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Why I don’t say, “I Love You.”

Valentines Day…

For many, it’s a day when dreams can come true.
For others, it’s a day to steer clear of restaurants, florists, and Hallmark stores. For some, a day of nervous anticipation of how to focus and express feelings. And for a few, it’s a reminder that love and life aren’t quite as Disney drew.

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Although starting with butterflies in your stomach, big red heart cards, and dinners on the town….romantic love can be fickle. Objectively speaking romantic love fluctuates. (If you are 14-19 years old, and totally-madly-in-love, this does not apply to you!!!) As the dynamics of life’s seasonal challenges play out, the range of romanticism often reacts accordingly.

Sacrificial love is something completely different.  It is characterized as of recent by two sweet friends, Bob & Stacey, as they limp along the cruel world of the “C” word.  Stacey’s commitment to Bob is authenticated as late nights of chemo and morphine turn to sleepless mornings beyond tears to utter weariness.  Commitment beyond the uncomfortable, while I write and remaining committed as you read. Uncertain of exactly what tomorrow may hold… but certain of the sacrifice along the way.

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Sacrificially loving Kristen is the promise I made… (Remember for better or worse, richer or poorer, till death do us part?) Like most, our wedding vows detailed the security of trusting that the relational commitment would transcend finances, health & seasons of challenge.

Opportunity lies in the security of knowing that the one you walk with is just as committed to walk with you no matter the weight of your pack or the terrain underfoot. The resulting joy in the journey is rooted in the security of knowing that you are there for each other.

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As I consider the gravity of this… a simple, “I love you” tends to sound trite. As if restating the obligatory and obvious.

If we’re living in the joy of the journey.  If our commitment to each other in the many victories remains as secure in the darker challenges as well, That’s true bliss!  To verbalize my truest deepest admiration for and joy of being on this journey with Kristen, I don’t say, “I love you…” I sincerely say…

“I really enjoy being with you!”

In my crazy way of thinking love is not something you say, it’s something you live every day. Not as much in what is scheduled on the calendar… but how we relate with each other in between, choosing to enjoy the challenging processes of life… covering for each other’s weakness while depending on each other’s strengths. This is where the enjoyment of being together lives.

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Every relationship is a work in progress,
May yours and mine accelerate in joy as we all…

Enjoy the journey of loving life and living in love.

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My Dog Brought This To My Attention, REALLY!

In my 40+ year memory of marveling at snow, I have never seen what I saw today.

On this rather routine 22-degree day, my dog snapped me out of the brisk pursuit of my to-do list.  Before long, there was no more awareness of time, temperature, the bag I was carrying or the gate that I had left wide open.  My eyes popped!  My jaw dropped…

Moo-Moo

Our dog, Moo-Moo, is no lapdog.  She’s a St. Bernard/Collie mix with a sporadic homecoming ritual.  She’ll stand by the gate eagerly waiting for my return…  Ok, so she’s really there to see if I have a treat for her.  After  inspecting for any hint of a treat she then breaks into exurbant speedy loops around the house, ending up exhausted by the time I reach the door.

White Delight!

Today, the snow was falling lightly as I approached the gate.

Now I’ve seen it snow chicken-feathers. – Large feathery bowl clusters that appear when cold flakes fall gently through warm temperatures.  Visibility is limited; accumulation is abundant!

I’ve also enjoyed the contrast of frigid snow dust.  – The temperature drops toward the teens, as the wind builds banks by the foot.

But what I experienced today was like nothing I’ve ever known to exist except: on christmas cards, in children’s books, and whisking with clouds of imagination.

First time…

As Moo-Moo greeted me at the gate with her nose in the breeze, I noticed something over her eye that stopped me in my tracks…Is that… A Star?!!  A closer look revealed many more snow stars on her back!  Then I looked to the ground…. Like a winter wonderland… Hundreds of 3mm snow stars scattered everywhere!  My eyes popped!  My jaw dropped!   As time stood still, I’m guessing that my body even forgot to blink.IMG_6743

My next memory was opening the door and calling to Kristen,  “Come fast! You’ve gotta see this.” (I don’t know why speed was necessary, but when a middle aged guy sees something this amazing for the first time he’s afraid that it might vanish just as quick, and for just as long!)

Kristen found this phenomenon very interesting, but managed to maintain more maturity compared to her husband recklesly bounding towards the camera.

