9:07pm — Today is my cousin Connie Preston McGee’s birthday. I don’t even remember how old she is. Well, 6 years younger than me, so, she would be 46!

I have had a pretty good weekend. We took Coco to the dog bakery yesterday. He LOVES that place! It was a beautiful day, too. We then went to church for a Palm Sunday service which included a mini-concert by a famous Christian worship singer and communion.

The choir also sang one of my favorite hymns, “When I survey the wondrous cross” – This was a song we used to sing when I was in choir at Trinity. Each verse is mightier than the previous and the very last line is so powerful, it hits you right between the eyes! I cry every time:

When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

9:49am — I often think about how I want to be remembered when I’m gone. I was just reading a devotional by Dr. Robert Jeffress. Alfred Nobel, who actually invented dynamite, did not want to be remembered for that reason, but for more virtuous reasons, hence, the Nobel prizes.

I still have a huge part of my life to go. Despite all my regrets and mistakes, I can make sure that I continue to do the next right thing. Like Jeff Bezos, who pretends he’s 80 years old looking back on the choices he’s facing now, which ones would the older self want him to make now?

I realized last night how lazy I think I’ve become, both physically and intellectually. The amount of effort I used to put into things in order to achieve a desired result is not there lately.

I am mostly motivated by my son. He works hard at everything he does. In many ways, I see myself in him. His mother is resistant to allow me to have much influence in his life as I would like.

Lord, I just want to be in Your will. Greg Laurie says the way you can know if you’re in God’s will is if you are being obedient. There can be no hidden sin or rebellion. I condemn the sin of laziness in my life!

10:53pm — Today was Sydney’s 20th birthday! I can’t even believe it! — I had a pretty productive day at work today, took Coco with me to a dog friendly coffee shop, and then over to a make-shift dog-park, which local dog-owners here call “the field” which is organized by this guy named Steve Grosso who leads this WhatsApp group called “Carolyn Puppers” — Coco just had a blast.