I took these photos five weeks ago and I have every Wednesday since go by without posting them. Until today.

I captured the images after a brief thunderstorm passed through Aurora, Illinois while I was volunteering at Loaves and Fishes.

Once the thunderstorm passed through, the skies opened, the temperature dropped, and we were able to finish serving our clients for the evening.

I have never seen a double rainbow despite the fact that they aren’t considered rare, according to a quick Google search – a one in five chance!

Rainbows are exciting to see and a double rainbow even more so, even if it’s not a rare thing.

It’s Day 12 of Summer Break and I’ve been, errr, I mean we’ve been, busy. We were at the lake last week and drove home Sunday afternoon.

I had scheduled some appointments this week and I had planned to carve away at a few of those ‘things I am going to do…’ But really, the appointments and taking of the house and yard were the big things we needed to accomplish this week.

The biggest thing was the making the decision to retire from teaching and yesterday, I put in my notice with my school district. The effective date seems far away, but I’ve had my eye on the date – June 30, 2030 – for almost three years. There were lots of factor that went in two making the decision, but this year was my 27th year of teaching. Four more years will get me close to full retirement of 35 years, and it’s time.

I am excited, and nervous, and giddy at the idea of being able to take a long weekend and explore places without sneaking a day off or writing sub plans.

Last summer, my youngest brother retired. Yes, I was envious. Before he retired he and his wife purchased an RV and have been traveling on the weekends and short vacations in Texas and a few of the western states.

This spring he called and let me know they were planning to visit the Midwest and planned to stop and visit with us at the lake for a couple of days. Last Monday, they left their home in southeast Texas and headed north. Their plan was to do a giant loop around two of the Great Lakes – Michigan and Superior before winding their way back home through Michigan’s upper peninsula, then Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma before getting back home.

I am excited to see them.

Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true

Saturday will be here before I know it and I have a few a lot more to do’s and a couple more appointments before they arrive, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count one day at a time, because that’s how it works.

Have you ever seen a double rainbow?

I was able to remember a few more of the promises I made about summer and acted upon a few before we left town for the lake. We arrived at the lake house very late Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. The dogs barked, but our daughter (who was already here) did not wake. We brought in the essentials before collapsing into our beds.

We fully unloaded Wednesday when we awoke to an amazing day.

We’ve been busy since. Thursday I ran to town for errands and got the fixings for dinner and thought I’d capture a few signs for this week’s post and I discovered one of the signs hadn’t changed since late April!

Friday was a lazy day. Truly, it was overcast and it rained.

This morning it was cloudy and wet from the overnight rain, but it has since cleared and the sunshines brightly. Which means my moments of writing are few and fleeting.

The local veterinarian always has good signs and I captured the signs below when we were here in February and the images were ‘out of date’ by the time I had time to write.

There was snow on the ground and it was much colder than it is today. There is a breeze on the lake and it promises to warm to the mid-70s (about 24-26C). Hopefully, it will trigger more memories of other promises I made about getting a few chores done.

It’s Saturday and it is going to be a full day and as I think back to my first post at MtDC I am reminded,

This could possibility be the best day ever!
(This could possibility be the best day ever,)
And the forecast says that tomorrow will likely be a million and six times better.
So make every minute count, jump up, jump in, and seize the day,
And let’s make sure that in every single possible way,
Today is gonna be a great day!

So I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, because that’s how they come.

Do you have any promises you’ve made which are coming due?

I had thought this might be a funny sign of the week, but I think I might find one more appropriate for making my days count.

Thanks to Bushboy’s Last on the Card to enable the photo to find a use. I’ll be keeping my eyes open for another sign of the week.

In the meantime, I am going to make the days count, one day a t time.

What is the last photo you took? 

School’s out for summer and today is Day 1.

It’s a beautiful spring afternoon and I am trying to remember all the things I promised I’d do when summer came – but there are too many to remember. So, I’ll start with the lawn, then the mulch, and maybe my memory will return. Until then, I am going to have fun and stay safe. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, especially when getting started is the hardest thing to do.

What’s is a hard thing for you to get started with?

My dad was a Taurus. Today would have been his 82nd birthday. He passed away after a brief illness on July 20, 2009. He was 76, too young. His passing took me by surprise, though if I had been paying attention I would have known, or at the least been more prepared, more ready.

My dad and his mom – one year old – May 1934

It seems like just the other day, but it was almost six years ago. It was at the end of the school year and I remember the entire event unfolding in slow motion in my memory, as if it were yesterday.

A year after my dad passed away, my brothers and I escorted his cremains to France and spread his ashes where he wanted to spend eternity in the countryside of northern France. Since that summer, I’ve been on a quest to recapture and gather my history, my story – who I am, where I have been, and where I am headed. In a way, MakingtheDaysCount.org has been my journal and my travelogue.

