The Middle Day of the Week

A layer of frost is on the windshield of Ken's car this morning. It is now 33 degrees. Brrrrr. Again the only redeeming value in the weather is the bright sun. A week or so ago, I heard people say that the risk of frost was over and we were free to plant. I remember thinking but not outloud.....don't plant until the 16th of May to be safe. I hope not too many things were lost over the last couple of days. My dad has his sweet potato plants in the ground but he has each of the forty eight babies in a buried milk carton which he will pull out when the weather warms up.

Lunch with two of my second cousins yesterday was rich. My grandmother on my dad's side was one of fourteen children. There we sat discussing each of them. It amazes me that my great grandparents could succesfully have a family of that size in a day that money was so hard to come by. They were a tough lot in terms of hard work and determination.

This morning is our last Women in the Word meeting of the season. A big hoopla is planned and food will not be scarce. How does one resist that wonderful spread? I'm going to try to keep my head about me and not let my stomach be my god. I'm bringing tomato cheese bread.....french bread sliced thick and lathered in garlic butter, slice of tomato and then a slice of cheese...slide them under the broiler and yum. The best time of the morning will be when we share our hearts. Something divine happens when people allow what God has done for them come out of their mouths in praise. It will happen this morning, I 'm sure. It's a great group of ladies made up of all ages. I find connecting with the young moms of our church so important. Older women need younger women and vice versa. God even says so in His Word. We learn from one another and it helps us keep a balanced outlook on life.

Is Family History of Value?

It is a wintery cold today...the difference from winter is that the sun is beaming over a landscape laden with green and blossom. The temperature forces me to wear clothes unfit for the season. Thirty five degrees on April 29th is a cold day by anyone's standard. I can only hope the cold succumbs to the power of the sun and we return to spring quickly.

The flowering trees are bursting with pride presently. Lilacs are getting close to full bloom. It all lasts such a short time that one feels as if one should just stand and gaze and like a sponge, soak it all up so that one can endure the lack thereof for another year. Lilacs have such poignant aroma. I love them but know that many of my friends are highly sensitive to their strong smell. A large freshly picked bouquet of lilacs on my kitchen table is about as good as it gets. Their beautiful shade of purple with their fluffy fullness hang over the edges of a vase better than most flowers. Yesterday, I read that lilac bushes can live hundreds of years. The oldest lilac bushes in the United States date back to 1750. I don't recall knowing that before. Saturday night while my uncles and aunts were our guests, we were going through family pictures of the l930s. As my aunt, whom lives on my grandparent's farm viewed a picture, she said, "Look!, they are standing in front of the lilac bushes!" Those bushes are standing yet today and each year faithfully share their beauty. I don't have any large bushes so I will have to beg a bouquet off someone else.

Today, I'm going to Merrillville to meet the Montana cousin and one of her sisters for lunch. While visiting with us on Saturday evening, Ken and I shared that we had a map of the "Holland Settlement" where our grandparents and great grandparents tried their hand at homesteading in Montana. She was very interested in seeing the map and try as we may, we could not find the map. Yesterday, I found the map without much effort at all. I called the cousin and asked if she would like to meet me in Merrillville to get the map as it would be better to hand deliver as to mail. I will go a bit early and make a few more copies to have on hand for other relatives who may be interested.

As I muse over all the reminiscing we have done in regard to family history the last few days, I wonder what all the fuss is about. It isn't really a big deal....or is it? I have cousins that don't get into our family history at all......why do I count it so important? Then my mind is brought to the history of the family of God in the Old Testament. Why is it kept for us in such a grand historic document? To see God, of course. Yes, when I learn more about my family history, I see God. The Word tells us that God is faithful, one generation to another. As I sit and dine with my second cousins today, we will talk about many things that will reflect God's faithfulness to us, and to our parents, grandparents and great grandparents. It will be a good thing to recount His goodness to us. It has made us the people we are.........reminiscing makes us note the sins of the past, God's forgiveness and His grace that has always lifted us above our failings. I praise Him today for holding us in the family of God.

Oldtime Radio and TV

While thinking about how I make myself vulnerable by writing certain things in my blog, I was brought back to memories of listening to family radio when I was a child. I recall a radio show in the mornings that featured the family discussion around their breakfast table. I remember loving it....I could relate to it because we had similar discussions around our breakfast table. Though I haven't pin pointed what show that was, I came across some names that also jogged my cloudy memory. Don McNeill and the Breakfast Club......yes, cloudy memories but sweet ones. Then there was the Ozzie and Harriet show which later went to TV. They were probably my very favorite. I found a place on the net where I can actually download those programs onto my I-pod. Is that cool or what? Now I just have to figure out how to do all that. Good thing there are some young people in my house to help me with all the tech stuff.

My husband listened to many more radio programs when he was young. He was an only child and while I was playing with my siblings he was lying on the rug in front of the radio. He talks about Amos and Andy, The Barn Dance, etc. While I remember Amos and Andy, I have little recollection of the Barn Dance. My mother didn't like southern music or slapstick comedy so as a result we didn't listen to it and I still have a distaste for it at this stage of life. It goes to prove just how much power a parent's influence is.

Other radio or early television personalities that tickled my fancy were Arthur Godfrey, Groucho Marx, Red Skelton and Ed Sullivan. My heart throb singer was Perry Como. In l980, as an anniversary gift, our older children gave us tickets to Perry Como's show at the Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville. The only problem was that we had a two month old baby. What to do? We tucked her in our arms and carried her along. She never flinched and can always boast of having been to a Perry Como show. I could probably walk to the very seat I sat in. It was a night to remember. I have some of Perry's music on my I-pod and enjoy it from time to time.

Another "star" experience happened about fifteen years earlier in approximately l964. Ken's mother and I were shopping in the Evergreen Park Plaza. We were eating lunch in a restaurant there with our one year old, Sherri, in a stroller next to our table. Suddenly, Ken's mother looked to one side and very excitedly said, "THAT'S OZZIET AND HARRIET!". I glanced over and took the scene in carefully. Yes, I suppose it was. Our waitress confirmed that it was indeed the people we thought it was. The waitress brought me some paper and I walked to their table and asked for their autograph. I recall their beautiful smiles and graciousness as they gave me a treasure. Many years later after moving that treasure around over and over I sold it (or gave it away) at a garage sale. Dumb or what? I wish I had thought that through better.

A Day to Shout About

Home again, safe and sound.....are you as overwhelmed as I am with the care of God while traveling. It truly never ceases to amaze me that we can travel hundreds and thousands of miles and enjoy arrival at our destination. My prayer often spoken audibly and most of the time unspoken but sincerely from the heart....."Lord, go before us, be behind us, undergird us, cover us....send your angels to clear the path all around us...in Jesus name".



