Writings

I decided to transfer over some of my favorite writings and some I just wanted to keep from my Facebook notes. You will find them here if you scroll down - 4 0r 5 things. I love to write. I love to put into words how I feel, my thoughts and reflections, memories, and opinions. I'm sure that no one will ever be interested enough to read my babblings, but I still get joy from seeing them in print. It is a form 0f therapy, perhaps. I have written a lot of things that I have just organized on my computer and I will probably be transferring some of them to my blog. BUT not tonight! Think I'll call it a night!

Benjamin Ellis Parks

Facebook post

Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:04pm
Yes, it's true!! I am a grandmother twice now. I know it is hard to believe but it is true! Today, Kelly gave us our second grandson in 15 months! He is 8 lbs and 3 oz and 20 inches long. I told her that no one should have such an easy birthing experience...and that the only birth that I know of that was easier was Simon Birch's...his mother sneezed! She is doing great and the baby is doing great. I really think the most tired of them all is Aaron! They are such awesome parents and God has blessed them richly. Kelly has decided to be a stay at home mom and is very excited about getting to live her dream. Pray for them as they begin a new phase of life. Oh, and you can help support the dream...Kelly will soon be on I tunes! BG

PS...I should have mentioned Asher...he is pure joy to this nanna and I can't believe that I'm allowed to have this much fun! When he firsts saw his baby brother, he gave him lovin' and then clapped his little hands!

Life - After the Wedding!

In a series...a Facebook post

Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 1:48am
Well...it is over. Chase and Lacey are now married and the wedding and reception have come and gone - but the marriage still goes on! The wedding was beautiful, Lacey was a beautiful bride and Chase a very handsome groom. The wedding party all behaved themselves and looked impeccable! I made it through the wedding without throwing up (even though I spent most of the "getting ready" time on the bathroom floor trying to recover from some unknown illness which caused me to lose my cookies violently)! I made a vow that if I could get up and be at the wedding and hopefully part of the reception, that I was not going to care what happened or didn't happen as far as our plans...just to be there was my goal. My family and dear friends did an awesome job in pulling it all together and everything was perfect. My dear friends and the bridesmaids who knew I was sick (and kept it from the bride!), prayed for me and I know that is why I was able to pull myself together and walk down the isle on my own groom's arm - I'm sure that my sister-in-law's help of "anti-throw-up" syrup helped, too! The day was pretty much perfect...but NONE of it happened by accident! People who love me and Mickey, Chase and Lacey, and the church just came out of the wood works to make sure it was an awesome day of celebration to be remembered. God provided a beautiful day - cool breeze and sunny skies - after a spring of heavy rains and flooding and saturating the ground! Chase and his best buds mowed and worked on the grounds and our friends, the Gillmores worked magic on the muddy gateway to the parking area to solve our last problem! The tent was whopper-jawed but still "looked" safe enough and beautiful from the highway! The dance floor was worth the trouble and money and everyone had fun! I want to name people and express my gratitude, but there are too many!So...away they rode into the sunsets of Jamaica!Mickey and I spent the next week just returning things and tying up loose ends and resting. On Sunday following the wedding we sadly said goodbye to Ozlem and Sebastian, our German friends, and to Aaron and Kelly and our precious grandsons. It was also our dear friend, Mark's, last day at our church...NOW...we have several busy things to do this summer, but mostly we are trying to figure out what we must do for the Kingdom and how God is directing us. Some unexpected things have happened...Chase and Lacey are now acting as Youth Interns for our church for the summer and so they are living in Batesville and attending First Baptist with us. Many of our ministry jobs cross over and we are weeding through to see how that will all work. Mark is gone. For five years, he has been a huge part of our lives...in ministry, family, and personally. We spent a lot of nights playing games, talking, and laughing (or crying) together. There is a void in that place that we aren't sure how to fill. In the immediate, we have to figure out transportation...I wrecked the Yukon.I hit the Sonic. That is right...I hit the Sonic...the building, and I took out a speaker along with it and messed up the Yukon pretty well. (I thank God that a car hop wasn't in my way!) DON"T drive in flip-flops!! It got hung on the gas and took it to the floor and there was nothing I could do! SO, the police came and investigated and turned in an accident report...only they got my name wrong and so "Betty White" ran into the Sonic...not me, apparently.Mickey is going to a sleep doctor specialist tomorrow...he apparently has idio something or another, hyper sleep disorder (I can't remember what it is really called). I don't believe it and so we shall see.We will be married 30 years on June 17 and he still likes me enough to take me to Florida on a mandatory work trip so that we can be together on our anniversary day. We are going to the Perspectives National Conference first and then fly out of LR for Florida. In August we will make a trip to Gulf Shores for Kevin and Amy's wedding...and a side trip to play some Settlers of Catan in Montgomery, Alabama! So...now that I've bored you to death with our lives...I think I'll go to bed with my own version of the elephant man (Mickey in a c-pap machine - that I LOVE!) Happy day to anyone who is psycho enough to read all of this!!

