MONTOURSVILLE, Pa. — A soft breeze rattles the intertwined limbs and leaves of 21 trees planted in a circuit at Montoursville Memorial Gardens.

Most readers will be surprised by these statistics: 75 to 90% of adult visits to primary care physicians are for stress-related problems and 89% of adults describe experiencing "high levels of stress." One million employees are absent on an average workday because of stress-related problems.

July 14th — today our oldest son and fourth child turned 22 years old. How the years fly by. Happy birthday Benjamin! I had Benjamin at home with Joe’s aunt as my midwife. Benjamin weighed only 4 pounds, 13 ounces and was doing pretty good until he was 2 weeks old. He caught the flu and started dehydrating so we ended up taking him to the hospital for a few days. After that he seemed to gain and never had many health problems. By the time he was a year old he had easily passed the weight of the girls at age 1.

In our kitchen cupboard we have boxes of Cheerios, Raisin Bran and Chex cereals. With a little variance, those are the cold cereals that I’ve grown to start every morning with.

During times of heightened stress, a person can quickly become overwhelmed and even struggle to do things that might be considered simple or obvious. It can be helpful to focus on the things you can control, to identify actions that you can take and to complete those action steps.

Some couples look forward to vacations in Hawaii. Others, romantic dinners in candlelit restaurants. Mark and I are looking forward to getting a dumpster.

Mobile payment technology has steadily gained immense popularity from businesses and customers looking for a convenient way of making and receiving payments. While there are several forms of mobile payments, the term “mobile payments” refers to transactions done from mobile devices. This payment allows businesses to receive payments from apps, such as Samsung Pay, Apple Pay, and Google Pay, which customers download on their smartphones.

Today is SUNDAY, JULY 18, the 199th day of 2021. There are 166 days left in the year.

Beautiful hydrangeas are in bloom throughout the area landscape. White, pink, blue, purple and many mixed color combinations catch your attention wherever they grow. It is hard to imagine summer without hydrangeas blooming.

As the mother of a child who will start kindergarten this fall, there’s been a nagging question in the back of my mind: “Is he ready?”

Today is SATURDAY, JULY 17, the 198th day of 2021. There are 167 days left in the year.

Today is FRIDAY, JULY 16, the 197th day of 2021. There are 168 days left in the year.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (KT) — Devin Booker only spent one season at the University of Kentucky, but learned what it took to be a professional athlete.

VALDOSTA — Two firefighters and a police officer remained in the hospital Tuesday after an accident involving a downed power line Monday, officials said.

It has cooled down a little, but the thermometer still shows 78 degrees at 9:45 p.m. It was a warm, humid day. One thing I do appreciate is our battery-operated fans. That was something I grew up without.

I like to use symbolism and metaphors when I work with both my clients and my students. I’m sure I get an eye roll every now and then with, “Here she goes again.” But it offers an opportunity to visualize our experience of life in a way that may seem less abstract, more solid or relatable and understandable.

Tomorrow will be the last day of June. Is it possible that half of 2021 has passed? July 1st brings daughter Loretta another year older, marking it number 21 this time.

If your order isn’t already in for the new Vette, as my uncle Tony would say, fuhgeddaboudit. This year’s Vette is sold out and orders for the ’22 Vette begin in July so plan accordingly if you want this jet fighter.

BLACK WIDOW

I watch my little grandson who is almost 3 years old, and it’s amazing how fast he is learning about life. He’s happy when he has his way, but when he’s told no or stop, he bows his head and sticks out his lower lip. How many of us are like this? Ha! All of us! I often think about the many situations and experiences this little fellow will face in his journey and how he will eventually learn there is more to life than watching cartoons and playing with toys. There will be times when he will need an anchor for his soul like all of us and I pray His hope will be in Christ. The Bible declares Jesus is the way, the truth and the life but He never promised this would be a perfect world. First Corinthians 13:11 says, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became an adult, I put away childish things.” The context reveals that in this temporary life it’s difficult to understand the spiritual realm but one day we will see God face to face and know as we are known.

Today is Saturday, July 10, the 191st day of 2021. There are 174 days left in the year.

SURFSIDE, Fla. (AP) — The discovery of four more victims in the rubble of a collapsed Florida condominium building raised the death toll to 32, officials said Tuesday as a ramped-up search effort faced new threats from severe weather with Tropical Storm Elsa.

CULLMAN, Ala. - An overheated pup drew a crowd of soft-hearted shoppers in Cullman Wednesday, serving up a timely reminder that the warm days of summer are no time to leave pets unattended in hot cars. 

Today is Sunday, July 4, the 185th day of 2021. There are 180 days left in the year. This is Independence Day.

THE TOMORROW WAR

Today is SATURDAY, JULY 3, the 184th day of 2021. There are 181 days left in the year.

FRANKFORT, Ky. – As Kentuckians celebrate Independence Day this weekend, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is joining the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to remind drivers that “Buzzed Driving Is Drunk Driving.”Unfortunately, the holiday weekend can create dan…

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned Bill Cosby’s sex assault conviction Wednesday after finding an agreement with a previous prosecutor prevented him from being charged in the case.

SURFSIDE, Florida (AP) — The slow work of sifting through the remnants of a collapsed Florida condo building stretched into a sixth day Tuesday, as families desperate for progress endured a wrenching wait for answers.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin has been sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison for the murder of George Floyd, whose dying gasps under Chauvin’s knee led to the biggest outcry against racial injustice in the U.S. in generations.

When I was a boy in California in the 1960s, my family was pretty much the only family I knew that ate bagels. That’s probably because we were Jewish and bagels are a Jewish thing.

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. (AP) — The first woman to become command sergeant major of a U.S. Army division will step into that role this week in Kentucky.