Leave a comment

Singing Hymns

Posted by eph21920 on June 25, 2017 in Faith, Family, Music

My mom and I went to church this morning and sat in our “usual spot”. Typically my mom sits on the end so it is easy for the Eucharistic Ministers who deliver communion to those who have a difficult time going down the main aisle. Next to my mom would be my dad, then me and/or whoever else comes with us. Since my dad is still out of town, I sat next to my mom. Her voice gets very quiet now due to the Parkinson’s Disease. But today when the entrance hymn began, I was pleasantly surprised to hear my mom singing. Her voice was strong and on pitch. I thought about how sometimes when I was a child, I would get embarrassed by her powerful operatic voice. People would always turn and look when she sang in church. Today I thought it was one of the most beautiful things I had heard.

I Found God today hearing my mom sing.

Permalink
Leave a comment

LaLa Land

Posted by eph21920 on June 24, 2017 in Connected, Family, Fun, Home, Movie, Music

My dad and brother went up to the cabin for a few days, so my mom and I have stuck around home. Today my son came over to just hang out for the day. We all went out for pizza for lunch. Then we played a couple of games of Yahtzee – one of our favorites. After dinner we wanted to watch a movie. I knew it would be challenging to find something that all of us would enjoy. But it didn’t take long for us to come across LaLa Land. None of us had seen it yet. I had heard good things about it and being a musical, I thought my mom might like it. The movie had a nice feel like those of olden days. The story was light and not too complicated and there was plenty of music and dancing. It was great to find a movie that spanned and entertained the 3 generations. Before going to bed, my mom commented on what a nice day she had.

I found God today enjoying a “hang out” day with both my son and my mom.

 

 

 

 

 

Permalink
Leave a comment

Listened to Her Heart

Posted by eph21920 on June 23, 2017 in Connected, Death, Healing, Life

Tonight my mom and I watched a story on the news about a father who lost his 20 year old daughter in a tragic accident. Her organs were donated and were able to save 4 lives. The father started a bike trek across the country to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation. On the way, he was able to meet the young man who received his daughter’s heart. He actually listened to it through a stethoscope. One thing that he said stayed with me, “It’s about not being selfish and burying things that could help people live or live better lives,” Conner said. “If you want a legacy — what better legacy could you have than to help people live?” It was a very moving story and my mom and I were in tears by the end. You can find the whole story here.

I Found God today in a beautiful story of saved lives through tragedy.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Baby Birds

Posted by eph21920 on June 22, 2017 in Baby, Creation, Life, Miracle, New

I went out for a walk early this morning and when I came back to the front door, a bird flew out of the nest as they always do. I realized it had been a couple of days since I had my selfie stick out to take a peek at the progress of the eggs. So, while the adults were already out of the nest, I quickly got the stick, attached the phone, turned on the video, and held it high above the nest, moving it around a little to be sure to get a good view. Once I was done, I went in the house so as not to disturb the birds any longer. I reviewed the video and saw that there were 4 little pink bodies with a smattering of white down here and there. It was exciting to see them moving around a little bit. I showed the video to my parents and brother and were all thrilled to see a small natural wonder of new life right outside our door.

I Found God today in the excitement of witnessing new life.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Thesis Dedication

Posted by eph21920 on June 21, 2017 in Connected, Family, Joy, Knowledge, Relationship

My son dropped by this morning and delivered a copy of his Masters Thesis to my dad. As my dad looked through the first few pages, he came across the dedication. My son dedicated his work to my dad because of his support and for being the person who got him interested in science at a very young age. Even though we lived far apart for most of my son’s life, my dad obviously still had a huge influence on him. Ironically – or maybe not – my dad wrote a couple of college space textbooks and dedicated them to his grandchildren. The dedication now back to my dad was very meaningful to him and he was teary eyed as he read the page.

I Found God today as my son acknowledged my dad’s positive influence on him.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Help To Move

Posted by eph21920 on June 20, 2017 in Answer, Family, Grateful, Problem, Relationship

It is said that you know you have a really good friend when you call them at the last minute to help you move and they show up immediately. Well, my sister is in the process of moving and is 2 days from the close of selling her current place. She lives about 1 1/2 hours from me, so it is not easy to just buzz over and help her. People have been giving her a hand and she had movers come over yesterday to move what was left. I planned on spending the day there today to help her clean and do any finishing touches. When I arrived, I saw that there was still a lot of stuff in the house. And it seemed that every door we opened held more. We got most of it packed up and looked at the huge pile in the middle of the living room. Then I thought of my son. He had not started his job and perhaps he wasn’t busy. So, I gave him a call and explained the situation. He came as soon as he could. We were able to load up his SUV as well and with his heavy lifting ability, bringing everything up to the 3rd floor of the new apartment was made so much easier. My sister and I were so grateful. He is not only a relative, but someone we can count on when in need. That means so much.

