Many relevant topics today are discussed in smaller groups and larger groups, such as church discussions. When I have questions about what God’s Word teaches on a certain topic, I ask a parent or family member. As a young person, I learn about what God’s Word says through sermons, presentations, discussion and visiting with family and friends.
Daniel: The stories of Daniel and David overcoming adversity comfort me. They trusted in God. Psalm 23 also gives me comfort. God is guiding my life and path toward our heavenly home.
Whenever I think about a journey in wilderness, I immediately remember the 40 years that the people of Israel spent traveling from Egypt to what is now Israel. It was an arduous and dangerous journey across a dry and hot desert. The story of that journey includes descriptions of arguments, complaints, rebellion and despair. But there were also good moments. Skillful artists have even represented that journey as a romantic expedition.
In the Finnish calendar, November 20th is designated as the Day of Children’s Rights and the week of November 15th-20th as the Week of Children’s Rights. This day has been in our calendar since 2002. The UN approved and ratified the Convention on Children’s Human Rights in 1989, and the convention came into effect in Finland 30 years ago, at the beginning of 1991.
I had been hoping we could take time in the early spring to visit my father’s home, an old farm called Lilvasaho at Juupajoki. We have usually gone there every summer, recently even more often. No-one lives there year-round, but people go there in the summer for vacation. The place is so beautiful and peaceful, and we enjoy doing odd chores while there.
Thank you for having come, summer. You, summer, are sheer light, light, light. You give growth even at times of drought. You give us all that we need to survive until you come back again. Thank you, summer, for having come.
I stand on the yard and gaze into autumnal twilight. My face is wet from drizzle. I take a deep breath. I know there are far too many things that require my attention. Too many expectations and demands. I stare into the deepening dusk. There is a lump in my throat. I feel so inadequate.
I was making notes for this blog post after eleven p.m. on Sunday evening. I was exhausted after a busy week, but I suddenly found myself humming with happiness instead of moaning with fatigue.
I am at Jämsä Opisto. Two confirmation camps of 50 students each are in process. One group is working downstairs, using the assembly hall when the whole group needs to be present as well as the outdoor dorms. We are upstairs. We do not have sauna, because the sauna section is within the territory of the downstairs camp. There is renovation going on in the kitchen. At lunch time we therefore run across the yard with our masks on into a big tent where large pots of heated soup are waiting. Mealtimes are staggered in such a way that the staff have time to disinfect the place in between the bubble groups.
The best way to get rid of one’s sense of well-being is to take on an excessive workload at the beginning of the summer.
I was waiting for mail from the editors of online Päivämies, wondering that the staff must be very busy not to have time even to acknowledge the reception of the blog post that I had recently sent! Finally, I went through my sent emails, but could not find the text I thought I had sent. It was not even in the drafts section.
In the morning dusk of the day commemorating children’s rights I was watching the Finnish flag flying on its pole. My mind was suddenly flooded with memories of my childhood and of the many children I have met over the decades.
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