I have a friend. Her name is Maxine.
Maxine is a pretty lady with a pretty heart. She is fun to be around, easy going, cheerful, and very easy to talk to. She also writes. She has these great little nuggets on her website , and one day, I stumbled on something she had written –
“Extend yourself to another’s self
That’s the beginning of Love
God took the initiative
And extended His self to man”
She then went on to explain what she meant – “ to go beyond your comfort zone….”
It spoke volumes to me. I started thinking about different things – For instance, how easy it is for me to relate with and “extend myself” to Maxine, especially since I don’t find anything weird about her. lol. I started thinking about my other friends too (all of whom I’m so blessed to have)… The wise ones. The quiet ones. The talkative ones. The ones I can trust to always have something funny to say. The ones that would give me the last shirt on their back. The easy going ones. The upbeat ones. The serious ones. The ever active ones. The ever interesting ones, and so on… Each one of them blessing me in their own way, with their own “package”. Everyone with their own different character, and their own unique approach to life.
We are all packaged differently, and yes, some people are naturally just drawn to certain other kinds of people. Certain qualities may attract you to a person, and make you want to get to know them better (like those qualities I listed about Maxine above have drawn me to her). And that’s definitely fine:)! It’s always so wonderful to find people we share things in common with, people we admire, people we find easy to talk to, that are fun, and share our ideals… it’s really great and certainly makes life a lot more interesting 
.
But on the other hand, every once in a while, we may come across someone we may find, at the very least at first glance, a little “weird”. lol. Some people might do certain things sometimes that make you go “hmm????” To you, what they are doing is weird. But there is so much more to them than that “weird” thing that you have just seen/experienced… There’s a whole package, much more than that aspect of their character that you may not fully understand.
And really, thinking about it, what’s weird anyway? What seems “weird” or unusual to one person is perfectly normal to someone else. Plus, we are all kind of weird in our own way, aren’t we? I know I’ve done many things that I consider weird thinking about now. And I know I’ll probably look back again and think the same thing about several other things later on. With every passing day, we are all growing and discovering ourselves more and more… And we all have certain aspects of our whole person that might be considered a little “weird” by at least some. But that’s certainly not all there is to us…
So thinking more about what “going out of your comfort zone” means to me – it means – knowing when to look past stuff that I may find a little “weird”, going out of my comfort zone and always truly loving others as God wants me to, and as God has shown me by example, like Maxine pointed out. After all, we are all kind of weird in some way, so at the very least we all have that in common, right? lol.
(Updated) But just a quick note to clarify 
– this is not to say that we can excuse our wrong behavior, behavior that we know is not pleasing to God, as being “weird”. For instance, I can’t say – “Oh, I love stealing, I love bullying, I love backbiting, I love being abusive to others – but take me as I am, I’m just different, that’s how God made me!” Absolutely not… that’s not being weird (as described in this article), it’s simply wrong. In that case, we need to work on ourselves, with God’s help, to change those wrong attitudes and start acting in a manner that will be pleasing to God. Thanks everyone:)!
So please, if you ever have the opportunity to “extend yourself to another”, or to “go out of your comfort zone”, whatever that might mean to you personally – please, let’s do it …with God’s help, Amen!
Here’s the Verse/Thought of the Day:
Ephesians 5:1-2 “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children; and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (NIV)
See More Bible Verses About Discipleship, Imitating God & Imitating Christ
See More Great Verses & Quotes
So what does “extending yourself to another” or/& “going out of your comfort zone” mean to you? Do you have any thoughts or comments on this? Thank you very much:)!
Much Love & Blessings,
Bomi Jolly
Don’t go yet:)! I think you’ll also enjoy:
- Good Morning My Neighbors!
- Choosing How Our Experiences Affect Us
- Big Bummed?
The definition of “weird” is actually very subjective. True, we are all weird in our own different ways.
.-= Jaycee´s last blog ..In the Market Places of Your World They are Waiting For You =-.
LOL!! Bomi…. aww I loved this. We are all weird in our own ways. I loved the scripture too, God is our perfect example…. living, learning, loving… bless you Bomi.
I just love the way you write. Please, just keep keeping it real. Thank you…
Hi Bomi,
I simply love the unique angle to this: Just be yourself. Doesn’t God love variety. I’m further buoyed by this article and you’re blessed to have good friends.
