tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55336580362202332232024-02-19T07:54:25.023-05:00Forever in My Mind - MaybeIt is what it is...Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.comBlogger419125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-7751212313734088672024-01-25T19:06:00.002-05:002024-01-25T19:06:56.996-05:00Pete Petersen<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There are some
special people that God put upon this earth just to show us how to live our
lives and how we should be always to each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pete Petersen was one of those people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The smile you see in this picture was always
on his face.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure he had rough days
and there were days when he didn’t feel like smiling but he always put forth
his best effort to make certain that whomever he was speaking with felt how
much he truly cared about them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He loved
everyone like Jesus said we are to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now I know there were people he had to pray hard to get the strength to
be nice too, but he was always nice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
always went out of his way to see that we children were taken care of. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He cared for his neighbors and his family with
all his heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are so many
memories I have of this man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wonder if
he ever knew what an impact he had on my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I have the following email sent to me every year on the anniversary of
his death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not as a reminder that he
died but as a reminder to thank God for having put him in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjyYApJgFUuogM2TWHpVSlb6KgkzY0mCV9YtD8CqhyqNMQHi6lp_l2qad_N_R781ANXOYyfN3fWDBl9oDJgG_XY2qMh6IzHHk-EuVS3ztWZZ08SvuL73KbaVXCeYp-rQRgvLMCQ-GuacMq4rbeiVcADQbZLuCRmWAZTdoz0xe755V2KxqnCiq6CCcsFyJU" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="63" data-original-width="658" height="31" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjyYApJgFUuogM2TWHpVSlb6KgkzY0mCV9YtD8CqhyqNMQHi6lp_l2qad_N_R781ANXOYyfN3fWDBl9oDJgG_XY2qMh6IzHHk-EuVS3ztWZZ08SvuL73KbaVXCeYp-rQRgvLMCQ-GuacMq4rbeiVcADQbZLuCRmWAZTdoz0xe755V2KxqnCiq6CCcsFyJU" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It’s hard to
believe that has been ten years since this wonderful soul left this world and
went to be with God in heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<br />
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBy2szjEiK5_ia00Pd3nOn4UkgatKLl0XERTQZBEsBuO362XnL8_iXuSZ1Ip5Hqvkm7D9P3FEFqRjMofLuWSL_GFJr4TOaTjclXkjxDMv1ybwlwa9jE3e2gYzcHyH61tftLQpippeJosww9jyuvs_9Ef6eHLpV7VvnU5e3UH0JNMn96av37HMX5Zzve0/s512/Screenshot%202024-01-25%20pete%20.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="494" data-original-width="512" height="309" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBy2szjEiK5_ia00Pd3nOn4UkgatKLl0XERTQZBEsBuO362XnL8_iXuSZ1Ip5Hqvkm7D9P3FEFqRjMofLuWSL_GFJr4TOaTjclXkjxDMv1ybwlwa9jE3e2gYzcHyH61tftLQpippeJosww9jyuvs_9Ef6eHLpV7VvnU5e3UH0JNMn96av37HMX5Zzve0/s320/Screenshot%202024-01-25%20pete%20.png" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">To his
children I want to say thank you for sharing him with the rest of us and I know
you know how blessed you were to have him as a dad.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Tomorrow,
Friday, January 26, 2024, I challenge all of you to do something extra special
for someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An act of kindness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pay for someone’s lunch, complement someone
on their outfit or just give them an ear to listen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re always in my heart Pete.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-20682646026510127792022-02-19T11:47:00.004-05:002022-02-19T11:47:21.542-05:00God’s Not Dead!<p><span style="font-family: "Courier New", monospace; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Courier New", monospace; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg9gg-2oqWDqVRPLDCwuaH5r_m_4acPEjVaJa7R7QeTNpmT6WqP4lVrsNPx0WB1Q2phSzofWrbSMmhhb9emuT0kguH3JglLCUW4-dSHZuEz7ZlEyk_VnbCnytocV_QLbqcgWWUPNsN2Q9IsZpyt20hKF3RqlpQ8DAFPEM-rvy6MSoLdRca3DR9HMXBz" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="462" height="367" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg9gg-2oqWDqVRPLDCwuaH5r_m_4acPEjVaJa7R7QeTNpmT6WqP4lVrsNPx0WB1Q2phSzofWrbSMmhhb9emuT0kguH3JglLCUW4-dSHZuEz7ZlEyk_VnbCnytocV_QLbqcgWWUPNsN2Q9IsZpyt20hKF3RqlpQ8DAFPEM-rvy6MSoLdRca3DR9HMXBz=w306-h367" width="306" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: "Courier New", monospace; font-size: 12pt;">If you have not watched the series of movies, “God’s No Dead”, you really don’t know what you’re missing. They are moving and compelling and they really do get to the heart of what is going on in the world we live in today. They are also based on true stories of things that have happened.</span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, monospace;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The first one follows a student who refuses to be bullied into writing God is dead on a piece of paper and turning it into a philosophy professor. This is the actual case that started the whole movie series. In the class the professor says we might as well dispatch with this fallacy upfront and then we don’t have to waste the whole semester with that portion of the debate. One student in the whole class refused to compromise his belief in God to satisfy this teacher and pass his class. The admiration I have for this student as I watched this was inspiring. To see how many were just so willing to sign that paper and go on. As Christians we need to stand up for our faith and for God. It’s what we are called to do.</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, monospace;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In the second one a history teacher answers a history question. Yes Jesus is history. (His life is a historical fact whether a person chooses to believe He was the Messiah or not.) The history question asked by the student to the teacher was comparing the teachings of Jesus and the teachings of Gandhi. The teacher did nothing wrong in answering the question and only answered the question as it pertained to history but then she is put on trial for saying the name of Jesus in class. This also is another tale of a person who stood up for her faith and refused to be bullied by threat of loss of job into stating something she did not believe or taking a plea to get it over with. </span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, monospace;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In the third one there is a priest who is being told he move his church off the university campus where it has resided for decades after it burns down. This one follows how it burned down, the discourse of family and the fight to do what is right with the desire of human nature. It also shows that even someone of great faith can have a moment of weakness. </span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, monospace;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The fourth one takes on home schooling and the governments attempt to tell them that they can not teach religion and give them a curriculum they must follow. It delves into the rights of the government to not only tell us how to raise our children but what we can and can not teach them. In this they were following the regular school curriculum along with a religious class with a group of neighborhood children all of the same religious faith. This one delves into civil rights and shows how there is no truth to how people believe in the separation of church and state the way people quote it verses how it was actually written. There is actually nothing in the constitution that states this. It was addressed in a letter from Thomas Jefferson where he is explaining that the constitution is there to ensure that government does not restrict the way a person practices their faith. </span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, monospace;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I could watch these movies over and over. They give me strength and they put a smile on my face. I would highly recommend that you watch them regardless of your religious belief’s. The movies tackle the very things that are going on in our society today and as you watch them it becomes very apparent that we should be scared of the way our world is moving. The united states alone has moved from a position of great light to looming darkness in just the past year.</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, monospace;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">God is good all the time and all the time God is good!</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Courier New, monospace;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">God’s Not Dead!</span></span></p>Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-56584659329235002032022-01-24T14:32:00.002-05:002022-01-24T14:43:33.332-05:00Without A Warning Or Maybe There Was<p> </p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqRg1SdW2xW-ADVQykc7CfbpmctvZZHRX86NsAX9MLshH3Trw7_xgQHDO_po_tyT2PiTBAtFbMZXh85syqkGUnmWk28go6BoQKT-yr9oR9Jv5MDsNpU15GV_QdsCwJUO1Rez4PAiOr24/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="850" data-original-width="853" height="357" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqRg1SdW2xW-ADVQykc7CfbpmctvZZHRX86NsAX9MLshH3Trw7_xgQHDO_po_tyT2PiTBAtFbMZXh85syqkGUnmWk28go6BoQKT-yr9oR9Jv5MDsNpU15GV_QdsCwJUO1Rez4PAiOr24/w358-h357/Screen+Shot+2022-01-02+at+4.43.29+PM.png" width="358" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span face="AppleGothic, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">I’ve always been told my heart is healthy as a horse, so it was a shock to me when I had my heart attack in October. In trying to understand what is going on with me though I have been doing my research as I normally do after something of this nature occurs in my life. I had known for almost two years that I had a condition called bradycardia. What this means is that my heart beats slow for my age, size, etc. My normal heart rate resting is around 52. With activity I sometimes get up in the 60’s and with extreme exercise I might break 90. My doctor had been monitoring it and did not send me to a cardiologist. She told me it was nothing to worry about. I will be getting a new doctor due to her moving out of town, but had thought about it anyway after hearing from the hospital that bradycardia is something I should have had a referral to a cardiologist for. As many of you know I often hid any health issues I had from parents as I didn’t want them to worry and especially the last two years since they had enough to worry about. I’m actually writing this to hopefully inspire some of you not to ignore your health warnings. Especially women. Heart attacks are not just about chest pain. Symptoms can very greatly. I strongly urge you to go on line and check out the symptoms. Women are more likely to have what is called a silent heart attack too, which means there are no symptoms,, so heart health checks as you get older are very important. With this being said I’ll continue my story. So for the last couple of years I have had almost constant nausea and I’ve had several times where I wake up in the middle of the night and have to run to the restroom to vomit. Nothing apparent wrong with me, just out of the blue then gone. I’ve had bouts of dizziness and extreme fatigue that would hit out of nowhere. There were moments where it took every ounce of energy I had to walk across a room. My husband can tell you that I would often tell him I didn’t feel well. He’d ask me what was wrong and say I’m not sure I just feel off. This is listed as a sign of an ailing heart when you go look it up. My appetite hasn’t been there either. I’m a big girl who eats very little. I fill up after a few bites. I also have been burping and had a lot of indigestion and heartburn. Funny fact is all my life the only time I’ve ever had this until now was when I was getting a health issue. So I should have known something was off, but I’ve been taking antacids per the doctors office for some time now. So somehow I feel as though I should have known, but God made sure he let me know that night I had my heart attack. I went to the restroom and as I was walking into the bedroom to go back out where my husband was I coughed very hard and it felt as if all the oxygen was sucked out of my chest. The first thought that went through my mind was do I have pneumonia but I quickly informed myself that doesn’t make sense because it doesn’t come on that quickly. I also felt like all the life had been drained out of me as well. I didn’t want to worry my husband if it were not necessary so I decided to go in and sit down and see how I felt in a couple of minutes. As I sat there the sweat started rolling down my face. My clothes became wet with sweat. A voice inside of me was letting me know I needed to go to the hospital. I calmly told my husband we needed to go to the hospital and assured him it could just be a false alarm. I didn’t want him worried though I knew something wasn’t right. There was a calm in me too though as the Lord God was with me and was comforting me just as He has always stated He will do in your hour of need. I got through this heart attack, but I still have an aneurysm on my right aortic valve in my heart. It could not be stinted. The aneurysm and the artery clogged off all the way. This is what caused me to have the heart attack. Currently I take 4 blood thinners a day and a blood pressure pill along with other meds to try to keep it from clotting off again and to try to get the aneurysm to go away. Funny thing is they say I’ve more than likely had the aneurysm since I was a child. My heart issues, as ironic as it is are not caused from my eating habits and my lifestyle choices. As far as that is concerned. The clotting/clogging I had a little, ok lot, to do with. Can I live a normal length life…. It’s doable. It’s also just as equally optional that I may not. If the aneurysm doesn’t play nice I could say good bye before my time. One never knows, but then that is no different than anyone else. None of us are promised a tomorrow. Thank you God for sending your Son and thank you Jesus for coming into my heart to live. I wrote this to make sure you all get checked for your health, but while we are here you might also want to get right with God. Time isn’t a guarantee. The only guarantee is that we will eventually die and when we do He will either know us or He won’t. </span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span face="AppleGothic, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><b></b></span></p><blockquote><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span face="AppleGothic, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"><b>Matthew 10:33</b></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>“<span face="AppleGothic, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.”</span></span></b></p></blockquote><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span face="AppleGothic, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"></span></span></b></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span face="AppleGothic, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;">I love you all very much. I may not like your lifestyle or I may not be on good terms with you at this moment; but I’d lay down my life for all of you and I hope to see you all in Heaven some wonderful bright day.</span></p>Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-77939295959301690432021-07-16T14:19:00.003-04:002021-07-16T14:19:54.691-04:00<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><h2 style="text-align: center;"><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">2019-2021</span></u></h2><p></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJuLHsGZeSqYZQ3twSnHz0buXwQ8pHehIs4QFiz9LiofbeNusnewXOzp0EFC1JDdJwJ18ODOEsD9hbpDjouaM0MAfm7DYCSiEw-jiNMpFh1i_AKttte-fipGlkQDj_Y23moklAvOpNgQ0/s960/214834685_196141835678272_3823653135092422598_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJuLHsGZeSqYZQ3twSnHz0buXwQ8pHehIs4QFiz9LiofbeNusnewXOzp0EFC1JDdJwJ18ODOEsD9hbpDjouaM0MAfm7DYCSiEw-jiNMpFh1i_AKttte-fipGlkQDj_Y23moklAvOpNgQ0/s320/214834685_196141835678272_3823653135092422598_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 14pt;">I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little depressed as of late. It’s hard not to be with the last two years of life. What keeps me going in my husband, my church and God. What a ride this time of my life has been. I’m not stranger to death. He’s been a huge part of my life since I was sixteen years of age. I often jokingly talk about the fact that I know more dead people than live ones, but it’s really not a joking matter. It’s a truth to some degree. The thing is I wouldn’t trade one minute of the life and having known and been apart of the life of each and every one of those people who were in my life and who are now gone. A part of them will always live as long as I’m alive because I carry them with me in my heart and in my memories. My first major impact from death was my grandmother Lula Ann Richardson Short. My grandmother, my dads mom, and I were both born on June 27<sup>th</sup> at 11:45pm, 59 years apart. She was a generous and loving soul who loved the Lord our God and loved her family with all her heart. I can see her very clearly in my mind and even hear her voice although she died on November 27, 1983. Some of my fondest memories are of times spent with her at her home. She always had a second hand box of toys and clothes for us from the “exchange”. She had big meals for us and would always take food to whomever was walking up the path past the house. So many memories flood my mind when I think of her. I can’t think of a single bad memory, except for losing her. That year would prove extremely hard for me as I would lose a classmate to suicide and one to a car accident that year. I would also be informed of my other grandmother’s cancer shortly after Christmas. My mom’s mother Jezzie Ann Slone would pass away on June 26, 1985. One day before my 18<sup>th</sup> birthday. I was the one who took the call that she had died and I was the one to tell my mother. It seems this would become a pattern with me sharing this type of bad news with my mother. Over the years I would lose count of how many per year died. My uncle Roger’s death hit me pretty hard as he was always there for me when I needed to talk without judgement. He was a kind and loving man who walked through this life and his death with dignity. Then there was my friend Jeff who was a bit of a jokester and always pulled pranks that some might find not so funny but it was who he was. His sister called me at work on my cell to tell me he had died. I thought she was joking, but he had fallen off of a ladder while trying to change a light bulb. He had the flu and they assume he got dizzy. It was so unexpected and I remember sitting at my desk at work in shock at first then tears. Then there was my friend Rob Hogg who came out from Texas and spent two weeks here with us for the Christmas holiday in 2011. Rob and I saw each other every single day for two weeks. We went shopping, went to Christmas parties, and generally just hung out and talked. He and I had attended Elmhurst High School together and we were catching up on all the time between school and then. Rob left my house on January 1, 2012 to head back to Texas. I’m very thankful for the time he and I got to spend together, as his boss would call my phone early in the morning of January 5<sup>th</sup>. I was confused and asked why she had his phone. She told me that Rob had a major heart attack and had passed away at work that night. I took on the roll of calling his brother to let him know. Again I got to relay bad news. For months everywhere we had been together in those two weeks made me cry when I was there. His death was not in vain though as he was an organ donor and helped over 82 people to live better lives. Over the past few years I’ve lost many aunts, uncles, friends: Ellis Slone, Larry Thomas, Jackie Slone, Gertie Watson, Monroe Slone, Wendall Watson, Bonnie Slone Thomas, Doyle Dean Thomas, Jeremy Karst and my daddy Dewey Short just to name a few. There are many more I could list. I carry them all with me everyday. I see different things that remind me of them either around or on Facebook. So I’m no stranger to death. I do believe I’ve had more than my fair share, but I know others who’ve had more. I don’t wallow in it the way I may have once upon a time. Death no longer scares me or even has that much of an effect on me. I mean I do get sad and it really does depend on whether I believe the person was a born again Christian or not, but I believe in God and I believe those that ask for forgiveness and repent are not truly gone. They may not be in their earthly bodies but they live on. In 2019 a death of another kind occurred as a job I worked for twenty-one years was going away. It was a hard thing to hear but I put my faith in God. I knew he would watch over me. I worked three months for the 911 center and struggled with the people there. Their