Sometimes, I wrote yesterday, when our hearts are exposed we seem like a car in need of a jump-start: cold, (e)motionless and hard as steel.

I asked: How’s your character?

Does Your Character Need A Jump-Start?

Our music affects us.
Does yours lift you up or tear you down?

Our friends’ influence us.
Do your friends build your character or burden your conscience?

Our books teach us
Is  your reading list bad, neutral or helpful? Why settle for bad or neutral?

Our mentors guide us
Do you follow your mentor’s lead or make excuses and postpone progress?

I’m anticipating cold temperature this week. In the Twin Cities this week is the week that historically has the lowest low temperatures.

While I’m driving to work today I realized how cold it really was.
Single-digits.

Jump-start

I’m blessed to own a running vehicle.
It’s not always been that way.

Dead in the driveway.
Freezing cold outside.
The wind blowing through my coat.
Howling, as India.Arie sang, “where the wind calls my name.”

Stuck.
Frustrated.

My car was cold, hard, motionless steel.

Jump-starts

Those words make me cringe: cold, hard, motionless steel.

Broomball In A Blizzard

The snow fell relentlessly. By the end of the game the ice on the rink was covered by inches of snow.

My friend Matt Benson, pictured here, was playing goalie during this Spring storm. He lay in goal on a comfy layer of fresh snow.

He’s safe but more than once while playing broomball I’ve been bruised and bloodied, but on this particular day I felt nearly invincible.

Snow fell while we raced across the ice. The falling snow made falling on the ice a far safer venture than usual.

Trusting people, like trusting the weather forecast, is difficult; there are many variables.

Trusting someone is hard, but it’s even harder for some people.  When we’ve been burned by untrustworthy people, we distrust others.

When friends or family member abandon us, we assume others will do the same thing.

When we’ve lost a loved one, we have life experiences that often make trust seem even more risky.

When we have scars and unhealed open wounds they beckon us to believe that love is not worth it.

Trust is precious.  Trust is a gift.