Today I looked at the expanse of the blue sky and imagined myself an eagle flying from one end of heaven to the other. What a beautiful world we live in. And how fortunate we are to live in America. We are free to pursue happiness, free to know God, free to make something of our lives. We have so many gifts from life. Why sit inside and ponder our problems, when you can take a walk in the afternoon sun and smell the roses and count the daffodils in your neighbor's yard. There are so many worlds just outside our window. We ponder the past, we fume over the present, we don't want to continue in the same vein every day of our lives. We complain about our jobs, when they provide us with the means we need to live. That isn't so bad. Without a job, we'd all be living in the streets.
There was something passed around one day at work, many years ago, about looking for answers to problems instead of being a part of the problem. If we engage out jobs, look for ways to be creative, even our distasteful jobs can be blessings too.
I haven't worked for 16 years. My husband took a position that would enable him to make enough for us to live on, and I was allowed to take an early out as a result of that decision. He has gone to work for 16 additional years and I've been free to do as I please. Although I get up every day and make his lunch and send him off to work, I am free for the rest of the day to do as I please, and I must say I have not made the best use of my time. But that has changed. I've found the energy I need to make my home a very peaceful place. Of course, when the grandchildren are here and all the game machines are on and there are pots and pans flying in the kitchen to make food for everyone, the peace is thinly stretched. But on the other hand, what a blessing that they WANT to be here. They live with their other Grandparents and Mom and they have a pool and a big house and all the toys you could imagine. We live in a manufactured home, we have a community pool, and we have little yard to speak of. But they absolutely love it here. My oldest Grandson at the age of 9 came to visit one day and he tole me "Grandma, I don't know what it is here, but it's AWESOME! It's the spirit of love. The Tao, God, whatever you choose to call it, it is real and it abides here in our hearts and minds and is a part of who we are and the spirit of our home is relaxed and comfortable. You are free here to be who you are, who you wish to be.
It is sad that some folks work 4 and 5 jobs to make lots of money to buy lots of things, but still they are not happy. It isn't in your possessions that you find joy. It is within your own soul and heart and mind. Jesus is always available to the wounded in life....always there to comfort to guide and to bless. But if you don't believe in Him and have found another path to your peace, you are also free to pursue that. Whatever gives you peace, you will find it in the acceptance here. We accept all people, of all colors, all beliefs, all lifestyles. We are open hearted, free spirited, and interested in every detail of life. It is a beautiful experience every day to see my roses and my Plumbago bush that has overtaken the yard, the jasmine growing up the front of the house and the rose garden my husband planted for me. It is a joy to greet my family and to realize I have one of the greatest gifts a loving God could ever give. A beautiful big family of my own. There are 14 of us counting all the grandchildren. If we include the other Grandma's and Grandpa's there are 18 of us. One year we had a family reunion and my sister and her daughter were here with her little boy and little girl and her husband. It was packed, but all the children played together like they'd always seen and been around one another. It was heaven. There was no huge table laid out in fine array with many dishes, just the simple fare of those who grew up on things I could coerce them into eating. They ate, they visited, we had a party, and we took pictures and blew up air mattresses for some of the family to sleep over....it was fun. That's something you'll find here as well. The freedom to just be. There is no rush to be anything else, to be somewhere else doing something other than living. You can run at a hectic pace all your life and never find peace. It is in the still moments, the expanse of Heaven, and the feeling of being free to fly like the huge eagles of my past. I hope you don't miss out on it while you are busy living. Take the time to stop, reflect on what it means to be free, and enjoy the expanse of heaven, the green meadows of an afternoon spent outdoors, and the freedom to worship as you please.
My wish for you is peace. I hope that you, in your many journeys, find the peace that waits at the end of the day for you, in your quiet moments of reverie before you fall asleep. Take time each day to just "be". You can call it meditation, prayer, introspection, whatever you choose to call it. But don't neglect your need of peace. It will sustain you in your everyday life and make life a joy that you would otherwise miss. Peace like a river flows through my soul...my life is filed with happiness and peace and I am truly blessed on planet earth. I wish you good fortune, good food, and an abundance of fun in your life. Otherwise, what's the living for?
Take care, find your peace, enjoy the moments of every hour. They are fleeting and only the memories go with you at journey's end. Gather them up like flowers in a basket and take them home with you.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Friday, August 24, 2012
Lemon Chicken & Pasta Salad
I made this dish up on the spur of the moment, and it came out great, so I thought I'd share it. The ingredients are listed below:
Bow-Tie Pasta
Canned Chicken in Lemon Sauce
Olive Oil (3 Caps full)
Lemon Juice (4 Caps full)
1 or 2 Teaspoons Malt Vinegar
1/2 White Onion Chopped fine
! cup Bloack Olives (cut in half)
1 cup Cherry Tomatoes (cut in half)
1/2 Large Red or Yellow Pepper (diced)
Garlic Salt (about 1/4 tsp.)
Chipotle Mrs. Dash (to your taste)
1 Tbsp. Chopped Dried Parsley
Bring large pan of water to a boil, and add pkg of bow-tie pasta. Stir frequently and boil for 10 minutes. Pour into colander and rinse with cold water.
Drain can of Lemon Chicken, break up into smaller pieces, add to pasta.
Add olive oil and stir to coat all pieces of pasta. Add Lemon Juice, Malt Vinegar, onion, black olives, cherry tomatoes, red or yellow pepper, garlic salt, Mrs. Dash, and dried parsley to mixture and toss well to coat.
Cover serving dish with Tin foil or Plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for a couple of hours. Serve with garlic bread sticks and raspberry iced tea for a refreshing lunch or light dinner.
(All Ingredients can be found at your local Walmart)
Enjoy!
Bonnie
Bow-Tie Pasta
Canned Chicken in Lemon Sauce
Olive Oil (3 Caps full)
Lemon Juice (4 Caps full)
1 or 2 Teaspoons Malt Vinegar
1/2 White Onion Chopped fine
! cup Bloack Olives (cut in half)
1 cup Cherry Tomatoes (cut in half)
1/2 Large Red or Yellow Pepper (diced)
Garlic Salt (about 1/4 tsp.)
Chipotle Mrs. Dash (to your taste)
1 Tbsp. Chopped Dried Parsley
Bring large pan of water to a boil, and add pkg of bow-tie pasta. Stir frequently and boil for 10 minutes. Pour into colander and rinse with cold water.
Drain can of Lemon Chicken, break up into smaller pieces, add to pasta.
Add olive oil and stir to coat all pieces of pasta. Add Lemon Juice, Malt Vinegar, onion, black olives, cherry tomatoes, red or yellow pepper, garlic salt, Mrs. Dash, and dried parsley to mixture and toss well to coat.
Cover serving dish with Tin foil or Plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for a couple of hours. Serve with garlic bread sticks and raspberry iced tea for a refreshing lunch or light dinner.
(All Ingredients can be found at your local Walmart)
Enjoy!
Bonnie
Friday, August 17, 2012
Things of Importance
There are many things in life that are important. First and foremost, you and your own happiness is essential. This may sound self-centered, but it is very true. If you don't take care of yourself, after you know how, who will? When you are a baby, people fuss and fume over you, cleaning you, dressing you, feeding you, and hopefully, loving you.
As you grow up you learn all these things and you take care of yourself. If you don't feel valued, you search for validation for your own self, and that my friend can be a long and tedious battle.
No one outside of yourself can validate you. You can look and look for acceptance and friendship and something that makes you feel worth while. But all the while you are empty. The days can be long and gray, without color, without joy, without hope. The search is never ending because we all want to matter to someone. People need people.
If you are a creature of habit, you repeat the same things in every new situation. You act the same, say the same things, and repeat your recorded messages to every new person you meet. These recorded messages are the pathways in the brain where you store your personality as it is built. You are a collection of things you've heard all your life and the things you have read and assimilated happenings of your whole life. All of who you are is stored in your brain and it is a lot to consider.
You are unique. There is no one else like you on planet earth. You are capable of many things. If you don't receive recognition as a child, sometimes you act out and throw tantrums. You can't do that as an adult, so best to get that out of your system as a child. Parent's who don't know how to deal with this, revert to spankings, and sending children to their rooms.....where they continue to rant and rave. You can't reason with a child, they don't understand. But if you wait till the tantrum is over, and then pick the child up and teach them how to use their "words" to express themselves, the breaking of day can dawn in that little child's life to give him control over himself.
One of our grandchildren is really good at throwing fits. At least he use to be. But our daughter was a Pre-School teacher and she knows how to deal with tantrums successfully. She taught him to use "his words". She'd tell him when he wound down that we don't understand the unintelligible wants he is trying to express and that he needed to use his "words". You'd be surprised how much differently he behaves now. Now he knows he can communicate without getting upset and throwing a tantrum. He is in control. He is learning that he is a person of value and he only reverts to tantrums where he knows he can get what he wants by doing that. When he is here at Grandma and Grandpa's house, he uses his words, and even told his older sisters one day when they were arguing, that they needed to use "their words...like me" he said. He's 5. He's very tiny, and was born with many problems of a physical nature. But now, what a joy he is because he feels like he matters. He is in control, likes being able to express himself in words, and is the funniest, wittiest, sweetest little youngster I've had the pleasure to know in a long time. Of course, all my kids were perfect! Ha ha If I'd known half the things my daughter knows about little kids, my life would have been a lot calmer and I would have put value on different things.
You can't go back and change the past. But thankfully children grow up and as adults you can cover a lot of ground you missed out on when they were small. You can't change anyone else, but you can express yourself in meaningful ways, and not only with words. You can alter your own behavior if you've been fortunate to be blessed with a lot of introspection and self-awareness. I don't know about you, but I've had a lot of problems in the past and they were so drastic that I had to have professional help at a very young age. It wasn't any one's fault, it was a chemical imbalance in my brain and nothing changes that but the proper medication and a lot of therapy. Now that I am well, and as normal as the next guy, I find so much joy in the little things in life, and I really do count that as a blessing. I also can't change the past, and I regret a lot of it, but why waste one moment worrying about what happened yesterday? We are all here to learn, to grow, to love and to experience to the fullest the joys and wonders of life. How sad it would be if I were to be this well, and spend the rest of my life regretting the years I was ill? That would be a total waste.
I am blessed to have a truly wonderful husband that to me is a gift from God himself, 3 wonderful children that love us, and our seven intelligent and beautiful and sweet grandchildren that make our family circle a rich and vibrant color to paint the canvas of life with. When you find your inner peace, and "Your Words", you can alleviate much suffering in the lives of others. That's what I've been attempting to do here. I have much to give. I have a heart full of love and a desire to help others, but sadly, the folks never come here. And if they do, they don't find it interesting. It's not "hip", not the "In-thing" I guess. But there are people in need and I've come to realize that all the love I have poured out here could be better directed. I will post occasionally when I have something to say, but I am at peace over the disinterest and I know that my family needs things and my home needs some TLC that I am going to apply in great measure.
You do what's important to you, a very wise man once told me. It is very important to help others. I serve my God by helping others. But if no one ever avails themselves of the words I speak here, I will speak them somewhere else, but not with my voice only, but my actions. I learned at an early age what it feels like to be ignored and put aside. I didn't like it then, and I don't like it now. I can't force anyone to read this, I don't know if there's anyone out there who even needs it. But I have 2 eyes and I can see all around me the things I could improve. As I said, I will post occasionally as the mood strikes me, and I will share joyously the wonderful things I have in my own life. But I first and foremost am going to put my words into actions in my own life and in the lives of those I love and if I have time when I'm through with my day, I may say a word or 2. My 5 year old grandson has shown me the value of "my words". They are powerful and they give you confidence and self-assurance. My words are meant to heal and to help. More than that I cannot offer. If you need peace, I direct you to your own soul. If you find monsters there that need taming, do so. If you find worry, cast it out. If you need love, start loving yourself and transform yourself. Learn that "your words" have power to make you or break you. This
will be the essence of the posting.
As you grow up you learn all these things and you take care of yourself. If you don't feel valued, you search for validation for your own self, and that my friend can be a long and tedious battle.
No one outside of yourself can validate you. You can look and look for acceptance and friendship and something that makes you feel worth while. But all the while you are empty. The days can be long and gray, without color, without joy, without hope. The search is never ending because we all want to matter to someone. People need people.
If you are a creature of habit, you repeat the same things in every new situation. You act the same, say the same things, and repeat your recorded messages to every new person you meet. These recorded messages are the pathways in the brain where you store your personality as it is built. You are a collection of things you've heard all your life and the things you have read and assimilated happenings of your whole life. All of who you are is stored in your brain and it is a lot to consider.
You are unique. There is no one else like you on planet earth. You are capable of many things. If you don't receive recognition as a child, sometimes you act out and throw tantrums. You can't do that as an adult, so best to get that out of your system as a child. Parent's who don't know how to deal with this, revert to spankings, and sending children to their rooms.....where they continue to rant and rave. You can't reason with a child, they don't understand. But if you wait till the tantrum is over, and then pick the child up and teach them how to use their "words" to express themselves, the breaking of day can dawn in that little child's life to give him control over himself.
