L'Chaim!

Happy birthday, Mom!  Today is  her 82nd birthday (well, it's a bit after midnight now so actually yesterday, the 9th, was her 82nd birthday.) We started the day with coffee, as usual.  She had two very nutritious oatmeal cookies for breakfast, and then we went to church.  The text for the sermon was the story of the Widow of Nain.  As many of you know, Mom has had quite the bumpy ride lately, so it was quite a treat for me to spend the day with her, and spoil her as much as I could.  Cathy, Mark and I made lunch for everyone after church, and we had a fresh baked cherry pie for dessert.  More coffee too, of course.  It's a staple in our homes.

 

I have to admit that even before I got on the road to go to Dad and Mom's this weekend I was feeling melancholy about this particular visit.  What a blessing it is to enjoy having elderly parents!  It can be trying, frustrating, irritating, overwhelming, exhausting (you name it), but we don't take one moment for granted.  At the core, it's about love, and it's not just about the love we have for our parents or for each other.  It's the about the genesis of love.  This veil of tears is the constant reminder that, because of sin, our bodies will waste away and one day be void of life.  That fact was so easily dismissed when we were children and ignorant of our own mortality, and then, it seems, even more so as selfish adolescents and young adults.  And yet through it all, we know how things are going to be for those of us baptized in Christ!  One of our Communion hymns today was the Easter hymn, "I Know That My Redeemer Lives."  Though Mom continues on an uncertain and somewhat bumpy ride right now, she joyfully sang:

 

He lives to silence all my fears;

He lives to wipe away my tears;

He lives to calm my troubled heart;

He lives all blessings to impart.

 

He lives and grants me daily breath;

He lives, and I shall conquer death;

He lives my mansion to prepare;

He lives to bring me safely there. 

 

It's an Easter hymn, and yes, Easter is over for the church year.  But Easter is what it is all about for all of us. It is the same compassion that Jesus showed the Widow of Nain.  It's about God who gives life vs. sin which causes death.  "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."  In Christ we live.

 

L'Chaim!

 

Home and Away Games

It's Sunday and I'm home!  I arrived at about 5 o'clock this afternoon.  I was thinking about this earlier in the day, and I counted the number of days that I've been home since Christmas Eve.  It's a good thing that 1 is a counting number, because that's it.  One whole day.  While it's true that I've had some evenings at home, the only whole day that I've been able to stay at home since Christmas Eve was New Year's Day. Come to think of it, I wasn't home for a whole day on Christmas Eve either, but at least I came close.  Anyhoo, it's good to be home where I can "Take a Load Off, Annie" ... or Fanny ... or whoever you are.

I've seen quite a bit of southeastern Missouri lately since Mom got hurt.  Things are going well for her, though, and there are plenty of blessings to go along with that bit of good news.  Yesterday, it was just my Pa and I who went to pick her up at the hospital in Cape Girardeau and bring her back to their little hometown hospital.  On the way to get her, I told Dad that I had heard the Floyd Cramer CD go around about five times since Friday, and I was ready to hear something else (no offense, Floyd).  He told me to open the console compartment and find something else to play.  Dad is a huge country music fan, and I'm a moderate country music fan.  I picked out a Hank Williams CD.  I knew he would appreciate it, and I wondered whether he might even sing along.  Worries about Mom have made him nervous and ... well ... kind of grouchy.  Okay, not just kind of grouchy.  I'll tell it like it is:  He's been balls to the walls grouchy, and it's really been hard to take.  I believe I have about 40% of my tongue left, having bitten about 60% of it off in the last several days.  But here's what I keep telling myself:  I can be slightly grouchy from time to time too.  Maybe even a little more than slightly.  I know! Who woulda thunk it, right?!  Here's the other thing I keep telling myself:  I'm not always going to have the time I want with my Pa, so I'd better take the good with the bad and be thankful for all of it.  By the way, since I've been home, I've spoken with him twice on the phone.  It's 7:35 p.m.  Once I called him to let him know I made it home safely; and the other time was him calling me to tell me he had found his hearing aid (it had been missing since Thursday evening).  He was so happy!


