Mews from Meowmix

Some months back I wrote about one of the Elizabeths in my life, a young lady who also happens to be one of Doris’ granddaughters.  (She, like Hailey Elizabeth, was named after Doris.)  When I wrote about Beth, I think I shared with you that she surprised me by visiting our chuch on my birthday.  She has always been a special and beautiful girl.

Beth’s growing-up years held some challenges that no young girl should have to face, but many do.  But she always loved to “go to church” with Grandmama and Judy.  When possible, we saw to it that she and her 3 siblings were able to go; at one time, we took turns driving the church van in order to pick them up.  At other times, they just lived too far away for it to be feasible.  When she and her sister would come to spend a weekend, they always brought their “church clothes.”  As best we could, we and other family members tried to help nurture her in the ways she needed, spiritual being one of them.

In Beth’s short adult life, she’s made some choices none of us would have made for her, and those choices have presented still more challenges.  In many ways, I’ve been extremely proud of the way she’s handled some of those self-made challenges.  She has a 3-year-old son she’s raised, until recently, without the physical presence or financial assistance of his father.  She’s done that by working at Domino’s 60+ hours a week.  She also started school several months ago at a business technology college and loves her classes and has made all As, except one B.

Her grandmama and I have known that her heart has leaned toward the Lord since childhood; she began her journey of faith a long time ago.  She has had some trouble reconciling her chosen lifestyle with what she really wanted for her life (wasn’t it Paul who said something like “what I WOULD do, I don’t and what I WOULDN’T do, I do?”).

Beth called earlier in the week and talked to Grandmama.  She was crying and said she was ready for her life to change.  They talked and she hung up, saying she would see us tomorrow (yesterday).  Last night, she came to our Wednesday night service and took that giant step…………she was baptized!

Even as I write, my heart swells with love for her.  Of her family, I was the only one in attendance with her, but she was ready to do it and didn’t want to wait until more of her family could be there.  So we did it.  I know her heart and believe she sincerely wants to live for Him and serve Him.  The road ahead for her still has a lot of challenges, the relationship with her child’s father being one of the first she has to deal with.  But I have faith, and I believe she does, too, that the Father who brought her thus far will be right there for her, in all the ways she needs…………..ways that the rest of us cannot be.

Beth needs lots of encouragement and prayers, and I solicit those from you for her.  When she comes to mind in the future, please say a quick prayer for her journey.

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. Rain yesterday and last night and sunshine this morning has the world looking refreshed outside.
2. When Beth came in the building last night, she came and hugged me and said “I miss you” like she would have when she was 8!
3. Big smile………I’ll get the ENG OVER WITH today and find out if I’m starring in “Vertigo!”
4. I basically ignored Barney’s pitiful meows for a while and slept in past 6:00 a.m.

See you soon.  Much love to all.

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I am truly committed to sharing through my blog family, even though I haven’t been real communicative the last several days.  I will get back up to speed, hopefully, in a few days.

By way of explanation, suffice it to say I just don’t feel well.  In the overall scheme of things, I am hale and hearty, but have some fairly chronic sinus issues that are flaring up, and last night I had something akin to a migraine.  I hope I haven’t already mentioned (forgive me, if so!) that I am having a test tomorrow to see if I have something called “positional vertigo.”  I’m told there’s a cure for it if I do!  :)  In the meantime, I’m trying to check in on YOUR blogs.  You are daily in my thoughts and prayers……….and smiles!

Love to you all.

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Just logging in briefly to say hello and happy Monday.  I hope you are having a good holiday weekend.  Again, I didn’t blog last night due to this plagued sinus-, possibly vertigo-related illness I’ve had for a while now.  This morning isn’t a whole lot better than last night was, but Barney thinks it’s time I got up and got busy with something.  And anyone who knows anything about cats knows they can be quite insistent!

I, like so many others, have my eyes glued to the Gulf Coast.  So many are in my prayers.  I’m glad to know Dee took off for Jackson and pray she and her family will be safe.  On the home front, Doris’ brother and sister-in-law evacuated from New Orleans and should be in Memphis, although we have not heard specifically from them that they’ve arrived.  They left NO around 3am Sunday morning.  Others, former co-workers and friends, I have no direct information from so am just praying.

Today being the first of September, I am thinking ahead to fall right around the corner.  I anticipate the season excitedly every year because I just love it.  I hope when I go to be with the Lord it is on a fall day when the leaves are golden and crisp, the sky that shade of blue that it only reflects that time of year, with the sun shining brightly but cooler breezes blowing.  I truly hope this……………but in the meantime, I’m looking forward to enjoying the days ahead.  (I didn’t say WHICH fall I hope for this to happen in!!)

SOME SMILES:

1. Barney.
2. The love of family and friends.
3. Cecil’s servant heart.

Much love to you all.  I’ll be back in a few hours.

