Leave a comment

100 and Still Walking

Posted by eph21920 on November 27, 2023 in Faith, Friends, Happiness, Hope, Life

Today our friend came over and played the piano with mom. We read some of a local Catholic publication while we finished off the Thanksgiving pie. I came across an article about a woman who turned 100 years old. She joined her local parish when it started, about 70 years ago. Her son was an altar server at the church’s first Christmas Mass. She still lives a little less than a mile from the church and walks to Mass every Sunday. She said she used to walk to attend daily Mass, but then that got too hard. Our friend attends daily Mass at a church near her and told us about a woman there who is 96 years old. She lives in some apartments nearby and walks when the weather is not bad. Our friend says she thinks the woman is trying to reach 100 as well. I was in awe of the resilience of these faithful women.

I Found God today in resilient, faithful women.

Permalink
Leave a comment

A Day Out

Posted by eph21920 on November 26, 2023 in Family, Fun, Generosity, Grateful

Today I was treated to an NFL game by my sons and grandson. I knew it was going to be super cold, so I put on all my layers, boots, hats, wool mittens, and borrowed my sister’s long down coat. We arrived at the football field extremely early to tailgate. The guys had packed up my son’s truck with a grill and all the stuff that was needed. My older son cooked a hash brown, sausage, and egg scramble for breakfast and my younger son grilled the burgers and hot dogs for lunch. All I did was eat their food, drink the drinks they brought, and say thank you. Then we went inside to the game. The seats they got were only 14 rows back from the field. It was a great game and a fun atmosphere. And our team won. Back at home my sister had a relatively quiet day with our mom. I was grateful for such a wonderful day out.

I Found God today enjoying a day out.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Blessed By Neighbors

Posted by eph21920 on November 25, 2023 in Friends, Generosity, Grateful

It was frigid and snowy yesterday which left a thin layer of icy snow on the walkways and driveways. Early this morning I heard some commotion and saw my neighbor sweeping off our porch staircase. She had already done our shared sidewalk. I opened the door and thanked her and noticed the beautiful white trees glistening against the deep blue sky. I put on my boots and coat, grabbed my camera, and went out the garage to take a few photos. There was another neighbor out there shoveling the driveway for an older gentleman who is caring for his daughter who has cancer. We exchanged hellos and I went back to the front to finish sweeping off our porch. Once that was done, I followed the sidewalk to where it met the driveway and started clearing it there. The older gentleman had come out and said how surprised he was to find his driveway has been shoveled. The neighbor who had done that, came over to help me. Then the older gentleman came to help too since he was “all dressed up with nowhere to go.” So many blessing were shared first thing this morning.

I Found God today in the blessing of neighbors.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Shared Experience

Posted by eph21920 on November 24, 2023 in Answer, Connected, Family, Friends, Grateful, Life, Struggles

After my post yesterday, I read several others from people who also had a “different” Thanksgiving. They also expressed their gratitude for those loved ones in their lives. So many times we all want to put our happy face out on social media. And I think it is good to be optimistic and have a positive attitude. At the same time, there is value in sharing our struggles. I know I was encouraged hearing about how others shared in a similar situation as me. It helped me not to feel so alone in the experience. And it helped me to keep my focus on what is truly important – the loved ones around us at each moment.

I Found God today in shared experiences.

Permalink
Leave a comment

“Different” Thanksgiving

Posted by eph21920 on November 23, 2023 in Family, Food, Grateful, Home, Life, Relationship, Struggles

Mom gets easily overwhelmed these days, so we talked about how we could make Thanksgiving a little more calm for her. We decided to just have dinner here with me, my sister, and my mom. Then later, my son, his wife and kids and my other son and his girlfriend came over for dessert. We had many wonderful treats. Then some of the group went outside to play football. My daughter in law and I talked about how holidays are “different” now. When we all lived out east, I went to her mom’s house many years for Thanksgiving. Then we played Monopoly while others went through ads and planned out their shopping route for the next day. Things changed when I moved, then during COVID and have never been the same. Everyone moved out here, my dad passed away, and this year my daughter in law’s mother died. It was another “different” year for us and her sisters. We talked about how important it is to accept how we are able to celebrate and be grateful for those who we are with. We enjoyed being all together for the short visit and it all seemed to work out just right for my mom. I am grateful to spend another Thanksgiving with her. I am grateful that my sister is here. I am most grateful for our loving God who cares for us all so well.

