Lillie Ammann's Blog, page 3

Our Help Comes from the Lord

I was recently talking to a friend who has three serious autoimmune diseases as well as a spinal condition that causes numbness on one side of her body. This woman survived colon, cervical, and breast cancer at different times in her twenties and thirties. Today, she devotes one day a week to medical treatments, but she works five days each week.

At one point, she was bedridden and was unable to speak. She didn’t lie in bed feeling sorry for herself and wondering why God made her go through this. She thought about the purpose of her situation.

If she couldn’t talk, that must mean that God wanted her to listen, to hear.

He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Matthew 11:15

If she wasn’t mobile, that must mean that God wanted her to be still.

Be still and know that I am God.

Psalm 46:10

People often say that God doesn’t give us more than we can handle, but my friend and I don’t believe that. If God allowed us only the amount of pain or suffering or need that we can handle on our own, we wouldn’t need Him. God allows us to suffer more than we can handle so that we depend on Him. He wants us to cry out to Him. He wants us to admit that we can’t handle a medical diagnosis, a broken family relationship, a financial crisis, or any of the multitude of problems that we face every day. God wants us to look toward the hills and say, “My help comes from the Lord.” (Psalm 121:2)

“Grace from the God Who Guards Your Life” on the website of the Christian Counseling & Educational Foundation includes a story that exemplifies God’s care of us. The author observed a young lifeguard saving the life of a man who ignored multiple warnings of danger. Suddenly he was in trouble and couldn’t help himself. The lifeguard jumped in and rescued him. In the same way, God is our lifeguard. He guards us and rescues us even if we have strayed and ignored warnings.

So don’t believe anyone who tells you that God won’t give you more than you can handle. He gives you more than you can handle, so He can handle it for you. Give Him that heavy load you are carrying.

The post Our Help Comes from the Lord first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

Ashes on the Forehead?

When I was growing up in a small town and attending a Protestant church that didn’t observe Lent, I was curious about students who came to school on what seemed to be a random Wednesday with a cross marked on their forehead in ashes. Now that I attend an Anglican church, I know about Ash Wednesday and Lent.

When Is Lent?

The date of Ash Wednesday is determined by the date of Easter. It’s 40 days (excluding Sundays) before Easter Sunday. There are many references to 40 days in Scripture, notably the 40 days that Jesus spent praying and fasting before He began His ministry. Sunday is always a feast day, a day of celebration, as that is the day of Jesus’s resurrection. So we fast for six days but not the Sabbath.

My Lenten Devotions

This year I will be following a Bible reading plan from Bible Gateway. My daily plan for the year is from YouVersion. Both have some excellent reading plans–everything from a few days to a full year. I vary my readings each penitential season, not only the plan but also the version of the Bible.

During Lent, I will read the Scriptures listed for that day’s plan. Then I will write a brief meditation and a prayer. I have done this for years for my own personal use. Several years ago, I started publishing the devotions, first on my blog, then as a PDF, and in recent years as a print book that I’ve sold to raise for missionaries our church supports.

Lenten Devotional for YouDownload the Lenten devotional: I Am the Lord.

This year, because of my illnesses in recent months, I didn’t have time to publish a print book, but I am offering a PDF devotional. This is my personal devotions from Lent last year. The PDF is free. You may read it online, and you are welcome to print as many copies as needed and distribute the PDF electronically as much as you like.

Download the Lenten devotional: I Am the Lord.

The post Ashes on the Forehead? first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

Lenten Devotional: I Am the Lord

Not all Christian denominations formally observe Lent, but all Christians can do so. Lent, the 40 days leading up to Easter, is a time of fasting and repentance in preparation for Easter. Believers may fast food, often “giving up” meat one day a week or one meal a day or a specific type of food, such as sweets, throughout the season. Christians, in addition to or in lieu of, fasting, may add worship or devotions to their daily habits throughout Lent.

Usually during Lent and Advent, a less-severe penitential season leading up to Christmas, I add a seasonal Bible reading plan to my devotions. Each day, I read the daily passage, then write a brief meditation and prayer. Years ago, I started sharing my personal meditations the following year. At first, I posted them on my blog, then I offered them as a free PDF download. In recent years, I published the devotionals in a paperback book that I sold to raise money for Love for the Least, a movement with the mission, as described on its website, “to bring the Good News of the Kingdom to the world’s least, sharing Jesus’ hope and love with them.”

