December 31, 2012

What Are You Doing New Years...

Written in 1947



Ready for breakfast?

Good Morning, Readers!  The coffee is perking and I have fresh donuts for dunking.  The powdered sugar sweetens the coffee and makes it sooo inviting!  The table is set ... come on in!!

Supposed to be a nice warm day today.  I will be out weeding in my gardens for sure and breathing in that wonderful fresh air!!

Can you believe that 2011 has come and soon will be gone?  I can't.  I don't know if it's just me but time seems to zoom by at such a rapid rate these days.  I talked to my daughter, Jane, yesterday and we are hoping that 2012 will be one of those amazing years for our families.  2011 has been fraught with some trying times.  I've had emails from some of my Readers, agreeing with me on that note!

The past couple days we've attended funerals which reminded us how very fragile life is.  Mattie Bell's celebration of life was just that ... a fine tribute to Jackie, Jenny, and Paula's mother.  The service was held in a quaint little chapel ... the music was soulful, the messages heartwarming, and the exchange of love between family and friends poignant.  Mattie lived a long and full life and, although she will be missed, she is in a much better place.  We were fortunate to be able to have coffee with Michael's cousin, Bill, and his wife, Jackie after the service.  They are a wonderful couple and I hope that we are able to join them for many more such visits!

Bryan's funeral was different ... much more somber ... a young man of 35 cut down in the prime of his life by a tragic accident.  Bryan was a trick roper and always wore boots and a hat.  How fitting that he should have a cowboy funeral ... he was buried in a beautiful carved pine box, his saddle blanket and hat gracing the top.  Behind the coffin was a beautiful spray  of flowers surrounding the skull and horns of Bryan's beloved steer, Gus, who had passed away recently.  The skull and horns were a Christmas gift to Bryan from his father ... Bryan was so excited ... "I am taking Gus home with me!"

Job said, "Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return:  the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord"~~Job 1:21.  Then, these words were added, "In all this, Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly" (v22).  I thought about that message before the service and again afterwards.  I wondered how Bryan's family would ever recover from this horrible loss.  Then, I knew ... the grace of God would hold them in the palm of his hands and the Holy Spirit would minister to them singly and as as a whole.  This was so evident at Bryan's celebration of life.  Bryan's family had loved him from the moment of his birth, spent time with him, and cherished him as a boy and as a man.  Tears, sadness, guilt, pain, sorrow?  Yes.  Hope in forgiveness, life everlasting ... God's ultimate plan?  Yes!!


My Girls, February 2011

This year has been filled with some tough times starting with the flood at the little casa, Michael's unemployment, chronic illness challenges, deaths...  Yet, there have also been some really good memories that I will ponder in my heart forever.  My trip to Florida to spend time with Jane, Tim, Madison, and Katrina last February/March; my trip to Minnesota in July/August to spend time with my brother and family, friends, and other relatives; multiple trips to the ball field to watch Zachary and Nicholas play baseball; visits with friends and family over the year; and, my trip back to Florida in November/December.  My blog has reached the far corners of the earth and I have received many emails letting me know how I am touching their lives.  In all humbleness, I say, "Thank you!"

I am not a big one to make new year's resolutions per se because my life's goals are always moving forward.  Most of the time, resolutions are very short lived so why do it??  I was listening to a fellow who had a gym in Denton, TX talk about the new year's resolution of losing weight (when I worked for Jenny Craig, January was our biggest month for new members joining the program) and why people fail.  We are a microwave society and want our resolutions to happen overnight ... when we realize that they take work, patience, perseverance, and time, we give up resorting to our old ways.  Human nature...

I do love to make plans and look forward to the journey -- some things get moved on forward to the next year; however, I do work on them.  I thoroughly enjoy the process, one step at a time.  I'm a stubborn lady.  Once I set my mind on something, I forge ahead.  I look at the backyard at the little casa and shake my head.  We were hoping to have a landscaper do the major portion of the landscaping but when Michael lost his job, that plan went out the window.  I have been working diligently out there one square foot at a time.  What an undertaking!!  I was hoping for some grass and all of a sudden, the whole backyard was covered in nice thick green weeds!  I hope I didn't just pray for a green backyard!!  He he...  At least the mud isn't coming into the house any more so that's a good thing!!

What are your plans for New Year's Eve?  I don't have any.  Bummers!  Just one year, I'd like to go out for a wonderful dinner at a fine restaurant, dress up in an elegant evening gown, and dance in the New Year.  Years ago, I did that and it sure was fun. For sure, I am going to put that on my bucket list for next December 31st!!  Want to join me??  I can taste that steak with bearnaise sauce and hear the band playing now!  The good news about having experienced something wonderful, you never forget it!  Tonight, I'll settle for chicken fried chicken, cream gravy, mashed potatoes and green beans.  It's a tradition in the south to have black eyed peas on New Years Day so I may need to rustle up some of those.  Looks like I will be spending some time in my new kitchen!!

Yesterday was my friend Beverly's birthday.  I asked her what she wanted to do for her birthday and she said that she wanted to go to Braums for a burger, onion rings, and a malt.  Done ... we made our way over there and had some great hamburgers and good conversation.  Beverly has been such a blessing this past year when I have spent more time here than at our home in North Texas.

The old gymnasium in Hillsboro is being torn down.  Michael has been on the hunt this morning for a hard hat so he can walk through the rubble in search of treasures.  He found a pair of (really old) tennis shoes stuck between the studs of a wall and a few other things before he was run off.  Treasure hunts are always great fun!!  It is so sad that the city couldn't have resurrected this wonderful building for something.  I am so into preservation of our history in America.

As 2011 comes to a close, I want to say thank you for all the encouragement and blessings that you, my Readers, have given me.  Please know that you are all loved and prayed for each and every day.  As I move into 2012, it is my hope and prayer that we will continue to chat.  Life is so very precious, let's not waste one moment of it!

Happy New Year!!

Until we meet again ... be safe!

PS:  Last year we greeted 2011 with a snow storm.  I wonder what 2012 will bring!