odd sense of what was wrong and right and ok and not ok was off putting to say the least. I loved it during training but when they put me on the floor they put me with the self proclaimed goddess of the center. I couldn’t ask questions. If I asked any questions about anything I was being argumentative. I sat there basically most of the time afraid to say anything. This was not a good learning scenario for me. I made up my mind before I ever went to nights I no longer wanted to be there. Except for a couple of really nice people most of them were pompous and rude. Things that are clearly not acceptable in a business environment were common place. The training program was not good once you got to the floor as they assumed you knew things. I found out one thing the night before I stopped working there that would have been a great help on their screens. They assumed I knew their screens with their maps were set up N, S, W and E, top to bottom and side to side. It made sense once I heard it but no one had ever said that and it never dawned on me. It was also a very hard time for me to be in that center because I was going through a change that I really didn’t realize at the time. I was finding my path to opening my heart to let Jesus in. The things that were said, the language I found offensive. I literally sat there between calls writing prayers to God for help in being there. I wanted out, but I had nowhere to go. I did meet a wonderful lady named Candace there that I believe God let me see before she left so that I could know even in all the darkness there can be a light with Him. I was so happy to be done with that job. I sat down that first night and started communicating with a new possible job. I was working a week later for a new place. I really liked most of the people there. It seemed as if it was a good fit, but I quickly found out that it was a place where if you didn’t kiss the feet of the manager over the department I was in you were not really welcome. I was thrown to the wolves when they fired one employee and another just quit to try to do some things I wasn’t trained for. I tried my best though and gave it my best effort. To no avail it would appear. I helped them find someone I respect to hire in and they did. As soon as they did though they gave me a mundane job that really was not even necessary. I tried to do things to keep busy but often found I had little to nothing to do. I started writing a manual to try to be productive. That wasn’t really appreciated either. My dad and I both asked Jesus into our hearts in the fall of 2019. I was baptised on November 10, 2019. For me this was the start of an inner peace like I had never known. In 2020 my job had COVID shut down on March 24<sup>th</sup> we were all told we would be back, possible bonus to come back and that we would probably be back in June. None of that happened. My daddy got sick right about the time they were ready to call back employees. Lots of decisions had to be made and I really put work on the back burner in my life. We almost lost Daddy on August 12, 2019. On the morning of the 13<sup>th</sup> I was told he would never wake up and that it was only a matter of time, but God knew better. A male nurse there told me only God knows to not give up hope. At the end of that week we brought my daddy home on hospice. He had survived to the doctors disbelief; however, it was only a momentary reprieve. The water that they had taken out in surgery was coming back quickly. Daddy would never walk again and it was only a matter of time until death would take him. In that time my brother and I set out to make sure whatever my daddy needed he got. Time became precious. My aunt Jib helped out and my friend Juanita helped out. The fist month at home other than being frustrated he couldn’t walk and was now dependent on everyone’s help dad had a good time of fellowship with family, friends and church members. In this time I grew close to my dad again. I watched him and my mother and I knew life was about to change and never be the same again. Some days were harder than others, but again I wouldn’t change it. Outsiders, or people who were only around periodically accused me of not doing enough. I took advantage of getting rest when other people were there. I needed to. I was physically and mentally exhausted but this didn’t keep the judgment from being placed. My brother did more than his fare share of helping. He stayed a lot of times with mom and dad. In the last month of dad’s life I think he was there every night. Inside my heart was breaking, but outside I stayed strong. That is the way I was raised to be. Pull up the chin and fight the valiant fight. My husband stayed strong by my side. He did what I requested. He was wanting to help and willing to help but that didn’t keep people from judging him either. I learned a lot about people during that time. During those couple of months my dad made his peace with his life and with his family. He was ready to go. We lost him on October 31, 2020. Still no time to sit and grieve. We had a funeral to plan and my mother to think about. The funeral home and the funeral all seem like a blurr. A few things stick out like the fact that my mother refused to barely ever leave my dads side. She wanted to be where ever he was. Then there was the funeral day where we learned right before service that my cousin Jackie had passed away that morning. That was a hard thing to hear but we had dad’s funeral to get through so mourning for my cousin would have to wait as well. It struck me how much my dad was always there for everyone. He went out of his way and always went to family funerals as long as he possibly could get there. Yet there were so few people at his funeral. I mean there were enough and I know it is COVID times, but as I recall the good book tells us to take care of each other. We are to be there for the sick and the hurting. We did have one family friend that traveled several hours from Ohio to pay her respects, Tammy, She had a doctors appointment that afternoon and could only stay a few moments. She hugged mom and mom had a big ole smile. Tammy exhibits the way God would want all of us to act. It truly touched my heart. We did have great friends and family there, don’t get me wrong. I love and thank everyone of them for being there. It was just something that crossed my mind. Over the next couple of months we got my mother moved into my brothers home and we started the process of going through the personal belongings of my parents. This led to many a memory and many a tear shed. We had to get ready for an estate sale and we had to get the house ready to sale. Dad was a good provider and he managed on very little pay what most would never manage, but there wasn’t much in the way of money left after the funeral. Paying for mom’s upkeep has been hard on my brother to say the least. I need insurance or I would have stayed off and helped with mom. In August I also had started classes at Ivy Tech. So during all this time I was taking a couple of classes as well. When I didn’t have a job it wasn’t that hard to do, but in December I knew I needed to start looking hard for a job and I did. I started my new job on January 4, 2021. So far I love it. I need to make more money, but I love the people, the place and the job. Through May I had classes and a new job with classes. That was a really tough time. I didn’t get to see mom much, I was always stuck with my nose in a book and again people started accusing me of not doing my part. It hurts when you’re doing your best and you still get called out on the carpet as if you’re a cat that just peed there. Just saying. Anyway the stress started to take a toll and I started having blood pressure issues, lots of headaches, nausea, and just most days felt over all ill. I stayed diligent though. I gave my life over to God. I let him lead me. I ask for his forgiveness and I put my troubles in his hands. I know He has blessed me in so many ways and he reminds me daily that He knows my heart. He knows my deeds and that is all that matters. What other people think or believe they know doesn’t really matter. I do know that right now we need to get our house sold so that we can have money to take care of mom. Jake and I also need to be able to move on with our lives rather than being in this state of limbo we are in. Mom goes in and out of knowing stages. God blesses me with people in my life who love me and help me in every way they can. If I’ve learned anything in my life after all these years it’s that we need to get up every day and count our blessings and not our woe's. Everyone has something good and something bad in their life going on at any given time, but one is happier and better off to get up in the morning and thank God for all the blessings you do have in your life. God loves us all. He gave us freedom of choice because He wants us to freely choose him, not be forced to. God is a loving and caring God. Letting him in my heart and accepting his Grace is the BEST thing I’ve ever done. Thank you Lord for this day and this life.</span></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-62402339484699145522021-07-05T14:43:00.000-04:002021-07-05T14:43:19.816-04:00 I’m convinced I am the queen of odd dreams: I’ve listed three of them here for your entertainment<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">My Dreams</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbEoKbge9_JC2vlvYph9LvJP4gXZFx2G4hpUmoyR3xuk5uBdrqSX8k6a6vmPTRYSyIOD0zBQyJPFvstD3AW7P9OYjxjgnCknlISClU0lmM55Jje81prvysvbgWO7NaYZdjyof5L5hZIN8/s960/FB_IMG_1612759717359.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbEoKbge9_JC2vlvYph9LvJP4gXZFx2G4hpUmoyR3xuk5uBdrqSX8k6a6vmPTRYSyIOD0zBQyJPFvstD3AW7P9OYjxjgnCknlISClU0lmM55Jje81prvysvbgWO7NaYZdjyof5L5hZIN8/s320/FB_IMG_1612759717359.jpg" /></a></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #3465a4;"><span style="font-family: Apple Chancery;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><u><b>Uncle Orbin and the Ketchup</b></u></span></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #e16173;"><span style="font-family: Apple Chancery;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"></span></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #e16173;"><span style="font-family: Apple Chancery;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"></span><span style="color: #3465a4;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">“One night I woke with a start from the oddest dream. I was working as a waitress in a restaurant on the top of an embankment somewhere in the mountains. The road to the restaurant was small and rustic like a log cabin might be; however, I distinctly remember looking at it from the road perspective and it was a multi-story cabin with lots of steps and a huge wrap around porch on it. I remember being very happy in my activities of cleaning tables and having a few customers but not many. I remember greeting my uncle as he walked into the restaurant. </span></span><span style="color: #3465a4;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In my dream I remember being very happy to see him. He said nothing to me at all. He just walked up to the table, took the bottle of ketchup, opened it and poured it out and smeared it all over the table. I said nothing to him, but quickly cleaned the table off. Still not saying anything he grabbed a ketchup bottled, opened it and repeated the previous action. I woke up at this point so I totally have no idea what the point of this dream was.”</span></span></span></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #8d1d75;"><span style="font-family: Apple Chancery;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><u><b>The School Bus and the Specter</b></u></span></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #8d1d75;"><span style="font-family: Apple Chancery;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">“Last night I had this dream. My husband and I were going on a trip with some people I do not know. We had been at some museum or something of that nature. We were waiting in line to catch a bus to take us back to our cars where we had parked. We waited and waited and finally got on a bus. We noticed there was no driver. All of a sudden this cartoon like ghost appeared to drive us. She told us her name was Felicity and she’d be our driver. We started on our journey and people were talking and laughing and we were having a conversation with Felicity. I asked her her name again because I knew it started with an “F” but I couldn’t quite remember it. She told me. I noticed the scenery outside was icy and snowy and we were driving up a mountain that the road was not that wide. The guy that sat behind Felicity asked her to marry him (Weird right?) and she got excited left the wheel and flew into his lap which sent us careening over the embankment into an icy pond. No one was hurt but all of a sudden the bus was back together, we were all dry and a guy ghost asked us to board. I asked what happened to Felicity and she was in what looked like a trophy case in the side of the mountain and she was trapped and couldn’t get out. Locked in so to speak. He said since she messed up she is being punished and is behind the glass and must watch and is locked in. I walked up to the case and broke the glass and my alarm went off so that is all I know. Have no ide what on earth this dream is about.”</span></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #069a2e;"><span style="font-family: Apple Chancery;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><u><b>Living on Dale Drive Again</b></u></span></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #069a2e;">“<span style="font-family: Apple Chancery;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This dream I had kind of jumped around a lot so it was pretty hard to follow; however, in the dream I do know that my brother and I both lived on Dale Drive in Waynedale a few houses apart. I also know that he, my mom and my husband were planning a trip to Kentucky, why I wasn’t going I have no idea, but I wanted to see them off. There was a small restaurant with an auto repair garage on the back of it being run by an Italian man and woman. Obvious Mafia activity going on in this building. I knew in my dream that they had a chop shop on the other side of town where they would take cars they stole out of the parking lot of their restaurant to. I knew this family that ran the restaurant very well and they seemed to like me. I was in there picking something up and realized I needed to head off to see my brother and family off on their trip. Again there was snow on the ground, but it was flat land, obviously the Fort Wayne area. I went out in what looked like a big circle for a parking lot and low and behold my car was gone. I stormed back in and told the woman that her husbands men had taken my car. She gave me a note and a number and sent me off to get my car from the chop shop. I caught them before they did anything and came back to the shop to tell the wife. She wanted me to go through and see her husband who gave me a special flashlight and told me what a good kid I was? Anyway I went out and got in my car, almost got in the wrong one, and drove off to meet my family before their trip. Again I was awakened so this is where it stopped. </span></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p>Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-55762462261619982082020-12-27T21:31:00.001-05:002020-12-27T21:31:18.061-05:00Time is Not the Enemy<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnnoR_uHqPFlkcoec3RXoVs38NIAfGTADq3fiD6kVlKO251dvT5G5ji0Eh6FR4q6qU7MnwbrxfWzh_-53OvcAIbNdkSoEP4Zgs3vPuOSM6SDOCBa0G-tJyRjZhAkQYcSAZtU3fUmPdSiE/s1008/Resized_20190720_125918+%25281%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="756" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnnoR_uHqPFlkcoec3RXoVs38NIAfGTADq3fiD6kVlKO251dvT5G5ji0Eh6FR4q6qU7MnwbrxfWzh_-53OvcAIbNdkSoEP4Zgs3vPuOSM6SDOCBa0G-tJyRjZhAkQYcSAZtU3fUmPdSiE/s320/Resized_20190720_125918+%25281%2529.jpeg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">This picture was taken on July 20, 2019. My dad loved buffet's. This was at the Great Wall in Park West Plaza. Our family tried to get together at least once a week for as long as I can remember. It got harder as illness and disease set in for my mom and dad as they got older but we still tried. We didn't necessarily spend a long time there but every week for an hour or two our family caught up on each other's lives and tried our best to enjoy time together. In today's society family's spend so little time actually together. When I was growing up we were more involved with each other as a family unit. I personally feel sorry for the youth of today who will never know what it is like to sit on the porch and listen to old timers telling stories of days gone by. It was so much more interesting that anything you could see in a video game or on television. I also feel sorry for those that are addicted to computers, cellphones and video games. They are so into being on their social media accounts that they have no time for the here and the now. They don't know what is happening right around them. They are missing out on the precious moments in life that will never come again. If they can not see what is in front of them, then how can see the face of God or hear His word. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9lxRUfMubEQSaOKbc-I7TMn5oNShZXG5owbiaTrYZcrFNvRH1seNG4Yz8GvkRe_e6vpVjADroXIGIEKfeyEKkaNuaHYCkhHfVI4J6pFM6MEgBG489l-05RSjGA1TyC5yP2irzKZ6rQMw/s2048/Resized_20200828_153930.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1535" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9lxRUfMubEQSaOKbc-I7TMn5oNShZXG5owbiaTrYZcrFNvRH1seNG4Yz8GvkRe_e6vpVjADroXIGIEKfeyEKkaNuaHYCkhHfVI4J6pFM6MEgBG489l-05RSjGA1TyC5yP2irzKZ6rQMw/w167-h223/Resized_20200828_153930.jpeg" width="167" /></a></div>I miss the days of going to family's homes and visiting. I miss the days of playing bad mitten or horse shoe's. I miss the days of going to the park or of getting together with family for watermelon and conversation. Today's youth have no idea what that is. Family's don't get together anymore. They have no time for such things as they have to work long hours to pay for material things in this world of greed and selfishness. I know it's a year of Covid and people are scared of it. Each has a right in their own to feel how they feel about it. No one should chastise anyone for wearing a mask or for not wearing a mask. None of us knows what the reasoning the other has. It's not ours to judge. The person wearing the mask may have severe lung issues that should they get a cold or pneumonia its all over for them. The person not wearing a mask may be suffering from post traumatic distress. Even if the person is just being a butt in your opinion why make such a fuss? Does the Father not watch out for us all? Now, I know in saying this I'm going to get flack from the large group of people out there that are going to sight law and governors mandates and hatred for masks and everything else. First off, it's not a law. There is no LAW that states you have to wear a mask. Can they make your life miserable yes. Do most people go along with either because they agree with it or they don't want to rock the boat. Yes. Are there meme's on both sides of it I find funny.... well yes. You either laugh in life or cry and I choose to laugh. If you don't want to wear a mask... don't, but remember a business has the right to ask you to leave. That is their right as a business. You can put it on or you can leave, unless you have a health concern and even then the business may ask you to leave. If you are wearing one and see someone without one, it's not hurting you. That is unless you go over and get up in their face. Just stay six feet away from them and mind your own business and go on with your life. How hard is that? If you don't own the business or work for it you have no foot in the race. If that still upsets you then leave yourself. No one is making you shop in that store at that time. My dad was deathly afraid of germs. He lived <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVacW2WoIGieMcPmAyPzk-Cqk4I7lxL9HXehWSP76IVV5ET7-NEimeEQOCis-JXv5AT60xr6jWUbOZz5OE466WtzXVHH1K6IbZC-uIpgk4AeZ-uPe-P7C4P-JcbN_TWs0owYJgg__wk0U/s1008/Resized_20200812_183714.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="756" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVacW2WoIGieMcPmAyPzk-Cqk4I7lxL9HXehWSP76IVV5ET7-NEimeEQOCis-JXv5AT60xr6jWUbOZz5OE466WtzXVHH1K6IbZC-uIpgk4AeZ-uPe-P7C4P-JcbN_TWs0owYJgg__wk0U/s320/Resized_20200812_183714.jpeg" /></a></div>with O.C.D. (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) his entire life. I don't know that he would have been able to get through the last few months of his life if he had not found salvation. God got him through it. His only true fears were for my mother. He was so devoted to taking care of her. I think for him that was the hardest part of being sick. My parents love and loved all their family. There is nothing they would not have done for any of them and if they could be there for their family they would. I was saddened by how few people paid their respect at the death of my dad. Most people assume that Facebook postings are enough these days. I understand his funeral was on a week day and I understand there is Covid, but it was my actual reaction to it. There are people who didn't come with legitimate reasons and those I understand, but there are those that used Covid as an excuse and go anywhere they want. My dad is at peace though and those that loved him spent time talking to him on the phone or came to see him when they could. My cousin Doyle is resting in peace too, but he never missed an opportunity to come see my parents when he's in town. I've known family members who didn't bother being only five minutes away. Do I think it's because they don't love my mom and dad or me? No, it's just their lives are too busy and they always think there will be a tomorrow. Tomorrow isn't promised to anyone. So many lives I've known burnt out in 2019 and 2020. My mother is still here physically and sometimes mentally but she won't be here with us long either. I know men who claim to be men of God who put their neighbors and their congregations before their family and believe this is what God has asked them to do. You can not do one or the other. God would want you to do both. Be there for both. It is sad that such men proclaim to be of faith yet will not cross the street to help their own. It's no wonder that depression and suicide are so high as people put more value into their material objects than they do living the life God gave them. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo3Ho97buEGKh0IT-kqsKlytYOIUMfNPDNh9pF6gdUD3CRlErZiFBxbs6PfLjivhrxWc68OlDcXE_kwOmulL25RQUYyFAj8n3vOU7gcBocG8VrD0Lkql7NdCKRat8nE5DLHBZHQlN8mD0/s1008/Resized_20201104_143111.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="756" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo3Ho97buEGKh0IT-kqsKlytYOIUMfNPDNh9pF6gdUD3CRlErZiFBxbs6PfLjivhrxWc68OlDcXE_kwOmulL25RQUYyFAj8n3vOU7gcBocG8VrD0Lkql7NdCKRat8nE5DLHBZHQlN8mD0/w183-h244/Resized_20201104_143111.jpeg" width="183" /></a></div>My grandmother Lula's favorite song was "Give me the Roses". It talks about how one should treasure times together while a person is alive and not profess love only when they are gone with flowers. I have no doubt that Jesus weeps daily as he watches down on the world and the people turn their backs on the glories of a rich life he would have them live. Not of wealth but of peace and love. The sins of this world are not born of the Father, but are born out of the hearts of men. I am grateful for the couple of months God gave me and my dad. They were hard months. They were a lot of work and some of it was very hard to watch, but God gave my dad and I that time I believe as a gift to his children. He gave dad and I time to heal old wounds and to find that parent child love that had been strained. It took me a while to really cry more than a little at a time. That hard cry took a bit, but it did come. Through all of this though God has embraced me in his arms and helped me through. God also gave me a husband to lean on and a brother of pure gold. I pray daily for my brother for taking care of my mom daily is no easy feet. I also pray for all of you reading this. My soul <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuGj7S-WSHLDGizbyJxcbADgWPbTIaZnO3e8OsqQkdbOmUyuR0BssPB2Nr_sRVatV_wHequ3Q2-qXFBjRLWbuBikaFVRWkGrUoThWxDeq8EbQX38roMAHfHZx1CwqrPCsYRtnVBCace1k/s1008/Resized_20201105_102308.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="756" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuGj7S-WSHLDGizbyJxcbADgWPbTIaZnO3e8OsqQkdbOmUyuR0BssPB2Nr_sRVatV_wHequ3Q2-qXFBjRLWbuBikaFVRWkGrUoThWxDeq8EbQX38roMAHfHZx1CwqrPCsYRtnVBCace1k/s320/Resized_20201105_102308.jpeg" /></a></div>has had so much more peace since I found the Lord and accepted him as my savior. God is good. My year has humbled me in so many ways, but through it all He has never left me. In my heart He reminds me all the time that He is here with me. I needed to be humbled. I needed to remember where I came from and what was important. The Devil will tempt you constantly with doing the wrong thing. The funny thing is it never brings you satisfaction when you do the wrong thing. I'm not saying I'm perfect. I still sin daily and I still have to work at it. I don't go see my mom as much as I should. I know that, but it's hard to see her the way she is. One never knows if she will be there to truly be with you or not. I pray for her. It has to be hard to always be afraid and her disease has gotten to that place where she's always in fear of something.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Father, I thank you for Sarah, Chris, Gwen, Daphne, Mitch, Jeannette, Larry, Ashley, Dakota, Ritchie, Aunt Jib and all my other family members. I thank you for my love Jacob and my pets Bear, Prancer and Tobi. I thank you for providing a roof above my head and food for my tummy. I thank you for helping me to find more peace and to know that anger is never the way. I thank you for giving me the strength to work on myself daily and to get rid of the flaws I have as many as I can. Lord I would ask that you be with those out there that are lost and do not know you. I would ask that you help them to see the way and seek the path. I would ask that you be with the sick and you help to give them and their family's peace and strength. I also want to thank you for the job that I will start on January 4th. It will be good to go back to work Lord. Keep me with you Lord and live within my heart. I pray this in the name of your precious son Jesus Christ. Amen.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">May God be with you and bless you and your families. Enjoy time with them while you can. Be with them. Forgive them and understand they are human. </span></p><p>xoxo</p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div> <br /><p></p>Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-59934363466603431842020-10-01T20:27:00.001-04:002020-10-02T09:15:21.036-04:00In My Dreams They Are Still Young<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHW0mOU1YBUBEms9N7GUCi1JSX8Q0WnE2PzMf-82UI3C4Re-r5tHhC4LW9HEt6i2-XeSn_jAu6ljLqyOHLvrK4pl3Qqjg4pgTERUy9T2y2GQ9d-GCxm4v3QC6Zbc_sm5atBIw81m5Ui0/s1008/mom+n+dad+xmas2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="756" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHW0mOU1YBUBEms9N7GUCi1JSX8Q0WnE2PzMf-82UI3C4Re-r5tHhC4LW9HEt6i2-XeSn_jAu6ljLqyOHLvrK4pl3Qqjg4pgTERUy9T2y2GQ9d-GCxm4v3QC6Zbc_sm5atBIw81m5Ui0/s320/mom+n+dad+xmas2019.jpg"></a></div><br> <span style="font-size: large;">In my mind and in my dreams you are both still young. As I sleep we take trips where dad is strong and takes charge. Mom has no problems moving around or hearing. In my dreams my dreams nothing has changed. In the reality of the morning mom sits quietly in her own world. Her hands are shaking and her knowledge of what all is being said in the room is almost nil. Sadness fills me for I know her heart is silently breaking. Her soul mate, my dad, is slowly succumbing to water that is putting pressure on his brain. In the reality of the day dad eats less, makes less sense when talking and seldom has clear and lucid thoughts. When he is lucid he understands where he is and what is going on and he tells us he does not want to live this way. He's no longer capable of walking and most often he can't sit up on his own. It's heartbreaking to watch and to listen to, as are the tears my mother lets out during times she acknowledges that we are losing dad slowly day by day. A preacher asked me not too long ago why it was that he, being a preacher, had to live after his wife had died. I told him what I believe in my heart. Preacher your works is not done. God still has work for you to do. As we may or may not understand the why of the continued life my parents are living, if you can call it living, there is a purpose. Every day with them in this life has been a gift. God's not done with them here yet. As in my dreams I know when God does call them home they will be able to do all the things they can not do now. They will not hurt, nor will they need for anything. When God calls them home I will miss them, but I am comforted in the knowledge that it will not be long until I see them again in heaven. Until then they will be forever young in my dreams.</span><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqCb4547_s2SWVZzusX7S47oifjypS-pPtlHhtmv6iJiW7uWfpAP4KloTB1zIgS8dbrQfk0JGVGfe9c4GVQNyG6s-NokTar63yh0pSkDsgr8syxQ5QM-TyGMjG_B3-jMMWZNvkgGiw-8/s1008/momndad+September2020.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="756" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqCb4547_s2SWVZzusX7S47oifjypS-pPtlHhtmv6iJiW7uWfpAP4KloTB1zIgS8dbrQfk0JGVGfe9c4GVQNyG6s-NokTar63yh0pSkDsgr8syxQ5QM-TyGMjG_B3-jMMWZNvkgGiw-8/s320/momndad+September2020.jpg"></a></div><br> <p></p>Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-60497121726535170922020-01-16T11:15:00.005-05:002020-01-16T11:15:46.906-05:00Skin Tone and our Savior<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="false"
DefSemiHidden="false" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="371">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="footnote text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="footer"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="table of figures"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="envelope address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="envelope return"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="footnote reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="line number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="page number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="table of authorities"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="macro"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="toa heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:8.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:107%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New", Courier, monospace;">Praying for people is not always easy.<span> </span>It’s what we are called to do by God, but it’s
not always easy to follow that rule.<span> </span>I
will do it.<span> </span>I do it daily.<span> </span>What do I mean by this?<span> </span>It’s easy… yesterday I was
notating/commenting on someone’s post.<span> </span>I
have that post saved and all commentary.<span>
</span>Let me first tell you that this person is very full of herself and self-actualization.<span> </span>It would have been easy to get angry at her
and fly off the handle, but no through the grace of God all I felt for her was
sadness.<span> </span>She’s lost in an inability to
look at the broad scope of what I was trying to say to her.<span> </span>Anger is a wasted emotion.<span> </span>She allowed a comment someone put on Facebook
on Christmas Eve to get into her soul and eat at her to the point she felt
compelled to write about it.<span> </span>Let me tell
you that this woman is not short on words either.<span> </span>She can go on for days and say little to
nothing.<span> </span>I tried to get her to
understand that her anger towards this man and her post written about him did
nothing more than to justify him doing it again.<span> </span>I understand that the law must stop abusive
behaviors.<span> </span>I understand that she has as
much a right to voice her opinion as he did; however, that being said if he
read her post he smiled from ear to ear as people like that are trying to get a
rise out of people.<span> </span>It’s their whole
point.<span> </span>It’s the game they play in hopes
that they will get people talking about them and their point of view.<span> </span>She also called Christmas Eve as a Holy
day.<span> </span>It’s not the day that is holy.<span> </span>It’s what we do with it when we worship God
that is holy.<span> </span>She also was walking on
the very thing she stated she was fighting for which is equality of
religion.<span> </span>Now whether this guy is religious
or not could be debated but why go there. <span> </span>He stated his opinion.<span> </span>He made a vulgar post to most that to him was
not vulgar.<span> </span>She was also taken back by
the fact that he as much as called Baptist Atheist.<span> </span>I’m Baptist and he can call me whatever he
likes.<span> </span>It matters not.<span> </span>Did our Lord and savior Jesus not get called
a false prophet?<span> </span>People lash out at what
they do not understand.<span> </span>The devil lashes
out at anything that is righteous.<span> </span>The
people of God will be crucified for following His word.<span> </span>Now she’s a politician so I guess she has to
spin it.<span> </span>I had a laugh when she stated
she was a lapse Catholic.<span> </span>Anyone out
there know what exactly that is?<span> </span>I
imagine it means she professes to be Catholic but doesn’t follow or practice it
except for when it suites her needs.<span> </span>I’m
writing this post out of humor.<span> </span>I had a
good laugh on her behalf yesterday and I felt sorry for her at the same
time.<span> </span>I put a post and tagged her in it
because it was so long and I wanted dual color to continue the conversation
with her on my blog.<span> </span>It didn’t name her
and it held no picture of her.<span> </span>She
threatened to sue me for using her intellectual property and her image and
name.<span> </span>well the two later I didn’t use
and the first one first assumes as she claims that her written post on Facebook
is one intellectual and two as she stated creative.<span> </span>I guess some people would call an anger post
written because you’d been allowing a silly post to crawl up under your skin
and live there for a couple of weeks creative.<span>
</span>I personally didn’t find anything very creative about it.<span> </span>First off it was all about race.<span> </span>I’m so tired of people trying to split
everything up into race.<span> </span>I personally
don’t find it racist to have a picture of a white Jesus, a black Jesus or any
color you want.<span> </span>It comforts people.<span> </span>What color was Jesus?<span> </span>Well since he was middle eastern I would
assume olive or darker of skin tone.<span>
</span>Does it matter?<span> </span>No.<span> </span>I don’t know anywhere in the Bible where it
debates his skin tone.<span> </span>She’s missing the
whole point of Christ.<span> </span>She also said
what would Jesus do more than once in her post.<span>
</span>Jesus would forgive.<span> </span>Jesus would
not care what color they made his skin.<span>
</span>God created all people and all races.<span>
</span>He loves them all equally and He could make Jesus any color he
wanted.<span> </span>He did have a virgin bride after
all did He not?<span> </span>Our only job as a Godly
people is to live the way God wants us to.<span>
</span>To honor him.<span> </span>She stated it’s
basically our job to police people like this guy.<span> </span>Ok, if it offended her so much she could have
done what you’re supposed to do and sent the post to Facebook as offensive and
they could have dealt with it.<span> </span>This
woman is not judge and jury.<span> </span>It’s not
her job to jump to this gentleman’s defense by writing a post that has no more
help for him, but perhaps looks to further her needs and her agenda.<span> </span>If she wanted to defend him why not do it on
that post to that gentleman who was saying these things?<span> </span>She also didn’t answer any of my questions in
my post to her but wanted to meet.<span> </span>My
time is too valuable to meet with someone who wants nothing more than to beat
her point of view into my mind.<span> </span>There
are several things I’d like to know about her out of curiosity such as does she
believe in Jesus?<span> </span>Is she pro-life or
pro-choice?<span> </span>They are only idle
curiosities though.<span> </span>When it comes to
politics I vote the way I feel Jesus and God would want me to vote.<span> </span>I don’t get offended if someone doesn’t like
my opinions.<span> </span>I have people of all walks
on my page.<span> </span>I still speak my mind.<span> </span>They are free to stay or leave.<span> </span>I love all my friends and my true friends
love me.<span> </span>We don’t have to like or agree
with the others posts or lifestyles or religions.<span> </span>I very rarely drop or block people.<span> </span>I blocked her because she went to threatening
real fast.<span> </span>I understand she used to be a
paralegal and I understand she’s worked in politics and law offices and the
first instinct for her wasn’t to say will you please remove that post I don’t
want it out there.<span> </span>Here’s my email let’s
take this offline and I’ll answer.<span> </span>It
was to say take it down now or I’m going to sue you.<span> </span>Really?<span>
</span>This is supposed to be a rational person.<span> </span>If she had asked me kindly I would have taken
it to a place of discussion, but her first thing was to lash out and try to
strong arm me.<span> </span>All it left me to do was
to save and document for future use if needed.<span>
</span>I will pray for her.<span> </span>I will pray
that she comes to understand that a soft word and a kind gesture always go
farther than a bat.<span> </span>Since she likes
presidential comments so much maybe she should remember to “Speak softly and
carry a big bat.”<span> </span>I wish her well, but I’m
still smiling ear to ear.<span> </span>God bless you
all.</span></span></div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-54701554964452469222019-09-11T09:33:00.000-04:002019-09-11T09:33:55.781-04:00I Can Still Hear the Silence<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFK2Mxec-izMccWIm-gPv2C1LGiThaOoaKsxpzZKLLlnoqheTlXrJScWE-bOwhKztd1_IphqsGVxQh-3AFbmnmFCXpCnkyDDklynYVK0gMhL8oiqoTE4ZQr0I6du1OKbzWbKgZc1y9lYE/s1600/20170907_133041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="650" data-original-width="1061" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFK2Mxec-izMccWIm-gPv2C1LGiThaOoaKsxpzZKLLlnoqheTlXrJScWE-bOwhKztd1_IphqsGVxQh-3AFbmnmFCXpCnkyDDklynYVK0gMhL8oiqoTE4ZQr0I6du1OKbzWbKgZc1y9lYE/s400/20170907_133041.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="false"
DefSemiHidden="false" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="371">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="footnote text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="footer"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="index heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="table of figures"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="envelope address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="envelope return"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="footnote reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="line number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="page number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="table of authorities"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="macro"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="toa heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:8.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:107%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">September 11, 2001 will forever be embedded in my very
soul. I remember the drive to work
listening to 97.3 FM. I remember when
they told of the first tower how I thought that it was such a horrid joke and
didn’t know why anyone would say that on the radio, but the more I listened the
more I thought maybe it’s not a joke. I
tuned the radio to WOWO. No, it wasn’t a
joke. For a moment I almost forgot how
to breath. The air seemed thicker than
usual. My mind was trying to wrap itself
around such a tragedy. As I pulled into
the parking lot of work the second plan hit.
The realization with the rest of the world that this was no accident was
slowly sinking in. I walked briskly into
the building as I had no cell phone at that time and went to the phones set up
in the hallway for employees. I called
my mom and dad and told them to turn on the news. My friend Chris was there with them. I walked into the call center as I did every
day but it was dead silent. That isn’t a
norm for a call center. I found my desk
and was logging into my systems as I saw supervisors wheeling television sets
out onto the floor. None of us could
fathom what was going on. You hear of
war on other soils, but it had been so long since one had been brought to our
lands, at least of this kind. There are
drug wars and inner city wars from gangs but this was a much larger attack on
our country. We tried our best to do our
work. The company was very quick to
offer assistance, people to talk with and breaks from your desk if you required
them. Most of the people who did call into the
center were not aware of what had happened and upon learning no longer had want
of us, but rather to reach out to their loved ones and make sure they were safe
whether they were in this state or another.
Television programming was all eyes on what was happening in New
York. We watched from work as the towers
fell. My mind went back to a few years
prior when I had been in New York and saw those proud towers for myself. The next few days the worlds eyes were glued
to the television screen. All minds were
wondering if we were about to go to a war here on our homeland and everyone
wanted to know how President Bush was going to react. My beloved dog Snickers had died in July of
that year so I hadn’t been outside as often as I had before he did, but it
seemed like that week I stood or sat outside a lot. I looked up at the sky. There was a no fly order. It seemed strange not to see plans in the
sky. The sky somehow looked brighter and
time seemed frozen in that moment. My
heart ached for those people that had died on that day and for their
families. I shed many a tear thinking of
what they must of endured. Before they
censored it they showed people choosing to jump to their death out of the tower
rather than burn. Magazines captured
pictures of people in mid fall. The
horror was all there for anyone to see.
