Bring on the Smiles

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© jb katke

What makes you smile?

Any number of things can bring one on. Babies, helping others, special people, a favorite TV show, a hobby, if you enjoy your job, even work can instigate a smile.

In a recent visit to my local grocer, I brought a smile to a lady without even trying. We were standing in the checkout lane; the cashier very slowly was ringing up the customer of the woman ahead of her. The cashier was far more interested in conversation than doing her job.

The shopper in front of me turned, sighing and giving me an eye roll. Understanding how she felt, I couldn’t resist asking is she had ever visited another discount store in our area. “Yes, I have.”

“Then you know how fast they ring up your bill, this cashier would never make it working there.” She laughingly agreed.

Spurred on by her friendliness, I commented, “I don’t like these self-checkouts that everyone seems to be getting. I think if they want me to ring up and bag my own purchases; the manager needs to put me on his payroll.”

Again, laughing, “You’re funny! You should be a comedian.”

I doubt that, I only have one joke in my repertoire. Things in life can make me see the humor in them, although it may take a while. Recently, in the course of doing laundry I made a big boo-boo. Using the large bottle of detergent can be too heavy for me; I kept a smaller bottle that I routinely refill. Such was the case when I added more detergent. I think this is detergent, I should have checked the bottle before just dumping it in. Girl, have more confidence in yourself, you know what you’re doing.

After I filled it (of course) I peeked at the label. Yep, I put fabric softener in the laundry detergent bottle. Both of the bottles are white, making confusion easy if one is not paying attention.. Because I was raised in an economical home I found a way to use the mixture anyway. Let me know if you need my ‘recipe.’

Getting back to my grocery story; emboldened still more, I shared, “God is so good, you know through all these hard times, we have not wanted for anything.” She nodded in agreement, “you’re right, I haven’t either.”

Eventually both I and my new friend ahead of me got checked out. Each of us walking to our vehicles, “Thank you for making my day lighter,”

It was nothing, really. To bring a little joy in someone’s life doesn’t hurt at all. It can make or break a day. Nest time you are out, give it shot, what do you have to lose…except looking foolish? You’ll get used to it, I did.

Dream On

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Are you a dreamer? I’m not speaking of future hopes, but when asleep; do you have dreams? For the most part my dearly beloved doesn’t. The few times he has, he tries very hard to remember them to tell me; but alas, by the time morning comes the dream is gone.

I, on the other hand, have them more frequently than Dave. Mine are considerable longer, very detailed, and memorable. None of them make any sense. I wish I could understand where they come from and if there is any meaning to them.

To name a couple; I had a dream back when Dave and I were dating. I still remember it. I was on some sort of game show; it might have been Lets Make A Deal, because I had a choice of three doors. I think I opted for door number 3, and it was a whopper. I won seven tons of cat food. The dream alone was foolish, but at that time, I had lost my dear cat Boots. He came by his name rightfully; a black tomcat, with four white feet. He was a big boy and a marshmallow at heart. Boots took a liking to one of my slips. When I left it out, he would jump at the opportunity to massage his claws in it and suck as if he were nursing from his momma. He was so well-fed that, when laying out in the sunshine, the blue jays would dive bomb him. He didn’t care. If he had not died, I could have fed him, and every other cat in the state of Michigan for life.

A more recent dream placed me where I am today, the community of Asbury. A couple old ladies uninvited, barged in our home, don’t ask me where they came from, I haven’t a clue. But they completely took over, getting rid of our furnishings. I mean completely; no counters,  cabinets, sinks, appliances, all was removed! They had few things of their own, mostly clothes; and refusing to leave. I screamed. I yelled. I ranted and raved. All to no avail. They would just nonchalantly move into another room in the house to get away from me. If you knew these homes; they pretty much have an escape route in any given room. And Dave? He just shrugged his shoulders, saying we should just make the best of the situation. Excuse me? Yes, I was more than a little mad. So mad I woke up realizing it was just a dream. Except for our clutter, our home was all in place. The least these little old ladies could do is clean up a little bit. Can I dream of that? Nooo.

Dreams run as far back as time exists. I’ve read in the Good Book of Joseph’s dream of future greatness. That didn’t set well with his siblings. Ultimately, he did reach a life of greatness, but the crap he had to go through to get there…no thank you. If you want to read it yourself, you’ll find it in Genesis chapters 37-47. Sorta lengthy, but a roller coaster of a read. In that true story you will read how Joseph also had the ability to interpret dreams. It bode well for one guy, not so much for the other, including a kings dream and the fate of a nation. Ya can’t make this stuff up.