This morning we were privileged to attend and participate in the worship service led by our son in the church in which he serves. Our fourteen year old grandson stood before the congregation with three of his peers to profess his faith in Jesus and his intent to follow His ways. To top off the service.....communion was served. It was a great time of worship and fellowship. Silver pieces were given to the young people as a reminder of the day and its meaning. Scripture compares silver to many facets of our salvation. Six elders spoke, each focusing on one of those facets. It was very touching as the leaders of the church participated so personally in the profession of faith. John preached a short sermon.......many songs of praise were sung and each young person gave testimony of their faith. My heart swelled with joy as our son stood behind the table of the Lord and shared the elements with us. My heart swelled again as our young grandson bravely stood before a couple hundred people and said, "The one true God is the one I chose to serve". It was a very rich experience for me.



Following the service, Kim and John hosted a brunch for family members. Between the two sides of the family there were twenty seven of us. The brunch was delicious and the joy in sharing the moment was something we will always remember about this day. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Roger Would Have Loved It

Where in the world did that slide show come from??? Kendra called and asked why there was a slide show on my blog that contained pictures of people we don 't know.....welllllllll.....I don't know either. I did get it off but was amused that the baby girl featured in the pictures was named Emerson.

If a funeral can be a celebration....that is what Roger's funeral was. A grand celebration of God's faithfulness to him, his family, and we the people of Community Church. After the service while some of us got prepared to serve the luncheon following the internment, the talk was memorial services. The overwhelming vote was to have the internment before the service and then have a memorial. The gal that has a gizillion china plates and wants everything just so...as in retreat day....gave me the word that we can use disposable plates for her funeral lunch. The discussion was one of a serious note but with a humorous flare. I don't think the Lord minded at all.

We, as a church family, lift Dollie, Roger's widow, to Him for mercy and comfort. Remind me, Lord, to remember her lonliness. In Jesus' name,

A Love That Will Not Let Them Go

Wind...we have plenty of it today and I feel it in my bones that the wind is going to bring up a humdinger of a storm. I don't like wind very much....a breeze is pleasant but wind is noisy, distractive and interuptive. The howl gets to me. One certainly can't complain about the temperature which is at 79 degrees. It delighted me to find a weather element to add to the blog page. That is more for me than for the reader because why would a reader care what temperature it is here? For me....it tells me exactly what the conditions are out there and I like that very much.

Our daughter, Scarlen and son Isaiah just came in the door. Scarlen had picked him up from school. With all the windows open, eavesdropping on their conversation came without effort. Yesterday, Scarlen teased Isaiah that Grandpa and Grandma were kicking him out to the camping trailer. They were discussing this again just now coming up the walk and Scarlen was assuring him that she was only teasing him. He said, "Well, that happens to people sometimes, you know." Back to him as they came through the door, Scarlen replied, "I'm still here, aren't I? Grandma and Grandpa haven't kicked me out yet, have they?" I couldn't resist...I yelled, "No, but we are working on it." Then an argument began over which of them we would kick out first and whom we loved the most. It was one of those silly discussions family members enjoy. I enjoyed it because they didn't know I was listening at first.

Community's Loss is Heaven's Gain

Yesterday was a busy day.......Women in the Word Bible study in the morning to continue our series of Beth Moore's teaching on "Loving Well". Friend Cindy went with me and after the study we together worked on gathering up the last evidence of the women's retreat held in February. It felt good to pick up this and that we found here and there and get everything in its place. The church is expansive and there are several closets where things landed. We looked around in our designated closet up off the "upper room" in the attic. At least I have a better idea what we have and where it is stored. We are already working on next year's retreat and have a speaker in place. That is the person that gives us the words of God's truth so our speaker is vitally important.

In the afternoon, I continued the task of retreat cleanup by going in my garage, full to the max, and worked through the luncheon sets we use for our morning tea. Our garage isn't heated so I haven't wanted to tackle the task until now. This morning there is a peace in my being as they have all been gone through to make sure each box has the correct set and the correct number of plates and cups and they are safely in their places until next February. Huge effort done!

During the middle of my work we got a call that a precious elderly man was found lying in his yard and was on his way to the hospital. We talked about going to the hospital to be with the family and proceeded to do so. Ken couldn't go because of a prior commitment so my friend, Bernice and I traveled to Crown Point St Anthony's Hospital together. When we arrived, we asked at the front desk for the family of Roger Boonstra. We were told they had all gone home. We asked, did Roger go with them? They said no and that they would have a nurse talk with us. Soon a very pleasant lady came into the waiting room and asked if we were family. I answered that we were close friends from church but in my heart I wanted to say, "Yes, we are members together with them of the family of God". The nurse graciously explained that Roger had not responded to the efforts to bring him back and so had passed away. She told us that the family had gone to his home to be with his wife. Onward we went...to De Motte to sit with the family. There is a preciousness about going to the home of Christians in the presence of death. There is great hope and an assurance that Roger is home with his Lord. His wife, through tears, told us many things of him that were enjoyable to hear. She showed us a card she had given him one Christmas eons ago which he to this day had used as a bookmark in his Bible. As she spoke to her children whom were not in town yet, she told them that Dad had helped her put clean sheets on both the beds that morning so the beds were ready for them. They expected their children to come today for a visit and were preparing for their arrival. Roger was out cleaning up the yard so the emaculate place was up to snuff. He didn't come back in and his wife found him lying on the ground near a fire he was tending. He and Janet have been married 64 years. Each Sunday they sat across the aisle and up a couple of rows from our usual place. During the greeting time at church there would be hugs all around with this dear couple. Their example of Christlike living is a testimony to the world around them. We will miss this dear man of God but oh, the joy he has found that God promises he had waiting for him.

Pleasures and Problems

Unexpected pleasures are the most fun in life. This morning the phone rang and it was Anna, my former work mate from the high school. She still works there and asked if I could join her for an early lunch at 10:30. I told her I would, so I motored to the high school and sat and waited for Anna to come to meet me in the car. When she walked up to my vehicle, she slid in the back seat. I looked at her rather strangely. She said, 'we will have a surprise visitor". Out walked a gal we had fallen in love with two years ago when she was an exchange student from Taiwan. Joanna is now a student in an university in Toronto..the kid gets around. It was delightful to see her and catch up on her life. She hopes to further a career in acting and then if that doesn't work, she will put her language skills to work as an interpretor. She is a great kid and again, today, brought joy to our hearts.