@Jaycee – Yep, very very subjective lol!! it’s certainly one of those things that is in the “eye of the beholder” lol. Thanks a lot Jaycee…Enjoy the rest of your day!:)!
@Titi, Fola –
Thank you very much! Yes , I hope we always remember and follow God’s perfect example in this and in so many other areas of our lives too. Thanks again:)!
@Olusola – Absolutely – God loves variety!! In people, in nature, in situations, etc! God loves and embraces variety and diversity…and so should we lol:)!! And yes, I am also thankful to be blessed with great friends!! What would life be without our friends? Thank you very much Olusola:)!
Congratulations, you just made wierdness cool! Hehe… That He gave himself for us while we were yet sinners, is weird and cool! Glad we extended ourselves to each other! I am honored to have been an inspiration for this post. Now I’m off to do a happy dance
Without question this posting hits home. Me loving my life and my world only limits the love of Christ in me. This sharing indeed have lifted my spirit in a “weird” manner. lol Thank you for sharing it Bomi!!
Leaving our comfort zone could mean, trying to accommodate other people despite differences in beliefs, attitude and taking them the way they are. Like you said everyone is unique in their own way. However, human beings only look at the faults and not the good side of other people. The Bible says “what is food for you could be poison for me” which means that we are all different.
Another lesson I picked up from this article is: Jesus Christ left his comfort Zone in heaven to come into this cruel world to die for our sins this means that he loves us unconditionally despite our sins and rejection.
I hope my attitude is not weird to you??? Hope you don’t see me as a weirdoo??? lol
Thanks for the article. God Bless.!!!!!!!!!!
@Maxine – LOL @ “making weird cool”! That makes me feel really good lol!! I’m gonna go do a happy dance too lol.. .Thank you Maxine
!
@Lespaul – Thank you very much for taking the time to read and to share!! So glad to hear you found this post useful, I laughed when I read the part about your spirit being lifted in a weird manner! lol! I feel the same way:)! I guess I should say – Happy “weird” day everyone!! lol! Thank you again Les!
@Christy – So true, we are all different and we really do ourselves a great disservice if we don’t step out of our little boxes and try to accommodate others despite varying beliefs, attitudes, etc. Often times we base our “weird” conclusions on things we don’t fully understand anyway… so we are only doing ourselves good if we take the time to accommodate others. Thanks a lot Christy:)! And are you kidding, you, weird??? lol… certainly not to me!! lol! Thanks again Christy!:)! God bless you too!
Bomi Jolly,
You’ve successfully addressed a significant issue (often trivialized by “He’s not my kind of person” or “we don’t quite get along” statements).
“…After all, we are all kind of weird in some way, so at the very least we all have that in common…”
Taking the cue from your note, I find it funny but true that I am ‘unique’ just like everyone else. And since uniqueness is not unique to me alone, I shouldn’t let it stand in the way of finding a common platform to accept and love other people like (or unlike) me.
Nice one from you as ever! Cheers.
Hey Weirdo!!! LOL! The sprit is one indeed. I have been looking at love as a topic myself over the last two weeks, agape love, that is. And you are so right; we all have things that are not likeable about us because no man is perfect. Recently someone upset
me and I decided to pray for the person (ha ha!) but God ended up having me pray for ME to see the person with His own eyes and through His love and that just did it. Is the person my best friend? No. But I love the person now and exercise grace, knowing that I am product of grace myself. And really, when you encounter “difficult people” God will have you deal with yourself first not the other person. May God help us to understand the depth of His love and mercy and reflect the same in our treatment of others. Amen
Likey….:)..really cool write up…love is not just loving the goodstuff but learning to accept the imperfect and working on it to bring out perfection…..
@Olufemi – Loved how you reminded us of how it can be so tempting to just go with “He’s not my kind of person” or “we don’t quite get along” … And lol @ “I’m unique, just like everyone else”!! I love it!! lol! And I absolutely love the way you put it – “since uniqueness is not unique to me alone, I shouldn’t let it stand in the way of finding a common platform to accept and love other people like (or unlike) me. ” … Exactly!! Thank you very much A.O!!