One of our grandchildren is really good at throwing fits. At least he use to be. But our daughter was a Pre-School teacher and she knows how to deal with tantrums successfully. She taught him to use "his words". She'd tell him when he wound down that we don't understand the unintelligible wants he is trying to express and that he needed to use his "words". You'd be surprised how much differently he behaves now. Now he knows he can communicate without getting upset and throwing a tantrum. He is in control. He is learning that he is a person of value and he only reverts to tantrums where he knows he can get what he wants by doing that. When he is here at Grandma and Grandpa's house, he uses his words, and even told his older sisters one day when they were arguing, that they needed to use "their words...like me" he said. He's 5. He's very tiny, and was born with many problems of a physical nature. But now, what a joy he is because he feels like he matters. He is in control, likes being able to express himself in words, and is the funniest, wittiest, sweetest little youngster I've had the pleasure to know in a long time. Of course, all my kids were perfect! Ha ha If I'd known half the things my daughter knows about little kids, my life would have been a lot calmer and I would have put value on different things.
You can't go back and change the past. But thankfully children grow up and as adults you can cover a lot of ground you missed out on when they were small. You can't change anyone else, but you can express yourself in meaningful ways, and not only with words. You can alter your own behavior if you've been fortunate to be blessed with a lot of introspection and self-awareness. I don't know about you, but I've had a lot of problems in the past and they were so drastic that I had to have professional help at a very young age. It wasn't any one's fault, it was a chemical imbalance in my brain and nothing changes that but the proper medication and a lot of therapy. Now that I am well, and as normal as the next guy, I find so much joy in the little things in life, and I really do count that as a blessing. I also can't change the past, and I regret a lot of it, but why waste one moment worrying about what happened yesterday? We are all here to learn, to grow, to love and to experience to the fullest the joys and wonders of life. How sad it would be if I were to be this well, and spend the rest of my life regretting the years I was ill? That would be a total waste.
I am blessed to have a truly wonderful husband that to me is a gift from God himself, 3 wonderful children that love us, and our seven intelligent and beautiful and sweet grandchildren that make our family circle a rich and vibrant color to paint the canvas of life with. When you find your inner peace, and "Your Words", you can alleviate much suffering in the lives of others. That's what I've been attempting to do here. I have much to give. I have a heart full of love and a desire to help others, but sadly, the folks never come here. And if they do, they don't find it interesting. It's not "hip", not the "In-thing" I guess. But there are people in need and I've come to realize that all the love I have poured out here could be better directed. I will post occasionally when I have something to say, but I am at peace over the disinterest and I know that my family needs things and my home needs some TLC that I am going to apply in great measure.
You do what's important to you, a very wise man once told me. It is very important to help others. I serve my God by helping others. But if no one ever avails themselves of the words I speak here, I will speak them somewhere else, but not with my voice only, but my actions. I learned at an early age what it feels like to be ignored and put aside. I didn't like it then, and I don't like it now. I can't force anyone to read this, I don't know if there's anyone out there who even needs it. But I have 2 eyes and I can see all around me the things I could improve. As I said, I will post occasionally as the mood strikes me, and I will share joyously the wonderful things I have in my own life. But I first and foremost am going to put my words into actions in my own life and in the lives of those I love and if I have time when I'm through with my day, I may say a word or 2. My 5 year old grandson has shown me the value of "my words". They are powerful and they give you confidence and self-assurance. My words are meant to heal and to help. More than that I cannot offer. If you need peace, I direct you to your own soul. If you find monsters there that need taming, do so. If you find worry, cast it out. If you need love, start loving yourself and transform yourself. Learn that "your words" have power to make you or break you. This
will be the essence of the posting.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Rapture of the Seasons
I am thankful for my life, the good earth, the fruits that life bears, and the seasons that march proudly through our lives, even though we live in Sunny California where the summers are long and hot, and the rain doesn't fall some years. I am from the valleys and mountains of a land far, far away and we had the seasons there. I have not forgotten and my childhood was filled with the wonders of nature. As I've stated previously, I was allowed to roam to my heart's content and I did. I loved the feel of the soft dirt on my bare feet, and many spring days were spent in the hills behind our house, laying in the grass and looking for 4-leaf clover. It was thought that if you found one, you'd have good luck! I remember a beautiful bracelet my Mother had that had a clover leaf enclosed on a gold medallion and covered with glass. I was fascinated with it and although I never wore it, I'd open the hope chest often just to look at it. Her Dad had given it to her, and everything he had given her was sacred in her eyes. Not for children to wear, but she would show me proudly the things he had given her. She loved him very much.
The seasons of my childhood have come back in my later years, whether for pinning for the hills of home, or just wanting to share a bit of nostalgia, doesn't matter. It was beautiful, wild and wonderful and I do miss it at times. So, the other day I was doing dishes and suddenly a phrase popped into my head, as it often does, and I dried my hands and went to write it down. Then the whole poem came to me in words that painted a picture of the world I knew as a child.
"The sages say quite seriously that those who wish to know Tao better should cultivate the poet in themselves." A sentence from my husbands Tao book. I am a strange bird. I am a Christian Taoist and Shaman all rolled into one. I do write poetry and this one springs from years ago, the words of a child experiencing all the wonders of the season. I thought I'd share it today and see if you like it as well.
Rapture of the Seasons
Heavenly Father, you lend your warmth and sensibilities to every Season.
In the fall there are warm colors to make our world a homey place!
Followed by the Christmas Season, filed with delights and seasoned with Grace.
In spring we have the Daffodils and Tulips in a row.
All the world is green and lush, nurtured by the winter snow.
Summer comes with thunderstorms and languid days of heat.
We don our shorts and summer frocks and run with our bare feet!
In all the seasons you are there in nature's beauty revealed.
And all our lives you care for us and our destinies are sealed.
You have a plan for every life, you nurture us with care,
and oh what sweet repose is ours, just knowing you are there.
It doesn't matter what we face on this great earth you made,
we have a friend who gave His Life, so we could all be saved.
Saved from ourselves and the sins we all have and given Eternal Life,
we come to your throne our joy to receive and find release from all strife.
Open our eyes and gladden our hearts and sweet repose we will find,
A part of your plan from beginning to end for you have made us Divine!
This may not resonate with many, it is more than just the seasons to consider. But the seasons to me are gifts of God's love and a part of his wonderful ways of nurturing our earth and bringing forth ever--unfolding new life. It is with a care-free spirit this is written. It speaks to me of days filled with goodness and the manifold blessings of the Grace God has bestowed upon us. Whether we were raised to believe in the great spirit, God, the Tao, or any other faith, the beauty of the earth cannot be denied and we are blessed in ways we can't comprehend in all our wildest dreams.
I am most grateful for my life. My family is a gift too from His manifold Grace. He gave me many gifts and not least among them is the gift of my soul-mate. He introduced me to the Tao and it took me years to really find it for myself. But it is real, and to me represents the spirit of life. God. The Universe and the ever unfolding nature of life. I could no more live a day of life without being grateful to God for my many blessings, than I could part the Red Sea myself. It is from a grateful spirit and the abundant love I feel for all life that this is written. You don't have to be religious to enjoy life. If you are in step with nature, and feel the heart-beat of life in your own body, you know the miracle of life itself even if it's not something you think about every day.
"All life is sacred". The Tao teaches us that. Your life, mine, every man, woman and child have a reason to be here. "And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt The Universe is unfolding as it should." From Desiderata.... All things have a purpose. All things are blessings. Even Death. For it is in dying that we are reborn into a new life, a new beginning, and for all of us, something that is mysterious and not fully explained. It isn't sad to pass away and become a part of the force that created life itself. It is a blessing, it is a going home. It is rest, and peace, new energy, new unfolding.....the great mystery explained.
.More than just a poem...it is the beating of a human heart.
The seasons of my childhood have come back in my later years, whether for pinning for the hills of home, or just wanting to share a bit of nostalgia, doesn't matter. It was beautiful, wild and wonderful and I do miss it at times. So, the other day I was doing dishes and suddenly a phrase popped into my head, as it often does, and I dried my hands and went to write it down. Then the whole poem came to me in words that painted a picture of the world I knew as a child.
"The sages say quite seriously that those who wish to know Tao better should cultivate the poet in themselves." A sentence from my husbands Tao book. I am a strange bird. I am a Christian Taoist and Shaman all rolled into one. I do write poetry and this one springs from years ago, the words of a child experiencing all the wonders of the season. I thought I'd share it today and see if you like it as well.
Rapture of the Seasons
Heavenly Father, you lend your warmth and sensibilities to every Season.
In the fall there are warm colors to make our world a homey place!
Followed by the Christmas Season, filed with delights and seasoned with Grace.
In spring we have the Daffodils and Tulips in a row.
All the world is green and lush, nurtured by the winter snow.
Summer comes with thunderstorms and languid days of heat.
We don our shorts and summer frocks and run with our bare feet!
In all the seasons you are there in nature's beauty revealed.
And all our lives you care for us and our destinies are sealed.
You have a plan for every life, you nurture us with care,
and oh what sweet repose is ours, just knowing you are there.
It doesn't matter what we face on this great earth you made,
we have a friend who gave His Life, so we could all be saved.
Saved from ourselves and the sins we all have and given Eternal Life,
we come to your throne our joy to receive and find release from all strife.
Open our eyes and gladden our hearts and sweet repose we will find,
A part of your plan from beginning to end for you have made us Divine!
This may not resonate with many, it is more than just the seasons to consider. But the seasons to me are gifts of God's love and a part of his wonderful ways of nurturing our earth and bringing forth ever--unfolding new life. It is with a care-free spirit this is written. It speaks to me of days filled with goodness and the manifold blessings of the Grace God has bestowed upon us. Whether we were raised to believe in the great spirit, God, the Tao, or any other faith, the beauty of the earth cannot be denied and we are blessed in ways we can't comprehend in all our wildest dreams.
I am most grateful for my life. My family is a gift too from His manifold Grace. He gave me many gifts and not least among them is the gift of my soul-mate. He introduced me to the Tao and it took me years to really find it for myself. But it is real, and to me represents the spirit of life. God. The Universe and the ever unfolding nature of life. I could no more live a day of life without being grateful to God for my many blessings, than I could part the Red Sea myself. It is from a grateful spirit and the abundant love I feel for all life that this is written. You don't have to be religious to enjoy life. If you are in step with nature, and feel the heart-beat of life in your own body, you know the miracle of life itself even if it's not something you think about every day.
"All life is sacred". The Tao teaches us that. Your life, mine, every man, woman and child have a reason to be here. "And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt The Universe is unfolding as it should." From Desiderata.... All things have a purpose. All things are blessings. Even Death. For it is in dying that we are reborn into a new life, a new beginning, and for all of us, something that is mysterious and not fully explained. It isn't sad to pass away and become a part of the force that created life itself. It is a blessing, it is a going home. It is rest, and peace, new energy, new unfolding.....the great mystery explained.
.More than just a poem...it is the beating of a human heart.
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Cherokee Shaman
This is not a new site, just a combination of 2 sites into one. I feel like writing about who I am today and what better way to get to know me than to know my background and where I am from...my humble beginnings if you please. I was born in West Virginia at Charleston General Hospital in 1946 on Christmas Eve. But I was soon to be transported to a little village back in the mountains, where I would grow and learn about life for the next 8 years of my own life. In this little village, I was free to roam about as I liked, never having to worry about being kidnapped, molested, or otherwise dealt a harsh blow, and I roamed to my hearts content. All the little houses were painted white and had green shingle roofs. It was a coal-mining town, and my grandfather was foreman of the mines. He passed away the same year I was born, back in February. My father too was a miner and picked slate and loaded coal cars for a living. He was a hard working man and my mother worked all day on the house and taking care of me. She idolized me and as I grew she saw many of her father's mannerisms in me. I slept flat of my back, like he did, and she said he could lay down on a narrow bench and fall asleep without ever falling off of it. He'd cross his arms over his chest and sleep away. He was of Dutch/German blood and was a stout fellow as far as I can tell from the only picture I have of him with my Mother.
My Grandmother, Elsie, had been his wife since she was 16. He passed away at 46 of a heart attack in his front yard after coming home from working at the mines all day. My father found his body and ran to get the doctor, but it was too late. He was gone. My Grandmothers Mother was Cherokee and had a long, silver braid that had never been cut. When I knew her she was bed fast, and we'd go to see them on holidays. She liked for me to sit on her bed and tell her stories. She was a big woman and suffered with diabetes and had a very difficult time of it. My grandmothers father had passed away, but he too was Cherokee, and my own fathers father was as well. Tall people. Dark people, with gentle ways and kind faces. I consider myself to be primarily Cherokee, with a splash of English mixed in for good measure. My fathers Mother was from Manchester, England and had come to America via ship when she was only 16. She was difficult to understand, but she was a very jolly person and had snow white hair when I knew her. She was very round and very sweet and of a mild nature. My fathers father passed away when my Dad was only 6.
