Points2Ponder

"Curly hair, Cool shades! It HAD to be that '70's Disco Era!"

                                     Points2Ponder

                                                                                                       By Alan P. Scaglone

I have always thought that I would love to live in Seattle!

I love the rain…it rains over 300 days in Seattle!

I love the overcast days—just a sense of cool and calm.

I love the feeling of relaxing on a rainy day.

I even had a job offer in Seattle one time—that I almost took – but I couldn’t be away from my kids that long.

Just always thought—Seattle would be my kind of city.

Then came Tropical Depression Dufus!

Be careful what you wish for…you just might get it!

POINTS2PONDER  Ever wonder why we wish for things we don’t have and then—when we get them—we wonder why we thought this was what we wanted?

I am a Florida native—who loves my rainy, overcast days!

I have friends who call me when it’s rainy and say, “I know it’s your favorite kinda day!”

I am fortunate that my lovely wife—loves rainy days, too!

On our wedding day, it rained all day!

People walked up to us and said, “So sorry about the rain!”

We looked at each other and said, “Sorry? God gave us our favorite kind of day!”

I really thought I could live in a tropical rainforest—until—this past weekend!

I have to say—as a Florida native – Sunday was a first for me!

I woke up to the sound of rain outside our window…nice way to wake up!

I looked out the window and…it was raining steady.

Around noon—I checked the window again—still raining.

At 5pm, I remember saying “Is it really going to rain all day?”

As the day turned to night—without a sunrise OR a sunset – I said to my wife “This is a first for me! It literally rained all day and now…it’s night time…and still raining!”

And…at midnight, when I finally put my head on the pillow—it was still raining outside that bedroom window!

Wow! It seriously rained…and rained… and rained!

I got up for work Monday morning and -- still raining!

Then I said the words I never thought I would say… “Enough already! This rain needs to stop!!—Driving in the rain is NOT my idea of a good time—Those drivers are crazy out there!”

And yet—It continued to rain—until about 4pm!

I decided then and there—I am SOOO glad I didn’t move to Seattle!

Nope—my affair with rain is over! And all it took was a Tropical Depression named Dufus!

It doesn’t have to be rain or shine…

It can be curly or straight! Ever notice how people with straight hair always want to curl their hair and people with curly hair always want to straighten their hair?

See that picture above? Guilty!!!

Yep – that was me—in my younger years—with curly hair – the store bought kind! Did that for about 10 years—Yes I am admitting that I had my FRO… courtesy of a box and ammonia!

And then there are those who wear glasses...who don’t need to.

And those who need to wear glasses…and don’t!

I remember my first pair of glasses—during the disco era—I didn’t need glasses!! I had 20/30 vision! The same since I was in first grade!

But…I decided that I would look “cool in shades” – and I convinced my optician that I needed “reading” glasses!

And there I was…tinted shades worn all the time—cool factor!

Wish I didn’t have to wear my “cool” shades every day now, from sunrise to sunset!

It’s the story of the ages...we all just want what we don’t have—UNTIL we get it!

Then…we kinda wish…

It would stop raining already!!!

TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!    We made it EASY TO COMMENT!

SELECT the link BELOW!   YOU can send me an email!   I CANT WAIT!

 Ask Alan the Author

I'm Just Saying

“This is what comes AFTER the DASH!!!”

                                          “I’m Just Sayin’”

