Memories of Mom

Today is in memory of Mom.  What a woman she was!  Born in the east in 1920, moving west as a child to Roberts Montana, after high school moving to Wyoming--the Northfork of the Shoshone river not far from Yellowstone park.   

Met a cowboy/rancher, became a rancher's wife, raised seven children, faced many hardships, but in spite of it all was a happy, artistic, funny lady. She loved flowers, especially roses, loved to visit the Oregon sea coast and watch the magesty and power of the ocean.

She was a very good mother to me--supportive, wise, able to look on the funny side of life, forgiving of my faults, and encouraging me to be better--an example I want to follow. I salute you, Mom, on this the day of your birth.

Flying

Tomorrow morning I will be be above the clouds, all my stress will melt away as I soar toward Oregon with its rugged coasts, maple and oak leaves painting bright spots of color, and probably some rain.  (Only a Phoencian would look forward to that.)

I will get to see my three little grandchildren, two of them for the first time.  I am also anticipating some quality time with my daughter and my granddaughter.

I love vacation!

On Mice and Me

A friend of mine sent me this thought

Worry is today's mice nibbling on tomorrow's cheese.

(Matthew 6:34 So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. (NLT))

I have been going through a computer conversion at work, have spent many extra hours preparing, and was uneasy as to how things would go when we went "live".  Well, Thursday was the day, and although a little slow, it was a smooth transition.

I spent energy worrying about a problem that didn't happen.  Hmm, lesson learned, I hope!

Saints and lighthouses

In my reading I came across this quote.
The 16th century Spanish mystic, Saint Teresa of Avila said:

Christ has no body now on earth but yours,
no hands but yours,
no feet but yours,
yours are the eyes through which Christ's compassion
is to look out to the earth,
yours are the feet by which He is to go about doing good
and yours are the hands by which He is to bless us now.

I love this thought for several reasons, it reinforces the concept that all of us are important and have a purpose.  We may not see it at first or may question why we have to go through the problems we endure, but we can be a lighthouse to those tossed about in similar situations. We may be the only light that some people see, and how we handle our storms gives others hope and guidance in their situation.

What were you doing when you were 19?

Happy Birthday Natthen--my now 19 year old grandson.  He is a baseball player, extraordinaire; and a sensitive young man.  I am very proud of him.

As you can see he has always loved to play ball