People seemed to come together in that time. They forgot what color they were. They forgot how selfish and needy they
were. Everyone was reaching out to help
the other. Flags were at an all-time
high in sales. Work gave us flags for
our desk. There was no one saying we
couldn’t wave the flag because it offended someone. That really pisses me off when someone won’t
let our flag be shown in our country because it might offend someone who came
here from another country. I say let
them go back. The flag was here and
waving proudly long before they were.
There are whole generations of children that are now adults who were not
old enough to remember. I wonder how
many people went back to life as if it never happened after a year or so. I remember it. I keep it fresh in my mind. Evil exists.
True, pure evil that is meant to do nothing but destroy. I remember the deafening silence. The skies were empty it seemed. My heart still aches for those poor people
who endured that awful and painful journey to meet their demise. The brave men and women who ran into to try
to save lives and the ones who realized that there was no way out for them. I can’t imagine anything as horrible,
although as I stated true evil exists so there are things more so evil than
this was. Never forget was what we said. How many have forgotten or placed this
horrible day in the back of their minds.
As for me, I can still hear the silence.
It calls to me. It beckons me to
remember, to never forget. Yes, I still
hear the silence of that day. September
11, 2001.</span></span></div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-5594700318781855262018-10-27T12:28:00.001-04:002018-10-27T12:28:30.197-04:00An Age of Doing the Bare Minimum at work…<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="Image result for office humor cartoon" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/lowres.cartoonstock.com/business-commerce-memory-business-office-employers-sales-jhan93_low.jpg" /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Anymore
one is almost hard pressed to get good customer service.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Politeness and smiles and a thank you for
shopping/doing business with us are almost impossible to get anymore.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It would be easy to blame the employees.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">One could say they are too demanding or that
they are self-centered or even that they have no respect for this world
anymore.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s easy when you get bad
service in a restaurant to automatically blame the waitress or when you’re
shopping to assume the cashier could care less about you as a customer.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Although some of this may be true I blame the
leaders of this world and of the companies.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A company is a compilation of its employees and its employees are a
reflection of its management, plain and simple.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Let me explain.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In the eighties
as I was a young woman coming into the working world I watched as managers and
coaches alike tried to help their employees improve and get ahead and move on
up the ladder.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The management then
understood that if your employees succeed so did they.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Managers then also cared enough to know their
employees.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">There was a vice president in
the one company of over 300 employees I knew that knew every employees name,
their family’s names, how many children they had, and a lot more.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It was very impressive and yes he was above
average, but it made you respect him.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">He
always had a smile for you and he actually cared if you as a person were doing
well.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It made one want to work hard for
him and make him proud of you.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In those
days your ideas, even if not good ones, were accepted to consider and you were
thanked for them.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">If you saw something
you felt was wrong and you voiced, it to management they tried to help you work
through those feelings.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Fast forward to
today.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Upper management is lucky if it
knows it’s direct employees names and could care less about your family or if
you have one.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">They don’t want you to get
ahead because they are afraid you will take their jobs.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Well this is most of the ones I’ve known recently.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">If you voice your opinion they accuse you of
being crass or of being offensive and non-company supportive in your
comments.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You are treated like and feel
like a nameless number.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">After a while it
starts to beat down even the best employees till they are just doing what they
have to in order to make their numbers and make their paycheck.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Instead of being a place you enjoy going to, it’s
a mundane existence of let’s get this day over.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">True there are employees that are not doing what they are supposed to
just because they are bad employees, but other employees that were once good
employees fall into a non-caring let me make it to Friday existence.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">When one employee fails now instead of taking
that employee aside the company feels a need to take the whole group into a
room and tell them what went wrong without naming that person or pointing a
finger at them (let’s face it we all usually know who it is) and tell everyone
that they need to do a better job, which only beats down the good employees
even farther.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Then companies are in a
cycle of let’s fix what is wrong instead of let us maintain and try to prevent
things from going wrong in the first place.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Companies want to hire fewer bodies for more work.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Employees leave and instead of replacing them
they simply send it on to the already over worked employees who have few
instructions and little training.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Employees call off a lot due to one not caring and two fatigue and
frustration.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s a vicious cycle that
just goes on and on.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Me?</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I get beat down and I do get discouraged, but
unfortunately for me I am not a person who cannot care.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I care whether my company succeeds.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I care how we are perceived in the
community.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I care about my fellow
co-workers.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">What does this get me?</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Usually not much.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I recently marked my 20</span></span><sup style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">th</sup><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
anniversary with my company and not one piece of paper saying way to go.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Not one supervisor in our department who said
way to be there; although I took in donuts and informed them </span>thus<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> that it was
so they knew.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">No value felt by me as an
employee of twenty years.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">What did they
do.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Put my name on a list that you have
to look up on their internal web page saying congrats from a generic person whom
I’ve never met with 200+ other people that someone would have to really be
looking at to ever see.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I still love my
company but it isn’t hard for me to see looking around why so many employees
have no respect for them.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Respect is
earned, it doesn’t just come with a title.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">That has always been my belief.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Either way most people these days are just doing the bare minimum at
work and I can’t help but believe it could be better but it starts at the top,
not the bottom. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-6691858902598134322018-09-19T13:29:00.000-04:002018-09-19T13:29:09.473-04:00Ruby Tuesday - No Ruby<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOf_8QHgF5jQRumS-3BqF945TLHHJQljzlUVnehOGLq015vq9S8i0WnOxO4jG4flp0u_Zl4NGWRUPeqIkRDnfSS-rQefy9atf47kbzx4_dMSUALrTOCCr0-FKAoUuktlscbMblD842qjk/s1600/th.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="185" data-original-width="246" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOf_8QHgF5jQRumS-3BqF945TLHHJQljzlUVnehOGLq015vq9S8i0WnOxO4jG4flp0u_Zl4NGWRUPeqIkRDnfSS-rQefy9atf47kbzx4_dMSUALrTOCCr0-FKAoUuktlscbMblD842qjk/s320/th.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
My husband and I live on a pretty tight budget so we often use coupons or if we have none we look for the best place to get the most bang for our buck. We eat at Ruby Tuesday quiet often. Their salad bar is awesome; although, they really need to put cottage cheese on it for it to be outstanding. You can pair entree's with the salad bar and it's usually just about a $3.00 difference so it's a nice option. This past Tuesday we went for our usual date day/night. We are on a very tight budget this month so we wanted to keep our night around $30. We came in at $28.26 thanks to gift cards and coupons. We are almost always in this restaurant in the afternoon. On this day we were there around 1:45 pm to 2:50 pm. The restaurant was somewhat slow. I waited tables for eighteen years of my life so I try to give as much leave way as I can for a server having a bad day or being busy. This is the 4th time we've had this server though so I'm done with letting her go with maybe it's a bad day. We sat at our table for seven minutes before ever seeing her. She took our drink orders, got them came back and got our food orders and someone else brought our food out about twenty minutes later. We had not seen her since at our table that is. The girl who brought out our food did an outstanding job so you know they do have some good people. Our server checked on us about five minutes after we received our food. Last time she would before bringing us the check. The manager was seen a few times walking to the hostess desk, he never interacted with any of the guest. He never does. We even sent back food on our last visit, he saw it, stopped the server, but never came over to us to see if he could make amends or apologize. There are two very good people there. The host named Jacob and the bartender named Mike are awesome. So there are some perks to the place. This time there my husband and I decided to try their "avocado check sandwiches." To say the least very disappointing. Their sandwich is $10.49 with a side. My bottom bun was completely soaked in grease. Jake's was completely dry. I ate it without complaint with a fork and knife. Wendy's Avocado Chicken sandwich beats it hands down and that is fast food. I absolutely love french fries. I at 3 off my plate and gave up. Fried in very old grease and they tasted really nasty. When the server did come back by to give us the bill she never offered us desert and she took my plate without asking me how everything was. She never did ask that. If you're a server and more than half the food is left on the plate shouldn't you check to see why? Just saying I would have. The host came to take some more plates off our table to help the server out. She did thank him for that, bonus point for her. He asked us how everything was. I told him the whole story and he apologized to us and said he would let management know. Since I've been a server I usually tip around 30% as long as you do a half way decent job. She got 16%. Not great but not the worst. She never thanked us for being there and she never told us to have a nice day and no she didn't know what she was getting tipped at that point. Before I had always tipped her about 20% because she was always doing the same lame job. We only had refills once from her and that was just the time she came to check on the food delivery, again she never asked us how it was or anything just half filled my drink. Yes I could have gone out of my way to get more and to get her attention, I have before but this time I was simply in a lets see what she does mode. So this Ruby Tuesday was no ruby.. no prize on our outing yesterday. It's really too bad though because they have what it takes to pack the place, but with that kind of lack luster approach it's no wonder they were not overly crowded. All in all it's the managers responsibility to make sure everything is done right so perhaps he needs trained or replaced. Who's to say. <br />
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-23376897124558983072018-08-29T15:33:00.001-04:002018-08-29T15:33:25.982-04:00Profound Statements Can Have a Profound Effect<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimqUszVOdE4pThDGa9-_YnAbxhXHi08xZfg_rtrBtyvViNenXbmg-k6ExiYMEPN2ZzeuZOwoEa7gv7WOdAhhuUzdIBHeof3Yz4u1DwgOjYLuO2sLbHoAhDcxi4hE2PsnWCbrqSMYSGr_4/s1600/20160813_210029.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimqUszVOdE4pThDGa9-_YnAbxhXHi08xZfg_rtrBtyvViNenXbmg-k6ExiYMEPN2ZzeuZOwoEa7gv7WOdAhhuUzdIBHeof3Yz4u1DwgOjYLuO2sLbHoAhDcxi4hE2PsnWCbrqSMYSGr_4/s320/20160813_210029.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Words
can change your life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is why it was
penned that words are sharper than swords.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>People should be careful what and how they say things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Small children for instance listen and try to
absorb what they hear with all its meaning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To tell a child it’s worthless is a hateful and heinous thing to do. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The child may take that into his or her very
being and strive for very little in life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(One should also take into consideration that children are listening at
all times whether you think they are or not.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Words said in anger to a spouse may throw the whole relationship into a
stage where it cannot be repaired.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Very
few people actually take the time to think about the way their words may affect
someone else before speaking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our mouths
and our voices are very powerful weapons upon which we require no permit to
carry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do; however, require a responsibility to
use them truthfully.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The profound way
words have had an effect on my life have been on my mind a lot lately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think of the way I’ve changed through the
years to a person who takes into consideration what a person may or may not be
thinking, feeling or trying to convey before I react most of the time these
days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I used to would not have done
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would have lashed out if the
words hurt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A good friend, that I don’t
see often enough, asked me one time why I was angry at someone I didn’t care
about and that had no role in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
remember letting those words he’d spoken sink in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He followed it up with saying it was a waste
of my emotions and time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more I
pondered it the more I realized he was right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I get upset at things people say and do, don’t get me wrong about
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just refuse to spend a lot of
time or energy on it when in the long run it doesn’t matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have a whole system I go through now in my
mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think to myself:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did they mean it to be offensive?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are they unaware or unintelligent enough for
it to register it was hateful or wrong?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What is going on in their life at this point in time?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are they really aiming those words at me, or
are they just defensive?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Have I done
something to offend them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also ask
myself if I really care about this person or what they think?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only does it help me to look at what is
going on in a different perspective, but it also allows me to cool off before I
speak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean by the time I’ve thought
all that in my head I’m usually like who cares.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are always exceptions to that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I mean I am human and I am capable of being so tired I can’t stop it
before I’ve said something stupid, but most of the time the method above keeps
me from speaking out at someone in anger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now hurt someone I love and I will rip you a new one though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s just the way It is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mean it or not if my nieces or nephew or my
mom, dad, aunt, cousin, husband, etc. are crying or emotionally distraught over
what you say I will be speaking with you and you will either be apologizing,
out of my life or lying on the floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Words
are weapons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When you think of that it’s
a wonder we don’t have to carry a permit to speak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now that I’ve said that I’m sure there is
some politician or someone not so intelligent working on a way to do that right
now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be careful what you say is all I’m
telling you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember the golden rule of
do unto others as you would have them do unto you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This also goes for Say unto others as you
would have them say unto you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve had a
lot of stupid things said to me lately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One person in particular putting their two cents worth in on my wedding
over and over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again I just look at it
and say I don’t care.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I married the man
of my dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A man who treats me like a
princess and whom I hope to spend the next 40 years or so with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My wedding no matter what did or did not go wrong was a happy and joyous
day for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So to that person I will say
nothing directly. I will merrily pray for them for peace and love in their
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will think of the things they do
that make someone else in my life happy and remember they have very little to
do with me in actuality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So be careful
what you say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be less about gossip and
more about truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be more about family
and less about politics, money and position in life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Give thanks to God and be what He wants you
to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Give comfort to those that hurt
and speak kind words when you can.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is how we make America and the world great, after all profound statements can
have a profound effect.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-54432461468788109582018-08-13T12:07:00.001-04:002018-08-13T12:07:33.685-04:00Death does not Discriminate...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIhOX5h_0Q-H2HF3y5WeD5CqNKF4QD8pmN_pEx5i-EMi2BOuN-gIKSTD2jGG2zygCT_Hl12UnJjRd_ZoeLN8L3qtm-hGuEjMTWHtVDVSzvIuZ9kBd3ku2S9lU-WG-xzguZo3UeprEemL0/s1600/20170907_161415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIhOX5h_0Q-H2HF3y5WeD5CqNKF4QD8pmN_pEx5i-EMi2BOuN-gIKSTD2jGG2zygCT_Hl12UnJjRd_ZoeLN8L3qtm-hGuEjMTWHtVDVSzvIuZ9kBd3ku2S9lU-WG-xzguZo3UeprEemL0/s320/20170907_161415.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Blackadder ITC";"><br /></span></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Blackadder ITC";">“</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Bradley Hand ITC";">Every man's life ends the same way. It is only the details of
how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another."<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="right" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 1rem; orphans: 2; text-align: right; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #222222;">―</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Bradley Hand ITC";">Ernest
Hemingway”<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">No one knows the year, month, day, hour or
minute of their own death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God knows,
but man does not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems as of late
there are so many people out there making that decision for other people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We hear of more and more shootings here in
our own city every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God will judge
those who do this for it is not their right to take a life he’s given to be
lived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The one thing I have noticed
about these deaths in recent news is there is no color, no race, no age that is
targeted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Death is equal in his choosing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even when not at another’s hand he is
equal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Young and old alike are called to
take their last breath every single day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When we are young we tend not to think about death that much unless it
affects our immediate day or lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
think in our younger days that we will live forever and that thirty, forty,
fifty and so forth are far off in our future and we need not worry about
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem with that sort of
thinking is we may never be lucky enough to live that old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One needs to think about what if.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean no one should walk around dreading
death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God gave us our lives to glorify
Him and to be happy and joyful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He didn’t
want us walking in dread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is the
good news too… if we believe in Him and have faith in him we have the opportunity
to live forever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Isn’t that something
most people look for?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eternal life?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Immortality? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I do know that as of late I have been
thinking more and more of how quickly life goes by and how fragile it really
is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I watch as my parents become weaker
and closer to their time of end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can
see them so vital in my mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It hasn’t
been that long ago that they were active and strong and now they hardly do much
of anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They seem to enjoy life
even though they have their illnesses and I know faith runs strong in my mom
and dad’s lives so they have God with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That is a personal relationship for each of them though and I hope they
are at peace with their relationship with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I dread the day that God calls them home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not sure who I am or who I will be with
them no longer here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have been
there and been almost a daily part of my life for 51+ years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have a partner to help me when that time
comes and I’m blessed with a brother that I love more than life who will be
there for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God has blessed me with a
niece and nephew from my brother and with two new nieces from my marriage and a
sister-in-law I think the world of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s
given me a new set of parents in Jacobs mom and dad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has blessed me so much and I know I need
to be grateful, but I dread the day I lay my mom and dad to rest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knows what tomorrow holds though so I
will just be happy to be with them when I can now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t get to spend a lot of time with
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seems like life is so busy, but I
try to make the most of the time I do have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Death is a good lesson for us all though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you really have time to judge others?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you have time for hate and anger in your
heart?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are not the things our Lord
and Savior would like us to have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be
kind to one another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Forgive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You don’t have to have people in your life
you can’t trust, but stop the hate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If
they’ve lied about you or hurt you in some way, forgive them and move on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not worth the precious time you have and
it’s not what God would want for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be
happy and rejoice in the day you’re give for Death does not discriminate and he
will not take time to see if you’ve gotten your affairs in order when he finds
your name on his list.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-19476387343707779552018-07-10T08:33:00.000-04:002018-07-10T08:33:27.439-04:00Murphy & My Wedding Day: June 16, 2018<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNkAYiR2BjyZEli_cAPhBRxQOhMGIxYD0hsFbGeRcMgVTe4N9lHEPdE6vpv6N3stbyiQjK_hBYcmpHypr0yDKl1jC0koluXsvpB_qWbZlYmwrIUes2QJx5yQ3Yhimjmvpw46JNYUibx0b/s1600/Resized_20180708_192148_4668.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1463" data-original-width="1487" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNkAYiR2BjyZEli_cAPhBRxQOhMGIxYD0hsFbGeRcMgVTe4N9lHEPdE6vpv6N3stbyiQjK_hBYcmpHypr0yDKl1jC0koluXsvpB_qWbZlYmwrIUes2QJx5yQ3Yhimjmvpw46JNYUibx0b/s320/Resized_20180708_192148_4668.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Murphy’s law was in full effect on my wedding day. I loved my wedding so don’t get me wrong. It’s very memorable and the only thing that matter to me that day was that Jacob and I were becoming man and wife and we could set out on the next chapter in our story. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I had prayed all week that there wouldn’t be rain. I know that is a risk when you have an outdoor wedding but I was just hopeful it would be sunny. It was to say the least. I knew I had a lot to do, but I planned, or so I thought, for all contingencies. As it turned out it was the hottest day of the year so far. I guess I forgot to pray for cool weather or a nice breeze. Either way we were getting married and I couldn’t have been happier. I truly married a man that God put me with. The man of my dreams. One that accepts me genuinely for who I am. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