The magnolia tree burgeoning with bulging buds has exploded into full bloom. I stopped at my dad's house for two reasons...one to pick up some meat I am storing in their freezer and the other was to see "the tree". It is absolutely beautiful. Words don't describe what God can do with flowers. Man doesn't come close to making anything as beautiful.

I think twice or three times now when I think of taking the Durango out on the road. It used to be that I'd fill it up for between 35 and 40 dollars. The last time I filled the tank...the pump read $75.00 and it wasn't totally filled yet. I nearly fainted. This is ridiculous. The fuel crisis is going to affect every area of our economy. One of the freedoms of our nation is that one can move about freely....the size of our nation requires vehicle transportation. That freedom is being squeezed right out of our lives by the price of gasoline and diesel fuel. We are a nation full of brilliant people. It seems someone could do something to make us less dependent on those oil laden Arab nations. Another problem I have read about is the environmentalists who balk at drilling for oil located in our own nation. It has been reported that there is vast amounts of oil under the Dakotas. I don't advocate being totally irresponsible in terms of using our environment but I also know that we have been given natural resources for purpose. A little give on both sides seems appropriate. Perhaps God wants to slow us down a bit. I love to go......I love cars and driving...my style is crimped by the cost of driving a car presently. In my prayers I have asked God to 1. Supply our needs in that regard 2. Make me content at home. I remember and ask you to remember as well, that He is faithful and nothing happens without His will. "God bring us relief".
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Magnolia Trees and Squirrels

A magnolia tree was my gift to my mother on Mother's Day many, many years ago. My mother died thirty years ago so that tree must be at least thrity five years old. It has grown to a size that would challenge any maple. The branches are arranged in such a way that it makes a good tree to climb. One can only dream of climbing that tree. My dad doesn't want the limbs broken so kids are discouraged from attempting the climb. When I stopped at Dad's on Saturday, the tree was full of burgeoning buds and promises to give us a great show this year if all goes well and the creek doesn't rise. One never knows about spring. It can be fickle. There is frost, hard winds, hard rains and hail. It does seem that we may get the show before any of those negative natural events occurs. It's warm presently and will be warm the next few days; according to the weather man who is not always dependable. The tree will burst forth soon. When I view the beauty in that tree each year, I am reminded of my mom, her love for floral beauty, her love for me and mine for her. I lost her way too young. She was fifty seven, I was thirty five. I know God makes no mistakes but I have missed her over the years. One's life goes on after the loss of a close loved one but there is always a vacuum. I think I have written before about a school mate in a class one year younger than me whose mother is still alive today. The mother was a good friend of my mom and I remember spending some Sunday evenings together as famiies. I can't help but feel a bit of longing for my mother when I see this school mate walk with her mom into church or into the school where our grandchildren attend. Indeed they are blessed to have had each other so long.

Long change of subject. Kendra called while I was keying in the above paragraph. I paused my effort to talk awhile. Suddenly, I heard a terrible noise....a car running into a pole? an explosion of sorts? What happened? I walked outside, phone in hand, and walked to the road...looked both ways and saw nothing unusual. Well, almost nothing unusual.. What was unusual was that two of our neighbors were also out looking up and down the road. The question to one another...."You heard it, too...what do you think that was?" The thought in everyone's mind was a car crashed into a pole. We listened awhile for sirens....nothing. I posed the question to Kendra that I wondered if we would ever find the source of the sound. After I was in the house awhile and wanted to resume my blog writing, I found the electric was off. So to the neighbors I went to see if they had juice. Yes, they did...so we were the only ones affected. When Ken came home from town about the same time as all this was going on he instructed me to call REMC, the power company. They took the info and said they would alert their man on the truck and no, no other people had called with a problem. Ken went to the back of our lot where there is a pole with a transformer. He said the fuse was tripped. Then he asked for a set of binnoculars. Why is it that one can never find those when one needs them. Either that or one forgets to take them when one can really use them. UGH. We couldn't find them for the moment but Ken said he thought he could see a squirrel lying on the top of the transformer. The man of the hour arrives and confirms Ken's diagnosis. He took a longggggggg pole and flipped the squirrel off the top...the squirrel arrived on the ground with a loud thump. He was a big sucker and never knew what hit him. Poor thing. Following that, the man installed a new fuse and we were with power once again. All of this happened within forty minutes. Lots happens in short periods of time.

Rereading and Rearranging

Upon returning from church some fifteen minutes earlier than usual, my husband asked, "Do you want me to put those chops on the grill?" "Sure, that'd be great", was my response. He continued to make the dinner while I sat down with a book I started rereading before church this morning. I read the first two pages of the first chapter and laughed outloud twice. I'm not that easily amused but find this reading one that tickles me down to my soul. It is one of Jan Karon's Mitford Series books. It's the only one of the series that I own though I have read them all. I absolutely loved that series and am finding reading the second time just as delightful (or more as I know the characters better by now) as the first. Perhaps I identify with Father Tim because he is in the same chapter of life I am. We have experienced life through the same history and have been shaped and molded by those times and experiences. (My guess is that the same could be said of the author). Both Father Tim , Jan Karon and I serve and worship the same one true God and our values and ideals are set within the parameters of His Word.

Today in worship, we sang:

Spirit of the living God, fall fresh on me.
Spirit of the living God, fall fresh on me.
Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me.
Spirit of the living God, fall fresh on me.

It is interesting to me that even at this stage of life, I need the Spirit to fall on me with freshness and do all that rearranging that the song speaks of. Sometimes the insides of me get out of kilter and my thoughts are not truth. Sometimes my thoughts become pity thoughts. I disdain it but it happens and I am not proud of it. I don't suppose I'm much different than most. My comfort is that God can and will and does rearrange my thoughts, emotions and focus so that my joys are greater because considering Him and His Word over and over, I know His character better.

Asparagus, Me and Killdeer

The weather is beginning to remind me of aspargus season. When one has grown up with aspargus fields being part of one's life, it is apparent even without a calendar that it is time. I can feel it in the air. When I was a kid, the fields here in this area were full of aspargus. Nowadays, I can think of only two aspargus farmers left. While at the Covenant high school rummage sale this morning, I heard the wife of one of those farmers say they have disked the field and now it will be about a week before they pick the first of the vegetable for this year. After looking at the weather forecast, I would predict they will pick within four or five days. We are in for about that many warm days and that is what makes those green heads push out of the ground and grow like mad. It has been said many a time, when it is hot, one can watch the asparagus grow.

