DEAR GOD: THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING AGAIN

We all live this really good life these days.  I don’t mean we are all rich or have everything, but if we try, we do have a comfortable life.  Before God allowed electricity to be invented, people lived an entirely different life than we do nowadays.  How would you like to go back to that time.  Not me.  I am spoiled and like it that way.

So when we were given the benefits of electricity, what would we ever use that for except for a light bulb now and then.  But then just look around.  Not only did people get a light bulb, but then other people invented all those ways to use those light bulbs.   Look in your own room or your own house and notice the lamps and the light fixtures and all those other necessary things of today.

And then think about the woman washing on a washboard and how after electricity, she could have a washing machine and after that, an automatic washing machine.  How fortunate for all of us.

And then, take a walk around your kitchen and look at all those marvelous machines that do everything in the world for you.  From the coffee pot to the garbage disposal and even the toaster.  Do you remember when all toast was made in the oven?    And it had to be planned so we wouldn’t heat the house up in the summer and we only had oven toasted bread in the winter.  That was a treat in itself.  Now, we just pop that bread  or whatever it might be in that slot in the toaster and it is done in a matter of moments.

But then in today’s world, we have these people running around telling us that we don’t need to use the electricity anymore.    I need to use my electricity. And I don’t see any reason why they should think they are in charge of how much electricity anyone gets to use. God gave us this great gift because it was in His time to give it to the world.  Simple as that.  God is in charge of everything, including even the most basic things.  He is the one who decides when we are given the computers and the internet and the automobile and all other amenities that we sometimes take for granted.  He is the one who uses the individual for His plans.  He knows what He is doing.  He will be the One who runs everything.  Not some person who decides they know what is best for this world.

It is God’s world.  I hope people will wake up and let God run His world.  All we have to do is live by His rules and this world can be a great place, one of peace and tranquility, and happiness for all.

You know,  I remember a time before all these problems arose during the 1960′s and that generation decided they knew what we should all do and how immorality should rein.  Remember the words – Forty years I loathed that generation and I swore in My anger, they shall  not enter into my rest.

Enjoy your electricity.   We are all so fortunate.  Thank You, Dear God for everything You have given to us.

DEAR GOD: THANK YOU FOR SO MUCH!

Well, another holiday weekend about gone and am I ever glad.  I never did care too much for Memorial Day which was called Decoration Day before.  It just never was my favorite time of the year.  Everyone was so somber and sad and I didn’t care much for that part.

My father was a printer at the local newspaper and there was a printer’s plot at the very old local cemetery.  So, every year, we had to attend this somber,  long memorial service for these dead printers.  The cemetery was so old that it had broken grave markers and everything smelled musty and moldy and old.  But my father was very respectful of those who had gone before him and so we went, like it or not.  And we better not have any other plans and we better not complain either.

Usually, it was humid and uncomfortable weather and we had to get all dressed up special for this occasion. That meant Sunday School clothes all the way.  And then we sat on these very old benches that had rusty spots on them.  The whole day was just difficult to deal with.  But we were brought up to always have good manners and be respectful and kind.  So we smiled nicely and spoke to all those older people that we saw once a year.

A Preacher would make a small sermon and say a few prayers.  And then came the really special treat of  a quartet that sang several songs.  They were usually much older people who could not carry a tune in a bucket and they certainly had no harmony between them.  But they had a juice harp to sound out the note and then they would all sing, sometimes together.  We sat glued to our seats, not daring to look at each other for fear we might have to laugh or cry, never sure of which it would be.

When it was all over, we had to stand around while our parents talked to all their old friends and visited for awhile.  However, I wouldn’t mind getting to do that one more time.  Might be fun to see all those people again and sure would be nice to see my parents again.

Miss them all. And all those like them who worked so hard every day to have a better life for everyone.  And all those who taught us children all the manners and niceties of life and reminded us to be ladies and gentlemen no matter the situation.

I know this holiday is for remembering all those who have fallen in the quest to save our country.  And I respect and honor that myself.  I miss a lot of that patriotism that was so prevalent in that day and time too.  I still honor the flag every day at my home.  And I truly respect all this country has stood for all the years.  I miss the moral fiber that always held everyone together, the honor for the parents and the respect for Almighty God and the other things that made us all one big family belonging to this wonderful country.  I remember it all very well.  And I miss all that, too.  I hope we can all get back to that very soon.

