Category Archives: Solution

Thirst

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I am thirsty

I have to wonder if sour wine sucked into His mouth from a sea sponge atop a branch of hyssop was anything of a thirst quencher. Perhaps the thirst He was expressing was more about a spiritual desire for the sweetness of perfect union with His Father whose face was now turned away as Jesus “became sin for us.”

John 19:28-29 (NASB)  After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, said, “I am thirsty.”  A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon [a branch of] hyssop and brought it up to His mouth.  (NASB)

Jesus knew what He was supposed to do.  He knew what His life was about.  He was not compelled to be on that cross, He knew He was there by assignment from His Father in heaven.  In fact, the purpose for His life was accomplished while He experienced the most horrible death ever endured.  He was the “promised one” spoken about in the Old Testament scriptures, and His thirst experienced in such agony was foretold in a prophetic statement in Psalm 69:21.

The sour wine near the cross was there as the chosen refreshment for the Roman soldiers.  Hyssop shrubs were a common hardy perennial herb, which grew about 18 inches high.  The soldier who responded to His words of thirst may have stripped the leaves and tiny, sweet-scented, purplish-blue flowers off the severed branch to turn it into a stick that would extend his reach.  Earlier, as the ugly process of crucifixion had begun, they had offered Him another wine that was mixed with myrrh, which is believed by some to have had stupefying effect.  He would not drink that wine, but now He takes the sour wine to quench His thirst and to fulfill the scriptures. Continue reading →

Kindness – A Good Rule

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Decide to treat all your neighbors with consideration and respect. Be a resident ‘ambassadors’ to help welcome newcomers as they transition into the community. Aspire to live by the Golden Rule.

Decide to treat all your neighbors with consideration and respect. Be a resident ‘ambassadors’ to help welcome newcomers as they transition into the community.
Aspire to live by the Golden Rule.

Today we often read about cyber bullies among young people, but bullying also plagues seniors.  The behavior being referenced would be incidents of name-calling, bossy behavior, loud arguments, snubs and aggression.

Causes and strategies
Fear can be one reason for bullying, says Renee Garfinkel, a Washington, D.C.-based psychologist who specializes in aging issues, but it’s also “that human phenomenon of the strong picking on the weak. It’s not a function of aging. It’s a function of pathology.” Continue reading →

Defensive Strategy

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Sometimes it is necessary to “go into the game fighting” so to speak, but most of the time the issue at hand I not a big deal.

Sometimes it is necessary to “go into the game fighting” so to speak, but most of the time the issue at hand I not a big deal.

Football season in here and grandparents are often making sure they are in the stands to cheer for the young people who are “in the game”.

As aging people, living in close proximity to a variety of people, we need to choose a position as well in the games of life that play out all around us each day.   We can choose to play “defensively” when an offensive comment or encounter is hurled our way, seemingly from out of nowhere. Continue reading →

Smile Anyway!

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Smiling is a good idea for lots of reasons. A sunny disposition and demeanor favorably colors the interactions of my days for the most part… but not every time.

Smiling is a good idea for lots of reasons. A sunny disposition and demeanor favorably colors the interactions of my days for the most part… but not every time.

“Hi Smiley” was the greeting I recently received from a business associate while attending a lovely event in glamorous surroundings.  It was early in the day and the mood was festive and pleasant.  It was interesting to think about the notion that I must come across as a person who is smiling and cheerful a good bit of the time.  As I considered this thought, the words to a song taught to me by my parents came to mind.

Let the sunshine in, face it with a grin.
Smilers never lose, and frowners never win,
So let the sunshine in, face it with a grin.
Open up your heart and let the sunshine in. Continue reading →

The Financial Pinch

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Feeling the financial “pinch”? If so, you have lots of company.

Here’s the thing… we all have some money, but that is not the only “spendable” thing we have to work with.

Feeling the financial “pinch”?  If so, you have lots of company.  When you start talking to people there is never any shortage of complaints and the old adage if often heard, “The money ran out before the month.”  We’ve all been there.

