My teaching schedule was weird today because of our State of the College address this morning. This gave me a little free time because my morning classes were cancelled. I went to my office with the intention of writing a blog post about… When I was a kid, I was taught to respect adults – my parents, my friends’ parents, teachers, any adult with whom I came into contact. Respect is a big thing when you are the child of…
I am now a month into summer vacation 2019. As is the case with everything these days, I have no idea where the time has gone. Thus far my break can be summed up as…random acts of…. Today I find myself examining these last four weeks more intentionally, trying to identify in concrete terms exactly what I have done, what I haven’t done, and what I want to be doing with my days. This exploration will hopefully lead me to…
One thing that I think most of us have learned by the time we reach “a certain age” is that there are no guarantees in this life. Thus, we should take nothing for granted, not the big things and not the small things. Our lives can be turned upside down in an instant. Over the weekend, I was out-of-town visiting a friend and participating in a bowling fundraiser. Despite cold, sleet, ice, and snow, it was a great weekend. This…
I was out of town last weekend at Click Away, a photography conference primarily for woman, but there were a few brave men who attended, Weber being one of them. We met several of my Capture Your 365 photography friends in Amelia Island, Florida for some fellowship and some sessions to hopefully help our grow our photography skills. As I was packing to go, I realized that I was excited about the photography element of the trip, but I might…
Today’s Capture Your 365 photo prompt was Be Thankful for Who You Are. We were urged to take a self-portrait that shows who we are. This is my photo. For many years, I tried to achieve perfection in everything that I did – from school, to relationships, to parenting. I thought that I had to be perfect in the eyes of everyone around me to be worthy of being be loved. Needless to say, I fell way short of my goal….
I recently discovered something about myself and I’m not sure that I like it. On Monday, my youngest daughter sent me a text message saying that she was heading to Las Vegas on a last minute business trip. My response to her was, “Be safe.” Not, “Have fun.” or “Have a good trip.” or even “Win lots of money.” But, Be safe. I looked back through my Facebook feed where I had recently commented on posts by friends who are…
Thoughts in response to Harvey and Irma. Creation, Devastation, Restoration By Kris Baker Loving God, In the beginning, You created the heavens and the earth, light to separate the darkness, sky to divide the waters above and below, and dry land to set apart the lower waters. On the dry land You created flowers and trees with seeds to bear life and fruit. In the sky You placed lights to illumine the darkness and to nourish the seeds of the…
Last Monday marked my fifty-first first day of school. Some of those years were as a student, some have been as a professor, and the years in graduate school were both as a student and a teaching fellow. That is a lot of years of school! Most days I still love it.But, having not taught summer school for the first time in many years and thus having a peek at what retirement might look and feel like, I have to…
No fifty-something year old woman with no children or grandchildren around and who is fairly competent in the kitchen should be making a special trip to the grocery store to buy cream cheese, pretzels, Cool Whip, and Jello, all to be used in the same recipe…and be excited about it. But, this is exactly where I find myself today. I partially blame my Sifted Together blog buddy, Tracey, for this predicament in which I find myself. She gave me a…
If you ignore the weeds, eventually they will take over. Just as if we allow people to make the same mistakes over and over and over again, the wrong or hurtful or dangerous ways will take over. Why is it socially unacceptable to point out the error of one’s ways? Why is it wrong to acknowledge that making mistakes is natural. Everyone makes mistakes. Yes, even you! When did it become a sign of weakness rather than a sign of humility to…