This past spring we took a trip to Washington, D.C. and on our way home, we stopped in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where my dad’s parents are buried. It was my side trip. I had never been to the cemetery. I was too young to have gone to my grandfather’s funeral and there was no service for my grandmother when she passed away several years ago. My mom and my step-mom were instrumental in helping me find my way to their gravesite; and since that trip, I have questioned both of them about my dad’s family. It’s been over forty years since my parents divorced and my mom’s memory of my dad’s parents is understandably fragmented. My stepmother’s memory is equally patchy because she married my dad after my grandfather passed away and she and her mother-in-law, my grandmother, had limited contact. However, my stepmom had my grandparent’s photos. A couple of weeks ago an envelope arrived in my mailbox and it was full of photos of my dad and his parents. I sifted through the photos and found notes from my grandmother to us three boys. I need to spend some time and make copies and forward them to my brothers – if they read this – which I doubt – they’ll discover I have some photos, I haven’t disclosed. Sorry, bros.

My dad was born in the middle of the Depression, a couple of months after FDR took over the helm for his first term. He was born in West Virginian coal country in Huntington. Life was very difficult for him – his parents divorced and his mom remarried when he was in grade school. His step-dad – the man I know as my grandfather – adopted him when my dad was in his teens. He had a difficult relationship with his mom and it spilled over in to my relationship with him. It turns out I was just as bull-headed as my Taurus father, despite being a Scorpion. His tough upbringing branded him in a way I am only just beginning to uncover and understand. I remember his busting my chops about wearing blue jeans when I was in my twenties. I asked him why he couldn’t understand or cut me slack and he looked me dead in the eye with the coldest iciest stare, and he said:

“Sonny, I worked my ass off, so I’d never have to wear blue jeans.”

He never did wear blue jeans.

He graduated high school sixty-five years ago this June and he went off to college, graduating in 1958 after a three-year stint in the Marine Corps from 1953-56. He met my mom in 1958 or 1959 and they married in 1960. The rest, they say is history, my story. Regardless, today would have been his birthday. I’ve been blogging for almost five years and I wonder what he would think about this space or this post. He never did like the internet, despite being an early adopter of the personal computer. He loved basketball, especially his alma mater Kentucky and enjoyed playing golf. He was a book collector, an avid reader, and amateur historian. We talked history and politics. I remember arguing, being lectured; and learning. He was a complex person, which I am still discovering six years after his passing, and today would have been his birthday. Happy birthday, dad.

Out of the corner of my eye, I am watching the Blackhawks and the Ducks play hockey and it’s late, very late. Usually at this time, I am looking at the inside of my eyelids and sawing logs. I’ve planned tomorrow’s lessons, I am ready for Wednesday and whatever it brings. Today is gonna be a great day, possibly a million and six times better than Tuesday, so I had better finish this post and get to sleep. The Hawks can wait – they’re into the third period of overtime. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, because that’s the way it comes.

How do you handle a loved one’s birthday after they have passed away?

image courtesy of Space.com

I was reminded by the sign below that I have a great deal for which to be thankful. I found it a couple of weeks ago, and I found the time this morning to write about it.

A week ago, I had a flashback to my first year of blogging and I reached out to a parent of a former student from the 2010-11 school year. It was my first year of blogging and she introduced me to another blogger whom she had met the summer before. I was, and still am, thankful. My message was brief and it took several attempts to find the correct email address before the message went through without a mailer-daemon reply.

Good morning,

I am not sure if this going to work… but I’ll give it a try.

Thought of you and your son this morning as I started my day – it is the day the first Coca-Cola is served in Atlanta!

I remember your family came back from a trip to the UK with a copy of a CD by One Night Only as it wasn’t available in the US.

My son – who’s your son’s age and grade, is now a firefighter paramedic, married, and has twin boys (18 months old). How is your son? And how are you doing?

I hope all is well, peace. BTW, I am still blogging at https://makingthedayscount.org

Semper sharkus,

I received a reply and I have yet to reply, but I will before the day is done. It was great to hear of my former student’s successes since he left my class, I knew he was destined for greatness as he showed curiosity, resilience, and great sense of humor as a seventh-grade boy.

Friday afternoon, I attended a retirement celebration for three of my fellow educators who are finishing their careers and retiring this year. One of them has been at our school since it opened in 2001 and many former teachers and administrators showed up for the party. It was wonderful to see so many people I haven’t seen for several years and catch up.

One of them was a band teacher who left about the time I had Edward, or maybe it was before. But it’s been a while. As we talked, he shared how he remembered the MtDC posts I would share via Facebook. I stopped sharing my blog posts on the platform when FB labeled them spam and contrary to the rules of the platform. I never understood how it happened, but it was probably a word or phrase that got flagged, so I stopped. The entire thing had me in knots, before I let it go.

It’s true I have far more blessings than I have problems as the sign says. Sometimes I just need the reminder.

In a few weeks, my sixteenth year of blogging will roll over to seventeenth. It is hard to believe it’s been that long, but it has. I have learned a lot along the path, and I know I am a better person for my years blogging.

Today is going to be a great day, if I can only trust it. It could possibly be a million and six times better than yesterday. So, I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time making time to be present and patient.

What’s on your plate for the day?

This week’s sign is too good to allow to wither away on the vine. I found it by accident. I drove past this week’s sign Saturday morning. I was in the left lane and didn’t see it until I was almost past it.

