Monthly Archives: November 2007

When I am quiet, I am (usually) working hard on something.


So in the past ten days we’ve had Thanksgiving, (Wonderful, wonderful time!) and now I am doing some cleaning projects.  I am quite pleased with what I got done in my utility room, but now —


OH, PITY ME!!!


I am cleaning my study. 


Everyone who knows me well knows that this is a job that I plan to do, and think I am going to do, and hope to do and start to do and never quite get done.  Well, sir, I actually started yesterday.  I am finding things I never knew I had, some that I remember having when I find them, and things I have been looking for for a very long time.  I would post pictures, but it would embarrass my Sweet Mama, so I shall plod on, alone and forgotten in my dark, dark corner and when I get it done, (maybe) then I will show pictures!


I asked Allen Beachy if he wanted to come over with his backhoe and he asked me if I wanted it inside or just parked outside the window.


J.R. called from his bed in the ICU wanting some real food, and when he found out that I was cleaning my study, he hooted.  Was that nice???  Just for that I am not taking him any.


Like I said, I shall plod bravely on.  Somebody had better pray for me.

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It has been a splendid week in almost every way!  I enjoy this season so very much, and I am grateful to God for the healing that continually creeps into my heart and surprises me at special moments. 


Yesterday, my Uncle Eli gave me a tape of one of my precious Daddy’s sermons.  I was on the way to the doctor for a check-up on my broken foot, and the tape was on the seat beside me. 


I kept thinking, “I am not going to listen to it right now.  No, I’m sure I’m not going to listen right now.”  But it kept lying there, staring at me, and finally, I reached over and popped it into the tape deck.  In his inimitable style, the tape began with him recognizing visitors in the congregation, mentioning the pretty “flaurs” (flowers) and just having his usual “before the sermon chit-chat” with which he usually began his sermons.


The memories came flooding down, and he sounded so real!  So alive.  And it didn’t make me cry.  I can’t explain it, because I could cry thinking about it, but it was in retrospect that I realized I hadn’t shed any tears, but I had enjoyed the sermon, and had felt this strange, surrounding delight and warmth and quietness.  What a man my Daddy was!  How very blessed we were to have him for our Daddy!


And yes, I was going to the doctor to see if I could get rid of this removable cast.  I didn’t cry over this either, but my cast cannot come off yet.  It doesn’t appear that there has been any healing since the removable cast was put on three weeks ago, though the doctor did say that the X-rays don’t always show everything.  It isn’t touchy when he puts pressure on the break, but he wants me to wear the removable cast for another month.  I don’t have to wear it all the time, and he said it is okay if I have it off when I don’t need to do alot of walking, but said that he feels it would be better to wear it most of the time. 


I refuse to be sad about this.  I know that I have had a terrible upper respiratory infection over the past two weeks, and have taken cold medicine for that, as well as anti-inflammatory meds, so I may have inadvertantly made a problem for myself.  And, of course, Certain Man is posititve that it comes from too much activity. 


Whatever the reason, I guess I get another month at half speed.  And I’m thinking that it might be a blessing for me in the long run.  There is more time to think, to meditate on this blessed season, and there is less “compulsion to do” than there would be otherwise.  There are plenty of things I can do “from my chair” and that is not necessarily a bad thing.  And of course, I have gotten lots of advice about what I should be taking to fix this – – and I plan to at least try some of the suggestions.  The doctor said again yesterday that this is not at all unusual.  The spot that this is in makes it extremely difficult to mend.  I remain very grateful that I didn’t have to have surgery, and waiting is good fo me.  I suppose so, anyhow. 


Before I sign off today, I want to thank our church family for their spectacular spirit, demonstrated once again last night in the way they came together to pack Thanksgiving Boxes.  We did the packing in The Gathering Place of the church (the basement) and the set-up was perfect, the basement was warm, the lighting was great, but the people!!!  Ah, my brothers and sisters, if you only could have seen yourselves last night — The laughter, the working together, the chatter and the caring!  I watched you all as you milled about packing boxes in a purposeful and well-planned way (Thanks, Women in Christian Service Committee!) and saw young and not so young working cheerfully together and my heart was so glad.  I think all 24 boxes were delivered in a timely fashion, and I just want to thank all of you again for your co-operation and good help! 


