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New Floors

Posted by eph21920 on September 12, 2024 in Answer, Grateful, Home, Job, Past, Problem

Several months ago, the toilet overflowed in my mom’s bathroom. It was a mess. Even more so as the whole master bathroom area was carpeted. The restoration company came and ripped out a big swath of the carpet, cleaned out the water, sanitized the space, cut a hole out of the ceiling below, and set their giant fans in for a couple days to dry everything. The whole experience added so much more stress to an already stressful situation. It has all stayed that way since then. We were going to remodel the bathroom to give real, usable space for my mom. However, she declined pretty rapidly after that and we never did anything. A friend of ours does flooring. Once I decided I had enough of the eyesore, I contacted him explaining that I was ready to get it done. He came over and we picked out the new flooring. He was so sympathetic and encouraging, which I didn’t really anticipate. I was grateful for his guidance and support. His guys came over today and did the work. We put carpet back in the bedroom itself, but put vinyl plank in the bathroom area. When they were done, it looked so nice, fresh, clean. I had taken a lot of things out of the room and closets to give them space to work. So now I can take my time sorting and  organizing, before things go back in. It feels somewhat liberating – moving forward in a positive way.

I Found God today getting a clean, fresh space.

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Butterflies and Flowers

Posted by eph21920 on September 11, 2024 in Birthday, Family, Joy

Today was my brother’s birthday. We – my siblings and I – sent him a little cake in a special box that had butterflies and flowers pop out when you open it. When he got home with the box, we all got on zoom so we could watch him open it. We sang him Happy birthday and prepared for the grand opening. Evidently it came with a little warning which kind of gave away the surprise, but it was still fun. When he pulled the lid off the box, butterflies on wind up rubber bands flew all around and flowers popped out. Eventually he found the little cake. It was good to share the joy.

I Found God today sharing joy and celebrating my brother.

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Blessed Family Friend

Posted by eph21920 on September 10, 2024 in Death, Friends, Grateful, Life, Relationship

Yesterday I went to visit our friend who would come play piano duets with my mom. I don’t think I had seen her since my mom’s funeral, though we talked on the phone a couple times. She asked about going to the cemetery, so we made the trip out there. On the way we stopped and picked up some flowers and a couple things from the grocery store. When we arrived, we fixed up the flowers, got the vases and water, and slowly made our way to my parents’ site. Our friend had recovered from a broken hip a few months ago and I was glad to see she was very careful on the uneven terrain. My parents’ new headstone was beautiful and the grass was placed and grown in, so it looked very nice. We said some prayers and reminisced. It was so nice to spend the time there with her. Afterwards we went to lunch. That was the usual routine – visit, play piano, go to lunch. The place we went even had free ice cream. We remembered that when it was my dad’s turn to pick the lunch place, he would choose the one with the free ice cream. We had our cones in his honor. When I dropped our friend at home, we promised to get together again and stay in touch. It was such a blessing to spend the day with her.

I Found God today spending time with a good family friend.

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Surprise Massage

Posted by eph21920 on September 9, 2024 in Friends, Generosity, Grateful

I was excited to have booked a massage for today. My daughter-in-law-to-be knows just how to get my muscles loose and how to put me into a deep state of relaxation. When it came time to pay, she said it was taken care of already. A friend of mine and her sister had decided to treat me. They live on the east coast, but had contacted my son who put them in touch with his fiancee and they worked it all out. It was quite a sneaky surprise. I felt so blessed by their thoughtfulness, encouragement, and generosity. I was double blessed as I called my friend to thank her and we were able to talk for a while.

I Found God today in thoughtful, generous friends.

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The Big Switcheroo

Posted by eph21920 on September 8, 2024 in Connected, Family, Grateful, Life, Love

Yesterday my brother and I vacated the cabin and came to the city. At the same time, my son and his wife went to the cabin for a little getaway to celebrate their anniversary. Also yesterday my brother in law flew out to be with my sister after having completed everything that needed to be done here. They will celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary together tomorrow. Tonight my brother and I went to pick up my other sister from the airport. She helped care for my sister for several weeks while her husband was away. She got her a little further along in her recovery from a very bad illness that she’s been battling. There was a lot of traveling around the past couple days. I am grateful everyone was safe and moving in positive directions.

I Found God today in much safe and positive travels.