This morning, I went back to capture the sign I missed yesterday. I’ve have added the sign to my ‘must curate’ list, and I will be driving past it more often!

Mother’s Day in our house means celebrating my wife by weeding, spring yard cleaning, and spreading mulch, and getting the yard and garden, and anything outside looking great for spring.

It’s a labor of love.

At the end of a day’s work, we sit down and have dinner together on the deck, if it’s warm enough.

Every year on this day I think of my mom, and my stepmom.

Those two moms shaped me onto the person I have become. Like the craftsman that shapes a block of wood; my mother sculpted me by knocking off corners first, then craving, and sculpting me before sanding to finish me. My stepmother aided in the process. I would not be the person I am without those two.

And the rough spots that remain, are the dominion of my wife (and daughter) who continue the work of removing any blemish or growth that remains.

It’s a labor of love.

I am work in progress and I am trying to be a better every day.

I am already behind my self-imposed schedule so; I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Today is going the be an amazing day. Making the days Count since 1961, one day at a time with the help of some very special women.

What are you going to do to celebrate the day?

Yellow was my mom’s favorite color, at least I think it was. She’s been gone seven years now and there are so many questions I have that will forever go unanswered. I am going to have to go on believing that yellow was her favorite color.

Sunday morning, I looked out the kitchen window and saw an American Goldfinch, or spinus tristis, at the seed feeder. It was bright yellow and I couldn’t miss it.

I also uploaded it to a new app I discovered while watching CBS Sunday Morning before spring break. It’s called iNaturalist. The app encourages amateur scientists across the globe to share photos of living things – plants, animals, insects, and birds. I am just beginning to explore with it.

I shared the app and video with my students before we left for spring break encouraging them to be curious and full of wonder completely oblivious to the scheduled launch of Artemis II the following week.

My mom encouraged me to be curious as a child, and often in our conversations through adulthood. She’d love that I was reminded of her through seeing a spinus tristis.

It’s Wednesday and I have a full plate today. So, I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days COUNT, one day at a time, seeing yellow is better than seeing ‘red.’

What’s a color you can’t miss?

It’s officially spring, though we’re almost two weeks in or a month depending on which measure you use –  astronomical or meteorological. Either way you look it is spring with Easter Sunday this weekend.

I am certain It won’t snow where we are. It’s spring break and my wife and I are in the Florida Keys for a week. We are staying where we’ve spent every spring break since 2016, with the lone exception of 2020 when we were locked in at the lake.

Our rental offers a front row seat for sunrises. Every morning, I wake early so I don’t miss one. This morning, I set off to watch the sunrise from the eastern approach to the Bahia Honda Bridge. I miscalculated, the old bridge obscured the view of the sun breaking the horizon, but I waited patiently and was rewarded with the image below.

Last night when we returned from dinner, we gazed at the moon which had risen over the Atlantic. Over dinner we talked about today’s scheduled moon launch when NASA will launch Artemis II for the first manned spaceflight to the moon since December 1972. And, of course we shared our childhood  memories of launches and splash downs.

I wondered if people will be watching the launch like we were some fifty years ago.

It is Wednesday morning and April Fools. I’ve been fooled more than once, and I’ve done my share of  foolin’ but not today. Today is going to be an amazing day, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, under the sun, the moon, and the stars.

How is the sun or the moon lighting your path today?

I took the photo above last Friday after finishing my morning bus duty shepherding parents as they dropped their children off for school. It is fun duty and I have struck up a friendship with a former student’s dog who always is along for the morning ride. At first, the dog parked at me, but now she (or he) just looks at me and makes eye contact with me as they drive past into the circle drive.

I figured I would have time last weekend to put together a “Sign of the Week” post, but somehow the time slipped through my fingers and here I am a week later writing that post.

We all go through storms and somehow we end up on the other side of the storm in a better place and maybe a little stronger for the experience.

The past few months I’ve been chasing my tail and trying to keep up. I never seem to catch up, but here I am.

Last Friday afternoon, I stayed late to grade papers and sort through the study guides I had collected and review the data from the summative assessment (teacher word for final exam) I had given in science classes. My students did well and I was impressed, I had been worried that the February slump we’d all fallen into had taken a toll on their learning, but their scores showed they had recovered. My persistence, stubbornness, and belief they had learned the content was rewarded. And so were they.

It had been a stormy Friday. When I walked out, the storms had passed and the setting sun was making an appearance as the storm clouds moved out the area. It was the perfect moment and a rainbow was visible.

It was stunning.

Really it’s been a stormy week from last Friday’s thunderstorms to Tuesday’s violent thunderstorms with a reported F3 tornado a little south of us to the windstorm that plowed through last night, it has been a week of weather.

In some ways that is life, we roll with it make the best of what comes at us. We make the best of what we get, because what we get sometimes is not within our control. We Make the Days Count, one day at a time, sometimes fighting a wind, or sometimes catching the wind.

How are you handling the weather this year?

NOTE: I am leaving the ‘snow’ on until April. The forecast calls for snow Monday morning and we are really never out of woods for the possibility of snow until Mother’s Day in May. Really.