Animals/Nature Archives - Page 3 of 21

Hodgepodge

April 10, 2023 Diana Derringer Comments 9 comments

International students have joined us for dinner many times. One of their favorite dishes includes a hodgepodge of ingredients.

Chicken
Mild cheddar cheese
Rice
Onion
Milk
Broccoli
Cream of mushroom soup

The mixture looks messy but tastes great.

Hodgepodge refers to a jumbled mess of ingredients.

According to The Phrase Finder, hodgepodge “is a stew made with meat and a variety of vegetables.” It also refers to “any mixture of ingredients or … a mess.”

The expression can be traced to 14^th century France. The French made a dish called hotchpot. It was similar to our casserole or hotpot.

Hodgepodge describes more than food.

Notice the example in the above Magnolia Plantation scene. Neat flower rows can’t compare to several varieties mixed together like this.

Hodgepodge also includes:

Ideas
Clothes
Toys
Art
Pictures
Junk
Clutter of any kind

If we must clutter, I pray our clutter makes us burst with joy.

May we also spread that joy with friends from a hodgepodge of backgrounds.

Clap your hands, all peoples! Shout to God with loud songs of joy! (Psalm 47:1 NIV).

Thanks to Ginny Merritt for the suggestion.

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What’s Good for the Goose Is Good for the Gander

January 23, 2023 Diana Derringer Comments 0 Comment

If my sister received a privilege as a child, I thought I had the same right. My little brain believed what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

Since my grandmother raised geese, I knew a gander was a male goose. However, I also knew this expression applied to both males and females.

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander relates to fairness.

If my sister enjoyed a treat, I wanted one too. That included such favors as:

No chores
Late curfews
New clothes or books

If anything is okay for one person, it should be for another.

I wanted equal treatment, and so did my sister.

Regardless of backgrounds or circumstances, most people want to be treated with:

Respect
Dignity
Worth

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander keeps everyone off a high horse.

If my sister and I acted too high and mighty, we knew our goose was cooked. We ended up in trouble.

God created all people in His image.

To follow God means to treat one another with the same love, forgiveness, and justice God gives.

“Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly” (Leviticus 19:15 NIV).

Thanks to Becky Nash Rowe for the suggestion. Image by Ted Erski from Pixabay.

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Herding Cats

January 16, 2023 Diana Derringer Comments 2 comments

Juggling several responsibilities feels like herding cats. Difficult at its best, it becomes impossible at its worst. That truth holds, whether we:

Teach an unruly class
Work on multiple assignments

We find ourselves spread too thin.

Herding cats usually refers to an unmanageable group of people.

Trying to organize them becomes a nightmare. Think about:

Planning a wedding with people from several states
Getting a perfect picture of all those people

A few years ago, a commercial based on this expression became wildly popular. It compared the ease of herding cattle to the difficulty of herding cats.

Caring for small children frequently feels like herding cats.

Ask day care workers or preschool teachers. They organize school plays or end-of-year programs. Yet, children have others interests and ignore most directions.

Our most difficult work often becomes our most rewarding.

We make a greater difference than we realize.

Seemingly minor moments leave lasting impressions.
People hear and recall when we wonder if anyone heard or learned anything.

Keep working. Keep changing lives. Keep herding those cats.

“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it” (Proverbs 22:6 NIV).

Thanks to Darrin Jenkins for the suggestion. Image by Jan Mallander from Pixabay.

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When puppies have a tug of war, they use their mouths. However, people pull with their hands. Each team wants to pull the other over a line between them. Team members pull by alternating hand over fist.

Today, hand over fist usually means a quick and continuous action.

This applies whether:

Playing tug of war
Climbing a rope
Pulling something or someone with a rope

According to The Phrase Finder, an earlier version was hand over hand and meant “making steady progress.” Steady progress may be slower. However, it often results in more secure and lasting results.

This expression frequently refers to people who make money hand over fist.

Shrewd financial decisions increase their wealth. They may not grab money with their hands, but they do profit from business deals. Many times, their gain means someone else’s loss. They fight with no holds barred.

