Happy Birthday!

Today is NOT like any other day of the year! It's special. To me, it has a special ring to it! The number 24 stands out. March 24 is special. It's the day I was born and, I am told, the day my mom almost died. The doctor asked my dad what decision he would make, if things got complicated with my birth (which they did) and although I was never told, I am pretty sure (and would strongly have recommended it myself) that dad should choose MOM over me. She had two other young children to look after and though she had lost one little girl a few years earlier at 10 months, she was still needed to be a mom to the boys. It would not have been an easy choice but it would have been the right one. 
Nevertheless, I am happy to be here. All the more reason to love this day! I count myself very lucky and on a higher plane... blessed!
The sun is shining today and there is a blue sky and warm weather. Spring like feel in the air! Unfortunately, my husband is 'under the weather' which is rare for him. Our intent to celebrate today is to go to the movies and hopefully, he will be feeling better by then. If not, it doesn't really make a big difference to me. I am still HAPPY with the day!
I kinda wish EVERY day had the same feel to it. But then it would be a normal day and I would miss out on this great feeling! Yes, today is special. It's my birthday!

Melting

I am sitting and watching snow melt on the roof of our garage. The heat is circulating in white smoke-like air off the shingles. It is mezmerizing. The wind or breeze continually changes and the smoke wafts one way then the other. Almost like Someone is softly blowing on it and playing in this spring-like weather.

The temperature is still cool but in March the sun is a bit higher and stronger and is asserting it's power on the snow covered roof. Melting and vapor are now in the place of snow.

Still too cold to sit outside on the deck. Soon. But not yet. It's inviting ... but not yet. 

Oregon Bound

Today is Day 2. Yesterday we left at 9:30 am and drove to Leduc Fountain Tire to torque our new trailer tires. Then headed out to Red Deer to meet up with Taits.  They got tied up with something in Edmonton so we carried on. A nice leisurely drive through southern Alberta and on to Yahk park in BC near the US border. Taits arrived couple hours later and by then..a few minutes of chatting..what time to leave in the morning and we all went to bed bushed! Looking forward to our next leg toward Oregon.

NEW DAY, NEW COMPUTER!

I took in my laptop on Feb 11 as a number of keys were not working properly. They told me that I could go online to the manufacturer to fix it or they charge $75/hr to check it out. So I took it home and did just that but didn't get any satisfaction. I took it back that Monday and said - you can look at it and see if you do anything and I will pay. Well...it turns out I had a warranty (which so happens to expire next month Mar 20/17)! Now it became their cost! 

They sent me home with it a few days later but the same day, the same thing started happening again - although I could use some of the letters off and on - then not at all again. So I took it back. 

Now it was Saturday (again). The tech just happened to be there (it was his day off) and he told me to leave it there and he would look at it again to see if there was some small thing he could do, otherwise he would have to order a new keyboard which would be another week. I left it. He said he would call me on Monday to give me the low down.

So, Wed I called to find out what was happening (no call from the tech). The new guy said they had till Thurs to fix it as they have a 5 work guarantee plan. He should call me by then or they would have to get me a new computer. Yikes! who knew! He called back a few minutes later saying that it was '5 working days' so that meant they had till Friday! No problem, just fix it I said.

Friday afternoon they called to say they could't get a keyboard for this unit. So...looks like I have a new laptop. Only thing is I will have to reinstall all my programs. Thankfully, I did do a backup of all my documents and photos. But, now I have to remember all the programs I had on there to do that. Also, need to find where I put all those software disks etc.

A little computer knowledge is dangerous. I have my new computer. In the long run, I think it will be better. I certainly like the new keyboard. Much more sturdy and not so fussy! It has a little red dot in the middle of the keyboard which I am getting used to - not so distracted as I first was! I have begun setting up my printer and also my google connection etc. It's amazing how many passwords you accumulate! My biggest challenge is going to be downloading the Office program, Norton and then reloading my stored data. I can only hope that it all will work together for good!

