League Match on Home Courts at High Noon Today

Stardate 01.03.2026

Our men’s 4.0 tennis team in the 40+ division steps onto the courts today hoping to keep an undefeated season alive as we play our first league match of 2026—right here at home, at high noon.

A couple of my teammates have affectionately nicknamed me Grandpa. I take it as a compliment. I’m grateful they’re still keeping me around, racket and all. The truth is, the older I get, the more clearly I see how the simple disciplines matter: eating right, sleeping right, moving my body with intention. Even rest—real rest—has become part of the training plan.

Tennis has a way of revealing what we already know but sometimes ignore. You can’t fake conditioning. You can’t rush recovery. You can’t will your body past what you’ve neglected. Growth comes from steady habits, not heroic bursts.

If you’re in the Iowa City area today, come cheer on the home team at North Dodge Athletic Club. Win or lose, we’ll show up, compete hard, and enjoy the gift of being able to play at all.

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📖 Encouraging Scripture
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit…? Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
— 1 Corinthians 6:19–20

Not out of pressure.
Out of gratitude.

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🖖 Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “Michael, you realize we’re not twenty-five anymore. Bones don’t bounce like they used to.”
Spock: “Doctor, while your observation is emotionally charged, it is logically sound. Maintenance increases longevity.”
Bones: “You hear that, Michael? He called it maintenance.”
Spock: “Indeed. Neglecting maintenance is… illogical.”

Michael’s Log:
Somewhere between warm-ups and water breaks, it hit me again: stewardship isn’t glamorous. It’s faithful. Caring for the body God gave me—through food, rest, movement, and restraint—isn’t vanity. It’s obedience. One percent better doesn’t happen by accident. It happens by choosing today what supports tomorrow.

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Mission Log
Status: Active
Objective: Show up prepared, grateful, and present
Lesson Reinforced: Consistency builds endurance—on the court and in life

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🙏 Closing Reflection
Thank you, Lord, for strong bodies, willing hearts, and the humility to pace ourselves. Help us honor You not by perfection, but by faithfulness—one day, one habit, one percent better at a time.

Is This a Good Time of Year to Nourish Your Faith Seed?

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Stardate 01.02.2026

This is the time of year when many of us focus on eating better, signing up for the gym, and getting our finances in order. What’s often overlooked is the spiritual aspect of our lives. God can quickly move to the top of the priority list when we’re facing danger or despair—but what about the quieter seasons?

Today, I invite you to ask a simple question:
Is there room in your busy life to nourish your faith seed?

If it’s true that we reap what we sow, perhaps tending to our faith at the beginning of the year may help us experience a more abundant harvest as the months unfold.

This topic surfaced often during conversations with a professional trained to help me uncover the roots of anxiety in my life. Faith, I’ve learned, is something many people prefer to keep private—largely because it can make others uncomfortable. I’m choosing a different path.

I believe that sharing more openly about my faith may actually set me free from the self-imposed constraints I once carried in an effort to keep the peace with others.

Before I go deeper today, I want to share why I’m choosing to open up at this level. In a few short weeks, I’ll be releasing my 6,000th blog message, and with it, a story that reflects my faith more fully than ever before. I’m consciously letting go of fear—especially the fear of what others might think.

I trust that my readers know I’m not here to convert anyone. My hope has always been to walk alongside you as you navigate your own journey toward the Creator. This next chapter is simply about clarity—about being honest about who I am.

I believe that when we share who we truly are as children of God, it has the power to bring us closer together. Consider this an invitation to take a gentle look inside my house of worship—not to persuade, but to understand.

At the end of the day, we are all children of God, regardless of the labels we place on ourselves.

I look forward to peeling away the final layer of the onion with you very soon.

Thank you for visiting. Have a great day.

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📖 Scripture for Reflection

“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.”
— 1 Corinthians 3:6

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🖖 Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “Michael, I don’t like it when faith and feelings show up on the bridge. Makes the crew… reflective.”
Spock: “On the contrary, Doctor. Suppressing one’s inner truth is a most inefficient use of energy.”
Bones: “You mean honesty is good for your health?”
Spock: “Fascinating that you are only now considering this.”

Michael’s Reflection:
For a long time, I thought keeping the peace meant keeping quiet. I’m learning that tending to my faith—one small act at a time—is not something to fear. It’s something that heals. Like any seed, it doesn’t need force. It just needs care, patience, and trust in the One who makes it grow.