                                                                 by Alan P. Scaglione

So I had a few days off this week. I get more vacation time than my wife. Something she does NOT appreciate.
She’s been working for the same family run company for over 30 years, and she gets 3 weeks vacation! That’s it!
I have been working for my corporate giant for 5 years and get—6 weeks!
She is NOT amused!
I, on the other hand… have learned to enjoy a day off here and there…even IF she can’t be there with me!
Hey…somebody’s gotta enjoy it—why not me?
Back to the days off.
I spent them interviewing some of Xulon Press Publishing’s most successful authors.
I am doing a series of articles for them spotlighting our successful authors.
The purpose of the spotlight is to inspire and encourage new authors by the stories of our successful authors.
I met with an author who has sold over 500,000 copies of a children’s book.
I interviewed an author who watched her son be put in jail for a murder he didn’t commit.
Another author wrote about her brother’s visit to heaven.
Still another is a sports enthusiast- writing about the Sports Greats of Yesteryear.
Then there’s the author who wrote a book for women battling breast cancer- sharing how she survived!
It was an exciting two days of asking questions and hearing stories, drilling down til we struck oil!
We felt the presence of the Lord as we talked about what inspires them and what their relationship with Christ means to them.
They all shared the one experience in their life that changed their life.
It amazed me how honest and “real” they were—I wept with a few as they talked about God’s saving mercy.
It was a heartfelt, spirit filled, life changing moment for me…and I was humbly honored to be interviewing God’s authors.
We started the interview with a set of questions I had sent them beforehand- I called them IceBreakers – meant to get them thinking about what I needed.
I had a list of 5 questions.
The last one for each of them was one that my wife had questioned “honey, why are you asking that? Just doesn’t seem like it’s a good question?”
Let me go on record with saying, “My wife is usually right about everything—I hate to admit it – but, she is!”
Well…..NOT THIS TIME!
They LOVED the question!
In fact, they said they asked friends, called family, prayed about it, laughed about it, wrote a song about it, even had written a play about it!
So there!! Sometimes, my wife is NOT always right! LOL!
Here’s the question:
“What would you want written on your gravestone?”
Just a simple question—that speaks volumes.
It just asks, “when all is said and done, and your life is summed up on a Twitter amount of words—what do you want it to say?”
They wept; they laughed; they said it caused all kinds of conversation!
And they said…”this was my favorite question of all!”
And their answers?
They were varied… from the spiritual(Proverbs 3:5-6), to the funny(So far…So good!), to the heartstrings plucking(She loved!)

Each came with a story of why they had chosen this one line to sum up their life; all came with a tear, a laugh, a memory, a longing!

And they all said, in their own words, ”we are all here, in this life, for but a moment, a vapor, and then we are gone!”

I mentioned to a few the story of “living in the Dash!”

The Dash being ….  Born 1950 – Died 2012!

It’s that DASH in the middle…where all the life is lived!

The scripture says in James 4:14 “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away!”

No promise of how long we get…but just that we do “get” the Dash!

So??? What would you want YOUR gravestone to say?

Until Next Time

I’m Just Sayin’…

Brother “A”

SELECT the link BELOW!   SEND me Email!   Share your thoughts!

Ask Alan the Author

Points2Ponder

                                     Points2Ponder

                                                                                                       By Alan P. Scaglone

I said the same thing myself!!

Did you see that? Really?

Yep! And I even got a picture to prove it!

There it is…for everyone to see…and experience!

Talk about friendship!

Guess birds of a feather… float together?

POINTS2PONDER  Ever see something so unusual, so different, so “once in a lifetime” that you have to ask—Did I just see that? And aren’t you glad?? You experienced that moment!

I was walking through Rollins College, in Winter Park, Florida with my wife, showing her the campus for the first time.

We walked around, taking in the sights. There’s even a dorm hall called “Genius Hall”

Have to wonder…how do you get selected for that dorm? SAT scores?

So we are walking around, taking in the beautiful non-typical Spring Day in Saturday…in June!

As a native Floridian, I can tell you—it is usually sweltering hot by mid June, but… it was breezy, and pleasant and refreshing.

And it was just me and my girl—walking around, making a memory, not expecting to get anything else out of it but just…breathe!

We get so busy, needing to be entertained or needing to be stimulated…that we forget to just breathe!

And in the end…isn’t that what keeps us alive? Breathing!

And when you least expect it… you look out on the lake, and you go… “Do you see what I see?”

And there it is! A duck swimming around—with a crow sitting on it’s back!

And I got a picture to prove it!

My wife literally LOL’d!

I just kept taking pictures—I knew—this is a once in a lifetime moment—and I’m going to need a picture to prove this!

No one will believe it – without a picture!

It made me laugh—and it made me think “Strange bedfellows? Peculiar friends? Or just two fellow fliers, taking a rest, floating on a sunny, breezy, spring day!”

We watched them for what seemed like 30 minutes, but… soon enough, the crow jumped off the duck…and took a dip in the lake!

The duck? It kept floating…and floating…and floating!

