Today I read an article my friend sent to me. The article was something that went viral on social media. When I finished reading it, I felt so bad that I had to take some Pepto-Bismol and lie down.
Yay some positivity again. I love the fact, Sean, that you so often point out the positives and blessings in our lives. Sad so many negative folk like to share their negativity to pull others down to their level. The sheer blessing of waking each morning, the trees, birds, and Gods countless blessings chase away all negative thoughts. My husband is late stage Alzheimer’s, and yes, I had my down days and weeks, but I came to realise It is what it Is, deal with it and look at the blessing of 60 years together, the ups and downs, the benefits of traveling many places due to his work. Nothing to be sad or sorrowful for. A great family and so much more. As the Swahili saying, now famous, goes, Hakuna Matata. Smile and the world smiles with you. God bless each and every one of your readers and of course you and Jamie and the dogs.
I wonder if there's something about Sean that draws those of us caring for a loved one with dementia? My mom's on the slow fade, and the friend who recommended Sean is caring for her mom, too. I think maybe we're all looking for something like his kinder, gentler humor!
Hi. I find his blogs so uplifting & hopeful. Alzheimer’s/Dementia is an awful thing to witness as a loved one is on The Long Goodbye (Nancy Reagan’s term). May you be strengthened & blessed on your journey.
Marie. I hope you have a wonderful trip to South Africa. We get an awful lot of bad press, and yes we have our problems. Not many places with no problems but we have such an amazing variety of scenery, gorgeous beaches, fantastic shopping and the wonderful wildlife. 🐆🦓🐘🦛🦏🦒. You’re sure to have a ball.
"One love, one heart..., Let's get together and feel alright." Dark chocolate crumbled into vanilla ice cream. Okeh, man. By the way, Bob Marley wrote that upbeat song when Jamaica was sharply divided about an upcoming election. It did help bring people together and prevent some bad things from happening.
This is my fourth story I've selected from the many, many choices presented to a new Substack reader. I was reminded of walking the shoreline looking for a whole sand dollar. They are tricky to find 'cause with some part being covered with sand, you have to almost pick up each one. Usually, it's not whole.
I haven't a clue who to pick to read, I've read soo many authors blurbs about their offerings.
Reading this story made my heart smile. I felt great about my pick just like the happiness of finding a whole sand dollar. Thank you.
Thanks! Funny thing, when you don't know anything . . so you have no bias . . ignorance actually opens your mind to consider a whole new world! What a concept, ignorance being an asset!?
PONE, interesting story bout the origins of the word Okey. Yous in the "feel good" bidness, and you do a dang good job of it. O course we all know there are plenty of serious problems in the world, and I know you do too. I guess most folks tend to fixate on the bad and take the good for granted, at least while making conversation. More fun to talk about or "git the sap rising." Yor gift is making good stories fun or emotionally engaging. But yet and still, we still all gotta deal with life's realities... I'm wid chew Bud!
"Either you deal with what is the reality, or you can be sure that the reality is going to deal with you."
I appreciate that Sean consecrates his writings to the uplifting . Because we so need to be reminded of this reality of life. Sean’s innate, God given ability to do this keeps us balanced.
I venture to say most of us are bombarded daily with the problems and anxiety in our country, in our world.
Sean reminds us every day of another side to life, to ourselves. Thereby enabling us to keep perspective and better carry on in the midst of reality’s harsher side.
I think okeh is different in every family. In mine..it’s thumb twiddling on the front porch and a fresh pound cake every Sunday…..an affirmation that things will be okeh…
One of my favorite preachers frequently said,”Blessed is he who expecteth nothing for he shall not be disappointed!” We shouldn’t allow negativity to dominate our thoughts! Okeh?
Don’t tell your wife, but I just love you. God really gave you the gift of gab and writing it down so everyone can understand it. There is good everywhere if you just open your eyes and look. OK?
Good morning and happy Friday to all yall. Well Sean allow me to teach you something that I didn't accept until i was a senior citizen. So here it is...
Wait now what the hell was it...
I can't remember.
