Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant

March 15, 2013

In the past 3 months I have attended 3 funerals, missed a couple more due to work or other commitments, and know of others I didn't know well who have died.  Of the three funerals I have attended, two were members of my church who were both in their nineties, having lived long and varied lives, and one was my age.

Bob was a wonderful, gentle, giant of a man.  On first glance, he looked gruff and unapproachable and intimidating.  Nothing could have been further from the truth.  Bob had a beautiful smile, a warm hug, and fierce way of protecting those around him.  He was a wonderful cook and his face lit up whenever he was complimented on his culinary creations.  Bob loved St. George's and served in many ways, both in leadership and other roles.  There's a Bob-sized hole on the left-hand side of the church on Sunday morning.

June was a tiny woman with a sweet, sweet smile and a heart the size of God.  She was ready with a hug and a smile for everyone.  June greeted newcomers as if they were old friends and when members of the church weren't there, she did her best to find out why and bring them back.   June was always up for a gathering, no matter the reason, and was often the life of the party.  There's a June-sized hole on the right-hand side of the church on Sunday morning.

Today was the hardest.  Brian was my age.  We went to high school together, were in the band, and were in the same group of friends.  Brian was a musician and an athlete.  We lost track of each other after high school, but got the chance to reconnect 2 years ago when his beautiful wife, Michele, and his sister, Brenda, invited me to Brian's surprise 50th birthday party.  Through the magic of Facebook, I have been in contact with all three of them since then.  At his funeral today, we all learned so much more of who Brian was as an adult - a husband, father, chef, fisherman, and a Sergeant with the Orange County Sheriff's office, just to name a few.  He was well respected and beautifully honored today.  And, I believe there is a Brian-sized hole in many lives tonight.

So, what are my takeaways from these 3 lives?  Love each other, smile as much as possible, help others to feel loved, and show Christ to all with whom you come into contact.  I'm sure that as each of these beautiful people reached the gates of Heaven, they heard the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant.  Well done.".

Rest in peace, Bob, June, and Brian.  Know that you were loved and that you are missed.  Until we meet again...

A New Year...A New Start

January 4, 2013

Last year I started the year with a rather lofty goal of taking a picture every day and writing about it.  I did great until the end of May, got behind, and couldn't get caught up so I stopped.  For a long time I viewed this as a failure on my part.  This morning, I decided that I didn't fail - I was 42% successful!  I am tweaking this some for this year in order to be more successful and less overwhelmed.  My goal this year is to write at least once a week - there may be weeks I don't write at all and weeks I write more.  The writings are, for the most part, for me - a place to put my thoughts and feelings into words.  I will share them with you in the hope that something I say will resonate within you.  I don't expect all of you to agree with me, as this would be a boring world if we all agreed on everything!  And so, 2013 begins...
On New Year's Eve we had our annual gathering with dear friends.  It was a blend of food and wine, laughter and serious conversations, chaos and calm; a microcosm of another year of our friendship.  I spent a period of time outside by the fire pit by myself, enjoying the quiet, reviewing the past year, and reflecting on the coming year.  It was a year of ups and downs, with many joys and some sorrows.  A pretty typical year in most respects.
I have chosen NOT to make any resolutions for 2013.  Instead, I am setting some goals to work toward.  Some would say there's not a difference in resolutions and goals, but I believe there's a huge difference.  A resolution has a connotation of failure if it is not achieved, while a goal is something to work toward until it is achieved, no matter how long that takes.   And one of my goals is to set myself up for success rather than for failure.  I tend to dwell on my failures as a mother, wife, sister, friend, teacher, Christian so I am going to work on noting my successes instead!
I'm glad you're taking this journey with me this year.  Here's to a highly successful 2013!

Written Words

September 13, 2012

One of the great memories of my childhood was opening the mailbox to find a letter from my grandmother. Even better was a letter from her that was addressed to ME.  I knew her handwriting before I could read the words.  Most of us remember learning to print and then the excitement and terror of learning to write in cursive.  We were all taught the basics of the curves and loops and lines and connectors, all of us trying to make our letters look like the models on the board or the paper.   Even as we struggled with trying to make each letter perfect, our personalities and quirks began to come through in our writing and we each developed our own style.
The onset of the digital world has caused the demise of this particular art form, as keyboards replace pens and pencils.  Most of the students I have now have never been taught cursive writing and struggle to read it.  Do I think we should go back to a time when everything was handwritten and we didn't have access to the many wonders of the digital world?  Of course not.  But, I do find it sad that such a beautiful and personal way of expression may someday be a thing of the past.

