Angels Explained By Children

Bill Witcher will be sharing words of encouragement, inspiration and hope with you each Sunday.

My sister-in-law Libby sent me this post. Angels are a mystery to all of us, but as usual children have a practical take on this subject like most things.

Smile while reading!!

I only know the names of two angels, Hark and Harold.
Gregory, age 5

Everybody's got it all wrong. Angels don't wear halos anymore. I forget why, but scientists are working on it.
-Olive, age 9

It's not easy to become an angel! First, you die. Then you go to Heaven, and then there's still the flight training to go through. And then you got to agree to wear those angel clothes.
-Matthew, age 9

Angels work for God and watch over kids when God has to go do something else.
-Mitchell, age 7

My guardian angel helps me with math, but he's not much good for science.
-Henry, age 8

Angels don't eat, but they drink milk from Holy Cows!!!
-Jack, age 6

Angels talk all the way while they're flying you up to heaven. The main subject is where you went wrong before you got dead.Daniel, age 9

When an angel gets mad, he takes a deep breath and counts to ten. And when he lets out his breath again, somewhere there's a tornado.-Reagan, age 10

Angels have a lot to do and they keep very busy. If you lose a tooth, an angel comes in through your window and leaves money under your pillow. Then when it gets cold, angels go south for the winter.-Sara, age 6

Angels live in cloud houses made by God and his son, who's a very good carpenter.-Jared, age 8

All angels are girls because they gotta wear dresses and boys didn't go for it.-Antonio, age 9

My angel is my grandma who died last year. She got a big head start on helping me while she was still down here on earth.

-Ashley, age 9

Some of the angels are in charge of helping heal sick animals and pets. And if they don't make the animals get better, they help the child get over it.-Vicki, age 8

Irish Blessings to You in 2012

My husband and I have many Irish relatives and I have always been fascinated by that culture. That is especially the case with Ireland's poetry and blessings. Here are just a few:

An Old Irish Blessing

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

An Irish Prayer

May God give you...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.

Bless This House

Bless this house, o Lord, we pray.
Make it safe by night and day.
Bless these walls so firm and stout,
Keeping want and trouble out.
Bless the roof and chimney tall,
Let thy peace lie over all.
Bless the doors that they may prove
Ever open to joy and love.
Bless the windows shining bright,
Letting in God's heavenly light.
Bless the hearth a-blazing there,
With smoke ascending like a prayer.
Bless the people here within...
Keep them pure and free from sin.
Bless us all, that one day, we
May be fit, O lord, to dwell with Thee.

May neighbours respect you, trouble neglect you, the angels protect you, and heaven accept you!

Inspiring Words

Bill Witcher, co-founder of Computer School for Seniors will be sharing words of encouragement, inspiration and hope with you each Sunday.

“The Thoughts in Your Mind Will Always be More Important Than the Things in Your Life"

In a golf tournament a while back, one of the seasoned Pros only needed to get down in two from 12 feet away to qualify for the Fed EX Cup Championship. For a professional golfer, that’s no big deal. Twelve feet, 2 putts. No problem. Four putts later, his ball was in the cup and he was out of the finals of the championship. His terrible putting cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars.
When asked what happened, he admitted that the 12 feet on the green was not the problem. The six inches between his ears is where the problem occurred. He lost his concentration and allowed negative thinking to ruin a great opportunity.

John Maxwell says in his book, Today Matters, that your attititude can give you a winner’s perspective or it can make you a loser. It’s our choice. Our actions will follow our thoughts.

On June 28, 1939, Joe Louis defended his heavyweight boxing title against Tony “Tow-Ton” Galento in Yankee Stadium. Galento wasn’t a particularly talented fighter, but he could take a punch and he was a big hitter. In the second round, Louis knocked Galento down and seemed to be controlling the fight. But in the third round, Galento knocked the champ down.

Louis immediately jumped back to his feet and went after his opponent. When Louis went to his corner, his trainer chastised him: “You know you’re supposed to take the full count when you go down. Why didn’t you stay down for nine?”

“What!” answered Louis, “and give him a chance to rest?” Louis pummeled Gelento so badly in the fourth round that the referee stopped the fight.

In today’s competitive culture , everybody is looking for an edge. Top athletes and top businesspeople alike know that—all things being equal—attitude wins. But this is also true: All things not being equal, attitude sometimes still wins. Possessing a great attitude is like having a secret weapon.

