My Funeral Wishes

My Funeral Wishes

Porch Swing Tip of the Week: My Funeral Wishes

What a difficult topic! Most people find talking about plans for their own funeral brings sobering contemplation of their mortality. If you have written this information down already, and your family knows where to find it, close this email–and get out there and have a lovely day!

If you think it would be of benefit to your loved ones to have all the details recorded for quick retrieval at a very difficult time, please contemplate including it in your StorySite. It need not be printed in your book, but it will have been thought through, identified as your wishes, and securely saved. Under Create a New Chapter is a chapter suggestion “My Funeral Wishes” with a list of items to help you make your plans. It’ll be a load off your mind–so you can get on with the business of living!
 

Need additional help? Contact us at 833-767-2411 or inquiries@porchswingstories.com 


We’re always here to help.
 
Jayme & John Resnik and the Porch Swing Team

My Heros

My Heros

Porch Swing Tip of the Week: My Heroes

Look!  Up in the sky! It’s a bird.  It’s a plane. No, it’s…your hero!  

According to an April 2014 Psychology Today blogpost, “Heroes elevate us emotionally; they heal our psychological ills; they build connections between people; they encourage us to transform ourselves for the better; and they call us to become heroes and help others.”  

So, was your childhood hero Superman? Do you have admiration for a particular president or other statesman? A movie star? Are your favorite persons famous, or was your hero someone you lived with or visited on holidays? Were there “superhuman” strengths and abilities that made him or her stand out above the crowd? On your StorySite, tell about the object(s) of your devotion and what made you appreciate them so much. Include pictures if you have them.  


Need additional help? Contact us at 833-767-2411 or inquiries@porchswingstories.com 

We’re always here to help.
 
Jayme & John Resnik and the Porch Swing Team

My Ancestors

My Ancestors

Porch Swing Tip of the Week: My Ancestors

It might be well-known in your family that your forebears immigrated from Ireland or Italy or Iceland, that they came through Ellis Island after sailing here, but what about the lesser-known information? Why did they come to the New World and what did they find? What has been passed down to you that your readers will find they can relate to? What stories do you have about your great-grandparents, where they lived and how they made a living?

Any photos of your predecessors you can scan and add to your book will be a great bonus! Remember to take pictures of any documents you also want to capture regarding your ancestors. 

Need additional help? Contact us at 833-767-2411 or inquiries@porchswingstories.com 

We’re always here to help.
 
Jayme & John Resnik and the Porch Swing Team

My Children

My_Children

Porch Swing Tip of the Week: My Children
 
There are facts about your children, say when and where they were born, that your family surely has recorded already, such as in a Family Bible. But details, like the circumstances surrounding their birth, might be saved only in your mind, and there’s no time like the present to get these stories written down. What are some of your earliest memories of your children? What did they enjoy doing in their early years? Describe one thing that made you proud of your child/children in their early years. What traits did you see early on that remained with them as they grew up? Name several positive things about each of your children.

It might also be fun to ask your children for input on their side of the stories. Sounds like a favorite chapter to me! 

Need additional help? Contact us at 833-767-2411 or inquiries@porchswingstories.com 

We’re always here to help.
 
Jayme & John Resnik and the Porch Swing Team

My Childhood, Part 2: The Places

My Childhood, Part 2_The Places

Porch Swing Tip of the Week: My Childhood, Part Two: The Places

A member of our Porch Swing family shared about being raised in Oklahoma, where summers were so hot and dry that no grass grew in the mobile home park where her family lived. Information about where you grew up, especially if it was far from where you ended up, may be like a whole new world to your children and grandchildren. What was your hometown like? What did it smell like? (This may seem a little odd, but the experts tell us that a story is better if it makes use of all the senses – taste, touch, sight, smell, and sound.) What was a typical Saturday morning like in your neighborhood?  What did you like to do to pass the time? This might be a chapter that makes your kids say, “Well, that explains a lot!”
 
Need additional help? Contact us at 833-767-2411 or inquiries@porchswingstories.com 

We’re always here to help.
 
Jayme & John Resnik and the Porch Swing Team

My Community Service

My Community Service

Porch Swing Tip of the Week: My Community Service

Volunteering time and giving resources to improve one’s community is fundamental to many people. According to Volunteers of America’s website, their 55,575 volunteers donated 1,252,054 hours during fiscal year 2019. And that’s just one organization! Helping others builds character traits like cooperation, problem solving, responsibility, and compassion. 

How have you been involved in your community? In what ways have you helped others? What helping organizations have you joined? How would you like to serve your community in the future? Be sure to record the stats and stories of your volunteer service. (Maybe you will want to plan a celebration for National Volunteer Week, the last week of April this year!) 

Need additional help? Contact us at 833-767-2411 or inquiries@porchswingstories.com 

We’re always here to help.
 
Jayme & John Resnik and the Porch Swing Team

Korean Superstar

Jee Hoon joined us his junior year of high school. He’s’ been a blessing ever since.

Although we didn’t know them, we could tell he was from a strong family in South Korea. He had a strong faith. He was kind and hard working and had a compassionate spirit.

We had a lot of fun together – highlights include our trip to LA, trips to the lake to see Grandma and Grandpa, and just hanging around the house figuring out life together.

Jee had a ton of talent. He would give back to his community by playing piano at the local old folks home once a week. He was a great singer, and the churches of the area enjoyed listening to him as part of Sanctified. After the group had been together a couple of years, and he was preparing to go back to his home in Korea, he pulls out a flute and adds background to a song. I said, “If only we had known this earlier…”

Jee’s a funny guy.  One of my favorites was in the Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis.  We had just received our Sanctified CD’s with a few cool pictures of the kids.  They were admiring themselves on the CD cover.  Meanwhile, the hour we normally had to practice before services was passing fast.  I mentioned to the kids, “Hello – if we’re going to perform today we should probably get after it…”  Without hesitating, Jee quickly said, “Patience!  We are admiring Korean Superstar!”  How do you answer that?