And my girl said, “Its head is not moving! I haven’t seen it move its head one time! WOW! It’s not moving…at all!”

And then… we watched for another ten minutes…as the duck NEVER moved!

And then we realized…it was a DECOY… all along!

Yep! The crow didn’t know it, we didn’t know it, but…the duck…he knew he was a decoy all the time!

We laughed…until we cried!

We had just spent 45 minutes watching a crow sit on a floating device, masquerading as a duck!

And the crow didn’t know it! Bet he thought “Gee, this is one dumb duck!”

Bet the duck thought “Gee, look at the dumb people on shore—wasting a perfect day, watching me, floating around, with a crow on my plastic back!”

But you know what?

I was PERFECT!

Guess it just goes to show…if it looks like a duck, and floats like a duck…that does NOT mean-- it’s a duck!

But a decoy still took a perfect picture!!!

TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!    We made it EASY TO COMMENT!

SELECT the link BELOW!   YOU can send me an email!   I CANT WAIT!

 Ask Alan the Author

I'm Just Sayin

“Anyone know who I can send this to? Tell me who he is!”

                                          “I’m Just Sayin’”

                                                                 by Alan P. Scaglione

Happy Father’s Day!

We need fathers, good ones, to step up to the plate and…lead by example!

If ever there was a time—it’s NOW!

This past week, I found the card pictured, celebrating Fathers, and it struck me…

I didn’t have anyone to send it to.

Not because I don’t know any fathers, but…

The card said on the inside…

 “and is happiest when he sees those he loves the most…walking closest to the Lord!”

Just made me sad… I just don’t seem to know any of those fathers.

I know fathers who want their kids to succeed in business…

I know fathers who want their kids to finish college…

I know fathers who want their kids to get out on their own and support themselves.

I just don’t know any fathers who…want to see their kids draw closer to the Lord.

Oh yeah…I know a lot of mothers out there who pray…tirelessly, for your kids.

And I know-- you moms could all use some help, from the DADS, standing in the gap for your kids!

Help from the one who the kids need the most – their father!

It’s been proven that the role of the father is the most important role in molding a child.

A daughter will later seek out a man either because of what she received from her father in the say of respect, love and honor or…will seek out a man because of the lack thereof.

A son will often treat a girl like he saw his father treat his mother and sisters… that could be good IF he saw respect, love and honor or…bad IF he saw verbal abuse, disrespect and disregard.

All from the influence of their father!

And I know--there are homes with absent fathers—I salute you moms who are both!

But this column is directed to the fathers who are present, but… absent!

If you know one of those(maybe that one out at the grill or sleeping on the couch)

This one’s for him – give this to him – tell him there’s something he needs to learn!

The Word instructs fathers in Ephesians 6: 4

“And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”

There it is! The formula to be a “good” father!

Bring them up in nurture AND admonition of the Lord!

Fathers… ask yourselves…Nurture? Admonition of the Lord? Really? Do you????

Nurture – to attend and give attention to – to dedicate time and effort to growth.

That’s not “phone it in” parenting – that’s “being present and involved!”

Your kids need you to be present and involved in their lives!

Your son needs your example of how to treat women.

Your daughter needs to know she is loved and respected and cherished—so she will EXPECT that from any man she dates.

They cannot get that from their mom!  It has to come from Dad!

And then there’s “admonition of the Lord!”

Seriously?

When’s the last time you prayed with your kids?

When’s the last time your kids saw you pray?

Character rises when crisis rushes in!

What they see in you when there is a family crisis…that’s what they learn and imitate.

The admonition of the Lord…”Seek ye first the kingdom of God…and His righteousness...”

The admonition of the Lord…”The steps of a righteous man are ordered of the Lord!”

The admonition of the Lord …”Delight yourself in the Lord, and HE will give you the desires of your heart!”

Remember the old line “seeing is believing!”

It applies here bigtime!

I challenge you DADS –“Seek ye first the kingdom of God, have your steps ordered by the Lord, delight yourself in the Lord!”

Your kids follow more of what you DO than what you SAY!

Soooo…

Anyone know a Father I can send this card to?

Until Next Time

I’m Just Sayin’…

Brother “A”

SELECT the link BELOW!   SEND me Email!   Share your thoughts!

Ask Alan the Author