This year, because of my frequent and serious illnesses in recent months, I had to forego the print book and revert to distributing a PDF devotional.

May His blessings abound in your time alone with the Lord as you meditate on I Am the Lord.

The post Lenten Devotional: I Am the Lord first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

How to Create an Effective SEO Strategy for Your Business: Guest Post

Digital marketing can often seem like a complex puzzle. Yet, crafting a tailored SEO strategy for your business is the cornerstone of any successful online venture. This strategy is not just about throwing in a bunch of keywords or chasing the latest trends; it’s about understanding the unique needs of your business and how best to connect with your target audience. By focusing on your brand’s specificity, you can use SEO not just as a tool for better rankings but as a means to engage and captivate your audience genuinely. With this fresh perspective, let’s explore how to effectively harness the power of SEO and transform your online presence.

1. Know Your Audience Inside Out

Understanding your audience is the first step to creating an SEO strategy for your business. If your business is a local bakery, knowing that your primary audience includes residents seeking fresh pastries or custom cakes helps tailor your content. Create blog posts that describe your products and offer baking tips, stories behind your recipes, or insights into selecting the right ingredients. 

Identifying your target audience is key because it shapes the content and keywords you’ll use in your SEO efforts.

This approach targets relevant keywords and builds a community around your brand. Connect with your audience through comments or social media to understand their preferences and adjust your content accordingly. It’s about creating a two-way conversation that improves your SEO and fosters brand loyalty.

2. Master Keyword Research

Effective keyword research is pivotal for guiding potential customers to your site. For a pet store, this means identifying terms like “affordable pet food” or “exotic reptile supplies.” Utilize tools such as Google’s Keyword Planner to see what the audience is searching for.

But don’t just focus on high-volume keywords; consider long-tail, more specific, less competitive keywords. These can lead to more qualified traffic and higher conversion rates. Additionally, keep an eye on keyword trends and adjust your strategy accordingly. Remember, the best keywords align closely with your product or service and are used by your potential customers.

3. Harness the Power of Email Marketing

Integrating email marketing into your SEO strategy can effectively engage and retain your audience. For example, a consultancy firm can benefit from sending a monthly newsletter featuring insightful articles, industry updates, and case studies.

That keeps your audience informed and drives traffic back to your site, increasing the likelihood of repeat visits and prolonged engagement. Personalize your emails to enhance relevance and impact. Consistent, valuable communication via email can strengthen your brand’s presence and loyalty among your clientele.

4. Monitor and Adjust to Keep Track of Success

You must monitor and measure the success of your SEO strategy consistently. As a result, you can see if your strategy is working or not. Tools like Google Analytics provide insights into which pages attract the most traffic, where your visitors are coming from, and the keywords driving your website’s visits. 

Regularly reviewing data and metrics sharpens your SEO strategy for your business, ensuring continuous improvement.

Understanding these metrics is key to measuring your SEO strategy’s success and identifying improvement areas. Regularly reviewing this data helps you adapt to changing trends and optimize your strategy for better results. Stay flexible and change your approach based on real-time feedback and analytics.

5. Optimize for Google’s Core Vitals

Talking about metrics, focusing on Google’s core vitals is essential for offering a seamless user experience. For an online clothing store, this includes ensuring fast-loading images, a user-friendly interface, and a streamlined checkout process. Optimize your website’s loading speed, mobile responsiveness, and interactive elements.

Remember, user experience impacts your SEO rankings, customer satisfaction, and retention. Therefore, regularly test your website and adjust it to keep up with best practices and technological advancements. A smooth, enjoyable user experience is key to converting visitors into customers.

6. The Art of Connections Through Link Building

Effective link-building is about creating connections and producing content others want to link to. For example, if you’re a fitness coach, crafting insightful blog posts on health trends or personal fitness stories can attract links from reputable health and fitness websites. These external links enhance your website’s authority and credibility in the eyes of search engines.

It’s also beneficial to link internally to relevant content on your own site, enhancing user experience and keeping visitors engaged longer. Remember, the quality of links matters more than quantity; focus on building relationships with authoritative sites in your niche.

7. Quality Content is Your Golden Ticket

Quality content goes beyond the basics; it involves creating material that is not only informative but also engaging and shareable. For a travel agency, this means crafting content like travel guides, local dining experiences, or personal travel stories that resonate with your audience.

