  Dottie and I recently travelled to Turks and Caicos with JM, Erica, and their kids. We would highly recommend this amazing island. The beaches were amazing, the people quite friendly, and the food was delicious. Upon returning home a week later, we were disappointed to see that our beautiful tulips had deflowered.  For those of you who follow me on Instagram @mrg7175 or Facebook http://www.facebook.com/mguthrie7 you know I bought these tulips while in Amsterdam on a river cruise. I am pretty sure I spent as much money planting them as I did for the bulbs themselves. Had no idea what it took to protect them from the squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, and deer. We waited months for them to grow and bloom only to bid them adieu withing three weeks. Both the trip and seeing the flowers already gone got me thinking how many trips will I take and how many tulip seasons will I get to experience? I am not trying to be morbid but it is becoming clear that I have less of these opportunities or as Coach Joe Gibbs says, “I am in the 4th quarter of this life and hoping for overtime” 🙂 Two thoughts have come after returning from our trip and realizing I will have to wait another year to see the tulips from https://keukenhof.nl/en/ 1) I need to “count my days so that I can make my days count” Two verses come to mind. Psalm 90:12: “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” This verse emphasizes the importance of recognizing the finite nature of our days and living intentionally. James 4:14: “Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring.” This verse reminds us of the fleeting nature of life. If you are younger, I hope this will encourage you to be more intentional in leading a more meaningful and eventful life. Don’t wait to check off your bucket list things because with each day, there will be less time to accomplish them. This life is a gift no matter how old you are but the older you are, the more we realize there is only so much time left and the clock seems to be ticking faster than it did when I was younger .  2) Commit and concentrate on relationships. Be intentional about building and/or restoring them. There is so much discord and less than harmonious interactions these days. As you journey through your day to day lives or experience a trip like Dottie and I were able to take, keep Psalms 90:12 in mind. Ask God to “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” and live a life without regret. Thanks for subscribing and taking the time to read my blog. It means alot. You can email me your thoughts to michael@mrg7175.com |
Turning our Gratitude into blessing others