 minutes I finally decided I wasn’t going to get any breakfast. I thought, “You know that’s a good way for the hotel to save money on the free breakfast they advertise. Just don’t open up and then you don’t have to serve breakfast. The people have their destinations to get to and will usually give up and drive away, like I did.”

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My first stop today was at the South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum in Doncaster. They had a very nicely restored Vulcan bomber sitting outside as you entered the museum property, but the rest of their outside display airplanes were in very poor condition. The inside of the only Hanger they had looked like a junkyard. It was so full of parts of airplanes, helicopters and engines that a person could hardly walk thru the mess. Their excuse for the condition was that they just didn’t have room to properly display everything they had. They did have a row of several British Cambara nose sections displayed outside that I thought Larry would be interested in.

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Next it was on to the Lincolnshire Aviation Center in Hagnaby. This was a beautifully restored our WWII RAF bomber base. Several of the original buildings and the control tower have been restored and used to exhibit their WWII memorabilia. The museums claim to fame is a fully restored Lancaster bomber. Every few days (today wasn’t one of those days) they start the engines and you can buy a ride in the bomber as they taxi it down the runway and back. WOW, what a thrill that must be!

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Next was the Battle of Britain Memorial Center and Coningsby. This museum reminded me of Kermit Weeks’ Fantasy of Flight in Florida. Every beautifully restored airplane they have in their collection is in flying condition, and is flown frequently. The only difference is that Kermit flies his own restored museum airplanes and this museum’s restored airplanes are flown by active duty No. 29 Squadron RAF pilots in their spare time, on special occasions, at airshows all over England. Missing from the photo below is their C-47.

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Next on the list was the Cranwell Aviation Heritage Center in Sleaford. This museum only had one plane and the museum was mostly dedicated to the history of the Cranwell Air Field Training Center there during World War II.

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The Newark Air Museum in Newark-on-Trent was closed today, but I did get a few photos of their outside static display airplanes, thru the fence.

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Next was the Finland & West Norfolk Aviation Museum in Wisbeck. I didn’t get to this museum before they closed, but I would never have guessed it was a museum, except for the sign over the door and the one airplane out front. From the outside, it looked like a work shop in a small warehousing area.

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I found the Riverside Chalets in the small town of Spalding.   The small apartment type rooms were located behind the Riverside Pub.  They were very nice, quiet and clean. I had a great meal of beef, new potatoes and mashpeas and a pint of Guinness at the tiny pub that evening.

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—–To Be Continued—–

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Trials and Tribulations

12 Oct

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Author, Poet and ArtistThis morning Bill had a procedure in a different town from where we live. It’s something we’re very grateful he can do because it means knows no surgery. Is called a TUMT  I’ll be driving Bill home because he’s having Valium and a pain pill for the procedure. I’ll be doing some waiting so I have my small art case all ready to go. I have the tiniest palette you ever saw, crayons, inktense pencils, and a multi-media sketchbook and they all fit into the case, along with a water pen to paint with.

I plan to leave the office while he’s in the back to take my morning walk. I’ll be sure to have my hat to shade my face. I’ve put on sun-screen, but I haven’t been in the habit of wearing it and have been bitten by the sun because of it. I have the cosmetic surgeon’s scar to show for it. I didn’t use sunscreen all these years because I heard that it wouldn’t allow my skin to absorb vitamin D from the sun. That reminded me of my mother, Dora, telling me she had rickets as a child. That was caused by a lack of sunshine. Her legs were slightly bowed for the rest of her life. Now I wonder if she got it soon after she was held indoors in quarantine for nine months because she had scarlet fever. Her baby brother died earlier of a disease they called St Vitus Dance.

On Bill’s and my jaunt I can do whatever I want with my phone. I can look up a youtube video for a hymn for this blog. Here it is! Nearer My God to Thee, and what a pleasure – beautiful video and words to the song included.

I’m taking a box of raisins in case I get peckish and a cup of ice water for thirst. We should be home in time for lunch.

We’re home now. Bill had no pain, but he was ready for a nap. All these medical procedures can wear a body out but like the energizer bunny, through the grace of God, we keep on keeping on.

Yellow and Green Thistle signed

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The Price of Exercise

11 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

 

In previous musings, I have mentioned that I have been an “exerciser” for most of my life – well, at least most of my adult life. I guess I really became serious about it while we were living in Panama City, Florida in the early 1970’s. We were actually living on Tyndall Air Force Base (AFB).

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I don’t really know what motivated me to start jogging, but that’s what I did. The ground there is pretty flat, so there weren’t any “hills” or even much of any kind of incline to thwart my progress.

And so it was, that I was jogging for about three months before I shamed Fred into getting into the program with me (he says we were actually RUNNING – not jogging!). We would get up quite early and go out together. When we came home, Fred would shower and get ready for his work day while I got the girls up and breakfast on the table. After everyone was gone, then I would go out for another run. I timed myself once, and found that I was running four miles in 28 minutes!! Not bad for an old lady of 40!