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🌱 Closing Thought

As you step into this new year, may you give yourself permission to nurture what matters most—quietly, faithfully, and one percent at a time. I’m grateful you’re walking this path with me.

Mission Log: One seed planted. Growth in progress.

A New Year, Gently Entered

 

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Stardate 01.01.2026

The calendar flipped overnight, but nothing magical happened while we slept. The sun rose the same way it always does. Our breath found its rhythm. Life quietly carried on.

And yet—something is different.

I started the New Year the same way I’ve been ending the last one: outside, tending a Weber grill while the temperature dipped below freezing. There’s something grounding about fire in the cold. About standing still long enough to cook real food while the world rushes by.

A few years ago, I would’ve called this strange. Now I call it listening.

I’m learning that entering a new year doesn’t require reinvention. It requires attention—to what gives you energy, what restores you, and what quietly works. For me, that’s movement, meditation, and food that actually satisfies my body. Lately, that’s meant centering my meals around meat and keeping things simple. No theories. No trends. Just noticing how my body responds.

Nothing dramatic happened.
I just started feeling better.

This year, I’m choosing a new attitude—less pressure, more presence. Less self-judgment, more curiosity. I’m not interested in chasing resolutions that collapse under their own weight. I’m interested in stacking small, honest choices.

If resolutions feel heavy, consider this instead:
What’s one small adjustment that would help you feel more like yourself today?

You don’t have to solve the whole year. You only have to show up for this one day.

One percent is enough. It always has been.

Welcome to the New Year. Let’s walk into it gently.

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Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “Let me get this straight—you’re grilling meat in sub-freezing temperatures and calling it self-care?”
Spock: “From a physiological standpoint, Doctor, routine, nourishment, and ritual significantly reduce stress.”
Bones: “Huh. Turns out cavemen were onto something.”
Spock: “Indeed. Fire remains remarkably effective.”

Michael’s Reflection:
This year, I’m paying attention instead of following rules. When I listen—to my body, my spirit, and the quiet nudges along the way—I find myself healthier and more at peace.

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Scripture for the Journey

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.”
— 1 Corinthians 10:31

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Mission Log

Mission status: grounded and warm
Supplies onboard: fire, food, gratitude
Heading: forward—one percent at a time

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Divine Help is On the Way

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Stardate 12.31.2025

Yesterday’s story touched on the number one request I’m carrying into the New Year. It’s a request especially suited for anyone who feels undeserving—which, if we’re being honest, is most of us at one time or another.

That’s exactly what grace is:
undeserved favor
divine help
a gift you didn’t earn and don’t have to repay

Don’t ask me to explain how it works. It’s well above my pay grade. I just know it’s real.

Grace can arrive directly from God, or indirectly through the people placed in your life at just the right moment. Sometimes it shows up as forgiveness. Sometimes as patience. Sometimes as help you didn’t even know how to ask for.

Here’s what I’ve learned:
the more grace you allow yourself to receive, the more you naturally have to give away.

We’re often told there are only two certainties in life—death and taxes. I’d like to add a third:

Grace.

It’s perfect.
It’s free.
And it comes from the One who created you.

There’s no limit.
No quota.
No fine print.

If you want more of it, there’s only one step required.

Ask.

Have a great day.

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Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “You’re telling me this grace thing doesn’t require forms, fees, or approval from a committee?”
Spock: “Correct, Doctor. Grace is illogical by human standards—and therefore remarkably efficient.”
Bones: “Well, I’ll be damned. Humans could use more of that.”
Spock: “Indeed. Especially when approaching a new year.”

Michael’s Reflection:
I’m entering the next chapter of life with fewer demands and more open hands. Grace isn’t something I qualify for—it’s something I receive. And once I do, it has a way of flowing outward.

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Scripture for the Journey

“Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
— Hebrews 4:16

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Mission Log

Year-end status: hopeful and grounded
Supplies secured: grace in abundance
Trajectory: forward—one percent at a time

An Idea to Consider for the New Year Ahead

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Stardate 12.30.2025

If you’re like me, the idea of another calendar flip may raise your anxiety more than your excitement. You’ve tried New Year’s resolutions before, only to end up carrying a quiet sense of shame when nothing sticks. Your brain eventually waves the white flag and says, Stop the insanity—doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results.

I get it. Why set yourself up for failure?

But what if the answer isn’t buried in past attempts?
What if the solution isn’t another checklist or self-imposed task?