Blessings to all of you for a wonderful Thanksgivng.

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Ohio Trip

The trip started with Rain.  Here we had stopped at the nearby convenience store for ice.


Ohio trip 1


 


We had rain for a while, but by the time we got to THE GAP, the weather was much nicer, and  the scenery was gorgeous!


Ohio trip the gap


 Ohio trip the gap 2


Ohio trip the gap 3


I love looking across the valley from the parking lot at THE GAP.  But, unfortunately, I wasn’t thinking at the right time and missed a picture of THE GAP itself.  For those of you who aren’t acquainted with this cut in the mountains” it is a tourist center that is also a Vietnam War Memorial.  And it is a beautiful, peaceful place.



We saw lots of nice fall foliage as we went, but many of my pictures did not turn out.  We got to Ohio on Tuesday evening, and Wednesday and Thursday were filled to the brim with things that needed doing.  We even got to have supper with Youngest Son on Thursday night, but I never had my camera out the whole time.  I should have been documenting some health related data, but I didn’t even do that.  We left Ohio after dark on Thursday night.  It was snowing a little bit.  We drove to Morgantown, got a motel for the night, then got on our way around nine on Friday morning.  Imagine our surprise to drive into Grantsville and find this:


Ohio trip 2


It was snowing right along when I took this picture through the windshield of our van.


 


We drove out of the snow and into sunshine eventually.  We saw some wonderful scenery along the way home, too.


Ohio trip 3


 


The miles clipped away, and we finally came into familiar territory.  What a good feeling it was to come around the corner at Abbott’s Pond.


Ohio trip almost home 3


Ohio trip almost home
Almost Home!!!


And so we came on down the road and around the corner, and our own foliage wasn’t too shabby, either:


Ohio trip almost home 1


And then there was our familiar fence and driveway, and we were home!


Ohio trip home at last


As we rounded the edge of our driveway, I was overwhelmed with a feeling of praise to our Heavenly Father for the Traveling Mercies, the enabling He granted us to deal with things in Ohio, and for the many, many miles driven together that were so comfortable and happy.  We have so much to be grateful for in this happy season.

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We’re Home, We’re Home!


And the week went well — Beyond our expectations in so many ways.


But home looked so good, and I am so thankful for a safe trip all the way around.  Today, on the freeway, going 70+ mph, a semi in front of us blew his two back right tires.  I was asleep, and brought straight awake with the explosion.  Heavenly protection and Daniel’s quick thinking got us through unscathed, and sleep was the farthermost thing from my mind for many a mile.


I hope to post some pictures later, but just wanted to thank all of you for your prayers for us.  It really was a productive, rewarding time.

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My stuffy nose is better, thank you very much!


This has been a busy day of washing, baking bread and getting ready for a short trip to Ohio.  Our chickens are going out today, and that has kept Certain Man home and very occupied.  The crews are still working on the last house, but he needed to dash to Seaford for an order of three gallons of oysters that he is taking to relatives.


I have a few loose ends to catch up, a quick meeting concerning Thanksgiving boxes, some prescriptions to pick up, and some packing to do. 


And then, Lord Willing, we will be heading out in the morning.  Middle Daughter, Eldest Son, and Youngest Daughter will hold down the fort for a few days.  (With some help from Beloved Son in Law, Eldest Daughter and maybe my Sweet Mama).


I wish I could say that this is a trip for pleasure.  It isn’t.  Certain Man’s step-mother fell and has a hair line fracture in her wrist and wrenched her knee.  His Father is dealing with some health issues, too, and the children are scattered (actually from Delaware to California to New York and Virginia.  This time it is our turn to go, I guess. 


I sense keenly our need for wisdom and patience and compassion and grace.

