Sweet Memories

One of the many familiar icons of spring beginning to make their presence known . I can't help but smile fondly and somewhat tearfully at the memory of chubby fingers clutching the precious bouquet and presenting it to me with so much pride and love .

Such sweet memories , such a very long time ago.....

I just have to say that I am so happy that spring is here ! I have so enjoyed getting out walking again watching everything around me burst into bloom. It is lovely enough that I can put up with all the dust in the air from the street cleaning.

On the job .... Min has been in the hospital since last Saturday, and he is recovering from pneumonia . Meanwhile B. has been thinking that he is 'gone'. That everyone is 'gone' and she is the only one left. It seems her dementia is worse under the stress of the trauma of separation .

I told her he was not dead and that she has spoken to him everyday, twice a day. That did not seem to comfort her and her memories of long ago are strangely muddled as well. I guess the nights in her bed alone disturb her the most and I will be glad when he is home, even though the work load doubles.

The family are now waiting for the nursing home to call, and when that happens my time there will be finished.

Amazing that this couple will be married 67 years in July .... no wonder B. feels like she has nothing to live for when she believes he is 'gone.' At least with the lovely weather I can take her out for walks in her wheel chair again. Funny.... every time we go out she comments that 'this is the first time ever that I have been out at this time of day'. I am glad she enjoys the moment.

Nice Day

After a nice long walk this morning I decided to head to familiar territory to pray and think and enjoy the warm sunshine.
This little park and marina is named in honor of my father. In the summer months there is something called the 'Festival of Lights' which many years ago was founded by my dad.
Music and fireworks over the lake every Wednesday and Saturday evening from May until the end of August is enjoyed by people from the city and surrounding areas.

Today was a quiet day in the park. The plaque below explains the origins of the park and the festival to visiting tourists .



This other plaque is situated in something called 'The Walk of Fame' where the many citizens who have contributed to the community have a memorial stone. My dad has been with the Lord for thirty years now and sometimes I miss him. I wish I had known him better.



The high water levels of earlier last week are receding now and we are all curious it seems.





Usually there are flocks of Canada geese here, but today only the seagulls were busy.

The fellow below had natural instincts on his mind this warm sunny afternoon and he was happily cheering his success. Earlier I had noticed the female , at least I think it was the female , dancing around her mate flirting and chirping a certain song.It could have been the male perhaps...hmmmmm ? Immediately after their encounter she took a swim of course.



Meanwhile,this fellow below flew into the group with a large piece of bread in his bill and proceeded to noisily strut around boasting his find with no intention of sharing .



A lovely day to sit and wonder and be thankful to the Lord for the spring season and my lesson on the mating habits of some cheeky birds.

The Sky is Falling

Well, ok maybe not actually falling , perhaps it just seems like it is . This post is written kind of tongue in cheek since that seems the only way to really talk about the last few weeks. No matter what it may look like I still have a mustard seed of faith that Jesus has deposited within me. Halleluia !



So... should I make a list or just simply ramble on. I choose rambling since I just got home from work a while ago and I am sleep deprived .

Recently got the results from my thallium heart scan to find out there is a spot of Ischemia in part of my heart, and will go to a cardiologist sometime . In my defense I choose to believe it is not because of years of butter , but years of stress instead and maybe even a brokenness of heart due to personal grief in the loss of Sam this last year .

I was working three jobs, which kept me busy and tired but at least paid the rent.

Until... eye doc guy decided he wanted someone with more medical experience and bravely left me a message on my voice mail. That was a good job and I really enjoyed the experience even though I was thrown in with only 3 hours training.
There are likely personal reasons the doc freaked out one of which was his regular girl of 30 years was not returning due to her second cancer surgery. I can understand the reason, just not the behavior.

I have had many job interviews and very little positive response , the reasons perhaps being my age and lack of years of experience. It does not seem to matter that I accomplished my course with excellence.

When I took the eye doc job, I gave up some of my Care Giving hours which my boss will not give back.

So, I'm beginning to see a pattern here. I head to Lakefield Saturday to discover the family of my seniors are going to be placing Min and B. in a nursing home since they have both had pneumonia badly and we are calling 911 a lot these days.

Hmmmm...Lord ??? When the Care Giving ends sometime in May likely that will leave me with one doc's office job one day a week......filing charts.

Lets see now, that was one huge car repair bill recently, car insurance due soon, rent to pay,expensive perscriptions to fill (no not vallium ) gas for my car, food ?

Hmmmmmm I wonder what's going on here ?

Am I freaked out yet ? Kind of I think !

On the other hand to see the bright side and yes there is a bright side, I have been listening to powerful teaching by Bill Johnson from Bethel Church in Redding California, where miracles are a regular occurrence. I am beginning to believe something good called restoration is for me as well.

Something IS happening in the depths of my being, and that is a very good thing. Truth is sinking into the clogged vessels and arteries of my heart and no matter what I see in the natural I will not be offended by the government of God over my life.

So even though it may appear that my sky is falling , I know the one who made that sky and trust Him way more than I trust the appearance of the shaking around me .

Keep coming Holy Spirit

Numbers 6:22-27 the Message

God bless you and keep you
God smile on you and gift you
God look you full in the face and make you prosper,
In so doing, they will place My Name upon the people.

Funny

This photo made me really laugh when I received it in an email yesterday. The truth is this is how I feel sometimes .

Naturally the scripture that comes to mind is.....

Matthew 11:28 'Come unto Me all you who labor and are heavy laden,and I will give you rest.'

With a strong forearm, the apron-clad blacksmith puts his tongs into the fire, grasps the heated metal, and places it on the anvil. His keen eye examines the glowing piece. He sees what the tool is now and envisions what he wants it to be—sharper, flatter, wider, longer. With a clear picture in his mind, he begins to pound. His left hand still clutching the hot mass with the tongs, his right hand slams the two-pound sledge upon the moldable metal.

On the solid anvil, the smoldering iron is remolded.

The smith knows the type of instrument he wants. He knows the size. He knows the shape. He knows the strength.

Whang! Whang! The hammer slams. The shop rings with the noise, the air fills with smoke, and the softened metal responds.

But the response doesn’t come easily. It doesn’t come without discomfort. To melt down the old and recast it as new is a disrupting process. Yet the metal remains on the anvil, allowing the toolmaker to remove the scars, repair the cracks, refill the voids, and purge the impurities.

And with time, a change occurs: What was dull becomes sharpened, what was crooked becomes straight, what was weak becomes strong, and what was useless becomes valuable.

Then the blacksmith stops. He ceases his pounding and sets down his hammer. With a strong left arm, he lifts the tongs until the freshly molded metal is at eye level. In the still silence, he examines the smoking tool. The incandescent implement is rotated and examined for any mars or cracks.

There are none.

Now the smith enters the final stage of his task. He plunges the smoldering instrument into a nearby bucket of water. With a hiss and a rush of steam, the metal immediately begins to harden. The heat surrenders to the onslaught of cool water, and the pliable, soft mineral becomes an unbending useful tool.

“For a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”
(I Peter 1:6-7)