I just gotta' say...

Every time I enter a hospital to visit, I am overwhelmed by appreciation for what I am able to do and what I have.

I can chew a steak.

I can walk to the bathroom.

Sleep comes easily to me.

I get to brush my own teeth and hair.

I have a whole house to roam around in and not just a 11 x 15 cubicle.

Although you get more flowers when you're in the hospital.

Guess there's an upside to everything.

Hard work.

Sometimes you work your fool head off. You strain and push and maneuver yourself into thinking you're getting ahead and you find yourself up against a concrete wall.

But how many of us would think of trying to crack their way through all that concrete? Not many of us....well, perhaps son would with his fancy, flying feet of force....hiiieeeeeeeeeeeyaaa!!!! But ordinary folk would most likely give up and look for another way through.

But what if there is no other way through. Then what? Do we sit there and wait for the next available earthquake? Not likely. Do we get out our little finger nail file and start picking away? Maybe. Or do we try and think our way through....mind over matter kind of thing. I don't know about you, but that could be kind of freaky......maybe worth trying, but still freaky.

People try their darnedest don't they? They try hard to make headway in life.

But look at those trees finding their way through the Precambrian shield. They have no other choice. What about that rose up there on the top of my blog page, blooming on one side of a brick wall. Talk about freaky. Or is it?

Jesus gives us simple, beautiful examples every day of our existence of how he manages to get the impossible done. Nature is the best example of all because those kinds of life forms don't have choices to make like we do. They simply use what they have and where they are to accomplish their task.

We, on the other hand, have many choices of how to work through things.....even though our concrete walls are a lot of times relationships. We can communicate, we can seek help from others, we can attempt to explain ourselves to others and they in turn, to us. But in the end, it is that "unseen force" that allows the breakthrough to happen.

The Spirit of the Living God can not only get roses through concrete walls but He can also get us through the same kinds of walls..........those walls of our own making.

God, help us to not always be banging our heads against brick walls, but to seek You to find a way through. Besides, my head bleeds a lot.

Busy week.

Monday - Clean house for company coming this weekend (except Monday is almost over and I haven't yet cleaned).

Tuesday - Bake something for Wednesday and try to clean house.

Wednesday - Meet the new RCMP constable, Steven Reid and get our picture taken with him in his red surge.

Thursday - Retirement function for Carman Dodge.

Friday - 20 family reunion guests coming.

Saturday - Monday - Look after our guests, visit and care for them.

Oh, and in between there I'll be working 8-5 and visiting my dear Auntie in hospital each day.

Lord, could I have an extra day thrown in there somewhere, please? Not sure if I can fit all this stuff into that time frame. You made the sun stop, after all!

Thankfulness

When I look at all I have, when I see a family that I love and who loves me back, when I begin to fathom the depth of the love that God has for me.....my heart is thankful.

As Marc this morning spoke from the book of Acts in Chapter 17 where the writer speaks of "the unknown God".........it is that "unknown" God I am thankful to. He is not unknown to me. He is to many.....but not to me. I am able to recognize all he has done for me, how he has changed me, and the infiniteness of his grace........... and my heart is thankful.

I see the seasons change. I see the loveliness of a flower in bloom. I hear the cry of a baby in need of her mothers touch. I feel the soft, warm, spring breeze on my cheeks and fragrance of the evening air as life begins its ascent from the depths of the earth.....and my heart is thankful.

I hear those speak of knowing the secrets of the universe, how it began, where it began, and how it has evolved......but in MY heart, I recognize the Master designer, the Maker of heaven and earth and of babies and flowers, and sea and sky and humbly bow before his omnipotence.

God is amazing.......and my heart is thankful.

Here's where it speaks of "the unknown god" in the Bible: Acts 17

"Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.

"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'
"Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man's design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."

This is Good News...... and my heart is thankful!

(*italics are mine - sk)

It's just how life goes...

