My Life's Mate

Today, I am spending all my time with my precious husband. He was admitted to the hospital about 36 hours ago for observation during a medication change for his heart rhythm. We have laid together in his twin-sized hospital bed, sat in chairs, walked around and around and around and around and around the small unit several times, visited with our children and grandchildren, and eaten meals together. We have talked to one another and prayed together.

Our world has slowed down for a short time. I listen to and watch my life's mate today and am reminded of why I love him so much. He's a man of God, he's trustworthy, he has strong integrity, he loves his children and grandchildren with all his heart, and he loves and takes care of me. I am so blessed to be married to this special fellow! I will say a special thanks to the Maker of our souls tonight for his wisdom in bringing a young man from Colorado to Indiana to share his life with me.

Lord, thank you for bringing this man to me and for giving us a life together. Place your healing hand on his heart and make it beat in a healthy way. I love him so.

Time To Return!

It's been four months since my last blog. Not good! Even though it's been a L O N G time, since my last write, I've been meditating a lot about the whole idea of integrity. I've found that there's a LOT I can sermonize about it, but that's not what it's all about...for me. It's about this.

Do I live every moment of every day in Truth? Am I honest with myself about my actions and reactions, about the words I say and the words I edit, about my motives, about my emotional self? Sounds like an awful lot of introspection, doesn't it!

To be a person of strong integrity, I must be introspective, but even more than that, I must spend time meditating on the Word of God, on the messages I receive from my pastors on Sunday mornings, on the conversations I have with my family, friends, and acquaintances, and in simple quietness. I must remember to take time to "Be still, and know that I am God."

I'm so glad that He's still workin' on me. I'm not done yet! Shhhhh!

Growing Christians-Introduction

Over the past couple of months, our pastor has been preaching a series of sermons about the growing Christian. The messages have been interesting...insightful...inspiring....and yes, convicting. I appreciate very much the work our pastor is doing on our my behalf.
Sunday before last, our pastor provided five areas in our lives that we need to inspect to see if we are continuing to grow spiritually. He mentioned at the end of his message that we, as a congregation and personally, need to take a look at least one of these areas and ask the Lord to take control of it and make us more like Him.
I had some trouble isolating to just one area. After meditating about this, I have decided that I need to grow in every area suggested. I would like to take some time to share with my readers how I have arrived at this belief.
The scripture used for this series of thoughts is Ephesians 4:25-32:
Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your moths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. An d do not grieve the Holy spirit of god, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling, and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind an compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
The first area I will be discussing is Personal Integrity. Tune in to my next blog and read what I am thinking. I'd love to see your comments after you have read it.

Megan Dee-Our Beauty Girl

I've been looking forward to today for a few weeks now. This is the day our children, Ken and Lori, and granddaughter, Monica and Dave and I drove down to Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis to attend a memorial service for our Beauty Girl and first grandchild, Megan Dee.

It was a beautiful service. The harpist did a beautiful job playing the prelude softly and then again as the names of all the children who had passed on into heaven from July through December, 2009 were read. The attending chaplains provided us with comforting words, scripture references, and quotes from those who have written about profound loss. There was even a time for all the siblings to come forward and hear a story, For Everything There Is A Time, taken from the book of Ecclesiastes in the Holy Bible.

As we sat in the auditorium with other parents, grandparents, siblings, and family members, I was once again keenly reminded that we on earth do not suffer trials that are uncommon to man. As difficult as our loss has been, there were parents participating in the service tonight that lost not only one child, but in some cases twin children. Some of these parents were very young while others were older. There were white families, black families, and Hispanic families in attendance grieving the loss of their children. The one thing everyone had in common was the profound loss of a child in their family's recent past.

Jesus knew before Megan was ever conceived that He would have a special purpose for her life and that she would complete her work here on earth one week to the day before her tenth birthday. He knew how much her mommy, daddy, sister, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousin loved her and would miss her. He also knew that as much as we love her and miss her...as big a hole as there is in each of our hearts...we would still choose to have her here for a little while rather than not at all.

Loving Megan has made each of us better people. We understand the frailty of life, that it passes so quickly right in front of our eyes. We understand the feeling of grief...the hole in the pit of our stomachs...the sadness that suddenly comes over us for no apparent reason...the tears that well up in our eyes when they are least expected. We also understand the blessing God gave us when He gave us Megan...her beautiful smile, her interest in people, not "toys or things," her ability to just melt into our bodies when we held her or laid beside her.

Having Megan in our family just may be the most wonderful earthly blessing of our lives. We will hold her memory close to our hearts and will thank our Heavenly Father for her life with our every breath.

ISTEP

Tomorrow, I will administer the Indiana State-Wide Testing for Educational Progress (otherwise known as ISTEP+ to Hoosiers) to eighth graders . We have told them to get a good night's sleep, eat a good protein-filled breakfast, drink plenty of water, and give their best effort on the test. Still, as an educator, I must ask, "Is this all I can do this week?"

