For Sioux Falls

Well, here it is... Nerves and all. ;) I hope you like what you see.  The unfamiliar words you will hear are Ojibwe words.  The teams chose new names the day before the taping, and I was still trying to learn a couple of them.  Bebezhigooganzhii took me a couple of days to conquer.  The students are always so helpful when I am attempting new Ojibwe words!
Sincerely,
Lisa M. Johnson

(Administration asked that I not include the students in the video since it is posted on a public website. You can hear their beautiful voices, though!)

Smoke Signals

Some stories are worth reposting. I'll take another dose of laughter at Bella's expense.

Do you have one of those friends who will come for lunch to help you get rid of left-overs? I love that. Nothing fancy, just two friends enjoying a simple meal, some good laughs, and great conversation.

I have a few great friends who would join me for a meal of left-overs. The one I have in the town I'm now living in, is Susan. She's a whole lot of fun, and is the kind of friend that doesn't care if your house is in shambles, and you greet her at the door in your sweats, no make-up... basically looking like something the cat dragged in. Everyone needs a friend like that. Those friends of mine, you know who you are... God bless you!

Well, it was twenty minutes before Susan was to arrive, and I was doing some last-minute preparations. Candles were lit in the window which opens the kitchen to the living room. Love candles. Even the simplest of occasions calls for candles! I happened to look over to that same window, and to my surprise, I saw smoke billowing from my counter-top to my ceiling!! Are you ever amazed at how many thoughts rush through your mind in an instant? I actually reminded myself that no, it could not be the lunch I had on the stove, because my stove is on the other end of my kitchen! I stood there and looked at our cat, Bella. She had a look on her face as if she was saying, "What? What'd I do? Why are you looking at me like that?" It was in that moment that I realized that the smoke was coming from Bella! When she came through the window, her tail caught on fire! Okay, let me tell you, that you would be amazed at two things: 1. How much smoke can come from burned cat fur. 2. How incredibly horrid burned cat fur smells!

Well, great. Twenty minutes until lunch, and my house now smells like burned cat fur. Ugh! I quickly opened windows, and got the Febreze out. Did I mention that I threw the cat out? Let her send smoke signals outside! (Don't worry... I made sure I completely extinguished her tail first.)

Susan arrived. No lie... she said, "Wow it smells good in here. It smells like a hair salon!"

Unpack Your Cape... The World Needs a Hero

A.B. Simpson said: “God is preparing His heroes. And when the opportunity comes He can fit them into their place in a moment. And the world will wonder where they came from.”

Get your cape ready...
And maybe your tiara.

I Want a Wide Life

I don't want to get to the end of my life
and find that I just lived the length of it.
I want to have lived the width of it
as well.

~Diane Ackerman

Gratitude

grat·i·tude   [grat-i-tood, -tyood]
noun
the quality or feeling of being grateful or thankful

Gratitude makes a meal a feast, a house a home, and a stranger a friend.
~author?

What a beautiful sentiment; I could not have said it better, myself. Gratitude can turn your world from ordinary to extraordinary. It's all about your attitude... and gratitude. (This is starting to sound like a show tune. Or Dr. Seuss, perhaps.)

Anyway, the point is... Look around you. You have a lot to be thankful for. Put on your rose colored glasses and turn that meal into a feast, your house into a castle fit for a queen (that would be YOU, Your Highness), and a stranger into a friend (who just might happen to be an angel).

Gratitude. Simple, but powerful.

Sunshine and Smiles

If you are anything like me, you might find yourself at the beginning of a new year, wondering where, oh where, did last year go? If someone were to ask you to name ten events worthy of sharing, could you? You and I both know that life has a gazillion wonderful moments tucked in each passing year, but we are so busy and preoccupied, that we find it hard to recall all of the times that made us smile, giggle, or cry tears of joy.