Jee does a terrific job of keeping in touch, whether it was during his lonely military days, or in medical school, he always makes a point to keep us current on what’s going on.

His recent marriage to a terrific young girl, Jane, and the news of a little one on the way make it even better. We are blessed to be part of his family and can’t wait to meet the new ones to come.

Bobo Cakes

Our grandchildren are a terrific reflection of their parents.  Each is different, each is unique, all are absolutely wonderful.  As I tell Alex and Tori, I feel fortunate just to know you guys.  To think that you enjoy hanging with us is even better.  To think that Mom and I had a hand in these wonderful creations tops the cake.

We have some terrific traditions.  The kids love dancing to “Shirts and socks and underwear…”.  I enjoy singing them to sleep at night, as I did frequently with Tori and Alex.  And Bobo cakes are a requirement if we’re all together.

It’s going to be a blast watching these kids grow up.  As Jayme told Thalia, “I’m staying in shape so I can see you get married and meet your kids.”  Alex and Tori and Lindsey and Jake are wonderful parents, and the kids are wonderful people.

I’m hoping that they enjoy my Porch Swing book and Storysite, and that it helps them realize to a certain extent, where they come from.  I love you guys…

Your Loving Bobo II

 

Grand Hotel

I believe that if you make a good decision regarding who to marry, all the other decisions get easier.  I have always felt like myself around Jayme, and we’ve always had fun together.  It’s one reason that I’ve never, for one day, regretted marrying her.

I met Jayme the summer before my senior year of high school, when her brother Gregg called and asked me to play the drums in the back of his dad’s pickup for the El Dorado parade.  Her dad was driving, Jayme was waving from the passenger seat, and Gregg, Brad Doggett and I were in the back playing.  Gregg and I remained friends, the band stayed together, and for the next six years, when I was at Gregg’s house, she was the cute kid sister who would bring us popcorn.

After I graduated from KU, I accepted a job in Oklahoma City for accounting firm Peat Marwick.  The day before I left, I called Gregg’s house and Jayme answered.  She started to get Gregg, and I told her I had called to talk to her.  I was moving to Oklahoma City, I explained, and I wouldn’t know anyone there, and I asked if she would mind being pen pals.

When Jayme arrived back at school at K-State, there was already a letter from me waiting for her there. We wrote letters for a few months.  On our first date we went to see Superman! over the Christmas holiday when we were both back home.

When I got back to Oklahoma City, busy season hit in the accounting world.  Since I was new to the working world, I had no idea what to expect. The hours were intense. I was driving to work before seven a.m. and returning around nine p.m.,  seven days a week, and I was miserable.  I tried to get myself to call or write Jayme, but I couldn’t.  I was exhausted, I didn’t think I had anything to offer. I hoped she would understand, but I knew she likely would move on.

This went on for four months.  In late April, busy season finally ended. The first day I got to leave at five p.m., I stopped at the grocery store, got a steak, went home and went jogging, and after dinner I decided I was ready to call Jayme. It had been months since we had talked.  I was prepared to hear that she was either dating someone, engaged, or maybe just mad at me for ignoring her for four months.  I got up the nerve to call.  She was still interested.  I was relieved.   We got married a year later.

Jayme and I always managed to have fun no matter the circumstances. When we lived in Whitewater, money was tight, but we still made a point of taking weekend trips to Oklahoma City or wherever we could afford.  We had frequent get-togethers with friends, often at our house. On weekends, we would load the kids up, go to El Dorado lake, stop by Kentucky Fried Chicken, and get a bucket of chicken to take to the El Dorado Drive In.

When we lived in Minneapolis, we found a way to take several trips across the U.S. A friend told us about Mackinac Island, Michigan. It was quaint, had no cars, and a cool place to go.  We were sold, and booked a trip to the Grand Hotel. We loved it. In the years since, we’ve been to numerous destinations in several countries, but the Grand is our favorite. In the ten years we lived in Michigan, we made it up there about every year. Once, we were able to take Alex, Tori, Lindsey and Jake.  Of all the fun we’ve had, the Grand may be the funnest.

Our routine is pretty much the same every day. We get up, I go down to the world’s best breakfast about 30 minutes before Jayme. After breakfast, we rent bikes and ride the seven miles around the island. Next is bocce ball, then over to the golf course for a quick lunch before teeing off. After golf, we  change clothes and head to the Esther Williams swimming pool. I then take a quick shower, put on my suit (required on the lower level of the Grand in the evenings) and head straight to the Cupola Bar. The Cupola Bar is located on the top floor, and has a spectacular view of Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and the Mackinac Bridge. I’ll have a Heineken, watch the ferry boats leave marks on the lakes, and think about life. Jayme walks in  looking like a million bucks a little later, we stay and chat with the Cupola crowd, then we head down to the greatest evening meal in the world. Five courses, rotating menu. After dinner, we head to the ballroom and dance to the band. The dance floor is usually pretty empty when we get there.  Not for long.  Sometimes, we attract a crowd; other times, it’s just us. Before heading to the room, we walk the world’s longest porch and enjoy the terrific Northern Michigan summer evening.  The next morning, it’s the same routine.  If we’re there for three or four days, it’s the same thing every day.  And we love it every day.

I think our marriage has worked so well because we really enjoy spending time together.  On Mackinac Island, at the Grand, there are no cars, we never turn on the television.  It’s just us.  We take the time to reflect on how cool our lives together are and how much we love our family.  It’s a special time.