Lacey's Wedding - a LONG story

Another Facebook post

Saturday, June 21, 2008 at 1:20am
Hello everyone! I wanted to be able to send some pics with news of the wedding, but we haven't really gotten any yet! I know!! Hopefully, we will get a peek at some next week...if you have any and want to send them to us...PLEASE!! I am talking about Lacey's wedding, of course. Actually, we have a FEW snaps that some friends and family sent by email, but the pro's pics aren't ready to look at quite yet and so...we would love to see any that you have.OK...here is the run down. First of all, if you didn't know or have forgotten...Lacey is now Mrs. Chase Moore. Chase is a true-blue Texan and over the last three years Mickey and I have gotten to know him very well. You see, while Lacey was overseas, we dated him! HA! Really, we spent a lot of time together because he blessed us with weekend visits while he was in school and honored us with his presence. We love him very much and count him as our own. Chase is a Christian Ministries major from Williams Baptist College as of May 3, 2008. He is very gifted with words and public appeal. He is a quick thinker and any public delivery whether it be announcements or preaching a sermon is well received and much admired. We are very proud of him. Mostly, we love his character and the way he cherishes the Word of God and loves the Lord with all of his heart. He unashamedly loves Lacey and would not hesitate to make that clear in any public setting. Chase is a risk taker...he loves rock climbing, caving, jumping off of high cliffs into pools of water (doing as many back flips as possible) and all water sports, and playing and watching soccer and football. He is daring and adventuresome and in the past, sometimes it has gotten him into some tight spots but we also love that part of him. Chase and Lacey will go back overseas to reach an unreached people group...probably not an easy place...and we are comforted that this time, Lacey will have him there with her...and we are confident that they will take care of one another well. Right now, they are living in Batesville and working with our Youth at First Baptist for the summer...and then we will see...Now...to the wedding...the day was unbelievable! It had rained so much in April and May and Batesville had flooded BIG time twice and the ground was totally saturated...and the week of the wedding CALLED FOR MORE rain! We planned an outdoor reception at some friends' house and the parking lot (a field) was pretty much "mushy" going into the week and the "ditch" where we planned to cross over into the field was really just mud and goo! We prayed a lot...and worried some...and talked...and went back and forth and I tried to follow Lacey's lead...which was to just wait and trust! Whew! It was stressful - BUT - with Chase and Mickey and great friends and church family and relatives...the day came and all of our issues were taken care of and God provided a beautiful sunshiny, but not too hot, day! I have to mention that I had planned a very stress free day...for myself! ALL of our family came in by the droves and took OVER and moved EVERYTHING that had to be moved and put the WHOLE reception together (Mickey did SO much work that morning...my hero!) My dear friend, Kathy Brooks, helped so much and I can't leave out our caterer and my dear friend, Joella Huddleston, who worked herself almost to death that day!! As I said, my day was SUPPOSE to be smooth sailing as I had asked my two dear long time friends to "kidnap" me from it all and "take me away"! So Jeannie Whitener and Susan Parker came and got me...and took me for a pedicure (that was awesome...I loved it so much and it WAS a great time for me!) The trouble came when they took me to lunch at our local "special events" place "Elizabeth's" and I took one look at my food and KNEW it wasn't going down...they graciously took me to church (quickly) and well...I lost all of my cookies - and lay in the bathroom floor trying to get well enough to get ready for the wedding. Jackie Martin...my niece whom I knew I could count on, took care of me...while not letting Lacey know that I was sick and getting herself ready, too ( She didn't know going in that taking care of a sick mother of the Bride was going to be a job for the Maid of Honor!) My God is so good! He not only allowed me to get up and get dressed right on time, I also got to go watch Lacey's dress go on and walk her to her private meeting with her Groom before the pictures began. The wedding was beautiful...with so many people! Lacey had 9 (I know!) Brides Maids and Chase had 7 groomsmen with an honorary one (Matt Duran - serving in Iraq)...There were 6 (I know) flower girls and 3 ministers involved. The Bride's Maids wore copper skirts with either a copper or espresso brown top and some wore sashes and belts while others didn't...they each had a different top on...kind of like a fashion show! The little girls wore rings of baby's breath in their hair and tea length off white dresses and went barefoot...they were so cute! They all came down the isle together throwing flowers as they went...and we had benches at the front for them to sit on when they got there. They were perfect! 3 of them were Lacey's little cousins and 3 of them were Chase's little cousins (all either 4 or 6-7 years old). The men wore black tuxes with copper colored vests...so handsome. The sanctuary was decorated with two black wrought iron candle stands with chunky candles, and lamp post stands on each of the banister posts. They had wide off-white ribbon tied in single bows with the ribbons cascading to the floor. Each window had black wrought iron candle holders which filled the windows with 4 chunky candles in each of them. The first six rows of pews had off white bows cascading to the floor on each end. The unity candle was on a wood and glass table in front of the baptistry with the curtains open and the lighted cross visible and lighted. There was an off white swag on the top of the table which just lay over the edge of the table in the front in a half circle. We didn't have any flowers or plants except the vase of calla lilies in the foyer. All of the girls carried calla lilies and the men had calla lily bouts. Flanking the sides of the stairs, we had backless benches which were covered with off-white and tied off with a big off white bow in front for the flower girls to sit upon. Some of the highlights of the wedding are...Sebastian - our German friend - playing a German/French original love song on guitar and singing, Lindsey - Chase's twin sister, placing a rose on the Unity Candle table in memory of their mother, Christian and Megan Baxter, Tim Byers and Brandon Smart playing praise and worship, Todd Kaunitz - Chase's youth pastor, speaking about marriage before the wedding, Lacey in her stunning off white Danish designer dress which we bought in Paris, Chase's love poem and declaration to Lacey - spoken during the processional of the B. maid's and flower girls, Mark McLendon - our precious friend - marrying Chase and Lacey as his last act as a minister at our church (the next day was his last day in Batesville), the slide show - which Aaron (our other son-in-law) put together and made very special, Kelly playing and singing a special song that she and Chase had collaborated on for the lighting of the Unity Candle, the three ministers (Mark, Todd, and Bro. Gary Buckner) commissioning Chase and Lacey with a prayer time over them, and our dear friend Marcus Buckner pulled it all together on a great DVD!

