"Black Friday"

The name "Black Friday" really puzzles me.  What is so black about it?  True, we had rain storms yesterday, but my Friday is more than "black"!!

Elizabeth Anne and I went on our "Annual Black Friday" shopping trip.  The trip began on Thanksgiving evening when we traveled over to Frisco to spend the evening in the Best Western we had stayed in the year before....that Best Western turned out to be the same Hampton Inn we had stayed in the year before.  Elizabeth fussed the entire time because someone had changed the name from last year!!  After checking in and lounging for a few minutes, we trucked over to the mall movie theater to see Four Christmases.  We laughed our way through it and listened to an old woman in the back row talk out loud about the show the entire time!!

We set the alarm for 4:30 a.m. because we didn't want to miss out on the earliest shopping.  Needless to say, 4:30 a.m. came and went and we were still in bed.  I lay there asking Elizabeth if she was going to get up and she assured me she would, but, "In a little while!".  Eventually we were up and going at 6:00 a.m......Starbuck's first, of course!!  The line was not as long this year as last, or did we just sleep through the crowd?  Our first stop was Old Navy, then Target, then the mall.  Why is it that I always seem to know exactly what I want and the stores never have exactly what I want?  Do I just dream these gifts up or what?  The people we encountered were, for the most part, very congenial and neighborly.  However, when we went to Penney's that was another story.  I have never, never seen so many people in one store in all my life.  There were times we had to walk sideways to get through the aisles.  Merchandise of every shape, size and description was thrown on the floors and was being trampled by the masses.  Elizabeth and I took one look at each other and said, "Let's get out of here!", and we did!!  Back to DSW and Target, once more.  Our shopping spree began at 6:00 a.m. and ended at 3:30 p.m.  Thank the Lord for our brunch at The Cheesecake Factory or we would not have made it!!  I did not realize just how tired I was until I drove into the driveway and I thought Gary was going to have to carry me to the house!!  Now, that would have been one for "The World's Most Famous Videos", wouldn't it!?!

This "tradition" of ours started 4-5 years ago.  At first we left home at 5:00 a.m. on Friday and did our shopping.  This going to Frisco the night before and staying is a new tradition and we really enjoy it.  I love the shopping and the crowds, but my most favorite thing is just being with my wonderful daughter.  We laugh and talk and just have a wonderful time.  "People watching" is a favorite "sport" of ours; and, boy, do we see some doozies on that day!!  I am certain, however, that some of the people think we are "doozies", too!!  But, back to Elizabeth, shopping is a passion of hers.  I am so pleased that I taught her well!!  Hah!  Hah!!  Now, all that is left is the gift wrapping....and that will come in the days to come.  The most important thing is that we spent the time together, we enjoyed each other and the day and we came home in one piece!!  Thank you, Elizabeth, for spending the time with me.  I love you more than you will ever know.

Sisters

I have two very wonderful, precious, awesome sisters--Sheila and Karen.  I am so thankful for my sisters, my friends.

Sheila and I are three years apart.  She is so talented musically.  Sheila has the most amazing voice, a true gift from God.  She graduated from Dallas Baptist University with a degree in education and a minor in voice.  She was a teacher in the Dallas Independent School District for 29 years.  She always taught in schools that had the "least fortunate students" in the district.  I believe that she was a tough teacher, but Sheila loved her students and just wanted them to succeed because she know how rough the road would be for them.  Several of her students have succeeded beyond words and have come back to thank Sheila for all she did for them.  How many teachers have this happen to them?  Very few I would think.  We had the honor of attending her retirement celebration several years ago.  Former co-workers and principals all gathered to shower Sheila with praise and thanks, which was so deserved.  She was a hard worker who spent many, many hours preparing for her students.  Students in Dallas are better because of her.