My point is that I look for the good things in life, in people and in the things I read and watch. I ain't got time for the bad stuff. Been there and got the shirts.
Thats why I look forward to reading Sean's stuff and yall,s comments. Remind me to tell yall about the best beer in the world. Lets have another cupajoe and maybe one little square of Hershey,s
Anyone of us can have our personal feelings about everything going on in our country today, but, IF it's so bad, WHY are millions of immigrants paying thousands of $s and traveling hundreds, experiencing untold hardship up to and including death at times, and thousands of miles to come here! It's because our bad is not as bad as what they left. They want to come to the greatest country on Earth. My Grannie always said, " if you think you've got it bad, just look around and you'll see someone else who has it worse." I'm BLESSED and HIGHLY FAVORED to have been born in the country I was born in, to the family I was born in, and at the time God chose to put me here! As many complaints as I could come up with I can name many more good things, blessings, just as you did, Sean! Thank you for always bringing the focus back to the positive!!!!
Or look in the faces of a sleeping grandchild nestled in your arms or hear the purr of a feral cat that is now at home in your house with a full belly. Neither one of those are fattening like chocolate. God Bless you!
Beautiful Sean, beautiful!!!! You’re the master of “feel good”! Thanks for so much!
I wrote about my bipolar condition the other day. I did that to help Sean’s 9 year old letter writer. I just wanted to add asking y’all to please let me know if something that I post bothers you in any way. Don’t be afraid to be honest with me.
Writing is hard.
To be mentally healthy, I need to be mentally challenged. Posting here certainly does that. My website does that too. You should see it. I think you’ll love it! But I tend to fret over my work about offending others that I don’t want to offend. Or giving a wrong impression from my intention which is simply to help others on the web. I can develop manic depressive triggers by fretting. So I work to fret less.
Communicating with web friends is good therapy that builds strong bipolar brain muscles. My writing helps me. Your posting replies and likes here helps me. I get lots of help. I’m hopeful that I’m helping you too.
I’ve decided to include my website link with my Sean of the South’s comments going forward. I’m not advertising or selling anything. I just hope you visit. And I hope you are bolstered and uplifted during your visit… that’s all. I hope my website helps in the battle against chaos just a fraction of how Sean’s work does.
Love,
Ed - or you can call me Bear… just don’t call me late to supper! 🐻❤️
Hi Bear! I like that name! Thank you for sharing your heart here today. I think there is a lot of love here in the comments of Sean’s column. Glad. You felt comfortable enough to do that. I’m sending you a virtual Bear hug right now. God bless you and be with you.
Hi Ed, I agree that writing is difficult, but I've discovered that it becomes easier when I don't try too hard. I'm also a blogger and author. When I try to put things in my own words, I feel as if I'm forcing myself to make it sound good, with just the right descriptive phrases and sentence structure (I'm a retired teacher so old habits die hard!). But I hope my site blesses others and when the good Lord leads the way, my writing flows.
Like you, I'm also an artist. When I retired I told my husband, "I think I want to be an artist." He looked at me for awhile and said, "Okay. Do you have any experience?" I replied, "Well, no, but I just want to try." And I did. It has gone very well. Who would have thought that getting old would lead me to all these new endeavors? You are never too old to have a new life! And it is fun!
I love your art! And I love your calming words. Thank you for talking to me here and including your links. I hope you don’t mind if I share your blog and art site with my family. We, like everyone else, deal with challenges. I believe things happen for an ultimate good purpose. I’m glad you were moved to reply. Thank you for sharing!
Art is just a creation of our minds and hearts. It's wonderful in any form. I'll happily take your iPad art. Mine are oil paintings, and I'm incredibly slow and detailed. So it can be frustrating along the way.
DK fortunately dey hadn't discovered spellin or grummer when I graduated High Skool in 8th grade, si dat aubt no impediment ti me. Ah, the musins of a learned man! Sorry I'm just readung all yalls stuff and riffing off it. Yall are good!
