Things I Hope for in 2024

 Strong old trees near the ocean and my house.

There are lots of things I hope for in 2024.

Peace.

Laughter. I read P.G. Wodehouse for laughter. The Code of the Woosters is a hoot. 

Puppy love. The love of a pup old or young.

Play. Play with pup. Play with friends.

Silliness. Never too much silliness in my life, it is always welcome. Related to play, see above.

Reading. In this way I enlarge my world and my experiences and my knowledge. Reading Greenlights I get to learn some things Matthew McConaughey shares. Look for those green lights in life, friends.

Spend time outdoors. Breathe deeply in that clean outdoor air and send out prayers of thanks for all good things.

Continue to make new friends, welcome new people into church, invite them for coffee.

Pray for my country to turn back to our roots of freedom and faith and to secure our borders.

Change my routine a bit. Visit our Boardwalk and ride the horses on the carousel. See Silliness and Play above.

Plant more flowers and flowering shrubs and plant another fruit tree. I am thinking an apple tree. 

Just some quick thoughts have created this list. What are some of your hopes for 2024?

Matthew McConaughey's Greenlights, Anne Lamott, Tom Ryan and a happy old dog

 Books. Reading. Reading. Books. Two of my favorite things.

"Greenlights", a memoir by Matthew McConaughey turned out to be even greater than I had hoped. Plus Mr. M. is such a handsome man, isn't he? One of my favorite movies of his is Mud, not his most acclaimed movie, but excellent. Mr. M is a man of honorable character as is revealed in his memoir. It is easy to read, fun, has family photos, and lots of his words of wisdom on helping us find our own greenlights. Some of the tips are duct taped to the page in photos. Very clever format. Below is a photo of one of the tips on a page of his book. The note says "Knowin the truth, seein the truth, and tellin the truth are all different experiences." (he drops the "g" in those words for a reason).

Here are three books I recently purchased and read, all written by authors I think are honorable people. Thus their books resonate with me, and I am happy when reading them and thinking about them afterward.

"Dusk, Night, Dawn" by Anne Lamott. I buy all of her memoir/Christian ideas books. She is a free spirit. In this one we learn that she married for the first time in her life at age 60 or so. She never thought she would marry. Her essays are always interesting.

"Will's Red Coat: The Story of One Old Dog Who Chose To Live Again" by Tom Ryan. Why did I only recently discover this author, who obviously has a great heart? His earlier book "Following Atticus" is a best seller and is also about a dog Ryan loves. I aim to read that one soon. These are nonfiction. Will is an old dog who was adopted when quite deaf and almost blind and he sure grows to enjoy life.  Ryan is so attentive to Will, one clever way he helped him was by playing classical music and setting Will's bed so Will rests his head against the table leg so that even though deaf, he enjoys the vibrations of the music.

I see that all three of these are memoirs. What book treasures have you found to share?