When Sheila retired she took on another very important position, one that pays only in hugs and kisses.  Sheila and her husband have four grandchildren and 2 step-grandchildren.  Sheila has taken on the responsibility of caring for three of these babies....a pretty tough job.  Their mother is a single mother and works various shifts and needs the help taking care of them.  Sheila and John have gone beyond basic grandparenting rules to be mentors, educators, care-takers, providers, and love beyond words for these children.  How fortunate they are to have grandparents like these two.  K and T have won first-place awards at the science fair many, many times because Nanna has taken the time to help them.  Nanna has read to them and K and T excel in reading.  

Sheila has many health problems, any one of which would be disabling.  She has, however, managed to continue caring for her babies.  There are numerous days when she really needs to stay in bed or just lounge around; however, she is there, ready and willing to care for those babies.  Pain is a constant companion for Sheila.  I worry about her daily.

It is just in the last six or so years that Sheila and I have been able to really get to know each other as adult women.  When we are together we have so much fun and laugh continually.  It is sad that we were not able to get to know each other this way earlier in our lives.  I have learned to love and appreciate her more and more.  She has become a most precious friend as well as sister.  I am very thankful for Sheila.  

My "baby" sister, Karen, is ten years younger than I am.  I can remember the day she was born. Sheila and I went door to door in our neighborhood to announce her arrival.  We were so proud of our new baby!!  From just a few days old until I moved away from home, Karen slept in my bed with me.  I was very protective of her.

Karen, like Sheila, is a school teacher.  She has been a speech therapist and now a reading specialist.  She plans to retire at the end of this school year.  We, all three of us, have so many plans.  I hope our husbands understand!!  A few years ago the three of us met our Aunt and Uncle in Seattle to go see another Uncle who lived in Aberdeen.  We stayed three days in Aberdeen and visited and had a wonderful time; but, then the three sisters went back to Seattle and had the time of our lives.  We laughed and ate and saw as many sites as we could in just a few days.  Memories, memories.  How special they are.

Karen and her husband, David, had a son, a true gift from God.  Joshua came into Karen's and David's lives one Thursday just before Mother's Day.  He was 2 years old when God sent him.  What a blessing he was.  He was a special young man who went home to be with the Lord when he was just 19 years old--a massive heart attack.  I saw my Karen and David hurt more than words can explain.  But, during that time what a witness they were to others.  I learned a lot about death during that time.  I learned that I am no longer afraid of it because earthly death is just the beginning of eternity!!!  Karen and David allowed so many--co-workers, neighbors, friends, family and total strangers--to be a part of this and were witnesses to everyone.  

Karen is a slim--unlike her two sisters--and very beautiful lady.  She wears elegant clothes (you should see her closets!!) and perfectly groomed.  She has always been this way.  I can remember the days when she would "set" her hair in cleaned out juice cans!!  I remember the times I tried to teach her to drive my stand shift Mustang!!  I remember her trying to get Sham, her Irish setter, to let her bathe him and he got away and ended up in the back seat of her car!  I remember the day she married David and was so happy!!  What wonderful memories of my little sister.  I am so thankful that I have been blessed with Karen in my life.

Thank you, Lord, for my sisters, my friends.  I pray that we only become closer and have many more adventures together.   

Our Princess and Booger Bear

There was a time when I thought I would never have children.  Gary and I had married "later in life" (what a term!!) and I was convinced that I had waited too long to have children.  Gary kept telling me that God had children for us and that we just needed to be patient.  How correct he was!!  

On September 21, 1979, our most wonderful, most precious daughter was born.  I think I floated on air the entire time of labor and delivery.  When she was born I can remember thinking how perfect it would be if only my Grandma Droddy could see her, my beautiful gift from the Lord.  I immediately called my parents and told them how perfect she was.

Elizabeth Anne (or Princess or Peetie or Punkin) has been the joy of our life.  No one could ask for a better daughter.  Oh, don't get me wrong, we have had our "times" when we had differences of opinion, but we have always worked it out and loved each other even more.  She is very creative, a great thinker, quite an academically adept young lady.  She has always excelled in whatever she attempts.  Elizabeth loves to travel--from Los Angeles to Boston to Lima and Trujillo, to the "Big Apple", to Taiwan,  to the travels of Paul in Greece--she loves to globe-trot.  If someone says, "let's go", she is ready before the plane is!!!

