The Christmas Treasure

Going home for Christmas was a tradition my children and I honored annually.  We lived away from the family and determined that we would live independently without assistance.  Oh we had blessings all along the way from those friends who were close to us but we were our own family until Christmas came.  We always went home to see my Mama and Daddy and their other grandparents, as well as all of the cousins, my siblings, and friends we had stayed close to even though we were not living there.  The Christmas I will share with you is the exception to all of our rules.  We did not see ourselves as needy or poverty ridden.  We lived well and my job afforded us a beautiful place to live with conveniences and amenities that we thoroughly enjoyed.  This year I had managed to overcome an auto accident, thankfully it was a financial strain and not physical, and I still had $40.00 to spend for Christmas.

The dreaded moment was to tell everyone we would not be able to go home.  The grandparents were the saddest, so at the very last moment they made their own arrangements.  My Mom and Dad decided to come to see us, leaving a very large family to have Christmas without them.  Needless to say, we did not tell them why we could not come, just that we could not.  The other grandparents mailed the children the gifts they had for them, knowing they would arrive after Christmas.

For many families this would have been the saddest and most depressing Christmas ever, but not for us.  We were used to coping and staying together through all of our troubles. Tony was probably the saddest because it was his opportunity to duck hunt, and go the woods, and be one of the guys.  He truly loved the dogs and duck hunting. Leigh was a lot like my Mama, she just took it on the chin and smiled.  We managed to find a Christmas tree and we decorated it joyously, as always.

I really was in a dilemma.  What could I buy for their Christmas gifts?  There would only be one.  They were teens in high school and everything was expensive.  I went to the mall and sat in the center of the mall and tried to think of something really wonderful but it did not happen.  I went back home still hoping to think of something.  Tony announced that he needed new jeans and that was a relief to know what he needed.

I was running out of time so I went to the mall and I walked in and out of the stores.  Alllllll of the stores. Some two or three times.  I walked into a card shop and there were books on display, so a break from shopping was in order by now and I could not resist the wonderfulness of checking out books.  It was there on a rack, I found my daughters most treasured Christmas gift.  A book. The book was written in the forties.  “Leaves of Gold”.  As I read through the pages I realized that there were many things in this book that I wanted to share with my daughter.  We just never know what may happen or why. 

She graduated from high school, completed her Bachelor’s at a private Christian college and then the wall of Russian came down.  She was sure of her mission and off she went to Russia.  The book went with her everywhere she decided to be a part of the world.  I am sharing this story because a couple of days ago, she said to me, “Mother I still have that book and I treasure it.”  She has two teens of her own now. Very often we think inside of our little world and forget about the exterior or the people living out there.  She was a part of other people’s lives and she made a great difference for them.  She still does, because she is still a teacher only now, in America, and in a public school.  Those things I wanted her to know but I just never had found a way to verbalize them all, came from a book.  Imagine that. Imagine how much she shared from that book and is still sharing without giving it much thought.  The people out there, are as stressed and pressured as we are and that is okay because today’s world gives us very little time, so Christmas is even more important.  We can pause and look around us and be somebody’s angel today. After all, you never know how far $20.00 can go.

God Bless you and Merry Christmas.  I hope to be here again tomorrow, but in the event that I am not, please know that I wish you the most wonderful Christmas.

Merry Christmas David

Good morning everyone.  I have to thank my sweet GreenTree friend WT Anderson, for writing and singing this beautiful tribute to my little Brother David.

David, Christmas is not Christmas without you.  I will always miss your sweet silly grin, starched shirts, jeans,  boots and big hat.  Mostly I miss you, my dear brother you taught me how to love unconditionally.  Merry Christmas sweet boy.  I hope the angels are enjoying your sweet voice as you sing to the father.  I love you and thank you.

Love In Your Heart (Never,Never,Never Give Up)

Love in your heart (never,never,never give up)                         song by wt anderson


when your life is a frown,
you've lost your laugh,
and the clowns in your car,
they just seem so sad.

and there's distance between,
and you don't know why,
your life and your dreams,
they don't see eye to eye.

..............never give in, never give up
..............never look down, when the sun shines above,
..............never begin to feel that there's not enough
.............................love in your heart
.............................never, never, never giving up on you,
.............................love in your heart,
.............................never, never, never giving up on you.


.....i was a bonafide cowboy,  in 'Nam a U.S. Marine,
.....a country pickin' good ol' boy, strumming, running with the agent orange machine,
.....the ol' red white and blue,
.....through the rockets red glare, (bombs bursting through air)
.....'till them shattering shells
.....burnt like hell,
.....burned me down, clean as a  prayer.

whenever you're down,
feeling so sad,
and the clowns in your car,
they can't even laugh.

and there's distance beweeen,
and you don't know why,
your heart full of dreams,
and what you see with your eyes,

.................never give in, never give up,
.................never look down, when the sun shines above,
.................never begin to feel that there's not enough
.................................love in your heart
.................................never, never, never giving up on you,
.................................love in your heart,
.................................never, never, never giving up on you,


....................................................and what you don't understand,
....................................................just smile and walk away,
....................................................let the world stand where it stands,
....................................................the sun shines anyway,
....................................................the sun shines anyway,
....................................................the sun shines anyway,
...................never give in, never give up,
...................never look down, when the sun shines above,
...................never begin to feel that there's not enough
....................................love in your heart,
....................................never, never, never giving up on you,
....................................love in your heart,
....................................never, never, never giving up on you.