Also, use various formats like blogs, videos, and infographics to keep the content fresh and interesting. Consistently updating your website with new, relevant content keeps visitors returning and signals to search engines that your site is a valuable resource. Engaging content also encourages social sharing, increasing your online reach and visibility.

8. Learn from Others And Avoid Common Pitfalls

Being aware of common mistakes, especially those seen in new endeavors like starting your blog, is crucial. Common errors include neglecting keyword optimization in blog posts or failing to promote content effectively on social media.

Collaborating with your team to analyze competitors’ SEO strategies can unveil new opportunities for your approach.

Analyzing these mistakes can provide valuable lessons for refining your SEO approach. So, stay informed about best practices and continuously learn from successes and missteps in digital marketing. As a result, you’ll avoid common pitfalls and keep your strategy dynamic and effective.

Conclusion on How to Create an Effective SEO Strategy for Your Business

In conclusion, developing an effective SEO strategy for your business is not a one-time task but an ongoing learning, adapting, and growing process. By following these tips, you can build a robust online presence that attracts visitors and converts them into loyal customers. Remember, the digital world is always changing, and staying ahead means being proactive, creative, and willing to evolve. Here’s to your success in the dynamic world of SEO!

Author’s bio:

Jessica Mills, a content editor and writer at Movers Development, brings a wealth of expertise in digital marketing and SEO strategies. With a knack for turning complex concepts into easy-to-digest content, she helps businesses thrive online.

The post How to Create an Effective SEO Strategy for Your Business: Guest Post first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

Another Year, Another Miracle

The Last Few Months

As you can see, my last blog post was in mid-November. Earlier that month, I had posted about my recent hospitalization and rehabilitation. The blog post was titled “I’m Back…And Hope to Stay.”

Alas, that hope was futile. It wasn’t long before I was back in the hospital with another bout of sepsis. After only three days at home, I fell again and was hospitalized again with a bladder infection followed by another two weeks in rehab.

Since mid-December, I have been out of the hospital, except for one night of observation in the ER after I hit my head in a fall. Now I’m having home visits from a wound care doctor with nurses three times a week to change the dressing and medicate an infected gash in my leg. But I did not go to the hospital for that, and I am so happy that I’ve been home for over a month–the longest time I’ve been out of the hospital in five months.

You will see that there have been no posts in all the time I’ve been home. Going through snail mail and email, paying bills, catching up on laundry and grocery shopping and housekeeping and more have been higher priorities.

That Title Should Really Read More Miracles

I do have a reason for choosing today to be my first post since I’ve recovered. Today is the thirty-second anniversary of my stroke at the hands of a chiropractor and a reminder of all the miracles I’ve experienced in my life.

God has been extremely active in my life, as I believe He is in all our lives if we only pay attention. My husband always said, “I don’t regret anything that happened in my life up until I met you, because if things had happened differently we would not have met. Our meeting, falling in love, and marrying all came from divine intervention in our lives.”

In the last few years of his life, Jack had Alzheimer’s and sometimes got words confused. He started calling it divine interference, but he always remembered it was brought about by the hand of God.

Trying to list all God’s miracles in my life would take much more than one post. Since I’ve just experienced several medical miracles, I will focus on the medical miracles in my life.

Some of the Many Medical Miracles in My LifeDoberman Attack

I was attacked by a Doberman when I gave him a very small kick to try to keep him from mounting the female in heat. He had been tied up with a heavy chain but had escaped. It took him a few seconds to disconnect, and I had taken a few steps away before he attacked. The doctor later told me that if I had been facing him, he would have gotten my carotid artery, and I would not have survived – the first miracle of this episode.

After what seemed like forever, I thought I would surely die. I prayed, Lord, it looks like I’m about to meet You. I don’t want to be fighting when I enter Heaven. Forgive my sins and take me into Your Kingdom. Then I went limp, at peace and ready to die. As soon as I went limp, the dog let me go – the second miracle of this episode. 

I had many bites on my head and arms, including one place where my scalp was exposed about the size of a quarter. The doctor told me, after conferring with a plastic surgeon, that he was just going to stitch me up as best he could for a temporary fix. Severe dog bites almost always get infected, and the surgeon didn’t want to do a skin graft only to have it get infected. The doctor put 53 stitches in my head and 20 stitches on my arm, treated the wounds with antibiotic ointment and gave me oral antibiotics. I went every day for dressing changes and more topical antibiotic. Although I had about two weeks of the most excruciating pain I’ve ever experienced, the wounds healed up completely without either infection or surgery – the third miracle of this episode.

