My Mother

Many women do noble things but you surpass them all. Proverbs 31:29
Today being Mother's Day, our church service was on Proverbs 31.  It made me think of my mother and
this verse was the one that made me think of her.  If I had to come up with one word for my mother as I was growing up, it would be patience.  She never yelled at us.  I can never remember her raising her voice at any of us or my father.  I wish my children could say that about me but they can not.  My mother raised nine children.  She cooked three meals a day.  She made most of us girls clothes.  I don't know how she found
enough time in the day to do all she did.  She worked in the garden and she always had time to plant flowers.  I can remember her scrubbing clothes on the washboard before she had a washing machine.  Even though, she didn't have a highschool education, she could help with homework but the most important thing
she taught us was right from wrong.  Some times I thought she must have a sixth sense because she always
seemed to know if you were doing something you shouldn't be doing.  I feel very blessed to have had her
for a mother.

Amazing Facts

I'm reading a book titled "Killing Lincoln" and it's amazing that back then he had so little protection.  There was one door into the box where the Lincolns were watching the play.  A soldier named John Parker was supposed to be guarding the door.  He is bored because he can't see the play from where he is and apparently he's also thirsty.  He left the door unguarded and goes to a saloon so there was no one there to keep John Wilkes Booth from going right in.  He was never  charged for leaving his post.  He was not punished at all.  This is a very interesting book and things have definitely changed in Washington DC.

Judas

We had the Lord's Supper today at church and the Pastor mentioned Judas Iscariot.  I started thinking
about him on the way home from church, so after lunch I looked up everything I could find about him in
the bible.  There's no good thing said about him.  Why did they let him be treasurer when he was a thief?  While he traveled with Jesus, he apparantly didn't learn anything.  Was he in the boat when Jesus  stilled
the storm?  He must have seen Him perform miracles yet did he not know He was the son of God?
Jesus said "I chose the twelve of you but one is a devil."  What exactly did that mean?  He apparently was
remorseful when he knew Jesus was going to be put to death.  He gave the thirty pieces of silver back
and killed himself but nothing is said about him asking forgiveness.  Well there's lots of things I'm never
going to understand and I guess this is one of them.

A Little Elegy

Without you no rose can grow
No leaf be green
If never seem
Your dear face
No bird have grace
Or power to sing
or anything
Be kind or fair
And you nowhere

I read this in a book of poetry that I was typing a card for at the library and
at first I thought it was a silly poem but....
The roses still bloom and trees are turning green, the birds are singing but
not for me because you're no longer here.

Looking Back

I was getting ready to go to work at the library this morning and looking at myself in the mirror I thought "Oh my, you'll soon be 79 years old".  What have you done with all those years?  Sometimes when you look back on your life, you can see so many mistakes you've made.  Could I have done a better job with my life?
I'm sure I could have.  I didn't always listen to what my Dad and Mother taught me and I'd have done better if I had.  It's easy to see mistakes when you're looking back but it's not so easy to see them at the time.  I grew up when there wasn't so many pitfalls to fall into as there seems to be today.  What would my life have been like if I had not had christian parents?  If I had not been taught right from wrong how many worse mistakes would I have made.  I can't help but think, what will some people today think when they are old and
look back at their life.

A Child's Birth

Our Sunday school lesson Sunday was on the birth of Jesus as we are studying now the book of Luke.
It was on the time when the angel visited Mary to tell her that she would have a child.  It made me think
of the birth of our  first child.  I did not see her in the delivery room as I had had a hard delivery and did
not wake up until I was in a hospital room.  I remember the first time they brought her to me.  It was not
the first time I had taken care of children.  I had taken care of my younger brothers and sisters and had
also taken care of my youngest sister-in-law as her mother had had a stroke about a month after Bill
and I had married.  The other sisters still at home were still in school so the job to take care of his mother
and baby sister fell to me.

I felt very different about this baby.  I laid her in the bed beside me.  I  was overwhelmed with  the responsibility I felt.  I thought, this is a awesome responsibilitty and I don't know if I'm up to it.  This child depends on Bill and I.  Raising her and teaching her is our responsibility.  I can remember how awe-struck
I was that morning the first time I saw my first child.  She is now a beautiful lady and has raised a family
of her own.  God blessed us even though we made many mistakes.

Family Reunion

I had been reading on facebook about several people giving up something for lent.  I had never thought about doing that before.  I thought only catholics did that but after I thought about it, I thought, maybe that's a good thing.  I thought I should give up listening to country music.  I thought, maybe I don't have to give up music all together.  I should be able to listen to gospel music during lent.  So this morning I put in a cd I hadn't listened to for a while.  A song played titled Family Reunion.  It starts out "Each year we have a family reunion" and it goes on to say that each year faces are missing.  It made me think of last summer's family reunion when I
looked around and saw so many faces I didn't even know and all the faces that weren't there.  I turned around to my brother and said "Are we at the right reunion?"  That brother will be missing at this year's reunion.  Several family members that we have lost this year and won't be at the family reunions here again.

The song is really about the family reunion we'll have in heaven and what a reunion that will  be because of
what Jesus did on calvary.  I'm so looking forward to that reunion to see all the ones that we don't see at our reunions here anymore.