I recently heard of a cost cutting measure that is working like a charm for some of my elderly friends.  Granted, these folks are already living in a financially affordable apartment home, having left the big expensive setting behind as their children grew up and established their own families, but the “pinch” is still felt, even by these careful proactive people. Continue reading →

Cut To The Core

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You’ve seen it happen. When life circumstances cut you down, what’s really “under the hood” shows up and sometimes it is pretty ugly.

You’ve seen it happen. When life circumstances cut you down, what’s really “under the hood” shows up and sometimes it is pretty ugly.

You’ve heard the saying… “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”.  True or not, it is my practice to eat an apple every day.  Recently, I noticed that the top was showing some spoiling, so I thought, “I’ll just cut that part off and eat the rest.  When I cut off the part that was visibly offensive, I found that the whole thing was rotten to the core with only the surface areas appearing to be yet unspoiled.  It was clear, that given a few more days, even in the refrigerator, the whole apple would have been spoiled. Continue reading →

Food Is My Medicine

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For about the last year, I have been eating lots of fresh fruit and vegetables. OK… so my grocery bill is high, but it occurred to me that there has been a good trade-off here.

For about the last year, I have been eating lots of fresh fruit and vegetables. OK… so my grocery bill is high, but it occurred to me that there has been a good trade-off here.

My peers are a group of aging people.  I hear plenty of talk about the cost of medications that seem to be prescribed like a “mixed cocktail” that sometimes necessitates elaborate plans on the part the patient to make sure it all goes down at the right time, in the right dose.  In fact, this is so common that one might assume that it just has to be that way.  I disagree. Continue reading →

Leisure Time Choices

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The movie was about six boarded young adults with lots of time and money who were looking of a “different kind of experience”.

As I left the theater, a young employee smiled and said, “Thank you for coming to our theater. I hope you enjoyed your movie.” I told Him that I did not enjoy the movie and pleaded with him not to see it adding, “I don’t know why I made myself in to a garbage can for the last hour and paid for it besides!”

I like to work.  The tasks are clear when my time is spent producing desired results.  At the end of the day, no matter how tough the problems were, I feel great about what I was able to accomplish.  Sometimes it is just a piece of the problem was solved, but the feeling of make a valuable contribution to the project is very satisfying.

Last week I had a rare day off for a holiday and consequently, found myself with extra time on my hands in the afternoon.  I went to the local mall to look around and decided to take in a movie.  I chose the one that was starting just as I arrived, bought a small bag of popcorn… for a huge price, and settled in to a common entertainment experience.

The movie was about six boarded young adults with lots of time and money who were looking of a “different kind of experience”.  Continue reading →

Pay it Forward

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Find a younger person that is living in the storm of life right now that you have lived in the past. There are no NEW problems, just recycled ones!

Find a younger person that is living in the storm of life right now that you have lived in the past. There are no NEW problems, just recycled ones!

As we get older, there is a natural drift toward isolation. Senior men and women begin to feel marginalized as their world shrinks and the choices are not as wide open as they were in the past. So how can we find meaning and purpose for our lives during the final season? How can we invest ourselves during the final season?

We live our lives forward, but we understand them by looking backward. Continue reading →

Change is Hard

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The fire started in the kitchen which is often the case in apartment living for seniors who for a variety of reasons find the kitchen to be less manageable as they age.

The fire started in the kitchen which is often the case in apartment living for seniors who for a variety of reasons find the kitchen to be less manageable as they age.

I know a woman whose home was damaged in an accidental fire. The fire started in the kitchen which is often the case in apartment living for seniors who for a variety of reasons find the kitchen to be less manageable as they age. Independent living including the regular tasks of housekeeping can create fire hazards as we age. In this case, cloth items were on top of the stove. While emergency personal were taking her out of the apartment for a medical need, the stove was inadvertently turned on resulting in the fire which started while no one was at home. Continue reading →