I Found God today grateful for this Thanksgiving day.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Pie Teamwork

Posted by eph21920 on November 22, 2023 in Family, Food, Joy

Today when my mom’s nurse came over, I told her we were going to make pies. She asked my mom if she enjoyed baking. My mom said she didn’t do it very much because she grew up in a bakery. We did make pumpkin and apple pies together this afternoon. She kept me straight on the recipes and I got them all put together. They came out beautiful. We made a good team and enjoyed the time and activity together.

I Found God today making pies with my mom.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Jenga For All

Posted by eph21920 on November 21, 2023 in Children, Family, Fun, Grateful, Life

Since my grandchildren were out of school, we decided to have them over to play some games today. My mom was having a very good morning, so that was a blessing. When the kids arrived, we had Jenga all set up and ready to play. It can be challenging to find a game that an 8 year old, teenager, young adult, me, and a 91 year old would all enjoy, but Jenga fit the bill. We played a couple of games and expressed a loud “awww” every time it fell. My grandson has been taking violin lessons and we were happy that he brought his violin with him. He played a few notes and practiced bowing. My mom encouraged him to keep practicing. Then she played a piece on the piano. We all had a fun visit. I am so glad they are close and enjoy coming over.

I Found God today in a visit with my grandchildren.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Selfless Saint

Posted by eph21920 on November 20, 2023 in Begin, Connected, Death, Generosity, Hope, Life, Opportunity, Youth

Our friend came over today and brought with her an article from the local Catholic Herald. It was the obituary of an elderly gentleman who I had met a couple of times. He was the founder of the Fostering Hope organization that I volunteered with a few years back. The goal of the organization was to help transition young adults out of foster care into a safe independent lifestyle by building a supportive community around them. When the volunteer opportunity for the new group was presented at the church, I went to the meeting to see what it was all about. I met the gentleman there and at a couple later meetings. He was soft spoken, gentle, and had a heart for the youth. He was a visionary and gathered people around him to help make his vision a reality. In doing so, he succeeded in changing the lives of hundreds of individuals so far. To me, he was everything I think a saint would be. He will be deeply missed, but I am certain his legacy will carry on and multiply.

I Found God today remembering a saintly man.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Admitting Weakness

Posted by eph21920 on November 19, 2023 in Answer, Faith, Humility, Jesus, Life, Struggles, Trust

I have been continuing to listen and reading along with the book, “The Imitation of Christ.” It is deep and heavy for me, but truthful and thought provoking. I’m glad each session is only a few minutes in length. Today was the chapter entitled, “Admitting our weakness and the miseries of this life.” While it can seem that it is a negative connotation, to me the point is to get out of myself and put my attention on God. After all, He is the source of all goodness. A sentence that struck me was, “Often what depresses and troubles me is a small thing.” While it is difficult to care for my mom as she declines, we are so blessed by God to have all of our needs met. The big things are taken care of. Yet, I find myself getting upset over little things. That brings me to another part speaking of temptation that read, “And when I think I am fairly safe, I suddenly find myself all but defeated by a light breeze.” Later it talked about how annoying it is to live in constant conflict. I spent some time thinking about this chapter today. It does my soul good to realize my frailty as it helps me depend more on God and less on my random thoughts or emotions that may pop up.

I Found God today realizing my need to depend on Him.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Situations

Posted by eph21920 on November 18, 2023 in Answer, Life

I saw a quote from TobyMac today that made me stop and think. “We ask God to change our situation not knowing He put us in the situation to change us.” I can easily become overwhelmed or frustrated with circumstances. This quote helped me to try to think about things from a different perspective, which I appreciated.

I Found God today in encouragement to change my thinking.

Permalink