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Continual Discovery…

Looking back on the experience, I can’t help but know (in my crazy way of thinking) that this is what Heaven will be like.  A never ending exploration of brand new sights to experience… Many that we are already familiar with but on deeper levels and in broader spectrums then our human eyes have enjoyed.  And that’s just considering our sight!  What other senses do we not even know of yet that will be commonplace, amplified, expanded, and there for our discovery?…Forever!

And how fortunate we are to get glimpses of Heaven here on earth!  It’s a beautiful life out there.  Go live it…  with your eyes wide open!

I'll never forget the day it snowed stars.

I’ll never forget the day it snowed stars.

 

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I’ve Seen It Rain Fire In The Sky!

Scanning my 2013  journal I relived the following. 

 May the retelling of this encounter encourage you as you venture into all that 2015 holds for you, your family, and your legacy.

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From art to nature, I have been contemplating how the facets of an object ultimately point to it’s creator.  I usually recognize these details when I slow down to explore the simpler things in life.

Events of this nature usually end up in my journal, shared with a few close friends, and left it at that.

But this encounter was VERY interesting and far too significant to keep that quiet….

(Journal entry: January 1, 2014)

Pulling onto the driveway from an almost 7-hour round trip commute, I was quite eager to exit my little Honda Fit and stretch my legs.  As my eyes rose past the horizon, my mind shifted gears.   “Look at all those stars!”, I thought as I gawked overhead.  Then the thought hits me, “How could the clear night sky point someone to God?”  (Even now, I don’t know if this was my original thought, if I was thinking God’s thoughts after Him, or if I simply pit way too much sugar in my coffee.)

Next, I look down at the dark ground to reset the experience then look up with fresh eyes of purposeful wonder, as if looking for God in the stars. Instead of seeing a splatter of random specs, with vivid clarity, I begin to notice details: varying intensities, individual placements, the unique identities of each heavenly body.  I start to realize how the magnitude of the night sky is moving me on a much deeper level.  Just then, a shooting star darts from upper left to lower right, then an immediate second…upper right crossing to lower left… as if God made an X in the night sky with his finger…as I was searching for the creator!

I was overwhelmed.  I just experienced: 2-shooting stars, in rapid succession, In the context of fresh eyes searching for God.  As if that wasn’t enough, I was then reminded of the historic symbolism of the “X”.

As I walked towards the house my mind raced with questions:

  • Is this what it was like being an astrologer looking for the Christ child?
  • Bright lights in the sky, Looking for Emmanuel?
  • Did God communicate with them this way too?
  • Were they freshly filled with courage?
  • With a fresh pep in their step?

At a hair past 11PM and I entered the house and shared the story with my sleepy wife, Kristen, and my wide-eyed son, Grant.  I explain that I’m bundling up to go lay in the field to see what else there is to see.  Grant was eager to join me.

10-minutes later we’re laying in the field.  I reminded Grant about broad gazing to look for shooting stars compared to narrowly focusing on a single section of the sky. I then pointed out to him that the “X” I experienced 20-minutes earlier was between Jupiter & Betelgeuse.

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“Grant, do you remember ever seeing a shooting star before?”, I whispereed. “Not that I can remember”, Grant replied. I then said, ”God, please show us a shooting star so Grant can remember it as his first shooting star and that he will know that you made it just for him”… 3-seconds later…. a streak of fire across the sky!

Instantly we were both 10-years old: gasping for air, screaming, laughing, and hitting each other’s triple layers out of a euphoric excitement! A memory we will simply never forget!

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For those who believe in a loving God who wants a relationship with those who seek him, this was quite an encouraging evening! For those who may not believe, this was all just a coincidence. For 25 anxious minutes we continued to lay on the cold ground.  Only to see no more fire in the sky. For me, the absence of additional shooting stars simply authenticated the three that I did see.

I walk freshly into the coming year encouraged to talk with God as a child who’s Daddy yearns to pour out love & life.  Not to a Father who craves a stilted prayer, but as a highly favored child of a Daddy who is eager to engage in a meaningful conversation with each of his children.

So I ask you now…
What “silly” thing will you ask God for?
Are you ready for an answer?
Go ahead & ask!
He loves you!
Really!
Ask!!!

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On Being Alive…

Joseph Campbell with Jean, his beloved wife of 49 years.

Joseph Campbell, with Jean, his beloved wife of 49 years.

