In Midsummer's Heat

We look for coolness, for refuge from the blazing sun, we are parched with thirst, inside and out. And we find beauty, strength and guidance from within, when we rest in Him who made us. With love to my fellow artists! As always, please enjoy the music at the end!  -Debra 
         <da:thumb id="604320986"/> <da:thumb id="346260341"/>                                        Lest we forget
In Flanders' fields, the poppies blow,
and we who walk among them know
that here men fought, and bravely died
with equal courage, side by side;
the lark has overcome the crow.
We touch the Dead in memory –
embrace them through the century.
The earth enshrines their valiant hearts
in Flanders' fields.
The torch has guttered years ago;
the enemy has been laid low.
And though your names should slowly fade,
your blood a better world has made.
Rest you now where the poppies grow
in Flanders' fields.  they call him salvationmayhap you found him
in each person, place, and thing
we're (all of us) flawed  believers plightso many secrets
escape disclosure
pain that defies
open exposure
wounds hidden
lips sealed
silence rots
until revealed
scars born bare
believers plight
closed eyes
never see the light  Six Ways to Resist the Temptation to CompareWe've all been there. You're standing in line, stuck in traffic, waiting for the timer to buzz or your friend to text back, and you click on Facebook or Twitter or some other new app. Then you see it: a photo of an old friend looking gorgeous in her swimsuit on a beach in Aruba. And the flood of crazy talk begins...
She looks so thin and fit. Did she use a filter?
Wasn't she just in Hawaii?
How much money does she have?
Who is that with her?
Those questions lead to more troubling statements...
I wish I looked like that.
I wish I could go on a vacation.
I wish we could afford a vacation.
I wish I had someone like that.
Recent studies: http://www2.psy.unsw.edu.au/Users/lvartanian/Publications/Fardouly,%20Diedrichs,%20Vartanian,%20&%20Halliwell%20(2015).pdf, support these self-doubting thoughts. Research shows that social media usage negatively affects a woman's mood, giving her a greater desire to change her physical appearance.
For most of us, social media is a part of every day lif