We come into this world with little else than a howling and some skin and two arms and two legs that don't work well.

We're totally helpless. Have to get people to hold us up, move us from place to place, someone to get the nipple into our mouths so we can eat. They have to put us to bed, wash our bodies, change our diapers and simply make all our decisions for us. They sit close to us so we can see their mouths move and we can hear the noises coming from their mouths so we, in turn, can somehow learn to say the same things they say, in order for us to some day become communicating human beings. We have to not only grow taller but we also grow some teeth.......not to mention hair so we don't look bald going to school.

So, after we manage to do all that changing as well as learning to look after ourselves reasonably well, seems like we're on our way. Oh ya. New braces on those second set of new teeth. Hair all shiny and lovely and styled. Funky and stylish clothes to adorn our grown up bodies. Our brains have been taking in a lot of stuff by the time we've completed school and university (for those who attend).

We're ready. Off we go into the adult world.

If we've made it that far, we stay there for the rest of our lives. Experiencing all the things life brings us.....new jobs, a spouse, children, a home, vacations with in-laws, fighting with neighbors, going to church.....you know, the regular living life stuff. ;)

But then we get older. We begin to revert back to the way we came in. We lose our independence, our teeth, our hearing, our hair, our vision, our memory, our sense of worth. We lose our dignity as well. Life sometimes just goes right back to us being the helpless creatures we were at the very beginning. We need feeding, washing, changing, people holding us up and sitting beside our faces so we can see their lips to know what they're saying. We have once again become dependent on others. It's just how life goes.

It is good to keep that cycle going of love and caring , to look after the ones who are older like they looked after us, to make them feel worthwhile and allow them a sense of dignity.

I'm thinking on these things, as I watch my dear Aunt these days. Strokes can revert one back to their original state much more quickly than one would like. So, I am watching and learning some things I needed to learn about caring for those I love.

I am also appreciating their wisdom....something we don't have when we first arrive here!

Proverbs 20:29 says:
"The glory of the young is their strength; the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old."

A beautiful, wise, God-given statement!

Justice.

People say there is no justice.

Sometimes I tend to agree.

There are people out there who desire good. Sometimes they get laid low, beat up, kicked at and generally humiliated............and in public too.

When people are trying to accomplish things like being truthful, honest, questioning the status quo, and watching out for the underdog, you can be sure there is an equal and perhaps more sinister and opposite force working against this goodness.

People who have power. People who have wealth. People who would try to still the ones attempting to uncover their "secrets" and their "lies" and their desire for more power and more wealth and more recognition and more keeping the poor in their place.

Well, I for one, should not sit by and watch elected officials treat people with total contempt. I should not sit by and watch these same people beat one of their own when he's down - the people want him to represent them after all!!!

The total truth will come out about this scandal and my friend will have his say and the people will hear all that needs to be said on his behalf.

I pray for my friends. Their hearts are in the right place. Let God bring His justice.

Proverbs 28 :1,2 says:

"The wicked run away when no one is chasing them,
but the godly are as bold as lions.

When there is moral rot within a nation, its government topples easily.
But wise and knowledgeable leaders bring stability."

God will hear the cries for justice for those who fear him, as he has in the past!!!

Hang on to your hats.

The Weather Network says we're going to get between 15 and 20 cm. of snow tomorrow.

Hang on to your hats, to be sure......well, unless you've already put it into summer storage.

Probably not. We live in Saskatchewan after all and Saskatchawinians NEVER put their toques, mitts, hats or scarves away until July 1.

Really.

It's a well known fact.

Of course, we've heard that song before haven't we. Last weekend predicted up to 50 cm. of snow and we received 18 flakes.

So ya, hang on to your hats.................we'll just wait and see.

Discouragement.

There are some things in life that can take us to a dark place.

That place is called DISCOURAGEMENT.

It can change our attitude, our disposition and our general countenance, where we don't feel like going on in life. Seems like the next hurdle or milestone is simply too much for our feeble minds to take on and so we sit and think......most of time negatively.

