WACKY WEDNESDAY WISDOM: Be Still and Know That It's Christmas

     I've seen this deal on one of the networks called "The 25 Days of Christmas" and I thought I would join in with my own twist. Normally the Christmas season is a busy, busy, busy "run around here, gotta get to there" sorta time. But perhaps the powers that be (in this case, God- the only power that be) got our attention without the use of celestial visits from various sorts of angels this year. The thing that has thrown us for a loop is a mean old Grinch virus, the likes of which has caused us to shut down most of our traditions involving gatherings with other human beings. 

     But maybe that part is not totally disastrous. Maybe God is using the Corona Bologna to remind us of something we should be more cognizant of in the first place- something he inspired the author of Psalm 46:10 to share when He advised us to "Be still, and Know that I am God." In that vein, I now present to you my version of " The 25 Days of Christmas: Things We Can Appreciate More If We Will Simply Slow Down and Take Time to Recognize Them and Appreciate Them". Some I've borrowed from other sources, some I've made up on my own. Some apply to everyone and others apply to only a few, but each is a gift and a blessing if we but take the time to receive them. 

So, without further delay, here is the list of stuff we should appreciate, from 1 to 25: 

1. Getting up quickly to use the bathroom in the morning, and then hopping back under the bed covers to the same warm spot.

2. A quiet morning with a silenced cellphone. 

3. Sipping a warm cup of coffee or tea or whatever you drink to warm yourself in the morning. 

4. A brisk morning walk while you breathe in Christmas air. 

5. Listening to the breeze blow through the trees. 

6. A warm shower with a perfect blend of hot and cold water. 

7. Admiring the inside of your home right after you and your wife (mainly her) finish cleaning it up. 

8. When every traffic light you approach on a day is green. 

9. When your favorite Christmas song randomly plays on the radio- even if it's the Twelve Redneck Days of Christmas but especially if it's Do You Hear What I Hear, Joy to the World or Carol of the Bells (courtesy of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra). 

10. When a little kid you see in a store smiles at you and you smile back. 

11. Realizing that you’re in the fastest moving checkout line at the grocery store. 

12. A prolonged hug from someone you love. 

13. Hearing a child laugh uncontrollably. 

14. Laughing at old family photos. 

15. When an online video plays without showing an advertisement first. 

16. When the Christmas tree doesn’t fall over causing ornaments to break when they hit the floor. (Obviously this has happened to the Stroupes on more than one occasion so we used fishing line and tied it to a hook on the ceiling one year and then another year, we filled the stand with grout which also worked but ruined the stand permanently). 

17. A really good pair of socks. 

18. Savoring every page of a really good book. 

19. Having your grown up kids home for the holidays even if they leave clothes lying in the floor and eat all the snacks in the pantry.

20. The smell of a home-cooked meal. 

21. Looking up at the sky on a cool, clear night and seeing nothing but stars, most of which are twinkling. 

22. Knowing deep down you’ve made a difference in someone’s life. 

23. The crackling sound of a fireplace on a chilly winter night. (Gas logs are a close second) 

24. A bed that’s already warm when you get under the covers 

25. When your last thought as you fall asleep on Christmas Night is that God is still in control.

WACKY WEDNESDAY WISDOM: A Small Sample of Kindness

I was just standing in the Gastonia, NC Hobby Lobby minding my own business. Being one of only two or three males in the store at the time amongst what seemed like hundreds of females, I was bored nearly to the point of tears as I stood near a shelf which contained a few books I pretended to be interested in. Like many husbands in similar situations, I was waiting it out while my lovely wife basked in the bliss of a store full of Knick Knacks and Paddy Whacks the sorts of which appeal to the female gender. Also in the store was a gentleman wearing all camo, which impressed me. I remember thinking when I first saw him in the store- "That's a bold move, I like it." For whatever reason, about twenty minutes later, Mr. Camo walked up to where I was standing and looked me right in the eye. Slightly taken aback, I smiled. The first words he said to me, and I promise this is 100% true- were as follows and I quote: "My doctor said I needed to bring in a stool sample today. Do you want to see it?" Taken aback for the second time, I replied- "I'm not so sure I do, but it sounds like you want to show it to me." Immediately, without so much as a grin, he said- "Hold on, let me fish it out of my pocket here". At that point I had no choice. I was going to lay witness to a stool sample in the middle of the Gastonia, NC Hobby Lobby whether I liked it or not. After some fumbling around in his pocket, he pulled out a small plastic cylinder about the size of one of those containers people used to roll up film in before they took it to get developed. (Yes, I'm old). A flood of relief swept over me as I assumed at least this was a very small sample and not a full fledged visit to the Men's Room sample. He opened the cap, reached in, and pulled out a miniature wood carving. It had a round seat and four legs- it was a stool. About the right size for a baby mouse. I laughed. He finally smiled. I laughed some more. Then I requested he let me take a picture of him with the stool. He obliged. (You have to look real hard to see the little stool in the picture- it's sitting on the shelf just to the left of two brown books). After the picture I complimented him on his camo outfit. He told me he was a Vietnam veteran. I had just finished reading an interesting book written by a soldier who served in Vietnam so I asked him a few questions. It was immediately obvious he had truly been in Nam because he had tremendous knowledge and insight as he answered every one of my inquirie with explicit and interesting details. At the appropriate moment, I thanked him for his service just as a lady who I could tell was his wife walked up beside him. "She's a veteran, too" he said proudly. So I promptly thanked her for her service as well. We exchanged our goodbyes and a few minutes later when I located my wife and told her the story, she said- "People just kinda gravitate toward you for some reason, don't they? Wonder why?" I had to admit I had no idea why but as I thought more about it, I decided to consider it an honor that Mr. Camo decided to randomly choose me to share his stool sample with. The Bible says in Hebrews 13:1-2 that we should "Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for some have entertained angels without realizing it". I'm not saying Mr. Camo was an angel. I just know that he entertained me for a few minutes and I was kind and pleasant to him. Odds are we will never see each other again. But for a moment or two, God placed him in my life to bring a smile to my face and I reciprocated. I wonder how many opportunities you and I pass up every day where we could have made someone we don't know smile. So my challenge to everyone who reads this is simple: Walk up to someone you don't know during this holiday season and say something kind to them. And by doing so, you just might be entertaining an angel. Stool sample optional.