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Typewriter Artist

Posted by eph21920 on April 25, 2015 in Faith, Humility

Today I saw a video that has been around for a year already, but this is the first time I have watched it. It is about Paul Smith, a man who has cerebral palsy. He also has an incredible gift – he is a “typewriter artist”. He uses only 10 keys on a typewriter and creates masterpieces on paper. I had to watch the video a couple of times to see if I could figure out how he does it. He makes a few keystrokes, then moves the paper a little and makes a few more. He has replicated artwork such as the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. I thought about how quick we are to judge people as soon as we see them. I know I would never think that these beautiful pieces of art come from this man. He said his faith keeps him going – his faith, and his finger. I encourage you to take a look at the video. I hope it is as inspirational to you as it was to me:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svzPm8lT36o

I Found God today in an inspiring story of a man who taught me a lot about humility and being judgmental just by being who he is and using the gifts he has.

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Good News Friday

Posted by eph21920 on April 24, 2015 in Family, Grateful, Happiness

Today I was inundated with good news from immediate and extended family. There is a potential house purchase that is progressing, much needed job opportunity, successful cancer surgery, recovery from a severe health issue, prom night, my grandson made a long awaited hit in his opening baseball game, and to top it off I found the first bud on the irises in the front garden after they have been struggling for a while. God Is Good.

I Found God today in so much good news in one day, and I am very grateful for days like this.

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God In Me and You

Posted by eph21920 on April 23, 2015 in Connected, Faith, Love

Tonight I was excited to video chat with my prayer group who live so far away. To prepare for this night, we read the scripture John 14:15-21. One of the verses that we talked about quite a bit was verse 20, “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you.” We are all in different places in our faith life, but each of us could identify with this. For me, it has been a gradual understanding that God resides in me – and also each and every person. This is an overwhelming concept that, for me, takes time to digest. But we are not all that different from one another. One of the ladies noted that none of us can “escape” God. He created each person, loves each person, and resides in each person. Mostly, our connection with God is our own turning to Him and acknowledging that fact that He is indeed a part of who we are. We need to let our guard down, let go of our desire to control everything, and embrace the love that is available to us – that actually dwells inside of each one of us. We talked about where our lives were even just a year ago as compared to where we are now. Even though it has not been all full of wonderful events, we could each see how our relationship with God has grown.

I Found God today in the reminder that -as overwhelming as it is – He dwells in me and in each and every person.

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Earth Day, Birthday

Posted by eph21920 on April 22, 2015 in Children, Connected, Dog, Family

My younger grandson LOVES my dog – so much so that one time he said she was his best friend. A few years ago, my grandsons were spending the night at my house on Earth Day. At one point they asked me when my dog’s birthday was. Since no one knows her true birthday, we decided we would celebrate it on Earth Day. We made hats and party games. For dinner, I made spaghetti and meatballs. We took one of the meatballs and put a candle in it. We lit it, sang happy birthday to her, blew out the candle, and gave her the meatball. Needless to say, she was elated. It became a tradition to celebrate like this each year. Today the older grandson texted me, remembering the tradition. Since we live far apart now, we got on video chat and the boys told her happy birthday. They encouraged me to give her a meatball dinner again. Later at dinner, I gave this some thought. We had nothing even resembling a meatball. So, I got some treats and my parents and I sang to her. This is how it went, “Happy Earth Day birthday to you . . . chomp . . . Happy Earth Day birthday to you . . . chomp . . . Happy Earth Day birthday dear Goldie . . . chomp . . . Happy Earth Day birthday to you . . . chomp . . . And many more . . . chomp.” I took a video of it and sent it to them so they will be able to somewhat participate in the celebration.

I Found God today in my grandsons remembering our little tradition and the ability to keep it going in some way even though we are far apart.

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Renewed Dog

Posted by eph21920 on April 21, 2015 in Dog, Grateful, Life

I adopted my dog 11 years ago. She was already 3 years old at the time and had been given up at least twice. She seemed to have the qualities in a dog that we were looking for and would fit into the family, so my son and I brought her home. It took her quite a while to settle in and she did not at all like to be left alone. A few weeks after we got her, she had her first seizure. It was very scary – I thought she was dying right before my eyes. I got on the phone with my vet who talked me through it. Then I brought her in to be evaluated. It was evident that I was going to have to commit to her care for the long term, or be another one in the line of those giving her up. I chose to commit. It took several months and drug tweaking to get her seizures under control. We finally got it to the point that the medication mix seemed to be working well. When I moved a few months ago, she did pretty good for a while, but then she started struggling with shakiness and tremors. I took her to the vet I found here who did what she felt was right, but my dog continued to decline. It got to the point that she would start shaking and twitching and falling often. I made an appointment with the animal neurologist in the city, but he was not available for a few weeks. I had been praying for days that I know what to for her and that she would not be suffering so much. I finally could not stand to watch her suffering anymore and spoke to my vet who recommended that I take her to the emergency vet, which I did.  It so happened that the neurologist was there and came into the room. He spent an hour and a half evaluating her and talking to me. He was truly the most compassionate, patient vet I have ever met and had a great understanding as to what may be going on with her. I opted not to spend thousands of dollars to pinpoint the problem only to put her through surgery or chemo treatments. She is too old and fragile at this time. He recommended adding another medication, which I did. It has been one week now, and I cannot believe the difference it has made in my dog. To me it is nothing short of miraculous. Her tremors have almost completely stopped. She is more awake and alert than she has been in months. She is obviously happier and so am I. I am so grateful that I was able to see this doctor and that this medication is making such an impact. I don’t know how long it will last, and will try not to think about that. I just want to enjoy her renewed lust for life.

