A Granite Bench with a View

View of mountain and corn field

Sometimes, it’s hard to quiet our minds with the events of the day always taking priority.

I have found a quiet place, with a granite bench and a great view, which is just a 10-minute walk from the school where I am a full-time student.

When the weather is nice during our lunch hour, I buy a sandwich at our school cafeteria, and head off to this special place.  



Another view from the bench

During my quiet time on the bench, I think about people who are precious to me.  

My walk back to school doesn’t seem so pressured, and the rest of the day takes on a whole new perspective.

I would love to hear how you find the time for your “quiet” times.

  

 

 

 

A Surprise Visit on My Noon Walk

Leslye and Mary

Have you been walking along and you bump into someone you didn’t expect to see, but were really glad to see? That happened to me today.

When I was walking back to school on my lunch hour walk, I saw a white vehicle turn onto the street where I was headed. The car drove toward the school but turned into a parking lot opposite the school and then headed back my direction. I know someone who owns a vehicle like that, so I wondered if it could be her. The vehicle kept moving slowly down the long parking lot toward me until it stopped at the curb. The passenger door opened and out stepped my friend, Leslye. And she had something in her hand.

Leslye and Richard, her husband

Today is my birthday and she knows that I gave up cookies (which she superbly bakes) over eight weeks ago. So, she brought me a fruit basket from Edible Arrangements and was going to drop it off at the school, but saw me walking, and handed it to me in person.

Thank you, Leslye, for this wonderful birthday surprise!

Thank You for Taking Your Time

This morning at church, our lay leader shared a story about a young man who had been mentored as a boy by a man who passed.

The man taught the young man many things about life, including carpentry. The young man moved away to another part of the country and became a successful business man in the carpentry business.

One day, his mother called him to say the man had passed, and she wanted her son to return home for the funeral. Her son felt he was too busy, but conceded after his mother reminded him the man had mentored him after his father had died, and that he had taught him carpentry. After the funeral, the son and his mother walked through the house where the man had lived. The son said everything seemed the same, but then he remembered the man had a gold box on his desk. The man had said that the gold box was the most important thing to him. The young man found the desk but the gold box was gone. He thought the man had probably given it to his relatives.

The young man returned back to his business. In a few weeks, he received a packaged that looked like it had been wrapped a hundred years ago. The brown paper and cord were old. The return address was that of the man who passed. The young man ripped open the package and found the gold box. He opened the box and inside was a gold pocket watch. He turned the watch over and found the words, ‘Thank you for taking your time to spend with me.’

The lay leader went on to say, “This is Easter week. Take your time to make Easter eggs, Take your time to put a ham in the oven for Easter. Take your time this week, don’t be in a rush.”

We may not always know the effect our time with others may have on them.

Have a wonderful Easter!