Stroke

I experienced a stroke at the hands of a chiropractor. The stroke was the rare Wallenberg stroke, in which both sides of the body are affected. All the time I was in rehab, the Director of Medicine brought students over from the medical school and showed them my symptoms. He always said, “You’d better watch now because you’ll probably never see this in your practice.”

Before I entered rehab, though, I woke up in the hospital with a neurologist standing at the foot of my bed. He said, “If we don’t see significant improvement in three days, you can be this way the rest of your life.” This way was lying flat on my back, unable to lift my head off the pillow or move any part of my body. Although I thought I was talking, I was only making garbled sounds. My vision was distorted – more than double vision, I would see as many as eight images of everything around me, each image just a few inches above and to the right of the previous one. The one thing I could do was vomit, and I was doing that repeatedly.

I prayed and vowed there would be improvement in three days. I decided that if I could lift my left shoulder off the bed and grasp the bed rail and at the same time move the fingers of my right hand, I would be okay. I prayed and tried to move and in the wee hours of the third morning, I was able to do those things. I wanted to share my exciting news, but I couldn’t reach the phone and couldn’t talk even if I got the phone.

It took months of rehab, but I progressed from a manual wheelchair pushed by someone else to a motorized scooter to a walker and finally, for at time, to walking unaided. The chiropractor had told my husband that I had the flu and couldn’t walk because of the balance in my inner ear. They carried me to the car, and all the way home, between throwing up in the towel the chiropractor gave me, I kept telling my husband, “I think I’m dying! Help me!” I couldn’t understand why he was ignoring me. Later he told me that he thought I moaning from being so sick because nothing intelligible came out of my mouth. It was only when he tried to get me out of the car at home that he discovered I was paralyzed.

There were so many miracles in my stroke journey, beginning with surviving the first few hours while the chiropractor hid what happened, that I can’t list them all. But coming from being told I could be totally helpless for the rest of my life to returning to a functioning, successful person is a huge miracle.

Yes, I still have some “deficits” as the doctors call them. My balance is very bad, vision is still distorted so I have to have prisms in my glasses to avoid most of the double vision, fine motor skills are lacking, and I have to use a stylus on a touch screen on a phone or computer. But there is life after stroke.

All things considered my recovery has been a series of miracles. And my husband experienced a miracle in complete recovery from a stroke after getting immediate treatment.

Ruptured Appendix

One day I experienced chills and fever, and fever is a rarity for me. My husband came home and found me huddled under the covers in bed complaining of abdominal pain. He took me to our doctor’s office. We had been his patients for many years and knew his family as well. One of his sons had just completed his residency and come to work for his father as a full-fledged doctor. I arrived at the office with high fever and pain and was told that Dr. B was with another patient. Would I see David instead? I agreed, and I got on the exam table, and David palpated my abdomen. When he touched one spot I rose up and cried out in pain. David ran to the door of the exam room and called, “Dad! Dad! Come quick!”

Dr. B said he thought my appendix would burst any minute. He called the surgeon who had removed my gallbladder the year before and found out he had just finished his surgeries and was preparing to leave the hospital. He agreed to wait for me, and the doctor told Jack to drive me to the hospital. He said that would be faster than an ambulance. Jack was not a timid, slow driver. When we arrived at the hospital, they took me in immediately, changed me into a hospital gown, and started to take me for an X-ray. The surgeon came in, took one look at me, and said, “I’ve heard of people being green around the gills, but I’ve never seen anyone blue before. We don’t have time for an X-ray.’

I was rushed into surgery and didn’t know anything until I woke up in the recovery room. The surgeon came by and asked, “Haven’t you been in excruciating pain for at least a week?” I told him I had been perfectly fine until that day. Then I remembered something. “Well, about a week ago,” I said, “I stopped for a fast food sandwich and ate it in the car on the way back to my office from an appointment. Fortunately we had a gravel parking lot, because as soon as I stepped out of the car, I had an episode of terrible projectile vomiting. But after it was over, I felt okay and went back to work for the rest of the day.” I thought I had eaten some bad food from the fast food restaurant.