Hi Diana, I tried to send you this message on you website contact form but was blocked. I’m not sure why. I hope you get this from Sean’s comments. Please let me know if you do. Anyway, I had subscribed to your blog but canceled. I figured that you probably get notifications when people do that but I didn’t get an option to explain why. I felt you were telling me in your writing that I needed to continually read the Bible to find peace. I don’t think that’s true of everyone. I know that many folks relate with you whole heartedly. I have read the Bible a bit. I was in a frenzy of Bible study for a while there. I experienced God’s love so you and I have that in common. We’re in that same boat. I find peace with my family and friends so I don’t need the Bible every day. I do thank God a lot. I always feel His love. He’s completely everywhere. You and I are just different people that’s all. I hope we can be friends here at Sean’s blog. He and I seem to have a lot in common.
Ditto, that you are a fine Artist! So glad that you don't just do "Abstract", like so many of the current 'artists'. It's such a joy to find and view and find Artists who are able to do good likeness drawings & paintings. Even landscapes which almost look like pictures.
As a musician, I spent time several times in your neck of the woods with my 'Texas' musician family, and a few others from Kansas, where we all met, at the "Old Settler's Music Festival"!
By the way Ed, I think hearing about your struggles with bipolar help other people with issues they may be having and understand where other bipolar folks are coming from. BTW gone check out eds-art.net, iffen you can handle a reader like me! I was just tellin Savanner Tiffany "Hurnery, you know Ole Pube ain't no slouch hisself" she said " Pube, dont sell yourself short- yous a tremendous slouch!" I guess I just impress her Dat much ever day!
No Bravo Sierra Ed- your posts impress me. You got Courage big Man!
Hey Ed looks like you're hitting on all 8 cylinders to me! You certainly dont come off offensively. Don't be self conscious. Your a damn good writer. Fire for effect@
Reminding me of the following song lyrics by Bob Marley-
“Everything's gonna be alright
Everything's gonna be alright
And nobody's gotta worry 'bout nothing
Don't go hittin' that panic button
It ain't worth spilling your drink
Everything's gonna be alright
Alright, alright”
This morning is definitely a no worries & everything’s gonna be alright kinda day. I will be celebrating my granddaughter’s 11 birthday with six of her closest girl friends after school. They’re having a pizza party with pizza from Screamin’ Mimi’s, Coca Cola, homemade brownies. They will also be lots of giggling, gossiping, talking fashion, & watching movies until late into the night.
Chocolate, dancing grandpas, all night singing, the beautiful Gulf, and Gaither homecomings… Every last bit of this sounds more than O.K. to me. Everything always works with a little change of perspective. ❤️
Yay some positivity again. I love the fact, Sean, that you so often point out the positives and blessings in our lives. Sad so many negative folk like to share their negativity to pull others down to their level. The sheer blessing of waking each morning, the trees, birds, and Gods countless blessings chase away all negative thoughts. My husband is late stage Alzheimer’s, and yes, I had my down days and weeks, but I came to realise It is what it Is, deal with it and look at the blessing of 60 years together, the ups and downs, the benefits of traveling many places due to his work. Nothing to be sad or sorrowful for. A great family and so much more. As the Swahili saying, now famous, goes, Hakuna Matata. Smile and the world smiles with you. God bless each and every one of your readers and of course you and Jamie and the dogs.
Love your attitude and I couldn’t agree more! Taking care of my Mom with dementia- I can relate!
While remembering those days, I can serve her well. Blessings Norma !
Many blessings to a fellow “traveller” on the rocky road.
I wonder if there's something about Sean that draws those of us caring for a loved one with dementia? My mom's on the slow fade, and the friend who recommended Sean is caring for her mom, too. I think maybe we're all looking for something like his kinder, gentler humor!
Hi. I find his blogs so uplifting & hopeful. Alzheimer’s/Dementia is an awful thing to witness as a loved one is on The Long Goodbye (Nancy Reagan’s term). May you be strengthened & blessed on your journey.
God bless you Norma Den.
Blessings & thank you from South Africa.
Norma Den…..I am coming to your country in 4 months!! I’m so excited!!!
You too EC!
Pu
I thought that your reply was a play off Gunga Din...until I saw there was a real Norma Den. Oh well: hello, South Africa!
