There’s a sunrise and a sunset every day, and you can choose to be there for it — you can put yourself in the way of beauty.
–Cheryl Strayed
The Divine Exchange
During Lent, as I contemplate Christ’s death and prepare to celebrate his resurrection, I also take time to reflect on God’s goodness, Jesus’ obedience, and my walk with Christ. Time is also spent in study. Recently I learned about the “divine exchange” that occurred on the cross for me. I learned that Jesus’ death and resurrection was, essentially, a “divine exchange” of benefits from God to me. This exchange, rooted in the forgiveness of sin and everlasting life, contains specific tangible benefits that will follow me, and you, all the days of our life “in the natural” as well as beyond. This is pretty cool stuff; so cool that I wanted to share it with you.
Thank you, God for this divine exchange. Blessings to you this Lenten season, my brothers and sisters in Christ!
Banff Nat’l Park
Banff National Park
Can there be a place more beautiful than this? I don’t know. All I do know is around every bend of the trail there was a “wow” . This park is nestled among the peaks of the Canadian Rockies. It is the first national park established in Canada and is a coveted UNESCO World Heritage Site. This place is a combination of vast unspoiled wilderness, mountain lakes like Lake Louise, and the gateway to it all: the Town of Banff. Closest airport is in Calgary, Alberta, about a 90-min drive along the TransCanada highway. No matter the time of year, Banff is a must-see. For more info check out http://www.banfflakelouise.com/About-the-Area/Banff-National-Park And for a special treat, be sure to go to Lake Louise and hike up to the tea house. The Lake Agnes Tea House is one of the most famous trails in Lake Louise and the Canadian Rockies. You’ll hike up to an altitude of 2,135 m/ 7,005 ft. When you arrive at the Lake Agnes Tea House http://www.lakeagnesteahouse.com/ you’ll be rewarded with stunning views and the opportunity to rest on the porch, order up a pot of freshly steeped tea and a bowl of homemade soup, or a delicious sandwich or dessert.
Lyrically Living and Without Control
I am a control freak. Yet you can’t control everything. So how do you resolve that!? The Air France flight lost during its Atlantic acrossing from Rio to Paris is as unbelievable to me as it must be for the loved ones wishing the passengers and crew safely away or for those awaiting its arrival. Flying is the activity that for me screams “you are absolutely not in control here“. Once onboard I relinquish everything to someone or something else – the pilots, flight crew, control tower, weather … the folks who built the plane; however long ago that was. So there I sit – the control freak relinquishing hard won control while hoping for the best outcome possible — a safe landing at the other end.
Whew… made it! Now, I am consumed by the return. I hope the day I picked proves to be a good-weather day. I hope the pilots got enough rest. I hope its a newer plane. I hope the folks on the ground and in Air Traffic Control see what they need to see and give the crew good information and great support. I hope the men and women who built the plane did a good job. That’s a lot of stuff to hope for and to get in synch.
I love to go. I’ve been to China, Japan, Europe, South America, Africa, all over the U.S. It’s the flying I could do without. Did I mention I worked for an airline for more tha n 20 years? I probably left that out. Anyway, I worked on the Admin side of the business not the flight crew side. Lucky me and lucky passengers. And I worked for a great and still-great airline. I enjoy them today. Just could enjoy them more if they were an especially fast bus.
Control. Giving it up is hard for me. Once that flight attendant announces the forward door has been closed and we’re ready for immediate departure, all bets are off. I am a captive.
So what happened to the Air France flight? I have to know. It doesn’t make any sense. Reports indicate the plane encountered strong turbulance, lightening, and thunderstorms over the Atlantic at 3 a.m. Automated messages received at 3:14 a.m. indicated a failure of the electrical system. Several of the plane’s mechanisms malfunctioned preventing any attempt to contact the ATC. All souls were lost in the Atlantic on a dark and stormy night. How could this have happened to a paragon of engineering? Aircraft having a significantly lesser pedigree encounter rough air and rougher weather everyday. The vast majority make it through safely albeit a bit shaken up. This airplane, an Airbus A330, has an excellent record as does Air France. The crew was seasoned with the captain having more than 11-thousand hours of flight time and 1,700 of them at the controls of an Airbus 330. There were two co-pilots; one had 3,000 hours of flight time and the other 6,600 hours. The plane itself had 18,870 flight hours since April 2005 when it first entered service. Its last overhaul or heavy maintenence visit was just completed in April 2009 – a scant two months before. An Air France official said it’s probably a combination of circumstances that could have led to the crash. The very combos I so fervently hope against.
We never have any real control anyway. Before you think I’m perfectly crazy bordering on psychotic let me admit that I know this. I feign a sense of control because it makes me feel better. Any overt indications to the contrary make me crazy. Hence, the closing of the boarding door symbolizes for me that loss of control. I cope through prayer. I pray fervently and often. I am in a constant state of prayer on an airplane, even while enjoying my third ( or is it fourth) Tangeray and tonic – two limes. Thank God for God. He sticks by me and is the only one who can stand to be with me during these states of high and unreasonable anxiety. Thank you God. Even my husband, when he was alive would bark, “Let go my hand, that’s too tight; what’s wrong with you? Don’t wake me up again!”