The surgeon said, “That’s when your appendix burst. It’s a shriveled up black clump. But it was totally encased in a sac and the infection didn’t get into your bloodstream. I’ve never seen anything like that before,” he said.

Another miracle in my life.

Jumping

About ten years after the stroke, I started what my husband called “jumping.” My left arm and leg flailed out, and I made a sound that people heard as “oh” or “no,” even though I was not intentionally saying anything. The first few weeks after it started, it was constant, over and over and over again. It wasn’t extremely painful, but it was uncomfortable – feeling like a mild electric shock on the left side of my body, and it was exhausting.

Then it became less frequent but more severe. I started showing symptoms of stroke and actually went to the ER several times. I visited different neurologists, who gave me different diagnosis, but no one really knew what it was or what to do about it.

One Sunday, a stranger in church said to me that God had told her to tell me that I have been healed, but the healing wasn’t manifested yet. I clung to that as I sought intercessory prayer from my priest and the intercessory prayer team at church.

Today, I count myself healed. Occasionally, if I am very tired or stressed or cold, I will have a short jumping spell. However, I can bring them to a stop with a CBD roll-on and medicine to help me sleep. No more stroke symptoms or jumping for hours or days on end – another miracle.

Sepsis

In the last six months, I have survived two bouts of sepsis. My mother died of sepsis, and when I tell people I had sepsis, most can relate a story of a friend or relative who died of it. I didn’t realize how sick I was, but so many people were praying for me that the phrase “storming Heaven with prayer” was apropos.

I had no idea I was sick. I had been feeling exceptionally well, and my doctor said I was looking better than she had ever seen me. When I woke up, I felt weak and I was confused, although I didn’t realize it. The first two things I do each morning is to take my emergency alert button out of the charger and put it around my neck and take my phone out of its charger and put it on a small rolling cart with other necessities like water and a notepad and pen. It’s hard for me to carry anything in my power chair, so I push this little cart around to have what I need.

That morning when the alarm went off at 8:30, I took both the alert button and phone out of their chargers, but instead of putting them where they belonged, I held them in my hands. When I tried to stand up to transfer from the lift chair I sleep in to the power wheelchair, I just collapsed. The phone and the button went flying across the room, and I fell face down on the floor. I had a nosebleed and hit my mouth so hard my teeth cut into the inside of mouth and caused bleeding. In the fall, I had knocked a bottle of water off the cart, and it split open and spilled. So I was lying in a puddle of blood and water, and I was so weak I couldn’t even lift my head up enough to look around the room for the phone or alert button.

My phone started ringing at 9:00, my neighbor checking on me. Unfortunately, we had not yet exchanged keys, so she couldn’t come in my apartment when I didn’t answer. (That has been corrected now; we have each other’s keys and both of us have used them for emergencies.) The phone kept ringing, praise God, so I could get an idea of where it was.

I managed to wriggle like a snake for a little bit, then rest, then move a little more. I continued to do this – very slowly – following the sound of the phone. Finally, I got to the area where the ringing came from, and reached around on the floor until I found the phone underneath the wheelchair. I pulled the phone out, turned it over to call 9-1-1, and saw the time: 11:30. I had been crawling around on the floor for three hours!

Help arrived quickly after I made the call, and thus began my hospital/rehab adventure. It’s been a long journey, but I feel great now and praise God for the healing from sepsis twice and urinary tract infections four times since the last week of August.

Looking Ahead

I have caught up on all the things that were neglected. Today, I started back studying the course I’m taking online in Biblical counseling as research for my novel. I’m getting to the writing phase very soon!

My goal is to post to the blog about once a week. See you soon!

And I will keep my eyes open for the miracles that happen all around me – large and small.

The post Another Year, Another Miracle first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

Enjoy Writing in November

November features several special observances about writing.

I Love to Write Day

Today, November 15 is I Love to Write Day. If you like to write, take some time to write something today. You don’t need to be a professional writer to enjoy writing. You can write something you want others to read or something you want just for yourself.

Family Stories Month

November is Family Stories Month. Every family has interesting stories of quirky ancestors, humorous events, exciting adventures, heartwarming occurrences. A good way to observe Family Stories Month is to share these stories around the dinner table on Thanksgiving. Older generations may be surprised at how much younger family members enjoy their parents’ and grandparents’ memories. Children will be fascinated to learn that everyone didn’t always carry around a cellphone and that the Thanksgiving turkey didn’t always come frozen from the grocery store. Family stories are wonderful not only to share the legacy of family history but also to pass on important values and beliefs.