I like that. My husbands name is Gordon and my Mother teased him by calling him a
Gunga Din. Thanks for the memory.
Bwana asha feway
OK Matt, Back at cha, whatever you said! What Tongue is dat? I admit it you whipped me on Dat one!
Pubert
Marie. I hope you have a wonderful trip to South Africa. We get an awful lot of bad press, and yes we have our problems. Not many places with no problems but we have such an amazing variety of scenery, gorgeous beaches, fantastic shopping and the wonderful wildlife. 🐆🦓🐘🦛🦏🦒. You’re sure to have a ball.
Excellent Nora Den. HAKUNA MATATA to you too. But caution! Fart in Church just one time, and schools out Sucka!
Your friend,
Pubert
"One love, one heart..., Let's get together and feel alright." Dark chocolate crumbled into vanilla ice cream. Okeh, man. By the way, Bob Marley wrote that upbeat song when Jamaica was sharply divided about an upcoming election. It did help bring people together and prevent some bad things from happening.
Dark chocolate and Bob Marley.....very Okeh!
Uh oh KM! Didn't know you was into it! Pardon me...
Pu
No, just dark chocolate and Bob Marley's music lol! No mood altering for me.
Lander B, plus a healthy dose of ganga! You know, small "mood stabilizer!" And no I ain't an advocate!
Pu
lol 😂
That’s pretty funny. That’s out of my territory, too.
This is my fourth story I've selected from the many, many choices presented to a new Substack reader. I was reminded of walking the shoreline looking for a whole sand dollar. They are tricky to find 'cause with some part being covered with sand, you have to almost pick up each one. Usually, it's not whole.
I haven't a clue who to pick to read, I've read soo many authors blurbs about their offerings.
Reading this story made my heart smile. I felt great about my pick just like the happiness of finding a whole sand dollar. Thank you.
Stick to Sean's column and you'll read lots of happy things every single day.
Thank you!
And look for a chance to see one of his shows. He's wonderful, and he gives GREAT hugs! Blesses my every day...
Thank you, I will. I don't know about shows yet. I'll look it up!
You absolutely picked a top notch one Cheryl!
Thanks! Funny thing, when you don't know anything . . so you have no bias . . ignorance actually opens your mind to consider a whole new world! What a concept, ignorance being an asset!?
PONE, interesting story bout the origins of the word Okey. Yous in the "feel good" bidness, and you do a dang good job of it. O course we all know there are plenty of serious problems in the world, and I know you do too. I guess most folks tend to fixate on the bad and take the good for granted, at least while making conversation. More fun to talk about or "git the sap rising." Yor gift is making good stories fun or emotionally engaging. But yet and still, we still all gotta deal with life's realities... I'm wid chew Bud!
"Either you deal with what is the reality, or you can be sure that the reality is going to deal with you."
- Alex Haley
Your friend,
Pubert
I appreciate that Sean consecrates his writings to the uplifting . Because we so need to be reminded of this reality of life. Sean’s innate, God given ability to do this keeps us balanced.
I venture to say most of us are bombarded daily with the problems and anxiety in our country, in our world.
Sean reminds us every day of another side to life, to ourselves. Thereby enabling us to keep perspective and better carry on in the midst of reality’s harsher side.
That’s a good quote Pubert. It says a lot. Thanks
It's the truth unfortunately!
PEB
Chocolate makes everything more than ok. And Sean, your writing is way beyond ok.
a chocolate pie really makes things better!!
wonder how chocolate on top of pimento cheese would be. nah!
Now I would smoke one a dem PMc!
Pu
I think okeh is different in every family. In mine..it’s thumb twiddling on the front porch and a fresh pound cake every Sunday…..an affirmation that things will be okeh…
My mom sat on her front porch every evening twiddling her thumbs, and she was known as the pound cake lady. Good memories!
And I bet she was in a rocking chair
Absolutely
It's the "front porch" part that brings back a bazillon precious memories!