Sometimes God asks us to do hard things...

More of my writings transferred from Facebook

Friday, August 29, 2008 at 2:45am
My friend and boss once told me this...and I know it is true. I've been thinking about doing hard things. The first hard thing I remember doing was moving. I was 17, had a boyfriend and had grown up in the same hometown with the same people, loved my high school, church and friends and was about to enter my Senior year in high school and my parents told me we were moving...to Batesville (a rival town which was too far away!). I literally cried all night! I grieved (and sometimes still do...) for my loses. The next hard thing that I can remember is my Father-in-Law dying when I was 25. I had to tell Mickey that he had to quickly go to his mother's house...she thought his dad was dead...and he had to go alone because Kelly was small and I had to stay with her. It was hard when I had to move to Oklahoma when I was 33 with my mom telling me that she would NEVER come to see me because she was so hurt (she did though). AND living there was numbing...too much sky! I had a giant hole in my heart...aching for Arkansas and home. Mickey's business failed...we had no money and no job and were facing our children needing braces, driving cars, their Senior years and college. It was the hardest time of our married lives...but He was there and we wouldn't trade what we learned of Him through it all. Physical Therapy...boring, tiring, burned out...when I had frozen shoulders and had to go three times a week for 6 months...it was hard (it was successful and I can put on a coat now because of it). Watching Lacey walk down to the gate to get on a plane that would take her away for 2 long years to a third world country, in many ways, with no one that I knew and I couldn't get to her if I needed to was very hard...I decided to allow myself to cry about it every day (not for long, but unashamedly...and I did). The first time I had to shoot my self in the belly with an insulin shot (in fact, I didn't...Lacey did it for me!)...it was hard, but really nothing to it now. Recently, I had to share bad news with my precious son-in-law...that his dad was seriously ill...perhaps the hardest thing I've ever done. Maybe "hard" is relevant to the moment. All I know is my God is a great sustainer and even though he asks us to do hard things sometimes, He is always there. Sometimes all we can do is just sit in His lap and watch while he takes care of things...a safe place to be.

The Devil Wears Prada - and so do I

This is a fun little post that I put on my facebook a while back...just didn't want to lose it, so here it is!