Mama Had An Angel

Mama had an Angel visit her when I was just a child, but I well remember the night the Angel visited.  It started early one evening when Mama became very ill.  We children knew she was ill but we had no idea what was wrong. To remember all of the children’s questions and all of the things we heard the adults talking about would take half a book to tell but it was a horrendous night. The ambulance came and gathered her up and Daddy put all of us children in the car and we all went to the hospital.

 We were sitting in the front lobby of the hospital with our Pastor and he was trying to keep us engaged in conversation so we would not cry or worry.  Daddy came and told us she had to have emergency surgery.  All of the adults were telling us how great it was going to be and we should not worry.

Then Daddy came and told us there was a problem.  He sat down and looked at us and told us that Mama had surgery but she had starting hiccupping and unless the hiccups stopped she could die.  We were horrified and our Pastor was praying aloud.  I know I was praying as were the other children.  The minutes just kept dragging and finally Daddy came and told us she had quit hiccupping and she was going to be fine.  Well that was a long night and the days that followed were long also. Finally she was home and would have to stay in bed for six weeks.

While everyone was on their best behavior, we were still not allowed in her room.  One day I snuck in there and she was happy to see me so I jumped up on her bed and sat there.  I talked a blue streak about everything that everyone was doing and all the problems and trouble that little children can get into.  She soon told me that she did not think she should be laughing so maybe she could talk a little bit. That is when she told me her side of the story about while she was in the hospital.

“I was lying on a gurney in what I thought was a hall but I later learned I was in the recovery room after having two-thirds of my stomach removed.  I had awakened thirsty and my throat was sore but no one could give me water because the Doctor wouldn’t let them.  You see I had to have a tube in my mouth for the surgery and it had dried my throat out.  Then I started hiccupping.    It hurt so bad I was crying.  The nurses were all around me and I tried but I couldn’t stop.  Then the Doctor came and told me to please try because if I didn’t I would have a strong chance of dying.  He was kind but he was blunt.  I was so scared and not for me but for you kids.  I didn’t want to die but I just couldn’t quit hiccupping. I had my eyes closed and I was praying and crying.  That is when it happened.  An older lady in a coat and a hat came to me and smiled.

Then she said, “Honey do you want to live?”

“Oh yes I do. I have nine children and I need to live.”

She placed her hand on my tummy ever so lightly because I had been cut open and sewn up and my tummy was too sore to touch.  I could not feel her hand but I could feel it too. 

She smiled, “You will be fine honey.”

I went sound asleep after that and the next thing I remember was a nurse telling me that she needed to get me ready to move into ICU.

“Where is the little lady in the hat?”

“There isn’t anyone here. Absolutely no one is allowed in here.  Maybe you dreamed about her.”

Well I knew she was there and she was not a dream. 

“Nurse I think my hiccups are gone.”

“Oh yes they are.  That is why we are moving you to ICU but only for a couple of days then you will go into a room and have visitors. Okay?”

“Well sweet girl of mine never forget this story because I promise that Angels are all around us and they do help us when we need them.  The little lady was truly an Angel and God sent her so I would know that he loved us so much that he would send us an Angel.”

I was discovered after that and the older girls ushered me out of Mama’s room.  I knew that I knew I could always count on Angels and especially on God because my Mama had an Angel.

Is this the year for your Christmas Angel?

 

Why Do We Need Stories

Good morning.  I am reposting this today for our newest subscribers.  I too, am reminded anytime I read it.h

Good morning.  Before we read stories I wanted to share with you the reason stories are so important.  Have you ever experienced a day that was out of your control from beginning to end? Man, oh man, I have.  I have awakened late and discussed it with my cell phone that did not alarm. I then discussed it with the coffee pot that was not prepared the night before while, I poured coffee grounds into the pot itself.  I have arrived to work wearing two shoes identical, well almost, only difference was one shoe was black and the other was navy blue.  Hiding my feet was not an option.  Meetings, all pressure oriented and clients that could not be pleased!  Their day was worse than mine.  Empathy was my only solution and that did not produce money.  I failed to go to the ATM so lunch was a coke and crackers.  Finally I am on my way home.  The day was as messed up as the grammar in this explanation of why we need stories.  But....a glass of wine and a book of fiction can take the edge off.  I feel that there will be better things ahead for the next day.  Take my day give it to a single Mom and imagine the additional problems that could happen.  Depressing!!!  But...a glass of wine or a cup of tea with thirty minutes to read a short story of fiction and relaxation is there.   Do we need stories?  Oh yes we do.  People stories, animal stories, ghost stories, and  it doesn't matter if the people in the story or the place in the story are also make believe.  Just read them and smile because sometimes it is the best relaxation you will find.

A Most Unusual Christmas Tree

Good morning everyone.  Today has already begun with lots of sunshine and the temperature is a warm 71 degrees and we are expecting 84 to hit that old thermometer.  There were many days of sunshine and lots of days of ice or rain in the Southeast during the holidays, and we had our share of all of the white stuff that is supposed to make you glad that it is Christmas.

