911

I remember exactly where I was that day. I was walking back to the elementary school from the high school after going through file folders for an hour or so. I noticed the hush in the school as soon as I walked in the door. I went up to the middle-school area and met another teacher in the hall. She told me a plane had crashed into one of the towers. Kids were sitting at their desks, eyes glued to the television.

I stepped into one of the classrooms. Just moments after stepping into the classroom, a second plane crashed. I knew right then that this had not been accidental.

This week I read a local newspaper story about a baby who was born on 911. Her mother and family were gathered, waiting for the coming of this baby, in a hospital near Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton. A nurse came into the room and told the family that a plane had crashed into one of the World Trade Centers. The mother said immediately, "The US is under attack!" When asked how she knew, she replied, "That is a no-fly zone." She immediately told her husband to gather their other children and go back to Kentucky--Wright-Patterson would be ground zero, and she wanted them away from there. I cannot imagine how she could think so clearly.

The events unfolded as the day went on. I watched the President talking to a class of school children, all the while knowing what was happening in our country, but showing no outward signs of fear. I cannot imagine how he faced them so calmly.

Several days later, David and I were listening to the car radio. A song came on that I have not heard since. It was dedicated to the first-responders at the World Trade Center. I only remember one line: "As we were coming down, they were going up." I cannot imagine how they acted so courageously.

I watched television yesterday and saw a short clip about a family in New York who had lost their wife and mother in the Trade Center. The father was raising two children, a middle-school girl and a twelve-year-old with Down Syndrome. They appeared to be getting along very well. The reporter asked the girl, "If your mother were here today, what would you ask her?" With tears in her eyes, she talked about little things, like what would they do this coming weekend...Her father, brother and she were later pictured at a memorial park that had been built after 911. There was a monument with names on it. The brother stood there and touched one of the names: "Mama." Then he kissed his finger and ran it across the letters. The father stood there and watched.

Thank you, God, for giving us all the courage to go on.

Happy birthday, Lydia!

The Contest Is Over

I win, I win! It's been the longest since I posted!!!

Things I remember from my Aunt Elsie's house

Ann said on her blog that lists were an easy out for blogging. This may become a blog of lists.

1. The drawer in her dining room buffet where the cat had kittens--I don't remember a cat around there after that...

2. The stairway into the kitchen where we could sit and chat

3. Two Christmas trees, one in the living room, one in the family room. This is a big memory! I always thought it was so nice that Aunt Elsie let the kids decorate the tree in the family room anyway they liked!

4. The Christmas mantle with the angel hair--we never had angel hair at home because of the danger we might cut ourselves on it.

5. The bubble lights on the Christmas tree

6. That crazy mechanical horse we rode on the driveway in the backyard--I swear its name was Jocko or something like that, but Linda corrected me. Started with an M, she said, something like MoJo.

7. The garage where we put on a performance of The Wizard of Oz. I will never forget Lolly's starring role as Dorothy.

8. Linda's bed that we broke down bouncing our ages and our weights--

9. Aunt Elsie's coke rules--you could only have (seems like) one a day, but you could have it anytime you wanted it.

10. Riding Uncle Harvey's jeep around their backyard

11. The two fishponds, including the one in the front yard where Lynn nearly drowned. Mom pulled her out and held her upside down until all the water came out of her lungs. It's probably not a recommended first-aid measure, but I saw Lynn recently, too many years after the fact to mention, and she doesn't seem to be suffering any ill consequences.

12. The back porches that kept getting closed in to make family rooms and, later, bedrooms.

13. Probably the first walk-in closet I ever saw in my life

14. The big pots of chili and spaghetti sauce cooking on the stove, and my brother and I eating plain spaghetti noodles with butter, because that was what we liked. We were really picky eaters. I hate to think about what we missed.

I guess that does it for now. I will probably think of more things as the days go by and will add them as they come up. I'm old. I officially turn 63 today. Love to all, and God bless.

Orangutan and Hound Dog

Wow. I think I have been impressed with primates since I was six years old and went on a trip to the Cincinnati Zoo with my parents and brother. I loved to look at the tour book from the zoo, and was really excited to see that I could read part of it--"orange uh-tan", my phonetic pronunciation of orangutan. I used to wish my parents would buy a chimpanzee for us, but they never did. However, the woman who ran our local laundromat had a pet chimpanzee which she dressed up in baby clothes and diapers and pushed around in a laundry cart--for sure, one of the highlights of trips to the laundromat!

Just this morning, David's and my cousin Gayle sent me this video. Do I need to tell you how much I love it? At first I was a little peeved that it was obviously staged, but as I watched it through, I saw that despite the staging, the story was well worth watching and may be true. Enjoy. Love to all, and God bless.

Who would have thought...

today'sFUNNY===========================

Who would have thought...