Elizabeth has a great love for the people of Peru.  She has made this love contagious.  She will be once again traveling to Lima and Trujillo in March to assist with some work in an orphanage, a place that has really touched her heart.  Elizabeth has a love for children, birth to high schoolers.  Hannah, Hallie, Jillian and Emma are truly blessed to have her in their young lives.  She thoroughly enjoys going on adventures with Hannah (now that she is a young lady).  To listen to Elizabeth and Hallie talk is like listening to two old friends who have shared so much together.  Jillian and Emma are now her babies.  She can get on Jillian's level and communicate with her so well.  Emma just sparkles when she sees "Bibbis" come into the room.  Elizabeth loves her friends and is very loyal to them.  I thank God for D and J and P and for what they do for Elizabeth.

Elizabeth has become one of my best friends, not just my daughter.  Crawling on the floor to "cut in" the walls of her apartment when we were painting it was quite an adventure.  I often wondered if the neighbors wondered what we were doing in there.  Our "day after Thanksgiving shopping trip" is a wonderful, blessed day.  We run, and I mean run, at 4:00 a.m. to be one of the first shoppers and we go laughing all the way.  I am thankful that Elizabeth still wants to do this with me.  I am thankful for the fun we have and for the fact that we are now friends and enjoy each other so much.  I am thankful that my Lord has given me such a beautiful, loving daughter.  I am thankful that her Daddy and I were the ones who lead her to the Lord and that she now serves that Lord we shared with her.  I am thankful that she is concerned about her brother.  I am thankful that she loves her brother and wants to see him happy.

Thank you, Elizabeth, for being the best daughter and friend a Mother could ever ask for.  You are my baby and always will be.  Thank you for giving and loving and being patient with your "old" Mom.  I love you more than you could ever imagine.  I love you, Elizabeth!!

Twenty-one months after Elizabeth was born, our home was once more blessed with the birth of our "Booger Bear" (his MawMaw named him that), Lee.  That little package we brought home that day has grown into a wonderful man.  

Wherever Lee goes, he leaves an impression.  I can remember him in Miss Sikes' kindergarten class at Bowie Elementary.  The letter he dressed as was the letter "S" and we made quite a costume for that day.  He was so proud of it and showed it to everyone he came near.  There was also the time that Lee dressed as one of the characters in the children's book Stone Soup.  For some reason this was Lee's all-time favorite book.  We made an ancient soldier's costume in green felt.  We even made the shoes with the pointed toes.  He read that book to younger children on that day and did a wonderful job!

When he was in elementary school Lee and one of his friends had an obsession with the military.  We spent many, many hours in the military surplus store purchasing old uniforms, from caps/hats to actual uniforms and boots.  I remember the time Nancy Brantley, the music teacher at Bowie, had her older students do a performance on Veterans' Day.  Lee and Jason dressed in their uniforms and were the stars of the show.  I remember thinking how much Lee looked like his PawPaw in that uniform and how much I loved him because he wanted to be a part of something so special.  People talked about that little show for quite a while.

When my Mom had a stroke and had to move into our home, Lee was the one who made her days for her.  She really spoiled him, and, in return, he took care of her.  She would have special snacks prepared for him when he would get home from school.  She would slip out of bed during the night and would call to us saying that she had fallen.  Lee would run to her bedside,  pick her up with a swoop and set her down in the bed saying, "Now, old woman, stay where you are supposed to!!"  She thought that was something very special.  They had a very special relationship and I am so thankful for that.  She helped Lee purchase his brand new Chevy pickup when he turned 16.  

Just before Lee graduated from high school he decided he wanted to learn to play the bass guitar.  I have said over and over again that I never really listened for the bass until Lee started playing it.  He is basically self-taught and is really very good at it.  He has been in many bands and really enjoyed them.  When he decided he was going to seminary he started selling his guitars and it broke my heart.  I love to hear him play and I knew he loves playing.  He, however, was planning ahead for his future.  He has always been that way....a thinker, a planner, and pretty much self-sufficient.  