My day started out alright with me getting plenty of sleep. I didn’t do what they suggest though and eat breakfast. I’m not much on eating when I first get up. I packed my car with what I thought was everything I could possibly need that day and headed out to the park. I found my friends Juanita, Kim and Julee working like busy bees putting up decorations. Originally there were going to be eight people helping but due to a death that week in a co-worker’s family and the extreme heat and personal plans changing it was just the four of us. I quickly realized we were not going to get it done on our own. I sent out an SOS on Facebook and to my brother; however, Murphy decided to step in again. You see I typed them but I never hit send. Took me over thirty minutes to realize that error in my ways. When I did finally send them my brother was on it. He told my nephew and he, his fiancé Hannah & my niece Ashley headed to the park to help with my brother not far behind. At this point it wasn’t long till we were to leave to get makeup and hair done for my wedding. I was about to get headed that way when Murphy stepped in again. It dawned on me that we were missing silverware, napkins, plates and cups. I was almost certain people were not going to want to dig in with their fingers and toes and after looking we couldn’t find them at the pavilion so I headed to the house to look for them. Yup, they were there. On the way I called the hair stylist and advised her we would be running late. They were super accommodating to say the least. Very nice ladies at “The Chop Shop”. I would highly recommend them. We were about forty-minutes behind getting hair and makeup done. I had decided to go with the sunless tanning to give my complexion a help out the night before. It’s not supposed to turn you orange or that is the claim, but there I sat at the beauty shop with them working on hair and me scrubbing my palms and elbows trying to get the yellow/orange hue to be less noticeable. Thankfully that is the only places it had turned orange. At this point I just had to sigh and laugh a little. Murphy certainly was making sure he got to come to the wedding, invited or not. My makeup & hair and my bridesmaid Abby’s got done about 3:40pm. Needless to say we missed the pre-wedding photos we were supposed to be doing at 3pm and the wedding was supposed to start at four. With my hair and makeup done Abby and I headed for the pavilion to get dressed. With 10 minutes till the wedding was to start we started getting dressed. I had to have help from my friend Becky and Abby getting into my dress. It was very hot. Makeup and Hair were trying to last but the curl was failing a little in my hair. We had a few fans but not nearly enough. People kept asking me questions. Like where did I want the cake and where did I want my mom & dad to sit. I answered that 2<sup>nd</sup> one seven times. Murphy was still with me. Finally, about 4:10pm my maid of honor made it to the pavilion. We were ready to go. I had them go get my dad. I grabbed the paper out of my folder, that was supposed to be my wedding vows, yeah you read that right. I took my dad’s arm and my bridesmaids had made it to the front. I was ready to go. My heart was full as I looked down and saw how handsome my Jacob looked. Murphy could bite me, as long as I was going to be his wife, nothing else mattered. To tell you the truth I was so focused on Jacob I don’t recall seeing my maid of honor or my bridesmaid or his best-woman at all on the walk down the aisle. Jacob took my hands and then moved the veil from over my face. Murphy was there again. The veil kept falling into my face but I still was focused on my love. He also had another little nudge to let me know he was taking this journey with me as Jacob looked down at my engagement ring still on my finger and mouthed: “Where are the rings?”. Sigh, they were in the room at the back of the pavilion in my purse. I quickly turned around and informed my maid of honor. Now I didn’t know it at the time, I found out afterwards that she took this as an opportunity to play Charades. I would love to have seen that. I so wish I had known at the time. She described to me as she was playing out the scene to get Becky to look for the rings behind me. I have no idea what the audience thought or didn’t think and I really don’t care. I’m sure that those who were there for us just wanted us to be married. I did find out someone thought it embarrassing, but that person can have their own opinion. They took no part in planning it, never offered, they didn’t help set up and they surely didn’t stay to help tear down so I personally don’t care. I found it a refreshing way to make sure the moment was memorable. When it came time for the vows my new husband had made sure to put his in a frame and he read the words he had wrote for me. I teared up a little. Most girls dream of their wedding day. They plan it from the time they are old enough to dream until it happens. To tell you the truth until Jacob and I started planning and talking about our wedding I never really gave it much thought. It was something that would or would not occur and I really wasn’t sure what I would want. I’m sure it would have changed since I am an older bride than I would have dreamed of back in those days. What Jacob and I wanted was to have fun. We didn’t care about superstitions or preconceived ideas of how things were supposed to be. I also didn’t want it to be all about what I wanted. I wanted him to have fun as well. Trust me I got all kinds of advice and people telling me along the planning stage about what I must and must not do. If I could give any couple advice it would be to just nod and thank them and then do what you want anyway. As Jacob finished up reading his vows I took my paper which was folded up from my maid of honor and opened it to read. Dear old Murphy slapped me in the face. I had to stifle a laugh because of course he had struck again. I looked at the paper which read: “Things left for the Maid of Honor to do.” This meant my vows I had taken so much time to carefully write was in the back room in the folder still. I folded the paper back over and handed it back to my maid of honor and said: I guess I’m winging it. I tried to follow from memory what I had written. I think I hit most of it quite well. I remember that Murphy got bored at this point and wandered off to see who else he could entertain because I don’t recall him being there anymore that day. It was hot so I think my choice of water and flavors turned out to be a hit. Things didn’t go as planned and were not as organized as I had hoped, but in the end it didn’t matter. I was married to this man that has made me feel so at home in this life finally. The food was good, what little I got of it and I think other than heat people had a nice time. It was too hot for anyone to want to stick around for a long entertaining evening so no games were played and dancing was not going to happen in the heat, but I still thank God for my blessings. I have some wonderful family and friends who were there to support me on my next chapter in life. Everyone but one person gave me compliments on the wedding and my dress. One person told me it was awful and a fiasco. I just shuck my head and remembered in the end the only people’s opinions of that day that mattered were mine and Jacobs and it could have been just he and I there and we still would have gone through with our wedding. He and I had vowed to each other earlier that no matter what June 16, 2018 was going to be the day we were married no matter what we had to do to see it through. We made it. We both agreed we enjoyed our day. We both agreed we will remember it forever and that is what matters. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Special thanks go to:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u> Juanita Burks.</u> Without you I would never have made it through this all. You were and are my rock and sister.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Julee Bouchie</u> you went way above and beyond and I can never thank you enough for all that you have done.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Kim Daler</u> you are an awesome friend and I appreciate all that you did that day and all that you do every day.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Mr. & Mrs. Burke</u> thanks so much for the Cake and gifts and for making me feel like I’m your daughter and welcoming me into your family with open arms.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Dustin Kissling</u>, I can’t even begin to tell you how much you mean to me. Thank you for making sure my music was there and that you brought that smile that can just brighten up any room or pavilion in this case.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Dakota Short & Ashley Short</u> thank you for being the best niece and nephew anyone could have and for setting up the pavilion and taking pictures. FYI… thank you too <u>Hannah Banana</u>.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Ritchie Short</u> thank you for being an outstanding brother and photographer. You have always been there for me and I will always be there for you. Love you.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Kris Cortez</u>. Thank you for standing up for Jacob and always being there for him.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Sarah, Daphne & Gwyn Digangi</u> – Thanks for welcoming me into your family<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<u>Mathew West</u>. Thank you for marrying us and being the best cousin a girl could have. Love you.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Finally, below are the vows as I had written them:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;">
<o:p> <b><u>My Vows to Jacob </u></b></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p><b><u><br /></u></b></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p><b><u><br /></u></b></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p> </o:p><span style="font-size: 14pt;">I Vow to you</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">All my life I’ve felt as if I never truly belonged. I was looking for that someone I could connect with. Someone who would make me feel like it was ok to be me with no restrictions. Someone who would unconditionally love me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">When we met there was a comfort with you that I have never felt with anyone else. There was a renewed strength in my faith in both the Lord and in Love. My heart was home.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I promise to love you always. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I promise to be your rock & strength when you feel weak.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I promise to lean on you when I need strength because you are whom God chose for me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I promise to listen with an open mind<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I promise to understand your times of anger, sorrow or disappointment<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">You will never fail me for I will work with you as we are being united as man & wife.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Your happiness, sorrow and anger are mine, as we are one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I will have days where I’m sad<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I will have days where I’m moody<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I will get angry and I will cry<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This makes you and I both human to do these things<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I promise to work with you to make our life happy and righteous<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Together you and I will serve the Lord and each other<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I will work at our marriage as it is a living thing that requires nourishing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I give you my love always<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For me you are the one I want with me till the end of time<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I will put you first before all others except my Lord<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">And my Lord I will give thanks to every day until I die for bringing you to me<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I look forward to our journey and where it takes us. I cannot imagine being anywhere else.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">With you I am happy and I vow to do my best to make you happy as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">------</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ruGZ4ZA3-ELz9a9MF2UWs95ZPotxQgS8W68UpS9cSximibEl2yByBIYSk8JZlltOl54RDXeS-wPc5jMvhGiB2FyawOJFLFY7tObDW4VjPy7r5auTDrGkXn1L_VgnrxOXLatAbqMw9DNZ/s1600/output+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1370" data-original-width="1028" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ruGZ4ZA3-ELz9a9MF2UWs95ZPotxQgS8W68UpS9cSximibEl2yByBIYSk8JZlltOl54RDXeS-wPc5jMvhGiB2FyawOJFLFY7tObDW4VjPy7r5auTDrGkXn1L_VgnrxOXLatAbqMw9DNZ/s320/output+%25281%2529.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><u><b><br /></b></u></span></div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-74066857924018431482018-04-18T14:31:00.000-04:002018-04-18T14:31:08.973-04:00Redefining Beauty<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-kGaA6U8TG3y_bbfY9IjZf-1UbIBQZpRkT-HS6hMo7MgE9Tmpr1m5yCa8ZCamA6XhI1a9fqWZhpCX9iDklmFc09UG5BZEHpn7xMKN5ajdg9rNd3J9kocVbLK-y7VTzsbeKmQv8OsrLFM/s1600/20170329_141747.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="673" data-original-width="914" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-kGaA6U8TG3y_bbfY9IjZf-1UbIBQZpRkT-HS6hMo7MgE9Tmpr1m5yCa8ZCamA6XhI1a9fqWZhpCX9iDklmFc09UG5BZEHpn7xMKN5ajdg9rNd3J9kocVbLK-y7VTzsbeKmQv8OsrLFM/s320/20170329_141747.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Redefining Beauty<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I have no doubt my parents did
what they thought was right for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
tried to raise me in a loving and nourishing family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s face it children don’t come with a hand
book that tells you exactly what to do to get the perfect adult.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All in all, I believe most people try to do
what is right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are just a chosen
few who make it seem otherwise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was I a
happy child?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would say for the most
part I was happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t grow up into
a happy healthy adult like I should have though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me it would take decades to understand
why and to come to terms with it and be happy and healthy emotionally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First and foremost, I love my parents with
all my heart and I would never wish to hurt them, but a roll in my emotional
non-wellness had to be laid on their shoulders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I am an avid believer from how I grew up that parents should never fight
in front of their children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m over a
half century old and I can still hear some of their arguments in my head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The blaming game is what I used to call
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Words can hurt your children even
when they are not directly meant to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
remember mostly in my mind my dad telling my mom during arguments that if she
didn’t have the kids he’d leave her ass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I know now he didn’t mean it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They were just words said in anger, but to a child they meant he didn’t
love her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I know now this was a form
of mental abuse for my mother and for myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I remember one time him packing up my brother and I in his white pickup
truck and hauling us up to his mom’s house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I remember him telling mom he was leaving her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My grandmother wasn’t going to have any of
that though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When she heard why he’d ran
off she sent him with his tail between his legs back to my mother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was two years old at the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, you heard that correctly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People think that a child that young can’t
remember, well they can if the image is burnt into their mind deep enough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember a lot about that year we lived in
Kentucky.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only two but I remember family
walks, the store we had and the little creek that ran behind the house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the most part the year there was a
carefree and adventurous time. I was still a non molded clay to be direction-ally
lead, but in that year a lot happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
remember a lot of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Strange that one
year would be so in my mind, but it is and it’s probably where the start of my
issues began. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>What
is the definition of beauty?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Webster
dictionary defines beauty as the quality or aggregate of qualities in a person
or thing that gives pleasure to the senses or pleasurably exalts the mind or
spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sounds simple enough; however,
growing up every advertisement, every magazine and every show I ever watched
basically stated that beauty is being a certain size and shape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my mind if you didn’t measure up then you
were basically ugly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is how I felt
most of my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ugly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was either too fat or too thin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I either didn’t have enough hips or too
much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My feet were too big for a
girl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was too tall for a girl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boobs, didn’t have them for a while then have
them big time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every aspect of what our
society socializes to be beauty I felt I failed at.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Growing up most of the time I was a little
chubby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Baby fat is what my grandmother
would call it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember my dad talking
about me being fat with her right in front of me and God love her she’d tell
him it was baby fat and I’d grow out of it to leave me alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe if he’d listened I would have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His mother was very loving and kind in my memory and she was always on
my side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The children in school were no
better than my dad though when it came to this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Kids can be cruel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I took my
share of being bullied or teased.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over
the years though it shaped me into a person who wouldn’t stand for anyone to be
treated that way. It made me strong whether by design or not, so I suppose in
that respect it had a good result of sorts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Everywhere it seemed and everyone it would have seemed people saw me as
fat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Looking back, I wasn’t that fat,
but I felt huge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every girl goes through
a stage from around eleven to sixteen where their body will store extra fat as
they have a coming of age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If treated
right they will even back out, but if treated wrong it can cause weight issues
in either direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t learn that
lesson until way too late in life. I remember two times very clear in my mind
that would set me up for emotional failure later in life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both occurred around eleven or twelve years
old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One was a neighbor asking me if I
planned to lose weight because men don’t like fat girls and yes one was my own
dad who told me men don’t like women who are fat and that I’d never find a
husband if I didn’t lose weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again,
I know my dad loved me and in his mind, he was doing what was best for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember the humiliation of him paying me
to lose weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember way too many
things from being young that had to do with my being overweight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is what sticks out my mind the most about
my childhood, which in one very huge way is a sad thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What would occur next in my life would set me
up for a few years of depression and a feeling of being lost.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>My
grandmother Lula was a strong woman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
had to be to raise a family all on her own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Her husband, my grandfather, died when my dad was only six years
old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That left her with a family to
raise all on her own, including a six-week-old new born baby, my dad, his two
older brothers and his sister.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had a
farm with crops, stabled horses and kept chickens and pigs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She couldn’t afford to be weak or sit and
wallow in her sorrows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She took charge
and made the best out of the situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She knew how to manage money and I recall her making quilts and rag
dolls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure she did her best to fill
the role of both dad and mom, but there are some things that she couldn’t teach
them by example, such as how a man treats a woman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dad expected every woman to be as tough as
his mom and I suppose the way I was raised I ended up being quite tough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I never wanted to be though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to have someone there to allow me to
break down and cry or just be weak in a moment of need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That wasn’t where my dad’s train of thought
came from though and it never seemed to happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My grandmother always had my back though and you could see the love in
her eyes when she looked at you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
grandmother was a short stout woman herself and I’m sure she didn’t really
appreciate my dad’s views on weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Come to think of it he was always a little over weight himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Either way she wasn’t going to have him
telling me stuff like that in front of her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Problem was she lived in Kentucky and my dad and his family lived in
Indiana so she was only there to jump to my defense when we were there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I loved her a lot and I was always happy at
her home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have so many fond memories
of playing on her porch and out in her yard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I do miss her so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember all
my childhood dreams of growing up and having a daughter I could name after her
and having her come to my wedding and her seeing me graduate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not one of those things would come to be
though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was in some respects her
favorite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was born on her
birthday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were exactly fifty-nine
years apart in age to the very minute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps that made her and I kindred souls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know, but I do know that in November
of 1983 my world changed forever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
rock of support was no longer there and my first loss of someone I truly loved
brought me face to face with a sadness I was not prepared for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Driving
to Kentucky for my grandmother’s funeral was the first time I ever remember
seeing my dad cry, as a matter of fact it’s the only time I’ve ever seen him
cry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve seen him sad, but until that
day he was an extreme pillar of unwavering strength.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was an orphan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>True he was a grown man with a family but the
only parent he truly knew well and the one who had always been there for him
was gone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was sixteen years old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember walking into the funeral home when
we got there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember people laughing
and talking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember touching her
hand and how cold it was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She didn’t
look like herself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had been ill for
some time and in the hospital.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was
no longer stout, but rather stick thin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Her eyes were closed and her hands were crossed on her chest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To this day I have no idea what anyone said
to me that night at the funeral home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
just remembering feeling numb.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
remember them moving her to the old church house that she attended.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember food and talking with people who
were walking inside and out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember
the night service the day before her funeral.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I remember someone talking about who was staying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the south they used to, not sure they
still do, but they used to sit up all night with the dead and be with the
body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I for the life of me can’t
remember it being cold at all during that time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It would have had to have been in the end of November, wouldn’t it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember the day of her funeral.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked around at people giving comfort to
their spouses, their friends and family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I sat alone with no one doing that for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had to be strong again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t my turn to be weak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just keep your head up and listen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t remember what was said in the
service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just remember wishing we were
going to the grave yard, but we didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Dad had to get back home so we wouldn’t be seeing my grandmother off to
the family graveyard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ride back was
very quiet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mood was blank and empty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The next few months I would
start exercising to try and lose weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was one thing I could control in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Somehow, I just felt like things were
changing too quickly and I couldn’t control any of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Exercising took my mind off that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It helped me focus on the motions of doing
and not living.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My weight became my new
obsession and I slowly learned how to hide and get rid of food without my
mother realizing I wasn’t eating it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Over the next couple of years, I would focus on my body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the time I was eighteen I was eating once
every three days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes I wouldn’t
even eat then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would do contests with
myself to see how long I could go without food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Seven days was the longest I did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I drank plenty of water so I wasn’t dehydrating but my body was growing
weaker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I did eat I didn’t eat much
and sometimes I felt guilty and would go run to the bathroom and throw it
up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I realized it wasn’t healthy and I
also realized I no longer had control of the one thing I thought I did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also no longer cared what people thought of
my body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only one that mattered was
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to be thinner and
thinner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By eighteen I was 5 feet eight
and a half inches tall and weighed around a hundred and thirty pounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To put this in perspective for my body height
and frame doctors told me to stay between one fifty and one seventy-five.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The easy solution to the doctors not knowing
I wasn’t doing this was simply to not go to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This again was a vicious cycle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was once ashamed to go to doctors because I
was overweight and now I was ashamed to go because I was too thin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You see in my opinion the doctors had a part
in my emotional issues as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Especially this one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of
approaching it in a positive way they would negatively remark on my weight and
tell me to lose weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Weight loss was
met with praise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t see anyone
praising me for health or even talking about if I should be healthy or not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just make sure you’re thin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, body issues and images were brought to
the front of my mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember getting
extremely sick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had the flu, but my
body was reacting like I was dying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
mother would cater to my needs and when I went to the bathroom I could barely
walk there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember being at
work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember passing out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My body had put up with all it wanted to and
I was starting to see that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unlike some
girls though common sense popped into my head at this point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If something didn’t change I would die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I played with that thought in my mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Part of me felt comfort at the idea, but
another part knew my life was worth living, so I reach out to the company
psychiatrist and started trying to get my emotions out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This would be my first time to see someone in
this occupation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t sure how the
game was played and I wasn’t completely sure I trusted him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him a lot of the things in my mind but
I left out much more than I told him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
knew I was troubled, but I never told him of my eating disorder. I wasn’t ready
for that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over the months of seeing him
once a week I came to do better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
slowly took to eating every other day and eventually got to eating once a day.
