Good Sunday Morning! I hope the New Year brings you all the pleasant experiences you deserve including miracles. It's a cool morning with temperatures near 42 degree; expected high 52 degrees and the sun is shining brightly! I hope your day will be bright too. Today's post is Part 3 of reporting good news from Texas for 3rd Quarter 2020 and Current Affairs, including some pondering and quotes.
July 2020
Lantana is a community of residents who believes strongly in quality of life. The HOA provides many opportunities for the people to enjoy a host of exciting activities for singles, families, children, and Golf lovers. This past July a group of residents did something I'm passionate about by planting a butterfly garden led by Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners, and Lantana's HOA.
What they all agreed on was having space to successfully plant a native pollinator garden. When the HOA's board approved, the Lantana Education/Charitable Foundation provided a generous grant to purchase plants and other materials.
Successfully implemented, the Butterfly Garden is an official Certified Monarch Waystation. Native plants now attract monarch butterflies, birds (including humming birds), and native bees which is so important for the ecology and children's education.
Thoughts to Ponder: Landscaping can improve the equity in one's home or community. Think about what Lady Bird Johnson did for Texas and other states who got involved in gardening. Plants respond to environmental conditions, e.g., temperature, water, wind, sunshine, intensity of the heat and sun. Most of all, humans can significantly have a direct impact on plants and that's something everyone should be cognizant of. Chemicals are harmful. Overdosing soil with fertilizer and harmful chemicals can have devastating consequences on the environment and human survival. On the bright side, everyone has excellent opportunities to plant butterfly gardens and be more loving, and kind to the environment which has a direct impact on future generations. If you sit down quietly long enough, what can you do? Something is always better than nothing.
"Happiness is a butterfly, when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you sit quietly, may align with you." Nathanial Hawthorne.
August 2020
Sometimes in Texas you have to dig deep to find oil. I had to do the same just to find good news. When you can't find what you're looking for here on earth, perhaps it's best to look up to the universe. On a beautiful Full Moon I was reminded what hope and peace feels like, and my cup overflowed with love. George Michael said it best when Singer, Songwriter wrote "You Gotta Have Faith."
Pondering: Faith has always come easy to me but there are times more challenging than others. 2020 was very challenging. Reading about pandemics in history books, watching documentaries of times before being born, reading novels is one thing, to live it is another. Lifting my eyes high up into the sky to see what has been created gives me strength. It is in times like now when I'm not alone to feel alone and more insignificant when darkness comes. In reality, it's hard, very hard to keep your head up in a storm. And then, just like that I'm singing the lyrics of "You'll Never Walk Alone." Our times of trouble become opportunities. ---Patricia Feager
"Education is not preparation for life, education is life itself." ---John Dewey
September 2020
Children in Flower Mound always start school in August; yet by September there were still debates and talk about what should Teachers do? On-line learning? Classroom learning? What about school buses? Lunches? Substitute Teachers? Learning Curves? School Testing? Lawsuits? About the only thing everyone could agree on was children needed schools and teachers to learn. It was about this time I started talking to the students working at Market Center (the grocery store) where the students walk you to your car with your groceries in hand or carts. I asked them, what's on their mind and then I sucked it all in and thought about their hopes, dreams, and concerns.
Pondering: All the things students shared with me I wrote in my heart while standing in the parking lot:
- I'm worried about my grandfather who has cancer & can't get treatment.
- I'm working hard for my parents. Both of them lost their jobs.
- I'm scared.
- I want my boss to be fair and give me more breaks - masks suck.
- I don't mind working. At least I don't have to listen to the arguing.
- I need more than what I get paid and a lot more respect.
- I wish people would shut up & just fix what's wrong with this pandemic.
- I used to think Teachers were smart. Now I'm not so sure...
Is it a coincidence that five moral lessons were learned from the 2014 Movie Frozen?
- Your actions affect others
- The need for self-control
- The power of sacrifice
- Don't judge a book by its cover
- Love takes time and is built upon sacrifice and caring
What if every real estate agent hired a teenager to help with their business? Oh, the business lessons they would learn! If you want answers, talk to students; then give them hope and thank them. ---Patricia Feager
"Worrying does not take away tomorrow’s troubles. It takes away today’s peace." --- Anonymous
This piece was written with the premise of offering you Peace today, tomorrow, and always. ---Patricia Feager