Happy Memorial Day!

DEAR GOD: THANK YOU FOR MOTHERS

I can never Thank God enough for the fact that I have such a wonderful family and can enjoy them all so much.  I am a very fortunate person.

When I was growing up, I never even liked kids at all.  They always just got in my way.  Never babysat except one time and went to sleep that one time and the people got furious with me.  Never did that dumb thing again. If I wanted to make money, I got other jobs besides watching kids.  That was really boring to me.

I was planning on having one of those careers that everyone talked about.  I was going to really have a great life ahead of me.  I was an excellent secretary of the day and could manage people and things very well.  Had a great job waiting for me the day I got out of high school.  I was on my way!

And then this guy came along and messed it all up for me.  I got married instead of a career.  Worked a few years and then started a family.  By that time, I was really ready.  Because of medical problems, I could not carry a child before this time.  So after surgeries, I was able at last to begin a family.  And boy, did we ever.  We had that first child and then a couple of years later, another one came along and then another year later, here came another one and then another year later, another was on the way.  I had 4 children and the oldest was 5.  Was I ever busy, too.  And loved every minute of it, every day, everything I did.

I thought the life of a stay at home wife and mother to be the best life possible. I had a lot of fun during those growing up years with my own preschool/kindergarten.  If I ever wanted to be important in my life, I certainly was now.  I could tell that because there was a constant, ‘Mom, Mom, Mom’ all day every day.

I learned how to cook to feed them all and I learned how to pinch that penny when there weren’t many of them to be had.  And I learned how to balance my time and how to organize everyone and how to keep them all healthy and reasonably happy. And after I learned some of that, here came some more of those same type children along the way.   We had a house full of fun and work and I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.

So glad that God gave me this life that I could never have imagined.  Never even crossed my mind that I would live this sort of a daily life.  How could I have possibly known what was best for me.  But God did.  And He put me right smack dab in the middle of it. And I am so glad and forever happy that He did.

Thank You Dear God for letting me be one of those Mothers.    Happy Mother’s Day everyone.  May God bless you as much as He has me.

 

THE KNITTER- THAT’S ME

I have already told you how terrible I am at sewing.  Well, that is nothing to compare with knitting.  I had already taken classes in quilting and while there, they were demonstrating a knitting machine.  Well, that one was for me.  I could just see myself making all these beautiful sweaters for me and all my family.  Oh, what fun it would be.  And that wonder of wonders machine just did it all by itself, almost.  All I had to do was put it together, figure out what all that instruction meant and I would be in business.

Well, I bought the machine and paid for it up front because I just knew it would pay for itself real quick.  Then I bought all the attachments.  Not very much more. And then I bought all the yarn I would need to learn.  That wasn’t just a whole lot either.  And then I hurried home to begin knitting like a pro.  That’s what the lady told me.  She was the one who had sold me the machine.

I went back for the instructions that were included with the sale.  And I learned how to thread the machine with the beautiful yarn.  That wasn’t too hard to learn.  See, I just knew I could do this one. Now, all I had to do was learn the terminology – that foreign language- that everyone else seems to be born with.

I put the thing-a-ma-jig on the machine and threaded the yarn through all the holes they had told me.  Then I ran the thing across the carriage and it worked!  Oh boy! I was really going to love this.  I practiced quite a lot on moving that thing across the needles. And it worked every time.  I wasn’t making anything yet, but I was on my way. No doubt about that.

Then I actually made a sweater for myself at the knitting machine shop.  It would have been perfect except for those little holes here and there.  But I figured I could probably repair them only I didn’t know how, so guess I will just forget that anyway.  Too busy learning other things by this time.  I suppose I could iron some flower patches on those holes and the sweater would be good enough to wear at home – if I took up painting the house.

But I moved on.  Nothing was going to stop me now.  I did make quite a few things, just nothing that was worth wearing.  I made one of the children a little dress and it was really cute.  Sort of crooked, but cute.  And I made a couple of throws, just straight knitting for that.  They didn’t look very good but hey – I’m just learning here.