Today our story is about a teenager who had one exact job every Christmas.  Trust me the job was not difficult but like most teens he had a habit of putting it off until the last minute.  I was a single Mom most of their lives and we lived away from home so everything was up to us.  Oh we had a wonderful church family and friends, but I was pretty independent and I wanted them to learn to be self-sufficient also.  His one job was to scout out a tree and to try to avoid tree lots he and his friend went to the Tennessee woods, which was just across the state line, and the choices were great.

It was Friday night and we were patiently waiting for them to find a tree. High school football season was over, his friend played football and he was in the band, so there was really nothing pressing they had to do but find a tree.  Mike picked up Tony in his pick-up truck with a ladder, rope and a chainsaw in the back and they left early.  They had all day Friday but apparently the tree did not materialize for them and we were still waiting.  Finally I heard them on the stairs.  Laughing and out of breath they were lugging a large freshly cut Christmas tree up to our front door.  Through the living room and out to the balcony they went to cut and prepare it for the stand. I was cleaning up trash behind them as fast as I could and I quickly spread a white sheet on the living room floor to set the tree on once it was ready to be upright.

The big moment arrived and we, my daughter and I along with the two boys, stood in the dining room to view the sight.  That was one crooked tree!  Now I wanted to be nice because apparently they had spent their day trying to find a tall tree that was nice and full. 

“Well,” I said. “It is full and smells wonderful so I guess we could use fishing line and pull it to a straighter position.”

“Oh yeah,” they chorused.

They headed for the balcony storage room to retrieve the fishing tackle box.  I retrieved the step ladder from the hall closet and they went to work.  Constantly conversing with my daughter they pulled and re-pulled and eye-balled that tree until everyone seemed happy and then they attached the fishing line to the ceiling. It wasn’t long before the lights were spread around it and everyone took a break for pizza and coke.  Our tradition for actually decorating would be honored on Saturday evening because we baked cookie and decorated the tree together and called it our tree party.  The hard work was done and I thanked them graciously.  Mike told us all goodnight and headed for home. 

Saturday evening was lots of fun and Mike told me his Mom and Dad would come to our house for Christmas Eve since we would leave early Christmas day to go home and visit our family.  Cookies were baked, music was on the stereo, and we were excited as we hung all of the garland and ornaments.  My daughter, Leigh and I had decorated the house during the day so we were all happy.

Sunday morning we dressed for church and for once we did not have to threaten Tony to get him out of bed.  The day was promising.  Then it happened.

We were in the car driving to church and we passed a house that we passed all of the time, but something was different about that house.

“Oh my gosh Mom,” Leigh yelled. “Someone chopped down old Mr. Grouch’s tree!  Well no one will make fun of him because he never decorates anything!  You would think, though that with a huge Christmas tree growing in your front yard, you could at least put lights around it.”

From the back seat I heard and humph, then, Tony remarked, “Who would want that crooked old tree.”

Silence fell over the car and remained there until we were on our way back home from church and I became brave, disturbed, irritated, and all of the adjectives Mothers use when they suspect a teen of bad behavior.

“Tony did you and Mike cut down the tree?”

“Well Mom we went to Tennessee so of course we had to cut down a tree.”

“Dumb one, Mom means Mr. Grouch’s tree,” Leigh stated rather rudely.

“Why would anybody want that old grouchy man’s tree?  Not us for sure,” was Tony’s mumbled reply.

I didn’t press the issue but I knew if they were guilty the Pastor would know and he would share the information with me eventually so I decided to wait.  To this day Tony, Mike, and the Pastor have kept their mouths shut!  Denial at its highest pinnacle, I say.  From time to time I bring it up again but I only get denials.  I would like to believe the Pastor took care of the problem and punishment without involving me, but I still have a nagging doubt.

The joy of Christmas reigned in our little house on Christmas Eve with everyone there to enjoy dinner and open gifts.  I still wear the beautiful gift Mike’s Mom gave me that Christmas and I promise to never forget the deep love and caring that someone or two someones’ had for two teen boys.  I paid that forward and will always pay forward forgiveness when I know a lesson is learned.

 

Christmas Shopping In Kentucky

Good Sunday morning everyone.  Once again God has granted us a beautiful day to enjoy, so get outside if you can and enjoy it.  Today’s story is funny! It is a story of three women who exercised their right to Christmas shop wherever they chose.  It was Lynn, Leigh, and me.  We were determined!!!

Kentucky has its moments of inclement weather especially after Halloween and this Christmas was no exception.  We hired two young women; I knew well and trusted completely, to sit with the grandchildren while we women finished our Christmas shopping.  My husband.  Oh yes, my husband was in charge of everything and control has no greater purpose than a man in charge who will not bend.  It is like the boy who cried wolf!  When he was so in control of everything single, small, thing you ignored him if you had back up and today I had back up; two other women who wanted to shop with me.  We had a small mall in my town and I had already shopped it out so I wanted to take the toll-road and go to Indiana and shop! WalMart did not have the toys we wanted.  They had sold out long ago.

I called out to him, “Okay we are going shopping Perry so we will be back this afternoon.”

“That’s fine. Watch out for the traffic and be careful.  Stay in town.  Do not leave town today.”

Yeah, right.  I thought.  So off we went.  Three women in my 1968 Buick Wildcat and we headed straight for the toll-road.  We laughed and chatted all of the way to Indiana and when we arrived I took us straight to my favorite tea parlor.  We ordered a desert and a pot of tea. We laughed and talked and drank our tea then Leigh, my daughter, suggested we go to Toys R Us and shop.  I paid the check and we found a place to park at Toys R Us.  We shopped, and we shopped, and we looked at everything and changed our minds ten times but finally we were done.  We all paid for our gifts and headed for the car. 

