Albert Einstein said, "He who can no longer pauses to wonder and stand wrapt in awe is as good as dead; his eyes are closed." We live in trying times and it takes intention and presence to notice all that is amazing and wonderful in the people and nature surrounding us.

Almost every day, it seems that we can find evidence of how annoying, inconvenient, and inconsiderate people and situations can be. Travel gets interrupted because of weather. Your commute to work is stressful because of people driving recklessly, the person ahead of you in line at the checkout counter is exchanging items and asking too many questions, your spouse forgets to pick up something at the store, there is that person in the grocery store talking on their phone on speaker, your child tells you the night before that they need to bring something for a school project or a bake sale—the list can go on and on.

​It is easy to take the nature that surrounds for granted--the colors of the leaves in the fall, the beautiful flowers blooming in our neighbors yard or the incredible colors painted across the sky at sunset. We also forget that people are impressive, amazing individuals created in the image of God. Pearl Bailey, actress, singer and author said that people see God every day, they just don’t recognize him. If you haven't seen the  entertaining short video, "Eating Twinkies With God," watch and share it with your family. www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9N8OXkN0Rk&t=5s

Recently, I watched the movie, "My Octopus Teacher" about Craig Foster, a nature documentary filmmaker, naturalist and founder of Sea Change Project. This project is a community of scientists, storytellers, journalists and filmmakers who are dedicated to the ocean. Their work is motivating scientists, policymakers, and individuals to engage meaningfully with nature and protect our oceans.

For Craig Foster, the ocean and one particular octopus changed his life. He went to the ocean originally because he was overwhelmed and stressed out. He went every day, swimming without a wetsuit or oxygen tank because he felt it would be a barrier to interacting with the ocean life and he discovered an amazing world underwater with a unique and curious octopus that befriended him. The movie is both a gorgeous wildlife documentary and a moving tale of how a man in crisis found joy, wonder and purpose through immersion in nature and a remarkable relationship with an octopus. I highly recommend this movie as a great family watch.

Awe is the feeling we get when something moves us, maybe it stops us in our tracks and enables us to feel truly alive. Research shows that awe and wonder can decrease stress and anxiety and increase positive emotions and overall satisfaction in our life. The practice of wonder can engender greater compassion for others, build brain health, a sense of more expansive time, and the recognition that there are greater forces at work within the universe. It also helps us to feel greater support and increases the likelihood that we will help others.

Last week, I had the privilege of attending an Eagle Court of Honor for six boys who had earned their rank of Eagle. This is the highest accomplishment in Boy Scouts that involves a substantial project that benefits an organization outside of Boy Scouts of America and it requires the boy to find support and financing for the project as well as lead others in completing the project. The six boys who were honored had the unique challenge of completing all of the requirements during Covid when their troop wasn't meeting regularly. At the court of honor, each boy spoke about the support they received from their leaders, parents and others in the greater community. The picture above shows the six boys and their leaders plus the mayor of San Leandro who attended the ceremony on his first day in office.

I would like to share an excerpt from my book "7 Gifts to Give Your Child--Parenting That Will Touch Their Future" from the chapter on The Gift of Experiences. My three sons had great experiences in Boy Scouts, and all achieved the rank of Eagle. However, there are many other opportunities for our children to grow in community and I share some such ideas below.

We need to help our child connect with experiences, activities, and organizations that support healthy challenges and collaboration—hiking clubs, sports, 4-H programs, choir, band, church youth groups, Big Brother-Big Sister programs, and more. For my boys, Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts provided amazing adventures that they could participate in together with their friends. They learned how to safely use a bow and arrow, as well as load and shoot a BB gun and shotgun.

There were built-in safety rules, merit badges to teach skills, and consequences when the rules weren’t followed. I remember one of them coming home with a corner cut off his “Totin’ Chip” card, which shows that they have demonstrated knowledge of and proper handling, care, and use of the pocketknife. The cut off corner is a warning that they weren’t using the pocketknife safely. If all four corners are cut off, they lose the privilege of carrying a pocketknife and must earn that card again.