NaNiWriMo

Many writers get a jumpstart on their novels by participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). The goal is to draft an entire novel during the month. If you aspire to be a novelist, this is a great way to make progress. Even if you don’t finish the novel in November, you can develop a discipline of writing regularly that will enable you to complete the book. I think discipline in following a writing routine is critical for a writer. Without the discipline of writing a chapter a week for a critique group, I might never have been published, never even finished a book to publish.

National Lifewriting Month

November is also National Lifewriting Month. Rather than a novel (fiction), lifewriting involves writing memoir or family history (nonfiction). I believe everyone has a story worth telling. Your lifewriting may not be of great interest to other people, but it will probably be of great interest to family and friends. Lifewriting could be putting into written form the family stories shared around the Thanksgiving table or a personal story of your own life, what you want your children and grandchildren to know about you. You can learn more in my six-part blog series on Memoirs and Family History or my free ebook, Preserving Memories: How to Write a Family History.

Writing Anytime

Remember, you can enjoy a love of writing without becoming a professional writer. You can honor your family history and pass on your most important lessons and values. November is a month encouraging writing, but you can do it anytime!

The post Enjoy Writing in November first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

Understanding Google’s Core Web Vitals and Their SEO Impact: Guest Post

In modern digital marketing, Core Web Vitals and SEO are like the dynamic duo of online success. They play an important role in determining how well your website ranks on Google – and how your content promotion fares in turn.

But what exactly are Core Web Vitals, and why do they matter for your site’s SEO? In this post, we’ll break it down and explore how these metrics directly influence your website’s performance and user experience. Let’s dive in!

What are Core Web Vitals?

Core Web Vitals are key metrics that Google uses to measure the user experience on a website. They help assess how fast and user-friendly a site is. There are three main Core Web Vitals:

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) gauges how fast a website’s main content loads.First Input Delay (FID) measures the time the site takes to respond to the first click or tap.Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) tracks how stable a webpage is while loading.

These metrics give site owners and Google a clear picture of how a website performs from a user’s perspective.

Core Web Vitals gauge how well a website responds to user interaction.The Key Metrics Explained

With introductions in order, the connection between Core Web Vitals and SEO lies in what these metrics mean for the user experience. Much like email marketing, user experience is indeed pivotal.

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)

First, Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) measures how quickly the largest element on a webpage, like an image or text block, appears on the screen. As a metric, it’s crucial because it shows how fast users can see the most important information. Slow loading speeds are demonstrably frustrating to users, so high LCP can only diminish the user experience.

First Input Delay (FID)

Next, First Input Delay (FID) measures the time it takes for the site to respond to the first click or tap. That is just as vital as the other metrics, as an unresponsive site can frustrate users into leaving. Conversely, a fast response helps keep users engaged and results in a more pleasant experience –with your blog, landing page, or anything in between.

Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

And third, Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) measures how stable a webpage is while loading. It looks at any unexpected movements of elements like buttons or images, which can frustrate users. It, too, is immensely important because a stable layout ensures that users can interact with the site without accidentally clicking the wrong thing.

Core Web Vitals and SEO: The Connection

That we’ve focused on user experience is, of course, no coincidence. In fact, user experience is the bedrock of this connection.

Where Core Web Vitals and SEO truly intertwine is their mutual benefit to user experience.

In short, Google places high value on user experience because it wants to provide the best results for its users. That is why, in Google’s own words, Core Web Vitals were introduced to begin with. Since Google wants to guide users to pages that are easy to use and enjoyable to navigate, it now prioritizes these metrics as they can reliably gauge user experience. Combined with SEO, Google ensures a website is relevant and pleasant to use, giving it a visibility boost in search results pages.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Core Web Vitals directly influence how users perceive and interact with your site. By prioritizing factors like speed, responsiveness, and stability, you enhance user experience and send a strong signal to search engines. So, mastering these elements is the winning combination for boosting your website’s performance and visibility.

About the author: Matthew Jackson is a freelance copywriter and part-time author interested in SEO and marketing software. He frequently contributes to moverstech.com with insights into the relocation industry and the evolving CRM market.