“Oh my gosh, it’s snowing,” said Lynn

“Mom we had better head for home,” answered Leigh.

“Well let’s hurry and get across the bridge before it freezes,” I said.

We made it across the bridge slowly in that big old car with no front wheel drive and lots of weight. Things were progressing rather rapidly and the toll-road was already iced and snow was drifting so I knew it would be a slow crawl home.  Thirty two miles in this mess with two toll booths.  I looked for a snow covered spot and tried to stay close to the right edge of the road.  Leigh kept encouraging me and I was just trying to stay calm.  I hated driving in snow or on ice.  I neither trusted the car nor myself so I needed to be encouraged.  Lynn sat in the back and prayed and we knew she was so we were going on with grateful hearts. 

“Mom you will have to slow down to make the toll stop.  Please just do it slowly and start now.  Okay?” Leigh told me.

My knees were starting to quiver but by God’s grace I managed to stop the car and pay the toll. The toll booth operator was saying something about the road ahead but my mind was a blur and I had to go through regardless.  I had watched Perry maneuver through worse, much, much worse than this so I just had to think and I could do it.

“I can feel the car starting to slip a little,” I said when we were about six miles from the exit.

“Mom do you thing the round-about will be slick too?”

“Oh Lord yes.  Worse than this probably.”

“What do you think we should do?”

“I am not going to get off because it will dump us on a street west of town and I think I can maneuver better on the street.”

“Ok.  I am sure you can do this.”

Then the tears started.  I just couldn’t help it.  I started crying.

“Stop it Mother.  You can do this.  Besides we are depending on you to do this.  The whole family is depending on you right this minute so stop crying and do it.”

I think I had an angel out there someplace because the highway was not quite so slippery and I could feel the slush.  Then we were on a city street and very slowly and carefully I made the way back across town. 

Out of the car and into the house and my husband was out looking for us.  Oh Lord.  That was not good.  The babysitters’ Dad was waiting with the children and his daughters and he was on the phone with his wife.  The way to their house was indiscernible to say the least and she was frantic.

“Mama you are home,” Lynn’s babies cried as they ran to her.

Well the rest is history, so to speak.  I know we were horrified but I cannot say we would never do it again.  After all once a woman knows she can do something, she knows she can do it.  So there.

Folks in Florida

Well I have apparently not written well today.  Florida is almost it's own country and everyone in the world is attracted to this beautiful state and I believe the Treasure Coast is a paradise all of it's own.  Since the world is present here, there all kinds of people here and I was not prepared for the differences.  Please know that I have wonderful friends here and family.  I am here by choice.  I wish all of you a beautiful day.  If you read Do It Anyway, you will better understand this short message.

Do Good Anyway

Good morning everyone.  For years I have taught my children to do the right thing.  I myself have met more unscrupulous people and been lied to, lied about and mistreated since I moved to Florida than I wish to remember and absolutely refuse to remember. I have been forced into situations that I never would have chosen for myself but, I will love the lovely people and forgive the misguided and the downright unscrupulous.  I have lately been reminded of a writing by Kent M. Keith, that was later adapted by Mother Teresa.  I would like to share that today because Christmas is a wonderful time to bury the past and forgive everyone of everything.  It is titled, Do It Anyway

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered,
     Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;

    Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you may win some false friends and some true enemies;

    Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;

     Be honest and frank anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous;

     Be happy anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;

     Build it anyway.

The good you do today, people may often forget tomorrow;

     Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have and it may never seem like enough;

     Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.

You see, in the end, it is between you, and your God;

     It was never between you and them anyway.

One Very Cold Christmas

Good morning.  We are expecting another beautiful day in our part of paradise today.  I am glad to be out and about this morning.  We will begin to look at funny Christmas stories and many, many Christmas mornings were fun and exciting but one I remember so well.

I was seven and one half years old and we were having a winter to remember.  The entire world seemed to be frozen and cattle that normally grazed through a Deep South winter were walking on ice and snow instead.  My eldest brother, Clinton, spent more time at home because he was hunting.  We needed him to hunt this year apparently and often he brought a friend with him, Davis.  We all liked Davis because he had lots of funny stories to tell and children and adults like a good story.  Davis had entered into the work world with a wooden leg.  Yep, back then prosthetics were quite limited and I am sure he was pleased to have any kind of leg since he had lost his natural leg.  Well, in the beginning, we did not know his leg was not natural and he entertained four very impressionable young ones with heroic stories and often used a small Old Hickory pocket knife to drive his point home by allowing the knife to stick into that leg.

Finally Daddy said, “Ok Davis.  Now show the children your leg so they won’t try to be a hero with a pocket knife.”  We all laughed but we had never known anyone who had lost their leg so we were attentive until he finished his story telling.

Clinton and Davis had slipped into the house on Christmas Eve and gone to bed.  The house was very quiet because we wanted Santa to make his stop and bring us goodies.  I am not sure what woke me that night but I was a nosy child so I went to investigate.  Along the way there was a room between the girl’s room and the living room.  I guess it was for company, I really don’t remember.  My nosy self, went right through that room without a thought and I stumbled over that wooden leg.  I guess I was so afraid of being caught I managed to keep my mouth shut for once.  But, when I looked into the living room my Mama and Daddy were laughing and going through all of the things Santa had left us.  I was so mad!  When I went back to bed I was so mad I never went back to sleep and when morning finally arrived I was just an old sour child.

