Serve by Design

Our eldest son, Matt, works out regularly at a locally owned gym in west county St. Louis. It has a curious focal wall inside that features the company’s logo against a background of honeycombs. I had to look at a picture of the wall for quite a while before I caught on to the genius of it all. We all know bees are busy, industrious, and sometimes stinging creatures. But did you know how remarkable it is that they build waxy trays of hexagons into which they deposit and store their sweet and delicious honey? Photo credit: The Iron Hive www.theironhive.com Experienced beekeepers will tell you that those multiple thousands of honey-filled hexagon cells are sturdy, enduring, and do not waste any storage space. They are also able to sustain a lot of weight when the hive is at capacity. In addition, the smooth edges protect the larvae from sharp punctures. Overall, this design suits the bees perfectly. Which brings me back to why this logo and background are perfect for a setting promoting ...

My beloved wife has many gifts, but one that is little known is her ability to capture (and sometimes release to the outdoors) pesky flies that follow us into the house each summer season! With a fluid motion and sweeping hand, she is nearly flawless in grasping her prey. The Venus Flytrap can close its hinged blades in a half-second of movement! I believe Monique is even quicker! When I compare her to the super hero of my childhood, she is almost “faster than a speeding bullet and more powerful than a locomotive,” but she’s not “able to leap tall buildings at a single bound” like she used to though! Image credit: istockphoto.com I marveled today as she captured two of our evasive and airborne pests! One was creeping up and down the window sill and the other was resting on the curved side of the lavatory basin. The latter catch was nothing short of miraculous in technique! I suggested after this deftly feat of cupped hand dexterity that the International Olympic Committee should co...

I had a friend who recently credited me with his renewed commitment to regular exercise. I was surprised by his compliment, but as he explained the context for this admission, I remembered some of the specifics from that beginning conversation. We were doing some business during dinner and talking about a basket of very cheesy biscuits that had just been delivered to the table by our server. I think my friend and I speculated how many of those delectable carbohydrates we could ingest if calories didn't matter. I confessed that for me such "carbs are a killer!" The friend agreed! I then began to share how at the beginning of 2011 I made a decision to get myself in shape for a trip to the Holy Land and other biblical sites of the Middle East three months later. I have a close friend who chided me, "You need to get yourself in shape! I'm not carrying you up Mt. Sinai!" Imagine how ambitious, if not audacious, my plan to reverse fifty years of no exercise and ...