Everyone has their favorite piece of pie or person. Those things that make us feel warm and fuzzy inside are things we gravitate toward; feelings of comfort. This month we get to enjoy the best holidays of the year. According to research, Christmas is the most loved holiday of the world. More people celebrate a Christmas celebration than any other. Having the spirit of Christmas takes on a whole new meaning when spirituality must share space with a celebration of the season. Christmas is loved by all because it is a holiday of giving. He who gives shall receive and that's what makes Christmas so great.
Don't Forget about Giving
The Salvation Army will be there for you to give to if you choose. The worthy cause of salvation and the army that produces it can surely be the recipient of your offerings but then there are those who may need you more than you know. Family and friends who struggle could be recognized and rewarded for their good deeds. Taking care of those around you is just as good a place to take your donation of time, love or money. Don't forget about giving to those who you really love and could use your offer.
Don't forget about God
I cannot say that my God is your God but if I know you then I probably know who you look to as God. So, with that said I should recommend that this time of year be spread with plenty of reverence and gratitude to those who made it all happen. In my case my God listens to me on a regular basis. When times are good he hears from me less often but the problems I bring are pretty much the same. If you believe Jesus was born on Christmas and was resurrected from the dead or if you believe another religion which I know less of than my own Roman Catholic teachings, then I should wish that you find time to grow closer to your God. It only reaffirms who you are to yourself and from a solid foundation great things can be accomplished with the help of spiritual hope. I hope that you get a chance to spend some time with your God this time of year.
Forget About Yourself for One Moment
I must say that at times it is hard to think about anything else but me. Now would be a good time to think about that struggle. The struggle of self and success. The struggle of making worth from an otherwise worthless situation. I came into the world free and I'll be going out free. Everything else in the middle costs.
From the moment I looked away from myself I began to see the world like I had never seen it before.
I wish you would request a connection on facebook so you can read more even after the holiday.
Thanks to FreddeTI on YouTube for this Tom Lehrer classic video:
Showing posts with label ghost story. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ghost story. Show all posts
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Thursday, October 16, 2008
The Ultimate Halloween Party
by Bethany Sanders Oct 15th 2008 8:00AM
As my daughter reminded me this morning, there are only 15 days left until Halloween. Halloween falls on a Friday this year, perfect for trick-or-treating that runs past bedtime, but also a great opportunity to throw a Halloween party.Before you start thinking, A Halloween party? Now I have to entertain in addition to making costumes, baking cupcakes, and buying candy?, consider this. A Halloween party is a great way to enjoy time as a family, spend time with busy friends, or avoid going door-to-door, if trick-or-treating just isn't your thing.A Family PartyA party need not include guests. Instead, send invitations to your kids inviting them to a family Halloween bash, right in your kitchen. Here are some ideas for making this night of family fun more memorable:
Come in costume ... the young and the young at heart. Your kids will appreciate your enthusiasm.
Start with dinner, appropriately gruesome for the holiday -- try spaghetti and eyeballs, bat wings, and a cauldron full of witches brew.
Now it's time to have fun! Carve a pumpkin and have a seed spitting contest; load the wagon with hay and go on a "hayride"; or have a candy scavenger hunt in your backyard.
End the night with an easy craft (try one of these), then curl up in bed with some popcorn to watch a Halloween movie together, like The Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetlejuice, or It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!. Or finish of the night with a not-too-scary book for little ones like Go Away Big Green Monster!.A Bigger BashFeeling up to a bigger party that includes family, friends and/or neighbors?
Try some of these ideas:
Consider a theme: Think pumpkin carving, monster mash, haunted house, or even fall/harvest.
Hold a Best Costume contest, with plenty of categories so that everyone can receive a prize.
Keep everyone busy with a game or two. Try Zombie Tag or Spider Relays, get them giggling with Mummy Wrap, or set up a pumpkin bowling alley.
Don't forget the creepy cuisine! Kaboose has an excellent list of simple spooky recipes, while those with a little more experience in the kitchen (and time on their hands) might want to try some of Family Fun's more involved recipes. Remember -- the little touches mean a lot. Freeze water inside plastic gloves, then peel and float these "hands" in your punch bowl. You can also freeze gummy worms in ice cubes for a slimy surprise!
Time to wrap it up? Settle everyone down with a craft. Buy mini-pumpkin gourds and supply paints, glitter, and craft supplies for decorating. Older kids might like making a candle-"eye"-bra. Or send everyone home with their own yummy-mummy treat cups. The most important part of your Halloween party should be your child's participation in the process. They can make invitations, plan and put up decorations, gather materials for crafts and games, and help out in the kitchen, all the while building excitement for this spooky night of memory making.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Growing Up Halloween Pt. 6
Lt. Lafleur, French Captain of the Guard
KA-BOOOOM..BA-BOOOM, two more extremely loud reports went off from the opposite side of the field, and now in between, there were men yelling. Yelling at each other in anger. From the small theater that was the fog, these voices made the fog huge. from over a distance now could be heard more explosions and yelling a sound of what neither boy could relate to, but it was here, all around them.
"KEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTHHHHH!!!!!!" KEEEEEEEEEEEEEITH!!" Eric began to call for his brother now in earnest. This boy had had enough, and his "scared" turned to terror. As if a realization had occurred, and the youngest friend had concluded on his own that it was his time to get things back to normal. Normal as far as he could make it, and the next best thing was to have his older brother around to take charge of the situation. For Eric trusted Keith to get them both out of any situation. Blood is thicker than water we always said.. Francis agreed inside with Eric too. It would be better to have three instead of two. When Eric stopped calling, Francis would start. They picked themselves up off the ground and made way toward what they thought was the far side of the field. If Keith had kept walking before everything went crazy, he could have made it to the sand pit and be waiting there for them.
What they wanted to do was walk, but now a regular beat of explosions had begun, and they were left to crawling on all fours as each explosion shook the Earth and air around them. They had gone about half-way to the pits when Eric found Keith. "Francis!!" "KEITH'S HURT!! Just because Eric found Keith first and was only a couple of feet ahead, was proof that the fog was still around. More smoke than fog maybe, the scent remained to burn the nostrils with each breathe, you could see the smoke when you exhaled, and as Francis got closer to Keith's face, he could see that his friend was blowing the same smoke out his mouth and nose. He could have been asleep. He could be faking. He could have fainted. But no, Francis could see that there was a patch of blond hair above his temple that was wet and red. What could have been a great way to end this whole event had become an even worse occurrence. More and more Francis felt like inside his head was been spun like a machine. Inside moving so fast while outside so slow. He felt like this on long car rides and tall building, but he felt like that now. Once again an instant scared feeling secured him to the spot. When the moment passed scared turned to fright, and then to determination because that's what you do when you have nothing else to do but cry.
Before the next explosion came, Eric and Francis stood frozen in space. When you become so scared in an instant, the body revolts. Francis's insides were suddenly outside as if every inch of him were feeling a touch at the same moment. his blood rushed quickly to the surface of any surface, the hair stood up stiff from the root. Terror is something that is prolonged, but what occurred right after the first report was instantaneous fear, which gripped each friend for an instant in time making them unable to respond physically. The explosion was more than just a sound. A violent shake of the ground seemed to happen as the shock wave that was created caused the boys to fall to the ground. The fog that contained everything pushed and fell back into place as the shock pulsed through it. The fog which was so nice to look through just minutes...or hours before, had become solid and thick with the smell of sulphur.
KA-BOOOOM..BA-BOOOM, two more extremely loud reports went off from the opposite side of the field, and now in between, there were men yelling. Yelling at each other in anger. From the small theater that was the fog, these voices made the fog huge. from over a distance now could be heard more explosions and yelling a sound of what neither boy could relate to, but it was here, all around them.
"KEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTHHHHH!!!!!!" KEEEEEEEEEEEEEITH!!" Eric began to call for his brother now in earnest. This boy had had enough, and his "scared" turned to terror. As if a realization had occurred, and the youngest friend had concluded on his own that it was his time to get things back to normal. Normal as far as he could make it, and the next best thing was to have his older brother around to take charge of the situation. For Eric trusted Keith to get them both out of any situation. Blood is thicker than water we always said.. Francis agreed inside with Eric too. It would be better to have three instead of two. When Eric stopped calling, Francis would start. They picked themselves up off the ground and made way toward what they thought was the far side of the field. If Keith had kept walking before everything went crazy, he could have made it to the sand pit and be waiting there for them.
