Judy – Page 3

REMEMBER: ACHIVEMENTS

THEN AND NOW

As a person gets older things that used to be easy and doable takes a determined thought to be accomplished. This struck home for me yesterday when I got down on my knees to clean the bathtub that had stopped up. Getting down was no problem and cleaning ok but when I tried to get up my knees wouldn’t hold me. As I was setting there contemplating on how I was going to get up I thought. Am I going to have to call someone to come help me? How embarrassing, I have never had this problem before. After several tries and different positions I finally was able to pull myself up to a standing position using the tub and the commode. My knees just wouldn’t hold me as I tried to stand up.

Then I was changing the sheets on my bed and realized that just getting the blankets and spread off caused my shoulders to be painful. I thought I used to do this for the entire family now I dread just doing my own. Over the years I have injured both my shoulders to the point that simple tasks can be a challenge. We learn to compensate for our short fallings. But that is ok as long as we don’t give up on ourselves and continue to enjoy life as much as we can.

I have learned from experience to ask for help and just quit doing some things I used to do without thinking, like getting on a latter to clean tall windows or change a lightbalb. Now I ask those younger than me to do the things I am unsafe doing on my own.

But we can’t let those things get us down or cause us to back away from life. We still need to get out there, enjoy doing what we can do. You will find that being around those younger than you can cheer you up when you are down. It will keep you from getting depressed with your life as it is now. Life is shot and you need to make the most of what you have.

You are never too old to be a viable part of this world; the Lord has a job for you to do while you are still here. Always be open to the opportunitys God puts before you. Don’t look to your own understanding, He will provide the strength, the ability, the knowledge, even the finances to accomplish His bidding. Our job is to be willing and obedient. Life is not over until it is over, I intend to live everyday to the best of my ability.

Just say yes to our lord

REMEMBER: BUMPS IN THE ROAD

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EVENTS

The past month has been filled with planned and unplanned events and interruptions. Along with school ending and my new job starting we had an internment service and a wedding with people coming from different states and towns. It was a lot of work but having everyone in the same place at the same time was a big load off time wise. It turned out to be a beautiful day the predicted rain held off and the sun came out. The outdoor wedding was beautiful; got some perfect pictures and a great time was had by all.

The family gathered to intern my daughter’s remains in the family cemetery. It was a private affair with just the family; the children played and helped with the service. My daughter would have been very happy. The little ones were her life. She loved to watch them play. It was rough, she was too young to go but we know she is not in pain anymore and we can remember the good times we had together. I miss her weekly phone calls.”Just checking in” she would say. Then she would tell me the latest about the kids and grandkids. We didn’t talk much about her situation she only wanted to talk about the good things in her life.

INTERRUPTIONS

I found out that hotel parking lots can be a problem especially if you are tired. I backed into a Jeep as I was pulling out of the space I was in. It was in my car’s blind spot and I rolled into it. No damage to the jeep but crushed the lens of my tail light. The jeep owner was very amiable and said not to worry about it there was no damage. I on the other hand had to replace the taillight as you couldn’t just replace the lens.

Had a doctor’s appointment in a different city and afterwards was directed to an exit that put me in a different parking lot; spent unneeded time looking for my car that was on the opposite side of the building. Had to go back to the office and get to the right exit in order to find my car. Very frustrating when you are on a tight schedule.

Then this week I tripped walking into a dark room and got my first ever black eye. Senior life is not for the faint of heart, I can’t do things as I used to, I am finding out the hard way that it is time to slow down. Epically if I want to stay accident free. I had to rearrange my whole week to accommodate clumsiness. I hope I have learned my lesson and next week will be better.

We never stop learning and growing in this life; getting older is part of that process. We have to pick ourselves up and get back on the right track. That sometimes involves slowing down and giving your body time to heal. I am finding that it is ok to spend the afternoon in the recliner chair, talking to my Lord, reading a book or watching something on the television.

He is always there waiting for you to visit with Him.

REMEMBER:DOWN TIME

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Taking a break

We all need one. Where do you take yours? Myself I like to get away from people, towns, cars, and noise. Which means it doesn’t happen very often, but last week I got a chance to do just that. I was on a job out of town and where I was staying with two friends was deep in the woods. Before and after the work day we got to enjoy the peace and quite of deep woods living. We sat on the porch of a beautiful rustic cabin and gave into the charms of trees, birds, and local wildlife while basking in the idea of just not doing anything but loving nature. Even a cup of morning coffee was like partaking of an exotic gourmet blend.

