Traveling Mercies

Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. Benjamin Franklin Peace on earth and joy to those we like. Cocktail napkin. The New Year is the perfect time for a fresh start and for building new habits. In 2011, I'm going to devote more time to personal writing. My favorite writing book, "On Writing" by Stephen King includes this quote, "The scariest moment is always just before you start." There is nothing as scary as a blank sheet of paper (or computer screen). This year, I'm going to write what I know and write what I enjoy reading about. I hope you'll enjoy it as well.

This is my birthday month. I’m such a fan of birthdays, I love parties, I love cake and I love presents. Though I’m a little old to expect all of those things on my special day, I still love it when it happens. Of course, as we age, birthdays have a different perspective. Instead of a celebration, they also become a day for reflection. Are we living the life we thought we would? Are we making a significant contribution to the world? Do we love and are we loved? I’m fortunate as I answer these questions. My life is so full, my cup runneth over! Time is another thing we contemplate on our birthdays. Where have the years gone? How did I go from 10 to 20 to almost 50 in the blink of an eye? Middle-age seemed like something that was so far away for such a long time, but if I am middle-aged now, that means I’ll live to be almost a 100. Hmm, maybe I’m not middle-aged anymore, then what to call this time? When I was younger, middle-age meant a time of crisis, frumpy, and generally out of tou...

In May, 1961, before I was born, President John F. Kennedy challenged Congress and our nation to “commit itself to reaching the goal of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth” within the decade. On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 landed on the moon, and Neil Armstrong, Commander of the aircraft, responded to NASA with the famous words, "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed." Six and a half hours after landing, Armstrong uttered his famous line "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind". I was seven years old that summer night and I remember with clarity watching the event on television, then going outside with my family and staring at the moon above. Forty years later, I don’t understand the logistics of building a machine that would carry men to space, nor the courage it must have taken to leave family behind and climb into such a machine, but the story of the Apollo space program has always fascinated me. Toda...

My best Christmas memory of 2009 started early in the month with a trip to Boone, North Carolina for Operation Christmas Child (OCC). OCC is a project of the Samaritan Purse organization led by Billy Graham’s eldest son, Franklin Graham. Samaritan’s Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world. Since 1970, Samaritan's Purse has helped meet needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine with the purpose of sharing God's love through His Son, Jesus Christ (www.samaritanspurse.org). The organization’s name comes from the story of the Good Samaritan found in Luke 10:30-37, which gives a clear picture of God's desire for us to help those in desperate need wherever we find them. After describing how the Samaritan rescued a hurting man whom others had passed by, Jesus told His hearers, "Go and do likewise." The OCC program started with the c...

Do you like Thanksgiving? I do. I’m already counting down the days and looking forward to both the food and the company. But since Thanksgiving is about counting our blessings, this is a good time to reflect on 2009 and the bounty the year provided. During a time when so many people were losing jobs or were fearful of losing jobs, I was blessed to get a new job. I joined a company where I had worked before – but in a new position. Many of the pains of a new job I didn’t have to experience, I knew the people, I knew the culture and I knew many of the job skills that I would be expected to perform. The company culture fits me well, I have friends and colleagues I enjoy spending my time with and I’m intellectually challenged by my duties. If I had to write the perfect job description for me, this would be it. My career change definitely counts as a blessing. In a time of war, when many families are torn apart by deployments, serious injury or even death, I am surrounded by people I love a...

Do you Twitter? I’m trying to decide if I should. I’m thinking about doing it, so a friend told me to go ahead and set up my Twitter account and follow other people. The cocktail party concept, you have to listen to some of the conversation before jumping in. So, I set up a Twitter account. “It’s so easy, everyone says, only takes a minute. Find some people, follow them and you’re done.” So, I set up the account. First, I had to spend some time thinking what my Twitter “handle” (name) would be. Good grief – what a decision. Should I go with my real name? Should I go with a pseudonym? Do you have to worry about cyber stalking on Twitter? I was really just worried about not following Twitter protocol under my real name, but I decided if I’m going to do this, it might as well be for real. So my Twitter handle is @camillestell. Next, I had to figure out how to follow people. I’m sure for those who aren’t technologically challenged, all of this is a breeze. But I have to do research. Look a...

Are you a list maker? I am. I love the structure and order that lists provide. I enjoy the sense of accomplishment I feel as I cross items off my list. I have a variety of lists ongoing at any point in time. One of my lists is books I want to read (and books that I’ve read). I feel I spend more time compiling this list than reading the books, but time management is a discussion for another blog post. A list I normally begin in October is my Christmas planning list. First item on the list is to prepare and mail the invitation to my annual “girls” Christmas dinner. In December, 1984, after our college graduation, I hosted a dinner for high school girlfriends. This year we are celebrating our 25th annual dinner with 8 – 10 friends in attendance. Once the invitation goes out, I start planning the menu. I always do all the cooking with new recipes – nothing tried and true. I can say that in 24 dinners, there have been no failures or flops – or at least my friends have been gracious enough t...