Now, my baby boy is going to move far away from me.  Lee will begin Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in January, 2009.  He will be working to get his Masters of Divinity.  When he shared his plans with us months ago I was proud, yet sad at the same time.  Lee has a heart for the down-trodden, the ones most people will not go to to be a witness.  Lee was baptized by his Daddy a number of years ago.  We taught Lee to love people and to share God's with them.  He is doing just what God wants him to do, but I will miss him so much.  I will miss his teasing and his hugs.  I will miss him coming to the door of our bedroom to tell me goodnight.  I will miss him calling to ask if he can bring me something for lunch.  I will miss our trips to Lowe's to buy roses.  I will even miss his telling me something just to see how I would react.  I am so thankful for my wonderful son and the man he has become.  I am so thankful that he did not quit listening to God as He talked to him.  I am thankful that he loves me and puts up with my many quirks.  I am thankful that God blessed my life with this young man who has become a tremendous man.  I love you, Lee!!

In Psalms King David says that, ".....children are a gift from the Lord....".  God has gifted me with two wonderful, precious gifts.  Thank you, Lord, for my babies.

The Love of My Life

God has blessed me with the most wonderful husband.  On Christmas day we will be celebrating 32 amazing years of marriage.  In so many ways it does not seem like 32 years; but in so many ways it seems like we have been married forever.  I guess that is the way it feels when you are married to right person and God has blessed the marriage all those years!!

Gary and I have known each other most of our lives.  Our families were very good friends; our mothers taught Sunday School together for over 25 years and were best friends (almost like sisters since neither had family in the area).  I think I probably loved Gary for years before he ever realized I was more than a friend.  He says God had it planned that way because we both had to mature and be at a place in our lives where we would love and appreciate each other the way we should.  We were both 30 when we married; so, we have decided that the real truth was that we were just "slow learners"!!  Whatever the truth and no matter how old we were when we married, I know that the last 32 years have been the best of my life!!

Gary was the one who kept telling me when I became anxious about having children that God had babies for us if we would just be patient; he was the one who would get up in the middle of the night when our babies would begin crying and would bring them to me; when EAH and LH were sick, Gary was there to help; Gary was the one who read from the Bible to them while they were still in the womb; he was the one who helped care for both of my ill parents (he opened his arms and welcomed them into our home just like they were his parents; he took vacation time to take them to many, many doctor visits; he was the one who stood behind the x-ray machine to hold my Dad's arms up when he was too weak to; he was the one who would clean up after them without complaining; he was the one who loved me through all of it and was my rock when I could no longer be).  Gary is an amazing Daddy; he has shown by example what a godly husband and father should be.  He has worked very hard to provide a wonderful life for his family and continues to do so.  Gary has seen me through a number of illnesses and surgeries and never left my side.  He loves the teenagers of our church and works to provide a safe place for them to come to.  Gary's love for his Dad is amazing; I love seeing them together and listening to their conversations.  His love for our nieces and nephews is very evident--taking little boys and girls fishing and patiently showing them how to put bait on hooks and taking fish off those same hooks; patiently taking Tre' in his arms and calming him down just by talking to him; putting up with Aunt Cheryl when she wants to buy and buy for them; going to Dallas to celebrate a girl's birthday when he really should be at home working.  He has adopted Jilli and Emma as his "grandchildren until we have some of our own" and he loves them.  Watching him as he rocks Emma and sings to her or talking to Jilli who is sitting in his lap is a wonderful experience.

Gary, I love you and always will.  For these and so many more reasons, I am thankful that God has so richly blessed my life by giving me the best husband in the world.  You are the love of my life and always will be. 

Thankfulness

A dear friend has been using the days of November to publish a "Thankfulness List".  I have thoroughly enjoyed reading her thoughts and want to "borrow" her idea for just a few of my "Thank You's".