We rocked in old fashioned rocking chairs and listened to a babbling brook close by. The birds came right up the porch looking for handouts and squirrels set in the trees wondering who we were. Devotions to God were so easy it was like He sat there with us enjoying his creation. We had some rain in the night time that lulled us to sleep with the pattering of drops on the roof. It reminded me of a poam I heard when I was a child by, William L Stidger:

I SAW GOD WASH THE WORLD

I saw God wash the world last night

With His sweet shower on high;

And then when morning came

I saw Him hang it out to dry.

He washed each tiny blade of grass,

And every trembling tree;

He flung His showers against the hills

And swept the billowy seas.

The white rose is a little cleaner white;

The red rose is more red

Since God washed every fregrant face

And put them all to bed.

There’s not a bird, there’s not a bee,

That wings along the way,

But is a cleaner bird and bee

Than it was yesterday.

After a long day working it was a great place to relax kick your shoes off and put your tired feet up. We sometimes had to force ourselves to go inside and go to bed, the night was so inviting, and we didn’t want to leave. The night sounds and creatures were a beautiful encore to the day. If you are a nature lover like me there is no better place to be. I didn’t want the week and the job to end; our accommodations’ were so delightful.

If you get a chance to get away to a favorite place to unwind and enjoy something different; take it, you will never regret the time spent on you. You need it and deserve it. We all need to unwind, and unplug sometime, even if it is before and after a day on the job. Find your favorite place and connect with your inner self.

KNOW THAT YOU ARE LOVED

REMEMBER WHEN:

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MY GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT

Beside Still Waters Gallery and Classroom

Besides my relationship with my Lord and being a mother, I think opening an art gallery and painting classroom, to be my most satisfying accomplishment. It had been a dream of mine since High School where I discovered Art and that I was good at it. But as often happens life gets in the way and dreams are put on hold. I had always kept painting as a hobby and personal pastime but never thought to do much with it.

After moving back to the Midwest from Washington State I started looking at Art as a business in earnest. I had owned and operated a convalescing care center and decorated it with my paintings in nearly every room. The person who bought the business wanted me to leave all the art work in the building and compisatated me for it. That sparked my interest in the possibility that I could sell what I painted and teach others to do the same.

My dream had been setting on the shelf patiently waiting for it’s time to arise. I joined a painting club and started showing my art work. I was asked to teach some classes for the other members of the club which led to my teaching classes for others in the community. When a building came available I made an arrangement with the owner for reduced rent if I did all the remodeling and updating myself. And Beside Still Waters Art Gallery and Classroom was born.

I took on the challenge of turning a warehouse space into a working Art Gallery and classroom. It was located in a small lakeside town in south central Missouri where many local artisans reside.

Even though it was my business it soon became a community affair. By inviting other artists to display their work and give classes I was able to pay the rent and remodel the building. Besides displaying my art work and that of several other artists we held bazaars and swap meets in the parking lot. It became a weekend meeting place for locals and tourists alike. I had a table made from a 20 gallon milk can that sat on the sidewalk with 4 antique wood and metal folding chairs, I had painted a farm scene on the can and it sat on casters so it could be rolled inside at the end of the day. People would stop and set awhile to talk or just watch the peaceful lake.

In early summer you could see the Eagles that had a nest across the lake teaching their young to fly; or the river otters playing along the shore. Early spring brought white Pelican on their way south, watching them fly in a line one following the one in front like the game follow the leader. They would fly up and down the lake then land all in one small area flapping their wing to stir up the waters; the fish would jump and Pelicans would surround them and start catching the fish as they jumped. This would go on until all in the circle had eaten. They didn’t come every year but when they did the word spread and it became a local attraction.

I taught classes for all age groups. Saturday mornings were kid’s classes but I had a rule that an adult needed to be in attendance. I had several grandmothers bring children and joined the classes. We had a great time and some of the kids went on to take Art in school and win awards. Many of the adults came back to take classes on their own. The local wood carving association gave classes and did shows. The local ceramic shop gave pottery classes and displayed student pieces. I also gave sewing lessons and a friend taught jewelry making. It was a community endeavor.

But as sometimes happens we got blindsided by life. The building owner came in one day and said he had sold the building. I had been given first chance at purchasing but he said when someone comes in and lays down three times your asking price, in cash, it is hard to pass up.

There was no way I could beat that and I was given 30 days to vacate the premises. With the sudden loss of income and no place to teach my dream came to a crashing halt.

Art will always be part of my life. I still do commissions and have fond memories of Beside Still Waters.

LIFE GOES ON

REMEMBER: PURPOSE

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WHAT IS YOURS?