Back to Hank:  I put the CD into the slot, and it didn't take long for Dad to start crooning.  Good!  Maybe this will keep his mind off Mom's ailments while we are each other's captive audience for the next hour.  When I knew the words, I sang a little bit too.  I also got to hear a story I hadn't heard before.  Several years ago, Dad and Mom attended one of the "Old Goats Reunions."  This is a reunion of people who worked in AVSCOM or TSARCOM or one of those "coms" for the Department of the Army -- I'm not sure which since he worked for both.  So there was a guy there who had been hired to entertain them.  He was a guitar player, and he called Dad up on the stage with him, handed him a microphone and a sheet of lyrics and asked him to sing. The song was "Your Cheatin' Heart".  Turns out, Dad did a good enough job that people stopped to listen and even applauded when he was done. So how 'bout that?!

Here's the song from the CD that Dad seemed to like the best.  I must admit, even at 82, he does a pretty good job.  Move over Hank!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skE6j6oGLRY

Saying Goodbye to 2012 and Welcoming 2013

My goodness, it's been so long since I've posted that I'd almost forgotten what to do!  The Autumn months and the beginning of Winter tends to find me out more than in. In other words, there is not a lot of home time, and from the looks of The House at 304, it's evident that I have neglected it to some degree. Oh, I still managed to give it a little spit and polish here and there, but not nearly what it deserves for all the blessings I derive from living here.

That said, I've enjoyed the activities that have taken me away. Besides the routine work schedule at the office, once the school year begins, most of the other activities involve getting together with good friends to ring and sing. Bell choir and "regular" choir practices at St. Paul have filled many an evening as we prepared for the Thanksgiving holiday and the MAS of CHRISTmas. What a beautiful, joyous and especially lovely time of year this is when we are again reminded of the greatest love; The Word, begotten of the Father, made flesh. He who is the ultimate love. The Lamb sacrificed for each of our undeserving selves. The One who takes away the lovelessness of man -- all of it -- every loveless thought, every loveless word, every loveless deed. This is the love of heavenly peace; the assurance of  another promise yet to come. This is the peace which the old man, Simeon, knew when he held the Christ child in his very arms and rejoiced, "Lord, now lettest thou Thy servant depart in peace according to thy word. For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people. A light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of Thy people Israel!" One of these days, I'm going to take a turn sitting next to Simeon at the banquet table just to hear him tell about that day. That's one of my faves.

Well, in all that busy-ness of Advent and Christmas, the year 2012 ended with a bit of tribulation for us. Mom fell on December 8th and has been hospitalized since the 19th for what turned out to be two fractured vertebrae. I can't imagine the pain she was feeling before they figured out what had happened and she started receiving some much-needed medication. She is scheduled to have surgery in a few days. What a way to kick off the new year, huh? We are all hopeful of a complete and pain-free recovery, and the surgeon is confident that that will happen. If all goes well, both of my parents will be able to spend some time with the four of us "kids" (and three spouses) on Alabama's shore where we can all thaw out for a little while. If that comes to pass, I'll try to be a good girl and share some pictures upon our return.

It's not easy to look back on an entire year and recite all of the happenings, but, as with every year, 2012 had its share of ups and downs. Why waste time on the "downs" when it's more fun to recall the "ups"?

The first that comes to mind is my son's family's move from the big city out to the country.  It's one of the best decisions they have made. The kids have adjusted to their new little school, and they've made a lot of friends. Each of them are finding their niches. My oldest granddaughter, for instance, is a cheerleader now. I'm so proud of each of them. They're all great kids. My son and daughter-in-law are pretty cool too!

One of the biggest events for our extended family was celebrating the marriage of my niece in July. The icing on the wedding cake was that she didn't move to the wrong end of the state and away from us.  Just a couple of weeks before the wedding, we received the exciting news that my nephew and his wife welcomed the birth of their baby girl. She's a doll. Another doll is my other great-niece, born last December, who I got to meet for the first time at the bridal shower. Babies are da bomb!

Another one of the "ups" (albeit not as exciting as the birth of a baby or a wedding) was being allowed flexible schedules at work. Each member of our staff was given several choices. My first choice was to work four 9-hour days and one 4-hour day per week. As it turns out, serendipity was on my side. I got my first choice, but instead of rotating the 4-hour day each week as expected, my boss asked that it be a "standing" day each Friday to accommodate reception desk back-up duties. Score! I'm loving my Friday afternoons off.

In addition to a February vacation with my sister and folks to south Texas, my parents and I got together with some of our extended family out in Colorado. The accommodations were compliments of my Dad's first cousin. That was October, and the golden leaves of the Aspen trees dotting the Colorado Rocky Mountains were simply gorgeous. We had a great time.