@Abiola – Hey back weirdooo!!! lol… Yep, it is sometimes hard to admit and to see lol, but we all have our issues for sure! But yes, I love how you reminded us that when we encounter “difficult” people, God will deal with US first,not the other person. That is really really useful to keep in mind. At the end of the day, ultimately, it’s between us and God, right? And we have to make sure we’re straight with God first before trying to figure out anything else…and Amen and Amen to your prayer! Amen! Thanks a lot Biola:)
@Toluwalase – Thanks so much glad it’s a “likey”! lol.. But seriously, thanks a lot.. and I hope we keep learning, applying, re-learning and re-applying every day, what love truly means. Thanks again Tolu:)!
And YES!!! Bomi Jolly has done it again. A Jolly note from a Jolly lady and a wise words of wisdom from a wise source
. I see you learning and growing everyday and that is more evident in your write up (I know you know what I mean…lol).
Awesome article, reflections and food for thoughts sis. Keep shinning for the world to see and keep them Jolly notes coming
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This is wonderful Sis Bomi that you are such a blessing and what i can personally pick from all that ave read is that When we give or the opportunity comes that we are in a position to assist others we should learn to release without having a heart of expectancy that maybe in future that person will reward us one day but actually pray for the grace of God to shower us with blessing because when we give to the poor we are lending to the Lord. God will continue to increase you Bomi on everyside and wisdom , knowledge n Understanding shall continue to be yours as you continue to sow a seed into the lives of others you life will be an example to others n God will elevate you and your family on everyside in Jesus Name Amen.
That was inspiring to me and it also got me thinking. cheers Sister keep up the good work.
How you amazed me with this beautiful epistle. I wish I could write like this, but if you don’t mind, I’d like to give you some things to write on, maybe in the future.
Keep in touch. lol
@Eskor – LOL!! Thank you:)!! Yes I know you know I know what you mean loool! Thank you very much Eskor.. great to know you found it useful!:)! Enjoy your evening!
@Deola – Thanks so much for taking the time to read and to share. .. yes, it’s very true – an integral part of loving is certainly giving, and doing this not because of what we expect we will get back. Thanks a lot Deola, and thank you very much for the kind words and prayers! They are much appreciated:)!
@Demola – LOL! You are far too kind=)! Thanks Demola for reading and for your encouraging words…yes, please give me some things to write on…lol! Thanks again Demola.. Have a blessed evening.
Nice one. Great message. What is life without challenges? What is life if we don’t push ourselves (out of our comfort zones)?
I like this.
Nice one on Femme Lounge, Sunshine Girl. (LoL). That is so apt!
Thank U Bomi. dis is a Lovely article. Somehow, U’ve helped me realize dat it aint a sin 2 be weird! we have 2 learn 2 embrace n celebrate our differences/uniqueness. God bless ya!
So…… Which category of friends do I fit it in, huhn?! Lol. Nice one sis. And just an additional reminder. God loves and accepts everyone, has no favorites, and shows no partiality (no respecter of persons). So, for whatever reason we may see someone else as “weird”, God definitely doesn’t. And we should always strive to look through his eyes. Remain blessed sis! xxx
@HexyDre – True true true!! Life would be pretty dull without challenges right, very true lol! Thank you much much HexyDreeee!:)!
@ Omolara – It’s certainly not a sin to be weird… We are all weird in our own ways!:)! lol. Thanks a lot for taking the time to read and share Omolara! God bless you too:)!
@Toju – LOL! You know you’re our 7th sister, or have u left the family??? lol!! And thank you for that reminder… God is definitely no respecter of persons (this is also talked about in the Femme Lounge article). And yes!!!, our eyesight can be very very dim even when we think it’s crystal clear lol, sometimes we absolutely have no clue, God sees and knows all!! thank you very much Toju! Stay blessed always:)!!!xxx
tnx for reminding me that i am unique in my own way, irrespective….
Not too long ago, someone accused me of being “weird.” I humbly thanked him, to his surprise. I suppose he expected it to be a debilitating charge. Au contraire! I explained that I enjoyed being weird…in fact, I enjoy everyone’s quirkiness, for it is what makes us ever more interesting.
…Always nice to read your articles Bomi. …very very enlightening and entertaining! Today’s lesson is partly on psychology!