The only problem was that I was always learning, still learning.   I moved the knitting machine to another room where I could see out the window while knitting.  And then in the Spring, my neighbor sat on his deck right in front of the window.  I’m sure he thought I was spying on him but I wasn’t.  I was there first, you know.  But it sort of took the fun out of reacting to my mistakes if someone could see me scream.

I kept on trying and trying and trying, but I wasn’t much smarter at knitting than I was at sewing.  I finally decided to move it down to the laundry room where I spent a lot of time every day anyway. This thing takes up a lot of room, about 8′ across the room by the time you have to have enough room to remove that thing-a-ma-jig that sometimes reaches the end of the machine.  Sometimes I have to put it back on without losing any stitches and that is almost impossible.  In fact it is impossible.  And if anyone started talking to me while I was knitting, I would invariably drop a stitch and then the conversation would be over and I would be upset and that was enough of that.

I finally moved it all the way out to the garage and took it apart.  I had all sorts of attachments by now and lots and lots of yarn.  I told a lady where I had bought some yarn that I was interested in selling it.  She just could not believe anyone would want to sell their knitting machine.  So I sold it all to her. Gladly.

Think I’ll take up gardening.  I know how to dig holes and watch dead flowers.  I can do that really well.

DEAR GOD: THANK YOU FOR FATIMA, (CONTINUED)

Lucia was almost 10 now, Francisco almost 9 and Jacinta almost 7.  They shepherded their sheep every day leaving home early in the morning, carrying their lunch and going home again in time for supper.  They played games, danced, sang, and always remembered to say their Rosary along with the prayers the Angel had taught them.  This was in the midst of World War I.

After Mass on Sunday, May 13, 1917, the children drove their sheep to one of their favorite places.  They stopped to eat lunch and then set about playing a game.  Suddenly a bright shaft of light caught their attention.  Thinking it a flash of lightning, they decided to take the sheep home in case it was going to rain.  As they started down a hill, they saw another shaft of light.  Then they saw a most beautiful Lady.   She was dressed all in white and more brilliant than the sun.  She stood above a small oak tree.

‘Fear not’, the Lady said.  ’I will not harm you.’

Lucia asked the Lady where she was from.  ’I am from Heaven’, the beautiful Lady answered.  Then Lucia asked, ‘What do you want of me?’

The Lady answered, ‘I come to ask you to come here for six consecutive months, on the thirteenth day, at this same hour.  I will tell you later who I am and what I want.  And I shall return here again a seventh time.’

Then Lucia asked if she, too, were going to go to Heaven.  ’Yes, you shall,’ the Lady said. Lucia asked about Jacinta and the answer was ‘Yes’.  And Francisco? The Lady answered ‘He, too, shall go, but he must say many Rosaries.’

Francisco still could not see the Lady nor hear her voice.  He suggested they throw a stone at the Lady to see if  she were real.  But Lucia refused.  Then she said, ‘So you are Our Lady and Francisco can’t see you?’

The Lady answered, ‘Let him say the Rosary.   And in that way he too will see me.’  When told this, Francisco began to say the Rosary and the Lady appeared to him also.

Then the Lady asked ‘Do you want to offer yourselves to God to endure all the sufferings that He may choose to send you, as an act of reparation for the sins by which He is offended and as a supplication for the conversion of sinners?’    Lucia immediately answered for all three, ‘Yes, we want to.’

‘Then you are going to suffer a great deal,’ the Lady promised, ‘but the grace of God will be your comfort.  Then she spread an intense light upon the three and they knelt on the ground saying the prayer, ‘Most Holy Trinity…..’

‘Say the Rosary every day to earn peace for the world and the end of the War.’  And with that, the Lady began ascending towards Heaven.

 

 

 

 

MY SEWING – SO?

My mother sewed beautifully all my growing up years.  My sister can sew perfectly.  I am a real mess when it comes to sewing.  Just never could manage to do any sewing or needle work of any kind.  When I finished it, it looked like I had done it for sure.  Some people just can do things and others cannot.  I tried.  I really did.  I darned my husband’s socks when we first married and he threw them in the waste basket after they hurt his feet all day at work.  I took Home Ec like all the girls did in my age group.  The teacher hated me by the end of the year.  You can read all about that one in my humorous and pure fun book entitled In The 1940′s.  Remember, all my books are $10 each plus $2 postage and they are well worth that much.  True fun and lots of living history.  Great!  Can order from me anytime at P.O. Box 2249, Benton, AR  72018.  Just send check and I will send book – gladly.  My storeroom is getting full.  Thanks.

