Seasons

It was such a beautiful sunny fall day. The air was fresh and crisp, so I walked instead of drove to the bank. Colors of red rust, orange and bright yellows were stunning. It prompted my heart to sing and worship the Creator, the father of creativity and beauty. After all, he could have painted everything a dull grey.

There is another messy side to fall. Flowers have done their blooming,looking straggly and falling over, corn stalks need to be removed and disposed of or composted. Impatiens plants, touched by an early frost, are slippery and hard to remove from the wet soil. I do not like this side of gardening at all and could really do without this part of autumn, but as in life, we take the good with the bad and the ugly and look forward to another new beautiful season.

The Piano

What a day it was, when they moved that upright piano into the livingroom of the farmhouse. At the age of about fourteen, I don't recall any previous discussion about such an extravagant purchase, but there it was! Singing and music was always a part of our family gatherings. We would gather around and my Aunts & Uncles would bring out the guitars, accordian, harmonica and now we had a piano!

After every meal, I would leave the table quickly and go figure out tunes and diddle around on the keys till I was summoned back to the kitchen to help with the dishes. Playing by ear came naturally, and soon I taught myself to read notes. Many times I would try to play through the hymnbook and imagine myself as church pianist.

I wanted to take piano lessons more than anything, and yet this did not seem to be a priorty at that time.

However, I did become the church pianist and did quite well for many years. However, I was in real trouble if I was called upon to play something I was not familiar with, or if the key signature had more than 2 sharps. (flats were no problem) Also I could not figure out the timing of a new song and this made for some extremely embarrassing situations.

this summer, we took a trip to a Gospel Music Convention. What a smorgasbord feast of singing and music that was! The Saturday matinee featured a "Pianorama". Four large grand pianos on stage and four of the most talented pianists I have ever heard let loose. How I wished I could have learned to play like that.

IT WAS ONLY A WALNUT

Twelve year old Jake and his younger pal, Tyler, were just trying out their slingshots, shooting small rocks at fence posts and trees. The long farmyard driveway was lined with beautiful walnut trees so they began picking the green walnuts off the trees and found that they were better, smoother amunition than having to find suitable stones. What could be more fun than shooting at moving targets, so they hid behind trees and aimed towards the road at passing vehicles.

My brother, Dave, had just delivered some heavy implements to a farm down the road, when a shocking bang hit the windshield, cracking the glass. He stopped to investigate the damage and looked around to see where the rock could have come from. The BEEP,BEEP,BEEP sounded loudly as he backed up the big rig to two opposite driveways.

He walked onto the right hand yard, where a gentleman was mowing his lawn. After a short conversation they ascertained that there was no way that he could have caused the damage. When Dave was about to climb back into his truck he noticed a whole lot of walnuts strewn beside the road. ah ha.
As he walked down the driveway of the left farm yard, the trees told him that he was onto something. Nearing the house, evidence verified that this could be where the shot had come from. There was no answer at the door, but he could sense that someone was hiding somewhere, so he searched behind buildings and in sheds finding no one and found out later, that they had run for cover in the back forty. They knew they were in trouble!

Upon arriving home, he phoned Bob, a policeman friend, saying, "I have a hunch that some young kids are shooting walnuts at cars, and have no idea what damage they can cause."
He gave him the address of the place and after a few days, the policeman made a call to the farmhouse. After some questioning the young culprits were coerced into admitting their guilt.

Bob phoned Dave and asked, "Do you want to press charges?" Dave replied "No, but I want them to pay the $300 deductible and I want to talk to them personally."

The wise parents insisted that the boys pay their debt from their own allowance, so when Dave arrived at the house, they counted out their hard earned money in five & ten dollar bills and sheepishly handed them over to him.

Then Dave took the two aside and said, "I could have let this little incident pass and my company could have easily paid for the windshield, but then you would have got away with doing something that could cause an accident or serious harm to someone. You two guys are very lucky to have parents who are teaching you to take responsibility for the consequences of your actions. and I want you to remember this."

With a pat and a handshake, he left two very relieved, shaking young lads with a lesson they will never forget.

What a wise brother I have! He may have just saved two young fellows from a life of crime!

Patience of Job.

I just don't know about the statement, "He's got the patience of Job."

As I read through this LONG book, I found that Job got frustrated and lost his patience with his pompous, all-knowing friends, and challenged, yes, even shouted at God for the horrible onslaught of tragedy, humiliation and physical pain bombarding him from every side. He did not know THE WHY and about the Chapter 1 conversation between God and Satan. God said, "I dare you, and you'll see how true Job will remain." Satan threw everything he could at Job outside of killing him, however his faith remained firm, believing that in the end God was just and would not totally forsake him..... but patient, not really.

When accosted by bad things, Job's response was the same as mine often is, "What have I done to deserve this?" But, what an amazing example he is of courage, honesty and steadfastness. REAL!

God is just and holy and always has our ultimate good in mind, but sometimes that is hard to see and believe when it feels like we are mired in the mud and pain.

Coincidences

Lately, I have been amzed, surprised, even shocked at the many coincidences that "just happen".

I was thinking about a friend, and hadn't seen her in a long time. Having heard that she was going through a difficult time, I wondered how I could get in touch with her during this sensitive situation. I was early for an appointment, so to pass the time, I walked into a business store that I had never been in before, and there she was, so we were able to hug, talk and reconnect.

It's not just "Dumb Luck". God ordains our steps in such amazing,wonderful ways.

Christmas Again

When I was a child, it seemed that Christmas just wouldn't come fast enough, but from my senior's perspective now, it comes way too quickly. But I still love it.

Some of My Favorite Things of this Season are...........

The wealth of wonderful music that fills all of December
Holiday lights on every street that brighten up the dark, rainy, wet nights
Grandchildren's Christmas concerts
Tree ornaments that hold a special memory
Connecting with friends & family from far and near
Children's anticipation
Parties and good food
Helping needy here and in other countries
Sharing time with someone who does not have family nearby
Cards & Letters that let me know that they thought about me
Family gatherings

We enjoy all these things in memory of Jesus birth. Wow! He left Heaven, with all it's beauty and glory, to come to this crazy world, in the form of the most vulnerable thing... a human baby.
To die for me. Once again, I am in awe of this reality, humbled and so thankful. Hallelujah!

Dance with Jesus

A few years ago, a song with a strange name was played often on Christian Radio. It immediately became my favorite. It is called "Untitled Hymn" (Come to Jesus) sung by Chris Rice.

The progression of each verse builds with each key word....Come, Sing, Fall, Cry, Dance and culminating with Fly to Jesus. From the moment I heard it, I called it "Matthew's Song" and still cry every time I listen to it.

Matthew died four days ago and is finally free of his frail, deformed body. No more pain and suffering. I loved him so much.

As I prepared flowers for his funeral, I listened to the words once again and I cried many tears of sadness because he will be missed, and tears of joy because I imagine him running, flying and dancing with Jesus.

He will be waiting to welcome me and be able to run, dance and finally speak and say,"Hi Grammie".