Maybe this recent dream stemmed from the horror of Ukraine our TV brings into our family room. Dreams, whether of future wishes or via our sleep can become a living nightmare that we never imagined. Now that I think about it, maybe I don’t want to know what my dreams mean.

Whatever our future holds, the Good Lord will see us through it if we ask him to.  

It’s A Good Day…

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…waking up in the morning and nothing hurts. Not everyone can say that.

…when you can walk. Some people don’t have that luxury.

…that you have the convenience of a grocery store carrying everything you need. I have visited countries where that is not the case.

…to have employment that not only supports your family, but supplies you with a sense of worth. I cannot think of anything that matches the feeling of accomplishment.

…to love and be loved back. It provides a lifetime of memory-making that will astound those around you.

…paying bills without wondering where the money is going to come from. Twenty-twenty hindsight taught me it was a needless worry that only increases stress levels.

…eyes that can see. Some people are blind.

…vision. Its different than sight. Vision is looking ahead to desired goal. Too many feel their future is hopeless.

…friendships. To have a friend is to be a friend. I have been in a room full of people and felt alone. To reach out and get acquainted with someone can be a mind-expanding experience.

…the medical field. Whether it be mental health or physical, doctors and nurses have made it their life ambition to be of service to others. In other parts of the world, they are few and far between.

My words have all the makings for being preachy. That is not my intent; through my life, I have experienced the above. Where there is breath, there is hope. I wasted too many years taking these things for granted.

To go through life with any of the above situations is frightening. With all my heart, I want you to know that you don’t have to be alone. Not to suggest life will be easy. Sometimes we need to take one step at a time. It’s a process, the one that helps the most is the Lord.

I have heard of a young teen, having a swimming accident that left her a quadriplegic. She offers hope and encouragement to others in her position. How can she do that? There is a blind woman that sews quilts. How is that possible? I can’t answer either question. All I can tell you is what is. I will add a little spoiler alert. Jesus is coming back to gather his believers, and every eye will witness the event.

What I do know is when God’s son, Jesus, died on a cross, he sent a Comforter that helps us through those hard times. Relying on him to get you through the day is a life-changing experience. I urge you to give him a chance.

What Pictures Portray

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 © jb katke

I don’t have enough fingers to count how many years, my husband Dave, and I went without a camera. During those years, we purchased several cameras for our children. It was on their wish list at Christmas time, and we parents do like to please our kids.

The problem was, they did not always take pictures of what we would. Hence, few memories to look back on. Birthdays, holidays, and some vacations went by undocumented. The beauty of photos is, they remind you of past events. Aside from their reaching adulthood, we have little to prove the kids really did grow up.

Those were the days prior to the cell phones we have today; I don’t have to list the attributes of these pocket phones; you know. Today people take pictures of their meal, as if it was important enough to look back on in years to come.

It’s been said that, ‘A picture can say a thousand words.’ Recently the two of us, along with our daughters family, visited a local exhibit, Auschwitz. It was a sobering experience to see the multitude of pictures displaying the evil mankind is capable of. Just inside the exit door of the exhibit was this above sign I share with you.

Pictures cannot lie. I can’t imagine anything worse than what these people endured. Yet here we are; with injustice happening again. Televisions are bringing in our living room the pictures of the devastation in Ukraine for the whole world to see. It is hard to comprehend.

What is even harder to grasp, is why the Lord is allowing this to happen. Who can know the mind of God? Based on what I have read in the Good Book, this is not a new thing. Wars and rumors of wars have been going on from the beginning of time. Power overcoming another.

It becomes a situation of survival of the fittest. I cannot see an end in sight. But I know it will eventually end because the Good Book says nothing on earth will last forever.  That can bring to mind the question, is there a world where things will last forever?

That I can answer. Yes. Referring to the Good Book again, we can read that the Lord has prepared a place for us to live eternally…if we want to. It has everything we yearn for now, peace, unity, contentment, love, good health, joy, and much more. We will want for nothing, but you have to desire what he has to offer.

What I am speaking of is God’s house. His place is like yours, in that, not everyone is allowed entry. Just as you would not desire for anyone evil to come in and ruin the aforementioned, or trash your home; the same goes with the Lord.  Try not to wait too long in deciding whether you want that or not, much can happen in the meantime.

In order to trust him, you gotta read what he promises; then hang your faith there. He has the final word and even tells us all become good in his time. The best is yet to be if we cling to him.

