Bread of Life Cafe

I used to teach "Youth Sunday School" when we lived in Bristol, VA. Teaching youth was always a challenge because you had to take old time bible lessons and make them applicable and interesting for 13-18 year olds. Some kids were interested each week, some never were. It was like their parents made them come to church so they just endured the time.

I pretty much did a 10-15 lesson introduction before we split into smaller groups. I was often nervous but always tried to make it thru and make it stick, otherwise we were just wasting time. One of my favorite all time intros was "Bread of Life Cafe". We had a red and white checked table cloth with a basket with real french bread setup at the entrance to the classrooom area. It looked like you were walking into a restaurant where Jesus was being served. I mean that sincerely. One of my friends asked me some Sundays if I'm "going to get some Jesus?" and my answer is yes.

I think I live in the "Bread of Life Cafe" sometimes. Each day I find myself cooking a meal and most of those meals these days don't include bread. Too many carbs! But then you find what you need most is some good ol' bread. I titled this blog "Yard Therapy for the Mind Body Soul" because I feel like almost everything that's worthwhile feeds either your mind, your body, or your soul. If not, then you are probably wasting your time. Enduring. Wasting this day of your life. So just like when I was teaching Youth Sunday School, I've got to make this day applicable and interesting. Applicable to the feeding of my mind, body and soul and interesting enough to make it stick so that it's something I want to feed on and digest and use.

Last night I went to see "Little Eagles of Siberia" a youth singing / performing group. They were so young, excited, and "into" what they were doing. It did my soul good to feast on all the good that oozed from them. It did me good to share it with my friend Ricardo whose mother is Russian decent. It did me good to not be sitting in front of the television watching mindless TV. It did me good to skip a true meal last night and just each some cheese and shredded wheat cereal as a healthy carb. It did me good this past weekend to put my mind in neutral and go hiking and glorified camping in the cabin. To share some board games with friends, and good food, fun. To laugh, to share, to get to know one another with common questions that showed how strangers only 5 months ago can have so much in common. Am I making sense?

I'm finding when I surround myself with GOOD, my mind body and soul are fulfilled. Good carbs like shredded wheat - sure - but it's more than that. It's GOOD BREAD! Feasting on LIFE, living on GOOD things is what sustains and lifts up. Avoiding those things that make us less of what we are supposed to be and surrounding myself with GOOD. Who knew the BREAD of LIFE could be so good. So I'm creating a Bread of Life Cafe each day without knowing it was happening. I'm attracted to GOOD because it's the BREAD I need.

The Bread of Life Cafe... serving up GOOD - it's interesting, it's applicable, it's feeding my soul just like it did on that Sunday morning in Bristol.

**** In memory of VeronicaYates and Paul Dugger who taught with me and encouraged me so often.
**** In honor of Peggy Miller who listened to me, talked to me, prayed with and for me, and who taught me so much.

Planting life!

"Some people think that as soon as you plant a tree, it must bear fruit. We must allow it to grow a bit."
Prince Tunku putta Abdul Rahman (b. 1903) - Malaysian political leader

I read this this morning looking for something to put on the kitchen chalkboard. I always looks for something that strikes me and hits home with how I'm feeling or where I'm at. I don't recall ever seeing this one before and it was right on the money.

As the sun starts to come up today and I'm yet again NOT leaving early for work because I'm dilly dallying around per usual, I think yet again the tranquil easy start of the morning has served it's purpose. All the kitchen dishes are clean (yep washed them , dishwasher still leaking), I had some good oatmeal (it was quick oats I accidentally bought AGAIN!), I made a good looking salad for lunch, and I checked in on news, bank, and emails. Now time to really get rolling but it's already been a good start. All that's left is shower and THE BUS!

Oh, the chalkboard.... I sure hope I've been planting trees the past few years. I sure feel like it tho I never really looked at it like that. I've been looking for fruit when maybe the most important thing right now is that all I'm sowing really just needs to show signs of life, being green and growing. The fruits going to come! If you're one of my trees or hey, if I'm one - keep growing, keep knowing that I'm weeding around you, fertilizing you, hoping the sun shines on you, and yeah if it seems I'm throwing chicken manure sometimes, it's fertilizer! Growth comes in many forms not just when the apple ripens. (I needed to know that this morning!) ... sunny and 70 today. GROW!

Coming back!

It was 40 degrees for what seemed like all weekend. I literally hibernated this weekend because I was obsessing about everything. Why isn't the grass turning green? Do I need to get a yard service for the first time in 8 years or so? How can I cut back the monkey grass while the jonquils are popped up in the middle of last year's scraggly old lirope! I napped on a Saturday for nearly 2 hours and listened to Ch. 24 / SUNNY on XM. It's all mellow feel good songs of the '70s (well mostly). I woke up feeling much better and I had put my mind in neutral, just what I needed. I MADE myself stop thinking.

Then I came into the kitchen and started ripping wallpaper off the wall. I'm tired of it. I haven't had a good project in about 2-3 years. So I feel like I'm coming back. It's almost spring and yeah I should have done the walls in the dead of winter but as the temps warm up outside I really feel like I'm awakening from more than just the hibernation, I'm coming back!