I just picked up my cute little black and red purse that I bought at Macy's in NYC a couple of years ago...it started a series of thoughts running through my head and I decided to share. What got me to thinking was..."I like this purse...it is light weight and just the right size for the things I carry." From there my mind drifted to the purse that I have been carrying for quite some time. It is sitting across the room, waiting for me to remember to take it to the repair shop because a handle broke. Any way, I really buy purses for the convenience factor...not for fashion. You know, I decide if it would "go with most things" (I never change purses ...too much hastle and usually I am running out to go somewhere). I also look at the way it is made...will it sit flat on the bottom or when I put it down, will it go all limp and fall over or be unbalanced. I also look inside...is there a cell phone pocket...which, by the way, I NEVER use! AND of course, I look at the price...is it reasonable and affordable! I really wish I could be like the Baxter girls...Megan, Nicole and Alison - buy it and use it because it is so cute!Well, let me tell you about the former purse that I carried, which is what made me write this note. Lacey sent home this purse with Jackie when she visited her in India a couple of Christmases ago. I thought it was cute and so I called to ask her if she wanted me to put it back and keep it for when she got home. She said, "Oh, no, Mom. I will NEVER carry that purse...it is way too pretentious for me! I bought it on impulse and knew that I really could never carry it...but you can." Well, I didn't know what all of that meant but I liked the purse (the color, the shape, the cell phone pocket and the price (free to me!), so I loaded it and began carrying it. I asked a friend...What is PRADA anyway? I was told that it is "what the devil wears" and was satisfied so I began using it. Now when I look back on it all, it just tickles me. I can not tell you how many people NOTICED my purse!! Random strangers would stop me to tell me how much they liked it. Young store clerks would "Oooo and awww" over it...almost drooling. A few of the teenagers at my church checked it out. I decided to go on line and look at PRADA purses and discovered my PRADA purse was listed at $2000!! How funny!! NO ONE ever said they liked any other purse I carried - ever, and suddenly my purse had made me trendy and fashion aware! Now to me it was - practical. It served it's purpose! Anyway...I was just thinking of all of this and it made me laugh. OH - by the way, for those of you who are skeptical and ask...."Is it real?" Well, all I know is there is a "certificate of authenticity" in the pocket! You decide...

Things I love about my church!

26 Things I love about my church - plus 12 more and 2 more - and 10 more makes it 50!

Here are the first 26 things that popped into my head...I know there are more, so I will add to the list as I think of them. I just want to start accentuating the positive...rekindle a lost love...encourage the body...remind myself of things of which I have lost sight. By the way, they are randomly placed...God is first and his Word being preached is of utmost importance, so don't freak out that it wasn't first on the list! I would LOVE to see some more from YOU...

1) I got married there, Kelly got married there, and Lacey got married there
2) My church loves missions
3) Our Youth are the most amazing people in the world!
4) Kathleen Hill, Sylvia Pegg, Thelma Parker and Marian Fulbright
5) We have very talented people who attend our church
6) Special needs adults attend our church, are comfortable there, love it, and participate without inhibitions
7) My family - Mom and Dad, Curt and Marcia, Chase and Lacey, and Mickey and I all worship together there
8) We have a rich heritage of community and family surrounding us there
9) AWANA
10) Terrific Tuesdays
11) Vacation Bible School - still in the mornings
12) Chelli Pollet - an EXPERT early childhood professional
13) A very good facility for our preschool and children
14) New property - completely paid for and a dream for a new church plant
15) ESL
16) Men who work on the Disaster Team! Heroes - every one!
17) A great Main Street facility that lends easily to community events (Main street Halloween, Christmas Parade, Garage Sales, Give away events, Election site, Perspectives, emergency shelter)
18) People...some that I have known and worshipped with for over 30 years...some that are long time friends...some that are new
19) We are debt free
20) Many sweet memories
21) God's name is famed
22) The Bible is preached here
23) The Angel Tree
24) Lottie Moon Christmas Offering - worthy goals are set and met
25) College student care packages
26) We have a vision for the future!OK...you encouraged me...
27) I LOVE to hear the men in our choir sing...they are soooo good!
28) Codi Richardson - Lyon College student who has been so faithful to our church - joining, attending and serving and loving Jesus!
29) NEW lightweight tables!!!
30) Codi Richardson, Gloria Vaughn, Lacey Moore and Kristi Price - young ladies who love to sing and honor us by singing in the choir!
31) Taylor Toon - College girl, loving on our Junior High girls and teaching Sunday School - you rock!
32) The way the church pulls together (old, young, male, female) to pull off big events - we may not commit very early, but we show up and get 'r done. (Fall Festivals, Steak Dinner for Revival, Garage Sale give-away, Outreach events)
33) An AWESOME preschool playground!!
34) The quilt in the West Annex that is patterned after the stained glass windows in the Sanctuary that many of our women worked on...so creative!
35) That we have missionaries who are on the field but have chosen to entrust us with their membership while they are overseas!
36) That almost every room in our church is USED on Wednesday nights!!
37) Diane - a great custodian who does her job well and is one of the sweetest people on earth.
38) That even though I don't know everyone well, it makes me warm to see their faces on Sunday morning and delights me to greet them...greeting time on Sunday morning is one of my favorites

Oh, and one more - how could I forget...actually, I'll do two and make it 40...

39) My church overwhelmed us and Lacey with love, gifts, notes of encouragement, Christmas cards, prayers and a beautiful commissioning and reception when she went overseas...so much so that her partner was AMAZED - commenting that Lacey has an awesome church who supported her and loved her and even she felt included! Thank you, church - THIS is the body of Christ at it's best!
40) The Worship Project and Youth Praise Band - girl DRUMMER! yea...Heather!