What they wanted to do was walk, but now a regular beat of explosions had begun, and they were left to crawling on all fours as each explosion shook the Earth and air around them. They had gone about half-way to the pits when Eric found Keith. "Francis!!" "KEITH'S HURT!! Just because Eric found Keith first and was only a couple of feet ahead, was proof that the fog was still around. More smoke than fog maybe, the scent remained to burn the nostrils with each breathe, you could see the smoke when you exhaled, and as Francis got closer to Keith's face, he could see that his friend was blowing the same smoke out his mouth and nose. He could have been asleep. He could be faking. He could have fainted. But no, Francis could see that there was a patch of blond hair above his temple that was wet and red. What could have been a great way to end this whole event had become an even worse occurrence. More and more Francis felt like inside his head was been spun like a machine. Inside moving so fast while outside so slow. He felt like this on long car rides and tall building, but he felt like that now. Once again an instant scared feeling secured him to the spot. When the moment passed scared turned to fright, and then to determination because that's what you do when you have nothing else to do but cry.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Growing Up Halloween Pt. 5
The Separation
The Battle of Napoleon's Field
"Keeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiith." "Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeith." Over and over the called went out the the missing member of this small troupe. The mist was still coming in it appeared, as even though Eric and Francis were only steps apart, if one more step were put in between the two friends, the other would slip away into the fog. "Eric...." Francis wanted to stop. "Let's stay here for a second and listen for him." "Keith!!" The two sat as still as they could. As if the more frozen they became, the etter chance of hearing Keith's call back to them. 10, 15, then 30 seconds extended into a minute and beyond. Standing still allowed for Eric and Francis to absorb what was happening to them in an otherwise friendly landscape. The idea that one of the three had just disappeared into the fog after Francis was taken far away without moving, in an instant he was gone, and now he feared that what may have happened to Keith was a fate even worse than a transformation of position. "Francis, I'm starting to think something bad is happening." While his voice was sure, Francis could tell that the Younger Lang brother was unable to understand what was happening to himself and his friends. "Let's just find Keith, and we can laugh about it later." Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeith!" Francis let out a long shout of voice and fog from the deepest parts of his lungs. As the least puff of air was extinguished and another fresh breath taken as a replacement, Francis felt a sudden urge to run. Run like he never ran before. Using his feet and arms to cut through the fog which obvisously had it in for these three young New England boys on a crisp Autum morning in October. The longer it took to get back to where they began, Francis feared they would be farther away from where they wanted to be. But before the next loud call to Keith, his close friend now lost, a loud explosion was heard just a few hundred feet from where two friends stood wanting to find the lost member of the group.
Lt. Lafleur, French Captain of the Gaurd
Once again the sound of footsteps were close by. "Francis..where did you go?"... That was Eric, Francis was glad that one of the brothers was close by because for as fast as it all happened, this trip in the field was causing alot of delay in their walk to school. "I'm right here Eric, where's Keith?" Eric was close enough now to be seen. "He was right in front of me." "I don't know, he must have missed you and went right on by..KEITH!" The air was still cold enough so that any breathing added to the thickness of the mist. When you shouted, a large growing plume of condensed breath could be seen to push and blend with the surrounding fog. While both Francis and Eric had reconnected in the mist, in the field that was supposed to be a morning short-cut, they still had to gather up Keith, and get along with their walk. What was supposed to be a short mornig excursion, had turned out to be a pain in the neck. Without figuring out exactly what had happened in the mist so far, Francis and Eric looked to call out to Keith until the three of them were together again.
The Battle of Napoleon's Field
"Keeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiith." "Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeith." Over and over the called went out the the missing member of this small troupe. The mist was still coming in it appeared, as even though Eric and Francis were only steps apart, if one more step were put in between the two friends, the other would slip away into the fog. "Eric...." Francis wanted to stop. "Let's stay here for a second and listen for him." "Keith!!" The two sat as still as they could. As if the more frozen they became, the etter chance of hearing Keith's call back to them. 10, 15, then 30 seconds extended into a minute and beyond. Standing still allowed for Eric and Francis to absorb what was happening to them in an otherwise friendly landscape. The idea that one of the three had just disappeared into the fog after Francis was taken far away without moving, in an instant he was gone, and now he feared that what may have happened to Keith was a fate even worse than a transformation of position. "Francis, I'm starting to think something bad is happening." While his voice was sure, Francis could tell that the Younger Lang brother was unable to understand what was happening to himself and his friends. "Let's just find Keith, and we can laugh about it later." Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeith!" Francis let out a long shout of voice and fog from the deepest parts of his lungs. As the least puff of air was extinguished and another fresh breath taken as a replacement, Francis felt a sudden urge to run. Run like he never ran before. Using his feet and arms to cut through the fog which obvisously had it in for these three young New England boys on a crisp Autum morning in October. The longer it took to get back to where they began, Francis feared they would be farther away from where they wanted to be. But before the next loud call to Keith, his close friend now lost, a loud explosion was heard just a few hundred feet from where two friends stood wanting to find the lost member of the group.