Two of my cousins, Brad and Darla, visited from Idaho in October, and though I didn't get to spend a lot of time with them, we did have a nice dinner together before they returned home. Their father was a favorite of mine. He really knew how to "spin a yarn." My cousin, Darla, looks just like my sainted grandmother did when she was young.

Resolutions for the new year? Always. I hope, as I do most years, that I'll be better about keeping them. In the meantime, I'll be hanging out here at 304 trying to remember to take the "downs" in stride and be thankful for each "up" moment. Whatever 2013 brings, I hope each of you have a happy year!

Here are a few "out with the old" pics from 2012 in no particular order:

 

Dad and Mom's Dog Had Puppies in February.  The big guy is my grandson, Conner.  The little guy is Gus.  He's not so little these days.

 

 

 

Sometime in August or September, the six of us visited a winery near Perryville, Missouri.

 

 

 

Another pic from February.  This was taken near my friend's home in Edinburg, Texas.

 

 

 

This is my sweet little great-niece who was born in December, 2011.

 

 

 

This is another one of my sweet little great-nieces.  She was born in July, 2012.

 

 

 

I took this picture of my cousin at Williams Creek Reservoir near Pagosa Springs, Colorado in October.

 

 

Driving through western Kansas on our way to Colorado in October.

The most difficult part about photographing Kansas is getting the horizon line level.

But just remember: God loves Kansas too.

 

 

 

 

Random photo of one of my handsome brothers and our Dad.

I don't remember what they were working on, but it looks very important, doesn't it?

 

 

 

 

"The Shepherds' Farewell" pre-service practice by

the double-quartet.  Trust me, their voices blended beautifully, and

Carlo, the organist, is amazing.

 

 

 

Left to Right:  Darla, Me and Brad.  So good to see them!

 

 

 

 

This was taken during the recessional at Pastor Ball's installation

at St. Paul on December 16th.

 

 

 

Mom got a 4-hour pass to come home from the hospital on Christmas day.

She was tired by the end of it, but she said it was Merry nonetheless.

 

 

 

Here's another pic of Mom in her room at the hospital (12-28-12).

She had just had her hair done.  All of her caretakers have been wonderful.

 

 

 

My grandaughter, "Jazzie", at the top of the pyramid.

 

 

 

The Happy Bride and Groom

Already???

Two things about the "Already??" title above.  First: I haven't blogged since May, so you may think I'm making fun of myself with a hint of sarcasm. But that's not really the intent of the title. It's the second thing: I've begun the Christmas card marathon. Not sending them ... making them. It's only August, but I know myself too well to believe that I can start doing this after the busy-ness of fall begins. In just two short weeks, the evening trips to church will begin again so that the bell choir can start its practices. We always take a breather during the summer. Then, from what I gather, there will be more projects just around the corner at work which will likely keep me away from my humble abode more than I care to think about. The weekends are starting to fill up already. Labor Day weekend is reserved for a trip to Ohio to meet my new great-niece (grand-niece?); something I am looking forward to. October will take me away for a weekend to a high-school class reunion.  And, by the way, I've seen some pictures of my classmates, and they look like they've aged. Have I?  I'm going to bury my head in the sand on that one! Then, of course, there's Thanksgiving. I'm planning a trip to Minnesota to visit with my niece E, her husband J and their covey. I really want that to work out. It's still in the early planning stages, but I haven't been up there for four years. That's too long between the visits that I so much enjoy with them. Thankfully, they have traveled south to see us.

So anyway, this afternoon I decided I would begin a little assembly line for some cards that could be put together fairly easily.  My dining room table is going to look like a tornado hit it for a while.  First there has to be an idea. So I looked through my Christmas stamping stuff, and ran across a Penny Black stamp that I've had for a few years called "Winter Berries." I don't remember if I've used it for Christmas cards in past years, but I really like it.  I also have some Cotton White StazOn Opaque that I've been trying to figure out how to use. Since the stamp isn't a "line" stamp, I thought perhaps I could use the StazOn on black card stock for a snowy look and add a little color on top of it. My plan was to add a hint of green with Distress Ink. Well ... the best laid plans ... and all that jazz.  This one ended up NOT being an easy, assembly line type card, so it will be a one of a kind.  Here's how it went:

I stamped the Winter Berries randomly in a circular pattern to resemble a wreath (the stamp itself is just a branch of leaves and berries -- not a circle).  The photo below shows a hit of the green Distress Ink on the paper underneath the black card stock, but it wasn't showing up enough on the white StazOn.  So I tried a couple of green Copic markers, but that wasn't the look I wanted either.