I knew I was getting better in that respect, but I also knew there was still
something very wrong inside of me.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Over the next few years I would
learn a lot about life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents had
sheltered me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was lot I didn’t
know about the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I worked at the
Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo starting at sixteen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I spent five years in total there and I learned people can be
cruel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a woman there named
Carol.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was the first person to ever
out and out tell me she didn’t like me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She was mean to me almost all the time and if she was assigning the jobs
of the day you could guarantee I was getting an ugly job assignment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember her showing pictures of herself to
guys that worked there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t help
but see her as vulgar, but I was young.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps my youth is why she didn’t like me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the time it bothered me a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The me that is here today wouldn’t have
wasted a moment on caring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were good
people there too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember a guy named
William that watched out for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t
know what happened to him but I wonder sometimes if he knows how much I
appreciated and still do appreciate that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In this time, I would start learning that freedom comes with a price and
adulthood perhaps wasn’t all I had hoped it would be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were so many things I didn’t
understand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life wasn’t like the movies
or the television shows. The world wasn’t as wholesome as I had always thought
and there were so many things I was about to discover on this journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So many things I wish I still didn’t
know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My innocence of the world would no
longer be in place after that summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There were ugly things out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Things my parents had sheltered me from and things I would have to learn
to understand and once again handle on my own. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I graduated high school in the
summer of 1986.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was a few weeks away
from 19 years old and I was working a job for Lincoln National
Corporation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had won a college
scholarship, but I really didn’t want to go to college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This wasn’t a choice I felt I had
though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People were pushing me to study
computers and I followed that direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was tall and paper thin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had
a better grasp on my eating, but I once again was making sure I ate as little
as I could and still feel strong enough to handle my day. Food had never been
far out of my thoughts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I still had an
unnaturally unhealthy obsession with counting calories and making sure I didn’t
eat more than a meal a day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had it in
my mind at this time and would for many years that my self-worth was based on
whether men found me attractive or not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Somehow
in my mind Sex and love were synonymous with each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, I didn’t go out and sleep around but I
wanted a man to want me, yet at the same time, the thought terrified me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did date some at this age, but I never gave
into lust.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was considering the option
of waiting for marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I at least had
that modicum of self-respect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember
my graduation day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mother, my brother
and a neighbor of ours came.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dad
unfortunately had to work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know he had
to, but I was so disappointed that he didn’t skip work and come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To me it was as if he was saying it wasn’t
important.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I always wanted my dad’s
approval.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That really sounds like a cliché
to say that, but it is the truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think every little girl wants their daddy to approve of their life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I spent years trying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heck I even learned to love basketball after
my brother got married just to get to spend some quality time with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I never have even to this day felt as though
I was the daughter he wanted or the one he was proud of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, I know he loves me, but there is a
difference in love and respect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Over the decades I dated a bunch
of men who were not right for me in any manner of speaking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I usually dated those that I felt I could
best keep at bay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This isn’t what I
thought I wanted, but it was the best way I knew to get that attention I
craved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suppose you could say I really
didn’t think that one out well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I dated
a couple of guys that turned out to be gay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A guy that has been in and out of prison multiple times since we stopped
dating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Guess I dodged a bullet on that
one).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve dated drunks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve dated guys that were so good looking
even they couldn’t stop looking at themselves in the mirror.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve bar hopped and partied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve tried drugs I probably shouldn’t have
and I am thankful to God to this day he never let me get addicted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve dated guys that treated me poorly to say
the least.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I once dated a guy for six
months who told me what to eat, when to eat and who I could talk to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Uh, nope I didn’t take it for long, but I was
surprised I took it at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is just
another level of needing to feed the abuse pattern I would suppose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My big wakeup call was the last guy I dated
for a long period of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Five years to
be exact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was a user big time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was infatuated with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I so craved to find love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would tell you he was wonderful to me, but
he really wasn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Looking back on the
way he treated me I sigh with relief that the good Lord got me out of that
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I spent more time crying than I did
my entire life in that relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
didn’t mind telling me my flaws.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Something snapped over time in my mind that said this isn’t love on any
level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I jumped in and started searching
the dating sites.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let me tell you if you
want to get depressed go out there and start dating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are more losers and users than one
would like to imagine possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I dated
a guy who thought that telling me at the end of our first date he’s getting us
a motel room so we can have sex and he will see if he wants a second date would
get me to have sex with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was a
fireman and I love my comeback.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So glad
I thought of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I said: “Baby you are
really good at your job.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You just put
out my fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not interested in a
second date.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of those times when divine
intervention must have been there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
poor my heart into relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I always
have hope they will work out but after him and after several dates of the gene
pool out there I was ready to give up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>By
November of 2015 I had about decided I was going to try to be happy by
myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had found every loser possible
in the surrounding counties I was certain of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did date one or two really nice guys, but unfortunately,
they were still hung up on other people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Dating them did help build my confidence though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another thing that helped build my confidence
was seeing a counselor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s
wonderful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think everyone should have
someone they can talk to that fits their personality, will listen and you have
no fears of what you tell them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
helped me to see some of the things I still questioned in the back of my mind
were true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She helped me with
understanding I do deserve to be loved and that I can be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Along this time my future husband asked me
out to a date to Applebee’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I almost
didn’t go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not because I didn’t like the
emails we had exchanged but because it always seemed out the men on these sites
never turned out like they were in their emails.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought ok last one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll go get it over with and move on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The thing is he was exactly who he portrayed
himself to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was caring and
considerate and was upfront with so many points of information.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My thought immediately was that he’d been on
some of the same type of dates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found
myself at ease with him, yet I still didn’t trust it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had given up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was forty-eight years old and I just
figured at this point I was meant to be alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At the end of our dinner he told me he didn’t want the date to end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt the same, but I was still being
cautious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I informed him I needed to go
to the Meijer’s on the other side of the parking lot and he was welcome to come
with me and he did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We walked even
though it was a bit brisk outside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Inside the Meijer I found myself being me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We played with toys, laughed and I eventually
did get the few groceries I needed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over
the next few weeks we went out more and more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He treated me and still treats me two and a half years later like a
princess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s always telling me I’m
beautiful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love this man so much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I almost missed out on him, but God made sure
I didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s helped me feel good about
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, I’d like to lose the weight I’ve
gained back while being sick, but he doesn’t seem to mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He brings me flowers, rubs my feet and lets
me just lay my head on his shoulder if that is what I need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Through him and my hard work of learning and
understanding I have come to redefine beauty in my mind’s eye.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish I had known what I know now all my
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a difference it might have
made, yet at the same time I might have missed out on him if I had.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s beautiful to me inside and out and he
always makes me feel the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve
redefined my definition of beauty. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
wish the world could redefine it too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Too many ads and people trying to make it about things it isn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The greatest beauty is God’s Love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The greatest beauty is sharing your heart
with another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s being who you are and
being comfortable to be that person with the person you share your life with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes I’ve redefined beauty and I’m happy I
finally did.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-10972843076602396772018-02-28T12:28:00.000-05:002018-02-28T12:28:53.223-05:00Anger only Destoys<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvUaS3ON7tILcNW9sxCHiaEnhT-_0bfFrXqJQSNao3QIV7nYVaSQHLdwZ8UdB1PGI0-GZF1CEkWGVVam-gtIzADtXFKilemBgOnXn36BkgICAqmXfEaN6NwE60eXqss5SuD9MevEBs1wo/s1600/tn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="612" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvUaS3ON7tILcNW9sxCHiaEnhT-_0bfFrXqJQSNao3QIV7nYVaSQHLdwZ8UdB1PGI0-GZF1CEkWGVVam-gtIzADtXFKilemBgOnXn36BkgICAqmXfEaN6NwE60eXqss5SuD9MevEBs1wo/s320/tn.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Let’s face it, we all get angry from time to time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a normal human response to life
events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anger though is a worthless,
wasted emotion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a human we also can
choose how we deal with the anger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
don’t have to have outburst, or go beat up the guy across the street.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I was younger I let anger control
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was young and I hadn’t learned
what I know now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would lash out,
scream, pound my fist and even in some cases seek revenge on whomever or
whatever situation made me angry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I’m
not saying that the thought of doing those things still doesn’t cross my mind,
because they do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every now and again I
even find myself starting to get high toned and ready to let go, but I try to
stop myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now not only do I find that
I have more peace in my life with my approach to life, but I’m also probably
better off for it on other avenues as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I mean in today’s time people will shoot you for looking at them wrong
let alone going off on them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then there
is our justice system which is proving that it is blind in these ages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even if you are the wronged party you could
end up in jail or with a record you don’t need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Over the last few years I have learned to look at the event, the person
or persons involved and even my own role in the situation and try to evaluate
it before I explode.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I find most of the
time I can talk calmly and keep my peace and wits about me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I try to talk to the party about it if it
really bothers me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yelling and screaming
or even hitting someone rarely and I doubt ever really solves any issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It took time to master the art of doing
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had to learn by holding my
breath… Walking away, counting to ten and here’s the hard part… I had to learn
to see my own part in the situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
had to find my own blame.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An example I
am going to use would be from this past Sunday. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My baby and I were scrapping as we do and
usually people are cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of them
will bring us stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A guy waived us
down and gave us a grill to scrap this past week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a beautiful day and whether we find
stuff or not it’s a time I enjoy greatly getting to just talk and be
together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is always good to us and
we are thankful to Him for all that he provides.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we were ending our route we do we stopped
waiting for this car that had its lights on that was backing out of a drive and
we didn’t wait long but he wasn’t pulling out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So, we pulled over to the curb on the opposite side of his drive to pick
up scrap metal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As he backed out of the
drive Jack even said I bet he’s pissed off we are sitting here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well he drove two houses down and just
stopped in the road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where we were didn’t
hamper him from getting out of his drive at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had no effect on him, but here was this
guy letting this beautiful day be wasted by getting mad because we existed in
his universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people at the house
came home and we moved out of the front of their drive way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were very nice and we have a date next
week to go back and pick up some stuff from them set up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The man in the car put his car in reverse, yes,
he had set there all that time, and got out of his car and approached his
neighbors and Jack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He went off on Jack
and told him if he set stuff out that he best not catch him getting it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yup, ignorant ass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The gentleman’s neighbor told him she invited
us there and that he just needed to go away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We were not hurting this guy one bit, but yes, I can see how us stopping
behind him as he pulled out might have upset him, even though we were not in
his way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before leaving this guy
verbally threatened Jack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He threated to
beat his ass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found it a little
amusing that this guy was that angry over something so stupid but my baby didn’t
like being threatened, but he didn’t do anything out of respect for the
neighbor that was standing there with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She even told him to ignore the guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This guy really was stupid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What
if Jack had a temper and a gun?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is
the way things are these days?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if
we choose to bring charges for the assault threat?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This guy was not so smart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bringing charges would just have him feuding
with the neighbor though and they are being nice to us so that wouldn’t be a
way to repay them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now if this bothered
the guy so much he had to say something to feel better he could have simply
stopped and said “hey can you please not pull over in front of my drive next
time?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would appreciate it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How hard would it be for the world to use
kindness instead of hate, rage and anger?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Or if the anger were deep maybe he could go to the gym and take it out
on a treadmill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That would have been
productive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The way he did it was very
negative and in the end probably left him regretful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it were me I’d be fearful in these times
too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You never know who you’re talking
to these days and what they will do if you upset them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lucky for him we are God fearing people who
love the Lord and his word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if we
weren’t?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where would that leave
him?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thinking before you act or speak is
a long-lost art I think.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anger is a
wasted emotion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anger unless righteous
only tears down and destroys the person who is angry and everyone and
everything in their path of rage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let it
go and see how much better you will fair and feel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>--- <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
*informational – When garbage, scrap, old furniture, etc.