I was five and my dad had planted about two and a half acres of aspargus. He then purchased a two seat aspargus picker. There were my mom and dad for the picker but who would drive the tractor to pull it? Me, of course. I was five so should able to pull my part of thewight of family responsibility. Dad had to build up the clutch with blocks so that I could reach the pedals. Asparagus is planted in rows so there is a specific area over which one drives a tractor. To go either right or left too far leads the tractor and then the picker directly through the asparagus. That just could not be. My dad will yell, "Keep the pot over the middle of the row!". There was a grease pot for what I think was the base of the steering wheel. It hung directly over the center of the row so it was a good guide. Driving a tractor at the speed of five miles an hour can get very boring and a little kid's five year old mind wandered and then the yelling would start. I knew there were bad consequences if I drove over green stuff that would be turned into greener stuff with which we would pay bills.

Over the years, I have had many memorable experiences with asparagus picking. The warm mornings were no challenge but those cold, windy, rainy days were the pits. One would freeze. The picking had to be done before school in the mornings. Almost every kid worth his weight in salt picked asparagus. Asparagus fields offered so many kids jobs that the schools began the school day at ten instead of eight during asparagus season. During late April, May and June...this town talked asparagus.

As my siblings gained in age and stature, they, too, joined the effort. It developed into family bonding time. Later, my dad hired a neighborhood friend of mine and that made the effort all the more sweet. There was a bigger crew that worked across the ditch from our field and many of those were older boys. I recall hating to meet them at the end of the rows because as we rode away on our next row, we could hear them poking fun of us young girls.

The smells of those days linger....the asparagus smell.....sweaty rubber gloves......tractor exhaust...the warm earth........and the hot breakfast that would await us when we returned to the house.

Oh, yes, my remembrances wouldn't be complete without mentioning my father's other piece of asparagus picking advice. "Get those fingers down to the ground. We don't want big stumps left to stub our fingers on the next time". His meaning was to pick the asparagus stalk as close to the ground as possible. There was truth in that we didn't want stumps to pick around the next time and the time after that but I knew there was a deeper meaning. We were paid by the pound. An asparagus stalk is fatter on the bottom than the top so the lower we picked the stalk...the more it weighed........thus......the more we made.

Even as late as when my husband and I had three children, asparagus was part of life. When our eldest began Christian school, we figured out a way to pay for it would be asparagus. We rented a couple of fields and the kids and I picked the fields by hand. We didn't have the fields or the picker so had to do things the old fashioned way. Our kids were five, three and one at the time. Lauri, the one year old, slept in the car while we picked. Those little kids lugged along with me as I bent over and picked each of those little green stalks. They helped as much as they could and we paid off the kindergarten bill. We did that for a couple of years and by that time, it was getting more difficult to find a market for the vegetable so we had to find other ways to pay for Christian education. It never did get easy, but there was always a way. God was faithful.

One of the most delightful experiences of riding the picker was that every year we would find a nest in the ground of killdeer. They are pretty birds, brown and white with black bands on their chest. They have a funny and distinctive way of walking the ground so are unmistakenable. Soon their nest would fill with two or three eggs. Innately, mama bird would try to lead us away from her nest by fluffing herself up in hopes of scaring us away. With sadness we watched the mom fly away with obvious fear each time we came by to return to her eggs as soon as we were past. We hated to disturb that mother bird. This went on until one day, that nest was full of little birds with open mouths. It was great fun to watch them turn into full fledge birds and soon fly away to live their own lives.

My youngest chick was here for a visit this week. Today, she left to go home to her husband some one hundred miles away. As difficult as it is for both of us, she is on to live her own life as well.

Note the picture....asparagus stalk in background and three killdeer eggs in a ground nest in the foreground.

Though The Earth Gives Way, I Will Not Be Afraid

Yes, the three of us, Kendra, Ken and I were wide awake at 4:39 a.m. this morning. I felt the bed begin to move and I thought my husband was shaking our bed for some strange reason. About the time I came into consciousness Kendra was calling "Mom" from the guest room and Ken was dragging himself out of the bed to check on the condition of things. Kendra was the first to say, "That was an earthquake!" We talked a few seconds and then went back to bed. Kendra and I suggested from our beds that we turn on the television. Ken scoffed but thought better of it in a jiffy and turned on channel 2 on the TV in our bedroom. Just as the sound came on we hear, "We have been receiving phone calls that people have experienced an earthquake like tremor". We all laughed loudly. We have been up since. Kendra is talking to her brother, Joshua, to see if he felt it in Indianapolis and yes he did. Lauri and Elton slept through it. So did my dad and his wife. None of them wanted to belief us but we have been proven right now as they hear it all over the news.

The garage sale was a success. The greatest feeling of success was when we brought the whole rest of the stuff to the local Christian high school where they are hosting a rummage sale on Saturday morning. Over and done.

Garage Sale Day

It isn't a bad day for a garage sale....about fifty three degree s and the sun is shining. The wind is about a fourth of what it was yesterday so not a bad day at all. We have had a good morning and feel like it should be three oclock in the afternoon (closing time). That will come soon enough and then we can pack up the leftovers and bring them AWAY!

A Grandbaby, A Grarage Sale and A Beautiful Spring Day

Ken dropped me off at the mall just after eight o'clock yesterday morning. Kendra would arrive sometime after ten. I know, it was a crazy way to do things but at least we saved the gas of driving myself and I got to ride along with Kendra while shopping and on the way home. To pass the time, I joined the other fifty mall walkers doing their rounds. Some of them looked much older than I feel and were going at a pretty fast clip. I was impressed. I walked around three times and called it an experience. Then I found a nice soft chair and occupied that leisure until Penneys opened their door at ten...it was worth the wait...I found two blouses, two sweaters, and a cute flip, short jacket......total money......$24.00. I can just hear some of you respond...oh, sure. But it was really a good deal. I paid ten for the jacket so for the other four tops it was fourteen bucks. Can't beat that with a stick. I didn't have time to try them on b/c Kendra called that she had arrived but when I got home I found with delight that everything fit well. That is called a good shopping day.

Today, we are putting a garage sale together. It's a special treat that the temperature outside is supposed to be about seventy. Can't get better than that. Now that I've got all the stuff dragg ed out .....I look forward to the fun.

Emerson has grown like a little weed. She is such a beautiful baby. I know that I'm her grandmother and am expected to say things like that but...she truly is. Those chubby little cheeks just beg for kisses. She smiles with ease now so one sees a little personality coming into being. Just tons of fun and something I wouldn't change for all the world. She slept well last night and when I peeked in the guest room this morning...there they were...my two little girls side by side. Isn't love grand?

