V Formation of the Geese - An Important Lesson

This morning I observed once again the most beautiful thing - several flocks of geese flying over my home. It was their flight honk that caught my attention and made me look out the window. It reminds me again the principles of the V formation. And it is another reminder of all the things I love about Fall.

And why do geese honk in flight?

It is to support the leader. The leader has the most wind coming at it and the other geese get lifted up my the air from the leader's wings. By honking, they tell the leader that they can do it and to keep going!

A flock of geese flying in formation can move faster and maintain flight longer than any one goose flying alone. Synergy is a law of nature.

What is synergy? How does it relate to leadership?

We have a lot to learn from these geese.

By flying in "V " formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own.

=>People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the thrust of one another.

Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front.

=>If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation with those who are heading in the same as we are.

When the lead goose gets tired, he rotates back in the wing and another goose flies point.

=> It pays to take turns doing hard jobs, with people or with flying geese.These geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.'

=> We need to be careful what we say when we honk from behind.

Finally, when a goose gets sick, or is wounded by gunshot, and falls out, two geese fall out of formation and follow him down to help and protect him. They stay with him until he is either able to fly or until he is dead, and then they launch out on their own or with another formation until they catch up with their group.

=> If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other, protect one another and sometimes make new friends who seem to be going in our direction.

Why is it Important for Humans to Drink Ample Amounts of Water?

Even MILD dehydration will slow down a person's metabilism as much as 3%. One glass of water shuts down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study. Lack of water is the number one trigger of daytime fatigue. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy sort-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen.

Wonder Box

The Wonder Box recipes and instructions originated from a booklet published by "Compassion" of South Africa in 1978, 1979 and 1980. "Compassion" registered name Wonder Box and the logo of the kneeling figure. This information may be freely quoted, acknowledgments being made to "Compassion"

Wonder Boxes work like vacuum flasks. In these days when we are being warned of worldwide shortages of food and fuel, this wonder box and it's simplicity is designed to keep food at the temperature needed for cooking. Using very little fuel you only use about 15 minutes of energy to bring the food to the required temperature and then put it into the Wonder box. It makes it as though it were a thermos. On the flip side it will also keep ice-cream cold for about 4 hours.

More Info - Wonder Box - A Cooker That Saves Fuel

Additional Info - Wonder Box Deluxe - A Cooker That Saves Fuel

Instructions: From www.ourldsfamily.com/wonderbox

Boil your food on the stove for 10 - 15 minutes until the food is heated right through. (In practice this is too long.)

Use any cooking pot, provided it does not have a long handle, but do not use a large pot for a small amount of food. The W'box does not work well if there is a large air space. Remember that the more food or liquid that you have in the pot, the longer and better it will cook.

Put the lid on the pot before you remove the pot from the stove so the lid can also get hot. Make sure the next in the bottom cushion is ready to take the pot and that it is nearby so you do not lose heat carrying the pot around. Place pot into the nest of the W'box, making sure that the sides are snug against the pot, so there are no air pockets. Quickly cover the pot with the top cushion, making sure there are no gaps or air pockets. Make sure that no one peeks inside. If this happens, heat will escape, and the food will not cook properly.

Do not leave the W'box on a metal surface while it is being used. Metal is a good conductor of heat and may draw off some heat through the bottom.

When cooking anything like a roast or a whole chicken, the liquid around it can boil before the meat has reached the same temperature. Make sure the liquid covers the meat and it has come to a boil. Meat must be covered with liquid! The cooking time seems to be 3-4 hours, or all day. It is sure to never burn.

Note: We had a chicken that was put in at 9:30 in the morning before church. This single dad prepared the chicken by placing it into an oven-cooking bag. He added spices to the chicken closed the bag completely (no added moisture was added to the bag) then brought the pot of water with the chicken in, to a boil and put it all in to the W'box. We ate with him at 4:00pm and as he tried to carve the chicken that was well cooked, the steam was 'rolling' off the chicken. It was still so hot he worked with forks to carve it. Nb: the opening to the bag was left protruding from under the lid.

The W'box was designed for cooking meals, but it can also be used for keeping food hot, cold or frozen for 3-6 hours depending on what it is For example, frozen meat will stay frozen longer than a tub of ice cream.

The cushions filled with polystyrene can be washed with hot water and soap and hung on the line to dry

Slow Cooker Recipes

Slow Cooker Recipes, Better Homes and Garden

Struggling

"So if you have problems in your life,
don't assume there is something wrong with you.
Struggling with those problems is at the very core of life's purpose.
As we draw close to God, He will show us our weaknesses
and through them make us wiser, stronger.
If you're seeing more of your weaknesses,
that just might mean you're moving nearer to God,
not farther away."

(Bruce C. Hafen, The Atonement: All of all, Ensign, May 2004)

"The 5 Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me"

To all of my Internet friends,

When I finished reading “The 5 Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me” by New York Times best-selling author Richard Paul Evans, I immediately bought a copy for each of my married children. Why? Because I have never before read a book about how to manage my money, get out of debt and become financially secure that was so much fun to read and so easy to put into practice.

In the book, Evans tells of his niece, Heather and her husband who are hopelessly drowning in debt, despite the fact that they are both working and making good incomes. He taught them the 5 lessons that he learned as a young boy and has applied throughout his life. They agreed to apply the principles. In fifteen months they returned to Evans and proudly reported that by using the 5 lessons, not only were they out of debt but they had saved $30,000! This is just one of the many true stories and examples that fill the pages of this fabulous book.

Best-selling authors, Gary and Joy Lundberg gave the book a rave review. “If married couples learned and used these Five Lessons, money would cease to have the power to control their lives. Instead, it would be their valuable ally in bringing peace and happiness into their family and the world. We highly recommend this amazing book.”

The principles that Evans teaches in this “easy-to-read” book are so timely and so badly needed right now, that I purchased a block of these brand new books from the author at a special price. These are brand new, soft cover books that normally sell for around $12.95 in the bookstores. (Available on amazon.com for as low as $3.59 plus shipping and handling.

I don’t want to bother with shipping and handling, or the expense of handling credit cards. Instead, I am offering The 5 Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me” for just $3.99!

If you live in Utah County (Utah) and want to pick the book up in Payson, you can pay for it by check or cash when you pick it up. I only have 50 copies, so I need to know as soon as possible how many copies you want (limit 5 per person). This could be the ideal Christmas gift for someone you know.

If you want to take advantage of this offer and live too far away to pick the book up, please email me to reserve your copy. I will send it to you, but will need to charge shipping and handling of $3.99. You can mail me a check.

Email your book order to: ksbray@mac.com

I will respond with details on where you can pick up your order.

Kathy Bray

Dedicated to “preparing every needful thing”
801-616-3332

http://www.kathybraybargains.com/

Disclaimer - How to Bottle Butter

There are blogs about the canning of butter but one should consider this disclaimer:

http://preparednessnibblesandbits.blogspot.com/2008/12/important-information-regarding-canned.html

Who would have thought that you could preserve butter for emergencies and power outages? Canned butter should store for 3-5 years or longer on a cool, dark shelf.

http://greenappleorchard.blogspot.com/2008/09/bottled-butter.html

http://simplicityfirst.wordpress.com/2008/04/24/canning-butter/