Serve by Design

This past week, we just concluded the season on the Christian calendar referred to as Twelfthtide or the 12 Days of Christmas. One of our pastors reminded us on Sunday, New Years Eve, that technically, Christmas was not yet over! I suspect that he had his tongue firmly in his cheek when he addressed primarily the youth and children and suggested that they could still take advantage of this in the remaining days leading up to Epiphany on January 6th!😉  "This was marked down and I couldn't pass it up!" Marc texted. What was your favorite gift of the Christmas season? What gift did you give to another that received a special response? I doubt that it was a fruitcake! Am I right? Just a few days ago, I received a picture and text from our good-humored son, Marc. He was weighing in after Christmas as to why he was able to just now purchase a discounted fruitcake at the local Texas HEB grocery store. I teased him by responding, “You do know why it was discounted, don’t you?!...

As the public schools put the wraps on the 2021-22 school year, administrators, teachers and students prepare for summer break. My wife, Monique, has been substituting the last nine years since her retirement in 2013. She signaled her intent to keep on reporting to duty as she registered to substitute at her beloved Sherman Elementary School (SES) that first fall semester after retirement. When she was asked by family and friends how she liked retirement, she immediately replied, “I like it just fine now that I am back teaching!” She has continued to repeat this mantra every year since! Reporting for P.E. Duty!! Recently, after school on her last day to teach, the Principal greeted her with an encouraging, “Mrs. Keppler, you are finished for this year!” Monique responded, “Great! If I’m still alive and in my right mind, you’ll see me next year!” (She had just turned in her substitute application that day!) He responded, “Of course you will! You are one of our best subs! We couldn’t do ...