It's a frightening place to be and even more frightening when we can't find our way out.

We give up trying.

We can't go on.

Jesus says:
“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls." Matthew 11:28,29

Tired? Discouraged? Weighted by life's burdens?

Try Jesus. He's a weight lifter.

I want to be first!!!

Remember our kids saying things like that? Remember US saying things like that?

I want to be first!

I want to be on top of the hill and I'll push anybody off who comes near me!

I was here first!

Pick me first!

Let's get there first to get the best seats!

I was watching the little Juncos outside at noon today. We had placed bird seen down on a plastic lid so all the little guys could eat themselves into oblivion. It's cold out there and they need fuel. So they ate and ate and ate until it was all gone. We then took down the huge chunk of bird seed that had been hanging from the tree all winter and placed it whole on the piece of plastic, thinking that they would all sit around it nicely, picking from the edges.

Wrong. ONE bird sat on top of the chunk and anyone attempting a coup got picked at and flown at and down right chewed out by the "top gun". There was no way he would share. He was biggest and best. He had a right to be on top.....and most likely the oldest bird too.....not that you can tell these things, mind you. So he ate his fill while all the other little Juncos had to sit back and wait or continue on in their attempts at dethroning King Junco.

We people are not unlike that, are we. We know our rights and we exercise them. But we also know who's the top banana and try as we may to get to the top of that hill, we just have to wait our turn.....or try that coup technique......which usually turns out messy. When we're up there, we get to tell people what to do and they become our servants......right?

Jesus said we should be opposite to that. He said we should allow the weakest amongst us first place. He said we should give the better seats to the lowly and poor. He said we need to be a servant to all instead of trying to get everyone to serve us.

Matthew writes of it in his Gospel letter - chapter 10, verses 42-44:

42Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all."

It's just an upside down, backward, inside out Gospel message. May we all have ears to hear....

So fickle....

She's so fickle.

She breezes in and out expecting me to be so excited to have her around again.

But I'm no fool! I know her well. She can change her mind like nothing on earth.

I really do appreciate her though. She's always so encouraging and gives the very best she has but there are days you know, when what she gives just isn't enough for me. I expect so much more.

Perhaps I expect too much, I don't know.

She gets so forceful at times and there's simply nothing I can do about that either!

I love it when she is gentle and soft and like the lady I know she CAN be. I like those days.

But even in the midst of her worst days, I know that eventually she will stop all of her frivolousness and just be her....beautiful and lovely and I shall wait for those days..patiently.


Spring....she's quite a gal.

A thought to ponder.

I've been thinking about this all week because of certain circumstances over the course of the last several days.

When we are young and have our children all around us, under foot, in our bath tubs, hanging from our legs, around our shoulders, off one arm, in our beds in the middle of the night (at the very least expected times!!!), and generally everywhere we are, we say to ourselves (and I specifically remembering saying this out loud) "I can hardly wait until the time comes when you're grown up and on your own so I'll have a few minutes to myself!!!"

We want it different. We want peace. We want a house that doesn't always look like it's been battered by a hurricane. We want solitude.

That was 20 years ago.

The tables have turned.

Now I'm saying "I can hardly wait until the time comes when son and daughter come home, now that they're both grown up and on their own, so I'll have a few minutes with them."

It's all in our perspective, isn't it? A shift in my perspective took place and I now find myself at the other end of the spectrum......looking back.

Are we ever truly satisfied with life and children and spouses and friends and jobs and (fill in the blank)? I have found the only true satisfaction comes from God and what he offers me. Even my husband or my children can't quench that thirst or satisfy that hunger.

Isaiah 55:1-3 says:

"Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.

2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.

3 Give ear and come to me;
hear me, that your soul may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David."

Now THAT'S what I call a satisfied life! And it doesn't cost a thing. God offers it in the midst of all our wishing for this and wanting that and hoping for life to be different or better or more meaningful.........all we have to do is receive this gift. Free. Simple. Satisfying.