What if the focus shifted from doing to receiving?

Not all at once.
Not in overwhelming doses.
Just one percent at a time.

If you approach the new year this way—slowly, intentionally—you may discover something unexpected: what you receive might eventually become something you’re able to give away. Stay with this idea for thirty days. If your soul feels lighter by the end of that stretch, you may find yourself choosing it again…and again.

This idea resonates deeply with me because it’s exactly what I need right now. It isn’t a quick fix or a resolution destined to fade before Valentine’s Day. It’s something offered freely by the Creator—the One who knows what we need even before we ask.

It took me sixty-five years of floundering to realize something simple and humbling:

All you have to do to receive it…is ask.

If you’re not the praying type, I want to make this as accessible as possible. You can borrow this prayer—no polish required:

Dear Lord,
I am in desperate need of Your grace.
Please give it to me.
Send it in small doses so I don’t get overwhelmed.
I want to practice receiving this gift throughout the year.
When the time is right, help me share that grace with the people I love.
Thank You for hearing this prayer.
Amen.

Grace doesn’t shout.
It arrives quietly.
And it changes everything—one percent at a time.

Have a great day.

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Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “Michael, humans keep trying to fix themselves like broken machinery. No wonder they’re exhausted.”
Spock: “Indeed, Doctor. Logic suggests that receiving grace requires far less energy than resisting it.”
Bones: “You mean all this time they could’ve just…asked?”
Spock: “Correct. A most inefficient discovery—yet deeply human.”

Michael’s Reflection:
This year, I’m not chasing improvement. I’m opening my hands. Grace isn’t something I earn—it’s something I learn to receive. And when it finally settles in, it has a way of spilling over to others.

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Scripture for the Journey

“My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.”
— 2 Corinthians 12:9

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Mission Log

Mission status: steady and receiving.
No resolutions abandoned.
No perfection required.
Just grace—arriving right on time.

I Broke the Writer's Mold

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Stardate 12.29.2025

I recently crossed paths with an interesting man with a storied past. During our conversation, he mentioned that the significant other in his life is a professor in the university writing department. I laughed and told him that if she ever stumbles across my blog or one of my books, I’d be grateful if she would resist the urge to grade me. I’m untrained, self-taught, and I rarely stay inside the lines.

If I were to grade myself, my only solid A’s would be for showing up daily—and for writing straight from the heart.

Those “in the know” often say a writer must find a genre and stay there. My path hasn’t worked that way. I began with a memoir about my dad and his final days on Earth. I followed that with a novel about a fictional family that looks suspiciously like my own. I self-published a coffee table book about a volleyball inspired by Cast Away. I wrote Live Long and Prosper, which mostly chronicles my greatest strength: making mistakes and learning from them.

Now, I’m working on a coloring book about Wilson—and where he might have gone after he exited my life.

That’s a lot of creative territory without a clearly labeled box. Maybe that’s the point. Much of what I write is about wandering. And perhaps my purpose is to help the lost feel a little less alone while they find their way home.

So thank you—for your patience, your kindness, and your willingness to walk alongside me. As long as the writer’s mold is broken, I plan to keep moving forward. Soon, some of these stories will arrive by video. It feels a bit like a frog who dreamed of becoming a writer… and somehow did.

I’m coming out of the cocoon.
Stay tuned.
Have a great day.

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🖖 Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “Michael, the man’s clearly broken every literary rule in the book.”
Spock: “On the contrary, Doctor. He has merely rejected artificial constraints in favor of authenticity. A most logical evolution.”
Bones: “So you’re saying there’s no cure for this?”
Spock: “Correct. Nor should there be.”

Michael’s Reflection:
I used to think I needed permission—to fit, to qualify, to belong. Now I see that calling doesn’t ask for credentials; it asks for honesty. When I stopped trying to sound like a writer and started writing like myself, the words began to breathe.

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📖 Scripture for the Journey

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”
— Isaiah 43:19

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🚀 Mission Log

Today’s mission wasn’t about finding a genre.
It was about trusting the voice God gave me—and using it, one imperfect day at a time.

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Thank you for reading, for encouraging, and for making space for stories that don’t quite fit the mold. May you carry a little courage with you today—into prayer, into rest, and into whatever new thing is quietly taking shape in your life.

