January 2, 2018 Tuesday #Pilates#Forever#Colorado!#[²jœnːɕøːpɪŋ] (About this sound listen))

Get Fit
Started out with my new Pilates video this morning.  I need the stretch band they use, my resistance band is not good for what they use it for, but I used it today.  I will have to work up to the level that those young girls at working at.  Push yourself!!  build core strength!!

Get Faith
John 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and Word was with God, and the Word was God"  Our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ was born into the world on Christmas but he has been one with God since the beginning.  One God - Father Son and Holy Spirit.  Wrap your mind around that today.

On this day
2010  Went to the bank and CVS with Nicole, probably for last minute items she needed because Spencer picked up her and 2 other people and they went to Colorado, snowboarding/skiing.  I fret when she goes but am so happy she has had all these great experiences.  After she left I busied myself taking down Christmas and putting it away, which meant up a 12' ladder into the garage loft.  This was only 7 years ago and my helper was my Mom.  She handed me the boxes on the ladder and I took them up and shoved them back as far as I could.  Only 7 years ago.  As a reward for our work we went to National Coney Island for dinner.  Wish she were here to help me today.   Nicole will be home later.  Kristin is going on an interview for a summer internship and tomorrow is leaving for a three week mission trip to Mexico.  More fretting with her Mom - and Nicole.

1492 - The leader of the last Arab stronghold in Spain surrendered to Spanish forces loyal to King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I. I believe this was a Muslim/Christian war or maybe just political, I should look or there is probably a movie on it.

Jonkoping Sweden

Jönköping (Swedish pronunciation: [²jœnːɕøːpɪŋ] ( listen)) is a city in southern Sweden with 93,797 inhabitants (2015).^[1] Jönköping is situated at the southern end of Sweden's second largest lake, Vättern, in the province of Småland.

The city is the seat of Jönköping Municipality, which has a population of 134,785 (2016) and is Småland's most populous municipality. Jönköping is also the seat of Jönköping County which has a population of 341,235 (2013). Jönköping is the seat of a district court and a court of appeal as well as the Swedish National Courts Administration. It is the seat of the Swedish Board of Agriculture.^{[3]  sounds like a great place!  Let's look!}

^{Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!}  

January 1, 2018, Monday #Recovery#Jesusmyall!#Jonkoping!

Get Fit
Not today probably, it is a holiday, but tomorrow start that workout program you have been thinking about.  Maybe you got some equipment to help you get started.   Enter it in as a regular entry on everyday on your phone - 8 Am - 1/2 hour workout!  You can do it!

Get Faith
John 14:6  Jesus said to him, "I am the way..."  Jesus was speaking to Thomas as it is recorded, but it is a message for all of us.  "I am the way and the truth and life."  He is also the light, the bread and the water you can drink and never thirst again.  If you are searching or hungry, first, define what it is you are searching for or what will satisfy your hunger.  Don't search your GPS or your pantry, look to God for the answers in what is missing in your life.

On this day
2009  I believe that the only way to celebrate on New Years Day is recover and relax.  Watch foot ball quietly and eat healthy foods. (or not)  Start the day off right.  In this year I called friends, Betty, Waynette, family - Uncle Hank, Andy  and Jan came over for dinner.  Nicole and her friend and I played Jackass all day.  (The game)  I had been at a party with a lot of my friends the night before so I didn't need to call them.  How about you?  Anyone you need to call to start the year off right? 

0404 - The last gladiator competition was held in Rome. I for one am damn glad this is over!

Jonkoping Sweden

Jönköping
Collage of Jönköping

 Here we are!  Looks really interesting!

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy New Year!  Happy Birthday Danny B!

December 31, 2017 Sunday #NYE#Yearend#HelloJonkoping!

Get Faith
Revelation 1:8  "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Begining and the End, says the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."  This is fitting as it is the end of a year.  Tomorrow we celebrate a new day, beginning and end.  God does not have either of these (beginning and end) but He is both.  He is omnipresent - always with us.  Good to know facing another year.  God is with us all the days of our lives.  Happy New Year!

On this day
2008  Nicole had to work at Moosejaw and I had to go in to make a bank deposit as it was the last day of the year.  Mom and Nicole and I went to Moy's for dinner and then I went to Ty and Norma's for a New Year's party.  Nicole and her friend came over also after they went to the show.  Do you call your parents and or grandparents at midnight?  We do, and any family not with us.  I followed Nicole home from the party.  Enjoy and be safe whatever you do tonight!

1711 - The Duke of Marlborough was dismissed as commander-in-chief. Was this the guy who smoked and rode horses?  Maybe they thought he was a bad example so they fired him.

From Ilulissat Greenland to Jonkoping Sweden.
We will take a flight between these locations - way to cold and treacherous for a road trip I think!

 

Coat of arms

Jönköping Show map of JönköpingShow map

  So here we are!  Tomorrow we explore!

