beBetter 

As we come upon one of my favorite holidays, Thanksgiving, it always helps me reflect on how much I have to be thankful for.

We are still experiencing the waves of disruption caused by the hard trend of baby boomer retirements. Companies and firms are feeling the void as they watch the mass exodus of knowledge, wisdom and experience walk out the front door into retirement. This baby boomer hard trend, as all hard trends do, provides us opportunities also. Besides the opportunities for so many team members to step up in roles and grow exponentially, we have the opportunity to listen and learn as these valuable team members hang up their cleats.

As we watched the first two episodes of the new season of Yellowstone, you could hear a pin drop. Season three ended on a cliffhanger with multiple lives hanging in the balance and finally, it was time to get some answers. I’m not going to ruin it for those of you who haven’t caught up yet. But if you haven’t seen this series, my advice is to start at the beginning and turn off social media. 

Last Friday, I joined Jennifer Wilson and Amy Vetter on their weekly Leadership Lunch Chat LIVE to explore generous leadership and the element of gratitude. What I didn’t expect was to leave our discussion both humbled by their generous feedback and also convicted to be more intentional with my generosity. 

The 12 mph wind with a morning temperature of 34 degrees makes for a chilly deer stand. Nestling down in my big jacket, I pull up my face mask to help break some of the wind. The sun has just tipped over the trees and I’m consumed with how beautiful nature is.

As 2020 winds down, I think we are collectively breathing a sigh of relief that we made it through an extremely challenging year.

The time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger because there was no guest room available for them. Luke 2:6-7

In my Christian faith, this is why we celebrate Christmas. This is the greatest Christmas gift we will ever receive — God’s son, Jesus. God has never created a person He doesn’t love. It’s this love from  creation to now that we all need as we close out a disruptive 2020 and continue to face new challenges.

In December each year, millions of people celebrate religious and spiritually significant holidays, and universally, humankind continues to look for morally good virtues to live by and love is central to all of them.

For me, celebrating the birth of Jesus and the love of God helps put 2020 in perspective and prepares me for whatever 2021 has in store.

Here’s my prayer for you, your family and this Christmas celebration.

Lord, please grant us the grace to live with love for each other. May our Christmas and holiday celebrations start and end with a celebration of kindness and creative loving for each other. Please provide us the wisdom, safety and opportunity to see and visit with our loved ones. Thank You for the greatest Christmas gift of all. Amen.

I hope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season.

Our world is spinning faster than the teacup ride at the amusement park and most of us are feeling pretty dizzy. That was always the one ride that always made me woozy. And 2020 sure feels like the new teacup ride. COVID-19 continues to disrupt our lives and will certainly affect how some of us gather, or if we will gather at all, for Thanksgiving. Mix in some divisive politics, contested elections and social unrest, and we have a year that has been filled with disruption.

Just last night as I was straightening up our outside sitting area, I noticed CeCe had put out a new “thing.” CeCe likes to decorate and honestly, just between us, she is very talented with finding these “things” she accessorizes the house with. I laughed as I strolled by and glanced up to see our new sign: CLOSED.

Think about the Pilgrims in 1621 who hosted the first Thanksgiving dinner and how little they had to be thankful for compared to the many comforts we enjoy today. Thanksgiving is really a cool celebration as we step away from the fast treadmill of life to pause with family and friends to just be thankful. Giving thanks to God for our blessings and sharing our love with each other.

I'm flying home (boarding the plane last as usual) and since I have changed flights to grab an earlier flight home, I am in the very back of the plane. As I arrive at my seat, an older gentleman is trying to put a bag up in the overhead bin. I set my backpack down and reach up to help him. He quickly lets go as I take the weight off of him and sits down in the next row. I tuck his bag in and then realize I am sitting in the aisle seat right next to him.

“I thought I was cool and knew my abbreviations but you’re proving me wrong!”  “#IDKWTHTI” “What does #YSL mean?” “Man, the millennial here is trying to figure out #WTH #YSL means? Ha!” “What is #YSL?” “I’m GenX so I’m googling your #... ha”; “Don’t know what #YSL is, but keep rollin!” “I am way not cool, what does #YSL mean???”

Just a few of the fun texts from my friends coming in after my Fourth of July text message to them. My original text was, “Happy 4^th! #YSL.”  This hashtag originated from a blog I wrote four years ago, You So Lucky, which you can click for a quick read on the origin of #YSL.

The grocery stores are madhouses as everyone scrambles to prepare for their Thanksgiving feasts. Sunday lunches will soon be enjoyed with family and friends. But even as we began this week of preparation for Thanksgiving, news around the country has been clouded by the darkness of evil and hate.

How can we make a difference? Enjoy, Celebrate and be Thankful!