Shelter.

It's spring and all the lovely summer birds are back. The fellows are showing signs of strutting their stuff so that they'll get the prettiest chick on the block.

But you know Saskatchewan!

Where do they all go when a huge winter storm hits and the winds howl into a raging blizzard?

You know, I think they're a lot like people. When a huge storm hits, like tornadoes and hurricanes and such, people head for a safe place. They try and find good, strong shelters. At least they go to where the most strength is found in a structure. The middle of the house or of course, the basement. A place where there's a strong beam and where everything won't fall down around them.

I think we found out about that from birds. That's my observation, at any rate. Those little fellows and gals take to trees like pine and fir and spruce. They get in under those branches and close to the main trunk and hang on for dear life. The snow can blow and the winds can howl and the trunk can sway but they will be safe under it's shelter.

Same with us and God. We are always safe under the shelter of the Most High.

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty." Psalm 91:1

One minute you're fine...the next, not.

Isn't that how life seems to be. We think all is well. We proclaim that we are. We see our loved ones healthy and even our elderly loved one when we left her at around 1 p.m. today, seemed like she was over the worst of her pneumonia for the winter months and on her way to a great spring and summer.

Then the phone call.

She was calling me from on the floor. She had collapsed. I couldn't understand her hardly at all. Husband and I rushed over to find her lying by her chair. A stroke. Called ambulance and the rest is one big glob. Between actually remembering to bring her hospital emergency card with me from my place before I left and taking the things from her place that she will need in hospital, giving a myriad of other information to ambulance attendants and nurses and doctors and watching my dear little auntie handling all of the things done to her.....I'm bushed. But you know, she's one tough bird!! And her sense of humor remains in tact.

With ambulance personnel, nurses, doctors all asking her the same questions every 5 minutes, she was beginning to roll her eyes at them. "What day is it?" Aunt replies, "Well, it's Friday, April 18th isn't it?!" "When is your birthday?" Aunt replies, "June 25". Nurses talking in the room amongst themselves...."It's supposed to snow up to 40 cm tonight!" Aunt speaks up and says, "I think that's supposed to be Saturday night through Tuesday and we're supposed to get up to 50 cm!"

Ya. She's had a stroke alright. But it sure didn't affect her memory!!!

I'm leaving her in her hospital room this night, with the presence of God to comfort her.

What better hands could she possibly be in.

Graduation.

It's that time of the year when hard-working college students are finally receiving their rewards. High school graduations are happening too, but later in June.

"The Walk Across the Stage" must stand out as a special moment in time.....grasping the scroll and feeling a sense of pride. It's funny how a little piece of paper like that can represent so much accomplishment, anxiety, tears, energy, rage, joy, self-worth, money, time - not to mention a whole super giant load of prayers.

The first year is all learning of course but not only what's in the text books but what life is like on the "outside", where most young people have never been before, where they experience life in a totally free and independent setting from what they previously knew. A year of firsts.

After the first year, the years following seem to be more of the same, just faster.

And then graduation.

Two important people I know are graduating this weekend.

Greg Jensen will graduate with his Master's Degree from Providence College and Seminary.

Kim Stitt will also graduate from Providence College with her Degree in Social Sciences.

These two people have worked hard, have learned a great deal and are ready to use what they have learned to help a needy world.

So, here's to two very loved and honorable, soon-to-be college graduates extraordinaire!

I know God has been making a path for them. May they walk that path with great enthusiasm!

We have guests.

We do. We have guests.

They're black, have shiny iridescent feathers, speak much too loudly in the mornings and eat everything they can find in our yard. They're pretty good at cleaning the place up after the winter birds have worked the yard over with a variety of seeds.

Crows do have their place in the scheme of things.......but by the time July rolls around, I'm sure they will have worn out their welcome!!