This, coming from a seasoned worrier; I have finally learned it accomplishes nothing.

A Day to Remember

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 ©jb katke

Well folks, two, twenty-two, two thousand twenty-two is in our rear-view mirror. One that we will not live through again. Amen to that.

Did you do anything remarkable that day? I know it will not reach the infamy of the day John F Kennedy was assassinated or even anything the likes of walking on the moon. I did not set out to make it anything other than another day. Despite my good intention, it did stand out from the norm. Thank heavens not every day is like that one.

The day started out with my Tuesday morning Bible study. A hymn was recommended to look up. I shared a page from my songbook that includes a brief story of events that took place in the songwriters life, inspiring the song. It’s quite interesting and the ladies seemed to appreciate it.

On my way home, I stopped into Walmart to pick up a few grocery items. My choice is always to use a checkout where an actual person is ringing up my purchases. The management has instead chosen to make the row of cash registers a décor of bygone days. The only ones open are those the consumer has to man themselves. I hate that. If we customers are ringing up our own purchases and bagging them, we ought to either be put on the payroll or given an employee discount.

I finished my transaction only to find the can of peanuts that I missed in ringing things up. Immediately I find myself having to decide to forego the peanuts or ring up a second purchase. I realize there is a third option; to quickly exit the store without paying. I decided on option #2; the following explains why.  Cameras are everywhere. There is not a doubt in my mind that I would have been caught, detained by the police and most likely been taped for the television series of America’s Most Wanted. I didn’t have that kind of time. Besides which, I wanted to sleep that night, and you know…the Lord would know.

The day could have ended there. But nooo. I had a load of laundry to do. I use a smaller bottle of detergent to load into the washer because the bigger bottle is harder to handle pouring. Little bottle was nearing empty. No problem, I’ll just pour more from the bigger bottle. As I’m doing so, I got to thinking I should have made sure I picked up the right bottle, both detergent and fabric softener are white bottles. Girlfriend, you’re always doubling checking yourself. Show a little confidence, you know what you’re doing. I couldn’t resist, after filling my detergent I peeked at the big bottle. Yup, I poured fabric softener into the detergent bottle. I went to bed early that night before I could make any more memories.

Hope For Ever-After

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A marriage conference is coming soon. Dave and I will not be going. If we haven’t figured out how to get along with each other after 50-plus years of marriage, it ain’t gonna happen. Fortunately, we have and are living in our ever-after years.

Or are you living in coexistence and feel those conferences only rock the boat? You’re at the point where it’s better to live and let live; neither of you willing to change, and this way no one gets hurt.

Consider this: marriage requires a license. It’s a document that confirms medical tests have been passed, no DNA issues will cause concern.

According to the Concise Oxford American Dictionary a license is issued by an authority to own, use, or do a particular thing. This covers a myriad of things:

  • Driver’s license, learning and obeying traffic laws. This keeps others safe from harm.
  • Liquor license, of age and with proper training. Including how to handle alcoholics from harming themselves and others.
  • Electrician’s license, must be trained and abide by state regulations. Making homes and businesses a safe environment.

           I have only named a few, but you get the idea. Safety from harm. I tie this to marriage because there is more that you may not have considered.. The paperwork is signed by witnesses that each party will be devoted to each other for life. Only death should break the contract.

Prior to death, breaking the contract can inflict harm.  I don’t have to elaborate on how, and I understand there are legitimate reasons for divorce. I merely want to consider that it is the death of a relationship. As with a natural death, it takes time to heal from the hurt and loss.

Among the many things we see on a daily basis, our Creator also designed relationship. With others and with him. He gives us free license to choose how we live, with or without him. He more than prefers to have a friendship with us, it is his heart’s desire. The fact is, he created us for a couple reasons; relationship and to tell others about him.

How can others be told if there is no relationship? It takes two people, each having a responsibility in maintaining it. I am here to tell you; our Creator always keeps his word. Refer to the Good Book to see what his part is. It is all good.

Some may argue that point. Life can hand out some hard things. I have cracked open the book a few times and have read things saying, ‘I have a plan for you, I will lead you, I will provide for you…’

I cannot begin to list them all. But I can say those things can happen in a supernatural way. Like any relationship, it requires faith, trust and yes, there is hope.

Enlightenment

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When the wedding ceremony is over and the reality that two becomes one, enlightenment sets in. There is a ‘No duh’ statement for you. Within hours you’re in the world of couples, and some can look a lot different.