Each summer at scout camp, they learned to tie knots, climb a rock wall, operate a sailboat, cook over a gas stove, and make delicious desserts in a Dutch oven. As they got older, they participated in backpacking outings, white water rafting, and camping in the snow. Scouting gave them a safe environment to learn from failures, make affordable mistakes, experience teamwork, and gain many life skills. It was also an opportunity to interact with other adults besides their own parents, and gain confidence in asking for help or sharing ideas. In addition, it gave them a community within which to be challenged, supported, corrected, and guided.

There is a Papua New Guinea proverb that says, “Knowledge is only a rumor until it is in the muscle.” In scouting, my sons helped to plan and execute the activities. Leadership was learned through teaching and mentoring others. When children can grow through experiences, the lessons learned become a part of them. The best leaders are hummingbird adults who only step in when they need to.

I helped to start a Venturing program as part of our church youth ministry. Venturing is part of Boy Scouts, but it is coed for high school and college age. It is designed to be youth-led, and my role was that of advisor. We had a planning meeting for our first big campout, and the youth had divided themselves into smaller cooking groups for the weekend.

They made up a menu and shopping list. I offered suggestions since this would be the first camping and outdoor cooking experience for some of our crew. However, I didn’t override the first evening’s meal of spaghetti and meatballs. As the cooking team was cleaning up after the meal, I heard them discussing the cons of washing up all the pots from preparing the noodles and tomato sauce in the outdoor setting, as well as the difficulty of heating water over the Coleman camp stove. Hopefully, their experience might help them make different menu choices on future campouts!

I encourage all parents to find groups and organizations that offer community experience and support while raising children. Check out what is available in your area. Look in local newspapers, library event boards, or county websites. Ask other parents for recommendations. 

If you would like to purchase my book,  www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09L7KS5VH

As a parent or grandparent, it is easy to see the mistakes that we have made: losing our temper,  being late to pick up our kid afterschool, burning the dinner, forgetting an adult child's birthday, saying something mean in the heat of the moment that we cannot easily take back, missing a drama or orchestra performance because of work, and so many more. 

I was challenged by my pastor in a recent sermon to claim my victories of the past year because if I don't, I can lose perspective of the growth and the areas in which I have made progress. In addition, we were encouraged to think of ten challenges considering what I learned through them. As the first blog post of 2023, this is a worthy exercise for each of us to undertake.

To make a list of your victories of 2022, start small. When I asked my husband about this task, he said, "First of all, I woke up every morning." That is indeed something to be grateful and to claim that I am still here, on this journey of life. One of my goals this past year was to continue to educate myself by reading and when I looked back, I realized I can claim the goal of reading at least one book per month. I also claim as a victory that my husband and I traveled 5+ hours every month to spend time with my 90-year parents. I have to say that listening to books on Audible on our car ride helped me achieve the victory of one book a month.

Your victories might include having a meal together as a family at least three or more times every week. Maybe it has to do with a new friendship that you are building or a relationship that you have begun to heal. Did you start any new projects or find service opportunities? Did you walk or exercise consistently? Perhaps, you found a unique way to connect with and celebrate the relationship with your spouse, child, or grandchild. I know a grandfather who communicates with his teenage grandson by texting and sending each other jokes that tickle their unique sense of humor. 

How about the challenges that you faced? Did you discover that you are stronger than you thought? Did your capacity to find joy in small victories increase? Some of the things that I discovered through my challenges are:

• Being humble and listening more than speaking is a crucial step in being authentic.
• Practicing mindfulness and being present to those I care about opens me up to new possibilities.
• Admitting that I was wrong or that I made a mistake is easier than I thought.
• Learning from my mistakes and asking for help builds connection with others.

I offer you the opportunity to look back on 2022 if you haven't already to claim your victories and contemplate what you learned from your challenges. 


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