The hills of home were covered with trees and plants of all kinds. You could pick fruit from many of them and it was delicious. There were black walnuts to be gathered, ramps to clean and cook, and greens of various sorts grew there as well. Everyone in the village had enclosed porches where they would string up the green beans from their gardens, and everyone traded fruits and vegetables. What one family had or didn't have, their neighbor did and the food was delicious. Berries grew wild there...strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and we had an apple tree in the front yard that yielded the best apples in town. My grandmother would cook them and make homemade fried apple pies for my grandfathers lunch and as treats for us. I can remember going for walks in the woods with my Dad and there was a fruit they called a Paw paw and he was tall enough to reach them. They were like a mango, but with smaller seeds. They were sweet, juicy and quite eatable. We always had fun when we went with him and the woods were full of all sorts of flowers and bushes. We also had a small river that ran through town and there were Beech-Nut trees all along the river and as with everything, you only had to run your hands through one of the branches and retrieve a hand full of beech nuts and you had yourself another treat! It was the perfect place to grown up in and I was truly sad when the mines closed down and we had to move to the city.
But I took something with me that I still have today. Jack calls me a "shaman". A Cherokee Shaman. I knew things. Things that were going to happen in the future. It didn't show up until much later in my life. Another name for it is "seer", or "prophet". It is a gift, one that I cherish and one that will go with me to my grave, and beyond. It happened even when I was younger, but I wasn't in tune with it yet...I wasn't paying enough attention. But it began really making itself known in my teen years. I knew, for instance, that someday I'd have twins and a little girl. I knew later on that I'd meet a man with the last name of Tyler, and the first initial of his name would be a J. I was fortunate to be a Navy child or I'd never have come to California and I never would have met Jack. We took a round-about way of getting here, but I came back to California at the age of 18, by myself. We had moved to California in 1963 and stayed for a year, but the Navy moved us then to Minnesota. I was very sick there. It was so cold and I was so depressed and just wanted to come back home. At 18 they couldn't keep me from coming back, and my grandmother helped me to afford the airplane ticket and home I did come.
I worked from the age of 19 at various odd jobs, and at 21 I got a job working for the Federal Government in a Civil Service Job. I had worked there for 10 years, when a new employee came to work there. His name was, you guessed it, Jack Tyler. I wasn't aware of the knowledge I had had at a much younger age, I just didn't recall it at the time. He watched how I was being treated, and began coaching me on ways to let my supervisors hang themselves. They would give me project after project and get angry when I hadn't finished the first one, and second one, while they were handing me a third one. He began teaching me about his philosophy, the Tao. It was his life blood and I through it was all very mysterious. I loved it, even if I didn't understand it.
One evening after work, I called him to see if I could come over just for a visit and to get to know one another. He said sure, gave me directions, and off I went. We sat in the floor listening to Led Zeppelin and talking for hours. When I got ready to leave, he followed me to my car, touched my shoulder and said, "sometimes all you need is a friend." Things progressed, one thing leading to another, and in July of that year, we were engaged to be married. On December 24th of 1975, we were married at my mothers house in Chula Vista and it seemed the whole world was decorated and celebrating our union. A year later, on November 17, I gave birth to twin sons. Brian and Alex. A year and 1/2 later, I had our baby girl, and our family was complete. It wasn't until recently that I told him I had known about things when I was a child, and I don't know if he believed me or not, but I had been looking for him, knowing the vicinity of San Diego he would live in, and I knew he had cats, and that he would make me feel at home. He did in ever way.
There have been many things in my life that I fore-knew. I'll try to recount them when I have more time. Back in my little home town, we had many animals. We had eagles in profusion and I identified with them I guess because once when Jack and I were on our way to work, we were talking about our favorite animal, one that we would like to be if we came back as an animal. His was the wolf, mine was the eagle. Years later he bought me a book on Cherokee Astrology. I am not one to be labeled by astrology, but it is interesting that my sign is the eagle. The little town was named Ameagle...short for American Eagle Colliery. It is interesting what it says about those born in the sign of the eagle, and a lot of it is exactly what I would describe myself as being.
None-the-less, I have always identified with the Cherokee people. I think they got a raw deal and I think they were decent people. Very misunderstood people. They are farmers at heart. Close to the earth and I feel very close to nature. It's hard to say whether it is because of where I lived as a child, or because of the basis for the Tao to interact with us, or that it is a part of who I am because of my ancestry. I am very fond of nature and feel a kinship with it. I can sense rain before it ever shows itself. Once I told Jack, on a perfectly sunny day, that it would be raining before he backed out of the drive way to go to work. He said, "sure it will", and didn't think anymore of it. He got ready to go to work, got in the truck, and as he neared the end of the driveway, the rain started. He doesn't think much about it anymore, because I do it all the time.
My granddaughter Venus is like me. He calls her the "Little Shaman". At the age of about 4 1/2, one day Venus was looking in the mirror and she calmly said, "Look in the mirror... what do you see? A child, a stranger...". She has had dreams about me and in her dream other people thought I was dumb. But she saw something about me and said "Grandma, you know a lot that people don't think you know!" I was shocked. At the time, I was on medication for a condition I have had for many years. Was born with it I think, but instead of it being a detriment, it has shown me many things about the human mind and the spirit of people. My spirit has taken many journeys...and is not limited by time and space. My soul is left in charge of my body and my life, and my spirit will go places I couldn't imagine in my wildest dreams. It does things for people that I don't know...it is mysterious even to me and I am considered very eccentric I am sure. The spirit is who we are. It is a part of everything we have experienced, and the things we will experience in the future. We all have gifts. Some of us are more aware than others, but it becomes apparent to us as the years go by.
Jack's gift from the Tao is the ability to heal. When I was 5 months pregnant with the twins, I got sick one night and he had to take me to the hospital. He had to wait in the waiting room while they were checking me out, and he became like a lens, focusing the power of the Tao into my body. I felt the immediate cessation of pain in my back and legs. As it turned out, I had a severe kidney and bladder infection. They gave me some medicine to take and a prescription to pick up the next day. But I went home with Jack pain free. He has used it often to help others. When our littlest grandson was born, he was very sick. He had pulmonary hypertension and was on all sorts of life support systems. I prayed, that's what I do. Jack focused the Tao to little Kris around the same time. The Doctor treating him was from India, and he had gone to the chapel to pray for Kris. We were on our way to drop our son off at home. After we dropped him off, we continued on our way, and before we got home, the phone rang and Brian told us that the Doctor said that a miracle had happened. Kris's lungs had expanded and he was breathing on his own. Even the doctor called it a miracle and was so excited he ran to get other doctors to come and look at the X-Rays of the baby's lungs.
These things are true. I have no reason to make it up. It is who we are. We were meant to be together and we are all of something much bigger than we can even imagine. In the Cherokee Astrology book, Jack's sign is the serpent. But rather than associate it with something bad, as in the Garden of Eden where sin was introduced into the world via the serpent beguiling the woman to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge, it says that Adam and Eve were growing soft and weak from their cushy lifestyle, and the serpent took a stick and stirred up the garden and introduced the human race to consciousness. To know the difference between right and wrong. They were tossed out of the Garden where they grew stronger and wiser having to deal with the elements of the real world. It is something to think about. I am a Christian first, but I use the Tao book everyday to make myself a better person. It has made me strong and independent and I can do much more than I ever thought possible. Look at the achievements mankind has made over the years. Would we have come so far if we had stayed in the Garden? Would we know how to have compassion on other people? Would we have ever walked on the moon, or invented cures for many illnesses that have befallen mankind? Something to think about. I like this sort of analytical thinking...I love reading about the various religions of the world and figuring out how they are all interrelated. I am who I am, and I like what I like and for now, that's a good introduction to the world I live in. I love to write poetry, and to post to my blog, and to make good food for my loved ones, and to visit our back yard daily with my husband where we sit under our orange tree and contemplate the life we have made together. We are very close, we share the bounty of life, and we are travelers on this road together. When one falls, the other one is there to help him or her up again. We don't fight, why would we? We are One and who fights with himself?
I wish you happy reading, I hope you find it interesting, and if you have a comment to make, please don't hesitate. And so I am beginning anew here today and I can guarantee that the posts in the future will be fun & interesting.
Regards,
Bonnie
My Grandmother, Elsie, had been his wife since she was 16. He passed away at 46 of a heart attack in his front yard after coming home from working at the mines all day. My father found his body and ran to get the doctor, but it was too late. He was gone. My Grandmothers Mother was Cherokee and had a long, silver braid that had never been cut. When I knew her she was bed fast, and we'd go to see them on holidays. She liked for me to sit on her bed and tell her stories. She was a big woman and suffered with diabetes and had a very difficult time of it. My grandmothers father had passed away, but he too was Cherokee, and my own fathers father was as well. Tall people. Dark people, with gentle ways and kind faces. I consider myself to be primarily Cherokee, with a splash of English mixed in for good measure. My fathers Mother was from Manchester, England and had come to America via ship when she was only 16. She was difficult to understand, but she was a very jolly person and had snow white hair when I knew her. She was very round and very sweet and of a mild nature. My fathers father passed away when my Dad was only 6.
The hills of home were covered with trees and plants of all kinds. You could pick fruit from many of them and it was delicious. There were black walnuts to be gathered, ramps to clean and cook, and greens of various sorts grew there as well. Everyone in the village had enclosed porches where they would string up the green beans from their gardens, and everyone traded fruits and vegetables. What one family had or didn't have, their neighbor did and the food was delicious. Berries grew wild there...strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and we had an apple tree in the front yard that yielded the best apples in town. My grandmother would cook them and make homemade fried apple pies for my grandfathers lunch and as treats for us. I can remember going for walks in the woods with my Dad and there was a fruit they called a Paw paw and he was tall enough to reach them. They were like a mango, but with smaller seeds. They were sweet, juicy and quite eatable. We always had fun when we went with him and the woods were full of all sorts of flowers and bushes. We also had a small river that ran through town and there were Beech-Nut trees all along the river and as with everything, you only had to run your hands through one of the branches and retrieve a hand full of beech nuts and you had yourself another treat! It was the perfect place to grown up in and I was truly sad when the mines closed down and we had to move to the city.
But I took something with me that I still have today. Jack calls me a "shaman". A Cherokee Shaman. I knew things. Things that were going to happen in the future. It didn't show up until much later in my life. Another name for it is "seer", or "prophet". It is a gift, one that I cherish and one that will go with me to my grave, and beyond. It happened even when I was younger, but I wasn't in tune with it yet...I wasn't paying enough attention. But it began really making itself known in my teen years. I knew, for instance, that someday I'd have twins and a little girl. I knew later on that I'd meet a man with the last name of Tyler, and the first initial of his name would be a J. I was fortunate to be a Navy child or I'd never have come to California and I never would have met Jack. We took a round-about way of getting here, but I came back to California at the age of 18, by myself. We had moved to California in 1963 and stayed for a year, but the Navy moved us then to Minnesota. I was very sick there. It was so cold and I was so depressed and just wanted to come back home. At 18 they couldn't keep me from coming back, and my grandmother helped me to afford the airplane ticket and home I did come.
I worked from the age of 19 at various odd jobs, and at 21 I got a job working for the Federal Government in a Civil Service Job. I had worked there for 10 years, when a new employee came to work there. His name was, you guessed it, Jack Tyler. I wasn't aware of the knowledge I had had at a much younger age, I just didn't recall it at the time. He watched how I was being treated, and began coaching me on ways to let my supervisors hang themselves. They would give me project after project and get angry when I hadn't finished the first one, and second one, while they were handing me a third one. He began teaching me about his philosophy, the Tao. It was his life blood and I through it was all very mysterious. I loved it, even if I didn't understand it.
One evening after work, I called him to see if I could come over just for a visit and to get to know one another. He said sure, gave me directions, and off I went. We sat in the floor listening to Led Zeppelin and talking for hours. When I got ready to leave, he followed me to my car, touched my shoulder and said, "sometimes all you need is a friend." Things progressed, one thing leading to another, and in July of that year, we were engaged to be married. On December 24th of 1975, we were married at my mothers house in Chula Vista and it seemed the whole world was decorated and celebrating our union. A year later, on November 17, I gave birth to twin sons. Brian and Alex. A year and 1/2 later, I had our baby girl, and our family was complete. It wasn't until recently that I told him I had known about things when I was a child, and I don't know if he believed me or not, but I had been looking for him, knowing the vicinity of San Diego he would live in, and I knew he had cats, and that he would make me feel at home. He did in ever way.
There have been many things in my life that I fore-knew. I'll try to recount them when I have more time. Back in my little home town, we had many animals. We had eagles in profusion and I identified with them I guess because once when Jack and I were on our way to work, we were talking about our favorite animal, one that we would like to be if we came back as an animal. His was the wolf, mine was the eagle. Years later he bought me a book on Cherokee Astrology. I am not one to be labeled by astrology, but it is interesting that my sign is the eagle. The little town was named Ameagle...short for American Eagle Colliery. It is interesting what it says about those born in the sign of the eagle, and a lot of it is exactly what I would describe myself as being.
