Marilyn's Musings
April 21, 2026
“And the sun rises for another day; Thanks Be to God”. I wanted to start out this week with a thank you to God for everything He does for us. The sun rising is one thing that happens every day, we might not see it if it is a rainy or cloudy day, but it is there. I hope everyone who is reading this is well and happy, if not God is there for you. Just take a few minutes and say a prayer and talk to Him, He will listen.
I am feeling blessed after the last couple of weeks. The Thrift Shoppe had an amazing sale this month. It has become a social time for us to share fellowship with our customers and now, we have live music to share with them. We have our guitarist playing for us all day and enjoying every minute of it. Next month our sale is the day before Mother’s Day and we will have another surprise for you in our Annex. This past weekend we had a “double drop off day” on Saturday morning and were blessed again by donations for the food pantry and the Thrift Shoppe. Sometimes we are just amazed at how good people are to the charities and needs of our community that we can take care of through Old North and the gifts we get. Thank you to everyone.
Here is a cute saying I found today. “The world needs more people who stop to admire the moss, greet the animals in the woods, collect little nature trinkets, and pause to look at the moon through the trees.” I guess the first question is – “Do you go for walks either short or long?” It doesn’t matter. Sometimes I walk around my yard and other days I walk around the block. Sometimes I go up to the State Line Lookout in Alpine to see the views of the Hudson River and New York. There is so much life up there, even if you are alone. The plants are growing in the gardens and in the woods and, yes, there is moss growing in the shade. It is coming up over rocks and is such a strong plant and a beautiful shade of green. Next question – “Do you talk to the animals?” I do. I say hello to the birds and the squirrels as they come and sit on my back deck. I see hawks and falcons flying up by the river and gliding with the wind and wish I could see the world like they do. When my daughter goes for a walk in the woods, she leaves a little stone either painted different colors or just saying a word or two. Sometimes it says “joy” other times it says “strength” and very often it says “love”. Those painted stones could be a trinket for someone to pick up and be thankful for. You never know what you will find walking in the woods on a spring day. The world needs people that stop and take a moment to enjoy nature. And then, they can say “Good night God” when they see the moon between the trees.
I’d like to talk about something Pastor Debbie said in church this week. She mentioned about praying for people most of us would never think of praying for. She mentioned leaders in the countries that are at war or threatening war. I would never think to pray for them. I am sure I am like a lot of people and leaning towards being angry with leaders during this unsettling time in the world today. Maybe, just maybe, some of us might think about praying for our leaders just to know God while we are walking in the woods. They are so busy trying to hurt each other and see who can “win” the war. Does anyone really “win”? I know they would benefit by a simple prayer said by anyone of us – just say “Dear God please be with ------- and let him know Your love”. A simple prayer while you are wandering or sitting outside (fill in a name that you think needs a prayer). We always pray for each other, but not always for our leaders.
As we go through this week let’s remember no matter where we are walking, we are not alone. God is with us.
“He Leadeth Me, O Blessed Thought”
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=ic3p8xlzf_Q&si=mIWoxcdB1lr1d5ba