Haven't even seen a robin in the yard yet. Confound it. I hope the black blighters aren't keeping them away.

Speaking of guests, I still miss having cats. Petting them and cuddling them and laughing at them. I miss having them curl up on my lap or snuggle under the covers with me. I miss their presence, their wiliness and cunning, their little purrs and meows and high leaps over obstacles. I miss their independent style and fickle hearts. I miss the feeling I get of being cozy and comfortable when I'm with them.

I do think I would quite prefer a cat over a crow as a guest....wouldn't you?

Well, I'd really prefer my cousin Sue from Texas, but I'll have to wait a few weeks.......

My heart aches....

There are things in life that make my heart ache. I've made a list.

Seeing children suffer in any way.

Watching young girls giving their innocence away to hopelessness and depravity.

Feeling the helplessness of those in despair.

Lost love.

Death.

One other thing -

Not being close enough to my children, to hold them and tell them softly and gently how much they are loved and appreciated.

Some days I miss our son and daughter so much that my heart aches for them.

Some days I just miss their closeness.

I miss touching their heads and kissing their cheeks and holding their hands and offering them my love, as only a mother can.

I cried today because I miss my children.

Love can do that. It can make my heart ache.

I wonder if God cries.......when we are far away from him........just wondering.

Attacks.

There were 2 young women attacked in this city this past week.

That's two too many. One of them happened just down the block from where we live.

Physical attacks. What makes people do the things they do, to harm defenseless people.

Drugs? Power? Alcohol? .........Evil??

And those are the ones we know about.

There are other attacks going on too. Attacks on people I love. Attacks to render them useless and powerless.

THESE ATTACKS I CAN AND WILL DO SOMETHING ABOUT!

We're talking spiritual attacks here folks, and as much as the evil One is present and very much alive in our days here, we do have power to overcome him. We must work together as the body of Christ to overcome his lies and deceptions, his power and his subtlety, his assaults on those who are attempting to do good things, things that would help and not harm.

As God's people, we can pray. Pray in the Name of Jesus. And so, I shall.

Just looking.........

Ever go into a store and the clerk comes up to you and asks if he/she can help you to find what you're looking for?

I have.

Most of the time I say "I'm just looking"....because I know exactly what I'm looking for.

Usually no one can help me find the specific "X" that I'm trying to find. I will know it when I see it.

Kind of like folks coming into the church for the first time.

We shouldn't have to be going up to them and asking if we can help them find what they're looking for because if they can't find "it" within the people asking the question, then it's not a good indication of what we are as a church.

If they're looking for truth, then they had better find it expressed in the people there.

If they're looking for love and acceptance, they had better find it also in the people there.

What about hope and peace and a sense of forgiveness?

What about social justice and feeding the poor?

Yep. We had better be about our Father's business alright. Folks are watching.

We had better be housing the Spirit of God within us or folks will go elsewhere to find what they're looking for.

Just an observation.

Learning.

Sometimes I get my Irish up. When people do foolish things and get others really ticked off with them, I'm right in there too....being ticked off.

The story goes like this.

One fellow was really nice and brought enough sweet things for everyone to enjoy because he was leaving for lands far off to the north country for a couple of months. He wanted to let everyone know that they would be missed. I figured that was pretty nice of him to do that. He left them all in two boxes in a nice and convenient place for everyone to help themselves.

Another fellow had several out-of-town guests in for a meeting. He figured he'd take one box of those sweets into his meeting and he did just that.

Ya, that's when I got my Irish up and told the fellow he should put those sweets back because they were purchased for the people who worked here and not for the people in his meeting. He put them back and then went about and asked his out-of-town guests to help themselves to sweets over in the nice convenient area.....which they did.

I was really ticked off about that. In fact, I was ticked off all evening too.

In the morning when I woke up, I thought about what I had done....not what the fellow had done but what I had done. I felt badly that I had been angry. They weren't MY sweets after all.