I hadn't decided what I was going to do with it, but I knew I could make it work. I also knew my final product would be a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card (black base), so I put aside the coloring decision for a while and began cutting my DP and card stock for the layers. The green DP is 5 3/8" x 4 1/8"; The red is 3 1/2" x 4 1/8", and I cut the stamped image (hard to see here) down to 3 3/4" x 4".

I thought I might try Stickles in random areas to glitter it up but leave the snowy effect of the StazOn. What I hadn't thought of is that the Stickles are in a box in my attic room, and I'm too lazy to go up there and dig through everything. Then I spied my Sakura pens, and I thought, "Hey! That might look okay!"  So I tested a green and a red on a piece of black cardstock scrap, and knew I had found the solution. I had intended to add the color in a few random places, but I ended up liking the look so much that I colored the whole thing. Now only a tiny bit of the StazOn shows up, so I still don't know how I'm going to use that. I'll figure it out for another card at some point.  Anyway, here's the final product.



One down ... ?? to go.

Merry Christmas in August!!

Joplin, Missouri - Tears, Laughter, Love

I just got home from Joplin Monday evening. I had an excellent weekend visiting with my brother and sister-in-law who live on the city's north side, about eight football fields away from the path of the tornado that destroyed the center of their town a year ago. Though I've had the pleasure of seeing them several times over the last year, there were a few reasons I wasn't able to make the trip to their house for a visit since that horrific day.






We spent a lot of time talking about the tornado and the stories that resulted from it -- stories of people they happened to meet because of the storm, and stories of people they had already known, many of whom were affected in the most tragic ways, but many who were also affected in the most miraculous ways. One of the stories they shared with me was about a man they know. They had hired him to tune their piano and make some cosmetic repairs to it after they had moved it from Ohio into their home. The man's name is David Vanderhoofven. David did an excellent job on the piano and was happy with the result. He asked S and T if he could bring his fiance by to see it. Of course they agreed, and were pleased to meet Darian after a few weeks. David and "Dee" eventually got married, and their baby son, Joshua, later turned the duo into a trio. David's May 22, 2011 story can be found here. While S tells the stories, his voice weakens and tears flow. It's a year later, and my brother questions why he still gets so emotional about it. I know why. How do you come away unscathed from a time in your life when part of your volunteer effort is to direct people searching for their loved ones to the Red Cross personnel who then escort them to a make-shift morgue.

Healing is a process, and the healing in this city began right away. My brother boasted -- and rightly so -- that the residents of Joplin didn't wait for FEMA to tell them what to do. They knew what had to be done, and within minutes after the storm had moved to the east they started doing it. Their healing process started with their love for each other. With this human healing also came evidence of life renewing itself in other forms. Flowers are now blooming where they had never been planted by human hands. While the evil wind was scattering debris for miles, it was also dropping life back into the the path it had created.



St. John's Hospital



The Street Sign at Illinois and 24th

Some debris remains, and there are still buildings that haven't been taken down yet, St. John's Hospital being the biggest. It still sits on the western horizon and can be seen very clearly from Rangeline Road's commercial district four miles to the east. Still, the progress is amazing. "Everything you see here is new," S reminds me as we toured the area along Rangeline.  They've been replacing utility poles and street signs.  It's hard to navigate in a town without landmarks or street signs. Some intersections have temporary, ground-level printed signs, but other places still rely on the initial spray-paint method to confirm one's whereabouts.

The apartment home where S and T lived when they first moved to town at "The Plaza," had been destroyed. Yet only one year later, the entire complex is nearly finished being rebuilt, and it's beautiful -- as beautiful as it was when they lived there.  Maybe even more. The contractor was able to use the same foundations, so we were able to go into the new apartment in the exact place where their former apartment had been. Even the closet, from which we pulled hats and mittens before heading out to an autumn weenie roast, is in the same place. Being there brought back memories even for me.

We left The Plaza and drove through a number of neighborhoods where homes are gradually being repaired or rebuilt. Signs of encouragement dot many street corners. I saw the results of the hard work done by volunteers from Habitat for Humanity and Extreme Makeover. Children played on scooters on the sidewalk in front of their new homes.

We were drawn to 2427 Pennsylvania Avenue where David and Dee had lived with their baby, and we lingered there for quite some time before moving westward toward St. John's Hospital.

