A Heart Full of Thanks

Oh, the thanks I could think, and the thanks I could say!

For the wonderful people who brightened my day.

The first one is Lori, my wife, sweet and true,

Who knows just the thing and knows just what to do.

She whipped up a feast with a smile and a sigh,

With corn on the cob and a steak cooked “On the Fly!”

My neighbor, Steve, with a mischievous gleam,

Said, “No fence work today! No work, it would seem!

You’ll paint with some water, some colors so bright,

And sign your new painting with all of your might!"

I laughed and I said, “But I don’t know that skill!

I’ll slap on some paint and see what sticks still!”

Then there’s my friends on the Facebook machine,

The best group of readers that ever was seen!

They read all my blogs and they hear my podcasts,

They send all their cheer that's built to last!

And Billy and Linda.

A Snoopy card in the mail.

A wonderful surprise that was sure to prevail!

From very good friends, a delightful new tale!

But the thanks didn't stop, no, not even a bit!

For James and for Merrill, who just wouldn't quit!

“It’s your birthday again!” they both shouted, “Hooray!

Let’s have a barbecue the very next day!”

Oh, the people I've met, all so kind and so grand,

From here to there, all over this fine land.

What makes them so giving? What makes them so keen?

To be the best friends that have ever been seen?

My thanks to you all for the love that you've shown,

For the seeds of pure joy that you've heartily sown!

I’m Patrick Ball. Stay curious, ask questions, and always hold onto the power of love and friendship. See you in the next episode!

Comments

Don Hanley said…

Beautiful sentiments and delightful poetry - thank you!!

August 17, 2025 at 9:45 AM

Practiced Hands: The 50-Year Warranty

What Doc Burch Taught Me About Staying Active. We talk a lot about "life hacks" these days, but most of them don’t have a very long shelf life. Usually, they’re forgotten by the next app update. But back in 1972, I received a piece of advice that came with a 50-year warranty. It’s the reason I’m still on my bike today, still chasing a golf ball around Carlsbad, and still—mostly—in one piece. The Kick That Changed Everything It started with a literal kick in the pants. A kid at school in Cuba, Illinois, was joking around and caught me just right. By the next morning, my lower back was screaming. My mom didn’t reach for the Tylenol; she reached for her car keys. "Let’s go see Doc Burch," she said. "He’ll fix you right up." Harry E. Burch, D.C., was a fixture in Lewistown. He’d graduated from Palmer College in ’59 and had been our family’s go-to for years. He was a man of practiced hands and steady eyes. After a quick exam and an X-ray, the mood in the room s...

The Language of Home: Building a Sanctuary

This episode is for anyone trying to find their footing in a new place—whether it’s a new city, a new job, or a new country. The light in Florence, Italy, has a way of making everything feel like a Renaissance painting—the golden hue on the stone, the steady rhythm of the Arno River, and the feeling that you are walking through a history much larger than yourself. I was there to give a presentation to a class of Gemology students. I was prepared to discuss color grading and refractive indices, but not to be outed as a language tutor . Feeling very much like a guest in a storied land, a hand shot up enthusiastically. "You’re the guy on the podcasts," the young woman said, her eyes bright with recognition. "You’re the one teaching us English." I laughed nervously. If you know my flat Midwestern accent, you know the irony here. I am hardly an Oxford professor. But later, as I wandered the cobblestone streets beneath the shadow of the Duomo, the humor faded into a powe...

The Miller Effect

In this episode - The Miller Effect . . . The sun hung high in the sky, casting shadows across the desolate landscape of Huron, California. Dr. Vo, a brilliant yet witty electrical engineer, stood before the main breaker box of a massive 1.4 MW-DC solar array that had confounded everyone who had dared to diagnose its persistent issue. It had been six long months of head-scratching and ten failed attempts by others before the desperate call came into Dr. Vo's office. As the sun's rays bathed the vast array in an orange glow, Dr. Vo stepped up to the Main breaker box, his sharp eyes shaded by his green Cenergy cap. He wore his North Face jacket that billowed in the light breeze, and his presence exuded an air of mystery and intrigue that was as pervasive as the problem at hand. The solar array was a colossal assemblage of panels, wires, and inverters, but the main breaker kept tripping, sending the entire operation into chaos. The workers at the site were on edge, muttering, “We’...

Stop Buying Rory’s Ball

⛳️ In this episode, why your Ego is costing you 5 strokes a round. I spent last weekend watching the Pebble Beach Pro-Am from the comfort of my La-Z-Boy recliner. It’s a beautiful spectacle. The cliffs, the ocean, the guys whose swing speeds sound like a fighter jet breaking the sound barrier. And during every commercial break, a very serious voiceover tells me that to play like a pro, I need to buy the ball the pros play. They make a compelling argument. They show slick slow-motion footage of a golf ball compressing against a clubface like a stress ball in a vise grip, then exploding down the fairway. Here is the uncomfortable truth that gravity whispered in my ear somewhere around my 65th birthday: I’m not Rory McIlroy. And if you are reading this, statistically speaking, neither are you. The Physics of the Squish When a pro hits a “Tour-level” ball, they swing upwards of 115+ mph (Rory 123 mph). They possess the violence necessary to squish that incredibly hard little sph...

On The Fly

Search This Blog