No decision or action should deliberately harm others.

The bottom line: If anyone suffers unnecessarily, the price is too high. Neither financial profit nor social gain are worth it. In a personal tug of war, let love for God and love for others pull every choice to the right side.

“The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (1 Timothy 6:10 NIV).

Thanks to Cindy Shoemaker for the suggestion. Images by Darby Browning and Stéphane CHADOURNE from Pixabay

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Not Have a Leg to Stand On

January 2, 2023 Diana Derringer Comments 8 comments

My friend Sharon recently bought a small decorative deer that did not have a leg to stand on. Actually, it had three legs, but the fourth leg was missing.

Sharon was not sure when she could exchange the deer. Creative person that she is, she used her grandchildren’s play dough to make a new leg. She painted the leg, so it would not look like it wore a cast.

Not have a leg to stand on means we have no support for our thoughts, words, or actions.

Not Have a Leg to Stand On--Deer with play dough leg — Play Dough to the Rescue

No facts back up our position. We lack the evidence we need. This applies to:

Personal positions
Courtroom arguments
Scientific studies
Medical trials
Educational research
Political stands

With no leg to stand on, we have no possibility for success. Regardless of our efforts, we end up spinning our wheels. We waste our time.

When that happens, we need to correct the situation.

Like my friend, we alter our circumstances. We may:

Change our stand
Take a new stand

Whatever we do, we want to seek and follow the truth.

We don’t give up. Rather, we find a better way. As my friend did with her deer, we fix what’s broken.

When we don’t have a leg to stand on, remember to look to the one who created us.

Not Have a Leg to Stand On--repaired leg — Ready to Serve Again

We may be broken and disabled, but God can pick up the pieces of our brokenness and make us whole again.

“If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all” (Isaiah 7:9 NIV).

Thanks to Sharon Berry for the suggestion and photos.

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The Blind Leading the Blind

December 12, 2022 Diana Derringer Comments 6 comments

The blind leading the blind does not work.

I have two friends who are blind. Both possess amazing talents — musically, intellectually, spiritually, and socially. However, they can’t help one another, or anyone else, safely cross a street. That requires someone with sight.

Both have loving family and friends who assist them when needed. Both also have guide dogs specially trained to help them.

The blind leading the blind describes people unable to do a task who try to help others perform that same task.

They can’t do it. If they try, both end up in a right smart of trouble.

People need to know what they are doing in order to help someone else.

They must have:

Knowledge
Experience
Skills

For example:

Help with math requires an understanding of math.
Assistance with cooking requires the ability to cook.
Guiding a tour group requires knowledge of the area.

We find the blind leading the blind in the Bible.

Jesus used it in Luke 6:39 and Matthew 15:14. In Matthew, religious leaders rejected the truth. Jesus described them as the blind leading the blind.

To help others is a good thing. Yet, that requires:

A willingness to learn
The ability to assist

Learn and develop skills first.

Then offer help.

“Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” (Matthew 15:14 NIV).

Thanks to Brad Leverett for the suggestion and to Cole Torbert (and Louie) for the photo.

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Go Off the Deep End

November 14, 2022 Diana Derringer Comments 11 comments

As children, my sister, brother, and I loved to go off the deep end of a swimming pool. We wanted to see what was under the water. Usually, we found nothing but the bottom of the pool.

In contrast, a dive into the depths of rivers or oceans reveals a new world. We find ourselves surrounded by:

Fish
Rocks
Plants
Other natural wonders

However, a word to the wise: Learn to swim before jumping into deep water.

To go off the deep end means to act crazy.

What we do makes no sense. Our behavior may result from feeling:

Upset
Angry
Excited
Grieved
Lovesick

We go overboard.

When we go off the deep end, we let our emotions take control.

Like a person who can’t swim but jumps into deep water, we fail to use reason. We overreact. We:

Speak before we think
Hurt others or ourselves
Act before we get the facts
Withdraw from sources of help
Move too fast in a relationship

God gave us emotions, but God also gave us brains. Let’s use our heads for more than hat racks.

