Serve by Design

I love giving flowers on special occasions. It has been my practice to purchase a pretty rose or roses on Monique's birthday, Valentines Day and on our anniversary to name a few of those times during the year. For me, it is a celebration of the one I love and a way to "make artistic space" for something fragrant and beautiful in our house. I have been known to display these symbols of God's perfect creation a few days before the event so that we can extend the time for celebrating beyond a single day. Art and artist can be misunderstood. A few years ago, a friend and I attended a faculty show being held in a gallery of a nearby university. The pieces on display were mostly of the abstract variety. As my friend stood before one of the selections and studied it for a brief moment, he turned to me and said, "Mike, if we had painted this, we would have had to make an excuse for it!" We both laughed, but I'm sure that the artist would not have been amused! ...

Recently, Brady assembled a bedroom dresser for his sister's clothing. It was purchased at the big box international furniture store (hint: the one with the Swedish meatballs!) and came in two boxes to Matt's front door. Of course, it required assembly. Matt put the boxes aside for the week knowing that his number one son would be the "go-to-guy" for the project. Brady is a high school freshman and has had the patience and know-how for several years now to put things together following the directions and using only the minimal tools. Not everyone has the tenacity (and did I mention, the patience?) to accomplish such tasks, but Brady, our "number one" and oldest Keppler grandson does! I can't remember when we determined that he had this gift, but since it became evident, we have depended on him to assist in various projects and now, to take the lead in fixing and assembling several things around the house. He has been a great help to me with both insi...

We are on grand kids' care duty these days while the parents are away on school business. One of our favorite outdoor activities during the summer is to patrol the neighborhood hot-spots with bicycles, scooters and for the littlest guy, on a hot wheels trike! We start out at a nearby church to cruise on the spacious paved parking lot. Then,  we walk down to a little watershed branch that runs between the church and several houses on our street only to find that it that was dry this mid-July morning, but we still threw our sticks into the crusty dirt trough where water once shed from the farm field across the way. After this first phase of our "ritual ride," we like to move into the retirement  apartments next door to the church and to the center courtyard where an American flag flies proudly above its pole and flower-adorned base. It is here that we have recited the Pledge of Allegiance every time we have gathered in this place.This has been our patriotic practice since...

This week is the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. It has been awe-inspiring to see video clips replayed of the moonshot during the morning and evening newscasts. On Wednesday, July 16, 1969, at 10: 32 AM (CST) the Apollo 11 space capsule, with its crew of three (Astronauts Aldrin, Collins and Armstrong), was launched atop the huge Saturn V rocket on Pad 39-A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. With 7.5 million pounds of thrust, it was sent into its journey 238,900 miles to the surface of the moon. It would take four days to arrive. At precisely 8:56 PM on Sunday night, July 20th, Neil Armstrong made the first human footprint on the lunar surface with the exclamation: "That's one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind!" And history was made! In total, 6 similar missions to the moon's surface would follow over a 41 month time span between July 1969 and December 1972. This epic and herculean feat has not been matched since that tim...

We were on a "grocery run" and had the shopper's advantage! It was Wednesday when the open air market was set up it in close proximity to the local "Super U" grocery store. The French love their markets (les marchés) because the goods are fresh and come straight from the source providers. I looked up and saw a small number of school-age children standing at the market vegetable and fruit vendors. Three little girls, that I presumed to be third graders, caught my attention as they clustered before the proprietors holding their pencils and writing down items categorized by name, weight, quantity and pricing. I was curious and later was able to engage their teacher at the super market about why the children were such diligent shoppers. She indicated that her class was participating in a  school exercise that teaches math, writing, observation, and reasoning. Specifically, they were comparing prices between the outdoor market and the indoor grocery store. The boy...

We chose to stay back at our residence in La Haye - Pesnel on the 75th anniversary of D-Day on June 6, 2019. We did not want to drive north the hour and a half or so to journey on that day into congested traffic jams, struggle through thousands of visitors, or face the challenges of heightened security for a meeting of two world leaders: President Macron of France, and President Trump of America who came to lead in a globally-viewed program of remembrance. So, ten days later, our little family visited (and for some, re-visited) the Normandy American Cemetery that overlooks Omaha Beach. By this time, the crowds were manageable, the weather was sunny and dry, and our hearts were open to take in what this cemetery represents - grief, gratitude, and a growing resolve that this should never happen again! American Cemetery, Normandy, France I knew that it was going to be a difficult experience for me to handle the immensity of grief that this beautiful cemetery represents. I cry more e...

We recently joined other tourists for a weekday visit to one of France's most important historical sites - l 'Abbaye du Mont-Saint-Michel. This awe-inspiring treasure of architectural, religious and cultural inspiration sits on a tidal island just off the coast of Avranches in La Manche department of the  northwestern area of Normandy. Last year over 3 million ascended the Abbey's heights and climbed the 365 steep steeps to enjoy the summit view, tour the monastery (the Merveille, meaning "marvel or wonder") with grassy cloister, and eat as well as shop in its quaint village at the base of the mount. This is now the most visited tourist destination in Normandy! Our English-speaking tour guide reveled in the rich history and related intriguing stories of folklore mixing in anecdotal examples of heroism, devotion, sacrifice and even superstitions to us. During the 10th century, a Benedictine Monastery was established on the mount and the monks became revered fo...