Lt. Lafleur, French Captain of the Gaurd
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Growing Up Halloween Pt.4
A Short-Cut
As soon as Keith and Francis reached the edge of the field, the morning mist took control of the day. It took only a few steps in between friends to make one disappear from view. "Keith...", "Eric?".."Hey, where did you guys go?.." It seemed as if this mist had carried Francis far away from where he once stood. Without moving a muscle, the sound of someone yelling far off in the distance was heard. "FRrrr rrrrrrrrrr rrrrraaa aaaaaaa ncis!" "Frrrr rrrrrr ranc" "Here I am!!" "I'm over here!" Francis let out a sharp report before the second call had finished the call. "Where are you guys?" The mist was still blocking out all but the muted sunlight that fights its way against a fog. The sun was all that gave the scene a grip on reality as what appear to happen cannot have happened. How it came to be that now his friends were no longer right by his side, but almost too far away to be heard when yelling out a call.
The Separation
Once again the sound of footsteps were close by. "Francis..where did you go?"... That was Eric, Francis was glad that one of the brothers was close by because for as fast as it all happened, this trip in the field was causing alot of delay in their walk to school. "I'm right here Eric, where's Keith?" Eric was close enough now to be seen. "He was right in front of me." "I don't know, he must have missed you and went right on by..KEITH!" The air was still cold enough so that any breathing added to the thickness of the mist. When you shouted, a lrge growing plume of condensed breath could be seen to push and blend with the surrounding fog. While both Francis and Eric had reconnected in the mist, in the field that was supposed to be a morning short-cut, they still had to gather up Keith, and get along with their walk. What was supposed to be a short mornig excursion, had turned out to be a pain in the neck. Without figuring out exactly what had happened in the mist so far, Francis and Eric looked to call out to Keith until the three of them were together again.
As soon as Keith and Francis reached the edge of the field, the morning mist took control of the day. It took only a few steps in between friends to make one disappear from view. "Keith...", "Eric?".."Hey, where did you guys go?.." It seemed as if this mist had carried Francis far away from where he once stood. Without moving a muscle, the sound of someone yelling far off in the distance was heard. "FRrrr rrrrrrrrrr rrrrraaa aaaaaaa ncis!" "Frrrr rrrrrr ranc" "Here I am!!" "I'm over here!" Francis let out a sharp report before the second call had finished the call. "Where are you guys?" The mist was still blocking out all but the muted sunlight that fights its way against a fog. The sun was all that gave the scene a grip on reality as what appear to happen cannot have happened. How it came to be that now his friends were no longer right by his side, but almost too far away to be heard when yelling out a call.
The Separation
Once again the sound of footsteps were close by. "Francis..where did you go?"... That was Eric, Francis was glad that one of the brothers was close by because for as fast as it all happened, this trip in the field was causing alot of delay in their walk to school. "I'm right here Eric, where's Keith?" Eric was close enough now to be seen. "He was right in front of me." "I don't know, he must have missed you and went right on by..KEITH!" The air was still cold enough so that any breathing added to the thickness of the mist. When you shouted, a lrge growing plume of condensed breath could be seen to push and blend with the surrounding fog. While both Francis and Eric had reconnected in the mist, in the field that was supposed to be a morning short-cut, they still had to gather up Keith, and get along with their walk. What was supposed to be a short mornig excursion, had turned out to be a pain in the neck. Without figuring out exactly what had happened in the mist so far, Francis and Eric looked to call out to Keith until the three of them were together again.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Growing up Halloween Pt. 3
The Battlefield
It is more now than it was then. Then was a rolling rectangle of land with boundries that could be seen, and the sands of the pit being the farthest sight. This cold Autumn morning included a fog and steams of battle, slowly moving from one end of the battlefield to the other. Francis realized as soon as the it was in plain view, that this morning had something more to offer than just a cold walk in the woods.
The Brothers Lang
"Francis!" "Wait up!" Alerted to the sound of someone running up to him, Francis looked to see his friend coming down the street. "I thought you were going to come and get us this morning..?" Keith Lang asked through quick bursts of morning breaths of steam from mouth and nose, the result of a quick sprint down the street.
"By the time I got my boots on, and out the door, I forgot that I was supposed to get you guys." "I was only a couple minutes ahead of you anyway...Can we take a short-cut this morning?" Francis pushed through the confusion of who was to do what this morning, and thought that he could avoid Keith's scolding by adding a new twist on the morning's walk to school. "The field looks cool with all the fog that's over there near the ground, and I want to cut through the field today."
Keith and Eric were Francis's best buds. They have known each other their whole lives, and nothing is better than having a couple of good friends to grow up with. The brothers were knee deep in everything that went on in this New England neighborhood, and the three friends did everything together.
Eric was still running up to the troupe, and upon arrival spouted a good-morning before bending over to tie his always untied shoe. It always ended at three, if you saw one, you would see two more close by, because right now was the most average of average moments. Without much of a pause, and before Eric could finish tying hos shoes, Francis and Keith made way for the field, and a short-cut that would turn an average New England moment into a Halloween tale for the ages.
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