..but unfortunately, there is no formal definition of a ‘weird’ thing that most people can agree upon, because it depends so much on the particular claim being made in the context of the knowledge base that surrounds it… and the individual or community proclaiming it. One person’s weird belief might be another’s normal theory – just as you have mentioned earlier, and also, a weird belief at one time might subsequently become normal! … Bomi cld u ever believe that, Stones falling from the sky were once the belief of a few daffy Englishmen!; today we have an accepted theory of meteorites.
Back 2 d business of d day on “self extension”! …from the scriptures u quoted; Ephesians 5:1-2…d first thing I noticed are d series of commands issued here. which loudly says: Don’t talk it. Walk it!
Ephesians 5:1-2, “Be ye, therefore, followers of God, as dear children” …”the Greek word translated “followers” is mimetai, from which we get d English word mimic. which simply means that we are to be mimics of God.
Imitators (mimetes from miméomai = imitate English = mimic) is an imitator, follower, actor, impostor.
Plato said a mimetes was one who represents characters while Aristotle said it was one who is like another!
A mime is one who acts a part with mimic gestures and action. Have you ever seen somebody mime? lol! They don’t say anything, do they? In other words, what Paul is saying is, “Don’t talk about His love, walk in His love, live it, express it. Don’t tell everybody you have it, show them that you have it!!!!! Do as God does. Mime. In other words, live it out before the world!”
Mimetes means “do as I do.”!!!!! The present imperative is a command calling for divine imitation to be their way of life. Paul says for us to continually “mimic” God’s attitudes and actions just described (strengthened by His Spirit of prayer of Eph 3:16)
Remember that when you “mime” you usually let your actions speak in place of your words. How does this truth that apply to being kind, tender hearted, forgiving (Eph 4:32). If we are to be like God, we must “mime” Him and let our actions speak louder than our words!
…thanks again Bomi for putting this brilliant article up and for tagging and reminding us all about our primary responsibility towards living a fulfilled life which is to extend ourselves to others simply by mimicing God!
God will grant us all the ability to get out of our comfort zone and offer help to someone in need ……
Thats christianity….
Nice one bomi! keep it rolling…
We are all a little weird, but I think some are weirder than others. There’s definitely degrees of weirdness, & us normal folks are on the lowest degree of “weird.” I probably shouldn’t read blogs & comment at 1 in the morning lol.
.-= Anahid´s last blog ..A change is coming =-.
@Funmi – Thank you very much!! Glad to hear this was useful for you…!:)!
@ Ife – LOL. I can only imagine how surprised he would have been… He probably expected you to reply with something like “really? Why do you think so? How exactly?” True, variety is the spice of life as they say… lol. Thanks a lot Ife:)!
@Akindele – Yep, “weird” is so subjective, and depends on so many factors, like you mentioned including the individual in question, the location, your knowledge, the context, etc. it’s pretty easy to forget that though isn’t it lol. And I love how you remind us that a weird belief at one time might subsequently become normal… perfect example “stones falling from the sky” vs “meteorites today… interesting indeed!! What you said also reminds me of a comment someone had made on a much earlier post, Pace Setters – about the custom of wearing white dresses at weddings…
And thanks so much for breaking down the scripture in your understanding… man we should make your comment into another post, there are so many goodies in there!:)! Thanks a lot Akindele! Yes, I hope we always remember to not just “talk about his love” but also walk in it, live it, express it, like you said. Talking about stuff is super, but like you said our actions should certainly always speak louder than our words! Imitating God should become second nature in our every day lives… by extending ourselves to others in the big things and the little things we do.
Thank you very much once again for taking the time to read and share with us all Akindele!:)!
@ Laide – Yep… that is Christianity.. ! Thank you very much Laide!!! Glad it was good for you…
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@ Anahid – lol @ “some are weirder than others”, and “lowest degree of weird” lol! Reminds me a little bit of the famous “We are all equal, but some are more equal than others” lol!! What are you doing up at past 1am your time… go to sleep lol!! Thanks a lot Anahid!! Have a very restful night and a great day too:)!
bomi, i love this , you know for a long time in my life , I found it so difficult to roll with some classes of people , not because of any kind of complex , but because we don’t just get along , egos always clashing.But recently i heard this particular verse in the bible in a new way’ Pursue peace with all men’ , it clearly put to me that i have to do away with how i feel to what God wants. Bomi, thank you again for this wonderful piece, God bless you.