Mama thought I did not like my Christmas and she asked me about it at breakfast.  Davis said he thought I must have seen Santa at work and was really mad that I had to wait until daylight to get out of bed.  He winked at me and I smiled.  Somehow it didn’t seem the same but our parents really should check out what Santa brings just in case it is not a good thing.  I truly loved the wooden doll with a soft body dressed in red.  Her socks had real lace on them and her shoes were black and shiny.  She was beautiful and my other gifts were clothes and shoes so I didn’t get too excited about that.

We ate a lot of squirrel that winter.  Fried with gravy and biscuits, squirrel dumplings, and roasted.  Anyway Mama could make squirrel taste better was good.  Clinton and Davis went squirrel hunting that winter because the squirrels were as fat as chickens and more plentiful than rabbits.  I can never remember a colder Christmas in my entire childhood.

That Dog Shane

Good morning.  Temperatures in paradise will push 80 degrees for the next few days.  It is time to get out and about and enjoy this weather.  It is hard to believe we are going to Christmas parties already, and Christmas concerts.  But we are.  Maybe I will begin to share my Christmas stories with you in a few days.  Today I would like to share a story about Shane. You remember Shane?  He was my dog and had been since I was thirteen. Shane was about 12 years old and he was truly set in his ways.  I was married with two children, owned my own business, and I had bought a house in the big city but in a special neighborhood.  The children even walked to school.

It was early in the morning and I was washing dishes at the kitchen sink and looking out of the window.  I had made an appointment with the postman because Shane decided he was not allowed on the porch or touching the house.  In our neighborhood we were all close enough to call and share a problem we may have without having to call anyone’s boss.  Good days, huh.  The postman arrived and I went out on the porch and Shane watched the postman and even growled when he stepped upon the porch.  I walked to Shane and patted his head with my left hand and shook the postman’s hand with my right.  The postman lifted the lid of the mailbox that was attached to the house and placed the mail in the mailbox.  Shane stood still while we chatted and I guess Shane decided he was ok and he could bring the mail because we never had any other problems receiving mail.

The morning at the kitchen window was a ritual so once again I was gazing out of the window and washing breakfast dishes.  Shane was guarding the house from the front porch as he always did when I was home.  Suddenly he went flying around the house and scraped the corner as he went.  I dried my hands, threw the towel over my shoulder and went to the back yard to find him. 

At this point I will interject that Shane had the ability to open and close the gate.  He learned to work the lock the first week we put him in the back yard.  My Mom had asked us to babysit her couple of house pups so we told her fine if they could stay in the back yard and she said that was good.  They spent a lot of time in her yard as well so we put them in the back yard with Shane. The first morning we woke to find them gone I was sure the children had forgotten to lock the gate but after the third morning of chasing pups before school and the children insisting they had not disturbed them after I locked the gate, I devised another plan.  I would stay awake and watch.  Tony's bedroom window gave me the perfect location to view the gate.  That dog Shane took his paw and opened the gate then ushered those pups out for a midnight romp. After that we locked them in Tony's fort at night because law enforcement in the city was getting strict with pet restrictions and we were expected to keep them all fenced.  People rarely leashed or walked animals on a leash in those days.

This morning when I came around the house, Shane was sitting inside the fence, gazing out at the street and I scolded him for banging the house but I went into the yard and checked his hips and legs.  He seemed fine so I told him he was acting like an old man and I returned to my dishes.  In a few minutes I looked up to see the city dog catcher in his little collection truck, slowly driving past the house.  That dog!  He knew the dog-catcher was in the neighborhood.  What a dog.  After several minutes he returned to his perch on the front porch.

That dog Shane!

 

 

The Clouds Where The Angels Play

 

 

 

Good morning. Today is a beautiful Florida beginning.  Sunshine on the rise and the world seems perfect right at this very moment.  I had the pleasure of seeing a friend of mine the other day and I remembered the first time I met him.  He and his wife had recently said goodbye to their young daughter.  I cannot even imagine that pain, yet I know God gives us something truly special to help us on our journey of healing and then he gives us remembrances of beautiful moments with them.  I love the beach so much and during that time I went to the beach almost daily and one day as I stood on the boardwalk looking out over the ocean I penned a poem as I thought of this couple and their pain.  This is a story page but I would like to add a poem today if it is ok.  The poem is a story within itself to me.  We all need a story of healing, looking for the silver lining, and enduring.  Sometimes this comes in the most unusual ways and the most unusual places.  This is the original version the way I wrote it because the newer version has been corrected to resemble a poem.

The Clouds Where the Angels Play

  Ina Grace

The beach was deserted, except for the walkers on the boardwalk.

The tide was going out.

My eyes followed the wave line of the waving water, all of the way to the skyline.

And, there, right where the sky disappeared behind the ocean, there-----oh my!

Right there, the clouds held a secret, I had never before seen.

Through the clouds were roads and trees, and there was even a lake.

As my eyes scanned the clouds, I could see other roads!

Wow and even a village!

There was one road with a gatepost, and with an open gate to beckon visitors.

My mind began to imagine this village belonging to angels.

This is where they played and enjoyed the clouds.