My new laptop has Windows 7 so all seems to be working so far. It actually printed to my wireless HP printer too. I must be doing something right though I can't tell you what it is! A few days ago, my husband bought a new printer for his desktop because his old Dell printer was not working. It turned out to be the identical printer that I have also which really throws a wrinkle into listing my printer as they both say the same thing. Wouldn't you know it. The day before he bought this new printer, I successfully connected him to the home office network for his documents to be printed off my upstairs printer. Now he has the same printer downstairs and as I am trying to set up my new laptop upstairs, I thought for sure there would be problems. However, so far...so good!

My new laptop is a lenovo. Never heard of it. But...I love the keyboard. Start with something positive and keep going!!  It's going to be a super day!

January post

Hard to believe it is mid-January already! Where did the last 2 weeks go? I guess part of it is the fact that I am not working right now. Days kind of blend into each other. I understand now why my dad would always 'X' off the calendar days. Helped him to know what day it was! At the time, I wondered why he wouldn't know that. Now I do. 

Retirement can be a very active life, or a sedimentary one! It's our choice. We have the time! However, for me, since working all the time, most of my life, I find being 'at home' very cathartic! I love my little home. I love my little work desk and all the papers and files that surround me. Perhaps that is an indication that I miss work! I don't know. But I enjoy being able to simply 'putz'. It does not mean that I have to accomplish anything (and I often don't). But it means I can do 'a little of this' and a 'little of that'! I like it. 

Sometimes, however, I will think to myself that I SHOULD DO MORE. Not sure what that MORE looks like. But I should DO it!! 

Today, I have scheduled some ironing and some emails to make my day more productive. We'll see if that works!

Yesterday we went trailer shopping - only window shopping really - at the RV Wars year-end trailer sale with our friends. Out of a RONA-sized show room, we found ONE trailer that suited us the most - even it had a few flaws. Who can afford those huge trailers? and why would you spend that much $$ to go camping?!! Anyway, we did not buy!! We postponed any selection till we go to the RV sale in February. Maybe they will have something new for 2017! Doubt we will buy but it's a nice 'day out'!! So far, nothing has outdone our little trailer (thank goodness)!!

Christmas 'Present'

Merry Christmas everyone! This is Christmas Present as opposed to 'Past'. I like the past and reminisce about it a lot - the long gone past and the recently past! Both are great. This year though we made a new 'past' with a different Christmas. We were not with our daughter and family but instead we were with John's niece and husband where they live in Osoyoos on the mountaintop! What a beautiful view!

John's sister from the Island and her husband joined us and there was just the six of us - adults!

We did a creative thing for gift-giving. On Christmas Eve day, we went to the Home Hardware store in Osoyoos. It is huge and has everything!! We only gave ourselves 1.5 hours to pick out gifts for the other 5 of us to a maximum of $20 each! It could be one - $20 gift or 10 - $2 gifts! Our discretion. We then wrapped the gift and put them in the individual's stocking and it was 'from Santa'! Of course the fun of it all was also guessing who gave it to us! Most of the time, we got it right! What a hoot! No, pre-planning on what to get - just the pressure of the moment trying to find something - the 'right' something for that individual person! Maybe it was no pressure for the guys - but it sure was for me! In the end, it was all good fun and we all liked our gifts - both given and received!!

The weather was great. About -5 C and sunny as it had snowed the day before we got there. Lots of it! It was wonderful to go out for a hike with the group and Emmit - their 80 lbs bull dog! It took awhile for him to 'warm up to us' but in the end, we were ALL family!!

Our traditional Christmas dinner was on Christmas Eve and we did a number of courses over a long period of time: borscht soup; herrings with rye bread (I skipped that one); pyrogies with sour cream & onion buns; nalysnky (or wrapped crepes with cottage cheese), then our wonderful turkey with dressing and cabbage rolls. Or something in that order. It was nice to sit and have a break inbetween the different servings. Made for a longer relaxed evening.

