Welcome to Thankful Thursday. My goal for this blog is a place where people can learn something new. I hope that my blog becomes a place where we can learn from each other. My subscribers are from various ages and genders. Leave your ideas in the comments section. Hopefully, we’ll get some dialogue and learning taking place for each other. Living the Encouraged Life…Lynn

I have some more distilling On Mental Toughness (see blog April 17 for details) for you on some of the ideas in it.

Many professional athletes and successful corporate achievers have learned that their body needs rest or breaks every 90 to 120 minutes. Their rest can be 15 minutes of a walk outside, deep breathing exercises, or time “out” on the bench.

I’ve never been a “professional athlete” nor a “corporate” achiever, but I’ve certainly been an “A” personality over the years. Rest and failure were two opportunities I had to learn repeatedly in order to achieve anything. Sometimes it was very painful learning.

Today is May Day. I remember being a kid and the fun things we’d do in grade school to celebrate the day. I remember dancing around the May pole. 

I delivered May Day “anonymous” baskets to some neighbors. Our overall neighborhood has been kind and supportive of each other.

May Day is next Thursday….

“May Day” is originally a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer. The best-known modern May Day traditions are observed both in Europe and North America, include dancing around the maypole and crowning the Queen of May. Fading in popularity since the late 20th century is the tradition of giving of "May baskets", small baskets of sweets or flowers, usually left anonymously on neighbors' doorsteps.”

More from Roderick Gilkey and Clint Kilts again this week…

One book I’m reading right now is On Mental Toughness a collection of articles from Harvard Business Review. I’ll try to distill for you some of the research and ideas in it.

One aspect of cognitive fitness is working hard and playing hard. The origins of “play” are derived from the Old English word “plegian,” which means to exercise. Play is often considered a group or individual activity which is imaginative and promotes discovery and learning.

“Traditionally, scientists have assumed that people gain new skills through practice—that is, through direct experience—but the existence of mirror neurons means you can also gain skills through observation and indirect experience.”

— Roderick Gilkey and Clint Kilts

I can totally agree with this research. I spent most of my life practicing over and over whatever I wanted to learn. Most of the time my practice would result in proficiency of the skill. I’m not one that learns from observation because I’m an extrovert and just love interacting with people to learn new things.

So, where do we go from having so many interpretations of the Bible? So many opinions? So many feelings? I suggest that we slow down in the defense of our position and ponder what we may learn from another person.

This post is relatable for Christians or for anyone who went regularly to church growing up…

The church background from which one comes, whether or not one’s parents were Christians, the place and time of one’s birth and the broader culture in which one is raised, all serve to shape our beliefs and desires and how we approach the Bible far more than we imagine.