None-the-less, I have always identified with the Cherokee people. I think they got a raw deal and I think they were decent people. Very misunderstood people. They are farmers at heart. Close to the earth and I feel very close to nature. It's hard to say whether it is because of where I lived as a child, or because of the basis for the Tao to interact with us, or that it is a part of who I am because of my ancestry. I am very fond of nature and feel a kinship with it. I can sense rain before it ever shows itself. Once I told Jack, on a perfectly sunny day, that it would be raining before he backed out of the drive way to go to work. He said, "sure it will", and didn't think anymore of it. He got ready to go to work, got in the truck, and as he neared the end of the driveway, the rain started. He doesn't think much about it anymore, because I do it all the time.
My granddaughter Venus is like me. He calls her the "Little Shaman". At the age of about 4 1/2, one day Venus was looking in the mirror and she calmly said, "Look in the mirror... what do you see? A child, a stranger...". She has had dreams about me and in her dream other people thought I was dumb. But she saw something about me and said "Grandma, you know a lot that people don't think you know!" I was shocked. At the time, I was on medication for a condition I have had for many years. Was born with it I think, but instead of it being a detriment, it has shown me many things about the human mind and the spirit of people. My spirit has taken many journeys...and is not limited by time and space. My soul is left in charge of my body and my life, and my spirit will go places I couldn't imagine in my wildest dreams. It does things for people that I don't know...it is mysterious even to me and I am considered very eccentric I am sure. The spirit is who we are. It is a part of everything we have experienced, and the things we will experience in the future. We all have gifts. Some of us are more aware than others, but it becomes apparent to us as the years go by.
Jack's gift from the Tao is the ability to heal. When I was 5 months pregnant with the twins, I got sick one night and he had to take me to the hospital. He had to wait in the waiting room while they were checking me out, and he became like a lens, focusing the power of the Tao into my body. I felt the immediate cessation of pain in my back and legs. As it turned out, I had a severe kidney and bladder infection. They gave me some medicine to take and a prescription to pick up the next day. But I went home with Jack pain free. He has used it often to help others. When our littlest grandson was born, he was very sick. He had pulmonary hypertension and was on all sorts of life support systems. I prayed, that's what I do. Jack focused the Tao to little Kris around the same time. The Doctor treating him was from India, and he had gone to the chapel to pray for Kris. We were on our way to drop our son off at home. After we dropped him off, we continued on our way, and before we got home, the phone rang and Brian told us that the Doctor said that a miracle had happened. Kris's lungs had expanded and he was breathing on his own. Even the doctor called it a miracle and was so excited he ran to get other doctors to come and look at the X-Rays of the baby's lungs.
These things are true. I have no reason to make it up. It is who we are. We were meant to be together and we are all of something much bigger than we can even imagine. In the Cherokee Astrology book, Jack's sign is the serpent. But rather than associate it with something bad, as in the Garden of Eden where sin was introduced into the world via the serpent beguiling the woman to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge, it says that Adam and Eve were growing soft and weak from their cushy lifestyle, and the serpent took a stick and stirred up the garden and introduced the human race to consciousness. To know the difference between right and wrong. They were tossed out of the Garden where they grew stronger and wiser having to deal with the elements of the real world. It is something to think about. I am a Christian first, but I use the Tao book everyday to make myself a better person. It has made me strong and independent and I can do much more than I ever thought possible. Look at the achievements mankind has made over the years. Would we have come so far if we had stayed in the Garden? Would we know how to have compassion on other people? Would we have ever walked on the moon, or invented cures for many illnesses that have befallen mankind? Something to think about. I like this sort of analytical thinking...I love reading about the various religions of the world and figuring out how they are all interrelated. I am who I am, and I like what I like and for now, that's a good introduction to the world I live in. I love to write poetry, and to post to my blog, and to make good food for my loved ones, and to visit our back yard daily with my husband where we sit under our orange tree and contemplate the life we have made together. We are very close, we share the bounty of life, and we are travelers on this road together. When one falls, the other one is there to help him or her up again. We don't fight, why would we? We are One and who fights with himself?
I wish you happy reading, I hope you find it interesting, and if you have a comment to make, please don't hesitate. And so I am beginning anew here today and I can guarantee that the posts in the future will be fun & interesting.
Regards,
Bonnie
Monday, July 23, 2012
New Ground
I updated Squeakings of a Housemouse today, and for some reason unbeknownst to me, it moved all of the posts around and labeled it as being done today. Disregard. Everything from this point in should post just fine. I am not ready to create a new post right at the present moment. It's something I will work on over the next few days, and I should be back in business after this entry. I hope you enjoy what you find here. I am looking for a new, fresh, and interesting blog for my readers to enjoy and ponder over. Every time I will try to vary the menu and hopefully will find that there's comething for everyone here. So sit back, relax, and get ready for a new post in a few days. I'm looking forward to entertaining you!
Regards,
Bonnie
Regards,
Bonnie
Sweet Memories
In years gone by, back before we had the Coronado Bay Bridge, there was a ferry landing at the foot of Broadway, one ferry for taking cars across, and a ferry (called the nickel snatcher) for people. Every morning, a friend of mine would meet me around 4:30 a.m. to walk to the bus stop on Hilltop Drive in Chula Vista, and we would sleep while the bus waited for folks in the area to come onboard. We would ride the bus, without having to transfer, to downtown San Diego. We then would get off fairly close to the harbor and have breakfast at a local eatery, & I believe the place was called Dixie's. We'd have a hearty breakfast of sunny-side up eggs, hashbrowns, bacon, toast and coffee and after they got to know us they always gave us extra large portions. We needed the energy though, because after breakfast, we would sometimes have to jog to the ferry landing, pay our fare, buy a newspaper and hot cocoa and find our seat on the ferry. We would wait for it to fill up and then slowly make our way across the bay, after which we would walk up to building 334 on Naval Air Station North Island. One morning it was quite foggy and we accidentally ran into another ferry. No one was hurt, but a few of us wore our drinks to work that day. In the summer months, the breeze on the bay was really refreshing. Some evenings, when we had had to work overtime, all our co-walkers would leave together and walk down to the landing and ride across the bay together.
The unit we worked in consisted of all women. Coreen and I were the youngest ones in that unit, we were 21. Later on a few more young people joined the group. But most of them were in their 30's and we all got along well together. I was young and inexperienced, but I was very proud of the fact that I had a desk job and my own typewriter and my own responsiblities. I was a fast and accurate typist and my job was typing up naval mesages and speedletters and mailing out status cards and filing and all the usual clerical responsibilities. I had a good relationship with everyone and we all really just enjoyed chatting as we went about our daily routine. I still remember when the Hong Kong Flu hit us and a lot of us were out for quite a while trying to recuperate. It was really bad. I was out for a week and when I went back in, there were only about 3 or 4 people in our unit that were working that day. I was still very weak, but felt I had been out long enough and went back to work on a Friday. I could have stayed home for the rest of that week and went back in on Monday, but I was coscientious in my younger years and so I went back before I really had to.
San Diego is a beautiful city, and has changed a lot over the years. The picture on this blog is the way it looks today, but back in the day when we rode the ferry there were a lot fewer buildings and the beautiful bridge was only a plan on paper. I didn't have to ride the bus for long. I eventually bought a car, a yellow Chevy Nova, and I would drive around the Strand to get to work. I loved my little car and I washed it every Saturday while listening to music and drinking ice cold Pepsi's. I lived at home for a while, but eventually a friend of mine invited me to share an apartment with her and so I moved out and lived with her in Imperial Beach. We had a lot of fun together, and every payday Friday we would cash our checks, buy food at Jack-In-the-Box, a couple of bottles of wine and party all weekend with friends. It was a lot of fun being on our own.
This is a good spot to end this little entry...just a few good memories of life when things wern't so fast and furious. Now I am retired and enjoying life as a grandmother of 7 wonderful grandchildren. I have always loved San Diego and I was unfortunate enough to have to move after I had been here only a year, but I turned 18 shortly after that and bought myself a one-way ticket home after a year of being away. I flew in to San Diego as the evening settled over the city and all the lights were on as we flew right over the top of some of the tallest buildings. I have watched San Diego change over the years and my husband has introduced me to many more of the sights of the city. I have a lot of wonderful memories which I would be delighted to share. So stay tuned for more entries as we go about living in, and enjoying together, the sights and sounds of a beautiful city.
The unit we worked in consisted of all women. Coreen and I were the youngest ones in that unit, we were 21. Later on a few more young people joined the group. But most of them were in their 30's and we all got along well together. I was young and inexperienced, but I was very proud of the fact that I had a desk job and my own typewriter and my own responsiblities. I was a fast and accurate typist and my job was typing up naval mesages and speedletters and mailing out status cards and filing and all the usual clerical responsibilities. I had a good relationship with everyone and we all really just enjoyed chatting as we went about our daily routine. I still remember when the Hong Kong Flu hit us and a lot of us were out for quite a while trying to recuperate. It was really bad. I was out for a week and when I went back in, there were only about 3 or 4 people in our unit that were working that day. I was still very weak, but felt I had been out long enough and went back to work on a Friday. I could have stayed home for the rest of that week and went back in on Monday, but I was coscientious in my younger years and so I went back before I really had to.
San Diego is a beautiful city, and has changed a lot over the years. The picture on this blog is the way it looks today, but back in the day when we rode the ferry there were a lot fewer buildings and the beautiful bridge was only a plan on paper. I didn't have to ride the bus for long. I eventually bought a car, a yellow Chevy Nova, and I would drive around the Strand to get to work. I loved my little car and I washed it every Saturday while listening to music and drinking ice cold Pepsi's. I lived at home for a while, but eventually a friend of mine invited me to share an apartment with her and so I moved out and lived with her in Imperial Beach. We had a lot of fun together, and every payday Friday we would cash our checks, buy food at Jack-In-the-Box, a couple of bottles of wine and party all weekend with friends. It was a lot of fun being on our own.
This is a good spot to end this little entry...just a few good memories of life when things wern't so fast and furious. Now I am retired and enjoying life as a grandmother of 7 wonderful grandchildren. I have always loved San Diego and I was unfortunate enough to have to move after I had been here only a year, but I turned 18 shortly after that and bought myself a one-way ticket home after a year of being away. I flew in to San Diego as the evening settled over the city and all the lights were on as we flew right over the top of some of the tallest buildings. I have watched San Diego change over the years and my husband has introduced me to many more of the sights of the city. I have a lot of wonderful memories which I would be delighted to share. So stay tuned for more entries as we go about living in, and enjoying together, the sights and sounds of a beautiful city.
A Touch of Fall...or Is It Winter?
Summer is over, and the skies are grey. But we seem to have skipped fall altogether! One day it was 85, the next day we have grey skies, wind, and rain. It doesn't seem like fall at all. Where are the falling leves of gold and brown, and the days were mellow like Indian Summer? A lot of folks, just like myself, don't mind the change in weather. My feet swell up in the summer, and the days were hot and dull. But many others can't get it hot enough! At least here in sunny San Diego. With beaches to frequent, it isn't surprising.
But I like the rain and the cloudy skies and the occasionsl clap of thunder, or a flash of lightening. My daughter went out yesterday and clipped all the newly blooming roses from our rose garden and we brought them in to enjoy rather than letting the winds blow them helter-skelter. They smell so good! Their rich, warm colors are a nice touch in the living room.
I spent 3 years in Kodiak, Alaska where the warmest days of summer got up to 65 degrees! In the winter, the perma-frost would turn the first rains of winter into sheets of ice, and the temperature would dip to 10 below 0. There were storms in the winter months called willawahs and the winds got up to 100 MPH. We got use to it I guess, because we would walk to school in that and find our way home in blinding blizzards! I remember one day especially when my glasses
iced up and everything was white. You couldn't see anything beyond the reach of your own arm. I don't know how I ever made it home.
One time, our Mom came to get us at school because of the weather, and the car wouldn't climb the hill to get to the main road. She had started walking and some man gave her a ride to the school. I saw her go past my English class and her shoulders were heaped up with snow! She was headed to the kindergarten class to get my baby sister first. When she collected my brother and myself, we
left the building and she had us get in the car of the man who had given her a ride so he would take us to our car. When the owner of the car came out of the school and got in his car, he just stared at us. It was the wrong car. But when she told him the story of how the other person had given her a ride, he just laughed and asked us to show him where we wanted to go and he drove us to our car. Very understanding fellow!
I have also lived in Minnesota, and the temperature dipped to a chilly 55 degrees below zero! No one went out on days like that. I swear, at 10 degrees below zero, the sun came out and the snow began to melt! I went out on the porch to get the mail and I had shorts on. Bizzare weather to say the least. So, when the snow melted all the way, and Spring had come, I called the airlines in St. Paul and got a ticket for San Diego! I was 18 1/2 and I had had enough snow to last me a lifetime!