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable and Have a Happy New Year and Kathy - have a happy Birthday!

December 30, 2017 Saturday #YOGA!!!!#Betterlife#Blessed#naturalfireworks!

Get Fit
Ahhhh,   Saturday AM yoga, might be my favorite thing in the world.... beside...etc etc.  Really try Yoga for yourself this coming year.  You might like it! 

Get Faith
Romans 12:1-2  "I plead with you to give your bodies to God.  Let them be a living sacrifice...Be a new and different person with a fresh newness in all you do and think.  Then you will learn from your own experience how His ways will really satisfy you."  This may seem to be extreme to you.  You are probably thinking "Hey! I have a life."  God knows we have lives but He also knows that very often we are unfulfilled and depressed with our current life.  Living outside of your own wants and living for the betterment of others will make your life more meaningful and less empty.  Start small, read the Bible and let it give you the peace you want and what effort on your part that would make you happier.  God will provide.

On this day
2007  Nicole, Hillary and I had spent 4 days sharing a room at the Gathering with the high school kids in Lansing.  So many memories of this year, the "flacid" breadstick, the food run to Pot Bellies by Hillary and I in a blizzard, spooning and so much more.  So glad for these wonderful times we shared.  On this the 4th day, after the final mass - there are tearful goodbyes, hugs and promises to keep in touch and more tears.  The drive home with a quick stop at Fowlerville McDonalds and then home to sleep for as many hours as possible.  Nicole will be coming home today, after being in charge of this event for 5 days and many months of preparing.  God bless her for her selfless acts in giving to this great event that benefits so many!  I am blessed.

1460 - At the Battle of Wakefield, in England's Wars of the Roses, the Duke of York was defeated and killed by the Lancastrians.  I didn't remember the movie to be this old?

Greenland New Year
Greenland quiets down at the end of December awaiting the New Year. The locals actually celebrate it twice! There's the Danish New Year at 8 pm Greenland time and then the true Greenlandic New Year is celebrated at midnight local time. It's a beautiful sight when you catch the Northern Lights at the same time!
wow that would be phenomenal!!!

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy Anniversary to Glen and Amy!

December 29, 2017 Friday #Oldies!#Comforter#Visit#suicide:(

Get Fit
Never thought I'd see Richard and dance to the oldies with him again!  Thanks for the video Nicole!  Doesn't get better than dancing to "Soul Man" first thing in the morning.!!!

Get Faith
John 14:15-17  "If you love me, obey me: and I will ask the Father and he will give you another Comforter, and He will never leave you.  He is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit who leads into all truth." I love the Father, the creator and worship that name God.  I thank Jesus for my eternal life and forgiveness and mention His name often.  The Spirit does not get the same attention - although He is with us every minute, in us, with us and holding us up in this life.  Read again that last verse - "He is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit who leads into all truth."  One of the Holy Trinity, One with God the Father and the Son Jesus Christ - Our God the Holy Spirit with me and you today!

On this day

2006  This day is between the BIG days of the holidays so seldom relevant.  I had to work 1/2 a day because it was a Friday and the last day of the month, I needed to go in and do the bank deposit.  Later in the day Mom and I took Al (neighbor) to dinner for her birthday which was earlier in the month.  It is a great day to visit someone and make their day special (depending on how much they like you)  I'm heading for Pam's today to see her new condo - furnished and lived in.  If you can't visit, call someone - get that call in before the year ends and you missed it again. (see below)

1170 - St. Thomas à Becket, the 40th archbishop of Canterbury, was murdered in his own cathedral by four knights acting on Henry II's orders. Knights Templar? Another story to read.

(This is a repost from my 2014 blog but it is still so relevant.)

Parenting - Friends of ours from church that we have been close to were told their brother/son Brandon was found dead in a car in Detroit.  Brandon showed up occasionally for youth group at church when I was on the board and the youth leader.  He went to work camps and Bass Lake and the Gathering.  His brother Adam was a rock solid role model for him leading a good Christian life.  But, Brandon couldn't.  He had a giving loving heart and a great smile and a demon that led him down the wrong road.  "Lord if you had been here, my brother would not have died".  I believe that despite his struggles, Brandon had faith and the Lord is with him now.

Ilulissat Greenland 

Rising suicide rate baffles Greenland

by Nazanine Moshiri

24 Sept 2010

When you travel through Greenland, it feels likes you are on the edge of the world.

This vast country around the size of Mexico is largely uninhabited.

The communities that exist are scattered around its mountainous edges. It really is one of the 

most extraordinary places on earth, but beneath its natural beauty lies a secret.

Greenland has the ignominious title of being the suicide capital of the world. On the largest

 island that isn't a continent, and the least densely populated dependent country in the world,

 the government says 1 in 5 people have tried to kill themselves, while other research claims 1 in 4.

The simple white wooden crosses that dot the landscape are a stark reminder that many of those 

people have succeeded.