I have 10 more...I want to let everyone share in these thoughts of loving my church

41) We still gather on the front steps for VBS - children still want to walk down or slide down the wide concrete side guards of the front steps
42) When we have pot lucks or meals, so many people stay to help clean up - it is almost like a party
43) Showers - wedding and baby
44) Weddings and Funerals - the place we meet to rejoice new beginnings and the place we say good-bye for a while - sometimes the church (the body) goes to another location other than our building to help celebrate and mourn...I love that!
45) I know that my brothers and sisters pray for me - they tell me so
46) Invitation for response - a thing of the past in some churches...seeing my Daddy praying at the alter, knowing it is for the church
47) The youth - down front and to the left - the place they have been for at least 35 years (they were sitting there when I came to Batesville as a 17 year old youth)
48) The preschool greeters desk and that we care enough to protect our babies and preschoolers!
49) Celebrating the Lord's Supper together in whatever form that takes AND that we stepped out of the box this year and did a foot washing - very moving! (lets do it again!)
50) The return of college students - to Sunday School or worship - Christmas Break, Spring Break and Summer Break - I love to see their faces dotted over the church!

New Day...New Look...

OK...I am trying this again. It is a cool winter Sunday afternoon, Mickey is watching football, and I am trying to figure out the new "blogger". Hope that I did everything right and that it will be easier to do now. I always forget what to do in between times.

Mickey and I started working on "healthier living" a couple of months ago. It is working! For the first time in our lives, it is really working. His goal was to lose weight and by doing so, help control his high blood pressure. My goal was better blood sugar control. At Christmas, he had lost 30 pounds and I was removed from all the insulin I was taking! We know that it means a huge life change to maintain it! Christmas was a little hairy with company and going and coming, but we are back into full swing again and seeing good results. I still have some hard work ahead...walking and losing 20 more pounds by May...that is my goal. Mickey just seems to look at lettuce and the weight falls off of him!! Really, for the most part, he is so disciplined and consistent! Sometimes, I just WANT candy or sweets - or something different - or to NOT have to eat at home. I just keep reminding myself of my precious grand babies and of my dream to take Jesus name to foreign lands and then I am back to celery and carrots (which, I love, by the way - it's a good thing!)

The Vision Team's work is coming to an end. That is a team which has been meeting for over a year with the purpose of developing a new vision for our church to follow. It has been a long process with a weekly all night Monday night meeting and lots of praying, talking, listening and following. The church will vote on whether to follow the recommendations of the committee next week. We are praying for an overwhelming response and that the church will be on board. We need to see our people willing to make changes that will allow our church to grow and flourish together as the body of Christ and all for His glory.

Perspectives on the World Christian Movement is starting up! We are excited to be offering the college level course in Batesville and to co-coordinate the class with our dear friends, Sheril and Donna Middleton. This will be our fourth semester to offer the class at First Baptist. We have an awesome team and have the BEST instructors lined up to present the lessons with a heart of God! We will be meeting on Monday nights for 15 weeks and so it is a good thing that the Vision Team's work is coming to an end!

Family is all well. Mom and Dad are in relatively good health and such a pleasure to live above and share life with! Kelly is "living her dream" as she says - staying home with Asher and Ben and doing housewife and mommy type things. She is an incredible mother and wife...plus an unbelievable singer/songwriter and now recorder/producer of her own music! Aaron is the best dad that I know...very interested in the lives of his children and seeing that his family is taken care of...plus always finding new interests and hobbies that fit well into life's plan and don't take away from family time. Asher is in a new "big boy bed" and loves it! I'm not sure I'm ready to see him moving out of the "baby" stage so quickly, but also, want him to mature and grow and have a productive life for Jesus. Ben is learning to walk...it won't be long until he takes off and then, before I know it, he too will be in a "big boy bed"! I'm not really sure what God is doing in Lacey and Chase's lives right now. They seem to be set on "go", yet no wheels are in motion. Once again, I will struggle with letting them go, yet knowing that they must and my inner soul desiring it for them and the sake of the Kingdom. I am truly blessed!

So, what is up for me this year? Right now, I will continue to mobilize and pray for as many college students and Perspectives students to get a word from God about how they will impact the Kingdom with their lives. I will continue to look to God for guidance on getting healthier and staying on track...because I will fail without Him! I will pray for how He will lead me and Mickey in the coming months and years in Church and in global work for the Kingdom. Right now, there is a lot of listening and waiting to be done.

It is good to see it in print...for those of you who said you "miss me" on Nanna's Nonsense, hope this is the beginning of a new love affair with words and musings...see you again soon.

Now...