Somehow I have never regretted that decision. There have been scorching days when snow looked inviting, but never enough to make me leave California and look for a state that has snow in the winter. We have rain, and if you want to see snow, you can go to the mountains in the winter. But I'll take San Diego, and the heat, and the occasional earthquake, and rain in the winter! No more snow for me. The way the population has increased, I think there are a lot of people who agree with me. The sunny skies of San Diego have always felt like home to me. There are balmy days, cloudy days, rainy days, and enough variety to suit me. San Diego is pretty much perfect. I will never forget the lights of the city coming on as my plane flew low over the tall buildings of "Home", and I have never been unhappy enough in the heat, to move to any other place.
San Diego, you are just my cup of tea. . . or glass of iced tea! No matter the temperature, you will always be home to me!
But I like the rain and the cloudy skies and the occasionsl clap of thunder, or a flash of lightening. My daughter went out yesterday and clipped all the newly blooming roses from our rose garden and we brought them in to enjoy rather than letting the winds blow them helter-skelter. They smell so good! Their rich, warm colors are a nice touch in the living room.
I spent 3 years in Kodiak, Alaska where the warmest days of summer got up to 65 degrees! In the winter, the perma-frost would turn the first rains of winter into sheets of ice, and the temperature would dip to 10 below 0. There were storms in the winter months called willawahs and the winds got up to 100 MPH. We got use to it I guess, because we would walk to school in that and find our way home in blinding blizzards! I remember one day especially when my glasses
iced up and everything was white. You couldn't see anything beyond the reach of your own arm. I don't know how I ever made it home.
One time, our Mom came to get us at school because of the weather, and the car wouldn't climb the hill to get to the main road. She had started walking and some man gave her a ride to the school. I saw her go past my English class and her shoulders were heaped up with snow! She was headed to the kindergarten class to get my baby sister first. When she collected my brother and myself, we
left the building and she had us get in the car of the man who had given her a ride so he would take us to our car. When the owner of the car came out of the school and got in his car, he just stared at us. It was the wrong car. But when she told him the story of how the other person had given her a ride, he just laughed and asked us to show him where we wanted to go and he drove us to our car. Very understanding fellow!
I have also lived in Minnesota, and the temperature dipped to a chilly 55 degrees below zero! No one went out on days like that. I swear, at 10 degrees below zero, the sun came out and the snow began to melt! I went out on the porch to get the mail and I had shorts on. Bizzare weather to say the least. So, when the snow melted all the way, and Spring had come, I called the airlines in St. Paul and got a ticket for San Diego! I was 18 1/2 and I had had enough snow to last me a lifetime!
Somehow I have never regretted that decision. There have been scorching days when snow looked inviting, but never enough to make me leave California and look for a state that has snow in the winter. We have rain, and if you want to see snow, you can go to the mountains in the winter. But I'll take San Diego, and the heat, and the occasional earthquake, and rain in the winter! No more snow for me. The way the population has increased, I think there are a lot of people who agree with me. The sunny skies of San Diego have always felt like home to me. There are balmy days, cloudy days, rainy days, and enough variety to suit me. San Diego is pretty much perfect. I will never forget the lights of the city coming on as my plane flew low over the tall buildings of "Home", and I have never been unhappy enough in the heat, to move to any other place.
San Diego, you are just my cup of tea. . . or glass of iced tea! No matter the temperature, you will always be home to me!
Welcoming New Life to Planet Earth
After our honeymoon of two weeks was over, we went back to our jobs. It was different for me, because my new husband continued to tell me more and more about dealing with the people we worked with. They had to respect me more, because he was sitting right there in the same office. They couldn't stick their noses into our business any more. No more trips to the coffee room for Jack so they could tell him not to get involved with me. We continued as before, but my happiness was complete. I had someone to love and someone who loved me in return.
In March, I went in for a pregnancy test, but I already knew I was pregnant. The test came back positive and I was thrilled! A baby to love. As the pregnancy went on and I got bigger, I had to take a nap when we got home from work. Jack would let me sleep till around 7:00 p.m. and he would make us TV dinners and wake me up to eat. He was so sweet and considerate. He took good care of me and I flourished under his loving care and devotion. The doctor gave me pre-natal vitamins, and they also had me on water pills. In July I was 5 months along and one evening I developed severe back pains. I had to keep visiting the loo, and that night the pains got worse and Jack took me to Doctor's Hospital Emergency room. When we got there, there was a man taking wheel chairs into the hospital, and when he saw me he came running with a chair. They checked everthing out and determined I had a severe kidney and bladder infection. They gave me a prescription and released me. But while I was laying on the table in the emergency room, I suddenly started feeling better. I didn't know at the time, but Jack had gone just outside the room and was focusing all his love and care on me. He had told me a lot about the Tao, his religion, and how he was a lens, and able to focus this power to someone in need of help. I wouldn't have understood it, but I got better and was able to sleep that night after we got home. The next morning, Jack went and got my prescription filled. I was off work for a couple of days, but soon felt better and returned to work.
The boss harrassed me off and on, and when I had first got pregnant, I told him I needed to schedule maternity leave. He glared at me and asked me if I knew what I was talking about! I told him I had been a woman all my life, and knew very well what I was talking about! Just that sort of inane prattle was standared fare for me. They couldn't get past my diagnosis and apparently thought it meant I was mentally retarded or just plain stupid. But none the less, it soon became aparent that indeed I did know what I was talking about, and was indeed very pregnant! One day, he harrassed me so much I started bleeding and had to go to sick bay. They sent me home and told me to see my doctor. He told me I needed complete bed rest for a couple of days with my feet elevated. So I did just that. Not much changed at work. The only happy place for me was home, and our evenings together. We went for walks every night and Jack would tell me about the stars, and how everything was for me. We grew closer and closer. On the 4th of July we walked a few blocks away from the house and watched the fire works. I was so much in love with my new husband. I was happy for the first time in a very long while.
We went for all the doctor appointments, and I was doing really well. I wasn't gaining too much weight until November. I went in every week at that point and one week I had gained 10 lbs! The doctor said we should take some pictures to see just what was going on. Back then they didn't have ultrasound, so they did an X-ray. It was difficult to move around on the table, but after all the pictures were developed, they showed them to Jack and me. There were 2 babies! They had only been able to get one heart beat, but the pictures told the true story. I was so excited! But the only bad thing was that they were both in the breech position. The doctor said they would do a ceserean because breech birth would be too hard for me, as it was my first pregnancy.
That evening after we left the doctor office, we went to his Grandma Helen's house to tell them the news, but they wern't home. So we bought our TV dinners and went home. I couldn't eat. I was so excited. I took a walk down to the little market we shopped at and called my Mom's house. She wasn't there, but my brother was. I told him the news, but he had said earlier that I would probably have twin's because of how big I was getting. He was happy, and when my Mom came home and he told her about their being 2 babies, she didn't believe him because he had said that so often. I walked back home, and after we went to bed, I lay there wide awake and thinking about the prospect of 2 babies. It was 4:00 a.m. before I drifted off to sleep. At 5:00 a.m. I awoke with a start! It had felt like an earthquake in my stomach and my water broke! We hadn't even bought a bed yet for the baby, and here I was going into labor! Jack turned on the light, and was relieved that the ordeal would soon be over.
I went to the bathroom and changed clothes and put on his bathrobe and my slippers. My case for the hospital was already packed. I had been shopping and bought a pretty green nightgown and bathrobe and slippers, and had packed my makeup several weeks in advance. So we took my case, got in the car and headed for the hospital. We stopped at the market so Jack could alert my doctor, and then we left. The fiat had never ran so smoothly! I felt a pain just as we turned onto the freeway. When we got to the hospital, they had me put on a hospital gown and a little elderly man pushed me in a wheel chair to the lab where they took more pictures. I had wanted to have them naturally because back then they thought if you had one cesesarian, you couldn't have natural birth. My doctor had a specialist check me out, and he said I could have them naturally. So I decided to do just that.
Back then they didn't give you anything for the pain. You just had to suffer, and with 2 babies being born breech, the pain was excruciating. They gave me a cup of ice, and Jack stayed with me as long as they would let him. They would come in a check things out, and finally, after 8 hours of agony, one of the babies heart started slowing down and they decided to take me in and deliver the babies. Jack left at that point because they told him he would be in the way if something went wrong. He went to call my parents and his Mom and Grandma. It seemed like I was in the delivery room forever. They gave me a spinal, and there were several doctor's and a team of nurses there to take care of the babies. They delivered the first baby with forceps and disappeared with him. He was born bottom first, and the second baby was feet first. When they said they were both boys, I was thrilled. Most men want a son first and I had given Jack 2 sons! They held the second baby up for me to see, and I said "Hi, Baby! Don't cry!" I held up my hand to him and he grabbed my finger and stopped crying. Then they worked with me after the nurses left with the babies.
In March, I went in for a pregnancy test, but I already knew I was pregnant. The test came back positive and I was thrilled! A baby to love. As the pregnancy went on and I got bigger, I had to take a nap when we got home from work. Jack would let me sleep till around 7:00 p.m. and he would make us TV dinners and wake me up to eat. He was so sweet and considerate. He took good care of me and I flourished under his loving care and devotion. The doctor gave me pre-natal vitamins, and they also had me on water pills. In July I was 5 months along and one evening I developed severe back pains. I had to keep visiting the loo, and that night the pains got worse and Jack took me to Doctor's Hospital Emergency room. When we got there, there was a man taking wheel chairs into the hospital, and when he saw me he came running with a chair. They checked everthing out and determined I had a severe kidney and bladder infection. They gave me a prescription and released me. But while I was laying on the table in the emergency room, I suddenly started feeling better. I didn't know at the time, but Jack had gone just outside the room and was focusing all his love and care on me. He had told me a lot about the Tao, his religion, and how he was a lens, and able to focus this power to someone in need of help. I wouldn't have understood it, but I got better and was able to sleep that night after we got home. The next morning, Jack went and got my prescription filled. I was off work for a couple of days, but soon felt better and returned to work.
The boss harrassed me off and on, and when I had first got pregnant, I told him I needed to schedule maternity leave. He glared at me and asked me if I knew what I was talking about! I told him I had been a woman all my life, and knew very well what I was talking about! Just that sort of inane prattle was standared fare for me. They couldn't get past my diagnosis and apparently thought it meant I was mentally retarded or just plain stupid. But none the less, it soon became aparent that indeed I did know what I was talking about, and was indeed very pregnant! One day, he harrassed me so much I started bleeding and had to go to sick bay. They sent me home and told me to see my doctor. He told me I needed complete bed rest for a couple of days with my feet elevated. So I did just that. Not much changed at work. The only happy place for me was home, and our evenings together. We went for walks every night and Jack would tell me about the stars, and how everything was for me. We grew closer and closer. On the 4th of July we walked a few blocks away from the house and watched the fire works. I was so much in love with my new husband. I was happy for the first time in a very long while.
We went for all the doctor appointments, and I was doing really well. I wasn't gaining too much weight until November. I went in every week at that point and one week I had gained 10 lbs! The doctor said we should take some pictures to see just what was going on. Back then they didn't have ultrasound, so they did an X-ray. It was difficult to move around on the table, but after all the pictures were developed, they showed them to Jack and me. There were 2 babies! They had only been able to get one heart beat, but the pictures told the true story. I was so excited! But the only bad thing was that they were both in the breech position. The doctor said they would do a ceserean because breech birth would be too hard for me, as it was my first pregnancy.
That evening after we left the doctor office, we went to his Grandma Helen's house to tell them the news, but they wern't home. So we bought our TV dinners and went home. I couldn't eat. I was so excited. I took a walk down to the little market we shopped at and called my Mom's house. She wasn't there, but my brother was. I told him the news, but he had said earlier that I would probably have twin's because of how big I was getting. He was happy, and when my Mom came home and he told her about their being 2 babies, she didn't believe him because he had said that so often. I walked back home, and after we went to bed, I lay there wide awake and thinking about the prospect of 2 babies. It was 4:00 a.m. before I drifted off to sleep. At 5:00 a.m. I awoke with a start! It had felt like an earthquake in my stomach and my water broke! We hadn't even bought a bed yet for the baby, and here I was going into labor! Jack turned on the light, and was relieved that the ordeal would soon be over.
I went to the bathroom and changed clothes and put on his bathrobe and my slippers. My case for the hospital was already packed. I had been shopping and bought a pretty green nightgown and bathrobe and slippers, and had packed my makeup several weeks in advance. So we took my case, got in the car and headed for the hospital. We stopped at the market so Jack could alert my doctor, and then we left. The fiat had never ran so smoothly! I felt a pain just as we turned onto the freeway. When we got to the hospital, they had me put on a hospital gown and a little elderly man pushed me in a wheel chair to the lab where they took more pictures. I had wanted to have them naturally because back then they thought if you had one cesesarian, you couldn't have natural birth. My doctor had a specialist check me out, and he said I could have them naturally. So I decided to do just that.