My Daddy was the first man I was in love with!!  I was the first born child and was probably the most spoiled of the three girls.  My Daddy took me everywhere with him....hardware store, grocery store, movies, football games--you name it, I was there with him.  More important than anything, however, my Daddy (along with Mama) took me to church.  He sat with me while Mama sang in the choir.  I can still hear my Daddy's voice as he sang those old hymns.  Daddy was not a little man; he was over six feet tall and weighed over 300 pounds.  I remember his hands....how large they were and how they were callused from working as a pipefitter for over 45 years for Texaco.  Just prior to retiring from Texaco Daddy taught a pipefitters course at Lamar University (for someone who did not have a college degree this was very impressive).  Daddy's gardens were amazing.  Our house was situated on two lots.  Daddy used the extra lot to garden....and the lot was full of wonderful homegrown vegetables.  People would stop to see his okra or corn or huge tomatoes.  My Daddy worked hard to provide for us.  He taught me the value of working hard.  He had very high work standards....if you work for someone, work for them!!  Don't be lazy and expect the pay anyway.  I am very thankful for the example Daddy was for me.  He loved me and I knew it.  He told me he loved me every day.  He showed me he loved me every day.  In fact, the last words he said to me on the night that he died was, "I love you baby."  Thank you, Lord, for my Daddy, and the gentle man that he was.  He was the example I used when I was looking for a husband.

My Mama was quite a lady.  She was born into a farming family.  Her Dad and many generations before her were wheat farmers in the panhandle of Texas.  My Mama knew how to work.  She grew up that way.  Her mother passed away when my Mama was just 8 years old.  She had a younger brother and sister.  They lived near her Dad's parents so Mama was with them more than she was at home.  She learned to cook for large numbers of people when she was just a child because she cooked for the farm hands.  Mama learned the importance of working together to achieve a goal.  She learned how to care for people, which she did all her life.  Mama was a WWII bride.  She left the panhandle and moved to southeast Texas when Daddy was discharged.  She had a new baby, new home and new in-laws to deal with.  In her usual manner, she took charge and everything was great!!  Mama was in her early 20's when she came to know the Lord as her personal Savior.  She joined Trinity Baptist Church and became a very important member of the flock.  She taught 7-year-old primaries for 30 years.  When meals were to be prepared for the church, my Mama was the one who did it (along with Lillie Hyatt and Kinnie Lee Woods).  Mama was appointed the Children's Coordinator and directed Children's Church and Parent's Day Out.  In the late 1960's Mama had her own television program for children....every Wednesday at noon....first for 15 minutes and then it was expanded to 30 minutes.  The men who ran the sound and lights and cameras told her that they learned more about Jesus during those times than they had in all their lives.  She told Bible stories, did handcrafts and sang with the children via the television.  In the late 1950's Mama started going to the black churches in the area during summer months and taught Vacation Bible School to the children.  She taught the ladies of the churches how to do Vacation Bible School.  I would go with Mama every day and learned how to lead and teach and love everyone. After she was 60-years-old Mama was stricken with ovarian cancer, had a quadruple by-pass surgery, developed diabetes, had a broken shoulder, and numerous eye surgeries.  Through it all she praised the Lord and thanked Him for giving her another day of life.  Mama lived with my family the last 6-1/2 years of her life.  This was not something she really wanted to do.  She was always very independent and now she had to depend on my family for assistance.  Although her eyes were very bad, Mama read her Bible every day.  She kept it by her side.  She had a prayer list and would pray every day for the people on that list.  One of the many strokes she had left her voice very weak.  Mama loved to sing and was very good at it.  I can remember the Sunday at Highland Terrace Baptist Church when she tried to sing again and it worked!!  The song was "Amazing Grace" and she sang as loud as she could.  She looked at us and said, "I can sing again!!"  I am thankful that Mama came to live with my family.  Don't get me wrong, it was not always smooth and easy; but, I would do it over and over again.  You see, I learned a lot more from Mama during those years.  I learned to praise the Lord through disappointments and pain and I am thankful that God gave me that time with Mama.  I am thankful that my children were able to be with their MawMaw the way the other grandchildren were not.  They learned so much from her....to serve the Lord by serving others, to love people whether they are "good" or not, to strive to be all that they could be.  You should have seen Mama the day she died.  An angel came and took her home and peace could be seen on her face once again.

