Matthew Lyle Landsman

Tomorrow I hope to be clinging to a compliment I may receive today. I will hold onto that moment like it was a helium balloon…And in that balloon will be enclosed the not so flattering moments that will no doubt occur, but won’t matter as much as the pure joy that arises from a simple gesture of kindness.
Tomorrow, I will also know that a gesture of good will toward another will have given them a lift, given them a reason to smile, even the midst of an otherwise unremarkable day. I will have shared the truth with them…that they are unique, worthy, and deserving. I will gift them a smile, and ask how the day is treating them, then I will really listen to what they share…and I will either high five them for the success of their efforts, or I will offer them an honest moment of praise and prayer…a verbal hug. It may not change their reality, but it will go far to change their perception of it.
I hope to see a lot of folks clinging to metaphoric and glad helium balloons by week’s end…then I too will share in the simple joy that seeing the assembly of them all will bring. MLL

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Another day to be thankful for. Another chance to change the world, to cause smiles and laughter to break out, to offer a shoulder to a wounded soul, to scatter compliments liberally, to forgive, to recall and celebrate anew.
This is another chance for us all to be effective, and to recognize that the Serenity Prayer is the most healing balm to the soul one might find to take away the twinge of pain that accompanies our daily lives.
It is Monday folks…and any day is worth celebrating here on the green side of the turf that lays beneath our feet. Be well all..

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I will give this day the best I can. I hope it to be better than my yesterday, and leaves me still with inspiration and incentive to continue to maintain a smile and a glad place inside, and in those around me.
Go out there and do the best you can people. Even if only God and you know how you’re trying, it will be more good enough. Have a good day all. MLL

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The beautiful couple, my nephew Marcos Tapia and his new bride Julie

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For Marcos and Julie on their day…

If one is blessed, fortunate and just plain lucky, the stars may seem to align for you.
If one absorbs the good teaching of their parents, the essence of honor and respect, they will in turn be blessed with the same.
If one has conviction, trust, and good old fashioned faith, they will also attract in kind.
If one has an open mind, and open heart, and a place within for others, they too will find the bounties of a soul worthy of another with such light within.
One might need to look beyond the borders near to you, beyond the urge to find a quick result and the first urges to grasp what they will forever hold.
If one has a song in their heart, and a steady chorus of laughter, of sincerity, and shares it in healthy doses…they will find themselves surrounded with a glad air and a soft place to land.
I met Marcos and this family when I was much younger, as we all were.
Juan and Terry were in the midst of a meager beginning…and their two boys were already hard working young gentlemen…even though they were but kiddos.
Somehow the good Lord brought both of our families to know one another, to grow in each other…and so I represent that bond here today, along with Papa Gordy who is here today…and Grandma Vimy, whose spirit is present in this trinket she wore as her slogan during life.
I talked with Marcos on the phone the other day…about the chances and moments that brought him to know of Julie, somewhere far to the south and east of here over a decade ago. He talked of the calls, the emails, then their first meeting. He shared time with me, and all I could see was a divine fate. I could see one blessed moment after another, where the stars aligned, the odds were narrowed, and the distance between them became but just a number. Became something that would soon disappear.
And I heard Marcos tell me of Julie being a calming presence and truing rudder in the sometimes trouble waters we call his life. Of her being steady, supportive, patient, kind and full of belief in his potential, his love of family, his respect for the women in his life…And a fierce defender of all he loved. She helped him to be the man he was destined to become…
But mostly what I saw in Marcos was the emergence of a fine man, now a fine father, a fine nephew.
And in Julie, I saw simply love, and an ability to do all that is called for to make an ongoing love possible. Her love lives in Marcos’ smile and accompanies him always…And then there came Briella…the first grandchild and the light in both their eyes. The light in the eyes of all of us here to honor this extended family today.
They call Texas the lone star state. It occurs to me, that out of all the stars in the sky, of the billions of people here on God’s earth…that somehow these two found each other, and chose to become as one. And it occurs to me, that perhaps Texas might be missing its shining star, because she sits here today at his side. And I know in my heart that in Julie having joined us here in this corner of this State far from her roots in the South…that she not only came North to shine among us all, but also to fill Marcos with a gift that only such a love can bestow…she is his True North and we are all blessed today because of that.
God bless the three of them…Tio Matt

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