The Morning After

September 12, 2012

The day after...the sun came up, the flags dropped to half staff and we began our new normal.  The nation was in shock.  Did this really happen or was it a shared nightmare?  The answer?  Yes, it really happened and we were living in a shared nightmare.  The frantic search for survivors continued, the tears flowed, travel came to a standstill, and the world watched us stumble, then catch each other and stand back up.  We mourned, cried, prayed, sang, held each other up, and began to rise again, determined that terrorists would not bring us to our knees.  People from all over the world prayed and cried with us, and sent us messages of sympathy, hope, and encouragement, and offers of help.  We learned of a man named Osama Bin Laden, of whom many of us had never heard, and of his plans - how he used our own willingness to welcome non-Americans against us.
The day after...our world had changed forever.

9/11

September 11, 2012

This picture is from June of 1996 - who knew that capturing the towers in the background would be important only a few years later.
My 9/11 story is not particularly exciting or unique or memorable.  On that morning I was at school teaching Math to 7th graders and knew nothing of what was happening until after both towers had been hit.  I walked through the teacher's lounge and glanced at the television to see smoke billowing out of the towers; I stopped to see what was happening and was stunned upon hearing the basics of the story.  At that point I went back to my classroom, got my phone, and went outside to start calling family members since I wanted to make sure I knew where everyone was (particularly Mom who had been traveling off and on for several months and had mentioned going to New York City).  It took a while, but I finally got through to everyone.  When I got home that afternoon I turned on the tv and just sat and watched...and watched and watched.  I couldn't take my eyes off of it for days.  On Thursday we knew that Tropical Storm Gabrielle was headed our way and she hit us head on Friday.  It was a relief when the power went out because then I couldn't watch tv any more.
There's no real reason for this (I had no personal connection to anyone in New York, Pennsylvania, or DC), but I was a mess for months.  I found myself crying for no reason, snapping at people who didn't deserve it, and my poor sleeping habits got even worse.
However, I found such inspiration in the heroism and patriotism surrounding that day and the days, weeks, and months that followed.  Heroism in the form of the First Responders, the coworkers, the members of the church that survived and became a sanctuary for the weary and the mourning and the rescue workers, and people from all over the world who banded together to help in any way they could.  The way we banded together as a country was beautiful.  People from all walks of life worked together, prayed together, and held each other up in this time of crisis.  I have always loved this country and the way we came together gave me such hope.
Always remember.  Never forget.  Love one another.  Help each other.  Hold each other up.

Back Home Again in Indiana

May 27, 2012
Today is a sad day for me as I am sitting at home in Florida watching the Indianapolis 500 on TV instead of sitting at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway watching the race in person.  I have watched this race my entire life as Speedway is my mom's hometown and my dad has always been a race fan (my theory is that if he had been given the opportunity, he could have been a pretty successful driver).  My grandparents house was a mile or so from the track, mom now lives across from the track, and we have family and good friends all over the area.  When I was in 4th grade we spent several weeks in May with my grandparents.  Strangely enough I had never been to the race itself until about 10 years ago.  It has become an annual pilgrimage that is not as much about the race as it is about spending the weekend with family and friends, walking up and down Georgetown, relaxing, and having fun.  Of course, attending the race is part of the fun and is hard to describe to someone who hasn't been to it.  The energy of the crowd of several hundred thousand, the festivities prior to the race, the parade of members of the Armed Forces riding around the track waving to the crowd, the whine of the cars, and so much more add to the excitement.  It truly is the Greatest Spectacle in Racing!   Our plan is to be back there next year.

Coasters

May 26, 2012

Yesterday at Legoland I went on all four of the roller coasters with Catherine.  That may not seem like a big deal, but for me it's HUGE.  Roller coasters scare me.  I really dislike the feeling of going downhill quickly and all that twisting and turning makes me feel like I'm going to go flying off into space and then crash into the ground.  The four coasters at Legoland are geared more toward children, which makes them just about my speed!