2427 Pennsylvania Avenue

Million Bells in Dee's Flower Bed



Joshua's Toy

Just across the street from St. John's Hospital is Cunningham Park.  Like The Plaza, it has been rebuilt, and, after touring acre upon acre of lots that had once been occupied by family homes and businesses, it was great to see families enjoying a day at the park. The kids were having a blast and squealing with laughter.


Laughter. That's the best part of being with S and T. I can honestly say that I don't laugh harder anywhere than I do when I am with my brother. It's those big, loud, belly laughs that make me double over. It's the kind of laughter that takes your breath away and you end up wheezing and coughing. It's the best. I guess S just "gets me." I have always had a bit of impatience (a big bit) with people who take themselves too seriously. And I think S must feel the same way. He is a professional. He has a very strong work ethic. He knows his stuff, and people respect and trust him. At least it sure seems as if they do. He is serious when he needs to be serious, and focused when he needs to be focused. But he is by far the silliest person I have ever known, and I absolutely adore being silly with him.

So you see, even after tragedy, live renews itself and the laughter returns. In Joplin they call it The Miracle of the Human Spirit.

What happens now? More tears? Sure.
That's going to happen.
More progress? Yes, of course. It's going to take several more years, but it's already happening by leaps and bounds.
More love? Always.

Thanks be to God

When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth. - Genesis 9:16

 

Horse, Cow, Chair

I think I may have mentioned a few weeks ago that I had been to a second hand shop (a/k/a flea market) here in town where I found a decorative rocking horse made from barn siding.  The same day I bought it, I painted it and then stained it with walnut stain. I really like the way it turned out.

Sorry for the blur

Then my friend (who was pregnant at the time), offered this huge entertainment armoire to me.  She wanted to make room for baby stuff in her home and considered the armoire superfluous.  It's a terrific piece of furniture which only weighs about 800 tons. I may be exaggerating slightly. In preparation for its arrival at my home, I painted my family room/dining room and have had the decorating bug ever since.  I don't have a pic of the armoire yet, because I don't have everything just how I want it.  But I do have a pic of a nifty cow that I found at yet another flea market here in town.

Isn't she great?

THEN, I happened across an ad on Craigslist for a black Windsor rocking chair.  I knew it would be the perfect addition to the room. So I emailed the guy, made the arrangements, and drove over to StL last night to pick it up. Just as I suspected, it's a perfect fit. I love the colonial style furniture and hope to eventually switch things out piece by piece in here. Next project is to decide which pictures to hang in here. Thankfully, I still had quite a few things in my attic room that will look great, so all I had to do was go up there and go "shopping."

That's all for now.  Merry May!

It "sits" good too!

The Last Time

As I write this, the time is approaching midnight which begins Monday, April 16th. But for now, it's still Sunday, April 15th, and I'm writing about today. Today was a special day at my church, St. Paul Lutheran Church in Hamel, Illinois. Our pastor, William Weedon, received a call about two months ago to be the Director of Worship for the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and the Chaplain at the LCMS International Center. He accepted that call, and today was his last Sunday as our senior pastor. Unlike many of the members of our church, I am not one of the "natives."  I transferred my membership to St. Paul about five years ago.  Nevertheless, I am among the privileged who have heard the Word of God taught by someone who exudes pure joy each and every time he reminds us who we are:  People loved by God.

In our Bible study this morning I was thinking, "This is the last time we will gather to hear Pastor teach our Bible study." Is it proper to give a Pastor a standing ovation at the end of a Bible study? Proper or not, we did. He always packed 'em in. In today's study he talked about the rich man and Lazarus. His first question was "What do we know about the rich man?" Well, we know that he was in hell. We know that he was thirsty. We know that he still didn't "get it." We know that he still wanted to be served. None of those were the answer he was looking for; a common occurrence.  After finally realizing we weren't going to deliver the goods, Pastor exclaimed, "HE WAS ALONE!"  And then he said this:  "Unbelievers are damned alone.  Christians are saved together."

After the study it was up the stairs to the Divine Service.  I must confess, throughout the service, I kept returning to the thought, "That's the last time..."


That's the last time I'll hear him say "Please stand" after the ringing of the bell;
That's the last time I'll hear him say "...and in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins...";
That's the last time I'll hear his homily as my pastor;
That's the last time he will bring the Sacrament to me as my pastor;
And finally this: "The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace."

Peace.

The last time?  No.  Thanks be to God there will never be a last time.  Nothing will separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  We are saved together.