Garage Sale Mania

Yesterday, Lauri and I worked on pricing items for our garage sale on Thursday. I love to go to garage sales to look for little treasures and I loathe having them, BUT, here we go again. Lauri wanted help pricing things and my theory is, "price it so that it will go". There isn't anything I am selling that is worth a bunch so if someone else can enjoy it or get some more wear out of it....all the better. I started snooping in my garage and found the "treasures" I came home from work with last spring that I just couldn't part with. We were instructed to take everything home with us when school dismissed last May because of construction in the building. I think that helped me decide that I just may not haul all my stuff back in. At any rate, I didn't go back and when I found the two boxes of stuff in the garage, I realized I haven't opened them in nearly a year so anything in there could GO. That wasn't all I found in the garage that I could part with....so what I thought would be two little boxes of things to contribute turns out to be a Durango full of stuff. I'm at the stage of life that says, "get rid of it". It was only last summer that I heard people my age say that very thing and I would think with guilt, "NO, I still want to accumulate". But accumulating has made me feel like suffocating so out it goes and where it stops nobody knows.

The gecko is still loose in G's & G's house. Lauri called Grandpa yesterday to see if he wanted her to come to try to find him. Grandpa's response was that he felt the wisest plan was to be patient. Gecko wasn't hurting anything so eventually he would appear again. Grandma Mary had put a little lid filled with water out for him. Grandpa said he didn't know if the lizard would find the water since there was not a sign to direct him to it. That was Grandpa's way of making fun of the whole effort. He thinks it is silly that the kids want the critter and at the same time enjoys it to the max. I think G & G gave second thoughts to having the kids come to catch the little thing and decided they would sooner be a bug on the wall, too. Our precious seven year old Ethan would be dangerous running after that thing.

Today is a banner day for me and for the rest of the family here in these parts. Our newest baby, Emerson, is coming to visit (She is three months old today) Actually, her mommy is coming and taking her with. We get pretty excited about these visits. We love having them come home. Kendra heard about the garage sale and decided she wanted to participate so home she comes. She said she also has a vehicle full of stuff. Ken has a meeting this morning so he will drop me off at the mall in Merrillville where I'll wait for Kendra and then we will shop for awhile. Perhaps I'll wear my tennies and get some walking in before she arrives.

Bug on the Wall

We partied all weekend......in the greater world arena that wouldn't sound very good....but we celebrated with joy two birthdays. After three parties in two days, two of them here in this house, I was spent. After the people dispersed, Ken looked at me and said, "You're tired, aren't you?" It isn't good when the people around one can tell....then one knows how badly he/she looks. I settled down in my bedroom and watched Father of the Bride and then started Father of the Bride II but don't remember much of that story. I'll have to catch that one another time.

Earlier in the day when Ken and I got up to leave Dad's and Mary's house around one o'clock, Ken walked ahead of me into the dining room. He yelled, "Hey, you have a lizard in here!" The look on Mary's face was priceless. Immediately my dad became the guilty one. In the living room on a side table next to the window sat a big box with beautiful sweet potato plants growing with vigor. They were started in Florida so there wasn't much contest trying to figure out where the gecko came from. They had carted him all the way home to Indiana in the plant box and now he was loose in the dining room. He escaped Ken's attempt to catch him and all decided he wasn't much of a threat so we left him be whereever he hid. Once my grandchildren got ear that Great Grandma and Grandpa had a lizard in their house they beseeched their mother for approval to keep him in a cage they have for just such an animal. The call was made and Great Grandma said they would try to catch him alive but she couldn't promise anything. The party was in move over to our house so when everyone arrived, the plan was made. Lauri would take her kids to the great grands today, Monday, and try to catch the gecko. That ought to be a trip......I'd like to be a bug on the wall. Well then, maybe not. My life would be in jeopardy. Don't lizards eat bugs?

A Wonderful Time

"A wonderful time was had by all" would be a summation of our evening yesterday. My two brothers and wives, and parents came for a birthday dinner for my dad's eighty eighth. They came around four o'clock.....the plan was to play some games but we never got to that. Talk and more talk is what we got to. It was a joy to share the present and enjoy the memories of the past. We leave the future with our Maker.

After a big dinner, Lauri and Elton joined us. They came in bearing two bottles of wine. We chuckled and told them we had already had our wine with dinner but it didn't deter them. When the conversation in the living turned to three conversations, the ladies departed for the sunroom where the quiet was wonderful and the fellowship sweet.

Today, Mother Mary (as we call my father's wife) is having us for lunch. She has such a gift of hospitality yet age is creeping in and it gets more difficult. Even at that she can work circles around most people twenty years younger. A few days ago she shared with me her desire to have my brother and wife and Ken and me for lunchon Sunday so that we could have more time with my Wisconsin brother and sister in law who are staying there. I told her that we were having a big meal on Saturday night so we didn't need much for lunch on Sunday....a sandwich would be adequate. For once, she listened. As she helped with dishes last evening she told me we would have simpler fare today but it was all she could handle. I wanted to hug her for I felt a bit of concession in her statement. She is such a proud lady and has been the hostess with the mostess for years. At nearly eighty, she is beginning to make those times simpler. The most important thing is that she is not going to give up.

My Grandma and Dutch Cooking

This morning dawned wet, overcast and cold. The grandson has a soccer game today...Nope, I'm not sitting out in this weather. His mom will have to go it alone today. Besides, I have much work to do in preparation for our dinner with family tonight. Hopefully, that will be excuse enough.

Good frie.nds came to play cards last night. The women lost again. I think we are going to have to change games for the women to have a chance. I can gaurantee that if we played Scrabble, the women would win.

Yesterday, I made a Dutch dish that my grandmother used to make. It is made by boiling pork, kale, barley and potatoes together, then mashing it with an electric mixer. When serving it, we sprinkle a little vinegar on top and enjoy. I can still see Gram come into the house (we lived in the next house down the road) carrying a bowl. Whatcha got Gram? Oh, I made mous and thought you might like some. My dad hated it but being raised on it, my mom loved it. Since my dad was not home for supper times because he worked evenings, my mother and the four kids would gulp it down with pure satisfaction. It was always best the next day. The flavors melded better.

Ken and I enjoyed our dinner last night. Some of our older kids like that Dutch dish, too. I called Lauri thinking she liked it but she said not even a little bit. I know John would love it. Lauri said he would probably drive the hour and a half down here to get some. My youngest brother is a fan. I called him and he is eagerly looking forward to the container he will take home with him tonight.

It's fun to carry on those traditions that seem to get lost in the generations. There are some things my grandma made that I wouldn't care to remember. My grandfather drank with vigor a soup she made from buttermilk and some other mysterious ingredients. I'm happy to forget that one.

Bless you, Gram. You were the best grandma ever. You always thought the best of me and encouraged me to be the best I could be. God gave you to us for ninety one years. Wow, what a gift. Four of my children were blest to experience you in our family life. We all enjoyed your laughter and sense of humor. We relished in the care you gave for so many years. When we began to take care of you, we loved having you join us each Sunday for dinner. We honored you and were happy we could.