One of my favorite preachers frequently said,”Blessed is he who expecteth nothing for he shall not be disappointed!” We shouldn’t allow negativity to dominate our thoughts! Okeh?
sounds good to me
Don’t tell your wife, but I just love you. God really gave you the gift of gab and writing it down so everyone can understand it. There is good everywhere if you just open your eyes and look. OK?
Good morning and happy Friday to all yall. Well Sean allow me to teach you something that I didn't accept until i was a senior citizen. So here it is...
Wait now what the hell was it...
I can't remember.
My point is that I look for the good things in life, in people and in the things I read and watch. I ain't got time for the bad stuff. Been there and got the shirts.
Thats why I look forward to reading Sean's stuff and yall,s comments. Remind me to tell yall about the best beer in the world. Lets have another cupajoe and maybe one little square of Hershey,s
Peace
I never thought that losing my memory would be a good thing
Ricky Dat ain't a Hershey you stepped in is it?
Pu
Anyone of us can have our personal feelings about everything going on in our country today, but, IF it's so bad, WHY are millions of immigrants paying thousands of $s and traveling hundreds, experiencing untold hardship up to and including death at times, and thousands of miles to come here! It's because our bad is not as bad as what they left. They want to come to the greatest country on Earth. My Grannie always said, " if you think you've got it bad, just look around and you'll see someone else who has it worse." I'm BLESSED and HIGHLY FAVORED to have been born in the country I was born in, to the family I was born in, and at the time God chose to put me here! As many complaints as I could come up with I can name many more good things, blessings, just as you did, Sean! Thank you for always bringing the focus back to the positive!!!!
Okeh and Amen❣️
Or look in the faces of a sleeping grandchild nestled in your arms or hear the purr of a feral cat that is now at home in your house with a full belly. Neither one of those are fattening like chocolate. God Bless you!
Beautiful Sean, beautiful!!!! You’re the master of “feel good”! Thanks for so much!
I wrote about my bipolar condition the other day. I did that to help Sean’s 9 year old letter writer. I just wanted to add asking y’all to please let me know if something that I post bothers you in any way. Don’t be afraid to be honest with me.
Writing is hard.
To be mentally healthy, I need to be mentally challenged. Posting here certainly does that. My website does that too. You should see it. I think you’ll love it! But I tend to fret over my work about offending others that I don’t want to offend. Or giving a wrong impression from my intention which is simply to help others on the web. I can develop manic depressive triggers by fretting. So I work to fret less.
Communicating with web friends is good therapy that builds strong bipolar brain muscles. My writing helps me. Your posting replies and likes here helps me. I get lots of help. I’m hopeful that I’m helping you too.
I’ve decided to include my website link with my Sean of the South’s comments going forward. I’m not advertising or selling anything. I just hope you visit. And I hope you are bolstered and uplifted during your visit… that’s all. I hope my website helps in the battle against chaos just a fraction of how Sean’s work does.
Love,
Ed - or you can call me Bear… just don’t call me late to supper! 🐻❤️
https://eds-art.net/
Casting Art to the Net
Hi Bear! I like that name! Thank you for sharing your heart here today. I think there is a lot of love here in the comments of Sean’s column. Glad. You felt comfortable enough to do that. I’m sending you a virtual Bear hug right now. God bless you and be with you.
Hi Ed, I agree that writing is difficult, but I've discovered that it becomes easier when I don't try too hard. I'm also a blogger and author. When I try to put things in my own words, I feel as if I'm forcing myself to make it sound good, with just the right descriptive phrases and sentence structure (I'm a retired teacher so old habits die hard!). But I hope my site blesses others and when the good Lord leads the way, my writing flows.
Like you, I'm also an artist. When I retired I told my husband, "I think I want to be an artist." He looked at me for awhile and said, "Okay. Do you have any experience?" I replied, "Well, no, but I just want to try." And I did. It has gone very well. Who would have thought that getting old would lead me to all these new endeavors? You are never too old to have a new life! And it is fun!
My site is https://grandma-d.com and to see my art, go to this site: www.Kinserart.com
Diana, you are a fantastic artist! Very impressive!
Thank you! I do love to do it.