Thank you, Lord, for my wonderful parents.  I am who I am today because of their love, their care, their guidance, their example and most important, they taught me Who You are and they taught me to love You!

I have MANY more reasons to be thankful, but that will be another day's post. 

Yellow Snowball Accepted!!

Ok, Denyse, here goes!!

Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year.  Yes, I would be one of those individuals who would keep her Christmas trees up all year long if I could.  You read right:  Christmas TREES!!  In the past, when I was younger and Elizabeth lived at home, we would put up as many as five or six trees for the holiday season.  I remember the year, not too many years ago, that I went to see the doctor shortly after the Christmas season.  I was complaining about my shoulders really hurting and not understanding the reason.  He asked how many trees we had put up and when I told him we had put up five that year, he laughed and said that was the reason.  I had "Christmas tree shoulders"!!  That ailment still does not deter us when it comes time to put up the trees.

We have two 9-1/2 foot trees - one "froo-froo" and the other the "family tree".  Thank goodness they are both pre-lit or we might not make it.  We also have a smaller 7-ft. tree that we put in the kitchen/breakfast room area, plus several smaller ones placed randomly throughout the rest of the house.  The "froo-froo" tree is in the living room and is decorated with burgundy, white and gold.  Lee says this is not the "real" tree because it really doesn't mean anything to him--just another tree.  His favorite is the "family" tree.  I have ALL of the lovingly handmade ornaments Elizabeth and Lee ever made - from pre-school until they no longer made them in school.  Reindeer made of felt, pine cones, footprints, handprints, sweet gum balls, clothes pins, etc. are lovingly placed all over the tree.  Santas of every shape and description, angels big and small, ornaments from all our vacations (and now, this year, I have a Statue of Liberty one!!) and Nativity scenes dot various spots on the tree.  My favorite of all time, however, is the ornament that Lee made the year he was in Mrs. Newcomb's pre-school class at St. Paul's School.  That year was the year Haley's Comet made an appearance and that appearance caused so much uproar.  Karen Newcomb is an extremely talented teacher.  She had the class make "Haley's Comet" ornaments from very small flower pots covered in silver cupcake papers.  The "comet" has a streaming trail made of silver threads of paper with stars glued on the ends.  Needless to say, this ornament has a very prominent place on our tree.  Many comments have been made about this ornament over the years.  A story can be told about each of the ornaments on this tree....and that story is told EVERY year as we place it on the tree!!  So much fun!!  So many wonderful, precious memories!!

Lights and decorations outside are another story--like the year Gary had Elizabeth placing the lights on the roof.  He, like Joel, had placed the ladder in the bed of his pickup and had Elizabeth go up the ladder and put lights on the house.  He asked her about halfway through if she was ok and she replied,  "I think I ___ in my pants!"  Now, we just put reindeer and trees in the yard, with just a few lights around the sidewalks.  Maybe I will call Denyse and get the name of the person who puts lights on her roof!!  I really like that best!!

Since Elizabeth and I now spend Thanksgiving evening in the Dallas area so we can get up early the next day and do marathon shopping, we begin decorating a few weeks before Thanksgiving.  I really like this....it gives me a longer time to enjoy the beauty of Christmas.  I have often wondered why we don't leave the trees and lights and decorations up all year.  We celebrate, or Christians do,  Jesus Christ all year; so, why not?!?  Have we become too commercial as everyone says?  When did we change "Merry Christmas" to "Happy Holidays"?  Are we Christians remiss in not demanding "Merry Christmas"?  As for me, I will let the lights and trees and decorations remain in my heart all year long.  I love the REAL REASON we celebrate the season!

Thank You, All Who Have Served Us So Well!!