I saw this saying on a plaque the other day. (Just think your’re here not by chance, but by God’s choosing to fulfill His special purpose for this generation.)Wow I thought to myself whoever wrote that had some incite. But as I set here thinking about it; I wonder what is God’s purpose for this generation. I hear people talking about the younger generation and how they have things wrong and I wonder why. They were raised by someone; they didn’t just spring up one day with a big chip on their shoulder. Most of them are just trying to figure out their place in the scheme of things. What about your generation? Have you figured out God’s purpose for you?

I am of the generation that was tagged: the Baby Boomers. We were the result of families coming back together after World War II, or new families just getting started for the same reason. The world was trying to find its way back to peace and prosperity. Men and women were regaining their place in society. They had spent years fighting to keep our country free. They had to do things they would not have ever thought of doing at home. Some had even had to take the lives of others in one way or another. The circumstances of war cause people to make decisions that in peace time would never enter their minds.

Women around the world were put into positions of being the sole breadwinner of the family, to take up the slack as it was said. They had to go to work outside the home in factories and all the kinds of jobs men normally did. My own mother worked in a factory building bombs. Many lost their men to the war and were left to raise the children alone. For many who had worked years in the jobs men had done were expected to just quit and go back to being housewives. This caused strife in some households, I was fortunate that my parents worked together in whatever they set out to do. We were loved and cared for equally by both.

It is still true today, wars have come and gone; Korea, Viet Nam, The gulf war, Afghanistan, to name a few. Men and women hear the call to go and do what is needed to keep us free. Others stay here and keep the home fires burning. Some got lost along the way, some stayed on the path, but God choose each of us to be here at this time and place to fulfill His purpose in this time and place.

We have no right to complain about the way the world is going. If young people today aren’t living the way you think they should. Think; did you have a hand in how they are living? Did you do your part in keeping them safe, loved and on the right path? If we are honest with ourselves most of the blame is on our part.

But it is not too late. There is another saying I have heard (If you’re not dead, He’s not done.) I don’t know who to give the credit to for that one either but it is so true. It is never too late to turn your life around; to find out why you were chosen for this generation. If you are parents either together or single, what kind of adults are you raising? Are you building strong young leaders of tomorrow; no matter what they choose to be? Show them good examples of character, stamina, and determination. And above all pray for them, that they realize that they were chosen for a purpose to live in this time and place. And if they are your children’s children your job is not done, you need to pray double hard. Greatness can rise up out of any circumstance. Find His purpose for your life, and walk in love no matter what.

Love your family and those around you, keep the faith, God is with you.

REMEMBER WHEN:

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SPRING IS COMING

THE RAINY SEASON

It is the end of March and the rainy season has begun. I know April showers bring May flowers, but here in the hills and valleys of Southern Missouri, the rains start in the last part of March. It has been raining for 3 days and the low-water crossings are flooding. The creeks are getting close to overflowing and sometimes you have to find a different route to get to your destination. A favorite saying around here is “Turn around don’t drown” you hear it on every weather forecast and news programs. We have had many tragedies around here when people, mostly tourists, didn’t heed the warning and lost their lives. We are a vacation destination and people from all over come here to enjoy our many lakes and streams.

Those of us who live and work here aren’t that thrilled with the constant wet and dripping landscape. But we take solace in knowing the wet will soon bring on the warmth and planting season. We are big gardeners around here, we look forward to the garden stores overflowing with colorful plants and flower starts. To a lot of us, a walk through the garden center is like an afternoon stroll in the park. The spring home show at the convention center is one of the most significant events of the year. The festival at the heirloom seed farm is a 3-day event and draws thousands of people.

This entertainment town is filled with theaters and amusement venues. We have world-renowned names in the music industry as well as local groups’ content to have the audience come to them. The waterways and country landscape, their own draw those looking to get away from the city. With all the entertainment and hospitality venues here we are a great place for employment. All though seasonal jobs are not a big draw to a lot of people we still have the opportunities. It is a great place for young people just getting started in the workplace or those in between college semesters.

This didn’t start out to be an advertisement for the place I live. But the beautiful foothills of Southern Missouri don’t need a build-up; just coming here once is enough. It is called God’s country for a reason; you don’t have to go very far out your front door to see His handy work. Even living in an apartment complex; all that I have to do is sit on my patio and see some of the most beautiful sunsets and sunrises.

We are told in the creation story that after the sixth day God looked over all that He had made and he saw that it was very good! And evening passed and morning came. (Genesis 1:31 New Living Translation)

TAKE PLEASURE IN HIS HANDIWORK WHEREVER YOU LIVE IN HIS COUNTRY