Christmas morning was fun as I said with the gift giving. We all got such unique things! Really different than how we have done things in the past.

Emmit even got a few gifts and enjoyed the special day as well.

 On Christmas Day we went into town to a restaurant which had Turkey Dinner with all the trimmings. It was nice to just sit and talk and not worry about all the prep being done! 

With no young kids around, the boys did their best to entertain the girls with their crazy antics! They succeeded. It was a fun time. They also have a hot tub, so with the beautiful warm weather (only -5 or so), some people just had to get into the outside tub!!

It was a long drive there and we had some challenging road conditions and then, as I said, it snowed the night we arrived. On our way home, it was just 'lots of snow' on the road as we went back through Kelowna and then onto Revelstoke / Golden / Banff. We made it home in one day on our return. Some views of the mountains are gorgeous.

Blessings to all of you this Christmas and hope it was as wonderful for you as it was for us. Looking forward to a great 2017.

December is upon us. All my Christmas shopping is done and the Christmas lights have now been up for a month. Christmas in November took place here for my ladies group as one of the women now lives out of town and came in for a few days to spend an early Christmas with her family. What better time to have our ladies event than when she was here. So, up went the lights and the tree and the decorations. We have been 'living' Christmas since Nov 11! What a fine group of ladies too!

Early Christmas in November with the Girls!

 It's different this year though as we are not going to be with our daughter and family. It is the 'in-law's" year to visit. Our son-in-law was here Nov 30th for his father's 80th birthday so I took the opportunity to get all their gifts purchased and we were able to get them packed into a suitcase so that he could take them back to the coast with him for Christmas. Also in that suitcase were packed the birthday gifts for two of the grandkids as well! Talk about the Christmas rush!! Thankfully, there were still some Thanksgiving sales happening so I lucked out in a few purchases. But I did not have a lot of feedback from everyone as to what their Christmas desires would be this year. Guess they will have to just like what Gramma bought for them!

We were at our daughter's place for Thanksgiving and to celebrate John's birthday but who had time to buy Christmas gifts then? I had to wait till I got back home before I event started thinking about Christmas!

Birthday celebration!

We've decided to go to our niece's place for Christmas this year as something totally different since we are free this time to do whatever we wish. John's sister and husband will also be there so it will still be a family deal! Looking forward to a little 'different' style of Christmas as no kids there - just adults! Hope we can still have fun!! Just kidding. They just moved to the Interior from the Island so it is a different view..but just as beautiful!

Beautiful front driveway but the backyard is the best!

Backyard view and fire pit!

And the sunsets are beautiful there as well!!

Beautiful Sunsets!

My younger, older brother was housesitting in Calgary for 6 weeks so we had opportunity for an 'early Christmas' with them as well since they head back to the USA on Dec 18. We had a bit of a gift exchange and had a great time together. My oldest brother is already in the USA enjoying warm weather in Texas for a few months. I guess it is just me that hangs out in snow during winter!!

Well, a quick update as this year draws to a close. I may just do one more post for a 'year at a glance' kind of thing but will have to figure out just what 12 pictures best represent each month. 

November

The first part of last week was cold. More like the west coast weather in the Fall - rainy, foggy, wet and dreary! Although when we have been in Vancouver, it has always been nice. But, that is the kind of weather we had here last week.

Yesterday, it rained. We were so hoping that it would be nice so that the farmers could get all their crops off the field. So many fields are yet to be cleared. It was nice on Friday and Saturday both, so we were hoping it would continue. It didn't. Lots of rain yesterday. And last night it went to 0 degrees so there was frost on the roof tops and grass this morning. Beautiful crystals on everything. One good thing - thankfully, on Sat. we put up our Christmas lights on the tree in our front yard. I hate tramping down all the snow (and freezing ) while putting up the lights in December. So, thought we would get a head start on it. They blend in nicely so we don't look like crazy people but still ... this morning with the frost, I was glad we did it!!

