Loving Like Jesus

I was blessed today to sit at the hospital with a family waiting for their loved one to have surgery. A stranger named Paulette came and sat next to me and just started talking. Her husband was in surgery, they had been married 43 years and lived in East Texas, so she was without any friends. Her daughter lives in Colorado, I didn't catch where her son lived, but here she was waiting by herself. The family I was with on the other hand had all four children, their spouses and grandchildren waiting as well as six others from church. I asked Paulette if she had a church family and she said no that she had not been to church since she was a child.
I talked to her a little about my accident and how wonderful my church family had been throughout that ordeal. She said her community (about 500 people) do come together for one another. I am sure that is true, but it can't be the same as being loved on and prayed for by people who are really sharing Jesus and trusting in the power of prayer and not just being a good neighbor. I can only pray she got a little glimpse of Him tonight.

As God often does, on my way home He spoke to me through a Casting Crowns song "Love Them Like Jesus".

The love of her life is drifting away
They're losing the fight for another day
The life that she's known is falling apart
A fatherless home, a child's broken heart
You're holding her hand, you're straining for words
You trying to make - sense of it all
She's desperate for hope, darkness clouding her view
She's looking to you

Just love her like Jesus, carry her to Him
His yoke is easy, His burden is light
You don't need the answers to all of life's questions
Just know that He loves her and stay by her side
Love her like Jesus
Love her like Jesus

The gifts lie in wait, in a room painted blue
Little blessing from Heaven would be there soon
Hope fades in the night, blue skies turn to gray
As the little one slips away
You're holding her hand, you're straining for words
You're trying to make sense of it all
They're desperate for hope, darkness clouding their view
They're looking to you

Just love them like Jesus, carry them to Him
His yoke is easy, His burden is light
You don't need the answers to all of life's questions
Just know that He loves them and stay by their side
Love them like Jesus

Lord of all creation holds our lives in His hands
The God of all the nations holds our lives in His hands
The Rock of our salvation holds our lives in His hands
He cares for them just as He cares for you
So love them like Jesus, love them like Jesus
You don't need the answers to all of life's questions
Just know that He loves them and stay by their side
Love them like Jesus
Love them like Jesus

Wedding Rings

My niece Danette sent two emails today with two sweet things to share. Here is the first:

Does he not have the brightest blue eyes?

But then she sent this and I thought it was sweet and wanted to share it with all of you.

Why should the wedding ring be worn on the fourth finger?
There is a beautiful and convincing explanation given by the Chinese. Thumb represents your Parents Second (Index) finger represents your Siblings Middle finger represents your-Self Fourth (Ring) finger represents your Life Partner & the Last (Little) finger represents your children Firstly, open your palms (face to face), bend the middle fingers and hold them together - back to back (as in the figure below) This represents you and your husband bowing before God and humbling yourselves to one another (my sister Caren added this sentence)

Secondly, open and hold the remaining three fingers and the thumb - tip to tip Now, try to separate your thumbs (representing the parents)..., they will open, because your parents are not destined to live with you lifelong, and have to leave you sooner or later. Please rejoin your thumbs as before and separate your Index fingers (representing siblings), they will also open, because your brothers and sisters will have their own families and will have to lead their own separate lives. Now rejoin the Index fingers and separate your Little fingers (representing your children), they will open too, because the children also will get married and settle down on their own some day. Finally, rejoin your Little fingers, and try to separate your Ring fingers (representing your spouse). You will be surprised to see that you just CANNOT, because Husband & Wife have to remain together all their lives - through thick and thin!! Especially when the Lord is in the center!

Another Song Story

Today I was watching a program and the guest was Mark Cohn. I did not know of him because I have not listened to much secular music for about 20 years. However, he told his story of how he was shot in the head after a concert in Denver in an attempted carjacking. He said the bullet hit the only area it could and not do damage. It had caused him to rethink life and had eanabled him to break a 9 year writing block and write again. His new album "Join The Parade" came out in October. Well he sang this song this morning and some of the lyrics caught my attention. I bolded the ones that did.

