Tonight 2 of my grandchildren are spending the night as their parents enjoy some time away. It is a busy blessed day. I’ll elaborate tomorrow.
I Found God today in my grandchildren.
Re-Reading
I was just perusing my previous blogs this evening. When I started writing, I simply wanted to shed a little light on the love and goodness that God offers every day. What I have received is so much more. I have managed to capture a somewhat decent record of my and my family’s live events. Writing every evening and reflecting on my day has been therapeutic for my mind and soul. It has helped me continue and even grow deeper into my relationship with God. And, as I read through many previous entries tonight, I am able to remind myself how good God is to me. That is so absolutely necessary as I seem to have a memory problem and am too quick to focus on the difficulties. I am glad I responded to God’s promptings to start writing so many years ago. I would encourage you to listen and move when you feel God leading you in a certain direction. If it is from Him, you will be blessed in abundance.
I Found God today re-reading about how good He is to me.
More Crazy Wildlife
In the dining room, there is a large window that faces the yard with the large pine tree that holds the hawk’s nest. The grassy area has a rod iron fence around it with a sidewalk and street on the other side. We like looking out at the squirrels, birds, bunnies, and people walking their dogs. This evening while we were having dinner, something outside caught my attention. I looked and there was a deer walking along the sidewalk. That was very unexpected. My mom and I laughed at how it has been quite a summer for wildlife around the house already. Most of it is wildly entertaining.
I Found God today seeing more wildlife.
Fine Father’s Day
I knew today would be tough without my dad here. So I tried to keep my mind on good things. I thought of many wonderful men that I have been blessed to have in my life and sent them a note. They have inspired me, kept me on the right track, and been someone for my son’s to look up to. I looked at photos of my dad and just let the memories and emotions come as I remembered good times and tough times. In the afternoon, my mom and I put some flowers on my dad’s grave. There were a lot of people there honoring their dad’s. In the end, it wasn’t an easy day, but it was fine.
I Found God today being grateful for my dad and other wonderful fathers.
Dove Wisdom
My mom and I made a trip to the cabin today. It was bittersweet. The last time we were there was a year and a half ago with my dad. Unfortunately, at that time, he had no recollection of the house he had lovingly built with family and friends 40 years ago and quickly became overwhelmed. While we were there today with my brother, we poked around looking at things and my mom grabbed a couple of things to bring back home. We talked about my dad and remembered the great times up there and the difficult ones. When we got home, I had a Dove chocolate. I always love reading the little words of wisdom written on the wrappers. This one said, “Keep life moving forward, looking backward is only for time travellers.” I thought it was fitting and seems to be a reoccurring message for me. I appreciated that. The only thing I would add is to cherish the memories.
I Found God today in a reminder to keep moving forward.
Saving Baby Bunny
Early this morning I heard a lot of commotion in the basement. I looked in the window well and saw a tiny baby bunny who was trying to get out. It would try to jump straight up, but only made it a few inches. It tried jumping onto the window screen and climbing up, but that didn’t work too well either. Luckily, my brother was here. I showed him the situation when he returned from walking his dog. Of course, his dog was very interested and willing to help. But, we thought it no best to put her in the bedroom. We got a big towel and opened the window. We tried to create a barrier with the screen and herd the little one into the towel. In a few seconds, it was on the floor inside the house. Luckily, it cornered itself immediately and became so frightened it couldn’t move. My brother was able to pick it up and put it into the towel. He wrapped it up and brought it outside. He opened up the towel near a big bush away from the window. After a couple moments of being in a frozen state, the baby bunny scurried away. We were happy the rescue was a success.
I Found God today rescuing a baby bunny.
Roses
Today at my grief support group, I told a story of how my dad found an offshoot from the rosebush that had sprouted near the sidewalk. That was not a good place for it to be, so he pulled it up and we replanted it in a bare spot. It was no more than a stick. I was sceptical to say the least, but followed his lead. Sure enough, the stick took and grew. This year it’s almost as big as the original that it came from. It just so happened that at the end of the session, we had a closing activity that included roses. I even brought 2 of them home. I am grateful for the consolations that I have been receiving from this group. They make me smile and realize that I am in the right place.
I Found God today in roses.
Andy Griffith Wisdom
The other day, I was talking with my son about the difficulty of raising children. There are so many “things” pulling them in different directions, all having allure and temptation. A friend shared this description of an Andy Griffith episode and it spoke to my heart:
When a hobo told Andy he should just let Opie “decide for himself” how he wanted to live… Andy had these words of wisdom.
“No, I’m afraid it don’t work that way. You can’t let a young’n decide for himself. He’ll grab at the first flashy thing with shiny ribbons on it. Then, when he finds out there’s a hook in it, it’s too late. Wrong ideas come packaged with so much glitter that it’s hard to convince ‘em that other things might be better in the long run. All a parent can do is say ‘wait’ and ‘trust me’ and try to keep temptation away.”
I Found God in loving and truthful parenting advice.
God’s Care
I had a great time at dinner with friends tonight. I told them the story of lunch with my mom and friends yesterday and wondered how long our group would be able to continue our monthly get togethers. This got us talking about our future and what we were planning on doing. I said I don’t plan because my life doesn’t go according to my plan. I take one day at a time. I recounted some of the times God has taken care of me. I have learned that if I’m doing my best to be in God’s will, He will care for me. So, I try not to worry about the future. As I drove home, I contemplated upon the times I could think of when God took care of things much better than my plans with my narrow thinking. I am so grateful for my relationship with Him.
I Found God today contemplating His Loving Care.
Friends Still Lunching
Today my mom and I met some of her long time friends for lunch. One of the ladies picked up another who just turned 91 years old. She was struggling a bit to recognize her friends and remember where she met them. She is very sweet and has a very quiet voice. One of the other ladies was having a hard time hearing, which was unusual for her. Everyone really enjoyed their time together, but as I looked at the group from the outside, it was somewhat comical. The oldest woman of the group spoke very softly and was wondering how she met everyone. I interpreted to my mother who has difficulty hearing, and the other woman interpreted to the other friend who was suddenly having a hard time today. As we helped them to hear what each other was saying, we were trying not to be too loud so as to disturb those around us. I was really happy that the ladies were still able to get together and enjoy each other’s company.
I Found God today in enjoyment of long term friends.
