End of Summer Life Update

Happy September.

It’s time for another exciting and down right thrilling life update. 😉

This summer was like any other summer with me getting up and going to work every day. No exciting vacation as travel plans are not in my budget.

A cousin from Texas visited for a few days. It was great to see him as it had been several years since his last visit.

The most exciting and blessed event was my youngest niece giving birth to a healthy and happy baby boy.

The second most exciting thing was my neighbor releasing his first album on Spotify – Mango Man and The Funketeers. If you like jazz you will love this album. They are just beginning to make their mark on the music world.

At work, I was chosen for a special logistics project and won serveral Amazon gift cards due to attendance and performance. One of the items I bought was a telescope.

Even Rommie is having fun learning how to use it and find objects in the sky. It also came with an attachment so I can take pictures with my phone. Once I get the hang of it I will share pictures with you.

Speaking of winning, I also won $127 dollars in free jewelry as a mystery hostess at a jewelry party. This jewelry junkie almost passed out from sheer joy.

History Love Rekindled

The biggest personal change this summer was a deepening of my love for history. It was always my best subject in school. But my love of history got put on the back burner after graduation because real life happens. However, I am looking at current events and life from a historical perspective.

Update On Experiencing God

In my last update I mentioned that our church was reading Experiencing God, Knowing and Doing the Will of God by Henry and Richard Blackaby and Claude King. We met in small groups once a month to discuss that month’s chapters.

A good time was had by all in my small group. Work interfered with me attending the third meeting and a pulled knee muscle prevented me from attending this month’s meeting.

Did I experience God this summer – yes. He showed up at work one day and the 5 or 6 of us that were working functioned so well as a team handling a situation none of us ever dealt with before – and never want to deal with again.

It was so stressful and the adrenaline pumping so hard and fast that I decided I was not fit enough to drive somewhere and eat a hearty meal – so I ordered pizza. Yes, I know it is called emotional eating and in that situation I had zero guilt and zero regrets.

If I could tell you what happened, you would understand.

Happening September

On September 17th I will be participating in Max Lucado’s Happiness Challenge which runs for one week and is being held in conjunction with the release of his new book Happiness Happens, Finding Lasting Joy In A World Of Comparison, Disappointment and Unmet Expectations.

I’ve read Max’s book Anxious For Nothing; Finding Calm in a Chaotic World and enjoyed it. Therefore, I am confident Happiness Happens will be a good read as well. A review will be posted as soon as I finish the book. I will also update you after I complete the one week Happiness Challenge.

Future Posts

In addition to the review of Happiness Happens, there will be posts at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve.

There may be a couple extra posts if I have a thought or adventure to share.

Ending on a Patriotic Note

I leave you with a video of Ray Charles singing America The Beautiful from game 2 of the 2001 World Series.

Have a fabulous, fun-filled fall.

Bio: Michele Kearns is the founder and HUG© (Hope Unites Globally) Award-Winner of JoyReturns. She shares her widowhood adventures hoping to encourage widows to move through grief and rebuild their lives. A graduate of Kent State University with a Bachelor’s degree in communications, she’s used those skills while managing call center teams, co-facilitating a grief support group, and helping small businesses with various writing and administrative assignments. Michele is a bookworm, and a lover of history, chocolate, red roses, and golden retrievers. She is also the amateur photographer behind the blog OgleOhio.com

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