Nov 7 tree lights

And, what a beautiful morning. It was totally calm and clear. Definitely need to get outside as the weather is perfect for walking. Even though it says only 4 degrees, it is supposed to get to 18 or 20 today! Yikes. And me thinking of Christmas already!

On a sadder note... Heard of another case of cancer. A friend who was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Going in for surgery. Another friend has breast cancer and is undergoing chemo now. A third is on a special trial drug as it is too late now for surgery or chemo. A few weeks ago, a friend my age had a stroke. All the more reason to enjoy the day: TODAY and this great weather - for you just never know. Life is fragile. We are made to be eternal beings but not of this world. A person has to take each day and live it to the full. Make the most of your special day.

Isaiah 26:33 You will keep in perfect peace, those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you.

Fall - Already!

It is hard to believe that I left off in May and it is already October! I just finished doing a fancy 'harvest' look to my front yard bench. I am thinking it is cute. You need to see it closer though .... so... here it is. Can you see the little raccoon that is there as well? It is October 25 so I don't think it will be long before the white stuff will be there and I will need to change the decor!

We had a great summer. It went too fast but even so, it was great to be out in our trailer and enjoying the outdoors. Love the campfires and the smoke and the sitting around and just veggin! Oh we did lots of hiking or walking too. Not quite as strenuous as the old days but still a lot of walking. Have been trying to keep it up into the fall as well but as the weather turns cooler, I too cool off to the idea of walking outside!! Will be moving inside to the treadmill I think in the not too distant future!

Had a few hectic moments over the past few months with my hubby and a kidney stone. Strangely enough, he was to go in and have surgery for it as they said it was too large to pass. They put in a stent to help out his kidneys and then when they finally went in to do the operation, they could not find the stones. With no real explanation, they finally succumbed to the comment "you must have passed it" even though they said he couldn't. We like to think it was a miracle and God's hand was in it all. We certainly had enough people praying for it to be dissolved away! 

Had a quick trip out to Vancouver to see our daughter and family ~ Happy Thanksgiving and birthday celebrations. They have such beautiful colors there! I love this picture! Think I will blow it up as a wall mural. Wouldn't it be nice to stare at these pictures when the white stuff is falling!!

In November and December our grandson and then granddaughter have birthdays. We will miss them but will have to send off some special gifts. I always love to get things in the mail and I know they do too!

Had a ladies gab session this morning. Met a lot of new young moms and had a wonderful snack table as well. Some proficient lady made this cupcake bouquet. It was left to the very last as no one wanted to eat it!!!

Well, that's all for now. Nothing too sensational. Just real life stuff!

New Every Morning

It's been awhile since I have posted. I have been busy reading other people's posts and thinking ... or more appropriately ... comparing what I have to say versus theirs. I was not impressed. It has taken me a bit of time to realize that this is not a comparison game. I am writing my blog to simply get things off my mind and to move on. It is 'out there' in the web world and whomever wants to ... can. I do it for 'me'. Now I didn't have to write that out in black and white ... or did I? Maybe I did. Just so that I do not feel like I need to be 'as good as' or 'better than' someone else. I am just .. me.

I chose a word in January as prompted by our pastor at our church. A word to cling to..and to cherish. A word to give me strength and purpose. It took me awhile to decide. There are so many good words out there! I also wanted to make sure 'my word' was a good one! Not that I should be comparing. In the end, I had a good talk with myself. I think I was doing just that. Comparing my word to someone else's. The first word that came to mind was 'Faithful' and then I thought I needed something easier or more 'with it' or perhaps different letters. How silly is that! In the end, the word that I chose first became my word! F A I T H F U L.