I suppose people here don't need reminders almost every Greenlander knows someone who has 

taken their own life.

Most of the victims are teenagers, more than half of them boys aged 15 to 19. Inger Bordbar

 is a nurse who has seen many who have ended up in morgues. She is now a suicide prevention 

consultant, and I met her in Ilulissat in Western Greenland where she spent the evening with a group

 of teenage girls and boys.

She showed them a short film in which a man is thinking of committing suicide because his wife and

 son have left him. The teenagers then get to debate what they have seen, a vital tool Inger explains, 

as the Inuit people struggle to express their feelings.  I am not surprised, so cold and isolated.

Enjoy the day Make it memorable!  Happy Birthday Tia!!

December 27, 2017 Wednesday #Critters#Peace#GatheringHMSBeagle#StLucia!

Get Fit
Walked around the house a number of times through the snow and ice cold temps.  Searching for wild life and tracking the steps in the snow.  Real outdoors adventure this morning.  Critters

Get Faith
John 14:27  "I am leaving you with a gift - peace of mind and heart! And the peace I give isn't fragile like the peace the world gives.  So don't be troubled or afraid."  This restores my faith.  The peace that Jesus gives us in our hearts and soul, it is not earthly.  When we speak of peace on earth, it is not certain or long lasting, it is simply a wish.  The Spirit gives us the type of peace that calms the mind and reminds you that as temporary as this life is - our gift of peace with God is eternal.  His peace to you today.

On this day
2005  A memory of Gathering "..Loaded up Nicole (her) and I to church PU kids Lansing Gathering - Jon Bay , Tessa, Jeff Stein, Steven Serrano, Jackie, Adam  Brandon - Great Gathering!  Taylor Mason, Celia Whitler, Jay "  I think we got to a point where the Gathering was the highlight of our holiday.  Hanging out with hundreds of high school youth, locked into the Holiday Inn in usually cold snowy weather was a lot more fun than you think.  Great memories of God at work.  And He still is.

1831 - Charles Darwin set out on a voyage to the Pacific aboard the HMS Beagle. Darwin's discoveries during the voyage helped him form the basis of his theories on evolution. I thought the HMS Beagle was a kids cartoon show.  Now I know.

Ilulissat Greenland Christmas

Light and joy to all

The Lucia procession is a popular custom in the entire Nordic region, including Greenland. Children dressed in white walk in procession holding a candle while singing the hymn of Saint Lucia. Leading the procession is the so-called Lucia bride who also wears a wreath with four candles on her head. It is a beautiful sight.

The Lucia procession takes place in schools and kindergartens. In Greenland, the children also walk in procession at hospitals and nursing homes so that also those who are not so agile can take part in the experience.

Learn about Santa Claus in Greenland.

Santa Claus in Greenland and greenlandic woman.

Enjoy the day!  make it memorable!  Happy Birthday Pat H & Allison B!!!

December 26, 2017 Tuesday #Whew!#Loveeternal#visiting#church

Get Fit
How many different treats, meals, treats, etc have you put in your mouth in the last week?  With all I have eaten I haven't gained a pound.  I'm pretty sure my scale is broken.  My dear daughter put two video's in my stocking (or Santa) of "Sweaten to Oldies with Richard" and a Pilates workout.  This mornings workout was composed of me trying to follow new dance routines!  I'll get it!

Get Faith
Psalm 103-17  "But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear Him, and His righteousness with their children's children."  This is a verse from my favorite psalm. Here, God promises that not only will He love you forever - but your children and their children.  There isn't a better promise or reason to worship Him than this.  Merry Christmas!

On this day
2004  This was one of the Christmas' when Sunday was the day after Christmas and Mom, Nicole and I went visiting to Rox and Bills', Aaron and Lisa's and Try and Norma's.  We got home in time for Andy, Alice and the girls to come over.  I love the business of the holidays and I also love the quiet of the days after.

2004 - Under the Indian Ocean, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake sent 500-mph waves across the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal. The tsunami killed at least 283,000 people in a dozen countries, including Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Sumatra, Thailand and India. Not such a peaceful day for this part of world, it was horrific.  It has been 13 years but I still recall the film footage and probably always will. Our earth is constantly changing.

Ilulissat Greenland

No Christmas without church attendance

Christianity is still deeply rooted in many Greenlanders, and many people go to church every Sunday in Advent. Christmas church services are considered very sacred, and the turnout often exceeds the number of seats in the small churches. Here, the beautiful hymns are sung loud and clear.

Another tradition involves putting candles on the graves in the cemetery, which is not a common Protestant tradition, but in Greenland it is a very popular and beautiful custom. A small hollow is dug in the snow on top of the grave to shield the flame from the wind. It is an incredibly beautiful sight when an entire cemetery is lit up by the many candles.

Get a first-hand experience of amazing Greenland - see these tours to Greenland.

Church service in Greenland - Photo: Mads Pihl - Visit Greenland

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!