There were tall mountains situated as a protection for the village.

On every other cloud surrounding this one, there was a lake.

Each lake was set in the middle of each cloud, as a diamond set in a ring.

The sun began to show itself brightly.

I imagined I saw the angels dancing in the sunlight from beam to beam.

It made my heart light and my spirit began to sing.

I gathered my things and walked down the boardwalk for home.

There was a gentle breeze following me.

There was a peace.

I smiled.

Angels could be watching us as they played among the clouds. 

 

 

 

                       

Brave Little Sister

Good morning.  Wow! Another cloudy day with only partly sunny.  Nope!  It is a partly sunny day being disturbed with a few clouds.  The temperature will come close to 80 degrees and I will just bet there is someone out there who would love to trade places with us!  Today I would like to share a story about courage and determination.  There are a lot of people who never climb high mountains with ropes but daily they climb those mountains just to know that life is still good and real.  I know a young lady who battles daily with an incurable type of cancer and she has no promise of tomorrow or a future.  She doesn’t have to dream of finishing college or a wedding dress but she does.  She was determined to graduate from high school.  After all, that is the least anyone can do in today’s world, right.  I have seen the same struggle in others and they never gave in and they never gave up because they did not want to exist, they wanted to live and enjoy the day, the week, the month, and even the year.

She has a special way of making everyone stop and listen.  Well most people anyway.  There are always those who are so ungrateful that they never see past themselves to listen to courage.  Maybe it is because they have none of their own.  Finding our eyesight out of negativity is a dedication to practice what we know in our mind is correct.  I love this young lady and I admire her courage.   She has battled since she was a child and she is half way through her senior year of high school.  Having a child who is ill takes a toll on the family also and this young lady’s Mother has made her way through it all also.  Every day is not a good day but every day is good because our “Little Sister” is still with us.  No, she is not related to me but she is a little sister, daughter, niece and granddaughter.  She is now a girl-friend so hats off to her.

She harbors her hurt but never meanness or retribution.  A ball of tears maybe and time alone to put everything into prospective but not to retaliate or hurt anyone back.  There are very few people she can completely depend on and they are truly big people with their own courage.  She has the ability to love even when she doesn’t feel loved and yes she has been criticized and bullied by her peers.  What people fear or don’t understand becomes a problem and they often take it out on the person who is reminding them of these fears.  I once watched a movie about a homeless man who lived under a university library and through many ordeals he ended up living in a house with four college students.  One of these students felt that live owed him and his father could buy him out of any problem so he lived in misery and criticism of others.  One morning he arrived in the kitchen and opened the fridge, took out the milk carton, sniffed it and returned it to the fridge. The homeless man had prepared a delicious breakfast that others had shared and he offered this student breakfast as well.  Then he removed his socks from the microwave and with great flair proceeded to put them on his feet.  The young student realized this and criticized him with the same great flair.  The homeless man made a statement that, to me, was the most memorable in the movie.  He said, “I know what is wrong with you.  You feel the way I look.” 
Well, back to our little sister story.  She has already decided to become a nurse because it is a world she has grown up in going for treatment and surgery.  She has seen first-hand how important nurses are and taking care of others is a heart calling.  I truly salute her courage and my guess is she will be with us for many years and enrich many, many lives.  Thank you little sister for showing all of us how to turn clouds into sunshine.  I love you!

 

 

Happy Birthday Pearl Harbor Girl!

Good morning everyone.  To all of our veterans and support persons who made World War II a success, I salute you and thank you from the deepest recesses of my heart.  How do you celebrate when you think of how many people lost their lives in Pearl Harbor?  It is easy when you think of all of the people whose lives were restored when the world united and destroyed a tyrant and ended his rule.   There will always be those who want to own it all and control it all so for all of you who came after and serve now, I also salute you and thank you.  We can never give these persons the rights that God granted to us. Today’s story is about my sister who joined her son, Mom, Dad, brother, sisters-in-law, and brother-in-law this year.  She was nick-named “Red” because she had the most gorgeous red hair and the grit to live up to her name.  Maybe her grit came because she was born on Pearl Harbor day. Happy birthday to Red today! Needless to say, she made life a “what?” every single day and we all loved her and always will.

We were country kids and proud of it.  Our only worry was whether or not it would rain today.  Good or bad after affects did not matter, just if it would rain.  My three younger brothers and I were babies compared to the others and we were allowed to stay home while the others went to work in the fields.  This particular day was my seventh birthday and the only crop to be gathered today was the peach crop.  My sisters were at home and the older boys worked with Dad today, while I was allowed to go spend the day with a neighbor and help with the peaches.  I mean I really helped with those peaches. My tummy was soooo unhappy about the quantity of peaches I forced down!  We were pealing peaches and slicing them for canning jars so I had a slice from every single peach I handled.  I was unaware that they sent me to help only to get me out of the house.

Red was nine and a half years of age and she wanted to bake me a birthday cake.  That was never an easy task in those days, since we had a wooden stove in the kitchen and the water came from an outside well.  The water was heated on the stove to wash dishes and everything was beaten by hand with a metal spoon.  She had a job ahead for her but when Red decided to do something there was no stopping her.  She ran everyone out of the kitchen because she knew exactly what she was doing.  I am not sure but I think a measuring cup was a coffee cup and everything else was an eye measure. You know, look at it and decide if it will be the right amount.  She even made that fluffy frosting that has to have the syrup cooked on the stove and you pour it into the beaten eggs.  Lordy, lordy.  I cannot imagine a child her age attempting to complete such a task today.   Needless to say she worked most of the day on that cake.  The meal was prepared by my Mom but Red helped her and that story is definitely for another time.