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

Yesterday, on the tenth, our Isaiah turned twelve. The last number before we call him a teen, I suppose we could call him a tween at this point. I started his day with six pieces of bacon, three fried eggs and two pieces of toast. For dinner we ate together AGAIN, unusual....and had a wonderful hot meal. We are celebrating with the other family in town on Sunday afternoon. Tonight Isaiah's best friend is coming to spend the night. The celebrating goes on.

Tomorrow, my brothers and their wives are coming for dinner to celebrate my dad's 88th birthday. One of my brothers lives in Wisconsin so it is always a treat when they come to De Motte to visit us. My sister lives in Florida so doesn't make it here unless it is a really special occasion. I know she celebrated with them before they came back. Yesterday, when I visited my dad, he said when he left Florida, people would say, "see ya next year". He smiled big and said that he replied, "The Lord willing".

We put the closet back together...FINALLY...why does every project here have to linger on for days, weeks or months? I did find some things I could part with and made room for Ken to have a couple of shelves for his business stuff for which he couldn't find an appropriate spot. I thought about the ability I have to put the stuff back and bring order to the closet. The other day I talked about the sin in me and how my closets of sin need cleaning out now and then, too. When I put the stuff back in the closet, it felt good because order was again restored. But when I clean out my sin closet.....there is only one thing I wish to fill the emptiness. In fact, I don't even have the power to fill that spot with what I want there. Obviously, I want the Spirit of the Living God to fill that vacuum in me. When He does that, my whole life is put in an orderly and productive fashion. That's a cleaning we need on a daily basis, uh?

Loving Well

May I be transparent with you today? Yesterday morning, I was in a bum. I had totally had it. The night before my husband had said something hurtful to me in the company of others. I was crushed. Did he mean it to crush me? No, probably not, but that didn't change the way my heart was affected. We got home later than our normal bedtime and didn't work it out before we tried to go to sleep. I tossed and turned and tossed and turned. Sleep would not come and God's counsel not go to bed angry ran across the computer screen of my mind a hundred times. I noticed that my husband was also not sleeping well. When I moved, he moved. Not a good sign. That made my falling asleep more difficult. I saw one thirty on the clock, then three thirty.....I would be relieved when daylight moved across my horizon.

In the morning, my daughter gave me fits. I mean, I tried to please in every way, shape, or form but nothing pleased her. Pretty soon, I was to blame for something that was her responsibility. I bordered on giving up entirely with the whole bunch that live here. I wrote the daughter a note and explained my heart which she often hears better from a note than from my mouth. I lay the note on her bed and left the house for Bible study group.

Yea, I was going to Bible study. Crushed, angry and ready to kill. On my way, I remembered that just last week we started a new study series called, Loving Well. I just about turned the car around and traveled in the opposite direction. I probably would have except that I knew I would have to answer to another of my daughters who would be at Bible study, not to mention my close friends who would also be there. So I went, determined in my mind not let the lesson negate my anger and hurt. I also determined not to tell anyone how I really felt lest the dam of frustration come out in a flood of tears.

I sat through the teaching video. I chuckled when the teacher was funny. I tried to particpate. I knew full well that I had not followed God's directive on how to handle anger, at least with my husband. The teaching focused on God's love for us and how we can't love anyone unless we allow God to love us first. I thought, "Well, God, seems you love me so much you allow others to punch and hurt me".

I got out of Dodge as soon as the lesson was over. I allowed myself the privilege of coming home for awhile since I knew the others were gone. I had the whole place to myself and I had some things to accomplish so I went home. When it was almost time for my husband to come home from chasing a small white ball around eighteen holes at the local greens, I decided to go away and stay away the remainder of the day. I wouldn't even be home for dinner....then he'd feel bad. Now I can laugh but yesterday it wasn't so funny.

I went to Merrillville and shopped for groceries. I didn't look for anything else knowing I better not spend any more money since I had spent a fortune on gas just getting there. I like to justify things, you know. As I shopped, something came over me. Yes, I know what it was. It was the spirit of God. Gradually, my attitude changed and that anger and hurt seemed to disappear and it certainly wasn't because I wanted it to. I had a plan and was stickin to it. It wasn't very long and my plan became, "I'll go home and cook them all a nice big dinner."

Soon the car was in motion and the direction was south toward home. On my arrival, every one was amiable and I was sort of guarded, I suppose. I began cooking dinner and found it a joy. Everyone found time to come to the dinner table. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and some loving conversation.

After dinner, I noticed the light on my cell phone was blinking. I opened it and saw I had a text message. It was the daughter I had been so frustrated with. The message, "I love you, Mom."
Thank you, Lord, for loving well through me even when I didn't feel like it.

What Andy Rooney Has to Say

I don't like forwards and generally don't open them. I got this one from my sister and out of respect to her I opened it. While I don't agree to everything Andy Rooney says in this piece, there is much of it that rings truth in my ears. So for today, I'll let Andy tell it like it is.



Andy Rooney said on '60 Minutes' a few weeks back:

• I don't think being a minority makes you a victim of anything except numbers.. The only things I can think of that are truly discriminatory are things like the United Negro College Fund, Jet Magazine, Black Entertainment Television, and Miss Black America. Try to have things like the United Caucasian College Fund, Cloud Magazine, White Entertainment Television, or Miss White America; and see what happens...Jesse Jackson will be knocking down your door.
• Guns do not make you a killer. I think killing makes you a killer. You can kill someone with a baseball bat or a car, but no one is trying to ban you from driving to the ball game.
• I believe they are called the Boy Scouts for a reason, which is why there are no girls allowed. Girls belong in the Girl Scouts! ARE YOU LISTENING MARTHA BURKE ?
• I think that if you feel homosexuality is wrong, it is not a phobia, it is an opinion.
• I have the right 'NOT' to be tolerant of others because they are different, weird, or tick me off.
• When 70% of the people who get arrested are black, in cities where 70% of the population is black, that is not racial profiling; it is the Law of Probability.
• I believe that if you are selling me a milkshake, a pack of cigarettes, a newspaper or a hotel room, you must do it in English! As a matter of fact, if you want to be an American citizen, you should have to speak English!
• My father and grandfather didn't die in vain so you can leave the countries you were born in to come over and disrespect ours.
• I think the police should have every right to shoot you if you threaten them after they tell you to stop. If you can't understand the word 'freeze' or 'stop' in English, see the above lines.
• I don't think just because you were not born in this country, you are qualified for any special loan programs, government sponsored bank loans or tax breaks, etc., so you can open a hotel, coffee shop, trinket store, or any other business.
• We did not go to the aid of certain foreign countries and risk our lives in wars to defend their freedoms, so that decades later they could come over here and tell us our constitution is a living document; and open to their interpretations.
• I don't hate the rich and I don't pity the poor I know pro wrestling is fake, but so are movies and television. That doesn't stop you from watching them.
• I think Bill Gates has every right to keep every penny he made and continue to make more. If it ticks you off, go and invent the next operating system that's better, and put your name on the building.
• It doesn't take a whole village to raise a child right, but it does take a parent to stand up to the kid; and smack their little behinds when necessary, and say 'NO!'
• I think tattoos and piercing are fine if you want them, but please don't pretend they are a political statement. And, please, stay home until that new lip ring heals. I don't want to look at your ugly infected mouth as you serve me French fries!
• I am sick of 'Political Correctness.'
• I know a lot of black people, and not a single one of them was born in Africa ; so how can they be 'African-Americans'? Besides, Africa is a continent. I don't go around saying I am a European-American because my great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather was from Europe. I am proud to be from America and nowhere else And if you don't like my point of view, tough... I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG, OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA , AND TO THE REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL!
• It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God. Therefore I have a very hard time understanding why there is such a problem in having 'In God We Trust' on our money and having 'God' in the Pledge of Allegiance. Why don't we just tell the 14% to BE QUIET!!!