The post Understanding Google’s Core Web Vitals and Their SEO Impact: Guest Post first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

Veterans Day Tribute

The following powerful video honors those who have given their lives for our freedom.

The post Veterans Day Tribute first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

I’m Back … and Hope to Stay!

The Past Two Months

I hope you’ve missed me for the last couple of months. I have spent most of that time in the hospital or rehabilitation. I collapsed at the end of August after I woke up feeling weak. In spite of the fact that I had been feeling very well, better than I had in a long time, I apparently had an infection that showed no symptoms. When it got into my bloodstream, I suddenly became very ill with sepsis.

After a week in the hospital, much of it in ICU, I was transferred to a skilled nursing facility for physical and occupational rehabilitation.

When I went home after five weeks, I (and my therapists) thought I was strong enough to handle daily activities. After six days, though, I became very ill with another infection. Back to the hospital I went for a week. This time I was strong enough for rehabilitation at the hospital. I spent ten days there with a vigorous regimen of therapy three hours a day.

When I got home, I felt great and was excited to return to my normal routine. With twenty-four hours, though, I again sickened with horrific nausea and vomiting. Another three days, and I’m home again–this time to stay, I pray!

The Future

My plan is to stay home with my home health nurse, physical therapist, and occupational therapist all visiting me twice a week. The rest of my time, I intend to return to my normal activities.

The most important project I’m working on is the novel I was writing before I got sick. At the time, I was taking an online class to learn enough about a key element of the story to portray it accurately. I’m eager to finish my research and continue with my writing.

Look for a new post from either me or a guest blogger once or twice a week. Thank you for not giving up me!

 Image: AndreyPopov/Depositphotos.com

The post I’m Back … and Hope to Stay! first appeared on Lillie Ammann, Writer and Editor.

Morning Prayer in the Garden

When I had to move into a new apartment complex, I thought I would be giving up the large backyard that I enjoyed in my previous home. My first visit was a day when the temperature was 117 degrees, and I didn’t go outside. I looked out the window and saw what appeared to be a small well-kept yard with a pretty pond, and I was happy to have that.

After I moved in, it took me a few days to get organized enough to go outside. I was happily surprised to discover that the sidewalk continued around the large clump of trees, bushes, and undergrowth that I thought was the end of the property. The yard continued … but it was no longer the manicured lawn and trees. Here was a gully along one edge of the property that is left in the wild state. Nothing is trimmed or cleaned up or changed into man’s image of what it should look like. It is left just the way God created it.

I started going out into the yard almost every day early to midmorning. Even when it very hot, there’s usually a nice breeze, making it a comfortable spot to sit. After a few days of this, I realized this is a wonderful place to do my morning prayer. I have always wanted a prayer closet, a special place dedicated to prayer. But I’ve never had the luxury of having that space. I pray briefly in my bed before I get up in the morning and before I go to sleep at night. However, I’ve done Morning Prayer from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer at my computer. I ‘ve written before about how much I enjoy listening to the Cradle of Prayer, with a priest reading his part and a cantor singing and making congregational responses.

There a small seating area on the backside of the yard. Looking behind you, you see the large clump of trees that marks the end of the manicured yard. The bench faces the wilderness area. Of course, I don’t sit on the bench; I stay in my power wheelchair. I sit facing what I call the wilderness as I play the Cradle of Prayer recordings and respond with the cantor. Occasionally someone walks by with a dog; we say, “Good morning,” and she and the dog pass on by.

So now my prayer closet is outside, facing God’s handiwork. There are few flowers in this jungle of trees, bushes, and undergrowth. However, there is a bush that has dainty, delicate purple flowers. I look daily, but rarely see a blossom, but it’s a real treat when I do. Occasionally, I am greeted by a large, vibrant sunflower. I don’t even mind the dead branches and dried leaves, because that is the cycle of life that God created. I enjoy sitting in the other side of the yard, also, with lawns, trimmed bushes and trees, and well-maintained flower beds. But I feel closer to God when I’m sitting among His wild creation.

I’m reminded of the old Gospel song “In the Garden.” While the yard is not exactly a garden, and I am not necessarily completely alone, I feel like I’m alone with the Lord in a beautiful setting.

Thank You, Lord, for quiet time with You. Help me to focus on You and worship and praise You in every minute. You are worthy of all honor, praise, and glory. Let my worship and meditations make me a better follower of You and bring You glory. In the name of Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen.

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