Give Your Roses Today

I am not complaining but I just thought this was cute.

I was up till 2:30 last night doing the big post on yesterday. I like to get thinks like that up. I took lots more pictures and if anyone wants all of them just send me an e-mail and let me know. I did send them to a lot of people.

The entire day was a "high" for me. I think that one of the neat things about the idea of a reception is that it is a way we can let someone know what they mean to us. Some people come to them to be seen or because they feel they have to because of their position. I'm not talking about them. I am talking about those who come to let the honoree know that he is special to them.

The brother from our lodge who attended is a good friend of Don's son in law Lucas. (pictured on the right.)

He was there not because the Grand Master of Masons in Iowa was being honored but because his friend's father who has become his friend was being honored. There were a lot of us there for the same reason.

I was there for the same reason. I don't usually attend receptions but Don has become a friend. He and I have ongoing discussions about things Masonic because of this blog and he gives me things to think about. We often agree and sometimes disagree but we remain brothers and friends. I was there mostly because I like him and wanted to let him know I appreciate him as a person.

I think that is important. We need to honor people with our compliments and praise while they are here with us and let them know they are important to us. I don't care who you are you deserve to know that people like and appreciate you. I know Bailey likes me because of the way he greets me when I come home from a day or an hour of being gone. You know what I mean.

I always scan the obituaries in the paper and I see a lot of them which are not really obituaries. They are little "tributes" to a person who has passed many years ago. They often mention things of a personal nature - "telling" the dead person how much they are missed and how they will always be alive and in their thoughts. Perhaps they did tell the person how much they meant to them when they were alive, but I have s suspicion that many times they are doing this out of guilt because they didn't tell the person what they thought of them when they were alive. It's OK it it makes them feel better but I feel sad for them because I wish they had the satisfaction of knowing they had shared those thoughts when they were alive. Give them that rose today. I had a landlady in the 60's when I was at Linn-Mar. She was a great person and several times I caught her writing a note or a post card to one of her friends which simply said. "I thought of you today and it made me smile." What a wonderful thing to do.


I have made it a practice to let people know that I care for them and like them and I hope the message is taken for what it is. A sincere expression of appreciation for my friends while they are still with me. I am so good (ha) that I even tell complete strangers that I like their dress or shirt or what they did or the way they relate to their child. Whenever I can I try to "pay it forward and spread some sunshine. Sometimes it is just a smile. Often I fall short and let opportunities slip by and that means I am human. I also try to forgive myself and others. Sometimes that is hard to do. But I try.

My friend Bob, sent me another picture. It points up that we have beauty in our state every day. We just need to see it when we are stopping to smell the roses.

He wrote the thoughts below this picture which he calls "Sentinel of Time"

These old windmills have much character and aesthetic beauty,

particularly when silhouetted against a sunrise or sunset. Many have
been in place for decades, no longer operating, but still there....a

sentinel of time, amidst the fertile lands!

Enjoy the rest of the day and all of next week. Hugs from J-bear!