And speaking of an “old lady of 40,” perhaps the motivation was that I decided that I did NOT want to be a fat old lady, and was half-way to both! At least, that’s what I told Fred! And so, the exercise program began.

Some form of that exercise continued for many years. We were in Panama City for five years, then in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas for one year (Fred was in school – not the prison!!). And in case you don’t know – it SNOWS a LOT in Kansas! But we bundled up, including ski masks and did our daily run. Then on to Germany from there.

It wasn’t long before I discovered aerobic dancing while in Germany, and realized that I couldn’t do both the jogging and the aerobic dancing, and since I was teaching the aerobic dancing (and getting paid for it), I stopped the jogging. I continued teaching, even for about seven years after we rotated back state-side.

While I enjoyed the results of all that exercise, I can’t honestly say that I enjoyed the exercise itself. The aerobic dancing was by far more fun that jogging, but it was still exercise, and I was still dripping sweat like crazy!!

In any case, I found this cartoon once, and thought it described my attitude toward exercise exactly. I hope you enjoy it, too! Credit to Johnny Hart:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Five secrets to looking younger. | Janet Perez Eckles

10 Oct

commons.wikimedia.org

Last Friday, I got dolled up. I even dabbed some lip gloss. Hubby and I headed to have our pictures taken for our church’s directory. He looked sharp in his black suit and I tried to look my best in my red dress. As we waited our turn, a friend came out from her session with the photographer. “So, how did you like the pictures he took?” I asked. “Ugh, I don’t know,” she said in a lamenting tone, “the problem is they look like yourself.” I laughed. Why is it that we’re never pleased with our looks, our image, the way we display the years that sweep by? And why does depression set in when another birthday approaches? Is that you? Cheer up. Here are five ways to look younger on the inside so the image can reflect on the outside.

Be sure to visit Janet’s blog for the rest of the story.

Five secrets to looking younger. | Janet Perez Eckles

What’s Been Happening

We got in the car last Saturday evening, heading out to dinner with our favorite friends. We chatted about fun stuff on the way to the restaurant. And the gift certificate made it even more enjoyable. No bill after the meal!

Well, when we walked in the door, the place was, yikes, loud, I mean really loud. Logically it had to be because it was a sports bar. We asked for a quiet table, and the hostess chuckled. “No such a thing.”

While we munched the yummilicious food, we found ourselves enjoying the football game…and guess who ended up shouting to cheer the team? Yes, we did. It was our table that cheered like everyone around us. Imagine that.

From now on, we’ll just settle in whatever restaurant of life God takes us…it may end up being more fun than we expect.

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Don’t Forget to Say “I Love You”

9 Oct

From the Heart

Louise Gibson

Louise Gibson

The days pass so quickly and
Interests are so diversified-
But today my heart is heavy.
A dear friend of mine has died.

Take the time to tell them.
Let them know how much you care.
Don’t take it for granted,
for they may not be aware.

When you phrase the words, “I love you”
It brings comfort and joy to another’s soul.
Let communicating with others
be your foremost heartwarming goal.

People need people.
Listen with your heart to their plea.
“I don’t want to walk alone”-
There is such comfort in company.

Every day is precious-
A gift from our Lord above.
Walk with a grateful spirit.
Do all things in the spirit of love.

Love-beach

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Settling in for Fall

8 Oct

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

I'm a winner

I think we may be settled into the mountains for the duration of fall.  Of course, I may be wrong about that. We tend to have trouble settling in one place.  Last weekend we attended a family reunion in the Raleigh, NC area. When my mom’s family gets together, a lot of talking and laughing goes on and a lot of food gets eaten. As the food line was forming, my cousin, Nancy and I were eyeing the homemade mac and cheese and considering our chance of getting some before it was gone. I talked Nancy into sliding through the line and getting us a plate of the yellow yuminess to share while we assessed the various cakes and pies on display. As the line shortened, Nancy took up a place in line but I headed straight to the desserts and grabbed a piece of the chocolate cake that had been teasing my taste buds. Have you ever eaten a ding-dong cake? Oh my. For a while now, eat dessert first, has been my motto when the desserts look especially good.  It would have been a tragedy if I had choked on a fried corn bread stick and missed that cake!

On our drive back to the mountains, we noticed that more trees had begun to clothe themselves in their fall wardrobe. Next week the colored leaves are supposed to be at their peak and we are looking forward to having family come and stay for the week. Fall also ushers in craft shows, festivals and an abundance of apples. I have apples cooking in my crock pot as I type this. I went to the vegetable stand this morning and chose an assortment of local varieties to make applesauce and I added a touch of local honey to it. I know it will be delicious because I think I sampled every type of apple as I peeled them.

This morning a low fog hung over the mountains. The contrast of fog and fall color was beautiful and oddly soothing. Our flowers haven’t made up their mind about fall. The roses continue to bloom and the blue Hydrangea, which did not bloom all summer, are blooming now. I think we missed giving them a spring feeding and confused them with a late summer feed.