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That’s the way my thoughts are running tonight.  You may have surmised by previous questions and thoughts put forth in other blogs that I am struggling with this year’s election.  I know I am not alone in that.

On the one hand I have the influence of my dad’s politics who worked on the WPA and thought FDR was a0k, as many others did.  My dad was a small-time farmer and mechanic and believed the Democratic party was “for the common man.”

On the other hand, I have the question of moral issues which have pretty much driven my own votes through  my adult life; I felt I had to make a choice between men who believed in the same things morally that I do and those I was taught to believe were good for this country’s economy.  In my lifetime, it hasn’t seemed like they could be one and the same.

I want to help elect someone who believes in God and the Lord Christ and will try to lead this country according to His will.

Then I hear the “separation of church and state” bell ringing in my head.

We watched Mr. Obama’s speech before the Democratic National Convention tonight.  He clearly spoke about a lot of things I believe in.

Next week at our house, as in millions of houses across the country, we’ll listen to the other side and will, without a doubt, honor in our hearts John McCain, who served this country in uniform and spent years as a POW in Vietnam.  He has experience and should be respected for what he’s done and what he brings to the table.  He will also speak of a lot of things I believe in.

So………………..tonight my thoughts are like so many balls being thrown in the air……………………

But:

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. A pleasant morning.
2. Telephone conversation with Cheryl.
3. Ditto #2 with Coleen.
4. Doris has felt well today.
5. Had a doctor’s appointment, but the doctor is good-looking!
6. A beautiful sunset.
7. God is in control……………..not the political parties!

Have a good weekend, my friends.  I love you all.  Be safe and well.  Til we meet again……………

ADDENDUM EARLY FRIDAY MORNING:

Thanks to Steve for his “gentle reminder” post.  I needed that gentle reminder to keep things in perspective.  Sorry if I have added to anyone else’s confusion or relayed the impression that I don’t trust God to handle it………………

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Tonight was the last service Josh is to be with us.  As I’ve mentioned before, he’s going into active duty as a military chaplain.  From here he will go to Ft. Bliss, Texas, and then no telling where.  Josh is a very sweet guy, still less than 30 years old.  He’s become a friend in the last two years and has been in our home numerous times.  We will miss him.  I very much admire him for his dedication to Christ and his desire to serve Him in ministry within the military, and he’s doing what he’s been preparing to do for a long time.  But I still hate to see him go.  Goodbyes are not one of my strong suits.  I pray for his safety and wellbeing as he leaves us Friday morning and on through the rest of his life.  I’d appreciate it, when you have a spare moment, if you’d lift him up to the Father, as well.

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. The zinnias are getting prettier and prettier.
2. Mr. Rader was pleased with the housecleaning job we did for him.
3. As we speak, Doris and Barney are playing pool……really!!  I took pictures of them last night.  Maybe I’ll post one of them soon.
4. A clear sky tonight with one star twinkling that could be seen above city lights.

May God’s blessings rest on you and those you love.  See you tomorrow night.

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……….also known as “attaboys” and “attagirls” awards handed out.

Our favorite place to eat, The Pancake Shop, is more than just a place to eat.  It is a gathering place.  At first, people’s faces start looking familiar because mostly the same people are there every day.  Then you start sharing conversation and laughs.  You know if somebody is missing.  You get to know the waitresses by name and consider them friends, and you even get to know the names of the cooks.  Many of the regulars are there 3 or 4 times a day, not always to eat a meal; sometimes just to have a Coke or a cup of coffee and meet up with folks during the day.  You kind of get to know each other’s habits and share a little of your life.

Recently, I showed Gail and Kathy (waitresses) the picture on my cell phone of Barney.  Jimmy (or Mr. Jimmy) was sitting there at his table at the same time, so I shared the picture with him.  He whipped out HIS cell phone then to show me a picture of his dog, a black mixed Lab/Pit.  I had heard him speak of his dog at other times and knew the dog was his companion.  He has a daughter and grandson, but he rarely sees them and lives alone, except for his dog.

After that day that we were swapping pictures, Gail told us his dog was sick and had to be taken to the vet.  The next day, she told us Jimmy’s dog had died.

Jimmy was really broken up.  You could see it all over him.  He lives across the street from Gail, and she was trying to keep up with how he was progressing, so she knew he was devastated.  We made the statement that, although nobody wants to hear this advice (I certainly didn’t) right after losing a pet, he should just get another dog now and it would make it easier for him.  She agreed and said she’d gladly get him a dog if she thought he’d accept it.

This afternoon, Gail told us “they” were getting Jimmy another dog as a gift.  She, Rick, and I don’t know who else, are going together to present him with this puppy.  She is going to get a basket and fix it up with a ribbon, etc.  We immediately started asking questions about the time of the presentation, etc., and we’re supposed to receive a call when this is going to take place.  We want to try and be there tomorrow afternoon.