I thank God but I’m still hoping for answers. I will follow with fervent interest the outcome of the investigation. Meanwhile, I will keep the families of those lost in my prayers and ask that God help them to find peace. I’ve agreed to go to Puerto Rico with friends and have to work through that. I’ll see how I feel. Peace be with you.
Finance, money … yuck
The U.S. retail sector this week released financial results for March that were worse than February’s results. People aren’t shopping because they feel less wealthy and even if they have a job they also carry around a palpable fear of losing it. And probably their minds too. (I said that not “them.”) I am cramming those feelings into the back of my ample closet. While I don’t recklessly spend I do spend. I need my retail therapy but I try to be a wise patient by avoiding an overdose.
My least favorite issues are those having to do with finance and money. However, since both must be faced I’ve sucked it up and tried to do so by making it as simple for me as possible. Long ago I established my seven simple rules. And I can tell you, this is probably the only part of my life that’s actually…dare I say it… lyrical.
My rules are easy but not perfect or complicated. Even so sometimes I don’t follow them. But for the most part I do. To be honest, I can’t resist a good sale at Neiman Marcus and I haven’t been in a T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, Home Goods or Target that I didn’t like. These are my most fav, fav, fav stores.
Nevertheless, everthing in moderation. My rules have been built and occassionally, some of them, broken. I’m sure you have a few as well – here are mine.
7 Simple Rules for Financial Okayness
- Pay yourself first. Sock away a minimum of 10% of your earnings somewhere. If you don’t have an emergency fund start there. Later, move on to a 401K or an IRA or a Roth IRA or all three. If you can’t save 10%, save whatever you can on a regular basis and try to build up to 10%. Once you get to 10% go for a stretch goal of 30%. These links are to fairly generic sites that can give you more info about these savings tools. 401k IRA
- Keep your credit card debt to no more than 15% to 20% of your monthly disposable income. If you bring home $2,000/mo. your credit card debt should be no more than $300 to $400. The rest pay in cash or save up until you can. Avoid credit card interest charges by paying the balance in full each month. Avoiding_debt_managing_your_credit_wisely: Personal Finance … Managing Credit Wisely Budget calculator
- Pay your bills on time and keep up with what’s on your credit report and your credit scores. How’s your credit, do you know? You can get a full review of your credit report once each year for free. Here’s a site you may wish to check out. As far as your credit score is concerned I think from this site you can get a look at your scores for free, too. I actually haven’t figured out the free score piece yet. I pay a subscription service that both monitors my credit for identity theft and provides my credit score. I’m sure there are a lot of them but here’s a site I’ve used where at the very least you can go to look at your credit report from the three major reporting agencies. Remember, if you haven’t already pulled your free report this year this site will work for you at no cost. Your Access to Free Credit Reports How do I get my free credit report and score from each bureau?
- Keep an emergency credit card for emergency unplanned expense. And forget about it. After all its for an emergency. Credit Cards | Best Credit Card Offers | Low APR Interest … Low Rate Credit Cards – AOL Money & Finance
- Keep car note in the 10% to 15% range and don’t buy more car than you have savings in the bank. If you have $30K in savings then you may consider buying a car priced at half to no more than the amount you have in the bank. If you have no or very little savings buy the cheapest car possible that’s of course reliable, too. And to keep it reliable change the oil and the oil filter regularly. They are the heart of your car. One more thing: Be careful of dealer financing. Don’t just look at the interest rate, look at the total cost of borrowing over the life of the loan. At the end of the loan how much will that car really cost? Shop around. Credit Unions are often the best places to get the lowest rate on a car loan provided you have good credit. Free Money Finance: Should I Join a Credit Union? Why Join A Credit Union? Why I’m No Longer A Traditional Bank …
- Put six to eight months of emergency savings in the bank. This should be doable if you’re already doing Steps 1 through 4 but if you have to choose between Step 1 and Step 6, choose Step 6. Having something socked away should make you less scared of the future. This is your rainy day money so put it somewhere that protects the principle like a bank or credit union savings account. At today’s rates it won’t grow much but the principle will still be there when you need it. If you’re feeling especially randy, tie it up in a 6 or 12 mo. CD. If you’re buying more than one, stagger the maturity dates. You might want to check the health of whatever institution you choose. Bankrate.com Safe& Sound ™: Bankrate free rating system … National Credit UnionAdministration – About NCUA
- Buy property. I know the market is down and prices are depressed but provided you have the funds this is a great time to buy something. If you don’t own your home and you have a downpayment of around 10% to 20% + good credit this is the time. If you do own your own home and want to branch out a bit, you may consider buying investment property. Yes being a landlord takes work but it can pay off handsomely – both in rent receipts and in tax breaks. Whether they own or rent; have a job or not, people still need places to live. And many without jobs are able to qualify for government assistance to offset their housing costs. These are good hardworking folks who just need a bit of support just as we all do from time to time. Anyway, your rents should cover your expense and make a profit. My personal rule of thumb on mortgages for a primary residence is to be no more than 35% of my monthly pre-tax salary. Homebuyer Basics | Managing Your Money | Using Credit Wisely RealEstate.com – Buying – Investment Properties
Lyric Living 
