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Truth: “Nevers,” Happen!
“It will never happen to me…” “I never imagined this would happen to me/our city/our family…” We are all human, so we have all thought this at one time, maybe even said it out loud. Nobody wants tragedy to strike, or trauma, or disaster to happen to them or anyone they love. Yet, it does, and we still are repeating these same sentences. Granted we are creatures of habit, so in the midst of panic and chaos, we say and do things that just come to mind that has been stored in our brain for times like these. It’s how we are wired. Let me just ask this: What if…
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It’s About the One in the Bed…
Hospitals. The anxiety, the flashbacks memories, the scary, the bittersweet, the unknown, the peace, the comfort… What comes to mind when you think, hospital? I’ve gone to the ER myself and been admitted. Respiratory, GI, kidney stones, kidney infections, food poison. I do everything possible to avoid going to the hospital. Not because it’s a bad place, it just stirs up past experiences of being really sick, and in the case of food poison, going in and out consciousness. I’ve had the honor of being a part of all four of my grandparents “care plans.” All of which included hospital stays. The fight of a grandchild for a grandparent… let’s…
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Head.Shoulders.Knees.Toes.
I come to you all today, fresh from urgent care. No alarm! Just some massive mouth sores/blisters that are hindering my eating, talking, and well, day-to-day life. Good news: nothing serious, just something I ate, or allergy, or irritated. And thankfully was given something to relieve the pain enough to nourish myself, and sit down and write a little… My mouth frustration has had me thinking (since talking has been very rare). I been pondering a few things that I would like to share and ponder with you today. I’ve been told that I have the gift of translating for “new talkers” aka understanding toddlers conversations. Enjoying the company of…
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Lost Art of Porch Sittin’
If a picture could tell a story… then this picture collage would tell the story of a mommy in waiting, a Swingie in (adoption) waiting, and a little children’s boutique, picking out bow colors for bloomers and a newborn swaddle, sometime in 2013ish. The pink blanket backdrop, came with the bassinet basket that laid waiting for her arrival. The Lucy embroidered blanket, a gift to her from her Swing and Duck just a year before she arrived. Her headband, was made by her great grandmother and worn by her mommy when she was little. It was made from hosiery scraps from local textile mills during the 1980s. And now, a…
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Peace in His Presence… ALWAYS
Let me take you back to when I was little. The time in life when any performance, or sport, or school project, etc, was ultimately about the snack at the end of the game, or the flowers, or trophy at the end. And beyond that, what left the greatest impact on me, for life, was who showed up. Grandparents. Mom. Dad. My brother. Family. Close Friends. After the snack and flowers and trophies are gone, the lasting impact, are the people, who thought I was worth dropping all other things and decided to take the time to come see me. It was a gift to know my people would be…
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Collector of Refrigerator Art
Thank you to Allen Levi, musician who sings “Refrigerator Art.” Highly recommend all his music! I am a AVID collector of refrigerator art! Children only need paper, something to draw/color/paint with, maybe some glue and scrap paper, to create a piece of art that is worth more than any fine art piece I could ever buy! I truly believe “beauty is in the sight of the beholder!” (another song lyric) As a Jesus follower, I am called to love and respect every stage of human life, and I do. However, if you gave me a “test” to determine who in a crowd of people I would gravitate too, it would…
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Did you say “nOrMaL?”
My heart is shattered. There are families weeping and aching because there are empty beds, empty seats at their table, less laughter in their home this week. As one dad said it so well, “she always brushed her teeth.” These tiny details, the details that we seem to nag kids about, these are cut off/no existent for these parents. This is grief. I don’t know much, but this much I do know… the loss of a child is different. I’ve known loss, from when I was 4 years old-ish to now. When I was four, it was my friend who was only a year younger than me at the time,…
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The Ones who call me “NaNa”
Today is all about Squeak and Buster. (above picture from 2017) AKA: Lilly and Jack, my niece and my nephew. (Note 😊: The name NaNa was given to me, as I mentioned before, by a little girl who I was blessed to be apart and continue to be apart of her life. This name is super special to me – my “life” role with her and her brothers, and with my niece and nephew are different, but both roles are my heart’s delight and joy!) First, let me explain the Squeak and Buster names 😂 Squeak, is what her dad (my brother) would always call her when she was a…
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You don’t LOOK sick?
Question for the day: Why do we say this, “You don’t look sick,” as if we have to look a certain way to be deemed “sick.” And what does it mean to be “sick?” To one person, it could mean a momentary illness, a cold, virus, or infection. To another, it could be lifelong daily maintenance, caution, awareness, and appointments. And then there are the people that claim they NEVER GET SICK, good golly, at some point you have had to blow your nose or cough – just be real. (sense my sarcasm) The dictionary’s definition of sick is this: “affected by physical or mental illness.” I agree with this…
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I don’t know much…
But this much I do know… I am just a sneaky as my Mom who raised me 😊 She definitely cringed when I even mentioned that I may do a “Mother’s Day” post about her, that’s just who she is. She encourages me in my writing, so it’s not that she doesn’t want me to write, she really just doesn’t like the spotlight on her. Although in reality, it all points to our Heavenly Father, so I chose to go ahead with it ☺️ Side Note: If you don’t know my family, my mom’s grandmother name is Swing, sometimes Swingie when her grand-littles get excited. This name was given to…