It has been so long since I have blogged that I couldn't remember how I used to do it. Life has been so crazy in the last 6 months that I haven't had time to be normal. On January 3, little Benjamin, our second grandson, was born. We really thought that he would come in 2007 but he waited and made it into the new year. Mickey and I stayed with Kelly and Aaron and helped little Asher, who was only 15 months himself, adjust to this new life in their house. It was a very sweet time. Soon after, Lacey came home from her two year stay overseas. We began planning the wedding as soon as she came home. We invited Brandon, our friend, to come and live in our home and get on his feet...so our house was full. Chase began staying in Batesville almost every night and Mark allowed him to live with him for the semester. Perspectives started and so we were all involved with that...every Tuesday night. Kelly and the boys came and stayed with us for a week while Aaron went to Mexico...that was fun! As we were getting into "shower" time for the wedding, we were made aware that God was moving Mark and began working through the process with him. Suddenly, we were told about the plan to hire Chase and Lacey to work with our youth for the summer, knowing that Mark was leaving and God had provided them to First Baptist. Then we were looking for a house, having showers, planning the wedding, praying with Mark, mourning his leaving, delighting in Lacey and Chase staying, going to speaking engagements with Lacey, and looking forward to Chase's graduation from college, while agonizing over Brandon's bulging disk and inability to work...or do much of anything for that matter. Mickey was on so many committees and had so many leadership jobs at church that it seemed he always had a meeting if he wasn't working (trying to PAY for the wedding!) During all of this, my doctor put me on insulin and I began working through the emotions of having to give myself a shot in the belly for the rest of my life. I never really found any peace in the midst of the storm. It seemed that even though much of the related work was fun and exciting...there was nothing very relaxing or restful. So now...Ozlem and Sebastian have come and gone...Christina, too and all the family (all four sides!) and the house is quiet. It is back to Mom and Dad downstairs...and Curt's daily visits and Mickey and me upstairs in our "private haven" and Brandon on the couch...watching TV. Mark is gone and we miss him. Soon he will be gone for good...not from our lives but from our daily lives...and we are sad but we know it is right. We have decisions to make...what will we continue to do, what will we pursue with passion, what will we put away? I'm not ready to journey forward just yet...I need to sit and listen and reflect and think and talk to God. Now? We shall see...

Another Day in the Life

OK - so I haven't blogged in quite a while. I have just not been inspired. I think that NOW, I am. It is December the 16th - actually, I just looked at the clock and it is the 17th at 12:01.
Life is changing and I'm not sure about it. Mickey is working again and that is good. He traveled last week for the first time since re-employment. I turned 50. Just thought I would sneak that in. I went to Muldrow, Oklahoma to sit with my sister-in-law for a few days as she began recovery from a broken hip. Now we are both home - me and Mickey, that is. Today was Matt and Teela's wedding. It was beautiful and the reception was fun - lots of dancing! ALSO, a lot of work! I am tired - but not sleepy. Does anyone hear me? I think I'm too exhausted to sleep. Jackie went to India yesterday and didn't quite make it there. She got stuck in Bangkok. That was pretty tense. Now she is in a hotel where she will stay for another day and a half. At least, Lacey said she is laughing about it now. Her trip over there is turning into a 5 day adventure. Oh, well, at least she will have a good story to tell. My house is a wreck!! We have been coming and going for about 2 weeks and just dropping things where ever they land when we come in the door. Kelly, Aaron and Asher are coming for pre-Christmas this year. They will be here on the 20th and leave on Christmas Eve-Eve. Guess it will just be me and Mickey and Mom and Dad for Christmas this year. I'm ok with it, I think. My hip is a little out of whack - it happens when you get old. I found my wedding dress at the bottom of a barrel at Mom's house - yellow as a pumpkin and all wrinkled. I just couldn't throw it away. Now...what am I going to do with this crumpled up, discolored mess that I am calling a wedding dress? All in all, God is good. He is my Rock and my Salvation. I am going through Psalms and underlining all of the verses that point to the nations and God's glory in bringing them out of darkness into His light. That really is what it is all about - not me. So, with that, I think I can sleep now - and I'm out of here.

LIfe's twists

I am a "myspacer" and a "blogger", too. I spent some time this morning just sitting at the computer doing those two things. I love to follow the "comment" trail. It is fun when I find people whom I had lost and read about their lives. Sometimes it is joyful - sometimes not so much. Anyway, I have observed something that I would like to discuss here. In my searching, I have found at least two young Christian men who have made dramatic lifestyle changes since I last saw them. They are of different generations and don't know each other. I would love to sit long and talk much with them. These young men were very actively involved with their local church as young people - sold out to Christ, if you will. As they grew up and had different experiences, they began searching for something more. In the world, both found what they felt they had always been looking for. They are both now, out of the closet and living in gay relationships. One is what I would call, almost a "militant" gay man and the other embracing his new found life in "extravagance". Both have left the traditional church setting yet neither has renounced his relationship with Christ. Not that it matters, but I do believe that each of them made a commitment to Christ and that it can not be ripped away because of the sin that they have allowed into their lives. I believe we are saved by grace and that actions can not change that. (I know some will disagree with me - but so be it) The thing that has astounded me the most is that both young men have a circle of Christian friends who apparently support them in their life decision. I am just trying to figure out if tolerance has crept into the world and sneaked into the hearts of Christians without our being aware. I am not suggesting that these young men should be ostracized or abandoned, I just wonder if any Christian friend has confronted, in love, what they are choosing as sin. It breaks my heart that on their blogs and myspace page they boldly portray their new found lives and loves and everyone is commenting with "good for you's" and "hope you're happy's" and "I love you, anyway's", but I don't see any comments of "I'm praying for you" or "let's talk". I hope there is more accountability than what I am seeing in these comments. Yes, love them - also, love them enough to pray for them and let them know you recognize their choices as sin and hold them accountable. I really don't think that blogging or myspace is the place for deep conversation. Hopefully, I am barking up the wrong tree and in the privacy of personal conversation that has been done.