..that when you wished your kids didn't need you so much, you would someday wish that they did?

..that when there wasn't enough time in the day, you might someday wonder how to fill your free time?

..that when you couldn't wait to get your driver's license, you would someday try to decide when to give it up?

..that you would finally have more than enough stuff?

..that grandchildren grow even faster than children?

..that when people told you to enjoy your (time, education, job, kids, friends, health, spouse, etc.), you would someday realize why?

..that some people are grateful no matter what, and some are ungrateful no matter what?

..that when you struggled to make ends meet, they finally would?

..that each day can be a blessing and a chance to be a blessing to others?

..that a smile, a touch and a listening ear are worth more than expensive presents?

..that there's always something new to learn?

..that you would never get tired of watching a sunset, a rainbow, or a baby's first steps?

..that the best things in life ARE free?

..that a funny or inspiring e-mail would be the best way to start the day?

[forwarded by Doreen Hietsch]

today'sTHOT============================

Education is what you get when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get if you don't.

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PASS IT ON!
Yeah, you can send this Funny to anybody you want. And, if you're REAL nice, you'll tell them where you got it! www.mikeysFunnies.com

I know, I know, I'm crazy.

You might think that with the events so far this morning, something like the following would be inappropriate. However, I'm sure Libby would have appreciated it. Thank you, Mikey's Funnies, for this lighter note:

'TWAS THE NIGHT OF THANKSGIVING

'Twas the night of Thanksgiving,
But I just couldn't sleep.
I tried counting backwards,
I tried counting sheep
The leftovers beckoned
The dark meat and white,
But I fought the temptation with all of my might.

Tossing and turning with anticipation,
The thought of a snack became infatuation!
So I raced to the kitchen,
Flung open the door,
And gazed at the fridge full of goodies galore.

I gobbled up turkey and buttered potatoes,
Pickles and carrots, beans and tomatoes.
I felt myself swelling so plump and so round,
Till all of a sudden, I rose off the ground!!

I crashed through the ceiling, floated into the sky
With a mouthful of pudding and a handful of pie,
But I managed to yell
as I soared past the trees ...

HAPPY EATING TO ALL,
PASS THE CRANBERRIES PLEASE!!

today'sTHOT============================

Asked to write a composition entitled, "What I'm thankful for on Thanksgiving," little Johnny wrote, "I'm thankful that I'm not a turkey."

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PASS IT ON!
Yeah, you can send this Funny to anybody you want. And, if you're REAL nice, you'll tell them where you got it! www.mikeysFunnies.com

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Precious

Psalm 116:15 says, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." Libby died this morning, with all six of her children around her. Thank you, God, for blessing us all with this wonderful, saintly woman.

A day of gratitude and mixed emotions

I found out this morning that my cousin, Libby, who is like a sister to me, is in ICU in Norton's hospital in Louisville, more than likely dying. All her body systems have shut down, her blood pressure and body temp are falling, and it's only a matter of time. They took her to the hospital on Tuesday evening, and it's been downhill since then. All her children except one, who lives in Northern Kentucky near Falmouth, are there, and the other one is on his way. Libby's daughter Martha said her mom's pressure would occasionally try to go up on its own--I think she is holding on until that son gets there, too, so that she can have a moment or two with him. That's what my mom did right before she died, and I think that's what Libby is doing. What a really rotten way to start Thanksgiving. What a really rotten way to try to be gracious and grateful and have gratitude.

I'm not sure what my plans are at this moment, but I'm reasonably sure that I'll be flying to Louisville once I hear she has died and will stay with a family member there for a few days in order to attend the funeral. Libby has been the rock of our family for at least the last 10 years or so, as well as the rock of her own family. I can truly be grateful that she has been an example for us all of God's love and acceptance, and has showed the gift of hospitality for at least 65 years! (I think she was too young before that, since she's only a little over 70 now.)

I did get to talk to two of my kids today, Ann and Lydia, and got to see the grandchildren "cut shines" over the computer, so I'm also thankful for that. I know that my children are all with folks they love today, even if they're not with me, and that's good. Everett is at Ann's, in Nashville, and Lydia is surrounded by her husband, children, and in-laws, who love her like the daughter they never had. Everett does have a job, he's working fulltime for Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, in their library. It's only a temporary job, supposed to end in August, but something might open up there at that time. God has taken care of him this far, who am I to think He won't take care of him after August?

Have a good Thanksgiving with your loved ones. We are going to be eating with new friends here in San Antonio, and I am grateful for that. There are supposed to be maybe 50 people at the dinner! I'm taking a hash brown casserole, a dump cake, and "the traditionally forgotten green salad", if I remember it! So I'm grateful that I am able to do that. And the weather here in Texas is absolutely gorgeous, for which I'm also thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving! Love to each one of you, and may God continue to bless you!