P.S :please share ‘That Thursday Evening’ from my blog on your site , so that people can be blessed.
When we extend love, kindness and support to a person who’s unloving—that’s being out of our comfort zone. If we show forgiveness even if it does not justify what the actions are, that’s extending beyond our comfort zone. If we do something to show love to people who are inconsiderate and unkind to us, that’s beyond comfort zone. It’s showing real love and compassion to glorify God.
Great article Bomi, but at the risk of sounding like a rebel, I beg to differ. There is good indeed in not being judgmental and a snob, but we need to be clear here that the definition of weird is really very subjective.
Weird can be used to cover a multitude of wrong behaviour in the name of ‘we are all different, let’s tolerate each other’ and this is dangerous. Evil is not weird, it is evil.Simple, and to avoid bad people, wrong-doers or those who will terribly influence us to begin to justify and condone wrong is only wisdom…so if your ‘weirdness’ for instance is that you love girls (and are a girl yourself i.e Alice and Eve) pardon me if I condemn your sexual orientation which to me is wrong and do not allow myself and my children come near you for fear that you will ‘taint’ our value system!
@OreOfe – Thanks for sharing! That verse you reminded us of – “pursue peace with all men” and its variations, eg “make every effort to live in peace with others” or “Seek peace and pursue it” etc are all verses I sincerely hope we always remember and act out in our daily lives. That’s Christianity. It’s so easy to run away from seemingly difficult people/situations and just say “we just don’t get along” – like Olufemi said above. And like Abiola reminded us earlier, a lot of times when we have issues, God will deal with US first. I pray we always truly “pursue peace”, growing and learning each day – it’s an active and ongoing thing. Thank you very much Oreofe!
@Bingkee – Thanks for those great reminders about showing real and radical love, and how that glorifies God. Praying that we will always live lives that give glory to God, not just in our words, but in our deeds! Amen. Thank you very much Bingkee!
@Eky – Thanks for sharing! Your comments reminded me to stress the fact that that we cannot just excuse our wrong behavior, behavior that we know is not pleasing to God (whatever that might be), as being “weird”. I cannot for instance say – Oh, I love stealing, I love bullying, I love backbiting, I love being abusive to others – but that’s just who I am – take me as I am, I’m just different, that’s how God made me! Absolutely not… that’s not being weird, it’s just plain wrong. In that case we will need to work on ourselves, with God’s help, to change those wrong attitudes and start acting in a manner that will be pleasing to God. Thanks a lot for bringing that up! It’s great to make this absolutely clear in case anyone had any doubts. I will update the note to reflect this.
So, absolutely not – this note is not condoning any kind of wrong behavior, behavior that is not pleasing in God’s sight (whatever that might be), as just being “weird”. I’m so sorry you got that impression. Please allow me to share an example of the “weirdness” we are talking about in this article with you (and anyone else who might be wondering). There are several different examples I can think of but this is the first that came to mind–
A Canadian friend of mine told me once, years ago, when I lived in Canada, that she always found it extremely disturbing to see people of certain cultures kneel to greet other (older) people. She thought it was demeaning, and that it was as if those people were being worshiped. She was really uncomfortable with the whole thing, needless to say, she found it weird. I am African, and I am from one of those cultures where we will often kneel to greet people that are significantly older than us. Regardless of this “weird” behavior she noticed, she “extended herself” to me – after we started getting a little closer, she told me about her concern and I was very happy to explain to her that kneeling was absolutely not an act of worship, it was just a form of respect. Now many other people, from different cultures all over the world, will not find anything weird about this. They have similar customs so it’s absolutely normal to them. But to my friend, it was very weird, and I don’t blame her lol, she had never been exposed to anything like that before. Today, we are extremely close friends and even though she is still not necessarily on board with the whole “kneeling” thing, she has discovered that there’s a whole lot more to me and other Africans than just “those weird people than kneel”. LOL!:)!
I don’t think anyone can blame you for not allowing your children to keep hanging around people whose lifestyles you believe will be a bad influence. We have a responsibility as parents (Christian or not) to do our best to protect our children from bad influences, for their own good. Yes, we still teach our kids to love others, but loving someone doesn’t necessarily mean your children need to be hanging out with them or doing everything with them… especially since kids can be so easily affected by negative influences.
