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Page 10
Thursday, June 10, 2021
Connect the Dots: It’s all about Him
Shallow living By Dennis Siracusa
Gaston Day School held its commencement exercises last week. Here are some scenes from the memorable occasion including the Jr. Sr. Recognition and Senior Class walk. Photos by Mike Greene
Bev and I lived in San Antonio, Texas for eighteen years and had a lot of great experiences but upon reflection there were many things I wish I had engaged in that I didn’t explore. I had slipped into some shallow water living. We can do that don’t you know; get busy and settle. I played golf as a teenager and liked it but didn’t consider the intricacies of it well. I settled for “doing golf.” I used to camp, backpack, and fish like crazy for 10 years while living single in Colorado but I didn’t do much of that during 18 years in Texas.
Television and my business had a hook in me. I lived in the shallow water of meaningless TV and busy-ness. If you read the Banner newspaper much and read Alan Hodge’s articles you catch glimpses of a fascinating life. From my perspective he certainly can’t be accused of living in shallow waters. When I read some of his life episodes I reflect on what surrounds us here in Charlotte that few know about? Maybe the 1799 gold rush here is of interest or that James Polk; our 11th president lived in Pineville. Maybe you don’t know we have the Schiele Museum and planetarium in Gastonia or that the Mint museum in Charlotte is the oldest one in NC. The nearby blueridge parkway and countless beautiful waterfalls beckon as do various and sundry areas to fish or play golf. My first experience with a hummingbird moth was at the fascinating Stowe Gardens and I just heard about the Charlotte Wing Haven Historic Garden and bird sanctuary which sounds fascinating; all this and more awaits to add depth to our lives. In fact, all of creation is for our enjoyment; we need to tear ourselves away from shallow living and see the value in sampling new adventures; explore and reflect because all of life is really all about God and he wants to teach us about Himself and how He wired us. God wants
us to bec o m e all we can be, and that can only happen Dennis Siracusa with Him leading/ teaching us. How do we start? We must understand most of us are only up to our ankles in life and that is not living life. There are a great many shallow living temptations surrounding us. We’re too busy, too lazy, too absorbed with TV, news, social media, or the internet. Let’s consider who God is and that we owe Him the very breath we breathe; that showing Him honor and respect is our rightful place to start. We all, however, fall into some God dishonoring activity so how do we change? Methodists have a process called Examen where they come before the Lord and review each day’s activities from start to finish. If we want to change from shallow living we simply must spend time contemplating each component of our lives, and listening to and learning from the Lord. This is crucial to a healthy change process where God will lead us into deeper and fascinating waters. Matthew 6:33 “seek first the kingdom of heaven and then all these other things will be added to you.”
SOLE PATROL From Page 1 Patrol meant to them. “It’s amazing,” Wyatt said. “I love it. I have been waiting and praying for the reopening. I need the exercise and it’s a blessing to play cornhole, shuffleboard, and socialize. I drive myself here and try to come every day.” Grotts is from Iowa and relatively new to Mt. Holly. “We didn’t have anything like Sole Patrol there,” she said. “I like to get out and
meet people. I’ve been cooped up during the pandemic and it was horrible. It’s nice to come here and take that mask off and see happy faces.” Interested in joining the Sole Patrol? For Mt. Holly residents 55 and older it’s free. For non-resident’s it’s $10 a month. You can just show up at the Tuckaseegee Center and sign in. For more information call 704-951-3006.
SUDOKU Fill in the blank squares so that each row, each column, and each 3 by 3 block contain all of the digits 1 thru 9 using logic.
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www.tarheelsportsphotography.com Bill Bostick 704-813-6262 tarheelsportsphotography@gmail.com
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Check us out at:
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Bill Bostick Photography
