Serve by Design

More than thirty-three years ago, we moved our family to central Illinois and bought our second home. This modest ranch-style house is situated on a half-acre corner lot and has five mature trees, numerous shrubs and flowering bushes that serve as habitat attracting a variety of birds and small animals. One of the most prized of our collection is the stately Rhododendron that always has a bird nest or two each season. If I get too close to the bush during spring cleanup, I hear squawking that warns me that anxious mother birds are protecting baby hatchlings! May Celebration Time! Every May this native Rhododendron puts on a magnificent display of flowering beauty. The variety of our Rhododendron has purple flowers that attract early pollinators to the trumpet-shaped flowers with their brilliant petals and multiple stamens in perfect symmetry.. There are times when I’d like to trim and prune this large plant back. But then, I think about how often we have used the Rhododendron as a back...

Our oldest granddaughter, Chloe Michelle, is a senior in her home school program, Classical Conversations . She will defend her thesis soon and is scheduled to graduate on May 10 th . We are so proud of her! She is the first granddaughter and third grandchild to graduate from high school. We have two grandsons wrapping up their second year of college. I can’t believe how fast time has flown by for these young people! It seems only yesterday that Chloe was a one-year-old and played peekaboo with Monique. We love to replay how she used to say in a cute little voice, “I see you Mimi!” Image Credit: pngtree.com I am keenly aware of some of the pressures that young people face each day. The college guys in our family are in final exam time, and I am praying that they finish their class work well. Soon-to-be graduates are entering a new chapter that requires thought, prayer, and action. There are big decisions to make, colleges or trade schools to visit, and applications to fill out for admi...