Back then they didn't give you anything for the pain. You just had to suffer, and with 2 babies being born breech, the pain was excruciating. They gave me a cup of ice, and Jack stayed with me as long as they would let him. They would come in a check things out, and finally, after 8 hours of agony, one of the babies heart started slowing down and they decided to take me in and deliver the babies. Jack left at that point because they told him he would be in the way if something went wrong. He went to call my parents and his Mom and Grandma. It seemed like I was in the delivery room forever. They gave me a spinal, and there were several doctor's and a team of nurses there to take care of the babies. They delivered the first baby with forceps and disappeared with him. He was born bottom first, and the second baby was feet first. When they said they were both boys, I was thrilled. Most men want a son first and I had given Jack 2 sons! They held the second baby up for me to see, and I said "Hi, Baby! Don't cry!" I held up my hand to him and he grabbed my finger and stopped crying. Then they worked with me after the nurses left with the babies.
Friday, July 6, 2012
A Delicious Dessert - No Cooking Required
This dessert is delicious, easy to make, and I believe even if you have diabetes, you can still partake of this light treat. Absolutely no cooking required.
Angel Food Cake, which you can get at any supermarket, a container of fresh strawberries, or berries of any kind, and a huge container of creamy Cool Whip.
Slice the angel food cake into bite size peices. Wash the berries, drain and gently pat dry. Select your prettiest clear glasses or bowls, and layer the angel food cake, top with berries, and put as much cool whip as you desire between the layers and then on top, a dollop of cool whip and a berry on top!
Serve with a fresh pot of your favorite coffee, and enjoy. Makes a delightful, light dessert after a big dinner, or as a bedtime treat.
Another treat if you want something cool to drink: Make a strong pot of coffee, turn off and let cool. Sit pot in fridge for a couple of hours to really chill. When sufficiently chilled, put your favorite sweetner in a large glass, pour in the coffee to a little over half full, add ice and your favorite flavored coffee creamer, or your favorite flavoring (ie: Vanilla) to the mix, stir and enjoy. Tastes just as good as Starbucks and doesn't cost a lot to make. Simply refreshing and quite a favorite around the Tyler household.
Angel Food Cake, which you can get at any supermarket, a container of fresh strawberries, or berries of any kind, and a huge container of creamy Cool Whip.
Slice the angel food cake into bite size peices. Wash the berries, drain and gently pat dry. Select your prettiest clear glasses or bowls, and layer the angel food cake, top with berries, and put as much cool whip as you desire between the layers and then on top, a dollop of cool whip and a berry on top!
Serve with a fresh pot of your favorite coffee, and enjoy. Makes a delightful, light dessert after a big dinner, or as a bedtime treat.
Another treat if you want something cool to drink: Make a strong pot of coffee, turn off and let cool. Sit pot in fridge for a couple of hours to really chill. When sufficiently chilled, put your favorite sweetner in a large glass, pour in the coffee to a little over half full, add ice and your favorite flavored coffee creamer, or your favorite flavoring (ie: Vanilla) to the mix, stir and enjoy. Tastes just as good as Starbucks and doesn't cost a lot to make. Simply refreshing and quite a favorite around the Tyler household.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Taco Dogs
One of my favorite treaets is just a plain old hot dog! I have a new twist and I hope you will try it and let me know what you think! The ingredients are listed below:
Ingredients
1 Package Ball Park Franks
1 Package Wheat Hot Dog buns
1 Package Taco Mix
1 Package Extra Lean Hamburger
1 White Onion Chopped finely
1 Bottle Your favorite mustard
1 Bottle Taco Sauce
1 Small can tomato sauce
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Brown 1/2 white onion, chopped, in a little olive oil. Add hamburger and brown. Drain off excess fat. Add 1 package taco seasoning following instructions on package and add small can tomato sauce. Boil franks or brown in small amount of margerine, until throughly heated. Steam buns. Place frank on steamed bun, add your favorite mustard, onion and taco meat. Top with Taco sauce and serve with your favorite side dish.
These are easy to make and a delicious change from regular hot dogs. I like to serve them with regular Pork N Beans, and a side of cole slaw.
Let me know what you think of this simple and tasty dish!
Ingredients
1 Package Ball Park Franks
1 Package Wheat Hot Dog buns
1 Package Taco Mix
1 Package Extra Lean Hamburger
1 White Onion Chopped finely
1 Bottle Your favorite mustard
1 Bottle Taco Sauce
1 Small can tomato sauce
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Brown 1/2 white onion, chopped, in a little olive oil. Add hamburger and brown. Drain off excess fat. Add 1 package taco seasoning following instructions on package and add small can tomato sauce. Boil franks or brown in small amount of margerine, until throughly heated. Steam buns. Place frank on steamed bun, add your favorite mustard, onion and taco meat. Top with Taco sauce and serve with your favorite side dish.
These are easy to make and a delicious change from regular hot dogs. I like to serve them with regular Pork N Beans, and a side of cole slaw.
Let me know what you think of this simple and tasty dish!
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Round Steak Porridge
Greetings One and all! To make this receipe, you will need a crockpot, or use a heavy spaghetti pot or a large deep skillet with a lid. This is something I made up on the spur of the moment yesterday and if you don't have a crockpot, I would buy one as they do the work while you do other things. If you are like me, you are busy and don't have time to stand at the stove when making a hearty and substantial meal for your loved ones. I swear by mine and intend to put it into more use.
The ingredients you will need are as follows:
4 pieces of Eye of Round Steak, cut into bite size peices after trimming off any excess fat.
4 or 5 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into thick slices.
1/2 bag of the small carrots
1/4 of a green bell pepper, sliced into thin slices
1/2 of a large white onion, cut into good size peices and separated
Salt, Mrs. Dash (Garlic & Red Pepper), pepper and a dash of Rosemary
Worchestershire, to your liking
Steak Sauce, again to your liking.
1 can of Chili Tomatoes
1 can of tomato Sauce
Put all ingredients into pot and select the high heat setting, or if you are cooking on the stove, set on medium heat and stir occasionally to keep from sticking. I cooked the porridge for 3 hours on high, and then one hour on low. I served it with the following delicious bread recipe:
1 loaf of French bread cut in half horizontally, and then cut in half vertically. If you have a large family, you can use the whole loaf. Spread generously with butter or margarine and cover top of bread with plenty of the same Mrs. Dash you used for the porridge. Turn oven on to 400 degrees and let warm up. Place the bread in for about 12 minutes and remove from oven and slice. Delicious dipped in the broth of the porridge.
Hope you find this dish to your liking. It hasn't been declared summer yet, even though we are having warm weather, and this dish is good for a late supper served with a tossed salad of your liking. Delicious!
Bon Apetite'!
The ingredients you will need are as follows:
4 pieces of Eye of Round Steak, cut into bite size peices after trimming off any excess fat.
4 or 5 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into thick slices.
1/2 bag of the small carrots
1/4 of a green bell pepper, sliced into thin slices
1/2 of a large white onion, cut into good size peices and separated
Salt, Mrs. Dash (Garlic & Red Pepper), pepper and a dash of Rosemary
Worchestershire, to your liking
Steak Sauce, again to your liking.
1 can of Chili Tomatoes
1 can of tomato Sauce
Put all ingredients into pot and select the high heat setting, or if you are cooking on the stove, set on medium heat and stir occasionally to keep from sticking. I cooked the porridge for 3 hours on high, and then one hour on low. I served it with the following delicious bread recipe:
1 loaf of French bread cut in half horizontally, and then cut in half vertically. If you have a large family, you can use the whole loaf. Spread generously with butter or margarine and cover top of bread with plenty of the same Mrs. Dash you used for the porridge. Turn oven on to 400 degrees and let warm up. Place the bread in for about 12 minutes and remove from oven and slice. Delicious dipped in the broth of the porridge.
Hope you find this dish to your liking. It hasn't been declared summer yet, even though we are having warm weather, and this dish is good for a late supper served with a tossed salad of your liking. Delicious!
Bon Apetite'!
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Poetry to Ponder
Sometimes a poem can distract us from the sober business of life, and often give us a different perspective. I wrote CARNIVAL about 3 years ago in one of my lighter moments. I am much too serious most of the time, and sometimes we just need something light and airy. CARNIVAL is just that.
The second poem, HAPPINESS, is a discourse on all the beauty I have found in life and a hope that you too will find the same happiness. It takes all types of happiness to make a world. If you like them, feel free to comment. I love hearing from folks! ENJOY!
CARNIVAL
Life is a carnival, tried and true,
It makes silly clowns of me and you.
We ride all the rides, and eat so much food
throw caution to the wind if we're in the mood.
When the fun day is over, we look to the skies,
and see all the stars, it's no surprise.
I wonder what manner of God He can be,
when He gave it all up for clowns like we.
The light show continues, through the hours of
the night
And the sun that is rising, put's worries to flight!
Carnival....enjoy it!
HAPPINESS
My life is full, like a red, red rose
Just how it happens I don't know.
I ponder it often, a secret to find
perhaps its the people who've been so kind.
Perhaps its the robin in the distant trees,
Perhaps its our pet, asleep on my knees.
It could be the grandkids who are so sweet,
or even the slippers upon tired feet.
Whatever the reason I hope you find, a life
full of happiness and peace devine.
Smell all the roses, so lovely & sweet,
greet all the people you happen to meet.
Gaze at the sunsets so warm in the sky,
ponder the Blue Jay as he flies by.
There's so much to enjoy, and so much
to see,
The beauty of life, the waves of the sea.
Life is a treasure and I hope you find,
a life full of meaning,
A path that is kind.
The second poem, HAPPINESS, is a discourse on all the beauty I have found in life and a hope that you too will find the same happiness. It takes all types of happiness to make a world. If you like them, feel free to comment. I love hearing from folks! ENJOY!
CARNIVAL
Life is a carnival, tried and true,
It makes silly clowns of me and you.
We ride all the rides, and eat so much food
throw caution to the wind if we're in the mood.
When the fun day is over, we look to the skies,
and see all the stars, it's no surprise.
I wonder what manner of God He can be,
when He gave it all up for clowns like we.
The light show continues, through the hours of
the night
And the sun that is rising, put's worries to flight!
Carnival....enjoy it!
HAPPINESS
My life is full, like a red, red rose
Just how it happens I don't know.
I ponder it often, a secret to find
perhaps its the people who've been so kind.
Perhaps its the robin in the distant trees,
Perhaps its our pet, asleep on my knees.
It could be the grandkids who are so sweet,
or even the slippers upon tired feet.
Whatever the reason I hope you find, a life
full of happiness and peace devine.
Smell all the roses, so lovely & sweet,
greet all the people you happen to meet.
Gaze at the sunsets so warm in the sky,
ponder the Blue Jay as he flies by.
There's so much to enjoy, and so much
to see,
The beauty of life, the waves of the sea.
Life is a treasure and I hope you find,
a life full of meaning,
A path that is kind.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Oven Potato Fries
This recipe comes from THE DASH DIET ACTION PLAN Book I bought at Barnes and Noble. You wouldn't think a diet book would tell you how to make fries, but these only have 147 calories per serving. It is a fantastic recipe and one of the best potato fries I have ever had! Without further adeiux I will give you the recipe and I dare you to eat just one!
4 medium baking potatoes (about 1 1/2 - 2 pounds)
2 teaspoons salt-free seasoning mix (or 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/2
teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
nonstick cooking spray
Preheat over to 450 degrees F.
Slice potatoes into wedges, with a maximum width of 1/2 inch. Place potato slices, oil, and seasonings into a plastic zipper bag. Shake well to distribute seasonings on potato surfaces.
Spray baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange potato slices on baking sheet. (To minimize clean up, you can line baking sheet first with aluminum foil.)
Bake at 450 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes, or until golden brown.
Yield: 6 servings, Nutrition DASHboard: 147 calories, 35. g protein, 29 g carbohydrates, 2.5 g fat, o mg cholesterol, 3 g fiber, 14 mg sodium, 732 mg potassium.
(I fudged a little and used a little Lite Salt because I like it, and I also went a little over the recommended amount of pepper. We like Ketchup with our fries and I found a great one at the .99C store that has Tabisco Sauce in it as well. It's a Heinz Ketchup and you may be able to find it at other supermarkets.)
I served these with a very lean burger and everyone loved the meal. There are wheat buns available if you have an aversion to white bread, and we also used the Ketchup, Mustard, Miracle Whip, Onion slices and Pickles on the burgers. Fantastic taste treat!
Another recipe that trims the old wasteline, is a delicious recipe from the same book, for TACOS.
1 pound extra lean ground sirloin, 95 percent lean
1/2 bottle mile or medium taco sauce
1 cup diced onions, fresh or frozen
1 cup diced green peppers, fresh or frozen (I used fresh and chopped it into small
bits.)
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef, cook 3 minutes, turn down heat to medium. Add onions and peppers. Continue cooking 5 or more minutes, or until throughly browned.
Add taco sauce, reduce heat and simmer 5 - 10 minutes.
Serve on taco shells warmed in microwave for 10 seconds.
Yield: 4 servings (enough for 3 medium-sized tacos for each serving). Nutrition DASHboard: 140 calories, 17 g protein, 7 g carbohydrates, 4 g fat, 48 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 164 mg sodium, 344 mg potassium.
These are just 2 of the fantastic recipes in this book. If you like them, let me know and I'll post them as we try them. They are all healthy and the ones I've tried so far have all been delicious!
Good eating for the whole family!
