Siggy's Blurbs: Siggy's Edge of Country …

I love garage sales.  I had the grand total of four dollars in my pocket.  I bought a large print Bible for two dollars.  I was thrilled.  I also bought another Scrabble game for a dollar.  Scrabble is my favorite game and I was not going to turn down the purchase for one dollar.  She claimed all the pieces were there and they were.

I also bought a box of four puzzles–the kind you put together.  It even had the solutions if you wanted to cheat.  I knew my wife would love the puzzles.

I actually was short one dollar but I promised the lady (who is also a waitress at the nearby diner) I would give her the missing dollar another day and she agreed.

Garage sales are like serendipity.  You never know what you are going to find.  You end up buying “treasures” sometimes because you never ever would have paid the full price for that item.  There are always surprises.

Tags: garage sales, God, large print Bible, my wife, Scrabble, serendipity, surprises, treasures, wooden puzzle
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You never have to do it alone.  Depression is born(e) of isolation.  Reach out to others in need you will break the spell of isolation.  We can not do it alone any way.

Isolation is bad for your problems become magnified.  And when you reach out to others your problems fade into the background.

The truth is every one has problems.  Solving them is what makes life interesting.  The only people who do not have problems are under ground.  So relish yours and at the same time reach out to others in need.  ‘No man is an island’ in the words of John Donne.

Tags: can not do it alone, depression, do it alone, every one has problems, isolation, John Donne, no man is an island, problems, problems fade, problems magnified, reach out to others, reach out to others in need, solving problems
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Love always goes beyond the physical.  It is a look.  It is an attitude toward your beloved.  It is so many things beyond the physical.

Sex peters out awfully quickly when love between the partners fizzles out.  Love is the thoughts you direct unseen toward your partner.  He/she knows what you think behind closed doors and even unseen, unheard.

Sex with love has no parameters.  It goes anywhere the hearts desire.  Sex is far more than the physical.  Your partner always knows when you stop listening.  True communication is love which turns into the physical.

No matter how good the sex is eventually it turns sour without love.  Love always goes beyond the physical.  Love is really the only thing that matters.

Tags: attitude toward your beloved, beyond the physical, communication, God, hearts desire, love, love the only thing that matters, physical, sex, sex with love
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If you want to cheat death act as if it does not matter.  Live each day fully.  Have no regrets when you call it a day.  Act as if this day would have been your last.

If you want to cheat death, do not be concerned about the dying.  Be concerned that you do God’s will and know not one person can tell you which path to take.

If you want to cheat death be concerned about the present.  Do not live in the past or the future.  Live the life you have today.

Don’t be afraid of the things you have no control of but seize the control of things you do.  If you want to cheat death let no one tell you this is the correct path.  Love each person God puts in your life.

If you want to cheat death live fully in the moment, savor each moment.  Do not be afraid.

Tags: cheat death, do not be afraid, do not live in the past or the future, future, God, God's will, have no regrets, life, live each moment, live fully, live life today, love, love each person, past, present, savor each moment, take control of what you can
Posted in balance, beauty, death, God, knowledge&learning, life, love, relationships, time, wisdom, writing, your job/mission/profession | No Comments »

Never put down a drunk.  Who are you to judge?  That is that person’s weakness.  And you know damn well you are imperfect.  So who am I to judge simply because alcohol is not one of my problems.  God knows I have many weaknesses and sin every day.  So never put down a drunk.  Remember how imperfect you are and have compassion on that person for you are not there only by the grace of God.  So again, never put down a drunk.

Tags: alcohol, compassion, do not judge others, drunk, God, grace of God, have compassion, sin, we are all imperfect, weakness, wisdom
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I have fallen in love with Central Pennsylvania especially the county I live in–Perry County.  It is God’s country if you allow me to be that presumptuous.  There is open space here.  Farms, valleys and two major rivers, the Susquehanna and the Juniata, lay here.

The ride up the Juniata valley on Route 322 literally takes my breath away:  it is so beautiful.  Closer to home, every time I drive into town I want to capture its beauty on film of the view offered from the hill of the Susquehanna River and its valley crisscrossed by various small islands.

I live on the edge of country.  From my window I watch the birds come to and fro my feeders.  I was thrilled yesterday when I saw an indigo bunting alight on the ground.

We have had bears raid our bird feeders several times.  In fact, this state is second in the nation for bear hunting.  The smallmouth bass fishing from the two Rivers is superb.  I never forgot my first trips up the Rivers on a airboat.  It was like entering a world I had no idea even existed.

There is so much beauty here and people who have lived here all their lives do not always fully appreciate it.  I do.  I grew up near NYC where there were not too many open spaces.

We are less than an hour away from Hershey and Harrisburg, maybe three hours from NYC and Baltimore.  It is the best of two worlds.  I do not take this beauty here for granted.  The neighboring counties are running out of land to build on.

I would like Perry County to remain in an unspoiled state as much as possible for the next generation and subsequent ones.  Perry County is a treasure I would like others to experience.

Tags: airboat, Baltimore, bears, beauty, bird feeder, bird-feeders, bird-watching, birds, country, edge of country, farms, fishing, God, God's country, Harrisburg, Hershey, indigo bunting, islands, Juniata River, New York City, next generation, Pennsylvania, Perry County, smallmouth bass, Susquehanna River, treasure, valley, valleys
Posted in animals, balance, beauty, birds, God, knowledge&learning, life, local, love, nature, seasons, time | No Comments »

Each person has a mission (or calling).  And when we think we are finished, we are not.  Someone else (in some distant future) will pick up the threads of our life.

That is how it always was:  You take on someone else’s mission and at some point someone, somewhere will continue your unfinished business.

All one is asked is to do His will.  It should not be your concern even if you think you have completed the job.  Someone may come along and take your life’s work in a different direction.

