Friday Tidings

Once upon a time, when my baseball-loving husband was looking to expand his career options, he did a stint as a Major League Baseball scout. With his trusty radar gun and video camera, he visited high schools and colleges throughout Washington and Oregon. Sleeping in his truck, and managing his regular business via cell phone, his radar gun zeroed in on a future All Star pitcher other scouts seemed to ignore. Tim Lincecum was a scrawny kid by any athletic standards. But on the pitching mound for his college team, the University of Washington Huskies, he was dominating. The other scouts seemed more interested in meatier men—a brisk wind would knock this kid down. But with radar gun stats and a keen sense of what Lincecum’s future could be, my husband wasted no time reporting on this scrawny pitching wonder. The MLB team ignored his insightful tip and basically said, keeping looking. How wrong they were. The San Francisco Giants picked Lincecum in the

This isn’t about the safety of food dropped on the floor and snatching it up prior to five seconds; it’s about a time delay before opening our mouth to speak.  This is about my beautiful, rambunctious, and verbally impulsive friend Terrie. If anyone needed the five-second rule it was Terrie. Ever opinionated and supremely intelligent beyond her youthful appearance, Terrie is one of those people who will tell you the truth right from the starting line. She’s the one who’ll point out how the new yellow shirt you’re wearing makes you look sick. On the upside, she always points out if you have food stuck between your teeth or dirt on your face. Terrie earned her reputation as a straight shooter. I could count on her to have an opinion on anything. I mean everything. Some would find that refreshing. I wondered how her new husband would take it. I invited her to coffee a few weeks after the honeymoon. “He has absolutely no decorating sense.”   Terrie c

Kramer family 1901--prior to David's birth It wasn’t about fairness with David Kramer—especially by our modern definition. His folks emigrated from Germany with their farming work ethic and not much more.  When David was four, his father died. Surrounding farm families helped keep their ranch solvent until at age 13, he took over the arduous duties. 1940 Ritzville, Washington From then on, David worked the land, first with teams of horses, then with crude harvesters, until finally a modern combine lessened the work for others, but not himself.  He put his seven brothers and sisters through college and shared the farming profits the rest of their lives, but David never had the chance to finish high school. In a very real way, he became the father for his family. He didn’t expect to be reimbursed because that’s just the way it was back then.   Was it fair that he never had the opportunities his siblings had? No, but it wasn’t about fairness,

Christina took her final breath on earth the same day I honor my dad’s birth. While I'll always have memories of my dad on this day, now I can also recall a spirited, enthusiastically encouraging, light-hearted, and loving young woman. She left an indelible mark in my life and thousands of others. She didn't set out to change our world; it's just the way she allowed her circumstances to be used by God. During her journey with brain cancer she opened the door of her life and insightful words flowed out. Her passion for Jesus was infectious. Christina would have me smiling as I read her blog ...she'd find light in the darkest places. Cancer may have invaded her body, but it didn't steal her choice to live well. She’d post pictures of her brain surgery haircuts right along with fun times with friends and family. And her irresistible smile made it impossible not to smile right back.             Yet there was pai

Your #1 graduation tip: Make your bed every morning.  What’s the big deal about making your bed? It’s not just a neat freak thing. It’s how you start your day. And it’s how you end your day. No matter what you faced during your day, crawling into a well-made bed is a welcome reprieve from the world. Sometimes it will be the best part of the worst day. You’ll appreciate being greeted by straightened sheets and smoothed out blankets. Making the bed takes less than two minutes. In those minutes you can think about your day or better yet, pray to God that he’ll guide you throughout it. In those moments of tucking and straightening, you are on pace to tackle the next thing on your list. As you leave for the day, you’ve already accomplished something good. Doing the small things each day motivates us to have victory over the bigger things. If bed making seems like lame advice, a wealthy bank president gave two words for his secret to success: good decisions.