Photo Hunters * FAKE*

FAKE

This is Gstormy's fake panda bear. She moves her arms, makes sounds, drinks a bottle and snores as she goes to sleep. This is the best that I could do this week! : )

A Radiant Display Of God's Hand

This morning with coffee in hand I took a stroll around my yard. It is an overcast morning (73 degrees) with a cool southern breeze and fresh sweet smell of magnolia's in bloom. For a moment I close my eyes and listen to the various sounds: a dog barking in the distance, the sound of commuters on their way to work to the left of me, June bugs and July flies communicating as I move onto my back deck, over to my right in the distance children's voices travel through the air, then as I look again to my left I see two birds up in the large oak tree and hear their gorgeous tribute to life.

I stop and whisper a prayer of thanks to God; for giving me this place to live where he is alive to me at all times, the freedom to enjoy this peaceful time with nature, my family's love and support, my friend's love and encouragement, and for giving me my life and all of it's blessings and adversity's.

While eating my breakfast and enjoying my coffee and all of God's blessings I reflect back to the beautiful yet delicate Magnolia flower. I thought of the cycle of this flower as a person's life.

As it developed into each stage of growth, it has an element of beauty and strength even though, it is very delicate to the touch, it is a gleam er of what is to come. As the bud opens petal by petal it is a radiant display of God's hand at work. This sweet smelling, soft fragile, flower reminds me of how important the stages of our lives are and how we reveal ourselves to others, just as this flower has to me.

I envision this flower as myself, it is open shining it's beauty and fragrance at the peak of its life cycle today however, in a matter of time it will complete it's cycle and leave the tree and another flower will take it's place.

Through my eyes, I see the most important time of my life is today, while I am in bloom and flowering as this Magnolia today. It is my goal to live my life as fully as I can and enjoy every moment however great or small with the one's I love and all others that God sends in my path.

From day to day God displays his touch if we only take the time to stop and acknowledge it.

Happy July 4th

I Wish For You

And Your Family

A Happy

And Safe Holiday !

A Prayer For Ms. Betty Sue

Ms. Betty Sue, a devout christian and Special Friend to many, was called home today to be with the Lord. I didn't personally know Ms. Betty however, my friend Debra was a very close friend to her and loved her dearly. Today was a difficult day for me due to sharing Debra's grief and sadness of losing her very dear friend.

As Debra spoke of Ms. Betty with such love and kindness from time to time it was as though, I knew her too. Debra shared with me many times of Ms. Betty's kindness. Many Saturday mornings Ms. Betty would cook breakfast for Debra and insist that she ate with her before cleaning the house. Ms. Betty shared blessings, stories of how God had worked in her life, and prayer requests from time to time. A lady that will be GREATLY missed by many!

There Is A Residue Of Hope

There is a residue of hope in every act of grief,

A beauty at the source of pain, A truth that brings relief.

Mourning is a morning song sung just before the light,

Though little else is visible to those that watch the night.

And all our tears must turn to grass, and all our sorrows be

But dissonance that we'll resolve in some new harmony.

And all our pain must shine upon the meadows of our grace

That you might share our happiness and lend our light your face.

Ah, Father! Yes, the music plays as we dance in the sun,

For dawn returns the joy of life, and we must all dance on.

Ah, Father! Yes, we must dance on and leave you far behind,

Though love undo the dying day and comb the rising wind.

Author © Nicholas Gordon http://poems.topdownloads.net/

I would like to ask that you take a moment and whisper a prayer for Ms. Betty's Family and My Dear Friend Debra, that God will comfort them as they adjust to the loss of this dear loved one.

My Home Town Visit - Many, Many Changes! Part 2

For Part 1 click here!

As I continue sharing my findings with you of my hometown visit you will continue to see more and more changes.

The first house that my mom and dad owned was on this piece of property. Now there is a fellowship building belonging to the large church on the corner.

This is a new Boy's and Girl's Club - in the same location just a nice new facility. : )

My grandmother bought all of her shoes at this store. It is still in the same building it has had a minor face lift.

This is my Mother and Dad's final resting place.

This is a new school building- :) I attended Junior High School at the old school.

Our last home before I married David . This is were I lived while attending High School.

My High School building is still the same as when I Graduated in 1972.

Neta's is a children's clothing store that my grandmother bought clothes for both my daughter's and I. It was so nice to see that it was still in business. This store brings back many memories of walking to town on Saturday mornings to shop. : )

The Gem Theater is still in it's original form no face lift. It is still open for business. :) Lots of memories here as well.

Our family doctor in my hometown.

This town was once a cotton mill town. Now it is becoming a town of medical research development . It will encompass the center of the town.

My grandmother Eva's house as it looks today.

This is all that remains at our first residence. It has been boarded up and ready for demolition.

We lived in this apartment while our first daughter was a baby. I was surprised that it was here.

We lived in this house until after our second daughter was five months old. It was painted white and trimmed in black when we lived there.

We spent many, many afternoons and evenings swinging on this porch with our daughter's. There was a fishing lake across the way.

We were asked by my husband's mother, to move over to the city that I reside in now, to help take care of her as long as she lived. She signed over one of the home place houses for us taking care of her through the years. It has been home for the past thirty years. We now have a new home on the same piece of property.

My visit to my hometown had many signs of growth and many, many changes. Some of the changes were exciting like the new school and huge medical center. I must admit that it did bring some sadness as we visited some of the locations and found that things were gone or in the process of being removed. However, most of my memories of our visit are positive thoughts.

As time moves on, so does progress and growth in any city. It was nice to revisit places that gave me warm and loving memories. It was a privilege to show and tell Gstormy about my grandparents, where I went to school , and to show her where her Gran lived as a child.