In your own experience, who has historically been the parent most likely to shop for and/or create all the gifts given in your family? For me it was my mother. As a result, I really don’t remember many details about the gifts she gave me. Except that she generously gave to her children. So many gifts over the years. And so much of herself.
Continue reading “Gifts and Givers”Tag Jesus
Fog
Of all the road hazards one can experience, fog causes me the most fear.
Growing up, my parents didn’t really give me any “rules” to follow. Never told me what time to be home or where not to go/what not to do. !! Did they just trust me that much? I don’t know. When I think about their life with the challenges of my oldest handicapped sister, and my dad’s terminal illness, it seems likely that they were just overwhelmed and exhausted. In return, I saw their struggles and honestly did not want to do anything that would add to their stress. I was chronologically “young”, but I was “old” experientially. I don’t really think I was a challenging teenager.
Continue reading “Fog”Walls, foundations and bucket lists
We like to travel. Actually, we love to travel. I was born with the “let’s go” gene. And I believe the hubby was, too. So, we have done a lot of traveling when possible. Life has put a bit of a cramp in that plan, but still, we travel.
Recently as we were walking on one of our favorite trails at the lake where we’re camped, I said, “You’re 68. I’m 67. We need to determine the things we want to do, places we want to see while we still are able to do such.” He replied, “We still have thirty years of living for all that”. And he’s the math whiz??
Continue reading “Walls, foundations and bucket lists”Speaking silently
What speaks to your soul? For me, it’s almost always the wonders of God’s creation. We travel a lot to beautiful mountains, lakes, oceans, and so on. But sometimes the wonders of creation are in my own backyard.
Continue reading “Speaking silently”Would you?
If you had the option to live your current life here on earth forever, would you choose to do so?
Continue reading “Would you?”A moment in time
I had a “moment” the other day. It all started when I saw my hairbrush while getting ready for the day. It was full of gray hair. FULL of gray hair. And in that moment, I “saw” my mom. Of course when my eyes lifted to look in the mirror, there she was again.
The day was Sunday. As we were in church right before the service was to begin, a young woman and her very young daughter walked down the aisle next to where we were seated. She took a seat in the pew in front of us and to the left a bit. It was the front row of our section in the very large church we attend. No one else was sitting near them, giving us a close up view of the two of them.
Continue reading “A moment in time”Need to Know Basis
The new year, 2022, came right on in the door and sat down. Looking suspiciously similar to the past two years. I feel certain that I’m not the only person on the planet who is done with the pandemic. Every news clip on COVID, vaccines, deaths, hospitalizations? I just can’t anymore. Not that I don’t care. That’s not it at all. I do care. The numbers, the news, the pictures, the personal stories really break my heart.
This morning when I woke up my mind was filled with an intensely awful memory from when I was around 5 years old. Involving a life altering event to my parents and sisters and myself. You won’t get details, but the effects of that event were permanent and sad. Anyway, as this flash of memory hit my brain waves I sensed God asking me “Can you be thankful even though….?” What a difficult thing to ponder. Especially at 5 in the morning. I couldn’t answer right away.
Continue reading “Need to Know Basis”The year that changed Christmas forever
Merry Christmas to you in 2021. This is a story that many in my life have heard, and I’d like to share it with those of my blogger friends who haven’t read it yet.
One Christmas changed everything. Continue reading “The year that changed Christmas forever”
Is there really no place like home?
We were driving through the Flint Hills of Kansas yesterday. Isn’t it beautiful?
Maybe you do this too……read on.
There are homes in this picture. You can’t see them well from this view but I assure you they are there. We drove down several lovely country roads while driving to and from this location. The views were just stunning, I’m not exaggerating. And as usual, I love seeing the homes on these acreages. On absolutely serene looking acreages that just scream “Perfect Life”. Do you know what I’m talking about? I look at these homes and think how awesome it would be to live there.
So….do you dream and imagine and envy a bit on drives like this? Like I do?
Continue reading “Is there really no place like home?”The Eyes Have It
Again, I have been given the opportunity to reminisce about my mother. Several days ago I had cataract surgery. Soon I will have cataract surgery on my other eye. Just a short appointment, quick recovery, and voila, good eyesight. Maybe even no prescription eye glasses needed once my other eye is done. Just that simple.
