A Short Story for the Season — “Haystack Harry”

October 21, 2016 / jrmilson / 2 Comments

An eight-year-old boy from the city confronted by a tall, seedy-looking stranger, alone in a dark barn in the country. What could possibly happen?

Relax, we don’t tell those kinds of stories here. Sharing an entertaining, Free Short Story for the autumn season and weekend enjoyment — “Haystack Harry.”

Hope you enjoy. Please feel free to Like, Comment and Share with friends, family and others. Thanks as always for visiting! Wishing everyone a beautiful fall weekend! — Jim (and Red!)

(Spooky Barn image via Literary Hoarders Blog, WordPress.com)

— Brought To You By —

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Stories on Amazon.

Old-fashioned, Family-friendly Stories and Fun for All Ages and Fitness Levels!

About an Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends.

Kindness and The Power of Words

October 17, 2016October 15, 2016 / jrmilson / 6 Comments

My Mother, who I consider to quite possibly be the wisest person I have ever known, raised me on the adage of — “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” Her intent was to both support me when on the receiving end of hurtful barbs sent my way, and to make sure that I learned not to launch any in the direction of others myself.

quote-kindness-careful-words

With all due love and respect to Mom, that’s plain hogwash. Sticks and stones may break our bones, but Words can be truly hurtful. We need to be especially careful, supportive and encouraging with our chosen words for children, whose self-images and psyches can be so fragile. And with everyone, really. Words have the power to hurt or heal. Support or discourage. Build up or tear down. Words can serve to create or to devastate and crush a young and loving spirit. Broken bones and wounds tend to heal well over time, but poorly chosen, hurtful words can leave lasting impressions and scars that stay with us forever.

An unkind word is like toothpaste. Once out, it is impossible to put back. Hurtful and demeaning words may be forgiven, but likely never forgotten.

quote-kindness-kind-words-10

A kind word can mean the world to someone who may be going thru a rough stretch of road. And we never really know what someone may be going thru from outward appearances. Oftentimes, all a struggling person may need to turn a life in turmoil around is a kind word to know someone else cares. On how many occasions after someone has passed, have we heard the sentiment — “If only I had told them . . . . “?

quote-words-power

We should never let pass the opportunity to lend a hand, help someone, or as William Makepeace Thackeray put it — “Never lose a chance of saying a kind word.”

Thanks as always for stopping in to visit. Share a kind word, and make someone’s day a little brighter. — Jim (and Red!)

quote-kind-words

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Stories on Amazon.

Old-fashioned, Family-friendly Stories and Fun for All Ages and Fitness Levels!

About an Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends.

Sunday Family Day — Putting “Family” Back Into Sundays!

October 16, 2016October 16, 2016 / jrmilson / 5 Comments

Things tend to change over time. Oftentimes for the better. Sometimes not.

Sundays were family days a while ago. Back in the days before over-hyped sporting events and media distractions began to dominate the scene and steal away quality time. Sundays were spent relaxing from the weekly routine, the hustle and bustle, from the work grind and stress. Reconnecting. Spending time together. Going for Sunday afternoon drives thru the countryside. Looking forward all day to Sunday dinner. Sundays were for staying in touch, returning to our center and to what is truly important — Family.

This is the first in a series of weekly Sunday posts dedicated to returning Sundays to Family Days. Spending quality time with loved ones. Each of us only gets so much time in our life and no one knows how much. We can choose to invest the time given to us wisely, into what is most important to us and to the future of our children, or to fritter it away in frivolous pursuits which yield nothing but empty minutes passed and a longing for something more substantial and connecting in our lives. So many feel disconnected today. Be and stay connected — with your family.

picnic-31-via-google-via-123rf-images-site

It is easier to withstand the storms of life, not being blown over by the random winds of misfortune, when we are grounded, anchored and held secure by family and loving roots. Sundays are made for grounding and staying connected. Our society, with so many challenges confronting families today, ranging from rampant drug use to negative social media influences and divisiveness, perhaps now more than ever, needs to rekindle that spirit of family togetherness and bonding.

The autumn season, with its refreshing and crisp air, is a perfect time to get the family together for a picnic. Take a trip to the park and kick around a soccer ball. Launch a Frisbee thru the air. Play hide and seek. Or even spread a blanket on the ground in the backyard and just have a fun time together tossing leaves about and grilling up some hot dogs or marshmallows. If inclement weather, take that same blanket and make a tent in the family room. Spend the time together, and have Fun! Experience, share and enjoy the Peace, Joy, and Love. They aren’t just words on a page. Give them true life in your family, making lasting loving memories while forming the connections which strengthen and hold us together.

(Image Credit: Tori Watson Photography, The Haggards Family, blog.tori-watson.com)

Family time. Together time. Fun time. Quality time. The best time! To be in our children’s memories tomorrow, we must be in their lives today.

children-parenting-time-spent

Thank You for stopping by to visit! I hope you enjoy this new Sunday feature, and follow along each week as we work together to bring Family back into Sundays. Spread the word to family, friends and neighbors. What does your family do to stay connected? Please feel free to share in the comments! We are all in this together, after all.

Happy Sunday! Happy Family Day! Wishing everyone a beautiful autumn and family Sunday — together! – – – Jim (and Red!)

(Image via CanberraYourFuture.com)

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Stories on Amazon.

Old-fashioned, Family-friendly Stories and Fun for All Ages and Fitness Levels!

