The Corner of Spirit & Brave

IT’S NOT OVER TILL IT’S OVER by Pennie Hunt

10/26/2025

I was at an unforgettable football game last weekend. If you like football, you know what game I am talking about. The Broncos vs the Giants.

I am not a football expert, but I have been to a lot of games. My husband has owned season tickets to the Broncos since 1974. I have joined him at games for more than 25 years. We rarely miss a game. But this wasn’t just a game. It was a GAME!

If you are a Bronco fan, the first two quarters were disappointing, with the score going into halftime at Giants 13 and Broncos 0. But for us and the usual group who sat around us, we concentrated on what a beautiful day it was, even hot for almost the end of October and the halftime event. For the Broncos, this was a celebration of alumni weekend, which brought in many of the great Bronco players from past years. During an emotional halftime ceremony, Demaryius Thomas #88 was posthumously inducted into the Bronco Ring of Fame. Thomas was a popular player who died in 2021 at the age of 33.

The third quarter was even harder to watch than the first two, ending in a score of the Giants 19 and the Broncos still at 0. The 4th quarter gave us a glimmer when the Broncos got on the scoreboard, but when the Giants hit 26 to the Broncos 8, something happened. A huge number of fans left.

They had given up on any chance of the Broncos winning in the remaining time. They gave up on their team. The river of orange as the people flowed out of the stadium was conspicuous. I said to my husband, “It’s not over till it’s over.” We stayed in our seats.

Man, were we glad we did. You know the rest of the story. In the frenzy of excitement, the Broncos continued to add points, including completing two-point conversions twice, which added 8+8 points to the score. In the last quarter, the Broncos scored an unbelievable 33 points, winning the game 33 to 32. As they say, the crowd went wild!

Even being there and seeing this firsthand, it was hard to believe it really happened. Did the Broncos get a burst of energy and determination? Did they get a boost from the new Ring of Fame angel who wore the number 88 and passed at 33 years old? Did he guide them to the extraordinary 2-point conversions (8+8) and a 33-point win?

As we drove through the traffic to get home, I kept thinking about the game. The most amazing turnaround I have ever seen. I also thought about all the fans who gave up and left early. How many times in life do we give up too soon? How many times do we walk away from our team, our job, our relationship, too soon? How many times do we regret that we gave up too soon and missed the real ending?

I can only imagine how those fans who left early must have felt. They missed experiencing the excitement of the game of games. They missed the best turnaround ever. Who knows, maybe they missed a divine intervention from an angel. What I do know is they gave up on their team. They gave up on their fellow fans. They gave up on their hope. They gave up before it was over.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Pennie’s Life Lesson:
It’s not over till it’s over.
Don’t give up too soon.
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YOUR TURN...
Share your thoughts and experiences relating to this post in a comment below. And please feel free to email me at:
[email protected].
Thank you!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
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LIFE ISN’T ALWAYS HOMEMADE – SOMETIMES A FROZEN PIE IS GOOD ENOUGH by Pennie Hunt

10/19/2025

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Once I took a store-bought frozen coconut cream pie out of the package, placed it in a glass pie plate, and took it to a potluck fundraiser at my children’s elementary school. It was obvious, looking down at the row of home-baked cakes, cookies, and pies, that Marie Callender (not me) had baked it.

I felt the judgment of the other moms as they saw me add my pie to the table.
I have accidentally turned the wrong way on a one-way street. I have worn two different shoes to work. I have tripped and fallen in the middle of a busy airport. I have put my foot in my mouth and said the wrong thing at the wrong time more often than I can count. I have hurt others with my words and actions.

I had every intention of baking my famous homemade chocolate chip cookies for that fundraiser, but life got in the way. Overwhelmed by overscheduling led me right to Marie Callender in the frozen food aisle.

I didn’t mean to drive the wrong way down a street, wear two different shoes, or say and do stupid things, but life is not perfect. I am certainly not perfect.

I have been embarrassed, ashamed, judged, and humiliated. I have failed and fallen. Life has given me stumbling blocks, barriers, and brick walls. Bad days, tragedy, and misfortune touch all of us. Don’t fall in the hole of poor me and victim mode. Stand up and be grateful for every day you are given- good and bad! If life has given you a roadblock, find a new road. Adjust, adapt, and accept.

Perfection isn’t attainable in life, and yet we hope for it, wait for it, and expect it. If you are waiting for everything to be perfect, you will wait forever. Do what you need to do to get through life in the best way you can. Walk the tightrope when life is scary. Dodge the potholes when life is dangerous. Clean up what you can when life is messy. Embrace all that life puts in front of you.

Glimmers of perfection may show up in fleeting milliseconds, but life is not meant to be and will never be a continual story of perfection. Don’t put your life plans (whatever they are) on hold waiting for the perfect time.

There will always be unexpected challenges, setbacks, and disappointments. That might be the plan. The biggest lessons are taught and learned during the most difficult times.

You will never be able to control everything. It could be that learning to be happy in chaos is the whole point. It could be that understanding that concentrating on the good things that happen, the happiness, the joy, and the possibilities in life is what makes the challenging times doable.

I do make world-famous chocolate chip cookies (ask my grandchildren), but there are times when life isn’t homemade, and a frozen pie from the grocery store is the best we can do, and that is good enough. Life isn’t perfect.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Pennie’s Life Lesson:
Don’t wait for everything to be perfect to be happy.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

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NEVER MISS THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN THE REAL STORY by Pennie Hunt

10/12/2025

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Every evening he sat alone. His eyes focused on the plate in front of him. Slowly, he ate bite after bite. Alone. No television, no book to read, no dinner guests, just total concentration on his meal. Every evening alone.

