Inspirations From Dandelions
We can’t think of a few plants as famous as the dandelion. Who as a child didn’t blow on its soft puffball and watch the seeds float away? Unfortunately, dandelions don’t have the greatest reputation and are considered a nuisance by countless landscapers and gardeners.
But once you get to learning about dandelions, you’ll find they have a number of lessons to offer. Whether you find this plant a pesky presence or just another a beautiful part of nature, we’ve rounded up all the surprising life tips this flower has to teach.
Weeds…or Wishes?
Sometimes, the only difference between a flower and a weed is a matter of perspective. Some people look at dandelions and see a weedy menace. Others smile at its yellow blossom and look forward to making wishes with its puffy seeds. With dandelions, as in life, your attitude shapes everything. Choose to see the flower that grants wishes instead of the weed.
Be Useful
The dandelion is incredibly versatile. From stem to root, it’s entirely edible. Not only that, but it’s also been used for everything from folk medicine to dye. Dandelions also improve soil quality, leaving behind nitrous and other nutrients. Not too shabby for such a common plant, huh? The dandelion teaches us no matter how unassuming or ordinary we may seem, we actually have a whole lot to contribute to the world.
Adapt
Dandelions adapt easily and are able to grow in all sorts of soil types and conditions. And not just grow but flourish. This is partly why they’re so prevalent. In fact, dandelions are “pioneer plants”, those plants that are among the first to repopulate the soil after it’s been disturbed (like after a wildfire). In other words, dandelions make do even in the roughest situations. We know you can too.
Embrace Change, Let Go When Necessary
So many are familiar with the dandelion’s evolution from a yellow blossom to a white puffball. Once that soft tuft appears, the dandelion will soon release its seeds into the wind. Dandelions know that change is simply part of life, and just as important, they know when to let go.
Travel Far
Did you know? Dandelions seeds can travel up to five miles in the wind. That may not seem like much, but it’s pretty impressive when you learn that dandelions have nearly conquered the world. A brief history of this flower reveals they were once exclusive to Eurasia. Now? They grow on six different continents. Take a cue from the dandelion: go far and be willing to take on any new terrain.
Be Tenacious
Of course, dandelions are so commonly known as weeds because they are so pervasive and persistent. If you mow or cut them, they simply come back. Rip their roots out, and any remaining roots will simply grow more dandelions. While some might see this as a nuisance, we think this a prime lesson in determination! Be like the dandelion, be tenacious.
The Chosen - Episode 2
Matthew the tax collector - the complexities of the character in The Chosen
Kaelyn Reese finds a connection to Matthew in
The Chosen
Dallas Jenkins is an American film and television director, writer and film producer. He is best known as the creator, director and co-writer of The Chosen.
The Chicago Sun Times
The Chosen’ director Dallas Jenkins isn’t waiting for Hollywood to ‘lower the scepter’ for faith-based content
Filmmaker Dallas Jenkins wants people to have an obsession with Jesus.
“We feel like if people can binge watch and have watch parties all over the world for shows like ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Stranger Things,’ there’s no reason not to binge watch a show about Jesus,” Jenkins said. “The term binge means to, you know, kind of have an obsession with something, and we figure out how to have an obsession with Jesus, so we might as well encourage that.”
“The Chosen” is the first multi-season TV series that depicts the life of Jesus Christ
Jenkins, who wears a hoodie that says “#BingeJesus” in the show’s trailer, says he wants the masses to see Jesus differently.
“We’re trying to make this a little bit more personal, intimate, immediate,” Jenkins said. “[Jesus] tells jokes, he laughs, he dances with his friends; we don’t normally see that in other Bible projects.”
“Telling the story of Jesus requires a lot of attention to detail and consideration of the audience, because he’s the most important figure in history for billions of people. … And we also believe that the audience trusts us more, knowing that the content is in our hands, and that we’re not influenced or inspired by anyone else.”
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2020/3/18/21185293/dallas-jenkins-chosen-jesus-vidangel-christ-bible-streaming-app Click here to read the full article.
Adult Fiction
Stay
In the summer of 1969, fourteen-year-old Lucas Painter carries a huge weight on his shoulders. His brother is fighting in Vietnam. His embattled parents are locked in a never-ending war. And his best friend, Connor, is struggling with his own family issues. To find relief from the chaos, Lucas takes long, meandering walks, and one day he veers into the woods.
There he discovers an isolated cabin and two huge dogs. Frightened, he runs. And the dogs run with him. Lucas finds unusual peace in running with the dogs, and eventually he meets their owner, Zoe Dinsmore. Closed off and haunted by a tragic past, Zoe has given up. She doesn’t want to be saved. She wants out. But Lucas doesn’t want her to go, and he sees an opportunity to bring more than one friend back into the light. It’s either the best or worst idea he’s ever had, but Lucas isn’t giving up on Zoe or Connor.
Their unexpected connection might be the saving grace that Zoe thought she’d lost, that Connor needs, and that Lucas has been running toward.
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer
From the New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, and Britt-Marie Was Here comes an exquisitely moving portrait of an elderly man’s struggle to hold on to his most precious memories, and his family’s efforts to care for him even as they must find a way to let go.
With all the same charm of his bestselling full-length novels, here Fredrik Backman once again reveals his unrivaled understanding of human nature and deep compassion for people in difficult circumstances. This is a tiny gem with a message you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
St. Gamaliel Feast Day August 3rd
Gamaliel is known to the Christian world as the Pharisaic leader who saved the disciples from death in a story in the Book of Acts, in which he is quoted as saying, "If their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men." He is the only leader of the first century to be greatly honored in both the Jewish and the Christian traditions.
It is also stated that Gamaliel was the teacher of Saint Paul. In Acts 22:3 Paul tells a crowd in Jerusalem, "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day" (Acts 22:3). But we are told nothing about the nature or the extent of the influence which he exercised upon the future apostle of the Gentiles.