All you are asked is to fulfill your own mission.  In the Old Testament it says, “God has set eternity in our hearts.” (the words of the Preacher in Ecclesiastes).  We never can see the complete picture.

Each person only sees his/her part and sometimes all we can do is to take the next step.  And that is all we are asked to do:  to take your next step.  And that takes faith in the unknown.

Tags: "God has set eternity in our hearts", Bible, do His will, Ecclesiastes, eternity, faith, faith in the unknown, God, His will, life's work, never see the complete picture, Old Testament, pick up the threads of our life, take the next step, the Preacher, unfinished business, your calling, your mission
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I have a new personal trainer and he is one tough disciplinarian.  He pushes me all the time.  He want me to go faster and faster.  Sometimes he gets waylaid.  He would do anything to run after a rabbit.

He is sixty-six pounds and is black and would take umpteen walks if he had his way.  He is cheap.  All he wants is to have a bowl of food and water and be petted periodically.

He keeps wanting me to go faster and faster.  We just came back from a predawn walk; he walked at the fastest clip yet.  My wind is getting better and better.

If I am not careful, he will fire me and get another trainee.  He wants walks all the time.  All you have to do is rattle the metal leash and within five seconds he is at my feet or say the word “walk” and his ears immediately perk up.

I am grateful for him and I make sure every time he rolls over on his back he gets his belly rubbed.  I do not want to take any chances he will be hired by any one else.  He is the best trainer I ever had.

Tags: belly-rub, bowl of food and water, dog food, dog leash, dog walk, dogs, God, my wind, personal trainer, pets, petted, predawn walk, walk
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I love walking outside just before dawn.  The birds are alive in song.  There is an anticipation of the next day.  There is the sense of the mysterious.  There is so much in that hour or two I just can’t wait for the day to start and to see what the next day will bring.  For a long time I was usually asleep at those hours.  I was missing so much.  Even though it is still dark the day lightens up gradually.  It is flush with anticipation and mystery.  I love predawn.

Tags: anticipation, asleep, bird song, birds, dawn, daylight, God, just before dawn, love predawn, predawn, take a walk, the mysterious, what the day will bring
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Love is not sex.  And sex is not always love.  Love transcends everything.  Sex can be love.  It is the physical part of love.  If you were to watch TV and movies you see portrayed casual sex all the time.

Sex is not casual.  It imprints at a deep level one person with the other.  It always has a price so do not be fooled:  there is no such thing as casual sex.

Yes, sex is physical yet it transcends everything so next time you are tempted to break your bond with your primary partner think twice and resist temptation.  There is always a price to pay if you stray.  It may be one you will regret.  Broken trust is extremely hard to get back.  And often you can’t regain it back so think awfully hard next time you are tempted.

Tags: break your bond, broken trust, casual sex, do not stray, God, has a price, imprint, love, love is not sex, love transcends, movies, physical, price to pay, regret, resist temptation, sex, sex is not casual, tempted, trust, TV, your partner
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I was lying in bed and thinking as I was trying to fall asleep.  I must thank the Lord for everything–even this comfortable bed and pillows I am resting my head on.

Everything Is by grace.  There is no way around that.  You can think otherwise but it is futile.  You can rail how unfair life is but that is futile, too.

Less is always more.  And God does not owe us anything and everything we have is by the grace of God.  Life is never fair:  some people have more and some people have less.  The poor are always among us.  The war on poverty–a campaign by Lyndon Johnson, the president of the United States, in the late sixties was a failure.

It is true each person has to help the other in any way you can but the poor will always be among us.  Blessed are the poor in spirit.  Being poor sometimes forces us to rely on God for our provisions.  Money can insulate us from God.

There is the illusion we can provide for ourselves when we have enough money but that is only an illusion.  We need one another.  No man is an island, the famous words of John Donne.

It is far easier to lead your life with thankfulness.  Gratitude is a blessing and each person needs to reach out to others in any way they can.  In fact, in the Bible it say that if it is in your power to help someone and do not you have committed a sin.

I have to count my blessings each day.  My wife is only here by serendipity.  My attitude of thankfulness for the provisions of the Almighty gives me grace that I can not earn.  And everything is by grace.

Tags: attitude of thankfulness, bed and pillows, Bible, blessed, blessed are the poor in spirit, count my blessings, everything-is-by-grace, God, God does not owe us anything, God's Word, grace of God, gratitude, help others, John Donne, less is more, life is not fair, life-is-unfair, Lyndon Johnson, money, my wife, no man is an island, poor, poverty, president, provisions, reach out to others, rely on God, serendipity, sin, sleep, thank the Lord, thank the Lord for everything, thankful, The Almighty, the Lord, the poor always among us, war on poverty
Posted in balance, beauty, death, God, health, knowledge&learning, life, love, marriage, mental health, money, nature, politics, relationships, seasons, time, wisdom | No Comments »

You must always face death with courage.  None of us knows, for sure, how much time we have on this earth.  Sometimes death can come suddenly and other times slowly.

You have two broad choices:  You can live your life with courage or you can live your life with fear.  Death is the fear of the unknown.

I choose courage.  And the wisdom that can accompany it.  We are all going to die one day.  That is a fact.  But people act as if death does not exist.

It can only make your life that much sweeter.  Imagine if we knew were were going to live for eternity.  How awful that would be.

Face each day that God has given you with gratitude.  Then it no longer matters how much time you are here on this earth.  Face each day with courage and wisdom.  Death then has no power.

Tags: courage, death, death has no power, each day God has given you, eternity, face death, fear, fear of the unknown, God, gratitude, life, live with courage, live with fear, make your life sweeter, time on earth, unknown, we all die, wisdom
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