I watched this night after night. I was living in the townhouse I purchased after my recent divorce. My backyard was just big enough for my little dog, Yogee, but not big enough to allow much distance between my window and the window of my neighbor.

It wasn’t like I was nose-pressed-to-the-window watching him. But, at times, it was almost that intriguing to me. I could see him through the slats of my blinds while I cooked my dinner, played with Yogee, and watched TV. And I wondered.

I wondered what his story was. Did he have family? What did he do for work? How old was he? How many years had he been alone with his dinner and his thoughts? And what were his thoughts?

I lived there for 10 years and never spoke to him. The tall wooden privacy fence that divided our yards was not conducive to neighbor-to-neighbor conversations. His home sat just a little higher than mine, so the angle looking up through my window created a clear view of his dining table.

I felt sorry for him. I was living alone for the first time in my life, but I had a job I loved, a nice home, family and friends, and I had Yogee. My perception was that he didn’t have any of those things. I thought he must have been terribly lonely.

I moved from that home over 15 years ago, but I still wonder about him. I wonder if he still lives there. I wonder if he ever got a dog. I wonder if he still eats dinner alone.

I wonder why I never walked around the block to the front of his house to say hi. I wonder why I was so intrigued by him. I wonder why I made up stories in my head about his life. The reality is, maybe he was happy. Maybe he loved his peace and solitude. Maybe he had a family and a job he loved. And maybe he loved eating dinner alone.
I also wonder how many times in life I have missed the opportunity to find out the real story. How many times have I missed the opportunity to meet someone and talk to them about their life? How many times have I made up stories in my head, creatively filling in the blanks of information I didn’t know?

The answer is probably - many. It is easier for us to allow our minds to make up stories about people than it is to take the time to get to know them and hear their real story. It is a shame, really. Think about how many people you interact with in a day. How many people do you pass by when you take your daily walk? How many times do you go through the checkout line at the grocery store, buy a coffee at a coffee shop, have a dental or medical appointment, read a friend’s social media post, or sit in a large room at a conference?

Out of all of those opportunities, did you take the time to interact or talk to someone, learn about their life, and hear their story? It is easier to rush through our day, keeping all the people we pass as strangers. We might observe them long enough to judge them or create a story about them in our mind, but it ends there.

Once in a while, the person stays in our mind for years, and we continue to wonder… and wish we had not missed the opportunity.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Pennie’s Life Lesson:
Never miss the opportunity to meet someone new
and listen to their story.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

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THEY SAY IT’S YOUR BIRTHDAY… by Pennie Hunt

10/5/2025

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This is my birthday week!
Some people do not like to celebrate birthdays and count how many years have gone by. I will admit that it weighs on my mind occasionally.

As many people do, my son passed at a young age. He only experienced 22 birthday celebrations. I think of that often when my mind wanders into the land of discontent about the number my age represents. Who am I to complain about enjoying another birthday and living a long life, when so many do not have that luxury? In fact, we should feel ashamed to grumble about growing older. The older we get, the luckier we are. We should concentrate on being grateful for the opportunity to live another year, experience more life, and enjoy everything that a new year brings.

Let’s celebrate! Normally, I love nothing more than flowers, a German chocolate or coconut cake, cards, and pretty gifts. It is my birthday, and I have a request. I don’t need a gift. I can’t think of one thing I need or want.

To help me celebrate my birthday this year, here is my request. I would love for you to do something kind for someone. Do it for me. It isn’t hard. Call a friend, buy someone a cup of coffee, help someone in need, volunteer your time, make a donation to a charity, do something nice for your own self-care. Do whatever act of joy and kindness you can think of. The stipulation is this… it should make YOU feel good. It should create smiles for others and yourself.

When you do something kind for someone else, it makes an impression on their heart. You leave an imprint in their mind. You show them that kindness does exist and that there are caring, compassionate people in this world.

Maybe your life feels out of control, and you are in burnout mode. If you do something kind for your own self-care, it makes you feel like you are good enough to be loved and cared for.

Also, when you do an act of kindness, it will make you feel the warmth of compassion. The kindness and joy you give will ricochet back to you. The echo of what you give to, or do for, the other person will be felt in your own heart and mind.
But wait, it doesn’t stop there. Typically, when you show an act of kindness to another person, they will, in turn, show kindness to someone else. Do you see the magic of this? Your one act of kindness keeps growing and growing.

Then there is a second part to my request …tell me about what you did and how it made you feel. Nothing would make me happier than hearing the stories of how you shared kindness for my birthday! I would be very grateful. (My email address is [email protected])

They say it’s my birthday- happy birthday to me! And now, maybe I'll still have to find a piece of coconut cake!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Pennie’s Life Lesson:
Sometimes the best gifts to yourself are the
acts of kindness you show to others!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

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IT’S NOT OVER TILL IT’S OVER by Pennie Hunt

LIFE ISN’T ALWAYS HOMEMADE – SOMETIMES A FROZEN PIE IS GOOD ENOUGH by Pennie Hunt

NEVER MISS THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN THE REAL STORY by Pennie Hunt

THEY SAY IT’S YOUR BIRTHDAY… by Pennie Hunt

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IT’S NOT OVER TILL IT’S OVER by Pennie Hunt

​LIFE ISN’T ALWAYS HOMEMADE – SOMETIMES A FROZEN PIE IS GOOD ENOUGH by Pennie Hunt

NEVER MISS THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN THE REAL STORY by Pennie Hunt

​THEY SAY IT’S YOUR BIRTHDAY… by Pennie Hunt

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Archives

Categories

LIFE ISN’T ALWAYS HOMEMADE – SOMETIMES A FROZEN PIE IS GOOD ENOUGH by Pennie Hunt

THEY SAY IT’S YOUR BIRTHDAY… by Pennie Hunt