Today is the official Veteran's Day celebration.  In my opinion we should be celebrating our veterans and those currently serving every day of the year!!

I am the daughter of a man who served during WWII.  My Daddy never had to serve "across the waters", but he served his country well as an MP here in the United States.  He had charge over many prisoners.  I can remember him telling us so often of going to Ft. Levenworth KS to either deliver or pick up prisoners.  My Daddy met Mama when he was investigating a plane crash on the Canadian River in the Panhandle of Texas.  It is terrible to say, but, thank God for that plane crash and for the chance meeting of my parents!!  Daddy was proud to serve his country and was even more proud of all the men he served with.

My Grandpa served during WWI in the fields of battle overseas.  I can still remember seeing pictures of him in his uniform.  Grandpa never talked much about his experiences but he would tell us he would have done it over and over again just to protect his family in the United States.

My Father-in-law served in the U.S. Navy during WWII.  He was serving on a ship in the Pacific Ocean when Pearl Harbor was attacked.

I have had many relatives who served, both during war time and during times of peace.  Many young cousins served in Vietnam.   Two high school friends were killed in Vietnam.

The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are now raging.  My children have friends who have served or are currently serving our country.  Aaron Davies served in the U.S. Marines for several years and is now home.  Andy Davis is currently serving in the U.S. Marines and Mark Shepherd is serving in the U.S. Army, currently deployed to Iraq for his third tour of duty there in five years.   I see his little family as they attempt to be happy without him.  I see his little wife suffer because her husband is not at home with her.  He is missing out on some of the most beautiful years in the lives of his two precious daughters.  

Please, please, people of America, do not forget our veterans or the men and women who are currently serving.  They should be our heroes rather than movie stars and politicians and pop singers!  They should be the ones we look up to!  They should be the ones who receive our praise and thanks!!  

Youth-Just a Thought #2

Yesterday as I sat with the freshman and sophomore "ladies" in Bible study, I was once more taken back by their youthful enthusiasm.  Everything they say or do is done with so much zest for life that I sometimes find myself longing for that youth again.  They talk about the last pep rally of the year and all the antics that went on.  They talk about going to see a movie and having dinner together and just bubble at the thought of it.  Oohs and aahs are very prevalent during the conversation.  Was I ever that young?  Did I ever act like that?

The lesson was on building our life on a solid foundation--Jesus Christ.  How blessed I have been in my life to have that "Foundation" holding me up through it all.  Now that I am older and I wake every morning with aches and pains and I can't walk as fast as I once did and I can't hold up to shop as long as I once did (of, my!), I am very thankful for that "Foundation" because I would not be able to make it without Him.  As I listened to all the laughter and conversation, I was also praying for these young ladies--praying that in their youth they would not forget the One Who is in control and Who will always be there; praying that their feet and lives are firmly planted on that "Foundation" and thankful that I can be a part of telling them about that "Foundation".

Some days I long for that youth again; but most days, I don't.  You see, I truly believe that a person is as old or young as they want to be.  I may be over 60, but in my mind I still feel like I am in my 30's or 40's.  Working with children and teenagers all these years has perhaps stunted my mental growth!  But, that is just fine; at least my mind is still youthful!!   I don't want to relive parts of my life, as I have heard countless other people say.  I am afraid that I would make more mistakes than before and I believe that my God, Who has control of my life, planned for "things" to happen just the way they have.  Youth is a blessing, but so is growing older.  I am now more relaxed and can enjoy things more.  I enjoy both of my children immensely, not that I didn't when they were growing up; but, I no longer feel pressured by the world to make them perfect in the world's eyes.  They are God's creation and they are becoming what He wants, not what the world wants!!  I enjoy sitting and talking with my husband more; I enjoy the trips to Beaver's Bend with Gary just to enjoy God's nature and each other; I enjoy planning the trip to Vancouver and the Northwest US with Gary to celebrate our anniversary; I enjoy watching Gary as he "plays" with Tre' and Anthony Wayne and Grandpa; I enjoy sitting and watching the birds and creatures in my backyard; I enjoy shopping with Sheila (my sister); I enjoy Kalyn and watching her swim and take care of Gunther (my dog);  I enjoy watching cooking shows with Amy Ann and talking about what we might do if we had a show; I enjoy watching Mattie as she matures into such a beautiful young lady;  I enjoy taking a "road trip" halfway across the country to Disney World with Hannah and Hallie; I enjoy Jilli-bean and Emma-licious - just loving on them and laughing at them and helping to take care of them.  I never used to have time to do these things.   