HE is just that. Faithful. My scripture verse is Psalm 36:5 Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens; your faithfulness to the skies. For anyone who knows me...knows that I love the sky and the clouds in it. I have taken enough pictures of clouds and sunsets and sunrises and blue skies and clouds etc. The sky is enormous ... with emotion! I wish I could draw! I think that's why I take so many pictures...to store in my mind the images that I wish I could put to paper. Instead...they sit in my head! But, they are with me all the time...I remember them. And of course, they are 'new every morning' as the bible says! Lamentations 3:23 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.  This leads me to another verse which I claim also. Psalm 86:15 But you Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God; slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

I have taken to reading a blog by Susie Teramura who I think is unbelievably gifted in writing, painting, making things. She expresses herself so well and she also writes cool stuff! She seems to be saying what I am thinking but she puts it down on paper! I love it..you may too! check her out!
 https://susieteramura.wordpress.com/2016/05/03/new-every-morning/

But, back to why I mention Susie is the poem she wrote on May 3, about new every morning...she puts into her own words the scripture I also claim. She wrote  '"your faithfulness and constant affection towards me will never end". You have to read the whole blog for May 3rd but it is so worth it! I love the imagery of God's Word as part of our every day stuff. He wants to be with us,

I end on that note. God's faithfulness. Visions of endless blue sky and character clouds.

Easter 2016

It has been a wonderful Easter time this year. We participated in an amazing Easter Musical production called 'Can It Be?' Well, I was coordinating makeup for 150 cast members and John was coordinating and helping with ushering for the 6000+ people who came through the doors of our church to watch the 5 different performances. It was pretty amazing.

I was out visiting our daughter and family on the coast. It rained for most of the time I was there but I thoroughly enjoyed my 10 day visit. 

Blossoms

When I came home, I was immersed into the planning and prep for the Easter play so time has flown by.

Rehearsal night

We have been enjoying the nice spring weather and driving around the countryside. It is nice to just get out of the house and do something different. I know we likely will get more snow in the next month of two but it feels like spring is here now. We even had rain on the Easter weekend!

March 31st

Today is the last day of March, 2016. We will never see this day again. Oh, we will see the DATE but not the DAY. Hopefully I will remember it as being special. It is a sunny day and warming up so that is memorable. I have mailed a cheque out to my daughter to cover some costs for an accident I had with their vehicle. Even with the best of intentions, things go wrong! It definitely did for me that day! Rain played havoc with my new glasses and driving a new car! Needless to say, it did not end well.

Today, however, is a new day. I will remember writing the cheque and mailing it. And while doing so, I saw the most beautiful jet stream. It started in the north and made an arc to the far south. I was out in time to actually still see the jet itself and the beautiful stream it made!  Reminds me that we all leave an 'impression' or footprint in our life. What will it look like? I am hoping mine is as beautiful as the jetstream! It followed a path, remained constant, left a beautiful residue and blended into the atmosphere eventually. I don't want my trail to 'blend away' but I do want my life to be remembered as blending a combination of goodness, hopefulness, trustfulness and faithfulness (my word for 2016) mixture to people's lives!

Psalm 36:5 Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds!!

From Happy New Year to Happy Valentine's Day (belated) . The first two months of 2016 have flown by too quickly. What's next? oh, Easter, the Easter Musical production, our daughter's 20th wedding anniversary and another birthday for me! A few birthdays in March for people I know but then March is over and we begin April! As I said, these months are flying by!

Our nephew (in law) from down East, fell off a ladder while cleaning his gutters and ended up paralyzed from the shoulders down. Owing to a previous back condition, this fall which anyone else would have gotten up from with a few bruises, has caused him paralysis. The news is not good but he is hoping for a miracle. Another nephew (in law ) on the west coast had a minor stroke which has left him with some speech issues and right hand struggles. Otherwise, he is doing good and improving each day. A few months of regular physio and speech therapy should bring him back to 100%.

Our own household seems to be doing fine after suffering almost two months with a cold that accompanied the flu from December. Still have a bit of coughing 'out of the blue' but at least the flu is over with. They said this flu lasted about 6 weeks and they were right!!  Both of us are doing well now.