Got a little behind on weeding!

The cool weather here is a blessing after the heat of Florida. I plan to enjoy every moment of it. Wherever you are, I hope you enjoy your version of fall too.

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Flying Legends Airshow~Part 7

7 Oct

A Slice of LItes

Bill Lites

Flying Legends

Day 7 – Tuesday July 7th

No free breakfast at the Edinburgh Lodges, so it was another Granola bar breakfast for me this morning. First on the list of museum visits today was the North East Aircraft Museum located in Sunderland. This museum had several static display aircraft inside and outside, but they were all in very poor condition and the entire museum was not well-kept. The only exception was their Vulcan Bomber which was outside and in beautifully restored condition.

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Next I headed for the city of York to visit the beautiful York Minster Cathedral. I finally found a car park, but when I paid for the “Pay & Display” receipt I used the last of my English pound coins. I thought, “Oh well, I’ll just use my credit card for entrance to the Cathedral and exchange some US dollars for English pound coins a little later in the day.”

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But as I started walking toward the Cathedral it started to rain, and I realized that the entrance to the Cathedral was quite a bit farther than I had thought, and I didn’t want to walk that far and back in the rain. Besides, I had toured this beautiful cathedral with DiVoran in 1991 (see “Our Trip to the UK Part 10”). So, I turned around and went back to the car and headed for my next museum. Don’t miss this beautiful cathedral if you are ever in York. It is spectacular and has a very interesting history.

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Greta took me to the wrong side of the railroad tracks for access to the National Railroad Museum, also located there in York. After asking directions, I finally was able to find the museum. This museum looked absolutely huge from the outside, and when I stopped to ask one of the museum guides (standing outside) about the possibility of exchanging some US dollars for British pounds (coins for the “Pay & Display” parking ticket) they were unable to help me. From the pictures on the internet, I missed a really good museum.

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Many of the aviation museums that I have visited so far in England and Scotland, are located on the sites of WWII British and American air bases. The Yorkshire Air Museum in Evington was one of the best restored RAF base museums that I have come across. The volunteers at this museum have done a wonderful job of restoring both their airplanes and what remains of the base facilities. This gives the visitor a good idea of what they would have looked like during World War II. It took a while to walk around the outside aircraft displays and inside the building memorabilia displays, but it was worth it.

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The Breighton Airdrome located in Selby was really hard to find. Greta finally found the location after I re-inputted the SatNav. When I got there, I saw a single car parked outside what I assumed was the museum entrance. The door was open but no one was around. The doors to the single hanger were closed, so if they had aircraft displays inside I couldn’t get to them.

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There was only one airplane sitting out on the tarmac, and it looked like it was in flying condition (minus its propeller). I took a picture of the plane and looked around some more for someone to ask about the museum, but no one ever showed up. Other than that, this museum looked like it operated out of this small private airfield.

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Next I headed for the Ye Old Red Lion Hotel located just south of York, where I was to spend the evening. It turned out to be one of the nicest accommodations that I’ve had on this trip so far.  The Fish & Chips dinner was outstanding and went very well with a pint of Guinness.

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—–To Be Continued—–

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Five questions and answers for a victorious life.

3 Oct

Walking by Faith, not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

Janet Eckles Perez

This past Saturday night, I, hubby, and our two grandkids sat on lawn chairs at a nearby park. All was dark except for the screen playing the movie, “Cinderella.” Grandkids wiggled with excitement at this fun outside movie theatre.

“Are there hot dogs around here?” my 5-year-old grandson asked.

Hot dogs? He knows how I feel about junk food. His 7-year-old older sister knows they are not a healthy option. In fact, she’s quick to tell others about their unhealthy ingredients.

I glanced toward him and gave a slight frown. “Kam, don’t you remember what I told you?” I said, “hot dogs aren’t good for you. They have toxins.”

“Nana,” he said with the same conviction of a politician, “I like them. You don’t. We all have different taste buds.”

What? He didn’t trust my assertion of the truth and at his age, he questioned my teaching?

Hiding a tad of shame, I questioned God, too. I hesitated in believing in His ability to hold me steady during storms, to soothe my soul when tragedy struck, and to restore my life again.

But my belief increase when Job’s story was told of the pain, the loss, and the suffering he endured. He first complained until his friends said: “Quit quarreling with God! Agree with Him and you will have peace at last.” (Job 22:21, The LB-Paraphrased)

Read the rest of the article on Janet’s website

http://www.janetperezeckles.com/uncategorized/five-questions-and-answers-for-a-victorious-life.html

Looking for a speaker for your upcoming event?

What an honor it would be for me to delight those who attend your women’s gatherings, retreats, church congregation or corporate events. Since speaking is my passion, I reach the hearts of my audiences by evoking laughter and also some tears by blending Scripture, impacting real-life examples and practical steps to begin a triumphant life today.

Here are some of the topics you can choose from.

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