About an Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends.

A Look Back — “Ode to Summer”

September 22, 2016September 22, 2016 / jrmilson / Leave a comment

“Ode to Summer”

Vacation trips, adventures, off-roading and more,

Fun with friends and family, summer’s never a bore.

Splashing dog washes and sudsy car washes,

Out in the backyards with our gardens and squashes.

We went to the beach (with kites!) and combed the seashore,

Searching for shells and pirates and treasures of yore.

Snorkeled and swam and played in the ocean,

Slathered with sunscreen and all sorts of lotion.

Towering castles we built entirely of sand,

And it was so much fun to step off dry land.

Barbeques, grilling, picnics, cookouts and parties,

Tossing candy to kids— to each a sweet roll of Smarties!

Jumping in puddles with muddy galoshes,

Searching for Bigfoot and hairy Sasquatches.

Trips to the park and we stayed out after dark,

Watching fireflies and cheering each July firework’s spark.

Fishing, camping, biking, hiking, and parasailing,

We did it all until the wallet was wailing.

We sat in the porch swing, relaxing with tea.

Oh! What a summer we had, you next to me.

Too soon summer has ended and its now the fall season,

But it’s fun to look back, as if we needed a reason.

Artwork by John Sloane — “Good Old Summertime”

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Stories on Amazon.

Old-fashioned, Family-friendly Stories and Fun for All Ages and Fitness Levels!

About an Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends.

“Empathy — Walking a Mile in Their Moccasins”

August 11, 2016August 12, 2016 / jrmilson / 1 Comment

As a kid growing up, to me my Mother was a suburban housewife, no different from all the other kids’ moms. Getting me off to school in the morning, keeping up the house while dad worked, having dinner ready when he got home. Doing the shopping and all the other household tasks of a 1950’s and 60’s housewife.

Only now, can I look back to realize and appreciate the rich Southern, Country and Native American background and traditions that my mother also brought to my upbringing. She had familiar and time-worn phrases that she would repeat over and over again which have stayed with me all my life. In retrospect, she was probably the wisest person I have ever known. One of her favorite admonitions was — “Never judge someone until you have walked a mile in their moccasins,” from the 1895 poem by Mary T. Lathrap.

Everyone has a story and a chapter they are living today in that story, and we are all part of the whole. What happens to one of us happens to all of us. The world needs more Empathy. So often we toss out the well-intentioned “Hey, how ya doin’?” without pause while we keep on walking. What if we stopped our own pursuits for a minute and meaningfully asked — “Really, how are you doing?” And cared.

The following is a wonderful, heartfelt video produced by the Cleveland Clinic which can be extended beyond the hospital walls to the world outside. When you look at someone, do you observe the outward appearance of the person in front of you, or do you feel and see the story of the individual?

“Could a greater miracle take place than for us to look through each other’s eyes for an instant?” — Henry David Thoreau

Everyone is living their own story, facing their own struggles and battles, most of which we are not aware, and it gets lonely in the trenches sometimes. We need to take the time and make the effort to learn the stories to let someone know they are not alone.

Thanks as always for visiting! Help make the world a more caring and better place today. — Jim (and Red!)

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Stories on Amazon.

Old-fashioned, Family-friendly Stories and Fun for All Ages and Fitness Levels!

About an Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends.

“Hello August, My Old Friend . . .”

August 4, 2016August 4, 2016 / jrmilson / 1 Comment

Happy August! I think. Truth be told, the month of August is a slog thru, survival test month for me.

Heat, Humidity and afternoon Headaches are a losing trifecta. Waking up clear-headed this morning, I realized that trying to work thru a headache is like trying to drive your car with the emergency brake on. You can eventually, slowly get there, but aware of something grinding, dragging, holding you back and burning all the way.

Had another nagging, summer humidity headache yesterday afternoon and the result was, oddly enough – a poem. More or less. Hard to see thru the haze, but it might be.

With deepest and heartfelt apologies to Simon and Garfunkel then . . . . . .

Hello August, my old friend.
I’ve come to sweat with you again.
Because my skin is quickly burning,
Feeling like I’m on a spit turning.
And the pain that was seared into my brain,
Still remains . . . . within the sound . . . . of agony.

“Friends,” said I, “you may not know,
Summer’s sultry heat wave grows.
Hear the forecast that it might teach you.
Use some sunscreen so it won’t scorch you.”
Hope my words, will be heeded by one and all,
As sweating . . . . we await the cooling breezes . . . . of Fall.

So here we are in August. That sweltering, grass-turned-brown, kids-back-to-school, muggy, hot and shriveled month that stands like the Great Wall of China between summer and the glorious season of Autumn. Kind of like surmounting the final obstacle on the course, fighting off exhaustion to doggedly climb over the Warped Wall to finish the race and survive to reach the other side, where sweet and spicy Pumpkin Pies, Candied Apples, Cider, Cookies and the open Highway to the Holiday Season await!

Hang in there and stay cool. Take frequent cooling breaks if working outdoors, limit physical exertion, wear loose fitting, light-colored clothing and stay hydrated with cool, clear liquids. And please remember to bring the pets indoors with you during extreme summer heat. They are wearing a fur coat and overheat, too. And just like children, they overheat as quickly as we do, if not more so. And check the backseats of cars, no one left behind.

We’re off for some iced tea and aspirins. And a big bucket of ice. Thanks as always for visiting with us! — Jim (and Red!)