There is no doubt that I have been teaching the appropriate concepts every day this year. I have worked with students individually and in small groups. I have taught, encouraged, haggled, retaught, quizzed, reviewed, tested, and scaffolded new learning by providing concepts step-by-step providing a strong foundation for new learning as we progressed through the school year. I have done my work. So...why do I feel like I need to do even more this week?

The reason I perceive for this happening...accountability. My work with my students is being scrutinized and evaluated by the scores they receive on their ISTEP tests. This makes me just a little nervous. I just have to remember that true "education" is what is left after all the "learning" has been left behind. I sure hope that my students' true "education" come to the front of their big brains during test time!

Excellence is exemplified when one expects more of him/herself than others do.

Today is the Sabbath...

• Dave and I made coffee, hot tea, and hot chocolate early this morning for our church congregation...
• We went to Christian Education class and discussed Jewish people who were martyred for their faith - from the book in the Apochropha, II Maccabees...
• I stood in for a gal who was on vacation at our church's Connection Center and got to meet a family new to our church this morning...
• Worshiped with my husband, children, and grandchildren.

After church...

• We picked up a quick sandwich with the two of our daughters and their families...
• Watched our eight year old granddaughter, Runt Runt (as Granny called her), play soccer in her tournament...
• Came home with our youngest daughter and her family and played with our 15 month old granddaughter (dollies...rock,rock,rock on the rocking horse, toy basket "stuff," and ate teddy bear crackers and coooookies...
• Picked up pictures of the two above-mentioned little ladies at Sears...
• Dropped by our middle daughters' home to show and give her pictures...
  
• Brought Runt Runt back with us for a couple of hours, and...
  
• Made a ham/broccoli and cheese/pasta casserole for this week's lunches.
  

Now...

• They've all gone home...
• Our cat, Charlie, is laying on the bed with me...
• My husband is laying quietly beside me...
• And he just said, "Well, we got it ALL done today, didn't we?!
  
• "Yes," I said, and we begin a new week!

Happy Birthday, Daddy. You would have been 81 years old today.
I will always love you!

Today is Friday!

Today is Friday...

• the final day of the working week
• tutoring my 8 year old granddaughter
  
• eating at a local restaurant with my family
• visiting Toys R Us with my my granddaughters

Tonight is Friday night...

• laying on our bed with my cat, Charlie and my husband, Dave
• "playing computer" with our laptops
• watching TV...or at least...the TV is on...who's paying any attention?
• relaxing...making quiet conversation
• resting....God is good!
  

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think on these things." Philippians 4:8

I Get It!

Today, I met my husband for a very brief, 30 minute lunch at Fazoli's. I was hungry for the baked spaghetti and needed just a few minutes away from my classroom at school. I thoroughly enjoyed the good conversation...and at times...the quiet of the moment. I felt renewed and ready to return for the afternoon.

On the way out the door, we came upon an elderly couple. The "Mr." I will call him, had evidently had a stroke and was just learning to shuffle across the floor. He was smiling, very proud of his efforts, while his wife whom I will call "Mrs." appeared to be a bit put out by his slow motion. After thinking through this very quick situation, I now think she was just embarrassed and wanted us to know that she realized they were pretty slow. "Mrs." glanced at us with this disconcerting look and commented, "Don't ever grow old!" To that, my gem of a honey smiled and immediately stated, "I think it's a little too late for that! Anyway, it sure beats the alternative!" "Mrs." smiled and mumbled something to the effect of I guess so! We left with Mr. and Mrs. smiling and me realizing something very profound.

I GET IT! I have a clear understanding that many elderly people deal with a diminished feeling of self-worth, of becoming "in the way," of not "fitting into this strange world." I understand this because of my experiences this past three years. My mother lived very close to me...and for the last year of her life, with me in my home. I loved her, cooked for her, took her to doctor appointments, dentist appointments, eye appointments, physical therapy appointments, Joann's Fabrics to purchase beautiful silk flowers for our family members' graves, and for short rides in the car. I was so diligent in trying to meet her every physical need, but I failed to help her hang onto this world. Her desire was to meet in heaven with Daddy, her seven brothers and sisters, and her two best friends. She just couldn't hang on for us.

I am so glad that as Dave and I left Fazoli's, Mr. still had a gleam in his eye and Mrs. felt accepted by us even though she was aware they "slowed us down." I'll pray for God's grace and peace to overwhelm them in these days.

What Have I Done?

Today...

• I decided to take the plunge.
• I put feet to my goal-making.
• I have created my first blog site.
• Now, on to my first blog content!

Today...

• I pulled my head out of the sand.
• I made a decision.
• I will have something to say!

Tomorrow...

• I will wake up and wonder...What have I done?
• I will calm down.
• I will smile...and
• Call my daughter...What do I do now?
  

I invite you to journey with me as I proceed through my years as a "beginner" in the "senior" years. (I'm really not that old, am I?) Sadly, I'm afraid so. I can even order from the cheap senior menu at some restaurants.

Pam