I Found God today in an amazing vet and an unbelievable renewal for my failing dog.

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Divine Mercy Wisdom

Posted by eph21920 on April 20, 2015 in Connected, Grace, Jesus, Mercy

The week after Easter is “Divine Mercy Sunday” in the Catholic Church. The purpose is to help people connect with the infinite grace and mercy that is available to us through Jesus Christ. St. Maria Faustina Kowalska was a woman who always felt an incredibly close relationship with Christ. As she grew to a young adult, she tried to discount those feeling and fill herself instead with happiness from things in this world. There came a point when she knew she was making the wrong decisions, literally walked away from that lifestyle and entered a convent. Her relationship with Jesus was so deep that she had conversations with Him in her heart and she saw Him as well. Through this, the picture of the Divine Mercy was painted. The picture shows rays of light coming from the heart of Jesus signifying the mercy He wants to give each of us if only we ask. I have been reading a little bit of her fascinating diary almost each day since Divine Mercy Sunday. Today, there were some words of wisdom from St. Faustina’s spiritual director told her that cut to my heart, “Act in such a way that all those who come in contact with you will go away joyful. Sow happiness about you because you have received much from God; give, then, generously to others.” I think that if I can work on just this one thing every day, I would be a happier person as would people around me.

I Found God today in words of wisdom from St. Faustina’s spiritual director.

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63 Years of Marriage

Posted by eph21920 on April 19, 2015 in Family, Love, Marriage, Trust

Today is my parent’s 63rd wedding anniversary. We started the day by going to church. My dad bought my mom a rose corsage that she proudly wore to publicize the special day. I had called the church office a few days ago to see if my parents could get a special blessing. My mom and dad did not know I had done this. I arrived at church a little earlier than my parents and talked with the priest to get things set. Then, much to my parent’s surprise, the priest came over, congratulated them on 63 years of marriage, and talked with them about how he would like to do the blessing. Before the end of Mass, the priest came to where my parents were seated and read the special blessing as he, the deacon, and everyone there extended hands over them. It was beautiful and I couldn’t stop smiling. We came home for lunch and a little rest. Then my parents were off to the symphony which they hold season tickets for. It was nice that it just happened to land on this day. We had decided earlier that after the concert, we would meet for dinner. What they did not know was that I arranged for my sisters, brother, nephew, and a good friend of theirs to meet us as well. Needless to say, they were pretty surprised. It was great to be able to celebrate my parents’ commitment to one another for 63 years. I know it has not all been fun or easy, but what a blessing to have someone you know you can count on, trust, and love at your side for the long haul. As my mom put it in her card to my dad, “The world is a better place because you are in it.” They have been an inspiration to me, their family, and friends.

I Found God today in celebrating my parents’ life long marriage commitment to one another.

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TWLOHA

Posted by eph21920 on April 18, 2015 in Faith, Healing, Love, Struggles

Today a wonderful young woman I know organized a 5K run for an organization that in her words, “is very important to me.” It is called, “To Write Love On Her Arms”. It started with a story that a young man wrote about his encounter with a young woman who was battling depression, addiction, self-mutilation, and suicide attempts. The young man is part of a short term rehab center, bringing in young people in despair and helping them to find hope, love, and God. The story he wrote of his encounter took on a life of it’s own and started a movement. Young people wanted help, love, and truth and others wanted to help. There was a 5K run scheduled in Florida and others were invited to organize one in their own location. My friend is an incredibly loving, faithful, caring young woman. She put all her energy into the event to make it successful. You can read the whole story and find more about the organization here:   http://twloha.com/learn/story/

I Found God today in the compassion and action of a wonderful young woman.

 

 

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Inspirational Music

Posted by eph21920 on April 17, 2015 in Answer, Family, Grateful, Music

Tonight my mom, dad, and I played a couple rousing games of UNO. We always laugh a lot when we play games together. Then, I started going through my day to decide what to blog about. My mom sat down at her grand piano and played a piece that she and her friend play together. I always find that my whole being relaxes when I listen to her music. After that, she said she would play something inspirational for me. She played – and sang – a couple of songs about trusting God. I realized that out of my whole day, this moment was the one that I felt closest to God. Just listening to her play and sing and thinking about what a huge part music has always been in her life. I thought of all the lives she has touched through this gift since she was young – concerts, weddings, special occasions, many church groups and congregations, music groups she has been involved with, and students she has taught. I thought of the many times I listened to her in so many different settings. And now I am grateful to still listen to her as my own private concert.

I Found God today in appreciating the musicality of my mom.

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Blessings From a Stranger

Posted by eph21920 on April 16, 2015 in Faith, Family, Marriage

The other day, I noticed that the hot water was not staying very hot. I went to check on the hot water heater and, sure enough, it was leaking. The unit was replaced and the inspector was scheduled to come over today to give it the A-OK. I took my dog in my room with me so he would not have to work around her barking. But he had a booming voice and I could hear just about everything that was going on. He and my dad were chatting and my dad told him that he and my mom are getting ready to celebrate their 63rd wedding anniversary. He thought this was a wonderful thing and carried on about it saying things such as, “You don’t find that very much anymore.” “People don’t seem to honor the Sacrament of Marriage as much.” “God honors those who honor that commitment.” And on the way out the door, “Have a blessed day.” I was surprised at his comments as were my parents. I think we did all feel pretty blessed.

I Found God today in the encouraging comments and blessings of a stranger.

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