Little Eliot

If you really like blog reading, I have one for you. Kelly and Aaron have friends, Matt and Ginny Mooney, who created a blog - mostly dedicated to the story of their son's life, Eliot. Eliot was born with a chromosome disorder called Edwards Syndrome. The prospect of him living very long outside the womb was slim. Eliot just went home to be with Jesus a couple of weeks ago and was 99 days old when he went. Anyway, his story is so moving and the way that his young parents have cared for him and trusted our God for every moment is precious and I recommend that you spend some time there. Ginny is a jewelry designer and she has designed a necklace that she calls "Eliot". You can read more about it on their blog. www.mattandginny.blogspot.com

November 6 - Answers

This morning my mother had surgery. We have been waiting about six weeks for the answers to our questions surrounding the procedure. We are praising our Father for his care and his awesome loving kindness to us. The doctors were able to remove a large cyst from her abdomen with few complications. It appears to be benign. I was so pleasantly surprised to watch her "scoot" from the gurney onto her hospital bed with very little help when they brought her to her room. I know she is not completely out of the woods, but she was sitting up and drinking when I went in to see her a while ago, tonight. She is eighty-one and I am so grateful for the good report so far.

Mickey is very close to officially having a job. The company who bought his former company is preparing a written job offer as we speak. Hallelujah! In a short few days he should be out and about combing the country again. For those of you who have wondered - at least we discovered that his real job didn't include selling drugs or being a hit man after all! (It is an old joke with the young people who have graced our house in the last few years!) Any way, we are grateful for this news, as well. Now it will be up to us to be faithful to continue following and obeying our Lord's directives. He definitely has our attention.

My Single Friend

Ok - so I said I am not a match maker because I am terrible at it, but I will tell you about my friend and you can check him out, if you want to. He is one of mine and Mickey's dearest friends. He is tall and dark complected with a killer smile and kind eyes. He loves the Lord more than he will ever love anyone else and serving Him is his life. He is an associate pastor of our church where he serves with youth, college and singles. We have gone on several trips together - Passion a couple of times and 3 mission trips plus one family vacation and a lot of little family trips. He is so much fun and is looking for a mate who is fun. He loves to play games of all kinds. He is not highly athletic but is very hard to beat at racket ball - one of his big interests.
He sings very well and plays the piano well, too. He is highly creative and a huge ideas person. He is 36 years old and has never been married. He is looking for a single, never married girl who wants to work beside him in ministry. He is loyal. He is financially secure and a good steward of his money. I'm not going to tell you any weaknesses because if you decide to visit him on myspace and get to know him and then start to date him, you would be mad at me for saying he has faults of any kind. Ok - so that is all. Now you can go to my myspace page and try to figure out which friend I'm talking about and go to his page and leave him a comment - if you are a single woman!

Whew! Last 10 - Here goes!

1) I prefer my water to be straight from the tap with no ice and to stand at the sink while I drink it
2) When I doodle, I draw question marks
3) I appreciate a-symmetrical objects more than symmetrical
4) My biggest pet peeve is people who leave shopping carts in the middle of the parking lot. I will return mine even if it is so cold I can't stand it or I get soaked by rain. I also retrieve others from the parking lot.
5) I hate tongue pimples (inflamed taste buds) and to burn my tongue.
6) I am writing a story, "Journey of a Journeyman's Mother".
7) I love four and five year olds - they are great people with whom to chat.
8) In general, I am not very competitive, but give me something I care about and I can dig my heels in
9) I like to hold hands and to hug people. I don't mean just romantically - but with people for whom I care, just because I like being near them. I think touch is very important.
10) I am happy to be done so that I can write better and more interesting things...

See Ya' 'round!

20 and counting!