4 medium baking potatoes (about 1 1/2 - 2 pounds)
2 teaspoons salt-free seasoning mix (or 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/2
teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
nonstick cooking spray
Preheat over to 450 degrees F.
Slice potatoes into wedges, with a maximum width of 1/2 inch. Place potato slices, oil, and seasonings into a plastic zipper bag. Shake well to distribute seasonings on potato surfaces.
Spray baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange potato slices on baking sheet. (To minimize clean up, you can line baking sheet first with aluminum foil.)
Bake at 450 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes, or until golden brown.
Yield: 6 servings, Nutrition DASHboard: 147 calories, 35. g protein, 29 g carbohydrates, 2.5 g fat, o mg cholesterol, 3 g fiber, 14 mg sodium, 732 mg potassium.
(I fudged a little and used a little Lite Salt because I like it, and I also went a little over the recommended amount of pepper. We like Ketchup with our fries and I found a great one at the .99C store that has Tabisco Sauce in it as well. It's a Heinz Ketchup and you may be able to find it at other supermarkets.)
I served these with a very lean burger and everyone loved the meal. There are wheat buns available if you have an aversion to white bread, and we also used the Ketchup, Mustard, Miracle Whip, Onion slices and Pickles on the burgers. Fantastic taste treat!
Another recipe that trims the old wasteline, is a delicious recipe from the same book, for TACOS.
1 pound extra lean ground sirloin, 95 percent lean
1/2 bottle mile or medium taco sauce
1 cup diced onions, fresh or frozen
1 cup diced green peppers, fresh or frozen (I used fresh and chopped it into small
bits.)
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef, cook 3 minutes, turn down heat to medium. Add onions and peppers. Continue cooking 5 or more minutes, or until throughly browned.
Add taco sauce, reduce heat and simmer 5 - 10 minutes.
Serve on taco shells warmed in microwave for 10 seconds.
Yield: 4 servings (enough for 3 medium-sized tacos for each serving). Nutrition DASHboard: 140 calories, 17 g protein, 7 g carbohydrates, 4 g fat, 48 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 164 mg sodium, 344 mg potassium.
These are just 2 of the fantastic recipes in this book. If you like them, let me know and I'll post them as we try them. They are all healthy and the ones I've tried so far have all been delicious!
Good eating for the whole family!
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Try This Baked Potato for Trimming Down
My husband is pre-diabetic and had to change his eating habits. He loves baked potatoes, and I had to replace the butter and toppings. It is none the less delicious and it accomplishes filling him up, without all the butter and fat.
Medium Sized Potato (Scrubbed clean and dryed)
Place in container of your choice, and place in microwave for 5 minutes.
Remove from microwave, cut in half, use a fork and mash the potato.
Spray with "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" to your liking, but not more than necessary to coat lightly.
Cut up blades of green onion and top potato with cuttings.
Sprinkle with Mrs. Dash of your choice
Add One and 1/2 tablespoons of your favorite salsa and enjoy!
If you have no health conditions, you can apply butter to your liking instead of the spray, add your favorite toppings, green onion and Mrs. Dash for a delicious lunch or light supper with a tossed green salad.
For a tasty treat, warm up a can of chili con carne and cover baked potato with chili, top with sourcream and onions. Delicious.
You can doctor up a baked potato with just about anything. Try for a delicious taste treat!
Medium Sized Potato (Scrubbed clean and dryed)
Place in container of your choice, and place in microwave for 5 minutes.
Remove from microwave, cut in half, use a fork and mash the potato.
Spray with "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" to your liking, but not more than necessary to coat lightly.
Cut up blades of green onion and top potato with cuttings.
Sprinkle with Mrs. Dash of your choice
Add One and 1/2 tablespoons of your favorite salsa and enjoy!
If you have no health conditions, you can apply butter to your liking instead of the spray, add your favorite toppings, green onion and Mrs. Dash for a delicious lunch or light supper with a tossed green salad.
For a tasty treat, warm up a can of chili con carne and cover baked potato with chili, top with sourcream and onions. Delicious.
You can doctor up a baked potato with just about anything. Try for a delicious taste treat!
Friday, March 30, 2012
Vegetables Anyone?
Hello Everyone! A bit of news first..... My husband and I just attended a class on pre-diabetes. He has to change the way he eats in order to prevent full-blown diabetes, which could show up in 2 to 10 years if he doesn't follow his new diet. One of the things that the speaker recommended was a homemade vegetable soup, which he can partake of wheneve he wants to during the day. That's not all he can have of course, and I am going to post here, how to go about making this life-safer soup.
I can recall when I was in elementary school back in the hills of West Virginia, during the winter months the cafeteria would make a delicious vegetable soup and peanut butter and honey sandwiches, with apples for desert and milk. It always smelled so good and I know it was healthy. The schools back in West Virginia made very nutritious and tasty food and I know because I attended a total of 15 schools before I graduated from high school. In all fairness, I attended school there until I was in 7th grade then we started moving because my Father went back in the Navy to provide for us. So, here is my idea of a wonderful vegetable soup, and I recommend adding a nice peanut-butter and honey sandwich on the side. It is hearty and healthy and I hope you enjoy it!
Ingredients: 6 Potatoes, scrubbed and cut into quarters
2 Cans of whole kernel corn
1/2 Bag of frozen peas
1 Can butter beans
1 Can Lima Beans
2 Cans diced tomatoes
1 Large Can V-8 Juice
2-3 Cans tomato sauce
3 or 4 Stalks of celery diced small
with strings removed
1 Large Sweet Vidalia Onion diced
Season pot with as much Mrs. Dash Seasoning
as you prefer, there are several varities to choose from.
Bring V-8 juice, diced tomatoes, and the cans of tomato sauce to a slight boil, add one cup of water, stir to mix and lower heat. (This can also be made in a crock pot of you have one. Preferably a large one.) Scrub potatoes and cut into quarters. Dice celery and onion and add all 3 ingredients to the pot. Put on a med heat and check back every so often and check the potatoes by inserting fork into potatoes to see if they are soft. When potatoes are soft, not mushy, add all the canned ingredients, stir well, turn to low heat and stir frequently to keep vegetables from sticking to bottom of pan and burning. Cook for about 30 min after potatoes are done to your liking. Serve with sandwiches, milk and fruit for a satisfying and delicious lunch.
There will be many more recipes for your perusal as I plan to keep Jack around for many years! I have to begin reading labels, checking for carbohydrates and fat's and I will be busy cooking up good recipes for him and I am more than happy to share. He helped me when I had a heart attack, as a matter of fact the whole family ate what was good for me. We will do the same for him. These recipes aren't only for diabetics or even pre-diabetics. We all need to eat less carbs and fat's and the food doesn't have to be bland and uninteresting. I love to cook up new recipes, so stand by with your computers, and check often for new ideas and hopefully delicious meals for you to try.
I will post a recipe for Swai, which is a very good fish for those who don't like a realy fishy taste. They are mild and meaty, and are really delicious. I used a Fish Fry breading, which is available at your local WALMART. But I'll post that next, along with another recipe for Jack's health. Happy cooking and happy eating!
I can recall when I was in elementary school back in the hills of West Virginia, during the winter months the cafeteria would make a delicious vegetable soup and peanut butter and honey sandwiches, with apples for desert and milk. It always smelled so good and I know it was healthy. The schools back in West Virginia made very nutritious and tasty food and I know because I attended a total of 15 schools before I graduated from high school. In all fairness, I attended school there until I was in 7th grade then we started moving because my Father went back in the Navy to provide for us. So, here is my idea of a wonderful vegetable soup, and I recommend adding a nice peanut-butter and honey sandwich on the side. It is hearty and healthy and I hope you enjoy it!
Ingredients: 6 Potatoes, scrubbed and cut into quarters
2 Cans of whole kernel corn
1/2 Bag of frozen peas
1 Can butter beans
1 Can Lima Beans
2 Cans diced tomatoes
1 Large Can V-8 Juice
2-3 Cans tomato sauce
3 or 4 Stalks of celery diced small
with strings removed
1 Large Sweet Vidalia Onion diced
Season pot with as much Mrs. Dash Seasoning
as you prefer, there are several varities to choose from.
Bring V-8 juice, diced tomatoes, and the cans of tomato sauce to a slight boil, add one cup of water, stir to mix and lower heat. (This can also be made in a crock pot of you have one. Preferably a large one.) Scrub potatoes and cut into quarters. Dice celery and onion and add all 3 ingredients to the pot. Put on a med heat and check back every so often and check the potatoes by inserting fork into potatoes to see if they are soft. When potatoes are soft, not mushy, add all the canned ingredients, stir well, turn to low heat and stir frequently to keep vegetables from sticking to bottom of pan and burning. Cook for about 30 min after potatoes are done to your liking. Serve with sandwiches, milk and fruit for a satisfying and delicious lunch.
There will be many more recipes for your perusal as I plan to keep Jack around for many years! I have to begin reading labels, checking for carbohydrates and fat's and I will be busy cooking up good recipes for him and I am more than happy to share. He helped me when I had a heart attack, as a matter of fact the whole family ate what was good for me. We will do the same for him. These recipes aren't only for diabetics or even pre-diabetics. We all need to eat less carbs and fat's and the food doesn't have to be bland and uninteresting. I love to cook up new recipes, so stand by with your computers, and check often for new ideas and hopefully delicious meals for you to try.
I will post a recipe for Swai, which is a very good fish for those who don't like a realy fishy taste. They are mild and meaty, and are really delicious. I used a Fish Fry breading, which is available at your local WALMART. But I'll post that next, along with another recipe for Jack's health. Happy cooking and happy eating!
Monday, March 12, 2012
Healthy Eating
I apologize for not posting for so long. I have been busy with grandchildren and just feeling lazy. I made something over the weekend for the grandchildren to enjoy and so I thought I'd post it here. It is easy and very simple and oh so tasty.
Ingredients
6 baking potatoes slided lengthwise
4 large chicken breasts
Mrs. Dash (as much as you like)
1 can cream of chicken soup
Pam
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray large caserole dish with Pam Non-Stick Cooking Spray. Clean potatoes and slice lengthwise. Rinse chicken breasts, trim off fat and slice into strips. Place slices of potato in caserole. (I used a glass caserole instead of metal) Layer chicken on top of poratoes.
Sprinkle with Mrs. Dash generously and a little lemon pepper seasining. Warm up cream of chicken soup and add 1/2 can milk. Pour over chicken and potatoes, and cover with tin foil.
Bake on top shelf of oven for 1 hour. I also made a pan of biscuits, I used the premade frozen ones that only require baking to enjoy. No muss, no fuss. You will enjoy the hot buttered biscuits along with the creamy potatoes and chicken. My grand children are rather fussy about what they will and will not eat, so I didn't wax inventive with them. If you desired, you could add onions and carrots and maybe even a healthy helping of frozen peas. But that would be something they wouldn't eat so I just made it simple and tasty!
Enjoy!
Regards, Bonnie
Ingredients
6 baking potatoes slided lengthwise
4 large chicken breasts
Mrs. Dash (as much as you like)
1 can cream of chicken soup
Pam
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray large caserole dish with Pam Non-Stick Cooking Spray. Clean potatoes and slice lengthwise. Rinse chicken breasts, trim off fat and slice into strips. Place slices of potato in caserole. (I used a glass caserole instead of metal) Layer chicken on top of poratoes.
Sprinkle with Mrs. Dash generously and a little lemon pepper seasining. Warm up cream of chicken soup and add 1/2 can milk. Pour over chicken and potatoes, and cover with tin foil.
Bake on top shelf of oven for 1 hour. I also made a pan of biscuits, I used the premade frozen ones that only require baking to enjoy. No muss, no fuss. You will enjoy the hot buttered biscuits along with the creamy potatoes and chicken. My grand children are rather fussy about what they will and will not eat, so I didn't wax inventive with them. If you desired, you could add onions and carrots and maybe even a healthy helping of frozen peas. But that would be something they wouldn't eat so I just made it simple and tasty!
Enjoy!
Regards, Bonnie
Sunday, February 5, 2012
A Treat for the Family
A sumptuous treat I haven't made in a while for my family is my own concoction for a wonderful pizza! The grandkids love it, and it is really tasty. On this Superbowl Sunday it's a quick meal and so tasty, you'll want to make more than one.
You can buy loaves of garlic bread at any supermarket, already bagged and ready to pop in the oven. But hold on a minute. Open the bag, open the bread to expose the butter, garlic, and onion, and apply yourself. I like to add more onion, black olives, pepper's, then pour on our favorite pizza sauce, or you can make your own if you don't like the store brands. On top of that I put the pepperoni, and you can add sausage or hamburger, bacon, or pineapple, whatever your preferences are. The key is in the bread. The garlic and onions and butter are good just like they are but when you add the other ingredients before popping it in the oven you have an exquisite pizza ! Oh, don't forget the cheese on top!
Pop into a 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes, keep an eye on it, and you have a great lunch or if you want to add a tossed salad with lots of crutons and ranch dressing, you have a feast fit for a Superbowl Sunday!
