Tuesday, January 24, 2023

HUMBLED

Early yesterday morning brought me a text that made me feel so humble.

Long back story is that during the past six months, I have knocked my elbow at the same place on the same shower door rod three times.  The first two left me a bit sore, but the third that happened about a month ago has lingered and is different.  (And yes, now when I walk into my small bathroom, the first thing I do is shut the shower door if it's open.  The shower still feels new after almost two years and I do love it, I just don't love knocking my elbow constantly.)  

I finally decided to try to get in to see a doctor and got an appointment with my PCP for January 23 (which was yesterday).  I had gotten into a text conversation with a sweet friend a week and a half or so ago and we were catching up a bit.  We don't talk/text often but she's still one of my dearest friends and I think she feels the same about our friendship.  It's a friendship which happened in a very unlikely way.  That's another story for another post.  Anyways, I told her about the elbow and the appointment I finally got.

A week ago, the pain was just getting worse so I called my hip doctors for advice.  The advice was "we don't do elbows but the folks next door to us do" and I got the number to call.  I guess the Lord smiled and I was told I could be seen in two hours.  This was 7:30 a.m. but I managed to drive the 45 minutes in the fog to get seen.  It was not broken but bruised on bottom from the hit on the door.  The main problem was that the doctor was concerned about my lack of motion in my faulty wrist.  I told him that was normal for me with the long time autoimmune disorder and the wrist atrophy through the years.  He determined the swelling was from the tendon running from the elbow to the wrist.  So now I'm wearing an elbow strap and a wrist brace for support.  I had to buy the elbow strap....in my vast box of orthopedic gizmos, I had none of those.  :)  

So with that long dissertation, I will get to my point.  I'm betting all you blog readers love how I can drag out a story, huh?

Yesterday morning, I got a really early text from my friend saying she had been praying and hoped my doctor's appointment would merit a remedy for my faulty elbow.  I had to tell her that I had already seen one and cancelled the appointment with the PCP.  However, I also told her that getting that text from her made me feel very warm and fuzzy and very humbled that she would remember and pray for ME even though I didn't ask her to.  And that she prayed for ME, I'm certain, every day since she heard of my painful elbow.  And she was not even in my praying church family.  She is a non-church family friend.  I also got to hear good news from her that her two scans with her oncologist were clear and that her leg from a terrible motorcycle accident was almost healed.  These things gave me much joy and thankfulness but just that she would remember me, especially with all her "stuff" made me so so so very humbled.

I WANT TO BE LIKE THAT.

I want to be one who cares AND remembers.  So many days my mind is so full of things I have to deal with in life, that I forget to pray for the ones who might be counting on my prayers.  And I forget to talk to the one who hears my prayers.

Maybe the point of this sharing is that you want to be that way, too.  

Consider.....

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

HUMOR OF THE 100TH DAY

 The Grandbaby has been talking for a week about her class's celebration of the 100th day of school this Thursday.  While she was here today, she said to me, "Neema, I have to dress like an old woman on the 100th day of school.  Let's look in your closet."

Ahh...the humor and honestly of a child.  Makes me smile.  Makes The Husband LAUGH.  :)

Thursday, January 12, 2023

PREPARATIONS AND PRECAUTIONS

There is the sound of thunder and the sight of a slight too-much-darkness-for-this-time-of-day feeling in my 'hood today.  There is a tornado watch in effect for the next few hours.  

I am reminded of many times in the past when these afternoon storms would come and send me and often The Girl to the hall for safety.  Those times, The Husband was at work so we were in the house alone just waiting and watching.  Today finds The Husband in the den so I am not physically alone.  

The Grandbaby was to come here after school while her parents went to school for a meeting but all the after school activities were canceled for today so that didn't happen.  We are all sorry about that as we would enjoyed having The Grandbaby visit us, even for a short time.  She's a joy and a mess all smushed up together in one little girl and I love it and her.  But you blog readers know that....I just had to repeat myself.

School buses came to school to head out early.

Tornado sirens have been going off to get our attention.

Flashlights are ready.

Prayers have been said.  

Supper is in the works.

The whole scenario has made me feel like I need a nap. 

We prepare for the unknown that is predicted even though it's unknown.  I wonder if it's because of the past things we have seen involving tornados and storms.  I have seen flooding, results and actions of big BIG winds, downed trees and power lines and so much more damaging effects.  That makes me want to prepare and be cautious.

I was thinking as I often do that my spiritual life is a lot like that when the "spiritual storms" come.  Storms of disappointments, fears, uncontrollable health issues, uncontrollable mental and emotion issues, sin, and that list and the damages left behind are so very great.  I think, speaking for myself, I tend to make less preparations and take fewer precautions when it comes to those storms.  Prayers have been said for the upcoming potential weather here but have prayers been said for those who suffer from these spiritual storms?  Do I prepare early by reading my Bible and finding what the Lord has for me to help me when those spiritual sirens go off?  Do I recognize the spiritual food that is available for me to eat should my "power" get knocked out?  Or do I just want to go to sleep and forget about it all?  

Those are good questions for me to consider, I will say.  Maybe they're good questions for you as well.  

Now I need to check the weather....outdoors and inside my heart.  

Consider.....

 

Thursday, January 5, 2023

WELL SAID....

I found this the other day written by Mother Teresa and it says all it says very well and can be applied to all of us.


TO START THE NEW YEAR

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self centered.  Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.  Be kind anyway. 

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies.  Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you.  Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight.  Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous.  Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow.  Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough.   Give the world the best you've got anyway

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God.  It was never between you and them anyway.


Consider....


Tuesday, January 3, 2023

A NEW YEAR

It seems that only a few short years ago 2023 seemed far, far away from me and now here I am.  I was recalling the 60 plus years of New Years' Eves and New Years and they all seemed to involve resolutions which could signal new beginnings.  This year I'm just looking at it all a bit differently.  I will admit that I wondered how I arrived here so swiftly but then I was filled with gratitude that I was simply "here".  So that's where I am on this third day of 2023.  Here.  No resolutions just a carrying on of "here".  

One of my favorite lines from one of my favorite movies, Anne of Green Gables, was spoken by Anne's teacher one morning as school began.  She said to her students, "Today is a day with no mistakes in it."  That's kind of how I look at things a lot of days.  Mistakes come and go.  Sorrows come and go.  Inside me, though, the joy remains.

With all that dissertation, I will say that The Husband and I were invited to join The Girl, The Son-in-Law, and The Grandbaby on a short trip to the mountains.  We saw in the new year in the condo.  The next day we spent at Dollywood Amusement Park.  We arrived at 10:30.  As we were walking along bringing up the rear around 1:30, The Husband said, "Maybe we would do better at this if we spent only half a day."   I chuckled and replied, "Actually we've only been here three hours....that's not even half a day!"  We both laughed as we realized the reality of the whole conversation.  The old bodies are just not what they used to be.  In spite of that, we had a wonderful time and actually rode a few rides and enjoyed it.  Not many, but a few with The Grandbaby.  Here's a pictorial of course...

New Years' Eve....



"Wake me at the countdown, Dad"...."Okay, I will".....there was no waking to be had.  Dad tried.  So only four of us partiers watched the fireworks from our balcony.


A favorite ride...





A not so favorite ride but The Girl showed bravery...but only once.  No more. Bravery could be considered over-rated.



A good face painting...



Another favorite ride....The Poppa was a good sport.  "Put your hands up, Poppa!"  "No thanks."  (Neemas, Dads, and Moms can't watch.)







This is Us.


Happy New Year!