Do you know people who scoff at creative thoughts, brainstorming or ideas beyond the status quo?   I hate that.  Not THEM…that reaction.

I know that Apostle Paul writes that he has learned to be content in every situation: hungry, well-fed, wealthy, poor, beaten, tired, joyous, etc.  I don’t know if I have that complete gift, but I love my life and the wonderful things and people in it.  I just like to look outside of the box once in a while, well, more than once in a while…maybe everyday…but the point is that I feel you can be content while also looking beyond yourself and finding ways to improve life and enjoy it in different ways.  Many people are afraid of change, and I can’t say I’m looking for it, but I know it’s necessary to learn new things and that’s what I’m in the business of life to do.

A word of caution:  Don’t take this too far and stress yourself out looking for new opportunities around every single corner and trying to change the world.  Then you’re only looking forward and not enjoying the moment!  Dream, live, love, and savor everyday thought and moment of life.

I won’t get too gushy…so it’s okay to read further…I just wanted to write out somethings that my wife does that are not at all what our society says “wives do or should be.”

1- I can answer any question honestly without worrying about her response.  Even the dreaded…”How do I look in this??”  I can say…”Probably not the best combo today…” and she will EXPECT honesty and respect it. 

2- She doesn’t make me guess how she’s feeling or give me the silent treatment or rip on me and make me figure out why she’s mad, sad, pissed, or whatever… Before it becomes even a small issue, she brings it to me, we discuss it and work it out peacefully.  Awesome!

3- She lets me have guy time, alone time, drinking time, stogie time, etc., because she knows she is still above those things. 

4- She TRUSTS me….completely.

5- She backs me up when other women say that “no men help or do….”  etc. etc.

6- We respect each other’s opinions and TALK until we find a compromise.

7- She can receive a compliment with grace, humility, and dignity.

8- We pray and read scripture together.

9- She loves me in the way that Christ first loved us both.

I pray that all young men would find a woman with the love and respect I receive from my wife.  You can’t help but reflect it back!

Today was the last day of school for me and my students.  There were many tears on their part, but as a teacher I know I’m coming back and need to get ready for the next ones to come along.  I will miss those leaving very much and I hope they keep in touch, but my job is to keep going.  But my thoughts immediately on my drive home were… “Wow! What do I get to learn now?!?”  Not that I stop learning during the year, but this will be on my time and what I want to improve upon for me.  I started wondering what other people do to improve themselves with their free time?  I realized that not everyone takes advantage of self-improvement time.  Many turn to TV, video games, gossip, drinking, partying, etc.  Everything that fills time, but doesn’t encourage growth.  I guess I’m just an EDUCATION JUNKY!  Here are some goals for the summer (you can check them out and keep me accountable!)…

1-Get my golf score average between 80-83.  2- Use my perfect pitch CDs and teach myself Perfect Pitch.  3-Write new songs  4-Train my puppy to be a good girl (and a few tricks!) 5-Run/workout and lose 15 pounds.  6- Read some good books to make my teaching better than the past year!