For desert you might want something light, so I suggest Angel Food Cake topped with your favorite chilled fruit and some cool whip. Delicious and a light taste pleaser for your loved ones.
Have a wonderful Sunday, and happy eating!
You can buy loaves of garlic bread at any supermarket, already bagged and ready to pop in the oven. But hold on a minute. Open the bag, open the bread to expose the butter, garlic, and onion, and apply yourself. I like to add more onion, black olives, pepper's, then pour on our favorite pizza sauce, or you can make your own if you don't like the store brands. On top of that I put the pepperoni, and you can add sausage or hamburger, bacon, or pineapple, whatever your preferences are. The key is in the bread. The garlic and onions and butter are good just like they are but when you add the other ingredients before popping it in the oven you have an exquisite pizza ! Oh, don't forget the cheese on top!
Pop into a 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes, keep an eye on it, and you have a great lunch or if you want to add a tossed salad with lots of crutons and ranch dressing, you have a feast fit for a Superbowl Sunday!
For desert you might want something light, so I suggest Angel Food Cake topped with your favorite chilled fruit and some cool whip. Delicious and a light taste pleaser for your loved ones.
Have a wonderful Sunday, and happy eating!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Comfort Food for A Rainy Day
I accompanied my daughter to the store last weekend, and having decided to make some beef stew, I went to check out the packages of beef stew meat. I was shocked that they wanted close to $7.00 for a small package! I looked around and found a nice chuck steak for about $5.00, with very little fat. It was a nice size piece of steak and we only have 4 to feed, so we purchased that and a large can of tomato puree. Sunday I trimmed off the fat and cut the steak into bite size pieces. I browned them in a little olive oil, seasoned them with meat tenderizer, pepper, a little lite salt, and some mesquite seasoning. These are all available at your local Walmart. After I browned it for a little, I added Worcestershire Sauce and continued to cook the steak.
I don't know what's happened to the potato crops anymore, but they aren't much bigger than a good sized tangerine, so I dumped about 10 of them in the sink, scrubbed them clean and cut them into 4 pieces and put them in the stew pot about 3/4 full of cold water. I added about 1/2 large bag of small carrots, cut a large onion into 4 pieces and separated the layers and added that to the pot. The meat was nicely browned, so I then added it to the stew vegetables and put it on a medium flame.
As the stew began to cook, I added a little more salt, and added a large can of tomato puree and brought it to a boil. I then reduced the heat to a little less than a medium flame to prevent it from boiling over, added a lid and let it simmer for most of the day. Then, just before turning off the flame and enjoying this succulent dish, I added about 1/2 cup more of Worcestershire Sauce and stirred to mix it into the stew. It smelled heavenly.
I didn't make anything extra except some brown and serve biscuits with butter, but nothing else was needed. The stew was the best I've ever made. You don't have to get carried away with the Worcestershire Sauce, but we are big fans of it, and it really spiced up the meal. Use as much, or as little as desired. I'll list the ingredient's below and you might want to try making some garlic bread to go with it if you aren't a biscuit fan. My daughter loves biscuits, so that's what we had.
It really made for a hearty meal and the rain and the smell of the stew cooking, just added a cozy feel to the day. You might also try serving hot tea with lots of cream and sugar with it. I didn't, but it would have been just the icing on the cake.
Ingredients: Chuck Steak, trim off fat
and cut into bite sized pieces
10 medium size potatoes
cleaned and cut into 4ths
1/2 bag of small pre-cleaned carrots
1 large onion cut into 4 pieces
Meat tenderizer
Lite Salt
Pepper
Mesquite Seasoning
Worcestershire
Olive Oil
ENJOY!
If you are a working Mom, you can relate to this little poem of mine, especially if you have tiny tots and more work than you can ever accomplish. I wrote it at work one morning and had a good laugh at myself and felt a lot better! So read and enjoy and laugh at the mad rush we all have lived in at one time or another.
My Three Angels
My house is a mess, that's certain,
for within it's walls you see,
live 3 lovely, active children
that get the better of me!
I work all day like their Daddy,
& when my day is done, I get
home and to my amazement,
my work has just begun!
I can't sit down to read a good book,
or sew a new dress or 2,
I can't relax for a minute,
'cause there's still so much to do!
Dinner is waiting.....in the freezer,
the dishes are begging for soap!
The kids will be home any minute,
and Mommy just stands like a dope!
Wondering how all this got started,
and which room to start on tonight,
but it all is delightful, if messy,
when I kiss my three angels goodnight!
Enjoy your family! The housework can wait. There will be plenty of time later to clean to your heart's content. Don't miss out on the best years of your own life, ... being a Mom.
I don't know what's happened to the potato crops anymore, but they aren't much bigger than a good sized tangerine, so I dumped about 10 of them in the sink, scrubbed them clean and cut them into 4 pieces and put them in the stew pot about 3/4 full of cold water. I added about 1/2 large bag of small carrots, cut a large onion into 4 pieces and separated the layers and added that to the pot. The meat was nicely browned, so I then added it to the stew vegetables and put it on a medium flame.
As the stew began to cook, I added a little more salt, and added a large can of tomato puree and brought it to a boil. I then reduced the heat to a little less than a medium flame to prevent it from boiling over, added a lid and let it simmer for most of the day. Then, just before turning off the flame and enjoying this succulent dish, I added about 1/2 cup more of Worcestershire Sauce and stirred to mix it into the stew. It smelled heavenly.
I didn't make anything extra except some brown and serve biscuits with butter, but nothing else was needed. The stew was the best I've ever made. You don't have to get carried away with the Worcestershire Sauce, but we are big fans of it, and it really spiced up the meal. Use as much, or as little as desired. I'll list the ingredient's below and you might want to try making some garlic bread to go with it if you aren't a biscuit fan. My daughter loves biscuits, so that's what we had.
It really made for a hearty meal and the rain and the smell of the stew cooking, just added a cozy feel to the day. You might also try serving hot tea with lots of cream and sugar with it. I didn't, but it would have been just the icing on the cake.
Ingredients: Chuck Steak, trim off fat
and cut into bite sized pieces
10 medium size potatoes
cleaned and cut into 4ths
1/2 bag of small pre-cleaned carrots
1 large onion cut into 4 pieces
Meat tenderizer
Lite Salt
Pepper
Mesquite Seasoning
Worcestershire
Olive Oil
ENJOY!
If you are a working Mom, you can relate to this little poem of mine, especially if you have tiny tots and more work than you can ever accomplish. I wrote it at work one morning and had a good laugh at myself and felt a lot better! So read and enjoy and laugh at the mad rush we all have lived in at one time or another.
My Three Angels
My house is a mess, that's certain,
for within it's walls you see,
live 3 lovely, active children
that get the better of me!
I work all day like their Daddy,
& when my day is done, I get
home and to my amazement,
my work has just begun!
I can't sit down to read a good book,
or sew a new dress or 2,
I can't relax for a minute,
'cause there's still so much to do!
Dinner is waiting.....in the freezer,
the dishes are begging for soap!
The kids will be home any minute,
and Mommy just stands like a dope!
Wondering how all this got started,
and which room to start on tonight,
but it all is delightful, if messy,
when I kiss my three angels goodnight!
Enjoy your family! The housework can wait. There will be plenty of time later to clean to your heart's content. Don't miss out on the best years of your own life, ... being a Mom.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
The Poetry of Life and It's Many Facets
Life can inspire us if we let it. We all project things into our lives by how we think. You can change your environment by what you dwell on. If you are a happy person, you draw happiness to you. If you are sour and mean, you draw the mean who will encourage you to continue in this same vein and you can end up a miserable person who doesn't even like themselves. But if you awaken the inner poet, if you can see the beauty of the world and never cease to be amazed that such a beautiful world is only the beginning, then life will take on new meaning. I guess I have always been a poet at heart and I see things differently than a lot of people. I remember my childhood, playing in the sand lot's and going to the river to wash grandma's car. We'd drive to the river on Sunday when she'd come from the city and we would wash the car and ride inner tubes down the river in the shallow parts. She would bring us good things. Food, new clothes, toys, just everything. My Grandma is the person I patterned myself after. She always looked out for me, and if I needed to be on a diet, she'd take me to a good doctor and help me lose weight. She was my idol, but I didn't realize it for a long time. One thing she did that really put me on the right path, was to take me to church with her on Sundays. I accepted the good Lord Jesus into my heart at the young age of 12, and I felt deeply that I was called to help others in any way I could. I brought my best friend to the foot of the cross, and she too accepted Christ. I've been on this journey ever since, and I am now 65 years old, have 3 grown children, a wonderful husband who is also my best friend, and 7 wonderful grandchildren who love me to peices. I also have a very close walk with Jesus and that has led me to write many peices that hopefully will inspire, comfort, and lead others to find the same happiness and meaning in life that have comforted me and lead me to deeper and deeper experiences with God. The following prayer is something I wrote a long time ago, but it is still relevant today and it is something I want to share and hope you will enjoy.
Rose of Sharon, thou bright Morning Star, shine your radiance
upon us. We beckon to you from afar. We know not how to
cross the roaring tide that keeps us from you. We search, but
grow weary ere the search is done.
Thou canst span the oceans of time and touch us, awakening
new life and meaning within us. So help us. Our strength is
small and our problems huge because of our position. We see
not, nor comprehend as you do.
We are as babes - we know so little - but cry so loudly if our
needs are not met, today! - this hour! - this very minute!
Teach us to wait. To be patient. To be loving and kind and
wise. Teach us to be receptive to others and to yield our
own spirit to the Holy Spirit.
Show us true reality. Not what we think "is", but what
"really is" real.
Before the sun sets in our lives and the chance to be all these
things passes away, show us that if we just open the door of
our heart, You will come in gladly and share life with us and
teach us about you and the love you have for us. We need
you today, more than we have ever needed you before. Call
us to you....don't let us slip away into darkness Lord. Teach
us the way of the cross and the sacrifice you made for love.
In The Holy Name of Jesus, Our Lord and Savior, I pray,
Amen
This prayer was written when I was working, and before I met my husband. I had none of the things I have now, but I had the King of Kings in my soul. I had more than anyone could want, because I knew God. I really believe with all my heart that my husband is a gift from God. He has everything I ever needed, love, devotion, honesty, principles, and he is, as I said before, my best friend. I have learned a lot from him and I am one of the happiest people you will ever meet. I just want to share this happiness with the world, and if I can help someone, I am more than delighted to do so. You don't have to believe as I do, you don't have to be a Christian, you don't have to go to church to find Him. He is in the eyes of love that look at you from others. You can look into your chidren's eyes and see love. And God is love. How Kind and Wonderful He is. He knows life is hard. But He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us. I must share this happiness because it is too great to keep inside, locked away for my ownself. When I share my love, I get a constant supply of more love than I know what to do with. It gives me energy, insight, inspiration, love in abundance, and gentleness and kindness. He lives within. He is in your heart...look within and find the peace waiting for you there. Know who you are, who you can be, and strive to be the best person you can possibly be. You can change your world by who you are. It's all within.
Rose of Sharon, thou bright Morning Star, shine your radiance
upon us. We beckon to you from afar. We know not how to
cross the roaring tide that keeps us from you. We search, but
grow weary ere the search is done.
Thou canst span the oceans of time and touch us, awakening
new life and meaning within us. So help us. Our strength is
small and our problems huge because of our position. We see
not, nor comprehend as you do.
We are as babes - we know so little - but cry so loudly if our
needs are not met, today! - this hour! - this very minute!
Teach us to wait. To be patient. To be loving and kind and
wise. Teach us to be receptive to others and to yield our
own spirit to the Holy Spirit.
Show us true reality. Not what we think "is", but what
"really is" real.
Before the sun sets in our lives and the chance to be all these
things passes away, show us that if we just open the door of
our heart, You will come in gladly and share life with us and
teach us about you and the love you have for us. We need
you today, more than we have ever needed you before. Call
us to you....don't let us slip away into darkness Lord. Teach
us the way of the cross and the sacrifice you made for love.
In The Holy Name of Jesus, Our Lord and Savior, I pray,
Amen
This prayer was written when I was working, and before I met my husband. I had none of the things I have now, but I had the King of Kings in my soul. I had more than anyone could want, because I knew God. I really believe with all my heart that my husband is a gift from God. He has everything I ever needed, love, devotion, honesty, principles, and he is, as I said before, my best friend. I have learned a lot from him and I am one of the happiest people you will ever meet. I just want to share this happiness with the world, and if I can help someone, I am more than delighted to do so. You don't have to believe as I do, you don't have to be a Christian, you don't have to go to church to find Him. He is in the eyes of love that look at you from others. You can look into your chidren's eyes and see love. And God is love. How Kind and Wonderful He is. He knows life is hard. But He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us. I must share this happiness because it is too great to keep inside, locked away for my ownself. When I share my love, I get a constant supply of more love than I know what to do with. It gives me energy, insight, inspiration, love in abundance, and gentleness and kindness. He lives within. He is in your heart...look within and find the peace waiting for you there. Know who you are, who you can be, and strive to be the best person you can possibly be. You can change your world by who you are. It's all within.
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