Anyway, getting back to my lack of sewing ability, I have all these wonderful kids and by the way, I am also a great cook and can do just about anything else except sew – So?

So I decided to make each of them a quilt.  Now, I know that most people don’t decide to make quilts, but I did.  I figured I could do that one easy enough.  I bought 2 flannel sheets,  each one twin size.  Then I drew a picture on one of the sheets.  This was all free hand drawing.  Starting with a big clown and balloons, I painted the picture. Then I joined the two flannel sheets together.  After putting on the binding, I embroidered around the picture.  This attached the two flannel sheets to each other with the padding in the middle making it a quilt.  It was really pretty and I was duly proud.  By the way, that quilt is still in use today and it is really old so must have done a pretty good job.

Then the Fair came to town and I decided I would enter it just to see what happened.  I carried it proudly to the judging booth and presented it.  The lady looked at me and looked at the quilt and then she fingered it all over and looked at me again and asked me what I wanted to do with it.  I told her I wanted to enter it in the Fair.  She said, ‘But honey, it’s not quilted’.  I just looked at her and started to sputter a little bit and then the lady in charge of the booth came by and said ‘take it anyway.’  So the lady did.

Now I was so excited.  I had actually made something and it was entered.  Hot Dog!  Then when the judging was over.  I somehow missed out on the judging part, probably by intent as I didn’t want anyone to know that it wasn’t really quilted like everyone else’s.  But I didn’t care anyway.  That evening, my husband drove me to the fairgrounds and I hurried inside to pick up my quilt.  Sure enough, there was a ribbon on it.  An actual ribbon.  Of course it wasn’t first place by any stretch of the imagination.  But I still got a ribbon.  I think I still have it somewhere.  And I also had an envelope with $.40 in it which was my prize money.

After that, I was so proud of my quilt forever.  And I continued to make  a total of 16 over the years.  Each one has a different picture on it. Everyone still uses them.   I had kindergarteners who took theirs to show and tell.  Some have taken them to camp.  Others wouldn’t dare spend a night without their quilt.  One of my daughter-in-laws suggested I make them and sell them.  She said I could sell all I wanted to. But that would defeat my purpose.  I just wanted to make something that I could be proud of and I have done that.  It was fun but I sure wouldn’t do it for the money.   It is a lot of work and takes a long, long time to make one.

But, it was fun.  And I would do it all over again if I had a reason.  But all my reasons already have a quilt.  And besides, it isn’t quilted.  That lady at the Fair just didn’t know that I had made new rules about quilting.  Mine was quilted just fine.  Wasn’t my fault I didn’t know how to really quilt.  My way works o.k. anyway.   I have proof of that since all those quilts are still being used today.

 

STILL BEING GOOFY

I am always having goofy things happen to me.  Not my fault either.  No way!  Just happens to me when I’m not looking.  Anyway, I washed my everyday sneakers and put on another pair out of the closet.  Some of them are very old.  I have been buying the same kind for years and wear them for everyday stuff.  It doesn’t matter which two I pick out because they all match.

Anyway, after I washed the shoes I put them in the garage to dry as usual.   Then I went on about my business.

After a few days, I began to notice that things just weren’t right with me.  I stumbled around a few times.  And dragged one foot occasionally.  I noticed this but didn’t put much emphasis on it.  Then I had some pain in my heel and the ball of my foot, not anything spectacular, just a small twinge now and then.  I also had some pain in my ankle.  This disturbed me a little more because I really began to notice it.  When I was a kid, I was always turning my ankle when I played outside.  This felt pretty much the same.

I normally don’t have much in the way of aches and pains so I really began to notice all this.  And then I started having trouble with my balance.  I was getting very concerned and felt like old age had finally crept up on me.  But surely not.  I am not that old and wouldn’t be having all these things relating to old age.  But, as I said, I was getting just a little bit concerned.  I never related any of this to each other though, so didn’t see any pattern specifically.

