Because You Never Know

I was planning to drive down to Farmington after church today to see my parents.  Today is their 62nd Anniversary [No. That's not right, because 2016-1953 is 63!] and I wanted to be with them.  Nature changed all that.  It was snowing when I left church, and the roads were starting to get pretty slippery by the time I made it back to town.  Better to have one less car on the road when travel is not essential.  I'll call Dad in a little while instead, and I'll celebrate with them the next time I'm down there.  That means I have about four hours of driving time and a few more hours of visiting time to expend in some other way today. Therefore, after a quick lunch and a quicker snooze (which happened by accident while I was watching a YouTube tutorial on how to blend colors with Sharpies), I decided I should do something more useful.  I cleaned the junk drawer.  I confess that I have some junk in more than one drawer in my house, but I'm talking about the junk drawer; the kind that everyone has.  It's the one at the end of the kitchen counter which is closest to the wall where the land line phone used to hang.  Yes, Youngsters, there was a day when people had telephones that plugged into the wall and the only thing you could do with them was make and receive phone calls -- but I digress.  Now, go ahead and tell me that you don't have a junk drawer.  I won't believe you, because that would just be wrong.  It's the American way!  Anyway, I can't tell you the last time this particular drawer was cleaned out and organized, but I know it was since I threw the things pictured here into it.  I obviously did that because you never know when you might need two cup hooks and two of those little blue screwy things that go to ... ???  [shrugging my shoulders]  ... something that I might still own and which might lose not just one, but two of its little blue screwy things.  Then again, if these are yours and you've been wondering what happened to them, please let me know. I'll waive the storage fee.  I also found two tire gauges, because I might need to check the air pressure in my tires ... in my kitchen ... and, in the event that I lose one tire gauge, VOILA!  I'll have an extra!  Among a great many other treasures, I also found 34 cents. It's always nice to be paid for a job well done.

Stephen's Card

I finished a birthday card for my younger brother the other day.  I chose the Bible verse shown on the front, because, in addition to being an appropriate verse for a birthday, it reflects who he is -- a faithful servant of God.  Sinner and Saint all wrapped up into one "Loved by God Package," just like me.  The 17th will be a "milestone birthday" for him.  You know ... the kind that ends in a "0".

At the risk of sounding terribly maudlin -- not entirely appropriate following a "happy birthday" post -- I will say that as I watch my parents' declining health, I often think about my own mortality. My folks were both younger than I am now when they set out on an adventure and moved to a foreign country. They enjoyed their travels and returned safely to their home in the states just before my father retired. He was younger then than I am now. They continued to enjoy making memories, many of which were when they were younger than I am now.  Even with those thoughts in mind, I don't feel old. With all of its highs and lows, I'm still enjoying my life. I just know that time is unforgivingly short, and, if God wills it, one of these days I will be turning that same page my parents did and find myself in a whole new chapter. Not their chapter, my chapter -- but the chapter, if you know what I mean.  As the Beatles aptly put it, "Life is very short, and there's no time for fussing and fighting, my friends."  Better yet, Ephesians 4 is an excellent read on that subject.  Check it out.

Treat Boxes for Sweet Friends

A very quick post before I head off to bed.  I just finished making a few of these little treat boxes for some friends at work.  I used Craft Smith card stock from the Pinks & Corals pad (purchased in a Hot Buy at Michael's), DP by Pebbles (Be Mine 6x6 pad), a small Spellbinders flower die from the Daisy Flower Topper set, and my little 5/8" heart punch by Recollections (also a Michael's purchase).  I've filled the finished boxes with Herschey's Hugs and Kisses.  My inspiration came from a video by Paper Smycho on YouTube.  You can watch it here.  I think they turned out really cute.  Happy Valentine's Day!