How to Map Peace

 

A Meditation on Energy, Memory, and the Present Moment

Stardate 05.18.2021 (Revisited)

Editor's Note:  I revisited my archives for a meditation tune-up and found this story. Feel free to adapt it as you see fit. The original blog story was written long before I visited Ireland. While visiting on a 10 day pilgrimage with my wife, we stopped at Glendalough and walked through the forest. I discovered real acorns, brought them home and placed them in my home studio. Tuscany and Iceland are still future travel goals, although visiting these places daily in my mind brings me joy.

The image you see here came from the deep recesses of my mind during a morning meditation. It arrived quietly, fully formed, without explanation. They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but my 60-year-old brain didn’t get the memo.

If you look closely, you’ll notice hearts placed along an infinity symbol—past, present, and future woven together. These locations may not mean much to the outside world. To me, they are everything.

This meditation begins at Norris Hot Springs in Montana, a place of grounding and warmth where our family gathered to celebrate our youngest son’s graduation. This is my first energy center—the root. It represents safety, belonging, and the steady foundation beneath my feet. It’s where I remember that I am held.

The second energy center rests in the Cascades of Washington, where I revisit a memory of backpacking with our daughter. S’mores. Hot chocolate. Laughter under the stars. This center carries creativity and emotion. It’s where joy is stored—and where healing begins. From here, the Phoenix rises, reminding me that renewal often comes quietly, after the fire has cooled.

The third energy center glows in my sister’s backyard in Southern California. My dad stands at the Weber grill, cooking his world-famous hamburgers—his final barbecue on this earth. This center carries personal power and identity. There is electricity here. Gratitude. Love. And the strength that comes from knowing who shaped you.

At the center of the infinity symbol sits the fourth energy center—the heart. This is where I live now. The present moment. My true home. This is my happy place. When I return here, anxiety loosens its grip and peace takes the wheel.

The fifth energy center, the throat, appears in Banff, Alberta, at the edge of Lake Louise. A single drop of water falls into the turquoise surface—colored by ancient glacial rock flour—and sends ripples outward. This is the center of truth and expression. One honest word, spoken with love, can travel farther than we ever imagine.

From there, the meditation moves forward.

The sixth energy center, the place of insight and inner vision, appears in the magical forest of Glendalough, Ireland. In my mind, an acorn drops from a tall, slender tree. A reminder that faith begins small—but contains forests within it.

The seventh energy center, connection to the divine, unfolds in Tuscany, Italy. I’m seated with my wife in a field of tall grass, Hans Zimmer’s Gladiator score playing softly in the background. The sun lowers. We share an Italian meal. A single blue lotus rises from the field, scented like lavender. My senses are fully alive. Heaven feels close.

The final energy center rests in Iceland, where our family sits together in a hot tub beneath the Northern Lights. This is awe. Mystery. Wonder. My connection to what lies beyond understanding—and my reminder that not everything needs to be explained to be true.

Maui earns an honorable mention, even though it isn’t pictured. From above, the island resembles another infinity symbol formed by two volcanoes. At its center, in Kihei, on a deserted beach, I asked my wife to marry me. Hawaii’s 808 area code inspired the name of this blog, SoCalMulligan808. Full circle.

It’s safe to say I don’t fully understand these meditations. They feel like experiments—holy ones. Each morning, I empty past hurts and loosen my grip on current struggles. Writer’s block has vanished. New beginnings rise.

I’m reminded that Jesus has no beginning and no end. He is the Alpha and the Omega. Perhaps He is the source of these images—appearing when the noise of the world finally fades.

I’m grateful for the upgrades.

If you’re seeking peace, give meditation a try.
Seek, and you shall find.

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Captain’s Addendum

Bones: “Michael, I’m a doctor, not a cartographer of invisible energy centers.”
Spock: “Nevertheless, Doctor, the Captain’s map demonstrates a logical integration of memory, presence, and meaning.”
Bones: “You’re saying he’s healing himself.”
Spock: “I am saying… he is finally listening.”

Michael’s Reflection:
Healing doesn’t always arrive with answers. Sometimes it arrives as awareness. When I stop fighting the moment and start inhabiting it, peace follows—quietly, faithfully.

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Scripture for the Journey

“Be still, and know that I am God.”
— Psalm 46:10

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Mission Log
Today’s meditation reminds me that growth doesn’t require full understanding—only willingness. One breath. One moment. One percent better.

Thank you for walking this path with me. May this reflection settle gently into your heart and follow you into prayer or quiet thought today.