I can’t wait!  I know Jimmy will be surprised, to say the least.  But the point of this blog is to applaud the sensitivity and kindness of a group of people to the feelings and needs of a friend.  People who were brought together in a way that you wouldn’t think of as fostering this kind of friendship.  People with extraordinarily warm and giving hearts…………who meet up at The Pancake Shop every day.

This story made my day.  I thought it might make yours, too!

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. Jimmy…………describing his homemade vegetable soup and cornbread.
2. Gail……………who couldn’t behave if she tried.
3. Barney does his darndest to type!
4. Michael calling me to ask when his mom and dad’s birthdates are!

Hope you’ve had a good day.  Much love and joy from my house to yours.  God bless.

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I was getting an inordinate amount of e-mail notifications from Wordpress to “moderate,” sometimes 20+ per day.  Only one was a legitimate comment from someone whose comments I’ve seen at other blog sites.  This had been going on for a couple of weeks.  So…………..having the ear of someone who knows what to do about this type of problem, I contacted Brad.  You know———of Big Bad Brad’s Blog fame!  :)  This evening when I checked in, I find that something named Akismet has protected me from 7 spam comments.  What a blessing!  Thank you, Brad!!  I’m glad I know ya…………..for this reason and lots of others. 

You know that term “fraidy cat?”  Well, this afternoon, Barney was taking a nap in my lap.  A thunderstorm whooshed in with lots of thunder and lightning.  The little thing jumped every time it thundered.  It may have been from a guilty conscience, I don’t know. 

Do you like thunderstorms?  I may be wierd, but I do, as long as they’re not the damaging type.  I may have said this before; if so, just ignore me.  The reason I like thunderstorms MAY be due to my heritage of working in cotton patches.  It was a sure thing that you got to go to the house when it started thundering and lightning!

And speaking of country things such as picking and chopping cotton, we cooked supper at home tonight, and it was a country meal!  Anybody out there like fried green tomatoes?  How about fried okra?  Well, my friend Liz was telling me the other day about how she cooks okra and tomatoes together.  I said, “Oh, no, not that slimy stuff.  I only want fried okra.”  I thought she was talking about boiling them.  Come to find out, she cuts them up together and fries them the old-fashioned way, like potatoes.  I tried it, dousing all with a generous helping of meal, salt, and pepper, and man, was it ever good!  Made some corn muffins, sliced ripe tomatoes and had corn.  It was finger-lickin’ good.  Wish you’d been here.  Come on by, and we’ll eat the leftovers!

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. That picture of Greg and Peanut!
2. Cheryl.
3. Phone call from Belinda.
4. The thunderstorm.

See you tomorrow night.  May God’s blessings rain down on you and those you love.

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Well, I’m starting my week out of sync again, so instead of a Sunday evening blog, here’s a Monday morning one!

We had a farewell fellowship after church last night for Josh.  Josh is leaving us to go into active duty Army as a chaplain and is headed for Fort Bliss, Texas.  In the 2+ years he’s been with us, he’s become pretty special, and we are going to miss him; however, I truly appreciate his desire to serve the Lord by being an Army chaplain.

I started out to church last night with a headache, however, and as the night wore on, it just got worse.  By the time we had done the fellowship and got home, it was raging, so I took a pain reliever and crashed in my recliner, only getting out of it to go to bed…………bypassing my computer and blogland.  These headaches have been plaguing me, with some dizziness, for about two months, and I’ve had enough of them through the years to know they are sinus-related.  I have an appointment with one of those otol……? doctors this Thursday so, hopefully, he’ll be really smart and able to give me some appropriate drugs!!! 

Well, the Olympics are over, and now coverage of the Democratic National Convention starts.  Then, shortly, we’ll have the Republican one to watch.  Enough said, I guess.  I am trying very hard to remember that God is in control but, when I think about this election, I feel queasy.  But maybe that’s just me…………..

Overall, this morning, life is good at my house.  The sun is shining.  Doris had a good day yesterday and looks like a repeat today.  The zinnias in the whiskey barrel by the front porch are beginning to bloom, finally, more than one at a time.  We have some below-normal temperatures for late August, and that is very pleasant.  And, as I type, I have a caramel and white cat stretched out between the keyboard and the monitor taking a kitty bath!

Hope things are good at your house, too! 

Barring raging headaches, I’ll see you again here tonight.  Have a good day.

It’s early but, so far:

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. Multiple blooming zinnias!
2. Memory of Josh’s face last night when he saw his FIRST money tree.  Very small and spindly and sparsely populated with only a few one-dollar bills!  (The good one was waiting in the wings!)
3. No headache yet!!