1) I am married to a man who spells his name like a mouse!
2) I function very well with a lot on my plate - seasonally.
3) I am thinking about cremation as an option for disposal of my body when I am dead
4) I think there is nothing wrong with Halloween and it is a fun holiday. I like ghosts and goblins in the make-believe world. I don't like demons, however, in reality - and I do believe they exist.
5) If I had to choose between having a privacy fence or an open back yard - I would choose open - it is just freeing to see for miles and watch the snow fall in the distance.
6) Some people I miss - my Grandma and Grandpa, my Aunt Violet and Aunt Joan, my Aunt Bessie. My mother is the only sibling (including her brothers-in-law) left in her family and my father has only one sister left besides himself (including his brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law) - she lives in California.
7) I am a list maker - just not necessarily a list follower.
8) I am cell phone illiterate.
9) I had my ears pierced with needles by my neighbor after she had frozen them with ice cubes
10) I take some time every Christmas just to sit alone in a quiet, dark room and watch the lights on the Christmas tree blink - and reflect on Christmases past

JUST 10 more!!!

Likes and Dislikes and one admission!

1) I could spend an hour just smelling of candles or bottles of lotion in the store.
2) I could eat my weight in raw peanuts
3) My favorite childhood book was "Arty the Smarty", a tale about a fish that didn't want to go to "school" and was always swimming in the opposite direction from everyone else.
4) Although I am not "hooked" on it and don't watch it every day, I like to watch Judge Judy and eat popcorn
5) I cried when Michael Landon died.
6) I despise having to buy new blue jeans. I'd like to keep my broken in ones forever.
7) I love cats. Mickey and my sister, Jo, are very allergic to them so I can't have one.
8) I didn't realize it but I have a broken watch collection. I don't know why I can't throw one away - but I just keep saving them as if someone might want them some day. They are not even expensive or unusual - just broken.
9) This is an admission - I admit that I am a terrible photographer. Every picture I make is shaky and out of focus with the exception of one or two out of about every 20 but I still keep making them.
10) I enjoy people who are story tellers. I would never be bored with them.

Twenty more and it is a good thing because I am running out of things about me.

Again - More about me

1) I don't like watching scary movies - I peek through my fingers to watch the scariest parts.
2) I scream from the moment a roller coaster leaves until the moment it stops - at the top of my lungs
3) I can not move mattresses - it make me laugh and I am useless. Really, I don't know why, but it makes me laugh. It makes Mickey mad and so he just tells me to stop and he does it by himself - it is easier.
4) I really can not think of an earthly possession that I could not do without.
5) I love to lay on a blanket and look at the stars.
6) Purses are such a great accessory - so why do I ALWAYS carry the same one? Lazy I guess.
7) Speaking of accessories, I love pins. I always look at pins in the jewelry section.
8) Have I mentioned that my feet are numb? I miss feeling with my feet. That is definitely one of the things I look forward to in Heaven some day
9) I have all of the love letters that Mickey wrote me when we were dating. I think I want them to be buried with me.
10) If I had time for a new hobby, I would want to learn how to throw pottery.

Just 30 more - 3 more postings. Won't you be glad when it is over??

One liners on the downhill side of 100 things

1) Sometimes I bite my nails
2) I sleep with earplugs almost every night
3) If I have to choose a favorite number, I choose 7 - but I don't mean it.
4) I would like to learn Spanish
5) I have always thought that I will die young. (Guess that didn't come true!)
6) At one time, I had a Dr. Pepper addiction.
7) I hate to procrastinate, but I do.
8) I have "address" OCD - can't throw one away, even if I have multiple copies.
9) Mickey and I think people think we are the "Information Station".
10) I think laughing cures almost anything.

I'm out of here for a couple of days!

50 - Almost my age!!

1) My favorite things when I was growing up were paper dolls, Barbie Dolls, and stuffed animals
2) I just had a flash back - when I was little, me and my next door neighbor and best friend used to love a TV show called "Honey West". She was a secret agent. We played like we were secret agents all the time. We couldn't both be Honey West, so we made up Connie West (that was me) who was her side kick. Wonder why I wasn't Honey?
3) I am crafty - I like to scrapbook - wish I had more time for it
4) If I ever go bald, please don't look at the mole on the side of my head
5) I like to work jigsaw puzzles - especially at Christmas and when I feel stressed out
6) I am the only grandchild on my father's side that my grandmother never knew about. She died before I was born and I am the youngest. I hope to meet her and talk a long time with her in Heaven.
7) I really like rainy days when I can stay in doors - and thunderstorms
8) My favorite vacation was to New York City last year with my girls, son-in-law, Mickey and our friend, Mark. I think I could vacation there and never get tired of it.
9) I don't like rap but I love Toby Mac concerts - "...ticket to ride..."
10) I totally avoid alcohol and with the exception of an accidental drink of a strawberry daiquiri (I don't even know how to spell it!) in High School and trying a sip of champagne at a wedding after I was an adult (which I hated, by the way), I have never partaken of it. I think it is a bad decision for the most part, but not necessarily a sin.

OK - next time I will be on the downhill side of 100 and maybe I won't take the liberty to preach so much!! Catch you then.