is placed at the curb for the garbage man to collect it becomes public domain
and is free for the taking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-66261801275841415392017-12-29T14:14:00.001-05:002017-12-29T14:24:38.072-05:00Looking for a little help.. if you please<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmWBdaBk38z4DYNEsCx-OdgWt4dK3BDAbomfTlgUEy7wui5Aa4SBaaeJ6KEadZLEyf-a_lvKQHXkbC8z16xaIzWmFe_9t7AODJh7PuNpiMi-UQFReZ6w1V2x7PhzT_7wIZNDTw2LhuZV4/s1600/20170513_150722.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmWBdaBk38z4DYNEsCx-OdgWt4dK3BDAbomfTlgUEy7wui5Aa4SBaaeJ6KEadZLEyf-a_lvKQHXkbC8z16xaIzWmFe_9t7AODJh7PuNpiMi-UQFReZ6w1V2x7PhzT_7wIZNDTw2LhuZV4/s320/20170513_150722.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<a href="https://www.gofundme.com/50-years-to-find-him-he039s-worth-it" target="_blank">https://www.gofundme.com/50-years-to-find-him-he039s-worth-it</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="share-btns-contain" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: Lato, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; padding: 0px; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="co-story truncate-text--description js-truncate" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: Lato, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 6.25rem; orphans: 2; padding: 0px 0px 1rem; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; word-wrap: break-word;">
To my family, friends and those who may wish to help. It took me Forty-eight years to find my knight in shining armor. He's everything I could ever want and more. I am setting up this GO Fund me account to try to assist with my wedding and honeymoon costs. Jacob and I are picking up the cost all our own and we would also like to do a few renovations to the house to make it friendlier for a couple. I have a lot of it covered but Not sure I will make it all. If you would like to help you can donate here or you may send money to myself or Jacob. If you do not want to donate money you may do gift cards to help during the honeymoon. If you can’t help or don’t want to I understand that as well. Our lives are all busy and costly these days. I love you all and no matter what I look forward to my life ahead with Jacob.</div>
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-39715188510590800582017-11-03T10:20:00.005-04:002017-11-03T10:20:49.175-04:00Things That Go Bump In The Night...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipmB8nL8yDajaB7INidDWwCRiN79wF-gH1_-VCu7UjYqL2c1Q8GXhQaQ7YfXRq0-WLyIQaJJR41PauAYEc3tWfviDRKagTao-x_FlpkPf91UKKaBgawTlqktmF0QlLYmxyjDPHFIJOhtk/s1600/20170411_114315.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1498" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipmB8nL8yDajaB7INidDWwCRiN79wF-gH1_-VCu7UjYqL2c1Q8GXhQaQ7YfXRq0-WLyIQaJJR41PauAYEc3tWfviDRKagTao-x_FlpkPf91UKKaBgawTlqktmF0QlLYmxyjDPHFIJOhtk/s320/20170411_114315.jpg" width="299" /></a></div>
<br />
I awoke with a confused startle. What was that noise. It almost sounded as if someone were in the house moaning. I struggled to get awake enough to confirm my surroundings. A cold wet nose nuzzled against my right cheek. Yes, I was laying on my living room sofa and across the room I could see the clock. It’s only 9 minutes past midnight I thought. Sigh, less than six hours till I had to go to work. Again, I heard muffled sounds. My mind played with the possibility that my mother was having another nightmare. The medicine she’s on often causes her to have nightmares and cry out in her sleep. Thankfully though she doesn’t remember them. I’ve learned to just let her sleep through them. I mentally stretch my hearing in the direction of the bedroom of which she’s on the other side. No, it’s not her. Now, I can clearly hear sirens off in the distance, but the sound is ever so slowly heading in my direction. My fogged brain slowly starts to comprehend the noises that I am hearing. There it is, the moaning. It’s simply the wind and winter announcing its intended arrival. Bear, my Pekinese, seams annoyed that I’m moving my head as I listen. For a couple of minutes, I listen to the sirens, wondering if they will come down my street but they veer off and are obviously now heading a little away from me. Sounds don’t usually wake me of this nature. I settle back down and with ease it seems fall back to sleep. As I sleep I am dreaming of some new job I have. In the dream, the job is one where I must choose which people get bonus checks and which ones don’t. It seems completely off kilt to me as I have never wanted to be in charge or be in management. I am about to say when I am again awoken. This time Bear is barking and growling and jumps from beside me to go stand in front of the door. I hear a noise that makes me get up as well. I go to the window and peak out to see a figure running down my driveway. Am I dreaming? I turn on a light and look around. Then I hear the wind slamming my screen door against my outer door. No, I’m awake. I open the door and grab the slamming screen door and pull it closed and lock it. I always make sure it’s closed because I know what the wind will do to it. I’m befuddled at the thought that someone was at my door this time of night. My dog, Bear, had alerted me and awakened me to the person trying to gain entry or so it would seem. I looked out again and there is no one out there now. I’ve lived in this neighborhood since 1999. I have had a kid walk up and try to open my door when I was sitting on the sofa during broad daylight once a few years back. I think it startled him that I was looking right at him through the window. I have also had gas stolen from my car twice, but for the most part my neighborhood is harmless. I looked at the clock again and it’s shortly after 1 in the morning. My mind flashes back to the sirens less than an hour earlier. I’ve seen too many movies is what runs through my mind. The two couldn’t possibly be connected. Reality again sinks in and I am a woman who likes my sleep. I leave the lights in the living room on and curl back up on the sofa. I need sleep before work in the morning. Surprisingly I fell back to sleep and into dreamland with no trouble what so ever. When I awoke this morning, I got dressed as usual and headed off to work. My mind flashing back to the nights events. I suppose it should bother me more than does that someone did that last night. I mean it was only yesterday I was thinking about how awful it is that someone just walked into a Walmart and took lives with no thought. Those people were going about their daily lives and didn’t have a care in the world or fear at doing their shopping there and now they are no longer among the living. I choose to put my faith in the Lord though. He will not let anything happen to me before it’s my time to go. For me though it was a thought that it could have been very different for me last night. I sleep very soundly so if my little Bear hadn’t awakened me and made such a fuss that person might have gotten in. Who knows what would have happened then. So, I gave this little guy a home a little over a year ago and yes, he can be handful but to me last night he earned his keep. He earned a place in my heart that he already had but he’s sealed the deal now. Ten pounds of fluff that was so intent on making sure no one came in to hurt me. So, things that go bump in the night beware… Officer Bear protects this home!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-15212649628437951092017-06-23T08:57:00.001-04:002017-06-23T08:57:50.240-04:00Google Pixel XL VS Samsung Galaxy 8+<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvTeAH6Qk1HfDWrq1zuQosBdSvX7YilIsloJ9KP61BAs6wVxpbgVlLOK5H7uaOu2miJ9znrDUNrGAXDvFJ3U_R6kk6oIr81hX2RKkE2JjHP0ZpPsvopJpPwuIK04OVTjBP_FLBG7WSvqw/s1600/google_pixel_xl.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="635" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvTeAH6Qk1HfDWrq1zuQosBdSvX7YilIsloJ9KP61BAs6wVxpbgVlLOK5H7uaOu2miJ9znrDUNrGAXDvFJ3U_R6kk6oIr81hX2RKkE2JjHP0ZpPsvopJpPwuIK04OVTjBP_FLBG7WSvqw/s320/google_pixel_xl.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So, as many
of you know, being the klutz I am, I fell a couple of weeks ago and ripped out
one of my stitches, well I also cracked the screen on my Samsung Galaxy 7. It wasn’t a bad crack, but I still didn’t like
that it was cracked so this led me to go ahead and upgrade my phone. I reviewed all the phones and I care about
listening to music, clear reception on calls and taking awesome pictures. Everything I read led me to believe that the
Google Pixel XL would be the way to go.
The reviews on this phone looked awesome. With this information, I ordered the Google
Pixel XL. I got it Monday. This phone was incredibly easy to set up;
however, right away I noticed that the graphics didn’t seem up to snuff and the
look and feel of the phone was somewhat antiquated. Now, I’m not one to just give up without
giving it a try so I installed all the items I needed, set everything up and
used it all day Tuesday and Wednesday.
By Thursday I was deeply aware that I wasn’t comfortable with this phone
and I wasn’t happy with it. I noticed
that in certain areas of the city it would take what seemed like forever to
pull up something after I requested it.
Now knowing that the longer it takes to load the more data you chew up that
didn’t make me that happy with the phone.
I wasn’t going anywhere I didn’t go all the time so it seemed odd. I spoke with a Verizon rep and was told no
problem I could go to the Verizon Store and exchange it if I wasn’t happy with
it. Last night I did just that. I explained to the gentleman what problems I
had been having and that I had looked up information on LTE. This phone is an LTE phone. There are wonderful articles out there that
will explain to you that LTE is supposed to be 4G equivalent; however, it goes
on to say it’s not quite there yet and it’s more like having 3G. The gentleman at the store told me that must
be an old article I had read. I quickly
informed him it was from April and I believed it. He spoke with his manager who has the same
phone and he said he was noticing the same issues in some parts of town I
was. I reviewed all the phones and
played with them for quite a while and I settled on a Samsung Galaxy 8+. Now I was worried like everyone else about
the curved screen but I got a case and glass protector and a holster cover for
when I’m not using the phone that will hopefully help keep from breaking the
screen if I drop it. Immediately after
setting it up and starting to use it I felt a breath of relief. It was like being home after months on the
road. It just felt right. The feel of
the phone in my hand and the graphics and the sound are all exactly what I
wanted. I have not had any problems
loading anything right away today. It’s
an awesome phone. The guy told me they
had nothing but rave reviews from customers for the Google Pixel but he was
like me and preferred the Samsung. Over
all I suppose I am happy I tried it, because if I had not I would always
wonder; however, I was not happy with the $35 restocking fee I was charged to
change phones. I guess I kind of feel
like since I’ve been their customer for 20 years and they do say that you can
exchange phones why am I paying a restocking fee. You don’t pay a restocking fee when you take
back items to a store. I informed the
guy I wasn’t happy with that and he said well I can’t resell it as new. I guess I understand that but in the next
breath he said he’d have to return it to Google. So, he’s not selling it at all. I kind of feel like that is a bit of a
scam. I also don’t believe they should
charge their customers an activation fee for upgrading. This is just my opinion I suppose. Over all for the money it is my opinion that
Samsung wins hands down over the Google phone.
The look and feel of The Google Pixel XL along with the often slow
download and upload speeds left me somewhat cold. Sorry Google.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUpNYuV00YVx9afdMjpLaIOSXG120k9KtDh1GVLWgKikqQZDpzkFcXFxbXf3g6MXlTWMoww594MZRKiF2T9IVFomMbYvExc4K1b4ZpYvbA-ubi3We9MBL4g_7bvUUVlbpQNIC4Wotl7SA/s1600/galaxy-s8-main2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUpNYuV00YVx9afdMjpLaIOSXG120k9KtDh1GVLWgKikqQZDpzkFcXFxbXf3g6MXlTWMoww594MZRKiF2T9IVFomMbYvExc4K1b4ZpYvbA-ubi3We9MBL4g_7bvUUVlbpQNIC4Wotl7SA/s320/galaxy-s8-main2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<o:p></o:p>Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-50913501478899874052017-04-07T07:43:00.001-04:002017-04-07T07:48:14.409-04:00John Edwards - Psychic medium<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img height="150" src="https://res-5.cloudinary.com/simpleview/image/fetch/c_limit,f_auto,h_640,q_60,w_800/https://FortWayne.simpleviewcrm.com/images/calendar/b9ba1e61-5056-a348-3a90907ff6a784ca.jpg" width="200" /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
A friend of mine & I went to see John Edwards performance at the Grand Wayne Center in Fort Wayne Indiana this past Wednesday night. The venue was smaller than I had expected it to be. I have long been a fan of John's for his ability to help bring comfort to so many through his writings. I have every book he's written and I love them all. They are an inspiration so if you've not read them I would highly suggest that you do. This being said I am a skeptic to a large degree on what he is or is not doing when he's giving a reading. I watched carefully for ques from the people he was reading and listened closely to every word he said. He seemed confident in his choices of telling people things about their family; however, it almost seemed like fishing too. I guess I also have a hard time because I have had so many things happen to me in my own life that I should automatically believe. I mean I've passed messages on to friends and family from the other side to help them. I've known things way ahead of schedule I should not know. I've seen things I can't explain. Here's the thing though I'm not sure if what I've seen, heard and felt is a person communicating from the other side or an angel conveying the message from above to help the soul here that needs the message. These things also don't happen to me on a command basis. I can't just say OK I'm open so lets start talking to people. Then there are night visits. I've had many visits as John described them in my dreams. They are so vivid that when you wake up you're lost as to where you are. Are these actually the spirits of loved ones passed or are they again angles helping us with a need to see loved ones and be comforted. Then there is a scarier option that the things that go bump in the night are demons and that they are here to seem as if they are giving comfort only to lead us away from the Father. Now I loved that John Acknowledged God in his reading he did. Although he says he's not a fan of organized religion he is a believer. That is of comfort as well. Most of the questions and "hits" he had with the audience I could have had a hit on as well, as in I could have answered yes to the questions he asked; however, I think I would have to believe, or I feel that I have had a larger number of deaths in my life than most people. I've known people who were murdered, committed suicide, died in car accidents, lost to a fire, one lost to the waters... so you see I could probably hit on about anything he could come up with so again it makes me a harder target. Why has death been so prominent in my life. If I could have asked one question of John that probably would have been the one for me. Now on the day that I went to see John's performance I was getting ready to drive at 12:18 pm when something told me to note the time. It also went on to tell me to ask John when the last time he enjoyed a reading and did it for no cost. No cost in money, no cost to his soul. I wasn't sure what to think of this but I could not get it off my mind all day. I sure as hell wasn't about to raise my hand and ask that question of John in front of everyone and I live on a check by check basis so the general admission was really more than I should of spent to go see him I didn't spend the extra to go spend one on one time with him although I would love to have. A friend of mine was there though and I told her to tell John that 12:18 is supposed to mean something to him. I'm not sure what and I don't know why. I felt better even though I don't know if she conveyed it or not. That same friend was with her mom and they told me how the mother had asked for two signs for the night. One was for a feather. Now they told as how a small feather had fallen from the ceiling in there right before we came in and landed a little ways from them. Where would a feather come from in the Grand Wayne Center exhibit hall? I do have prophetic dreams. I've had them all my life. I do believe I've walked and talked with Jesus in a dream and I do believe I've been shown the end of days. So maybe it's harder for me to believe? I know I believe in the writings of the King James Bible. I know it warns of false prophets, so I am skeptical more often than not. I also do not begrudge the man making a living using his craft; however, I believe once he has made enough to sustain him and his family if he really has a gift he would do a lot more charity readings or use his gift for good. I would also ask him why he doesn't help with crimes. I can't live his life for him. I can't know his crosses that he bears so I will not judge, but I do have a curiosity about it. My general thoughts on Wednesday though are that I don't know that I saw anything that would lead me to believe in what he's doing or not. I know if he's true or not that if he gives a little bit of peace to a grieving soul that this is all good with me. So do you believe?</div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-74222463736568817162017-02-11T10:49:00.000-05:002017-02-11T11:05:42.894-05:00A Letter to Me @ 16 - Letter 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVTVXJao4_mjsyGCO4frKmVMOWx8GOlBo-HsSpC41uw0pz-CveBEqM-OvVJOzuSeB_Ux5I6OrM8j1uMcWy0K5S2BzFwCzN7xTSTJnUy7P9n4s0vNrswdh_GYYo5MSjvrjzntX1xv9uVE/s1600/20140516_234502%255B1%255D.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVTVXJao4_mjsyGCO4frKmVMOWx8GOlBo-HsSpC41uw0pz-CveBEqM-OvVJOzuSeB_Ux5I6OrM8j1uMcWy0K5S2BzFwCzN7xTSTJnUy7P9n4s0vNrswdh_GYYo5MSjvrjzntX1xv9uVE/s200/20140516_234502%255B1%255D.jpeg" width="150" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Life is to each of us exactly how we choose to live it. Operative word here would be LIVE. Most people never actually live life, they merely sit looking in the window as if Window Shopping. Be sure you're not one of them. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Dear Sheila:<br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Until now
your life has been pretty sheltered.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This
year will challenge you more than you could possibly ever imagine.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Life and the way you view it is about to
change.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Every year
as a child you looked forward to summer breaks from school.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This year you chose to work at the Fort Wayne
Children’s Zoo.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is your first real
look at the outside world.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">While working
there you will meet a large variety of people from all back grounds.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You will be subjected to the first person to
really show you hate and disdain.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">She’s
just jealous of your youth.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You can’t
see that now, but looking back some day you’ll realize it was pity you should
have had for her and prayers she could have used. You’ll meet a guy who will
show you that people will stand up for you against all other odds.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">He is a friend you still think and wonder
about from time to time.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You really didn’t
appreciate him the way you should have then.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Death will play a big part in the year ahead.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You’ve been sheltered from that too.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Your parents loved you and didn’t want you to
know about all the ugly and painful things in the world.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Perhaps they should have let you fall a
little more often. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The first death will
be someone you had a major crush on in high school.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">He was in your brother’s class and graduated
that summer.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">He was popular and a
straight A student.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Strange he probably
never knew you thought he was perfect at the time.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You will take a break at work one day and
read the paper.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You’ve always had a morbid
infatuation with the obituaries so you will be leafing through and find his
obituary there.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Not only that but as you
leaf through the rest of the paper you will find an article about how he hung
himself and took his own life in a hotel room in Florida.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You will feel crushed and full of confusing
emotions.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The article covers the
hardships of popular students going out into the real world.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">By summers end you’ll understand as you see
more of what people are like.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You’re not
really a kid anymore.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The way people
treat you as an adult is completely different.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s not the individual items I want you to take from this, but the
reality that life changes daily and the innocence of childhood is something to
hold onto as long as you can.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I also
want you to understand more of how to look through other people’s eyes.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We are all human with our own pains and
sorrows.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Often people hurt us without even knowing they
are.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Humans get caught up in their own
emotions and sometimes that blinds them to the effect what they are doing has
on other people.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">By the end of the year
you will have lost your grandmother.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Again your emotions will be full of confusion and pain.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Things we believe in youth show not to be
reality as we get older.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">She won’t be
there for your graduation.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">She won’t be
there to see you get married or to hold your first child.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">These are all emotions that swell up in
you.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You also for the first time will
understand that your parents will not always be here as you watch your father
cry for the first time openly in front of you at the loss of his mother.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">He’s human.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Not a concept many children really understand.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">For the first time your dad is human in your
eyes.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You should have opened up to
someone during this time to let them know the emotions you really were having,
but you didn’t.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You held them inside and
tried to be strong.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Strength is what you’ve
grown up believing is what you need most.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Let me correct that for you.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Showing emotions and being honest and outspoken with those around you
regarding your real feelings is not weak.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s stronger than silence ever will be.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Yet that year you did nothing.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You told people you were fine.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">You sat at a funeral that tore you apart and pretended your world wasn’t
crashing down around you.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Let me warn
you… Feelings like that being bundled inside build anger and frustrations that
can lead you down a path you can’t easily get off of. </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
So what I would hope you would take from this with you is that you need to be a kid while you can. Youth is fleeting. I know that is cliche but in this case as it would be true. Always do things that you will be proud of as you get older. Hold strong in your convictions and open up about how you are feeling with those you love. Be understanding of other people. Give them second chances and even more than that. Yet know when to walk away from them and be okay in the knowledge that you had done all you could. Tell people what you want them to know now. Tomorrow isn't promised to anyone and death comes from everyone. Understand that death should be embraced but not striven for or feared. Don't worry about the little things... I will be here with you for the duration, as my journey has only begun.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-55756503935570246522016-11-14T00:23:00.000-05:002016-11-14T00:23:01.793-05:00Reflection<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGb2da-c3vu3UMUrojKUCZKdJUbcy2MS_F8lYhnTbMmoWibhqp5TGRh5z1AMmnUmyP8NgytGp7O2iaS-otsasy2yS2SXSpxSzGIT3un-5C2uAYbm6mmKECIp6gXk_fbCa_LK4jgl-ZTII/s1600/Copy+%25283%2529+of+Fall+Trees.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGb2da-c3vu3UMUrojKUCZKdJUbcy2MS_F8lYhnTbMmoWibhqp5TGRh5z1AMmnUmyP8NgytGp7O2iaS-otsasy2yS2SXSpxSzGIT3un-5C2uAYbm6mmKECIp6gXk_fbCa_LK4jgl-ZTII/s320/Copy+%25283%2529+of+Fall+Trees.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There are
mild stones and turning points all throughout our lives. Life seems to move so quickly that if we are
not careful we will not see the curve or bend in the path we are
traveling. Looking back on my own life
it amazes me at how much things in my life have changed. It puzzles me at times as to how and when
things that mattered to me so much changed.
