Life

Today I attended a funeral.  The deceased wasn't a direct relative of mine; however, it was my brother-in-law's father.  It made me sad to see my sister and brother-in-law grieving, as well as the rest of my brother-in-law's family.  The loss of a loved one is so difficult.  But during the funeral I got to thinking about life; because on my way over to the funeral, I had a message from a friend that her daughter-in-law had gone to the hospital to deliver their first baby.  So not only was I praying for comfort for the family of the deceased; but also for the family of this new little life coming into the world.  An end of a life being honored, and a new little life beginning .... all at the same time.

It made me think that in our busy day-to-day hustle, lives are beginning and ending all around us.  People are grieving and rejoicing everywhere continually.  In Ecclesiastes 3:2 it says there is "a time to be born, and a time to die".  They are listed together because they go together.  God's plan keeps rolling along without a hitch .... babies are born while others are passing away.  God commands us to love one another.  That's why it hurts so much when we lose a loved one.  But God knew that would be the case and promised to comfort the grieving.  He understands our emotions.

The name of the man whose funeral I attended was Ed.  I thought about how Ed had undoubtedly rejoiced at the birth of all of his children, and as I glanced around the room, there they all were honoring his life.  Without him they would not have lived, and now that he has died he has left a legacy to continue on as it had been before he was even born.  His parents had rejoiced over his birth when he was born, the pattern of life just keeps going on.

So tonight I first raise a glass to Ed.  For being a loving husband, someone who loved his wife for 63 years without ever having an argument, yes that's really true.  He lived with his sweetheart until the end.  And for being a devoted father instilling in all of his children strong values and the importance of family.  And secondly, I raise a glass to a brand new baby boy who is beginning a legacy of his own.

Seeing the Unexpected

A couple of evenings ago, I was heading outside to turn on my sprinkler.  It was getting dark, and as I came out my front door, I noticed what I assumed to be a medium sized black dog in our driveway.  You see, it was just dark enough where you can see close up, but some things just appear as shadows.  I told the supposed dog to go home, but as the shadow came closer and more into view, I couldn't believe what I was looking at running loose in our neighborhood, and actually in my driveway.  It was a pig!  A small black pig!  At first I was quite speechless, and when it spotted me, it quickly ran on through my driveway, and out into the road.  I had to follow it because I was still a bit dumbfounded.  As it ran next door into my neighbors' yard, I heard someone calling, "pig, pig".  I realized that obviously this was a pet, and not a wild pig of some sort.  I whistled towards the calling, and told him his pig was over my direction.  He soon was at my house, and explained that somehow the pig had escaped from its pen.  He then called the pig once again, and it was so funny to see the pig running very fast towards its owner.  Apparently they have two little pot bellied pigs as pets.  I didn't have my camera with me, but this is what it looked like:

Ready to Move On

Today is February 19th.  That means we basically only have one more week of February; and as much as I love winter, I am beginning to feel like I would really like to have sunny days and warmer weather.  This month we haven't had a lot of snow, but lots of gray days, rain, snow flurries, and cold temperatures.  I'm really ready to move on to glorious spring.  Isn't it nice to know that even though winter remains, and we start to grow weary of all of the weather that comes along with it, deep down we know that spring will indeed show up.  We have our hope, and we know it won't be disappointed.  So while I am hoping for spring, knowing it will be here soon, our snow shovels stand at the ready just in case they need to be put into service once more before all is said and done.  Perhaps they are just waiting to be put away because their services will no longer be needed this season.  I hope so.

Waiting Contentedly

Today is a very rainy, dark day.  One of those days that you really would like to just stay at home, eat warm soup, and maybe watch an old movie.  Instead, I have been running errands, and am now waiting to pick my daughter up from her volleyball practice.  But I really don't mind waiting.  The reason is a cup of hot tea, and pumpkin bread.  Yum!!  I wish you could come and join me :)

Farewell to Summer

This morning as I enjoyed a cup of tea, I began pondering over the past season.  I know that technically, summer still has a few weeks to go; however, with school beginning tomorrow, that kind of signals the end of the season. 

When summer began I had all kinds of plans, hopes, and dreams for how it might possibly pan out.  Of course, as is usually the case, it turned out somewhat differently -- not in a bad way -- just in a different way.  I was able to plant my vegetable garden, and lots of flowers even though we had such a rainy May and June.  Countless hours were spent at my daughter's tennis lessons; but that was nice because it gave me the opportunity to sit in the warm sunshine visiting with a friend and getting some crocheting accomplished.  I was blessed to be able to teach two different friends how to crochet a granny square.  I cheered my son through two triathlons.  When my daughter made the transition from tennis to volleyball, that also afforded me time to spend with another friend.  I did lots of walking, and have lost nearly 10 pounds.  Another birthday came and went.  Time was set aside for a five day camping trip with my family which included picking huckleberries.  I created a chocolate cake for the annual chocolate contest at our local fair -- of which I did not place in the top three -- but I can imagine I finished in fourth place (lol).  I've made jam and pickles, and I guess the list could really go on and on.  The Bible talks about how God directs our steps.  I may have had specific ideas at the beginning of summer what I might like to do; but His plan for me this summer was just perfect.

Ready or Not, Here it Comes

Our summer was beautiful this year; and our September was amazing. Apparently it was the nicest summer on record for our area. Nearly ever day was sunny and beautiful. But alas, October has arrived, and along with it, colder weather. I have basically been in denial that summer is over, just wanting it to last a bit longer. This morning though when I stepped out of my house to go for my morning walk, a brisk 19 deg. hit me in the face. Brrrr! So I guess I am ready to face reality that fall is actually here. But that's okay. I think I will be able to embrace it with all of it's own special beauty.

Slowing Down Time

It is the end of September. I literally cannot believe that the end of the month has come so quickly. In light of this realization, I have decided that I sincerely want to find ways to slow down time. I have been evaluating my life and the activities that keep me so busy. My conclusion is that the hurried pace that I seem to keep is really all my own doing. No one is pushing me telling me that I need to accomplish thirty things in one day. No one is requiring me to write out a list each morning that is virtually impossible to accomplish. I have simply set my goals too high; and as a result, I hurry around all day long trying to get things done. I don't think that God really intends us to run from pillar to post each day at a hurried pace. He wants us to be effective and organized. After all, that is the kind of God that He is. Everything is in order, organized, systematic, and peaceful. A couple of weeks ago, one of my daughters saw my daily to-do list, and suggested to me that if I should accomplish one or two things off of the list, I should be happy with that. I have been thinking about that advice, and she is right. Lists will still be made, but I just won't think I can accomplish everything all in one day. Instead, I will be focusing on one thing at a time. After all, that is all I can accomplish anyway. Yesterday I actually put this thinking into practice. I took my time with my chores, spent some time outside gathering seeds from my flowers, and picked all of my tomatoes and peppers (at a leisurely pace) from my garden. At this point I began thinking of other chores I could do, when I looked outside, saw the sunshine, and decided everything else could wait. I got my new book, a chair, and sat outside in the sunshine for a while, just enjoying the afternoon, and slowing down time.