Just a Wee Bit Jealous, Dad

Today is my dad's twelfth anniversary of his arrival in heaven.  I must confess, I miss him just as much as the day I said, "Goodbye."  But life goes on.

The changes in my life since then are astronomical.  JJ is no longer in middle school.  He's married to the beautiful Honey now.  He graduated from a great Christian university and Dad would be/is so very proud.

I'm a licensed minister now, although we traveled for years in ministry together as a family.  I hope Dad is able to see some of the fun I'm having and the work we're doing to help people. 

When I remember my dad, the first thing I see is his smile.  I can hear his laugh and feel the touch of his hands.  When I think of the joy he's experiencing now, it's hard to be o.k. with still being here.  Imagine having as much time as you want with your best friends from your entire lifetime ~ all together and no one is in a hurry.  No one cares about who got that new house, who lost their job or who is hurting or sick. 

Every tear is wiped away.  The light of our Lord brightens up the entire place.  I doubt anyone needs new quilts, but maybe they have them made up from all the good things they remember here on Earth.

Or maybe.  Just maybe... there are brand new things to celebrate.  I can't wait to find out what those things may be ~ or hold my dad's hand again.

~

Not in My Yard

Master Max is quite the protector of our property these days.  He's constantly on alert for any coyotes, bunnies, mailmen or raccoons that might be wandering through our acreage.

This morning, we were walking up to bring the trash bins down from the street right after sunrise.  Max stopped at a bush and then began jumping.  I wasn't able to see, hear or sense any danger; but he did.  30 seconds later, a very large and mature coyote wandered away from the other side of the bush.  I noticed it was lumbering away with its tail down between its legs.

Max had conquered and let that critter know this was still his yard and guests coyotes are not welcome here, thank you.  And then to add the final statement of dominance...he went and 'blessed' the spot where the coyote had been hiding.

I, of course, told Max he'd been a very good boy and gave him some good hugs when he came running to me at the front door. 

Are there any things in your life you'd like to send running away with their tail between their legs today?  I've got a few.  Negativity, insecurity, depression... anything else I should add to the list? 

"Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise."  Hebrews 10:23

Would that include a promise to shoo the critters out from their hiding spots in our lives?

~

Hi Sweetie!

Yes, I must be a regular now.  The gal at the local S'Bucks calls me Sweetie now.  Sometimes she calls me by name, but the Sweetie makes me smile.  I'm not sure if it's because it takes me awhile to order my skinny-minny-vanilla-spice-extra-whip latte or if I might, just might, look a little confused.

No matter what, it's nice to have someone greet you, isn't it.  We talked about that in our pastors meeting yesterday.  I mentioned the theme song to "Cheers" too.  Are you humming it now??  Thought so...

Hope you have a great day and know your name matters.  So do you.

~

Shakin' Things Up

We have a great group of singers in our choir here.  They are extremely dedicated, talented and faithful.  Some Sundays are more challenging than others for them.  If there's a Baptism, Communion or New Members to greet ~ they can end up on stage for a good 30 minutes or longer.  Thirty minutes under bright lights and without chairs (that discussion is reserved for an entirely different post, thank you).

And some Sunday mornings they're thrown a curve.  Last week was one of those weeks.  About ten minutes prior to the end of the early morning warm-up; I asked them to mingle and mix up the men with them women.  I know, I know, you're thinking, "In Church??"  Yes.  Tenors right between Altos & Sopranos and Basses all over the place.  But you know what!  It worked! 

They sounded great, looked bright and were smiling a lot more than on the average Sunday.  One married couple even got to hold hands.  Now when do you see that in a church choir...

"Blessed are the flexible ~ for they shall not be broken."  I think that's a quote by my friend, Wayne Tesch.  But I'm not sure.  It might have been da Vinci.

***

French Pastries

A new friend on Twitter, actually we have many mutual friends so it seems like I've known him for years... posted that he was in Paris today enjoying a Pain au Chocolat.  He was probably sitting in a cozy little cafe with a bowl of steaming coffee, as well.  Probably listening to a cacophony of languages and perhaps watching an artist paint on the sidewalk, too.

I tweeted back that Pain au Chocolat was one of heaven's best gifts and encouraged him to enjoy it.  I didn't tell him I was hugely jealous and wished I could pop on a plane in an hour and join him.  Some things just don't come across properly tweeted for the whole world to see.

To brighten my morning as best I could I stopped in at the closest Starbucks and ordered a tall Pike's Place with a chocolate croissant - warmed.

C'est la vie.  Mon Dieu - Il faut qu'on se parle...

~

Coming Next Year

Life in the ministry, or church work... And yes, they are related but can be extremely different... can be taxing, exhilirating, wonderful and/or incredibly humorous and cause you to laugh right down from the bottom of your belly!  Can anyone give me an "Amen" on that??

So ~ in honor of the joys and blessings of serving God's wonderful folk for so many years, I've decided to start putting them together in a collection.  If you have a story to share, I'd love to hear it. Please feel free to comment or send me an ever-so-confidential e-mail. 

I'll try to get the story of "Spitball Suzie" in the first chapter.  She was a classic gal who always sat on the front row of my Dad's church ~ making tiny spitballs constantly...  And rarely missed a Sunday.

~



Plans

JJ stopped by last night.  He brought their new baby, Bella.  No, no, no... He & Honey haven't had a little girl; she's a grand-puppy.  We're waiting to introduce her to Stella who lives next door.  Imagine it:  "Bella!  Stella!"  Master Max is completely intimidated by both of these gals.  He frequently gives us a look as to state, "Why?  Why?"

Max & I are sharing that look quite often now.  I wander outside, gaze at the moon and sigh.  "Why God, Why?"

Ever done that?

Blessings, Friends.  Hang on.  I am...

On this very somber weekend, we pause to say "Thank You & God Bless" to our military forces and families.  And we send love and prayers to all those who lost so much ten years ago...

Fun Friday

It's been a lovely day here in Sunny.  The atmosphere was a bit like the north side of Birmingham (West Midlands, not Alabama) when I left the house for an early run to Starbucks.  But by mid-day I was certain I was still living in warm Southern California and nowhere near the Lake Country...

I often miss the clouds of my far-away vacation village.  We have a dear family friend who lives there and it was always so fun to pop in for a week when I was young and carefree.  Dad's favorite part of visiting there was taking a walk to the grocery store every afternoon about 4pm.  It didn't matter if we needed groceries or not ~ a trip to market would always put a smile on his face. 

I compared those trips to my stop in at the Big Box store this afternoon.  Ever-so-joyful when I pulled in to perfect parking spot #3, I knew the Lord had blessed me greatly.  After the mile or so put on my pedometer in the store, I returned to perfect parking spot #3.  Let's just say this, I learned a few new colorful words from the two gals fighting over who would move into pps#3 when I left it.

Can someone please put in a market on the corner just down the street from my house?  Please?  Or maybe, just maybe, I can take a week to visit Uncle Derek soon and bring home a bunch of radishes, some cucumbers, watercress and a can of ham.  A cold supper would fit the bill quite nicely tonight.