And that also applies to us parents/adults in some way. Yes, we have to be wise, if you know you have someone influencing you to do something that will not please God – eg if you have friends that constantly try to convince you to do wrong, or keep abusing you emotionally, physically, verbally, etc – absolutely – you need to take yourself out of that harmful situation! Taking yourself out of a dangerous situation does not mean you are not extending yourself or that you don’t love others.
Having said that, I still really want us to remember though – we do have a responsibility as Christians to extend ourselves to others, and love others, regardless of how they are living their lives, whether or not we approve of them, whether or not they are likable, kind, considerate etc. As Christians, we are commanded by God to love others, imitating God by living a life of love to others..and that includes everyone. I pray God will give us all the wisdom to truly live a life of love (even when it’s hard), without necessarily putting ourselves in dangerous situations. It can definitely be done:)! Thank you very much once again Eky!
Have a blessed Sunday everyone:)!
Nice reading your post again Bomi, Its cool to be weird in a way that GOD will be happy with us….Happpppyyyyy Weird week….lol
I’ve thought about this a lot too. God wants to use us and He knows so much more than I do where it’s best to use me. May I see people more as God does, may He grant us the ability to love people and reach out, extend ourselves to outside of our comfort zone, so He can work in the lives of others through us. Sure is easier said than done! Sure am glad that we serve a great God who grants us His ability to do what He wants!
.-= Tracy´s last blog ..We’re back =-.
Another great article. We are all unique and should embrace our uniqueness. If you know how to tap into your weirdness, you will be rich.
@Emeka – …it’s certainly cool “to be weird in a way that God will be happy with us”!:)! Weird or not, as long as God is happy with us – we should be happy with, and embrace who we are! Thanks a lot Emeka, Happy weird week to you too:)! lol
@Tracy – “God wants to use us and He knows so much more than I do where it’s best to use me…” – Exactly! He knows best….I loved your prayer, and I am saying a very enthusiastic Amen… Amen! He is a great God, he will help us to do what he wants us to do! Thank you very much Tracy!
@E – Thank you very much E!:)! Off to “tap into my weirdness” lol – I love that! Have a blessed day!
You are really blessed with a great talent to write…wow..I love the piece..keep it up..God bless
Exteeeenddd!!!
And I liked the interview too!
Love you very much, Happy Birthday!!x
Thanks for this inspirational piece, Bomi. And thanks for extending yourself to me
God bless you richly.
@Yemi – Thank you very much for your encouraging words, really glad to hear you loved it:)!
@Femi – Yaaay:)!!! Thank you Femi, Love you much much:-)!!
@Tola – Thank you for extending yourself to me too:)! Keep being the blessing that you are:)! God bless you too Tola!
I hope you all have a wonderful and restful weekend!:)! Much Love & Blessings…
Bomi, u are so weird…how can one possibly be so full of knowledge and still be so selfless to share it? now thats wat i call ‘positive weirdness’. May God replenishur store of wisdom. Great job.
Interesting thoughts. A few years ago, when my son was 11 or 12, I knew I had raised him right when I heard him consistently reply to the statement “You’re weird” with a smile and a thank you. He is 16 now and he is his own man. He thinks deeply about life and really understands people. Most of his friends are the misfits that the world considers weird. I’m truly blessed that God has put him in my care.
this site is awesome because God is. I’m so glad to have run across this site- thanks Bomi!
@ Daberechi – Aww thank you thank you thank you…you are too kind:)! Thanks for your very kind prayers – Amen! Thanks D!
@Ron – I really enjoyed reading that:)! Thanks so much for taking the time to share, Ron!! My love to your family, especially your 16th year old. God bless:)!!
@Dave – YES – He is absolutely and positively awesome!:)! Thank you very much Dave…Have a wonderful rest of the week!:)!
Great post! Maybe you could do a follow up to this topic!?!
-Warmest regards,
Miranda
Great writing! You might want to follow up to this topic =D
I am happy you took the time to write this.
@Miranda, Tabatha, Sybil – Thank you very much to all of you! Very glad to hear this was good for you. Follow Up? We will see… will be sure to keep you posted. Thanks for your kind words though, much appreciated! Please keep in touch!:)!