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The Carnival

Posted by eph21920 on September 7, 2024 in Children, Family, Fun, Joy, Relationship

Several years ago, a church near us held a carnival for the community, complete with rides, games, and music. It has grown every year since. I have seen it from afar – one year from my mom’s room at the rehab facility, but I’ve never been. Today I took one grandson and my granddaughter. We had fun looking around at everything. My grandson decided not to go on any rides, fearing it might make him sick. My granddaughter didn’t want to go on any of the big rides, but she’s so tall now that she was too big to go on any of the smaller rides. Then we found the fun house. My granddaughter and I went through the mirrored maze. I let her lead the way. Once out of the maze, there were funny mirrors and a big slide as the exit. She was afraid of the big slide at first, but she conquered her fear. I was proud of her. Then we played a ball toss game. My grandson won a big prize and chose a stuffed unicorn which he gave to his sister. She won a smaller stuffed toy. Then we had carnival food. We all had a good time.

I Found God today having fun with my grandchildren.

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Back Outside

Posted by eph21920 on September 6, 2024 in Creation, Grateful, Joy, Life

After a rainy day yesterday, I was happy to see the sun shining this morning. I was still at the cabin, which makes it even more beautiful. After breakfast, my brother and I went out and did a little work on the gravel driveway. There were some pretty deep ruts that the rain had worsened, so we filled them in and created a birm across the top. After that I took his dog on a walk. It’s a little disconcerting when she stops and stares off into the distance. But it was a nice walk and I enjoyed the mountain air. After lunch I made a little trip into town. On the way I saw that some of the Aspen trees had yellow leaves. It seems that Fall is on it’s way. I also stopped at the community clubhouse and chatted with one of the ladies there. As we were talking, I spotted a large, fluffy coyote making it’s way through the field. The woman told me it wasn’t unusual and that she sees a lot of wildlife going through the area. I thoroughly enjoyed and was grateful for the beautiful day.

I Found God today in a beautiful day.

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Morning Thunderstorm

Posted by eph21920 on September 5, 2024 in Creation, Family, Humility, Life, Weather

I decided to spend a couple days at the cabin with my brother and arrived yesterday. I woke up early this morning as usual and it was still dark outside. Before I laid back down to close my eyes, something caught my attention. I thought I saw a bright light flash through the window. I watched for a little while and sure enough, I saw it again. This time I heard a rumble in the distance. A thunderstorm was approaching. It was moving very slowly and I just watched from my bed for a while. When it got closer, I heard my brother’s dog seeking shelter in the downstairs bedroom. She is terrified of thunder. Then I heard my brother get up. Since they were awake, I got up and opened a couple blinds so I could see outside. It was barely dawn and the storm was upon us. At that altitude, it really was like the storm was on top of us. The wind blew, the rain came down, then the small hail. All the while the lightning and thunder were pretty constant. I am in awe of the storms at the cabin and it had been a long time since I had witnessed one. Later in the day, the clouds cleared and the sun came out, making it safe to go out for a walk. God was in the weather today as his power can be furious and concerning, but when we hold on long enough, the calm will come and perhaps even a rainbow.

I Found God today in the awesome weather.

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Getting Stronger

Posted by eph21920 on September 4, 2024 in Friends, Grateful, Healing, Prayer, Sick

I went outside this afternoon and was somewhat surprised to see my neighbor out walking. I had not seen her in a couple weeks, but had seen her husband who said she was slowly recovering from her surgery. She reported that she started in home therapy today and introduced the physical therapist that she was walking with. My neighbor was chatty and smiling and had color in her face. After the ordeal she went through and all the prayers that were being said for her, I was grateful to see her out and about and healing.

I Found God today in my neighbor who is healing.

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Mother Teresa’s Family Prayer

Posted by eph21920 on September 3, 2024 in Family, Life, Prayer, Saint

Today I turned on EWTN and watched a talk show that Mother Angelica hosted 27 years ago. It was a tribute to now St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The program included a beautiful prayer for the family that she wrote. I thought it was timeless and always applicable:

Heavenly Father,
you have given us a
model of life in the
Holy Family of Nazareth.

Help us, O Loving Father,
to make our family
another Nazareth
where love, peace and joy reign.

May it be
deeply contemplative,
intensely Eucharistic
and vibrant with joy.

Help us to stay together
in joy and sorrow
through family prayer.

Teach us to see Jesus
in the members of our family,
especially in their
distressing disguise.

May the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus
make our hearts meek and humble
like His, and help us to carry out
our family duties in a holy way.

May we love one another
as God loves each one of us,
more and more each day,
and forgive each others faults
as you forgive our sins.

Help us, O Loving Father,
to take whatever you give
and to give whatever you take,
with a big smile.

Help us, O Holy Father,
to make our families
one heart, full of love,
in the Heart of Jesus through Mary.

Immaculate Heart of Mary,
cause of our joy,
pray for us.
St. Joseph, pray for us.
Holy Guardian Angels,
be always with us,
guide and protect us.
Amen.

— St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

I Found God today in a prayer for the family and a reminder of the selfless life of St. Mother Teresa.

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