In Need of Sunshine

On Saturday and Sunday, Nancy and I spent many hours formatting the contents of the book in process. She taught me so many things about Microscoft Word. I'm sure I only know the tip of the iceberg but I know so much more today than I did on Friday. Sometimes I can look at a screen and not see something that is so blatantly obvious. I'm learning to READ all those little icons and areas where I've not looked before. When I look at tabs, I'm looking at all the tabs not just the ones that are familiar to me. I'm getting there. Last night I worked on formatting the poems that my grandfather wrote and proudly worked out the problems I ran into. I thought a couple of times that I would have to call Nancy and scream "Help". But I perservered and made it through a couple of challenges. I did it myself because I know how busy Nancy is and decided I couldn't bother her again. I can't explain what a relief it will be to get that book sent to the publisher. I'm thinking now it will be by the end of summer. We decided we need to read the book at least three times for editing and let others read it as well. So if you have nothing better to do and like to edit things, volunteer your time, my friend.



I walked in the rain this morning. I think I deserve applause for that. I perservered in that effort even though the weather said to me that it would be much easier for me to stay in bed or cozy up in my recliner. I took with me two plastic bags today and filled both of them to the brim. The corner lot owned by the phone company which houses a very small equipment building was a garbage heap. I suppose a lot that is virtually empty begs people to use it that way for the things they wish to hide. I found several large bottles that had housed whiskey as well as some wine bottles. Yuk was my first response. When I came home, my husband wanted to know what I was doing with these bags of garbage. Putting them in our receptacle was my reply. He cautioned me that our receptacle isn't big enough for our garbage AND the neighborhood garbage as well. That didn't deter me. I'm getting that stuff cleaned up.

I have no big plans for this day. Lauri and I decided we will have a garage sale a week from Thursday. I'm not sure why we are doing this. We have experienced such things before and swore off having garage sales ourselves but here we go again. Kendra thinks it will be fun so she is going to come early to help us and then stay a couple of days. Lauri says I have to bring a bunch of stuff. Not sure what that will be and I know I should get at that but the sun has to shine first. It is getting lighter outside so maybe later today.

Greener Around Me

During our visit last evening with son, John, wife, Kim, and their offspring, they spoke of a fitness campaign that is being promoted at their church. Enrollment required stating how much time one spends in spiritual fitness, physical fitness, and emotional fitness. That awakened the guilt within me. I do my best to get in the spiritual and the emotional areas of fitness to a more or lesser degree but physical? Yuk. I don't like exercise for the sake of exercise. As a matter of fact....I loathe exercise for the sake of exercise. It seems so self indulging to me. There should be a greater purpose for anything I do. Now, I know one can shoot holes into my thinking but I am a product of a father that has a purpose to everything he does and taught me to do the same.

I woke at six fifteen, took a quick shower and donned my walking clothes. I must. I must...I go back to the cardiologist in a short month and I should show some progress in physical care. I stuck my nose out the door to test the weather and decided my fleece sweatshirt would do if I covered my ears and hands so back inside to get ear muffs and some gloves.

As I strolled down the country road at a comfortable clip, I noticed tons of refuse on the sides of the road. I generally don't notice that as I fly by in my car. Just yesterday we had a conversation about caring for the earth and my eyes were allowing something in my head that disturbed me. WHY? Why do people think they can use the sides of the road for their trash can? I was frustrated. I began tossing around an idea. I could carry a plastic grocery bag with me each morning and pick up trash until my bag got full.......if I walk for several days or weeks, I could have the road side and the edge of my neighbors yards trash free and beautiful. I made a plan of attack and decided where I would start. I thought I would begin in my close neighborhood...from the corner home which would account for about eight homes, four on each side of the road.

I turned around about a half mile down the road (don't want to start too much at once, you know) and continued my thoughts concerning a greener and more pleasant world around me. No lie, at the fourth house on the north side of the street lying in the grass was a bunch of garbage including a KFC plastic bag. My purpose now had tools. I picked up the dinner plate and sauce boxes, stuffed them in the bag, picked up the receipt and found the name of the guilty. (I knew him...he is a high school student) Then I walked back and forth in front of the homes and picked up smashed cans, water bottles, pieces of broken car parts, straws, cigarrette boxes, etc. By the time I arrived home, the bag was bulging and the roadside of my neighbors yards were clean. What a great feeling. It all took me less than forty five minutes.

At our Bible study the other night, a strong feeling came over me that God could use us to make a difference. When I stuffed the garbage bag into our refuse container, I smiled as I saw that God had used me to make a difference......a very small one.......but a difference at that.

From now on when I take a walk, I will stuff a plastic grocery bag in my pocket and continue to clean up the space around me. I thought it was really neat, though, how God had provided that bag for me. He knows I don't like to waste an opportunity. I praise Him this morning and always.

A Weekend in GR

The weather is awarding us with a bit of freedom.....it is mild and sunny....the delight of spring. We are north of Grand Rapids where one would expect cold weather this time of year but we hit it right.
My cousin was reared in Africa, a son of missionary parents. Then as a young adult, he joined the Navy and traveled the world. After he retired, he and his wife settled in Grand Rapids. These facts explain why we haven't spent much of life together. Here we are getting better acquainted and preserving family history in the form of a book written by our grandfather. Nancy and I set ourselves up in their office, each with a computer, side by side and worked through the contents of the book, one sentence at a time. At this point it is obvious, we will not get through the whole book but it is comforting that Nan knows Microsoft Word very well and can explain matters to me that I was not even aware of. We have made progress even though we are on page sixty and there are over two hundred fifty pages.