Finally I came home.  I was told to lie on the couch (sofa) and keep a wash cloth over my neck so I would not up-chuck.  Finally supper was ready and we went to eat, and for reasons to be later discussed I passed on the fried chicken and returned to the couch.  However; the cake was served and I had no intention of missing this grand event.

You have never seen a more beautiful birthday cake!  She really out-did herself!  Wow! I and the other children were so anxious to have cake.  It was my birthday so I had the first piece of vanilla cake and heaps of white frosting.  Everyone waited for me to taste the masterpiece and when my face became a shocked and wrinkled, disappointed, road map, looking thing, they held their breath.  Daddy tasted the cake and he laughed.  Soon we were all laughing so hard and even Red was laughing! Instead of making a cake with flour she had baked her first cake made from corn meal. 

I salute you Red!  You pursued and became the best cake baker I have ever known and you baked many more birthday cakes for me!!!!!!   I love you and Happy Birthday, Pearl Harbor Girl.!

 

Lady Please Take My Dog

Good morning from paradise.  We have a beautiful Sunday morning with sunshine to wake us.  I have a great love for animals and growing up on a farm certainly heightened that affection. Today's story will add to that picture of my fondness for the furry creatures. 

The sun was so hot that everyone should have been dripping sweat on the shores of the Mississippi Gulf of Mexico.  Highway 90 was bumper to bumper traffic and my white van was loaded with new racks to be assembled in a dozen small stores.  My first destination was Moss Point, Mississippi where the paper mill was the central area of the town and the store I was working in was the center of the traffic.  Once I left Highway 90 the traffic eased up and when I reached my destination every adult was at the paper mill and most children were slowly getting out and about.  It was summer!  The odor alone, made my stomach queasy and I never understood how anyone could tolerate living in a paper mill town.

I gathered my paperwork and entered the store hoping the manager was expecting me. 

“Good morning everyone.  Are you excited to have new racks today?”

“Oh sure honey.  Just do your thing and don’t let us get in the way.  How can you stand all of this heat?”

I chatted with the manger and her two employees while I moved merchandise around and created space for new racks.  When I was finished I went out to the van to bring in the racks and that is when I spied the young boy sitting on the curb beside my van.  His hair was tussled and his big, blue eyes were red and swollen from crying.  He held a small rope in his right hand and on the other end of that rope was a shaggy little dog.

“Good morning.  Why are you so sad today,” I asked. “And who is your friend?”
The dog wagged his tail and I scuffed his fur a bit. Then the little boy held up his hand offering me the rope.
“Lady please take my dog?”
“Oh my goodness.  I would be happy to hold him awhile but I have to get these racks unloaded and set up in the store.  I will be really busy for a couple of hours.  Why do you need me to hold onto him?”
“No lady. You don’t understand.  We are moving today and my Mama says I can’t take him with us so lady please take my dog?  He likes you.”
The tears began to roll down his little face and my heart was breaking seeing him hurting so badly. I sat down beside him and the racks seemed so unimportant at this time.  He placed his hand on my knee and began to tell me about his dog.
“See. When we moved here I don’t know nobody but my Daddy had to come here to work. One day my dog came in my yard and I give him some water, see.  He was so happy then I had to go eat and I saved him my bread, see.  He just is my only friend.”
“Yes, I see.  What is his name?”
“I don’t know really.  I just called him my dog.”
“Well is your Daddy moving to a new job?”
“No mam.  He left us.”
I could barely contain my tears and I knew I had no reason to take this dog anywhere and I knew if I took him home with me my own children would never let him go.  What a decision.
“Well, when are you leaving?”
“Just right now.  I told Mama I had to bring him to the store and she said for me to hurry.”
I still cannot remember where my rational mind stopped in this conversation and my heart took over but I took the rope and wished my small friend a happy trip.  He took off around the store wiping his tears and runny nose on his forearm and I really was in a pickle. Then the store manager came out to see me.
“Sweety, you got too big a heart,” she said. “But it’s alright.  I been feeding that child breakfast for two weeks because he just came and asked me to give his dog something to eat.  I think his Daddy must of not wanted the dog around.  What did he tell you to get you to take that dog?”
“He said his Daddy left and they had to move right now.”
She laughed and said, “Well as long as you don’t leave that dog here bring around to the back and we can tie him up out of the sun and feed one more time.  He already has water back there.”
I finished my work and made a place for the dog in a box wedged snugly inside the front of the van so the air would keep him cool and down the road we went.  I was correct!  My children were thrilled so I took him to the vet the next morning and had him checked out and started his shot routine.  He was healthy so after the bath the children gave him and the checkup he was running in and out of the house before I could lay down the rules.  If anyone small and sad ever asks you, “Please take my dog, then remember that it may be a good decision.”
Oh, important other information.  The folks in Mississippi are the best.

A Guest, Uninvited, Who Did Not Know How to Leave

 

Good Saturday morning.  Paradise is receiving another cleansing this weekend with wind.  What doesn’t wash away is blown away so when the sun returns it will be glorious!  Today’s story goes back a number of years and I think of it often.  Remember I told you what a large, noisy happy family we were.  We were also farmers and I loved every day of my life.  My oldest sister attempted to sew when she was in her teens but I can’t remember that she kept that alive after she married.  Today’s story is about one of those days that will be etched in my mental notebook of memories forever.