Your Attitude—Not Your Achievements—
Gives You Happiness

Samuel Johnson, the eighteenth-century poet and critic, stated, “He who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own disposition will waste his life in fruitless efforts and multiply the grief which he purposes to remove.” He understood that contentment was generated internally, based on attitude.

The thoughts in your mind will always be more important than the things in your life. Fame and fortune are fleeting. The satisfaction that comes from achievement is momentary. The author of the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes observed, “He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; nor he who loves abundance, with increase.”

You cannot buy or win happiness. You must choose it.

Monday's Munchies

Many of us are wonderful cooks and generous about sharing our recipes. Mondays are for "make it happen" people. What could be a better way to encourage each other and create than to share what is going on in our kitchens.



A Real Treat!

Here is another gem from the kitchen of Patti Berry. A little something to bake that will stick to your ribs!

RASPBERRY CREAM CHEESE CAKE

This is a delicious cake that isn’t too sweet, but it is very pretty with the ribbons of raspberry jello and real raspberries throughout! YUM! You can make it in a sheet cake so it is easy to cut into 24 servings or make it in a bundt pan for a pretty presentation! If you are looking for a lighter cake, use the powdered sugar dusting…but I say GO FOR IT and enjoy the cream cheese frosting (good on almost everything in my opinion!!)

1 package yellow cake mix

4 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla

1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened

1+1/2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen

1 T bsp flour

1 pkg raspberry jello
Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 350. In large bowl, combine the cake mix, eggs, milk, oil, sugar and vanilla. Beat on low speed for one minute and then on medium for another minute. Add the cream cheese and beat on medium for two minutes. Put the raspberries in another bowl and toss with the flour until coated. Drop the raspberries and the jello mix onto the cake batter and gently fold them into the batter, do not mix completely, it should appear marbled in the bowl. Pour the batter into a greased and floured bundt pan or a 13x9 cake pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until it tests done. If using bundt pan, cool in pan 10 minutes and then turn out onto serving platter, dust with powdered sugar. If using 13x9 sheet pan, frost with cream cheese frosting or dust with powdered sugar for a lighter cake.

Frost with a cream cheese frosting, or you can simply dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

2 tsp vanilla3 3/4 - 4 cups powdered sugar

Mix together the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add the vanilla and then the powdered sugar, one cup at a time until it reaches the desired consistency…perhaps a little more or less than called for here.

Our special thanks to Patti Berry for this delicious munchie idea!

Internet Magic

Jane Booras is the Editor of numerous newsletters. From time to time, she will
be sharing how you can find whatever you need - photos, clipart, information,
maps, phone numbers - on the Internet.



So one evening you’re watching the classic movie channel and enjoying one of your favorite old black and white movies. “Who is that actor?” you say to your wife (or husband). “Oh, I know who that is, but I can't think of his/her name!” Sound familiar? So we play a guessing game. We rack our brains and throw out a few names. My husband is apt to say, “Oh, yeah! That’s ‘what’s his name’.”

So you wait for the credits to roll. Then one of two things happens. One, since there were no commercials, you have to head for the restroom as soon as you see “The End” come up on the screen. (Ever notice that the new movies don’t say “The End” anymore?) Or, two, the credits run alright, but they are so teeny tiny that you can’t read them – even if you get up and put your nose right up to the screen. Well, darn. How will you ever know who that actor was?

GOOGLE! Just go to your computer and Google the name of the movie. Say, “State Fair” made in 1945. Try it and identify the picture below.

Or, “Slattery’s Hurricane” made in 1949. Same thing. Google it.

My sister and I flew to Cancun, Mexico for a 5-day vacation on the Yucatan Peninsula. It was wonderful. One day on the way to a snorkeling adventure, the van driver stopped suddenly on a back road. There along the road in the underbrush were several raccoons, along with another animal that looked like a raccoon, but had a long tail like a monkey. The van driver told us what it was, but with his accent, we couldn’t quite get the name. Then my sister remembered that she often googles answers to crossword puzzles when she gets “stuck.”

When we got back to our hotel, we went to the business center where free Internet service is offered and googled “Mexican raccoon-like animal.” Google took us to this web site: http://www.brandywinezoo.org/coati.html. Click on the link and see the results for yourself.

Now mind you, my sister only googles answers after she has exhausted all other options – her brain and her precious crossword dictionary. But when things “niggle” at you for just so long, you have to know! That’s when you Google.

I wonder what ever happened to Encyclopedias. I suppose they are on the Internet now. Let’s google it and see what happens!