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It’s been a busy week, so I’m afraid I’m a little behind with checking in to blog……………..also with reading your blogs.  I’ll do better next week.

Remember that missionary I told you about Sunday night who needed $13,000 to hold on to land in Ghana?  He left for home Monday because he went away from our congregation Sunday night with ALL of the money he needed!  I am SO honored to be part of a group of people who have such giving hearts.

I am still reeling from the incredible blessings God has poured from the windows of Heaven on my household this week.  I can’t stop saying “thank you.”  It has just reinforced in my heart that nothing is too hard for Him and that many times He blesses in spite of ourselves!

I was in spelling bees when I was in 7th and 8th grade.  It was really neat, because if you were a winner, you got your picture in the paper and the town merchants gave you all kinds of free stuff.  One year I advanced all the way to the DISTRICT face-off!  I’m a good speller, okay?  But I got all the way to my retirement years without learning how to spell “knucklehead” correctly.  Now, however, I DO know how to do that!!!

Mae is still in the hospital, and I spent my time yesterday with her.  Had to leave Doris at home not feeling well and go by myself to help see after Sister Mae.  She’s having a pretty rough time of it, with a number of nasty things going on.  Today she got one of those feeding tubes down her nose to her stomach.  If you’ve ever had one, I don’t have to tell you how unpleasant that is.  (If you haven’t, you’ve been extremely blessed.)  The family is awaiting all results of the lung biopsy she had on Monday.  We would appreciate it, if you have some extra prayer moments, to lift her and the family up to the Lord.

Today was taken up with doctor’s appointments of my own.  All God’s daughters will understand this; it was that yearly thing where you have part of your anatomy closed up in a vice grip!  Yuk………but necessary.  And now I don’t have to do THAT again for another 12 months!

Today being Thursday, it was spaghetti day at the PS, so we indulged in that for dinner.  That’s always a treat………as well as spending time with people we consider friends.  A whopper of a rain came up while we were in there, too!  Maybe it will help some more of my zinnias to bloom! 

Looking forward to a visit with Coleen and Liz tomorrow.  We think we’ll go back to the PS for lunch tomorrow so they can enjoy our favorite place.  The only trouble is, Liz may knock the shine off and I’m liable to lose my boyfriend, Jimmy, to her!  Maybe I ought to re-think this.  After all, I’ve never had a fan club before………………….  (S-M-I-L-E-S!)

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. A very nice nap, with Barney curled up in my lap.
2. The afternoon rain and nice temperatures.
3. 4 little wrens all lined up on the fence beside our carport—-just out of the drip of the house!  They have an eye for business.
4. They’ve streamlined operations at the Women’s Health Center and, instead of hours spent there, I was done in record time!

See you Sunday night.  God bless you with lots of love and joy.

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Anybody out there but me ever get stressed and strung out?  Lately, at our house, like at a lot of middle-class households these days, the budget and money have been a pretty big stress factor.  I really have not stressed about it like I would have two or three years ago.  I’ve learned a little (not enough, but a little) about praying to my Lord and Master and then trusting, even though I couldn’t see which way He was going to take me.  He’s pulled me out of too many dilemmas for me to believe He’s going to stop now.  But still, when you can’t see the path ahead, it’s pretty human to wish He’d let you in on His plans, isn’t it?

Just a day or so ago, my daily reading took me to Jeremiah 29, where the Lord tells His chosen people, “…..I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future………”  These are encouraging words, indeed.  Did they deserve what was going to happen to them BEFORE these encouraging words were to be fulfilled?  Most assuredly.  But just as He tried to warn them of impending peril, He also let them know the peril wasn’t the final word………that prosperity and hope were in their future.  And that not altogether having to do with financial blessings!

EVERY TIME I get to a point where I wonder and start worrying, sometimes at the last minute, He always comes through in astounding ways.  Today, it came by way of the mail and an unexpected check for more than our budget actually “needed.”  And EVERY TIME, I curl up someplace to say thank you, and I say something like, “I don’t know why I haven’t learned to not worry.  I KNOW you’re going to open the doors I need to go through.”

And…………………I can hear Him chuckle and say, “Nucklehead, maybe you’ll learn one day!  I already knew what was in the mail………….it’s just that YOU didn’t!”

TODAY’S SMILES:

1. Picking up Hailey, Emmy and Logan from school.
2. Taking Hailey and Emmy to pick out a very special gift of a doll each from the treasured collection of a dear sister who’s gone to be with the Lord.
3. Time spent with Brigitt.
4. Barney NEVER offers to bite or scratch those two girls.  With them, he’s as humble as a……………kitten?
5. Ascribing a new name for myself, as in “Nucklehead.”
6. A nice, nice evening outside.

Hope your Monday has been as good as mine has.  God’s blessings of love and joy to you.  See you tomorrow night.

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