The fellow I had been angry at, came by and asked if I was angry with him. I said "No". If I was mad....I said "No". If I was disappointed with him. I said "yes". I was. He apologized for what he'd done. I forgave him. Actually I forgave him when I woke up that morning. I figured I had done much worse than he had done many times in my life and people found it in their hearts to show me grace. Why shouldn't I be doing the same with him? And so I did.

We talked. We forgave.

Isn't that what community is all about. Learning to speak in love. Learning to show grace. Learning how to forgive. Learning how to be truthful with one another.......talking it out until we come to an understanding. (And this didn't even happen in a church setting!!!)

Notice I did say "learning". I never cease to amaze myself at just how little I have learned.

There's always tomorrow.

It's happening!!!???....

What is that anyway?

Something is changing my countenance.

I'm beginning to have a sense of anticipation....just beginning, mind you.

I don't want to get all head up about something and then not have it come to fruition.

But they said it would happen.

I like to say, "I'll believe it when I see it"....or should I say, "when I feel it".

But there are people out there that know about these kinds of things and I would like to trust their knowledge of same.

So, as one Saskatchewanian to another......or to a Manitoban...........since we prairie folks have one major thing in common........


They say it's hittin' +20 on Sunday!!!!! As I say, I won't get all excited 'til it happens. :-)

Rain...

Rain, rain, go away
Come again another day.

Whoever made up that little ditty must have been in the throws of a rainy July.

As for me, on this April evening I would more likely say:

Rain, rain, wash away
All the dirt, 'cause here comes May.

May, who brings the trees to blossom,
After months of playing possum.

Then comes June with her delights
Soft with breezes blowing kites.

Ya......and then comes the rain for July......hope it doesn't actually happen that way or we'll be settin' up camp in a mud hole.

Lord, may July be just as lovely as it can possibly be. We won't want to be singin' that rain song then. Thanks.

I need.

I'm going to bed and it's not 8 p.m.

Trying to get "un-tired". Is that a word. Probably not.

It was a busy day and the "Studs & Peelers" made over $240. in their Pie Day.

Thanks for your support everyone......but I think the lemon pie I made may have been a bit soggy. You know how it is when you have to make things the day before - including the meringue which gets all watery and sticky if it's not eaten immediately. Hope Marc and Dixie weren't too disappointed!!!! It was wonderful that Marc came and purchased!!!

Anyway, all for a good cause....watery or not!

I need sleep. I need warmth. I need....I need.....I need...blah, blah, blah, blah, blah

I most likely NEED a good kick in the pants to get me going but alas, I'm not sure even that would do the trick.

Another visit to see doc. After 3 weeks of antibiotics..........here I go again. Bring on summer.

I need a fix.

Inadequate.....

That's what I find myself being so many times.

People ask for advice. I think it shows my age....I was going to say maturity but that would be just too over-the-top. "Age" is a sufficient term.

There's something about becoming older though. I mean, I not only look older than say.......39 ;) but along with age comes a kind of wisdom that can only be had through quite a few experiences in life.....good and bad and questionable.

When asked about this or that, I can only tell of my own experiences. That's it. I've experienced new life (as in becoming a child of God AND new life with my children being born), and death (of immediate family members) and child crises and marriage crises and personal crises and most everything in between.

I can convey to them the things I have done well but also those things I have totally bombed at in my journey.................so far. The tough stuff most often is what people can most readily relate to, my inadequacies, as it were.

I think God allows these difficult things in life, so that we can use them to help others along the way. It's what I'm finding.

Hello. My name is Sharon and I'm inadequate..................in myself.

It's God who brings about my self-worth and I'm danged glad he does too!

It's that time of the year....again.

Our Relay for Life team "Studs and Peelers" (both forestry terms, I might add, so as not to confuse anyone and take them on a smut ride)....yes, as I was saying, our team is in the middle of their fund raising activities.