Here's an idea... What if we kept a notepad handy and jotted down those moments as they happen? We could keep a notepad in our purse, on our desk, in the kitchen because you and I both know that wonderful things happen in a kitchen!, in the car, etc., etc., etc. (Now I feel like the King from The King and I. He really liked that wonderful word, etc. So do I.) Back to the notes. At the end of each day, we can put the notes in a jar, basket, or box. Whichever you fancy. I think I will call mine the Jar of Sunshine and Smiles.

Picture yourself sitting down on New Years Day with a really good cup of java, and reading all of your little notes with the ones you love, or in a room with just you, your really good java, and God. You are smiling, aren't you? Wouldn't that be fun?!

This is perfect for me because believe it or not, I hate journaling. I know. It's a shock. I love writing on this blog, but to sit down and write in a journal just makes me turn up my nose and shake my head.

So, go get some notepads and pens. Let's start a collection of sunshine and smiles. I dare you!

Chef Lisa

Last night was pork roast so tender a baby could eat it... Tonight was Brandied Chicken Breasts. This is what happens when I watch Julie and Julia. I get inspired. And I get chubby. Guess I'll just have to dance more... in the kitchen.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

~Martin Luther King, Jr., hero

YOU MATTER.

Really... You DO!

Dive In!

Speaking of Abraham...

"He didn't tiptoe around God's promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God would make good on what he had said. "

Nose plugs... Check.

Goggles... Check

Wet suit... Check.

Flippers... Check.

I'm gonna plunge into God's promises!

Gotta Chuckle...

So, my little Brynn... The youngest of the family... The one my 17 year-old son predicts will be a Navy Seal because she's the toughest one of them all... Just won a Family SURVIVOR Contest at the County Fair!

And her big brother, Jack? He won a Hawaiian lei for being the only one who knew how to Hula dance. I have no idea where he learned how to do that.

Still laughing...

Ultimate Dog Tease

This is so darn CUTE!

"Proud" Doesn't Even Come Close...

My daughter just graduated from Army Basic Training at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO.

My son just passed all of his tests and is officially enlisted in the Air Force.

"PROUD" is a word that doesn't even come close to the emotion that is flooding my heart.

Wise Words From a Refrigerator Magnet...

If you get a chance... take it.

If it changes your life... LET IT.

A Debt I Can Never Repay

Today we remember those who gave all they had for us.

Not for our "government,"

but for "We the People!"

Thank you.

You are not forgotten,

you are not scorned,

and your sacrifice for my freedom

will forever be a debt

I can never

repay.

~Thelma Dade

I Found My Way Back!

Dear Readers,

You have probably thought I was lost, or possibly that I had abandoned ship. No, I am here, and I am well. Actually, you can blame my absence on the Dare Chair. I plopped myself down in it, took on some dares, and have been so busy LIVING, that I've had to let some things go. Writing has been one of those things.

Summer break is peeking it's beautiful face around the corner. I am so excited to see a glimpse of it! You see, I am a teacher, therefore, I get to enjoy summer vacation just like the kids. Well, not quite THAT footloose and fancy free, but I do get a bit of breathing in the sunshine time and living in flip flops! I promise that I will fill you in on the dares, challenges, accomplishments, and sometimes painful moments I've experienced. My hope is that my stories will inspire you to turn the television off, get off the couch, and fill your lives with LIFE. The days are passing by quickly, my friends. Grab on and enjoy the ride!

Pray

Words seem so inadequate.

May God hear our cries from the depths of our souls.

Pray.

Find Your Muchness

You used to be much more... "muchier."

You've lost your muchness.

~Mad Hatter, Alice in Wonderland

Have the stresses of life caused you to lose your muchness? I know... You didn't realize you lost it, did you? As life took over, your muchness leaked out little by little. Mine, too.

Let's get our muchness back. Let's be "muchier" again. Let's laugh much, dream much, love much, believe much, dance much, enjoy much, praise much, wonder much, live much.

Thank you, Mad Hatter, for helping us realize we lost our muchness. Consider it, found.

What an Awesome Idea...

Tsk... Who Am I Kidding?

So... My previous post was my lame attempt

to shed my envious thoughts.

Who am I kidding?

I want to go to Rome.