Shortly after my marriage, I came to know a lady I’ll refer to as Plain Jane; as that is how she saw herself.  According to her, the  love for her husband is real and when they married, all she wanted was for them to grow old together. As time went on though, it seems that was not enough. She found herself comparing her life with others, and in her eyes, fell short of the ideal.

“The two of us together were fine at first, but then I got to wanting a baby; and that wasn’t happening fast enough to suit me.” Eventually, it came to be. We were close enough for me to see she was over her head in motherhood. “I’ve got the child, but now what do I do with it?”

That was when I realized what was going on with Plain Jane, or PJ for short; but not pajamas. The woman was always wanting something. Life was perfect, except for ____________________. Filling in the blank could be anything at any given time. Nothing seemed to satisfy her.

I recall one time her lamenting that she would like to work outside of the home. Just to talk with grown-ups and feel like she was making a contribution to her family. Having a purpose meant a lot to her. She had a few more kids as the years went by and they needed her. But that was not fulfilling to her.

More than once, I told her she was contributing. This was before there was such a thing as playdates for the children; like-wise no Moms Day Out at the local church either. I suppose being unable to change her circumstances made her feel stuck.

Our relationship continues and find ourselves more comfortable now. We are more than two peas in a pod. We are one and the same. I’m not the same person I used to be.  Time and experiences make a difference.

I’ve learned that I am loved by more than just my family; God does too. He he has a plan for my life and considers me precious enough to care about things that concern me. He has let me know that I shouldn’t compare myself with others as that is dangerous to my well-being.

There is more. It is a mistake for me to worry over things out of my control, that’s infringing on his turf. Miracles are his specialty. He has my back and promised to meet my needs. I can vouch that he does. Maybe not when I think he should, but seeing how he also created the universe, I have to concede that he knows more about timing than I do.

Here is the thing that can boggle any mind. He loves everyone. Even those who least deserve it.  He provides for folks that think they have complete control of their life. If the proverbial rug has pulled out from under you, its recipe that provides a chance to get to know him better. Opportunity awaits.

Almost Gone

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© jb katke

This bottle of dish soap has been sitting on my counter for what seems like forever. I wash dishes a couple times a day, but the bottle just doesn’t seem to empty. While it frustrates me, it also brings a story to mind.

A true one.

Long ago, Elisha would pass on messages he got from our Creator to his people. “Y’all are going to experience a time of no rain.”  Because the people were big into idolizing fake gods, and would not pay any attention to him, the Creator told him to leave the area so that they would also experience a lack of encouraging words. (Wait what, the Creator lets us experience life without him?)

Where he was directed to go was the darndest thing. Smack into the country where this false god started from. Elisha hid in a remote part, where getting food would be an impossibility. Here is another amazing fact, birds brought food to him so he would not starve to death.

Sure enough, a drought took place. When the brook where Elisha was staying dried up, the Creator told him to move on to a place where currently a widow was living. Don’t let your imagination run away, it’s not at all what you might be thinking.

When Elisha arrived, he found the widow out gathering some firewood. She aimed to fix herself and her son their last meal, as her pantry was empty. They were gearing up to die. It was a bleak time for everyone.

Elisha asked the widow for a drink of water and thinking further hollered out that some bread would be nice too. At that, she explained her situation. “I have nothing to give you.”

Elisha assured her everything would be ok and not to be afraid. “Give me what I asked for first, then you & the boy can eat.  The Creator said that you won’t run out of food.”

Surprisingly, she did as he asked. Even though she lived in an evil place, the widow sensed Elisha was different; this guy seemed full of hope. Furthermore, Elisha was right on, she never lacked food in her pantry.

I’m not making this up, the story has all the feels of a fairytale where everyone lives happily ever after. You can find it and read even more in the Good Book, I Kings chapter 17. Did you pick up on the same thing I did? Our Creator knows what is going on, sees how we are living, and provides a way to live. That is a fact enough to boggle the mind of anyone.

As is often the case, one thought leads to another. Am I willing to admit I’m not living right? As far as Elisha is concerned, he had to wonder what the Creator was thinking sending him to an evil place. Do you ever wonder how on earth you got in the place you’re in?  And birds bringing him food…come on. Until we remember the Creator can do anything.

As yet, I have not experienced an empty pantry. Could I be as level-headed as this widow if I thought I was about to die; to trust the fact that he cares for me?

The closest we have to the likes of Elisha are ministers that preach truth. I better make sure I place myself within hearing distance of them and heed their words. What they share comes directly from our Creator…and he knows what he’s talkin’ about.

All this from a bottle of dish soap.