“I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive.” ~ Joseph Campbell

Some skydive, or engage in complexities that most find impossible, while others simply fall in love.  Many people are closest to feeling most alive when they make themselves most vulnerable. What consistently fuels your experience of being alive???

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Make Someone’s Day… Spontaneously!

My daughter, Ana, and I pop into the airport on the way home after a long day on the road.  I hear someone calling me from 50 yards away, “Bill, bring that young lady over here!”  I know what that means, but Ana has no clue.  There are a select few pilots that I would spontaneously trust with this most special young lady.  Geoff Nye, a masterful 11,000+ hour pilot and a true gentleman, is a no brainer for this protective daddy.

Geoff Nye & Ana in the Aronca Champ

Geoff Nye & Ana in the Aronca Champ

In a magical moment Geoff & Ana departed the bonds of earth and joined the freedom of the feathered. As I imagined myself at her age, experiencing a low level doors-off flight over autumn’s rolling hills, my heart swelled with such a depth of joy & happiness that my eyes could no longer contain themselves. (that’s man-talk for, “I  cried”) 10-minutes prior, Ana and I were weary travelers. Now we both find ourselves beyond exhilarated!

After rejoining the earth bound, Geoff inked another line into Ana’s logbook while reminding her that this logbook was likely the first of many for her.  What a way to wrap up a day!
Geoff Nye filling in Ana's logbook.

Geoff Nye filling in Ana’s logbook.

I learned a few unexpected things today.  Basic, but VERY true things:

  1.  One person’s initiative & generosity can have an immediate effect on someone else’s day.
  2. The giver & observer often receive more joy than the receiver.
  3. Living vicariously through someone else’s experience can be such a blast!
Geoff Nye & Ana, Thumbs up!

Geoff Nye & Ana, Thumbs up!

Therefore I’m asking myself some new questions today:

  1.  Where can I express spontaneous generosity that makes someone’s day?
  2.  How often do I pause to observe someone experiencing a highlight in their life?
  3. If this doesn’t move me, am I missing out on a level joy & happiness that is available to us all?  (like low hanging fruit)

Join the conversation below…

What is the uniqueness in your life that you have shared spontaneously?

What is an unexpected effect you’ve experienced as a giver, receiver, or observer? 

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Breakfast, As It Should Be

Wrapping up some early morning errands, I dropped into a small town breakfast nook for coffee & a bite.  There is something about a Mom & Pop breakfast shop atmosphere that accurately reveals the culture of an area like nothing else.

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 2-eggs over, onion home fries with crispy scrapple and 12 grain toast.  I sit back and took in whatever Quakertown, PA brought into the door:  2-older gentlemen men of different economic means, laughing and loving the basics of life.  A father and daughter quietly pressing buttons on their phones.  Next in is a small group of…WOW!  that was quick!
Sitting in front of me is exactly what I ordered:  both eggs just right. real potatoes, inconsistently cut (proof that they were prepared with human hands), toasted bread.  Everything was just exactly as ordered.
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The waitress returns returns, refilling my cup,
          “How is the scrapple?…”
          “The scrapple, the eggs, everything is just perfect!”
 She pauses for a second, as if confused by my happiness.  What comes next is refreshingly unscripted…
“It should be!”
What a simple phrase, “It – should – be.”
Well of course, it should be, in all areas of life!
But can we really count on it?
As my home fries continued to vanish, I couldn’t kick the thought…
If it really should be, then:
1.   Why was I so pleasantly surprised to experience detailed service?
2.   What else in life am I surprised by that should be commonplace?
3.   What do I say or do with my kids that they love that should be more commonplace ?
  • It’s not a perfect world
  • We are certainly not perfect people.
  • But it sure is great to enjoy something as it should be.
I’m keeping my eyes out for what my kids find surprisingly delightful that “should be” routine, “should be”, normal & “should be” commonly experienced.
What is the stand-out, “should be”, in your life that you would like to see more common?
PS.   If you’re passing through Quakertown, PA do stop by Sunday’s Deli & Restaurant, 140 E Broad St, and do request Ariel….  The combination of food & service is awesome! (Because it should be!)

 

Jim Rohn Bill Kerwood

“Success is neither magical or mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the fundamentals” -Jim Rohn

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.” ― Albert Einstein

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.”
― Albert Einstein

 

Mystery has an energy to it that is followed by intrigue & then pursuit. What is mysterious to you?  What is it that sparks your intrigue???