tuesday truth

May 31 2016

The Best Summer Ever: What if it rains?

What if it rains?

Gosh. It always does. The weather is beyond your control, and it may frequently interfere with your plan.

1. Get used to getting wet.
Some of your activities might work just fine in the rain! Though – watch out for lightning. That stuff isn’t worth it.

2. Skip the TV and break out the cards.
Just because the weather spoils your outside plans, doesn’t mean you should vegetate. Bust out the deck of cards and play a game with family or friends.
3. Have a list of indoor places to visit – especially air conditioned ones!
Make sure your adventure list contains museums, shopping excursions, or other activities that are inside, and maybe even air-conditioned – just in case it’s too hot, or too wet to enjoy something outside!

May 24 2016

The Best Summer Ever: Make every day count

We’ve talked about those adventures and special days… but what about the regular, every day grind that you still have going on in the summer? Isn’t it hard to make it the best summer ever, when you still have a job, or a schedule?

Sure, it’s hard. But make it a point to have evening campfires. Maybe you rent a campsite for the week near home, and commute to work every day from the campsite. Maybe you live in a tent in the backyard for the whole summer! Maybe you grill out every night.

Whatever it is – make the whole summer feel like a vacation. Take advantage of that late sunset to visit friends in the evenings instead of watching TV.

Don’t waste a minute on fruitless entertainment – instead, fill it with things you enjoy, and with people you love.

May 17 2016

The Best Summer Ever: Not just FUN – but GROWTH

Fun is important. Leisure is important. They are often like a drink of a lemonade after mowing the lawn – refreshing and energizing.
But let’s make our summer about even more… let’s look at how we plan to grow!

Make a personal growth plan for the summer.
What books will you read?
What conferences or seminars will you attend?
What podcasts will you listen to?
What skills do you need to develop or hone?

Take some time not only to identify these things, but to make some goals for yourself.

Summer really is a great time to sit on a hammock in the evening and read a book – or to pop in a podcast on a summer drive.

Maybe your summer involves a physical fitness routine, or practice schedule for some skill you need to whip into shape.

May 10 2016

The Best Summer Ever: Make a Schedule

Identify the list items that are good for those spontaneous pickup moments – but make it a point to schedule the ones that require a little more planning and forethought.

You may not have the same leisurely summers of your youth – without care or responsibility – so you may have to schedule around your work – and that’s perfectly acceptable. Just make sure that you DO find time for adventure, leisure, and fun.

May 3 2016

The Best Summer Ever: Make a List

What if you could have the best summer ever? The kind of summer that your family or friends will remember for the rest of their lives! Want to make it happen? Of Course you do. This month, we’ll explore some things that will help make your summer the best ever.

For the past few years, we’ve done something exciting around our house. We make a “Summer Adventure List” and we list off all of the things that we want to do together.

For example:

See the Kinzua Bridge
Visit NYC
Swim at Willow Bay
Go Camping Three Times
Picnic with the Lowmans
Hike Through Abandoned Rail Tunnel
Eat a Wild Animal
Jump off a Bridge
Play Softball Game With Friends
Visit the Coudersport Ice Mine

This of course, is an abbreviated version of our list. And sometimes, we get to cross them all of, and sometimes we don’t!

Look for local attractions that are free or low cost – museums, parks, swimming holes, BBQ joints. Don’t be afraid to put something ambitious that might cost a little more and require a little advanced planning and saving. Make sure to include people that you want to connect with!

Think of it like a “Bucket List” – but the shelf-life on this is three months.

Add the little AND the big things that you want to accomplish, and start planning!

Don’t be afraid if you can’t check them all off. But having a list helps get you excited about the summer, and allows you to make a plan.

February 16 2016

Love and Junk – Love requires actions AND words

February – thanks to St. Valentine’s Day – it’s filled with hearts and doilies and talk of love.
Funny how love can turn a big, hairy man into a blubbering pile of conversation hearts and rose petals, right?

There’s a big stigma in Hollywood surrounding the words “I love you.” They make a really big deal about those words, and when they are supposed to be said. As a result – I think we’ve sanctified those words a little too much…. we’ve made them holy, and then we get the idea that the words themselves define what love is,

The truth is – those words mean NOTHING if they aren’t followed up with action.

“I love you” and yet, I’ll disrespect your body for my own pleasure.
“I love you” and yet, I won’t commit to you. I won’t marry you, because I don’t think I love you permanently.
“I love you” and yet – I’ll chew your face off if you don’t do something right.
“I love you” and yet – I still love those other hot women on my computer screen.

If you really love someone, it has to be more than just words. It has to be words AND action.

And the words DO matter – why would you love someone and never tell them? Make sure to tell the people in your life that you love them (your wife, your kids, your parents, even your friends.) I don’t want anyone to ever wonder if I did love them. I want them to know it, not just because I said it, but because I showed it with my actions.

January 9 2016

The Starting Line – Getting on the track #tuesdaytruth

Manhood is often assumed in our culture. Rites of passage once held sacred, have been replaced by the wrong things. It’s time that we reset our cleats on the track of manhood, and start the race right. This month, we’re examining what it means to be a man, and to run the race of manhood.

It’s so easy sometimes to get derailed. One candy bar, and that strict eating plan gets thrown out the window. A short skirted co-worker bends over to pick up a paperclip, and your mind heads down a path it never should. One negative word from your wife, and all the progress you’ve made at controlling your own language is tossed out the window.

How do we get back on track once we’ve been derailed? How do we move forward when we’ve lost our momentum?

The answer is simple. Forgive yourself for your screw up. Seek forgiveness from anyone you’ve hurt (including the men who are holding you accountable.) Then move forward. If the forgiveness is done – then don’t look back. Don’t bring it up. Don’t let it derail you any longer. Move forward.

You can do this. Whatever race you are running, it matters. If you are a better man, the world is a better place. Your place in it matters. So don’t let your own failures keep you from that.