I woke up this morning totally un-excited about the day.  The thought of getting up and going to the gym for a workout put me back to sleep.  Perhaps it’s the age-old ‘Monday Blaaas’.  Anyway, it reminded me of this poem:

 

Foot dragons–we all must face each day.

They wrap around our feet at work, and trip us in our play.

They come in the form of doubts and fears upon one’s troubled mind.

With dead-end thoughts like, “I can’t” or “Tomorrow I will be kind.”

 

Foot dragons cause us to drag our feet and hang our heads down low.

They tear holes in our confidence and chase hope from our soul.

How can we stop these fearful doubts that keep us from our goals?

Must we step out of comfort zones if we are going to grow?

 

Can we pray for courage and then take the leap of faith?

Will dragons of depression fade before God’s grace?

Will we quit dragging our way through life and really start to grow

Beyond our selfish comfort zones, if God lifts and guides our soul?

 

Let’s strive to choose lofty goals and pray for heaven’s grace,

And ask for strength to overcome the trials we must face,

That through our Lord’s eternal love, we can serve human kind,

And make this world a better place, for all to seek and find.

 

 

 

Let’s take time to smell the roses that add grace to each new dawn,

To hear the birds sing praises as stars fade and soon are gone,

To see the wondrous colors as the Son’s rays kiss the sky,

Or feel the warm golden light, as it touches from on high.

 

Let’s take time to enjoy our breakfast; savor, not in haste,

And give thanks for all our senses as gratitude increases taste.

As dawn fades into the morning and the speed and noise increase,

May we take the peace we’ve gathered, as precious dawn does cease.

 

Let’s take time in the busy day to listen, mind and heart

To those who are around us, so we might do our part

To help or lift another who feels hurt and alone.

We can feel the joy in service at work, at school, at home.

 

Let’s take time as day is ending and we’re coming home again,

And we join with our families, or alone, or just a friend,

Let’s be thankful for our day as we say grace and receive

The feeling and the joy to enjoy another eve.

 

Let’s take time as we watch sun and horizon blend

And thank God for His wondrous grace as eve becomes our friend,

Then fades into the starry night as sleep renews our soul

To wake refreshed to a new dawn, for in Christ’s love we grow.

 

Please share with us those things you’ve discovered that help to slow the pace.

On 26 September 1856 the Edmund Ellsworth handcart company arrived in the Salt Lake Valley. My great-great grandparents, John and Ann Bunney were among that group. They left Liverpool, England on the ship ‘Samuel Curling’. All Ann Bunney wrote of this experience is: “I pulled a hand cart by the side of my husband from Iowa City to Salt Lake City.” I have often pondered the commitment and faith exhibited, not only in the Bunneys, but also in numberless ancestors who made choices that affect me today. And then I wonder if I could ever be a person who affects the well-being of generations to follow me. The poem speaks of this, and the painting depicts the ‘Samuel Curling’ leaving Liverpool in 1856.

See it burn so bright and true
A flame within the heart of you,
Ignited many years ago.
See it glow, see it glow.

Perhaps it is refiner’s fire,
Purifying our desire,
Moving us from east to west,
Helping through the hardest test.

Keep it bright, keep it bright,
Lighting up the darkest night.
Pass it on, pass it on,
Hand it down from old to young.

Hold the flame both bright and high
Seen by every human eye.
Let all know by golden glow,
In our hearts, we know, we know.