Then my sock slipped down into my shoe and I sat down in a kitchen chair and pulled my shoe off to straighten the sock.  When I did, I noticed that I had written in big letters on the inside of the shoe – 9-1/2.   I normally wear a size 9. I remembered getting the wrong size a long time ago.  I guess this was one of those shoes.  I thought I had given them  away.  But here was one that says clearly 9-1/2.

Then it dawned on my goofy brain that I had been wearing a shoe too large and that was why I was dragging my foot, having trouble with my balance and stumbling around.  It was also the reason for the aches and pains I had been having.  I was very relieved and glad I had written in my shoe.  I guess that was to tell me not to wear it as it was the wrong size.  Wouldn’t think that a little thing like that would make me so lopsided that I would have all those seemingly unrelated problems.

Oh well, never know with me.  Just another of those goofy things that seem to lurk around the corner and jump on me when I’m not looking.  Really not my fault you know.  Never is.  Don’t know who to blame it on but I’m sure I’ll think of someone.  Meanwhile, another goofy thing out of the way in this life of mine.

I’ll put that one size 9-1/2 shoe in the rag bag and I’ll just bet that anyone who gets that will wonder why in the world there is one size 9-1/2 shoe.  They will think someone is goofy for sure.  And I usually am.

 

 

 

DEAR GOD: THANK YOU FOR TAKING CARE OF US!

Just in case you might be interested in this little tidbit of news, thought I would pass it along.  Read in my local newspaper the other day that there are 565 BILLION BARRELS of undiscovered conventional oil out there in the big world – excluding any that the United States has.  A barrel is 42 gallons.  And the world has 565 Billion barrels not counting what the United States has.  Just think about that for a minute.  How much oil do you think you might use in your lifetime.  I am not going to try to figure it up, but I’ll just bet it won’t be any number resembling those.  And I don’t think we will run out of oil anytime soon at all.  By the time we do, God will have provided something else to take its place.  This is His world and He will provide for everything here.

And, as I said, that is EXCLUDING the United States.  So, why in the world are we saving our oil all the time.  I remember when those dumb democrats decided we didn’t need to explore and use our oil because we could use what someone else had first.  Then we could save ours.  Why!!  Why in the world are we doing any of this.  I am quite sure that we will have all the oil we could ever use in this world – ever.  We don’t need to be conserving our oil or anyone else’s as far as I am concerned.

What is the big deal in this world of ours.  Do these ultra smart people in this world today really think that they know what is best for all of us?  I don’t think so at all.  I think they are all pretty ignorant and don’t know which direction they are heading at any time.  Why are we supposed to live this half life where everyone has to save oil and electricity and water and everything else around.  Why not just enjoy what God has provided and get on with our lives.

I was at a gas station one morning filling up my tank and this hippie type came up to me and asked if I felt guilty about driving an big car.  I told him of course not.  Why should I.  Then he said I should be worried about using all that gasoline.  I told him I wasn’t worried at all and would let my grandchildren worry about that one. He stomped off as though I had insulted him.  And then he got in this raggedy old worn out station wagon with a raggedy old worn out trailer hitched to the back of it.  As he drove out towards the highway, he had smoke coming out of the exhaust of his car.  Who is causing the most damage here.  Me with my gasoline guzzler or him with his oil guzzling old rattle trap.  Makes you wonder just how smart those people are.

Also, the newspaper article said that according to the U.S. Geological Survey, the world has 5,606 TRILLION cubic feet of natural gas.  And just in case you were worrying about running out of that, the United States alone has 388 TRILLION cubic feet of gas on and off its shores.  The agency also estimates that right here in the United States we have approximately 27 BILLION barrels of oil and 388 TRILLION cubic feet of gas on and offshore.  And on our continental shelf alone, there are 398 TRILLION cubic feet of gas and 81 BILLION barrels of oil.

So hurry right out and buy one of those teeny, tiny little cars that those environmentalists say we need to have.  You know, those that won’t go very far so you won’t be able to travel anymore.  And while you are at it, be sure and notice our landscape being covered up with windmills so we can capture the wind so we won’t run out of electricity either.  Of course this is because we are going to run out of oil and gas to run our generators and we all need to cut down on electricity use too.  Oh dear, what will we do.  What will we do.  Chicken Little is running around the barnyard wringing her hands because the world is going to crash any moment.  At least it is according to those environmentalists who make up all these stories all the time anyway.

