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Graduation Gift Idea with Poem
It’s that time of year when you’re giving gifts to the high school graduates. Why not give them something useful, meaningful, AND sweet?! Print out this poem, and find some colored twine (maybe their high school colors, college colors, or just favorite colors).
Print the poem download below (same poem 3 times).
Fill a mason jar with chocolate Hershey kisses and hugs.
Buy some simple, plain notecards with envelopes. Get some stamps and go ahead and put the postage on there. This is a big one, as most “kids” that age don’t want to mess with buying stamps.
Wrap the twine around the notes and jar, and punch a hole in the poem (printed on cardstock for durability) and tie it to the jar as well. Easy peasy!
The Path to the Known but not Seen
Wow, what a crazy time it is in our world! I’m so thankful that my hope and faith are in my Lord and Savior! I’m trying to say, “Get away!” to the fear and control that pop up! I love this picture because I know the ocean is just over those dunes, but I can’t see it. Maybe it can be a reminder to you too. Just knowing God is in control and working and moving in beautiful ways, that we may not see yet, can give us peace and hope. Don’t you just love walking a path to the ocean and smelling the salty air and hearing the waves before you can even see it all? I sure do!
Tide Pool Exploring
One of my favorite things at the beach is a tide pool. It’s like a whole little world in that little isolated pool of saltwater! It’s often easy to spot little fish, sea stars, sea cucumbers, anemones, and urchins. Just remember to find spots to step on that aren’t covered in algae (very slippery), and don’t take the creatures from their home. It is really cool to gently pick up a sea cucumber or urchin, though, and feel for yourself if it is prickly or slimy, soft or rough. Tide pools provide a great way to learn more about God’s creation, and I plan to continue exploring as many as I can!
Let’s Go A-Snorkeling!
Snorkeling is such a fun way to see the underwater world. I love to swim steadily and hear my breathing relax and look around to see what I can see. I think just like above the water, below it are so many wonderful creatures and so much beauty we may miss if we don’t really look for it. Snorkeling in the Bahamas was beautiful with the super clear water and sea turtles and colorful fish. When I came upon 2 southern stingrays, I was caught off guard a bit because they’re great at blending into the sand. They will bury themselves to stay hidden then flap their wing-like fins to stir up any prey they may have found hiding in the sand. It’s good to do the “stingray shuffle” when you’re walking around in the water just in case there’s a stingray hanging out on the sandy bottom. This will scare it away, since it would really rather swim away from you than sting you.
Manatee Love
I remember reading Ranger Rick magazines (not creation-based) as a kid and learning about this super cute, harmless, giant marine mammal and I was in love. Swooning over the photos of these adorable animals, I knew I had to learn more about manatees. Between beach trips with my family and learning through sources like Ranger Rick, a passion for ocean life grew inside my heart. I’m so thankful for books, videos, and websites (hopefully, like this one) to share knowledge and promote understanding of God’s creation, but nothing beats getting out in it and delighting in His creation first-hand. I hope to forever enjoy and seek to protect His creation and to teach our kids to do the same. Here’s a manatee encounter in one of my favorite spots in Florida, Anna Maria Island, with 2 manatees that were pretty close to me in the water.
Just remember – manatees are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978. It is illegal to feed, harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, annoy or molest manatees.
“Foster an Appreciation of Nature” – A Different Shade of Green by Gordon Wilson
In Gordon Wilson’s book, A Different Shade of Green, he talks about getting your kids, family, and friends excited about creation by immersing yourself into learning and sharing that love with them (as long as it’s not a source of tension or competition for your time). He says, “If you’re a biology teacher, spread enthusiasm to your students, not just information.” He encourages you to let your kids get dirty and caught up in the wonder as they experience creation. In his book he also reminds us that, “The more you study nature, the more you appreciate its beauty, complexity, and diversity. Appreciation in turn causes you to value it. And what you value, you naturally desire to conserve.” This is pretty much the same as one of my favorite quotes from Baba Dioum, which says, “In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand and we will understand only what we are taught.” I’ve really enjoyed Wilson’s book, A Different Shade of Green.