I suppose it changed for me the most almost a year ago. I decided to turn my life back over to
God. No, I am not saying I am
saved. God and I are working on it
though. I’ve known a peace that is hard
to describe. When I start worrying over
things and yes I do at times, I pray to the Father to help me and I tell him I
command my life into your hands, your will be done. So with this election as with anything else
as of late I prayed. My inner soul was
lost and torn between issues and friends and family. Never have I known an election that has torn
so many in so many directions. As with
everything though the path is only clear if you allow yourself to see it with unencumbered
eyes. For me the choice was not an easy
one, but in the end I had to go with where I felt the Lord would want me to
go. No, I’m not saying God cares about
politics, but in the end I could not stand for someone who so openly
dis-regarded the life of an innocent baby.
Funny thing is I wanted her in office when Barrack Obama was running. I voted for him. Both times.
Not because I thought he was all that awesome but because I couldn’t see
voting in the other contender. All in all I do not think he’s been a very
good president. He’s not been the worst
ever as some would say but he’s definitely done things I do not agree with or
like. Comes down to it though I do
believe he’s a good man and that although I may not agree with him he’s more
than likely being led by his own inner voices to do what he feels is
right. Why do we as a people want to say
otherwise? All comments on this should
be in boxed to me. Please do not post
comments on my Facebook under this as they will be deleted. I do not want a war on Facebook. I do not want friend against friend or bother
against sister or anything else. We should
be able to disagree without having confrontation. There are no winners when people protest with
hate and violence. Yes protest if you
wish peacefully. This is not the way it
will be though. In the end brother will
be against brother and father against son.
So it is written. I find no
desire to argue or be angry with anyone.
Everyone has their right to think and believe the way they feel. Hopefully our new president elect Donald
Trump will do great things for us, but if he doesn’t he doesn’t. Our country needs solidarity. Our country needs to stop being a whining
nation of people who want our government to take care of them. We need to stand tall and proud. I love our country, but I love God more. What he has set forth no one will set
aside. I love my family and I love all
my friends. I trust that time will heal
those wounded by the election. I trust
that God will see us through if we put our faith in him. Time is fleeting. This day will soon be long behind us. There are so many other things yet to
come. So many corners we need to watch
for as we travel on life’s journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-60229370252622543472016-09-15T21:33:00.001-04:002016-09-15T21:33:36.408-04:00The Blessings we Forget to Count
<br />
<div class="WordSection1">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU6H84gIHo1Cf57xV3DKg9Q81TZ4BZ487-RM2jCXNxttZVpmZwWOyms35H16cqzVHwAzs5wXds-V2o889N0wmH0oaHNApfKvH0Mnu03_2UZ6UI8UjuWj-WU5mPoQ1bYiAGZceCdmK4R4s/s1600/Copy+%25282%2529+of+lfjg.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU6H84gIHo1Cf57xV3DKg9Q81TZ4BZ487-RM2jCXNxttZVpmZwWOyms35H16cqzVHwAzs5wXds-V2o889N0wmH0oaHNApfKvH0Mnu03_2UZ6UI8UjuWj-WU5mPoQ1bYiAGZceCdmK4R4s/s320/Copy+%25282%2529+of+lfjg.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Every day on this earth is a blessing. I know so many people who do nothing but mope
and complain about their lives. They
have no one to love. They haven’t gotten
enough money or enough time to do this or that.
It’s so easy to complain. I’ve
been a complainer myself on many occasions but through it all I tried to look
at the blessings of every day. I get up
out of bed. I have another opportunity
to make my life what I want. Each new
morning is a new beginning to the story of my life. I can choose to wallow in it or I can dust
myself off and make the best of it. I’m
many things but someone who falls and never gets up is not one of them. I have seen a counselor for many years
now. She helps me talk through my
problems. She gives me someone to
complain to that helps me bring forth my true emotions. It’s funny that I think I now help her
too. I look forward to my and her talks
and I think she enjoys them as well. She’s
someone I would never have met if I had not gotten the cancer I had and been
down and out about a big hurdle in my life.
Life is funny that way. I know it’s
easy to dwell on the regrets we have in life.
Let’s face it if you’re over 12 you have regrets about things you’ve said
or done. If you say you don’t I’ll call
you a liar right to your face! I’ve done
things to people I would never even consider asking them to forgive although
many years past and I’m not the same person.
I’ve had things done to me that I will willingly forgive, but that doesn’t
mean I’ve forgotten. As I’ve gotten
older I’ve found that I have come to understand that people generally do not
set out to hurt someone else. They often
do it without thought. I wish I had come
to this understanding much earlier in life.
It would have made it so much easier.
Now I take a moment and step back and try to see what that person might
have been thinking or seeing when they did what they did. I had a talk with a family member I had not
seen in a long time this past weekend.
He was so angry at an ex in-law that I found it odd. I could understand his anger. He felt betrayed and hurt and let down. She was not at fault all by herself though I
found myself pointing out and although he may find her evil I would merely say
misguided and hurt herself. She was not
easily accepted into the family and was kind of boasted as a less than welcomed
member for the longest time. Stories
were told that hurt her. I’ve heard both
sides and both sides are wrong and right in so many ways. The thing is it’s the past. We can’t go back and re-write it. Either way I understood the pain he had gone
through so many years ago. Life did not
deal him a kindly hand. God did grant him
a family of his own though and a woman to put up with all that he could dish
out. God did guide him to seek the truth
and walk in the light. I believe an
olive branch would be better to his serving than a baseball bat at this
point. I love both the people I’m
talking about more than life. I love all my family. I used to harbor anger. I found it will just eat you up and keep you
from thinking of what you should be. I
find anger of little use. Instead of
building the anger I try to resolve the pain.
What was done all those years ago can’t be undone. What happened in a marriage that he and I
were not in neither of us will ever truly know and holding ill will when both
those parties have moved on is senseless at best. Again I love my family. I have not always been the favored niece or
welcomed family member by some but I have loved them all the same and always
will. Each day is a new beginning and
you choose whether to late hate eat your heart and time away or weather to turn
forgiveness and put your troubles in God’s hands. I know people right now with bigger problems
than an old grudge of perceived wrongs.
I have a friend whose fighting breast cancer, one who’s wishing his wife
would come back to him from Coma, one who has a cancer on his aorta and has to
go to Mayo to get it looked at. I have a
friend whose skin is becoming his enemy as he’s been put in the hospital time
and again and a friend who worries as his daughter fights cancer. There is a family I know that morns the loss
of their son this coming weekend and so many others I could go on and on. Is a squabble that is Thirty years old really
worth that time or effort? Life is so
short. I have my own worries. My finances need help. My weight needs to go down. My house needs cleaned up and organized. My mother and father and getting older and I
may lose them in the near future. I don’t
dwell on that though. I choose to live
in the way things are today. Not the
past and not the future. Be thankful for every moment you have with anyone in
your life. All time is a gift and very precious.
All my aunts and uncles future, present
and past were a gift for whatever good they brought into my life. Be thankful for your life. It was a gift you should cherish. Forget old grudges and enjoy the time you
have. It will not be that long until
time has come and gone and those things you thought were important will no
longer matter. Be thankful for your
blessings. Know that if you are in my
life you are loved.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-autospace: none;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-35122216276617745462016-08-10T00:47:00.000-04:002016-08-10T00:47:07.940-04:00A World Gone Mad: Hey There's An Elephant in My Tree<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-axZwfBUF-ZVvKHvPHJKhrUfPvTiXxSb5_4p2oY-kKmPs_Q3owCF1Yoli7oprFoSArIHcNvjJZtaalAg3jZv8HxUJv09T9GlcZWyYFih1k6z6_WqHROBLNcT8hPYC4Mcln0NGt-adDn8/s1600/elephant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-axZwfBUF-ZVvKHvPHJKhrUfPvTiXxSb5_4p2oY-kKmPs_Q3owCF1Yoli7oprFoSArIHcNvjJZtaalAg3jZv8HxUJv09T9GlcZWyYFih1k6z6_WqHROBLNcT8hPYC4Mcln0NGt-adDn8/s320/elephant.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
Our country has grown soft.
Yes that will make some of you angry but it is what it is. We used to say “Sticks and Stones will break
my bones, but words will never hurt me.”
Now we say “Your words they hurt, my sensibilities you offended, off
with your head, political correctness to the end.” Today’s world is a world of “ME”. Everything has to be about that person and
what they want and how to get it free or with the least bit of effort. What happened to taking pride in your
work? What happened to being proud to
sweat for a dollar? What happened to
wanting to be able to show what you have because you earned it? Our children don’t want to play outside or
use their own imagination anymore. They
want to play video games and are afraid of the heat. Riding bikes and playing cops and robbers is
long gone and are left as ghosts of memories in my mind. Water fights and playing t-ball were many an
hour regardless of the temperature outside.
Our parents had to make us come inside.
Being inside was a punishment.
Today’s parents give their children everything they want. No chores necessary. Just lay in your room not getting exercise
and learn to let a machine think for you.
Where are we headed to with this way of thinking? One day who’s going to do the work? Do you know how hard it is to hire a kid to
mow lawns or shovel snow or wash a car these days? I do know some kids that still will. There are a few parents that get it. Life and living is not done on a computer or
in a game. That isn’t living. I understand wanting to treat everyone
good. You know we had the golden rule in
school too. Treat others as you’d want
them to treat you. We were not babied
though. We were taught that life is
tough and that never is life going to be easy but you would make it. We were prepared for what was to come. If someone teased us our parents told us that
no it wasn’t right but that we had to pick ourselves up and go on. We knew that we would not get everything we
wanted. We knew what it was like to be
proud of that first house we painted or that first car we bought. When someone offended us we simply knew that
either they were daft, or they just believed and saw things differently. Did we get mad and angry, why yes sometimes
we did. Did we ask the government to
make a new rule and stop someone? No we
didn’t. When did we decide as a nation
that it’s better to offend Christians and our forefathers and everything this
nation was built on to be politically correct?
I believe firmly in a live and let live society. I believe every man and women’s journey is
between them and their maker and I have no right to judge them in this
life. I believe its ok for someone to
believe differently than me about politics and religion. I don’t believe that
if I express my opinion that I should be crucified for it? Didn’t they do that in the stone ages? I mean what happened to freedom of
speech? Hell what happened to freedom
period? Don’t get me wrong… I am still
proud as hell to be an American. I am
glad I grew up when I did and that my parents instilled right and wrong and
honesty in me. I’m glad I am not someone
who wants everything for free and that I take pride in doing what I need to do
to make my life better. I’m glad I’m a
person that doesn’t take offenses to heart.
Yes I get offended every day of life.
People say things or do things that upset me to some degree, but over
the years of living I have learned to step back and try to see the situation
through the other person’s eyes. More often
than not people do not mean to offend, but rather just choose unwisely what
they say. They don’t think about
it. If you ask me there are way too many
people out there blaming everyone and anyone for their life being the way it
is. If you don’t like your life fix it.
There is no shame in asking for help when you need it but don’t play the
poor me card. I have always hated the
poor me card. No one’s life has been
perfect. There is always a sadder story
just around the corner. So you had a bad
mother, or a bad childhood or you have been sickly all your life. We could all get up every day and find
something negative to think about. The
way to live is to get up every day and think about what you have to be grateful
for. What can you find in your life
that is good? If you can’t find anything
then talk to friends. Hell for that
matter get out and make friends. Your
life is up to you. Sure you may not have a mansion but you don’t necessarily
need one. Some of the loneliest people I’ve
ever met had money to burn. Stop belly aching
about what the boy down the street did with the girl next door. Stop worrying about who thinks you’re fat or
who cares you’re gay or who doesn’t like you for that matter. Those people are not worth the time you are
taking to think about them. Embrace
those that support you and lift you up.
Embrace the thought that I’m here and I’m going to live while I am. Every day is a new day in this world gone
mad. Fall down today, pick yourself up
tomorrow and move on. You control your
destiny and what will be left behind to be said of you, no one else. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5533658036220233223.post-21351701413640973072016-07-18T23:01:00.000-04:002016-07-18T23:01:46.907-04:00Fragile Life Only Good if Lived<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx12bksG5AxkKNEC2Z09p5k32Q9yumiprg0fs9FcFABoOjna57KwwQjSIi0c1XQ9QReJjitOYGAvxd8vcWBMlk_UILpM7-g5EWpfddcqVNFzAzKdWgNnTWq8M_SZzaiQnZM_nkQzHFWe8/s1600/2dad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx12bksG5AxkKNEC2Z09p5k32Q9yumiprg0fs9FcFABoOjna57KwwQjSIi0c1XQ9QReJjitOYGAvxd8vcWBMlk_UILpM7-g5EWpfddcqVNFzAzKdWgNnTWq8M_SZzaiQnZM_nkQzHFWe8/s320/2dad.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As my parents get older and more fragile I see the life they've lived over and over in my mind. I believe they've had a good life and a happy one. It's hard to think of a day when they will not be here to share in my joys and in my sorrows. It's an awful feeling to know that all you can do is watch and do nothing to really make life better for them sometimes. Mom has Parkinson which in it's own is a terrible disease that has left her unable to do many things she used to love to do such as garden and cook. Dad has had to admit more here lately that he's no longer able to do what he once can and recently was in the hospital on a stay over night for the first time ever in his life. That is saying a lot for someone who is seventy-six years old. He's been lucky most of his life to have had the good Lord bless him with health. It was scary that morning he woke me up to take him to the hospital. He's not the kind of man who wants to even go to the doctor no matter what, let alone the hospital, so it scared me. It took me back in my mind to a few years ago when he had melanoma and I was so afraid we would lose him then. I know that day will come though I do dread it so. I've had cousins who have lost their mates. My cousin Bonnie lost her husband a little over four years ago and my cousin Kat lost hers a little over a month ago. They lost their dad a few years back. I look at that and wonder how they go on, but I know as my aunt said you just do because you have to. My aunt lost her husband and both her parents. My parents lost their parents. It seems like a cycle that is foreboding. We often hear people say we are not promised a tomorrow. Well we aren't and I understand more with each passing day what that means. I try to live my life to the best of my ability and I play and laugh. Sometimes I'm not the most adult person one might say. I love to go in the store aisles and play with the noisy toys. I like to poke fun at people I love. I like to go to movies and play games. I like to go to zoo's and play with building blocks. I guess I just don't want to grow up. The Lord has blessed me to find someone to be with who lets me be an over grown kid. I'm very happy to have found him or did he find me? Either way I know that life is fragile. It's also fleeting and can be gone in the blink of an eye. In the end though it's not how long we are here on this earth but how well we live, laugh and love. To Bonnie and Kat and my Aunt I would say the men you loved left too soon but they left a stamp on your heart that filled you with the warmth of truly having been loved. That is something that a lot of people never know. True love is fleeting and you may not have had it as long as you would like to have had it but you did have it and no one can take that away from you. You've lived in those standards more than some ever get to live, laughed with an honest roar and loved in a way some will never know. So life is fragile and only good if lived. You are all still living so live, laugh and love often. Embrace your kids, your cousins and all your kin. Life is fragile and precious. To my love I say thank you for making me laugh and letting me be me. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />Sheilahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00519325729865864437noreply@blogger.com0