 Every year when the new automobiles were introduced the American Auto Companies published a beautiful, colorful booklet highlighting them.  Well I think they were highlighting the autos but for me the people in the booklets were the fascination.  My Dad made a trip to town on my 6^th birthday and he brought me one of these auto booklets.  I was thrilled because this was a book of paper dolls for me.  While my oldest sister, Ann, was sewing I decided to sit on the floor close to her and cut out my paper dolls. We were quite happy and busy but I thought I saw something move behind the sewing machine table.  I was much too busy to give the thought too much of my time and I continued.  Suddenly Ann jumped up from her chair and I turned just in time to see a huge snake.  Well to a six-year-old huge was the description that best suited this ugly, slimy creature.

Our house was called a shot-gun style with four very large rooms, two on each side of the house and a wide hallway that separated them.  During the summer the hallway was open and our table to seat twelve was in the middle of the hall.  I think that snake decided not to argue with the table and he slithered across the hall to the girl’s bedroom but with screaming girls and more joining the party quickly, he was headed for safety.  Clearly he did not know how to exit the house.  This room had two windows, one facing the front porch and one facing the side yard, but they were screened.  Oh boy!

“Get a hoe,” Ann shouted and Ghynell ran for the back yard to a shed and returned with the hoe which was to chop off that snake’s head.  The girls pulled the mattress off the bed.

The beds in those days were frames with head and foot boards, a comfy mattress, and a bed spring that was just that, coils of springs exposed.  Wallah, thought the snake, perfect place to hide.  He found himself in a delicate situation, however; when he realized he was in a maze of coiled springs and all he could do is try to hide from one side of the bed to the other.  You see Ghynell was chopping that bed spring with a hoe and when she chopped, well you can imagine the disturbance to all of those springs.

Suddenly my Dad entered the room.

“What on earth are you girls doing in here,” he demanded. “It sounds like you are tearing down the house.”

Once he appraised the situation he managed to relieve Ghynell of the hoe, which I will add, was no easy task.  He shooed us all out of the room and with the hoe handle made a way for the poor snake to return to the floor to be escorted from the room, into the hall, and out the front and down the steps.

“Good Lord,” he exclaimed.  “That was a rat snake and I don’t think he would have hurt anyone.  He was simply trying to stay cool and out of the way.  Now girls he did not belong in the house but you should have called me instead of destroying a bed.  Well it is your bed so do what you will with it.” 

Then he left the house and very quietly the girls went about putting the bedroom back together and I happily returned to my paper dolls.  The poor snake probably took off to the safety of the barn and promised himself to never visit anyplace that had no defined way of leaving once he arrived.  And he was huge!

Long Legged Blondes

Good morning.  Thank goodness it is Friday.  Now just get through the early part of it and you will have the weekend.  Some of you will have the weekend at your workplace and others will have a lot of other work at your dwelling place.  Whichever it may be, please celebrate the weekend!! 

We can celebrate together if you like because I will write you a story every day if the good Lord allows me the opportunity and ability.

Long Legged Blondes

Today I would like to share a story about my wonderful friend Shane.  Shane was brought to me by my Dad at the age of about 9 months.  He was covered in beautiful, golden, blonde fur and his legs were long!  When he stretched out he was taller than I was! I have been 5’6 ½” tall since I was 12 years of age and most of my height was also legs.  Right away Shane and I had a lot in common.  Neither of us knew where to put our legs to get them out of the way and we were both blonde and running through the yard was much more fun than hanging around the house. Yes indeed; it was love at first sight.  Shane’s story is long and interesting so I will just tell a little bit of it today. 

He belonged to a farmer who had chickens among other farm animals and he did not like this “dog”.  The farmer’s wife called my Dad and asked him to come out to their place and repair a screen door for her so of course Dad could use the money and he went right on out. He spied that dog as soon as he arrived at the farm.  My Dad was a kind man so he immediately set about trying to put the dog at ease and make a friend of him.  It wasn’t long before the dog was following him back and forth from the tool shed to the back porch and not once did the dog shy away from Dad. 

The farmer arrived and immediately the dog ran for shelter.  The farmer swapped a few words with Dad and went on his way and the farmer’s wife said to Dad, “Mr. Grace please take that dog with you.  My husband mistreats that poor thing and the dog likes you.  He accuses him of stealing chicken eggs but I know better than that. Take him home to your children.”

Dad loaded his old wooden tool box in the car and looked at the dog. 

“Come on,” he said. That dog almost flew to the car so Dad brought him home.

My brother and I were sitting at the kitchen/dining table and aggravating Mother while she cooked when Dad opened the front door of the house and placed that dog on the floor.  The floor was slick with a high sheen so dog toenails met floor and he slid all of the way across the floor and right into my arms.  He was beautiful and I fell in love with him and he fell in love with me.  Oh, I know he was a family pet, ha, but he was mine.  I named him Shane from the western movie that I absolutely do not remember anything about but the dog who loved that old cowboy.

Shane and I were together for 18 years and as I said earlier, he lived quite a life and I was so blessed that he lived it with me.

Together we were a couple of long legged blondes!