I still want to know what they are going to do when God stops the wind.  Are they going to run out, pitch their tents, and blow those windmills around?  They are not in charge of anything ever.  Period.  End of subject!

Wish they would give it a rest, get a job,  and run their own lives and let God take care of the rest of us.  Otherwise, they would  have us all living in caves again so we wouldn’t mess up THEIR world.  Dear God:  Thank You for taking care of us.  We sure do need You in this world.  Thank You!

 

DEAR GOD: THANK YOU FOR A SENSE OF HUMOR

This has not been an easy week, so much to do and my head full of problems and thoughts.  And so many errands to run and so many people to keep happy.  Don’t know that I am doing a very good job either.  But as always it will work out.  Always has, always will, I’m sure.  With God’s help, I keep telling myself that I can do anything, I can accomplish all this somehow.

And so when I got up this morning, I was already in the hole on my time.  Too much to do and too little time.  Hurrying to get ready to leave the house, I was lost in my thoughts of what all I had to do and how I was going to accomplish all.  Hurrying the kids along, I was getting irritated at everything and everyone.  Don’t need to start the day like that.  Never pays.  Lost in my thoughts as I brushed my teeth and combed my hair, I was surprised at one of the younger ones talking to me outside my bathroom door.

I opened the door and there she stood – with a Christmas sweatshirt on.  Looked beautiful as usual, but it really isn’t Christmas anymore.  That thought struck home and I began to laugh and then to laugh some more.  I could just imagine what everyone would think if she went out in that.  Oh well, such is life.  I convinced her that it wasn’t Christmas anymore and she needed to change her shirt.   She hurried to find another one.

But I am still laughing.  Dear God:  Thank YOU for a sense of humor.  I sure needed it today.  And it worked.  Have had a smile on my face ever since.  Thank YOU!

DEAR GOD: CAN YOU HEAR THE CHILDREN CRYING?

In this supposedly enlightened world of today, our poor children are crying and moaning and hurting.  Dear God:  Can You Hear The Children Crying?  I can.  I hear them over and over again constantly.  I see them on television and I read about them in the newspapers and I get gobs of mail every day telling me to listen to YOUR poor children.  As You have said, ‘whatever you do to the least of these, you do also unto Me.’  But those people are not listening to You anymore.  They think they are in charge of Your world.  And the children are crying. All the time.

There are those that are slaughtered in the wombs of their mothers.  The poor baby has no one else in this world to protect him. He is completely dependent upon his mother.  And who is she that she would deliberately destroy his life.  Surely, she cannot mean to do this.  Surely, she cannot intend to destroy the very basic being within her own body.  Do those poor children cry throughout eternity?  Do their mothers cry throughout all eternity?  The only animal that destroys their own is the Guppy that eats their babies.   Surely, we have not descended to that level.

I read of other atrocities against children every day, too.  Just today, I read of a child only 3 months old who already had broken ribs and a concussion from being thrown around or mistreated in some way.  Why on earth would any human being do that to a 3 month old child.  I certainly remember that babies cry and it is hard to listen to them sometimes.  But no right thinking adult would ever hurt a tiny child like that.

In another instance, a child had actually walked to school and when he arrived, his teacher noticed something wrong.  By that time, the flesh was  falling off his bones because he had been scalded in a tub of water.  Why would anyone ever think to do that to a small child.  Oh, Dear God:  Can You Hear The Children Crying?

And then there are those whose parents do not feed them nor care for them in any way.  Why is this?  Why in the world would anyone not feed their children.  All animals feed their offspring.  I see pictures in my mail and on the television and in the newspapers every day showing small children who need a good meal.  Most of them also need a good home. Why has this happened in our beloved Country.  The government is not supposed to be feeding them.  The schools are not supposed to be sending food home with them to tide them over the weekend until they can come back for a meal at school again.  What is wrong here.  Why are those parents not being made to take care of their own children.  Surely there is something akin to responsibility within their hearts, minds and souls.

Meanwhile, Dear God:  Can You Hear The Children Crying?  I can.  Please help them.  Please wake those parents up so they will start to take care of their very own children.  Please Dear God Help Them.  YOUR children are crying.