So, to me, growing older is not so bad!!  Maybe in my youth I was too busy doing things that really didn't matter anyway!!  Thank you, Lord, for giving me a wonderful youth; and, thank you for giving me an even better time of growing older!!

"He's still working on me to make me what I ought to be.  It took Him just a week to make the moon and stars, the sun and Earth and Jupiter and Mars; but He's still working on me!"

Just a Thought #1

This is my first blog.  I never dreamed I would ever be doing something like this.....a 60's something woman doing this!!  Who ever thought?!?  However, after reading so many blogs over the last few months and really enjoying them and learning some interesting and fascinating things from them, I decided to venture out on this blog thing myself!!  So, here we go for the first one!!

I am a truly blessed woman.  God is so good to me in so many, many ways.  One of those ways was working in our church office for almost 15 years.   I just finished reading the blog of a dear friend whose husband was once my "boss".  I put the term "boss" in quotations because I was NEVER treated like an employee by this gentleman; I was treated like a friend.  I was loved and appreciated and I knew he prayed for me and my family daily.  Today this wonderful man is suffering from the effects of a brain tumor.  He is not the vibrant man we have all known and loved.  His memory is suffering; his ability to walk and talk is suffering; he spends most of his days now sleeping....not the gentleman I once worked for.  You see, this man was the pastor of the church I attend and once worked at.  I was his secretary for six years....the most pleasant of all the years I ever worked.  He cared about us and he protected us; he took up for his staff when the slings and arrows were tossed at us.  He laughed with us, he consoled us, he had coffee (yes, we had REAL coffee breaks!) with us, he brought each of us crates of strawberries he had purchased on his way back from visiting in the hospitals in Dallas, he knew my family as if it was his family and he cared about them.  It was easy to work for him because he was not a demanding, pressuring, harsh team leader.  He knew if we were having a difficult day (and, yes, those do come very often in a church office) and he made it his mission to try to make it better for us.  He truly cared!!  

The members of our church were all known by name and recognition by this pastor.  He spent many nights and days at the bedside of sick ones; he comforted their families and loved them, just as a pastor should.  There were very few days that he did not make a trip to Dallas to see someone who was in the hospital.  He was there when someone had surgery, no matter how serious or not so serious it was.  He spent many, many hours in the nursing homes and in homes were shut-ins lived.  It did not matter who you were, if you were a member of his flock you were important to him.  He loved people the way he found them, whether they were clean or not, whether they were wealthy or not, whether they were healthy or not, whether they knew Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior--he loved them and witnessed to them. He was a true example of loving people the way God loves them!!

I learned so much from him.  I learned that when people come to a church office they are usually truly suffering for some reason or other.  For the first time in my work history I felt free to pray over the phone with someone who called in who needed an ear to listen and a heart to care.   I felt free to take the time and listen, to laugh and/or cry with the person who had come in.  Working in a church office is not like working in the secular world.  When you work in a church office you have (or I had) 3000 "bosses".  He taught me to love all these "bosses" and to make sure they knew they were loved by the church and its staff.  

Today, dear friend Bobby Renfro, my thoughts are with you and Jane, Libby and Lane.  What examples you are to us.  You love and praise your Lord through it all.  Thank you, thank you, thank you for showing us how to love, serve, care and praise.  I am so thankful that God placed you in my highway of life.  You are truly a friend and are truly loved by more people than you can ever imagine!!  Love you, Renfro family.