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by doze id ‘tuffy!!!

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The Contest!


About ten days ago, www.xanga.com/Chambray7 had a contest on her website.  She offered a little wooden Christmas train to be drawn from all the comments to that particular posting.  Chambray7 and I have been friends for several years, going back to when Certain Man and I stayed at their house while attending a church convention that was hosted by their area churches.  This isn’t the first time she has held such a giveaway, and I enjoy these little events very much, so I signed up. 


Unbelievably, I won!  One unusually challenging day, I received the following message from Chambray7:


Hello MaryAnn!! Do you mind giving me your address?? I’m assuming you got the message that you won the drawing!!!!!!!!!! =)
Be Blessed~


Was I ever excited!  I hadn’t known it until then.


And today, I got the most delightful package.  In it was the cute little Christmas train and I found a place for it right away–


The train 1


It is a perfect little ledge above the pellet stove that does not get too hot.


Also, in the package was a bottle of Chambray7’s own lotion and a lip balm.  What a blessing that was.  I’ve been sick for the last few days with a bad chest cold and I have this terrible cold sore growing on my lower lip.  So I found a place for my train, and I rubbed my poor dry hands and arms with the lotion, and I slathered the bee lip balm on my ouch-ified lip and felt so comforted and encouraged and blessed. 


Thank you, Chambray7.  You really made my day!


The train


It has been a good day to stay close to the fire.  I’ve been trying the old adage, “Feed a fever, Starve a cold” and have been just drinking liquids and I am feeling a bit better tonight.  I must say that getting a delightful package certainly did not hurt!


Blessings all around! 

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The Christmas music is playing at this house..  My kids commented that I was “late” getting it started this year.  I did wait until the end of October, but this year we don’t have to have Christmas at Thanksgiving the way we did for the last two years. — so I wasn’t quite so “rushed.”  And Thanksgiving looks wonderful this year.  Youngest Son will be home for a week, Lord Willing.  Daniel’s sister is flying in from California for the weekend, and that is ALWAYS a wondrously fun time, too. Hopefully there will be a “big” Yoder Celebration on Thanksgiving day, then it will be time to set up the Christmas Village.  We are also planning for Yutzy Thanksgiving on Saturday with whomever can make it..  I am so looking forward to the family times.


How are all of you spending your Thanksgiving weekend?

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If you want to know the truth, I’m trying not to cry.


I got my cast off today.  I should be happy.  But —


They replaced it with a “removable” one that I have to wear for three more weeks.  It is taller, bulkier, much, much more padded (interpretation:  Hotter!) and it throws my step off alot more, causing even more stress on my already stressed right foot.  But —


I can take it off to sleep, to shower and to “watch T.V.”  (Which I don’t do, so I will interpret that to mean, sit in my chair and read or write or study my Sunday School lesson or prepare the weekly Bible Study lesson).  I am thinking this means that I will sit more for the last three weeks of my recuperation than I did for the first seven.  Certain Man applauds this.  He went along today so he could interpret what the doctor said.  Well —


The doctor did say that the fracture is only about 60% healed, and that it NEEDS the stabilization of this cast for another 3 weeks.  Failure to comply will result in that  60% being the extent of the healing (in the least) or a refracture and much, much more trouble (at the other end of the spectrum).


I prayed as I meandered home that I could be brave and that I would not look at the dark side of this.  It is true that this fracture is actually healing well for where it is located, and I am not “behind” or anything like that.  It’s just that I am quite weary of this cast and especially my inflamed right foot. 


Complaining will not help this attitude a single bit.  And this is such a little thing compared to my sister’s pain and discouragements and the plights of so many others out there in Xanga-land.  So hear the positive news in this post and pray that God will “Make me to hear joy and gladness: that the bones which He has allowed to be broken may rejoice.” (Psalm 51:8)  (Italics mine.  I don’t blame God for my clumsiness, but I know that this broken foot came “past the Throne”!!!)


AND SO, I OFFER GRATEFUL PRAISE.

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