This Wednesday we're having PIE DAY. It's $2.00 a slice at noon in the main floor Forest Centre Boardroom here in town. I just finished making 6 pie crusts for the occasion. I suppose I'll fill them with something too...........like lemon, chocolate, and coconut cream. Others will be making pies like key lime, buttertart, apple, strawberry.....and maybe we'll even sneak in a carrot cake.

So ya. I'm on the Team again this year. Each member does their own individual fund raising as well as with the whole team.

If you see me walking towards you with an "I want your money" kind of stare, don't turn away. I'll just follow you......but if I know my friends, they'll be coming to find ME and offering great huge amounts of cash for me to hand in to the Cancer Society. It's such a great cause.

I know you have known someone who has died from this disease, perhaps several people. I certainly have and it just makes me want to do this all night thing on May 30 into the morning of May 31........walking around the track to raise money for cancer research. Anything over $15. gets a charitable receipt.

I'll be waiting for your bucks. You'll be glad you gave.

An orchestral evening.

Well, that was a great evening of music and dance!

The Prince Albert stringed orchestra played their end-of-year concert at the Rawlinson Centre tonight. Beautiful music. I went with two friends who shared their love of music with me.

Then there were the dancers. Oh my. There were Irish dancers, ballet dancers, Ukrainian dancers and First Nations square dancers.

Then the three of us went for coffee. We talked for an hour or more about what God is doing amongst us. It was fascinating to see how all three of us had similar stories to tell about God's working in our lives.....each came from a different angle but all focused on waiting and watching for what was next for us to do as a church.

A good night all around. May the Lord bless us as we wait...........

The sun....quite amazing.

Seems like the sun does quite a bit every day to keep this old world on track.

Somehow keeping all those planets in their orbits. There it is.....one big ball of explosive gases giving life to earth in perfect amounts.

Shining on earth just the right amount of light to melt the snow and then to bring out the leaves on the trees....and then allowing birds to come back here to nest, not to mention enticing the new shoots of grass to peek through and make everything lush and green.

People somehow look happier when the sun is shining. They go outside more often too....even in winter. Of course, I'm the exception in that area. If we could have sunshine from March to the end of September and cloud from October 1st to the end of February I'd be one happy little camper. But that is simply one of my idiosyncrasies!

Sun can change our countenance. It can put a smile on our face. It can change the color of our face too! It even penetrates our pores to allow us to soak up Vitamin D. Isn't that just quite amazing.

The sun does it all......but I must remember that the 'Son' spoke it all into being....now THAT'S what I call AMAZING!

There goes another one......

Carman, the gentleman of our office, worked his last day today.:(

He's been with Environment for 35 years. Quite a milestone.

So, a bunch of us headed over to Kickers Bar and Grill to enjoy beers and a feast of wings with varying degrees of spiciness. It was good to sit and talk with him and raise a glass to a very fine man. He and I knew all the old songs (my friend Lauralea should have been there!!) and we sang several of them together while others chimed in occasionally......and he's a lot younger than I am....but he knew the old songs too. It was good fun and a great opportunity to talk to folks around a table.

It was decided that we should do this kind of thing more often. I agreed.

Beers and wings suit me just fine.

But with all the fun, there was a feeling of loss. This fine fellow, who knows practically every one in town as well as Saskatchewan, not to mention people from most everywhere in the country, will be missed by everyone. He's one of a kind. He loves people. He knows how to treat people too and respect them. Just many very good qualities.

So, the other fellows in the office have a huge hole to fill now that Carman has entered retirement. Who will make us laugh.? Who will bring us presents? Who will sit and talk about anything at all and look at the good side of everything? Who will encourage us and be knowledgeable about most everything forest related....not to mention the ability to talk about any kind of bird species???

Some people come into our lives and change the way we look at the world around us.

Carman is one of those people.

Yep, there goes another one.....a super one too. May the Lord bless him "real good". :-)

How important is family?