Looking forward to our camping days on the May long weekend but before that we are headed on a lovely European river cruise. Lots of tourist things to do and see. It will be a busy few days once we get back, getting our trailer into camp mode and all that goes into it, while also getting back to work at the same time. Busy lives!

This winter has been easy as far as snow goes and right now it seems like Spring is coming as it is melting and sunshine. I am bracing for March which will likely give us three months of snow in one good snowfall! Just like you don't say 'shut out' in a hockey game before it's finished...don't say we're into Spring when it is only February!! March is coming!

Glad to be back in the blogging mode.

Happy Valentines Day!

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone!

A new day and a new year is dawning...

I honestly can't believe where this year went! It just seemed that we were visiting John's mom last Christmas, then she passed away in January and now we are almost a year away from the date she died, Jan. 19, 2015.

Mom, God bless her.

Mom's resting place beside her husband

I looked at my book of sorrow which I keep and there are a number of friends or family that passed since mom's passing. Too many. Guess we are at 'that age' now.

We were in Hawaii after the funeral for three weeks which had been planned for a year. The timing was amazing although it was surreal. It was hard to take in the events that preceded this trip. I think we are still coming to grips with mom's passing.

Beautiful Hawaii sunsets..

On a brighter note, we did some camping in May in Jasper, and also in June at Ross Lake which was beautiful! Oh the sunsets...

more beautiful sunsets

mezmerizing campfires

We also had a wonderful summer at Radium this year. Weather was wonderful. Although we could not get where we wanted and ended up taking a 'last minute available site' we were happy to be there and enjoyed every moment. Now I appreciate that no matter what the site, you can make it your own and call it home. Still...next summer I am trying for our all time favorite one - not to be discussed in case one of you might want it too!

I love our trailer

Met up with some friends & their family from previous years...

The kids were here in October for a special anniversary of the in-laws 50th and we were invited also. A wonderful celebration of marriage. Everyone participated. I even have a video clip of the grandkids singing and the two older kids playing guitar and keyboard. It was also a celebration of John's birthday which had me baking my 2nd ever apple pie! Pretty good too.

Grandkids singing

apple pie - birthday celebration

Christmas was the best. We did Secret Santa gifts and a new game which I bought gifts for but that will be different next year. However, lots of gifts for everyone, a good time and great Christmas Eve service as well. Time with my daughter, time with my grandkids, great meals with my son-in-law cooking a super turkey and a safe trip to and from the coast with my husband. 

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree

Our wonderful grandkids!

As Tiny Tim would say, "God bless us, every one" but I would say "we are blessed, abundantly'.

It's a beautiful Fall day. Big blue sky, no clouds and bright sunshine. Frost on the roof and on the grass in the shadows but otherwise it looks like a beautiful summer day! It is noon and only 2 degrees Celcius but it feels like a summer as I look outside.

Heading to a show "The Intern" with Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway! All who have seen it have said it was good so we will give it a go too! Since we are retired we will head there for an 'afternoon outing' instead of fighting the crowds on a Friday night! We went to 'War Room' and "Woodlawn' the past few weeks and both were excellent.

Only 7 more Mondays till Christmas! When you say it that way, it doesn't seem far off. Need to start developing a 'list' - not for me - but for everyone else!! Heading to the coast for Christmas this year...looking forward to it even though it won't be a 'white Christmas'! Who knows, it may not be white here either if El Nino gets her way.

A beautiful day today and yet a friend is going through a difficult time with her mothers health and another friend struggles with get husband's health issues.
Prayer is needed for them both ...and so many others. Problems we are not even aware of.  things people keep to themselves.
On this beautiful first day of Fall I pray for the hurting..may God meet you in your trial and may you rise up and praise His name.

The last week

Had a wonderful time camping a week ago. Hot weather but nice when you are in the trees. Very few mosquitos as well. We did a little 'driving around' the area to check out the small towns and countryside. Otherwise, we just relaxed around the camp, enjoyed the fire in the evening (as it was too hot during the day) and played a lot of 'Rummy-O'. I have to say, I love that game, mostly because it is one that I often win. Cards I usually lose at, crib and backgammon are lossss too but Rummy-0 ... it seems to be my game. Not to say that John didn't win (as he did) but I won more! This time anyway!

