Tag Archives: Life

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What experiences in life helped you grow the most?

What experiences in life helped you grow the most?

I’ve had so many different experiences in life it’s difficult to narrow down and say “this one made me grow.”

The daily question: what experiences have helped you grow the most

We all face challenges. We all face difficult circumstances. Yet, why does it need to be the negative that causes us to grow?

Maybe it’s because failure teaches us the most important lessons in life. But the world teaches us that failure is bad, it needs to be avoided, and that if we fail we’re done.

In my life I’ve learned to embrace failure. Not because I want to fail, but because I’ve learned that failure more than anything helps me grow.

My biggest failure was when I failed out of high school. While all my other friends were heading off to college, I was stuck trying to take a couple of correspondence courses just to get my last two credits in order to graduate.

What I learned here is that one failure doesn’t set you on a predetermined course. Failures can often, more times than many, be the thing that pushes you to keep going .

What about you? What experiences have helped you grow in your life?

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Smoking Cheese- A New Hobby

Recently my wife has been experimenting with charcuterie boards and making snack trays for birthdays or when we have friends over. One thing I’ve always enjoyed is Smoked Cheese and crackers. So, I’ve decided to attempt smoking cheese- a new hobby. Or, a disaster, it’s yet to be determined

Smoking cheese- a new hobby

The first batch seems to of turned out well. I did three types of cheese. Colby jack, Sharp Cheddar, and a White Sharp Cheddar. I wanted to do some Gouda but they didn’t have any blocks.

The method was simple. Find a large disposal aluminum tray and fill it with ice.

Next place the cheese on either toothpicks or a small wire rack, and place it in a smaller tray. A tray that will fit nicely into the larger iced tray.

Smoke on a low heat at around 150 to 200. After one hour, flip the cheese, add some more ice if necessary, and smoke for another hour.

Last, wrap the cheese in parchment paper and place in the fridge for at least 48 hours.

Simple method, and probably the cheapest thing I’ve ever smoked.

So smoking cheese- A new hobby? Most likely.

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My Wife, Her Bread, and Her Life

My wife grew up cooking. Her love for the kitchen began at a young age, shortly after her father and brother passed. Throughout our time over the last 20-something years, I’ve seen her take on the role of family chef.

My wife made biscuits

That love led her to culinary school, where she became a certified chef, to serve at a church on staff for fifteen years running food service, and now back home to her favorite place- the family kitchen. One would think that you would eventually burn out when you’ve used your gifts to serve people who were often ungrateful and, at times, undervalued you as a person.

Not so.

Growing up, my grandmother was my biggest hero. And I see a lot of my grandmother in my wife—someone who always puts her family’s needs, desires, and well-being above her own. Through February, my wife has set a personal goal not to buy bread products for the month and to bake it all. I loved this idea because her bread is always perfect and tastes much better than store-bought bread. The smell brings back memories of my grandmother working in the kitchen. And that’s a smell I want my kids to remember.

My wife made baguettes

We often need to remember that heroes and legacy aren’t those with big followings. Many of us seek to make significant impacts, be known, and change the world with one TikTok at a time. But that’s not how the world is changed.

I hope my children don’t see the YouTubers they enjoy as their heroes. I hope they see them as entertainment. I hope they remember the sacrifice and love their mother pours out over them, the little things, the small points in life that seem minor but have a lasting impact.

Because that is what a hero does.

For me, it was watching my grandmother make french toast with a fresh loaf of bread she had just baked.

I’ve learned that for my wife, her bread, and her life, are all about serving the ones she loves. That’s a lesson I, my kids, and I hope you, can learn.

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I’m a Slow Reader

Here is a little confession: I’m a Slow Reader. 

I always have been. I used to envy people who read quickly, devouring books in a single day or thick epic fantasy stories over a weekend. But it’s okay that I’m slow, and there are many reasons why. 

eyeglasses on opened book beside cup of coffee on table
Photo by Oziel Gómez on Pexels.com

1) Time. With ADHD, I struggle to sit and stay focused for long periods. I get distracted easily, and the slightest thing can pull my mind away. 

2) I’m just slow. My average reading pace with proper comprehension is about 171 words per minute. Most people come in at around 250 words. That means if I read for a full hour, I can get through about 10,260 words. So a typical 100,000-word novel will take me about ten dedicated hours of reading time. 

3) Priority. I have a lot going on in life and wear many different hats. So sitting down to read is much more complicated than it was fifteen years ago. 

However, I’ve learned a few tricks to help me read more. 

1) I’ve learned to read in ten-minute chunks, which has helped. If I can carve about ten minutes here and ten minutes there, I’ve seen a vast improvement in the number of books I can consume. 

2) Audiobooks. I had to learn to listen to books. It didn’t come naturally. A great narrator can hold me for hours if need be. But I stress the “Great Narrator” part. I can consume more through audio than I used to. So I tend to devour them more now. I want publishing to get it together and learn to bundle ebooks and audio at a discounted price. They would make a fortune.  

3) Stop worrying about how much everyone else is reading. Reading isn’t a sport, it’s entertainment, it’s for enjoyment, it’s for disconnecting from an already chaotic world. I don’t need to keep up with everyone else. So, I don’t care if so and so has read ten more books than me this year. Good for them. 

I’m a slow reader. Maybe you are too. Guess what? That’s okay. Just dive in and learn to enjoy. 

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Simple Coffee

Some days I wonder if I’m getting old. I once enjoyed my coffee, all fixed up with different types of foam, syrup, and creamers. You know, the ones with those fancy names made by baristas I’m not cool enough to run in circles with. These days I much prefer a simple coffee, one that feels a little less chaotic.

Simple Coffee

I’ve discovered it has a much better and more refined taste when dumbed down. Even my coffee mugs seem simple. I now prefer an old plain diner mug to the one loaded with words and crazy graphics.

Maybe I’m getting boring.

Maybe I’m just a little reminiscent or enjoy specific memories. Like those of my grandmother sitting at a kitchen table with her Bible opened and a mug of coffee, adding nothing but just a touch of half and half.

Or maybe I prefer simplicity in my life now. I’m not sure. Maybe I’m exactly what some reading this are thinking – He’s strange.

I’ve cut my time back on social media to only a few calculated minutes here and there, trying to escape the noise, returning to a more straightforward method of just blogging my thoughts.

Simplicity, I think, might be my word for the year, which is weird to say because I’ve never considered making a word my word for the year. Yet here I am doing the very thing I’ve mocked or thought to be stupid in the past.

One thing is for sure. I’ve hit a level of productivity and production I haven’t seen in a year, and a lot of it has to do with cutting out the toxic, the chaos, and the noise that endlessly surrounds us.

Simplicity- it isn’t easy to achieve but necessary to endure.

Maybe some people are right. Perhaps I am just a little strange after all.

Maybe, That’s okay