Last evening, Paul's mum, my aunt, along with other sons and several grandchildren came for game night. We had two round tables of games going and there was much laughter and hilarity going on. Ken and I played a game called Quiddler or Quiddley, I must get that right so I can buy the game. It is a word game that I found very challenging and entertaining at the same time.

Now to church we go......

To GR

It's early.....5:20 on a Saturday morning....been awake since 2:30....too many things on my mind that need attention.
This is the weekend we go to Grand Rapids to spend the weekend with my cousin and his wife. We look forward to a completed goal. Nancy and I will work on "the book". She is pretty accomplished on Microsoft Word so I hope will solve any ills I still have to resolve before the book goes to the publisher. How close we get remains unknown. I do know my Uncle Bob who passed away just before Christmas would be smiling at our intent. I regret not having finished it while he could have held it in his hands and given me that beautiful satisfied smile only he could give. What a treasure he was. What a legacy he leaves us.
Onward then....

Friday Again

Gloomy morning here in northwest Indiana. We had a bit of rain overnight but the cloud cover promises more. It is spring. All the bulb plants are poking their heads out of the ground about two to four inches. If we get any warm weather they will take off running. It is a great time of year.

For about twenty years, I have been accustomed to looking forward to Fridays. Friday after work and all evening was the best time of the week. Of course this was when I was a working woman. I still get a little tickle in my stomach when Friday rolls around. It must be the programing in me. Generally, it was the night we went out to eat. I recall feeling like lying my head on the table because the fatigue was so strong. Now every day is Friday and I love it. This Friday night we have our small group Bible study at our home. There will be about ten of us. Most gatherings, we have a small meal and then our study. Tonight, the boy's club from our church is having a burger bash so it was decided that everyone will attend the burger bash and then come here for dessert. One of the other ladies is bringing dessert so I have it made in the shade this time.

So, for all you working women out there....have a wonderful weekend. Enjoy your family...enjoy your home...and enjoy your fellowship on Sunday when you gather with your church family.

Little Progress

At this point the STUFF still sets on the floor of the family room. Progress has been made but just like all the other projects in our history....it won't be ready to put back together today. It's always bigger and more complex, isn't it?

My daughter, Scarlen, came into the family room yesterday morning and said, "What is this???" I explained that we were cleaning out the closet. She glanced over the contents on the floor and said, "I wouldn't get rid of any of those games if I were you". WHAT? They were the only things I decided to part with. She explained that games are all technological these days and "kids aren't using their brains" for games anymore. The old games are much better and she had been thinking of buying up some old games. Coming from the mouth of a girl who has been after every new piece of technology that goes on the market, the words I heard were astonishing. Her son, Isaiah, has everything a kid could have in the tech world. Ooops, not an I-Pod yet but he is saving for it.

My plan was smashed. What to do? I complained to my husband this morning that there seems to be STUFF everywhere here. I compared the state of our house to a friend's home and he pointed out that they have two people in their home and we have five. They have much more space to store things than we. Not much comfort in all that and a reason for reminding myself that God says not to compare our lot with another's. Guess I got what I deserved there.

Closet in Need of Care/Soul in Need of Care

Do you know how much we store in closets? We emptied one of the closets in our family room so that we could install more shelf brackets. The poor shelves were bending in places they shouldn't bend. I am simply amazed at all the STUFF that came out of that space. My intent was to get rid of as much as I dared. As I go through the stuff, I find so little with which I care to part. I found prayer journals from long ago. I can't throw those out; they are the things I read to inspire my faith as I read of answered prayers on this life journey. There are many toys from Isaiah's younger years; beautiful toys with little wear that will serve future little people well. Even Isaiah had a difficult time parting with those things. He thought of his cousin's visits to our house. I'm afraid most of that will stay. Then there is music......lots of it....works that I was always going to practice and conquer in my limited piano abilities. Some how, I simply can't give up that dream. It would cost mega bucks to replace that sheet music. On the bright side, I did find many games that haven't been played perhaps in as long as they have taken space and I will part with most of them.

When I think of that closet in relationship to my soul. I know I would be surprised if I emptied myself of all my sin. In fact I would probably be shocked and sorely disappointed at how much is stored in there. There is pride. As I take it out and look at it I see that there is part of it that is hard to give up. Do I want to clean myself out of all that protects me in a sinful sense? There are negative and even hateful thoughts about some people. Oh, I'd like to say it isn't so...but if I truly pulled everything out of the corners, I'm sad to say, I'd find it. Can I give up those resentful feelings for hurts inflicted? I don't know...it is hard. Oops, I ran across selfishness. Ugh. The list goes on and I find in my spiritual life the process of cleaning out, rearranging, and setting things RIGHT requires a painful process.

The result????? We plan to put the closet back together tomorrow. I'll then consider what the results of that clean and orderly closet is and I'll relate that to my soul as well.

April Fools Day

April 1 brought lots of fun to the DeVries household when our children were small. It was pretty common for our little ones to fill their daddy's shoes with newspaper on the morning of the first day of April. Daddy would try to put on his shoes and find the paper. The little kids would dance and laugh....haha, Daddy, we fooled you. Daddy never seemed to realize the date so every year he was fooled. Times have changed. I haven't heard anything about April Fools Day today. I've been holed up in the house for the most part while Ken and Scarlen took turns asking for my assistance. Scarlen asked for help with a resume. After working with her for what seemed like an hour or more, I told her we needed to seek help from someone that knows what is going on in the business world these days. She was disappointed that Mom couldn't fill the bill but Mom has been out of it way too long. I promised to find someone that knows what they are doing and ask for help.

My only blood aunt whom I dearly love was told in November that she probably had lung cancer. It has taken this long to get a plan and date for treatment. She went into Northwestern Hospital in Chicago yesterday morning. First there were two nodules that needed testing. If those were cancer, it would have indicated that the cancer had matastisized and there would have been no surgery. Praise God the nodules were residual from a former fungal infection. Surgery was a go. The specialist has developed a laparoscopic technique for this surgery so that the surgery is not so invasive as it once was. It was not guaranteed that that technique could be used but as it turned out, he did remove a lobe from her lung laparoscopically. She did so well...at 86...we are amazed and so thankful. God is good. Her son called here today to say that her oxygen tube has been removed and that she was sitting up in a chair. I clap my hands in praise to God for his mercy for this dear saint.