Came home to more hot weather and some strange cloud formations. They call them Undulatus Asperatus and they were beautiful to watch. I checked it out on the web and found this youtube video of them last year in Lincoln NB. Just so you know what they look like. I have attached my own picture of them too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz7BgxrVmiQ

My flowers have been really nice this year too. Guess the heat helps and regular watering! My sister in law would have been proud of me to see her flowers this tall - I got them from her before she moved to the Coast.

Not too much else happening. Pretty quiet summer so far. Looking forward to camping in a few weeks. Only one night confirmed so far, and the rest of the time we will be 'winging it'. A new practice for us! Retirement...don't you just love it!

June 10

It is a beautiful morning. It was a nice day as well 23 years ago. I was riding on the bus to go home to see my dad as he was not doing well after his stroke. All the way there (3 hours or more) I kept thinking, he could be gone and I wouldn't even know it. The bus drove right past the hospital but I was unable to get off until it came to a stop at the bus terminal. My brother picked me up there and told me the news. Dad had passed away. Somewhere along that trip, he was gone. Was it while we drove through Ponoka? or Red Deer? maybe Olds or Innisfail? Perhaps just as I drove past the hospital, his spirit said goodbye? 

I had seen him on the weekend and this was Wednesday morning. He had hung on for quite a while. Perhaps it was the best thing for him to have slipped away before I arrived. I'm not sure I could have stood watching him leave me. I know he loved me. That's all that counts.

Miss you daddy...love you.

In your chair with Father's Day hat ~ E.R. Field ~ 

I have just returned from a visit with my brother and his wife in the States. "It was a delightful time. I was happy to just sit and relax by the pool side, chat over coffee and go for walks. Nothing too strenuous, "just enough".

It's funny, well, maybe more strange, that as kids you are 24-7 with your siblings for years on end! Then you 'fly the coop' and see each other occasionally - usually as you 'gather up' at the home residence of your parents on special events or holidays. You seldom get the opportunity to be together in the same way again in your life.

My visit, albeit short, was a bit like 'the old days'. Breakfast with my brother, lunch with my brother, supper with my brother. Watching t.v. together, talking together, having coffee together (something we didn't do growing up!!). Along with the time we spent alone 'catching up' I also was able to share with my sister-in-law special moments in time as well. It was a 'no pressure' few days of rest and relaxation, and a gentle reminder of family and friendship.

Enjoying a cup of java in the early morning sunshine

Time is short. It seemed like 'just yesterday' we were both growing up in our parents' home. As the bible says, "Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes away." James 4:14. I do understand that it is important not to waste your 'short time' on earth but rather be productive and useful...but it was nice to sit and reminisce about our childhood together.

Lots of love being sent and thankfulness for a great time ...

Me and my brother

Friendship

I was at a luncheon this morning with a small group of women which meet as friends every 4-6 weeks or so. This has been going on for about 7+ years. Things happen in each of our lives - good and bad - and we have been there for each other to offer support - both physical, spiritual and emotional - as well as provide encouragement to each other. You would think by now we would have solved the world's problems! Not so, we have enough concerns of our own, in our own little life situations. This visit today proved to be encouragement and divine vision to 'do for others'. Many spoke of their thankfulness of having a group of women  who 'know' them and their situations and who pray for them and encourage them when needed. To have a community of friends is unique. Many of us have friends but there are many who don't. To be friend-less is to be without. Awareness of our unique group became the discussion today of going out into the world to be-friend others and offering an encouragement and prayer support where there currently may be none. It's a challenge...one we all see as an opportunity to be used by God for the good of others.

To add some levity to my comments, I must say that along with the great conversation, we also enjoy way too many goodies which could possibly be the undergirding of our consistency in visits over the years!

Leftovers