Here's how it went down.

Someone I know stated that our children have moved away from P.A. What exactly is keeping us from moving away now, to live anywhere else but here - kids gone, no house to tie us down, husband retired.

Why indeed.

I answered by saying that Prince Albert is our home. We like it here. We don't like the poverty, the oppression, the drugs and prostitution. We don't like the way people use their excessive amounts of money to "buy" into anything they wish, politically speaking, of course. You know how small town politics can be.....but every city has places it can improve upon.

But we like being close to the beautiful north country - the lakes, the beaches, the great fishing. We like the fact that everything is close at hand in our city - within a 10 minute drive. Our children may not be here, but it's our home. It's been my home for 60 years!

I neglected to mention to the person asking the question that another major reason we stay here is that our family.....our church family, is here. This is where we receive life from God......through this family. We're an integral part of it, this church family. We, as a church, are a "regular" family in every sense of the word. We get on one another's nerves, we criticize each other, we judge one another and we sometimes say things that hurt. But at the end of the day, we ask for forgiveness, say we're sorry and go on living out our lives as the Body of Christ. Just like any family would do.......well, usually......

Yes, we fail each other. We fail what we are supposed to be, what Jesus said we should be. But it's not too late to change that. We can revisit again the motives we have of following Christ. Perhaps they need changing, to coincide with what Christ was actually telling us.

Husband and I spoke of this at lunch today. Jesus came to heal the sick, give sight to the blind, to forgive sinners. He told us to look after the widows and orphans, to feed the hungry and visit those in prison. He told us to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves....and a whole whack of other stuff too.

What is a Christian anyway? Have we misrepresented that word?

Oh, man. I need to rethink what being a Christ-follower really is........

What will today bring.....

Let's see.

A lot of coughing.

Celebrating a great co-worker's 52nd birthday:)

Attending the Cancer Society Relay for Life Kick-off BBQ at work during the lunch hour. (and helping clean up afterwards).

Typing up a payroll date deadline sheet for all 3 of us B1 employees.

Adding up my expenses for all office supplies for the past fiscal year. (down from last year!!)

Sending a registered letter.

Eating jelly beans............quite a few, actually.

Talking with co-workers.

Drinking coffee.

Eating a strawberry yogurt and an apple.

Watching with my mouth hanging open while a co-worker runs out the door exclaiming that her husband had just been taken to the hospital by ambulance as his right side had gone numb. (After I got my mouth closed, I took a few minutes to offer up to God some pretty straight forward requests.....God, please help him.....and heal his body and look after that family.)

Went to see co-worker and husband in hospital.....a T.I.A. by the sounds of it. (Mini-stroke) He was doing ever-so-much better when we arrived.

You know, you just don't know what a regular, ordinary run-of-mill day will bring.

There are some days we simply have to take one moment at a time.

I think I'll end the day by praying for my friend and her husband again. God continues to be in that business of healing.

Good night.....and may the Lord watch over us all this night.

Chocolate...

Someone at work today gave me a chunk of dark, rich chocolate. That same person a week or so ago gave me chocolate from Belgium. He has also gone to the flower shop down the street and brought back single chocolates for the ladies in the office. He is always bringing trinkets to us from his trips....from little rubber bugs to chocolate bumble bees and everything in between.

Just how thoughtful can one fellow be. I think he's a great example of how people should be. Generous. Thoughtful. Caring. A "people person" all around. And he never expects anything in return. He just gives because it's just in him. He helps too. Helps everyone who asks him. He even helps people who have "fallen by the wayside" on the street by calling an ambulance for the person, whether the person realized it or not.

He doesn't talk about people in negative ways either.

He's just an all around "good joe".....

I'm not sure yet what life will be like without him. His last day of work is on Friday.

Seems like whenever Carman is around, there is a breath of fresh air like a sweet smelling aroma..........kind of like the Spirit of God.

He'll surely be missed.....and may God go with him.