I Found God today in a reliable son.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Superfoods

Posted by eph21920 on June 19, 2017 in Creation, Family, Food, Grateful

Today my parents, my brother, and I got to talking about the “superfoods” – those touted to have exceptional nutritional value. Included in the list are avocados, quinoa, coconut  oil, blueberries, chia, almonds, and salmon. I thought about this and realized that many of these foods originate in different parts of the world. I wondered if God made it that way to encourage us (people) to work together and share our food with one another. Although, I have heard that if we (the world) actually did this, no one would ever go hungry. My brother had a different thought. He said perhaps God made it that way so that people in different places would have at least one super healthy food to rely on. That could be. In any case, there certainly is a plethora of different kinds of food that we here in the United States have access to. I am grateful for this, especially in caring for my parents, but it has also made me more aware of those who do not have the same luxury as I do. I remember a conversation about nutrition in one of the Parkinson’s support groups. A gentleman said he was in an assisted living facility and was basically at the mercy of those who prepared the meals. I am not sure if there is any action I can take to help the situation. Perhaps I can be more mindful and grateful for our provisions at this time. At the very least, we can share what we have with local food banks and other food drives.

I Found God today in the array of foods He has created and provided.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Back to the Farm

Posted by eph21920 on June 18, 2017 in Creation, Family, Food

Last year around Easter time, my parents and I made a trip to my sister’s farm to see the new baby chicks they had received. Since then, we have been wanting to get back up there and see the progress, but it hasn’t worked out. Today seemed like the perfect opportunity. We went to church early this morning, then my son, brother, parents and I all headed to the farm. My other sister met us there for lunch and a Father’s Day celebration. We ate and celebrated my dad, and ate some more. We loaded up my dad with a bag full of goodies. My other brother called in, so it was nice to have everyone present. Then we went down to the chicken coop. My parents have seen the chickens on video, but now they were able to see in real life how big they are and the colors of the different breeds. My sister threw them some snacks and it was fun to watch a little commotion. Then we got a tour of the garden. They expanded it to now 3 times as big as it was last year. A lot of the plants were starting to grow and the plot looked great. We will anxiously await the first harvest. My mom said that even though she saw everything in real life now, it was still hard for her to believe the farm life that my sister and her husband chose – especially all the work they do while having full time jobs besides. I agreed. All in all, it was a great day and hopefully we will be able to visit again a little sooner.

I Found God today being able to take my parents back to my sister’s farm.

Permalink
Leave a comment

An Old Recipe

Posted by eph21920 on June 17, 2017 in Connected, Family, Food, Past

As I was searching for recipes today, my mother’s old tin recipe box fell out of the cupboard and onto the floor. Luckily, there were only a few of the handwritten recipe cards and notes that fell out. I opened the box to see if I could figure out where they belonged, but after looking at the organized files, I decided it best to let my mom do it. I told her what had happened and showed her the loose note cards. Of course, she knew exactly where they went and started going through some of the other recipes that she said she hadn’t made in years. I encouraged her to pull some out and that we could prepare them together. Then she found a letter that her mother had written to her. She couldn’t understand why it was in there. She read the letter out loud and while there was no date on it, my mother figured it was written about 1955. It took some effort to decipher the German cursive handwriting. My grandmother encouraged my mom in her job and music. At the end of the letter, she wrote down her recipe for beer soup. Evidently my mother had asked for it during a visit. That is why it was in the recipe box. My mom was excited to share the recipe with my brother who is a beer connoisseur of sorts. He was excited to receive it. The letter brought back many joyful memories and food for thought.

I Found God today in a surprise old letter from my grandmother.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Walk Before Heat

Posted by eph21920 on June 16, 2017 in Family, Grateful, Healing

It was another hot day today, so my mom and I went for a walk around the housing complex before noon. We came upon one of my mom’s friends, so we stopped to chat for a while. It was trash day and as we continued, the trash truck came around the corner. We figured out which side of the street he was wanting to be on, and my mom swiftly navigated a speed bump and moved along out of the way. We walked one loop that my mom hasn’t been able to do in a very long time. Now, she just does it like it’s nothing. We were very glad we went out before the afternoon heat set in.

I Found God today taking a nice walk with my mom.

Permalink