“Leave behind your foolishness and begin to live; learn how to be wise” (Proverbs 9:6 TLB).

Thanks to Janna Babak for the suggestion.

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Can’t Beat It with a Stick

October 24, 2022 Diana Derringer Comments 8 comments

Our family loves Yellowstone National Park. For a travel destination, we can’t beat it with a stick.

Consider all it offers:

A crystal-clear lake
Majestic mountains
Thundering waterfalls

Plus, wildlife:

Bison
Elk
Deer
Bears
Wolves

However, its thermal features are our favorites:

Mud pots
Geysers
Steam vents
Hot springs

That explosive power just under the earth’s surface amazes us.

Can’t beat it with a stick means nothing is better.

We can’t improve it. Definitely not fair to middling, no greater deal exists.

Sometimes, we simply say we can’t beat it. It’s excellent, as we find in:

The beauty and wonder of Yellowstone
A dependable car or truck
The best meal of our lives
A bargain at the store

More impressive than any of this is its Creator.

We stand in wonder of the beauty and bounty of our earth. Yet, imagine the One who created it.

Imagine eternity with the Creator of everything.

God promises an eternal home in heaven to everyone who follows Jesus. The apostle John describes his vision of heaven in the Bible’s book of Revelation. However, heaven’s glory remains beyond anything we can imagine.

“’What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived’—the things God has prepared for those who love him—” (1 Corinthians 2:9 NIV).

Thanks to Joe and Ann Klotz for the suggestion. Do you have an expression you want explained or a thought about this one? If so, please comment below.

Congratulations to Frank Cheatham, whose name was randomly selected from my mailing list to receive a free copy of Shirley Crowder and Harriet Michael’s devotional book, Glimpses of the Savior: 50 Meditations for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Year.

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Play Possum

October 3, 2022 Diana Derringer Comments 8 comments

Many of us tried to play possum when we were children. We wanted to stay in bed when our parents said to get up. We kept our eyes closed and remained as still as possible.

We often display similar behaviors as adults. Some days we simply don’t want to rise and shine.

When opossums (or possums) feel threatened, they pretend to be dead.

They try to avoid attack by lying still. Their goal is for the other animals to leave them alone. Apparently, that defense works well.

When faced with danger:

They don’t fight.
They don’t run.
They play dead.

To play possum means to pretend to be dead or asleep.

It may also mean to pretend not to know. We want to avoid a person or situation. We don’t want to:

Wake up
Get up
Work
Accept responsibility

Like the possum, we hope the threat to our rest loses interest and goes away.

The time comes to stop playing possum and get to work.

We need and enjoy rest and play. Yet, for the best life, we also put our hand to the plow and meet our responsibilities.

“How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?” (Proverbs 6:9 NIV).

Thanks to Carole Fite for the suggestion.

Image by daynaw3990 from Pixabay

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Set Your Face Like Flint

September 19, 2022 Diana Derringer Comments 6 comments

Do you occasionally face tasks that seem impossible? Yet, you refuse to quit? Instead, you set your face like flint and finish the job before you?

Flint is a hard, dark rock.

It was often used in earlier times to make tools and start fires. Flint also makes strong stone walls.

To set your face like flint means to be determined.

When you face difficulties, you refuse to give up. Instead, you:

Focus on the task before you.
Dedicate yourself to its completion.

The prophet Isaiah described the Messiah, Jesus, as having “set my face like flint.”

Isaiah tells of Jesus’ determination to complete the role of a suffering servant. Jesus sacrificed His life on a cross to make eternal life possible for all who accept His gift.

You can follow Jesus’ example.

Life gets hard. Many tasks are tough. However, with God’s help, you can endure. You can keep on keeping on. You can also make a positive difference in an often negative world.

“Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame” (Isaiah 50:7 NIV).

Thanks to Linda Russell for the suggestion. Image by Wesley Rocha from Pixabay

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