Mom’s eyes developed cataracts at a pretty young age. I was ten when she had surgery, which would have made her 50 years old. 1965 was the year. This surgery wasn’t simple and my mom wasn’t particularly enthused about the whole process.
Continue reading “The Eyes Have It”
Dear Younger Me
My breath was taken away and tears came to my eyes. Not gonna lie, they even rolled down my cheeks.
A friend of mine shared a photo with me. She’d found it in an old yearbook of her mom’s.
Me. Age fifteen. The one school picture that never made it to a frame on the top of the piano with the other pictures of me and my sisters. I had totally forgotten about this particular photograph. I doubt there are prints of it anywhere, except of course the old yearbook.
Continue reading “Dear Younger Me”Young. And Old. And Future.
Sixty three years ago on this day, my 15 year old sister loaded up my pregnant mom and my two other sisters in our old car and drove to the hospital 25 miles from home. My sister’s skills included driving a tractor and she could drive a car, too. Dad was working, driving a road maintainer for the county. Probably far out in the country on a dirt road and there weren’t cell phones in that day. He was probably clueless that the whole hospital thing was happening. I don’t think I was quite due to be born yet. The first and last time I was early for anything. Continue reading “Young. And Old. And Future.”
To Hear Him Sing
Music. It’s really everywhere around us. Radio. You tube. Movies aren’t movies unless there is a soundtrack. TV advertisements couldn’t exist without a catchy tune. Elevators, subway stations, restaurants….. we are surrounded with song. Continue reading “To Hear Him Sing”
Remedies and Remedy
Did your mom have her list of go-to remedies for every malady you might experience? I’m thinking your answer is probably “yes”. My mom sure did.
Milk of Magnesia would cure everything. Tummy ache? Take some milk of magnesia. Tired and worn out? Take some milk of magnesia. Ingrown toenail? Same remedy….. well yeah that might be an exaggeration. Continue reading “Remedies and Remedy”
Passing time and snapping fingers
Her name was Elnora Christina Borgen Reed… Nora was her common name. I didn’t know her, but she knew me. For the first six months of my life I believe she may have held me, maybe sang to me, definitely prayed for me. They were the last six months of her life. Continue reading “Passing time and snapping fingers”
Little White Church
Little white church. Every small rural town has one. Ours was on 3rd and Argyle. Nondescript. Simple. Easily overlooked. Just a little white church.
Last year our little white church was demolished after having been unused for a few years. I watched the Facebook live video of the demolition from my home 100 miles away, with tears running down my cheeks. We were married in that church. Our two baby girls were dedicated in that church. We worshiped in that church for 25 years or so. Our hearts were deeply embedded in the four walls of that little building. It hurt so bad to watch it being dozed, even though it was obvious the building condition had deteriorated to the point it was necessary. Continue reading “Little White Church”
Uncommon sanctuaries
Some children grow up spending most of their leisure time with siblings or cousins or next door neighbor kids.
I did not. No siblings even close to my age made me a bit of an only child. Ditto cousins. I had a couple very good friends, but play time wasn’t all that frequent.
My dad was my fishing buddy and my favorite person to spend leisure time with. But of course time with him was limited because he had that pesky 40+ hour/week job thing going on.
My mom also had that pesky full time employment scene happening from the time I was eight years old.
Do you know? Have you heard?
One of my favorite rooms in our home is an unfinished room in our basement that contains the furnace and hot water heater. Ductwork is visible through the unfinished walls and ceiling. A single lightbulb is affixed to a ceiling joist. It’s also our “office” of sorts. A real cozy place with random pieces of carpet on the cement floor and our grandkids’ artwork taped up here and there. My husband’s desk and our printer are down there as well as file cabinets full of all manner of stuff that probably has very little significance. And there are several shelves of books, MANY MANY BOOKS, that we’ve collected over the years. Continue reading “Do you know? Have you heard?”
Mommy
In April of this year, 2017, my friend that I wrote about in this 2016 post lost her younger son** in a tragic motorcycle accident. She has now lost both of her sons, two of her five children. She is clinging to Jesus to carry her through. My heart breaks for her and my prayers are with her and her other children.
Blog post from November of 2016:
Simply B 