I love your art! And I love your calming words. Thank you for talking to me here and including your links. I hope you don’t mind if I share your blog and art site with my family. We, like everyone else, deal with challenges. I believe things happen for an ultimate good purpose. I’m glad you were moved to reply. Thank you for sharing!
DK just don't show Pone up. But yours don't look like it's done on a iPad!
Pu
Art is just a creation of our minds and hearts. It's wonderful in any form. I'll happily take your iPad art. Mine are oil paintings, and I'm incredibly slow and detailed. So it can be frustrating along the way.
You funny Pu!
DK fortunately dey hadn't discovered spellin or grummer when I graduated High Skool in 8th grade, si dat aubt no impediment ti me. Ah, the musins of a learned man! Sorry I'm just readung all yalls stuff and riffing off it. Yall are good!
Pube
Beautiful landscapes, stills and people's puppers!!!! Love them all!!!
Hi Diana, I tried to send you this message on you website contact form but was blocked. I’m not sure why. I hope you get this from Sean’s comments. Please let me know if you do. Anyway, I had subscribed to your blog but canceled. I figured that you probably get notifications when people do that but I didn’t get an option to explain why. I felt you were telling me in your writing that I needed to continually read the Bible to find peace. I don’t think that’s true of everyone. I know that many folks relate with you whole heartedly. I have read the Bible a bit. I was in a frenzy of Bible study for a while there. I experienced God’s love so you and I have that in common. We’re in that same boat. I find peace with my family and friends so I don’t need the Bible every day. I do thank God a lot. I always feel His love. He’s completely everywhere. You and I are just different people that’s all. I hope we can be friends here at Sean’s blog. He and I seem to have a lot in common.
Love and best wishes,
Ed
Thanks for your response, Ed. I will have to figure out why the site did not let you respond. I respect your feelings.
Oh, there’s no need to worry about the site problem on my account. Thanks for answering me!
Thanks, and I yours.
Wow, Diana, you have amazing talent that really captures God’s glory. Your paintings are beautiful, too. Keep on keeping on.
Ditto, that you are a fine Artist! So glad that you don't just do "Abstract", like so many of the current 'artists'. It's such a joy to find and view and find Artists who are able to do good likeness drawings & paintings. Even landscapes which almost look like pictures.
As a musician, I spent time several times in your neck of the woods with my 'Texas' musician family, and a few others from Kansas, where we all met, at the "Old Settler's Music Festival"!
By the way Ed, I think hearing about your struggles with bipolar help other people with issues they may be having and understand where other bipolar folks are coming from. BTW gone check out eds-art.net, iffen you can handle a reader like me! I was just tellin Savanner Tiffany "Hurnery, you know Ole Pube ain't no slouch hisself" she said " Pube, dont sell yourself short- yous a tremendous slouch!" I guess I just impress her Dat much ever day!
No Bravo Sierra Ed- your posts impress me. You got Courage big Man!
Your friend,
Pubert Earle
Thanks buddy. I can tell you’ve seen a thing or two.
Hey Ed looks like you're hitting on all 8 cylinders to me! You certainly dont come off offensively. Don't be self conscious. Your a damn good writer. Fire for effect@
Pu
Reminding me of the following song lyrics by Bob Marley-
“Everything's gonna be alright
Everything's gonna be alright
And nobody's gotta worry 'bout nothing
Don't go hittin' that panic button
It ain't worth spilling your drink
Everything's gonna be alright
Alright, alright”
This morning is definitely a no worries & everything’s gonna be alright kinda day. I will be celebrating my granddaughter’s 11 birthday with six of her closest girl friends after school. They’re having a pizza party with pizza from Screamin’ Mimi’s, Coca Cola, homemade brownies. They will also be lots of giggling, gossiping, talking fashion, & watching movies until late into the night.
I mean what more could a Nana ask for💗
Chocolate, dancing grandpas, all night singing, the beautiful Gulf, and Gaither homecomings… Every last bit of this sounds more than O.K. to me. Everything always works with a little change of perspective. ❤️
Absolutely Karen, I hope you are having a good day!
…and a lot more Sean of the South!!
❤️❤️❤️