Live Out the String
Maybe life is curious to see what you would do
With the gift of being left alive
How love, how give
Spread the higher purpose
And cut through all the shuck and jive
It’s only natural, maybe superstitious
To try and find the meaning in beating the odds
Cause sometimes you gotta (get down on your knees)
Sometime (could you get down on your knees)
Sometimes baby (maybe get down on your knees)
And thank the whole wide universe of God’s for letting you…
Live out the string

A little longer boy
Raise your voice and make a joyful noise
Ain’t no guarantee of anything
Live out the string
Now that a meteorite has fallen in the chair
You just got out of to answer the phone
Will you live every moment like it just might be the last
Or will you still just b**** and moan
Fate is kind, fate is cruel, fate is terminally cool
It’s a random interruption in the middle of your groove
But sometime (won’t you get down on your knees)
Sometime (get down on your knees)
Sometimes baby (better get down on your knees)
And find yourself a deeper groove, yeah…
Live out the string

A little longer boy
Raise your voice and make a joyful noise
Ain’t no guarantee of anything
So live out the string (the string)
Who knows if we got angels on our shoulders (move on)
Right now with the devil in the street
Who knows if it means we got more work to do
But hey baby, don’t the air taste sweet
Hey baby, don’t the air taste sweet(hey baby, don’t the air taste sweet)
Get down on your knees
Get down on your knees
Live out the string
Live out the string(yeah-ah, yeah-ah, yeah-ah)
Maybe life is curious to see what you would do
with the gift of being left alive

It indeed is a gift to be alive and I pray I will be more deliberate about making a difference with the life that I have.

I Am An Addict

I know that it may surprise some of you for me to admit on this blog that I am an addict. I have been an addict for a very long time. I thought in the past couple of months that I had finally overcome my addiction, but I have once again fallen. I know that I need a support group instead of trying to beat this on my own, but just haven't had the courage to admit my addiction until now. Here it is............I am addicted to children! They are so precious and they bring my heart such great joy!!

A few weeks ago God whispered in my ear that just because I was not currently a children's minister it did not mean I could not minister to children. Then I found out that Bill Thoma and Beth Netherton needed help in their 5th and 6th grade Sunday morning classroom. So today was mine and Steve's second week in the class. This a great group of kids and I am thankful for the opportunity to be with them. This morning Beth asked me if I would share with them the blessings I have found in the hardship of the past two years and I was able to share with them some of the things I have been sharing with you for the past couple of weeks.
Bless their little hearts, they were so attentive.

Then tonight I was blessed to be able to sing with the CAREkids. Several adults were asked to sing with them for their Christmas musical and I was blessed to be one of them. They did so good and I couldn't believe what a young group this is! How did MacKenzie Stevens, Katie Siburt, Emma Eason, et.al. become CAREkids already?? I know they dropped the age to Kindergarten this year, but still. Anyway...it was so fun being with them all.

So there you have it. Just when I think I have this addiction whooped one of those kids gives me a hug and I am out of control all over again. I guess I should just thank God for the love and passion He has given me for His kids. I guess I will just give in to the addiction and know that I will never be cured. Praise the Lord indeed.

Four Things About Myself

My friend Grace sent an email with this request, so just thought I would share it with the blog world.

Four Things About Myself

1) Places I Have Lived: El Paso, TX, Pascagoula, MS, Mobile, AL, Lubbock, TX, Huntsville, TX, Houston, TX, Parma, ID, San Benito, TX, Spring Hill, TN, Chino, CA, Duncanville, TX, Mesquite, TX and Richardson, TX

2) Four T.V. shows I watch: Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader, Dancing With The Stars, 24, Cold Case

3) Four websites I visit daily: Mostly visit blogs, but some websites are www.christianeducator.org (Christian Education Association), www.heartlight.org (daily devotionals), www.odusa.org (Open Doors-praying for the persecuted church)

4) Four places I would rather be right now: Kauai, New Zealand, Big Sur, shopping

So there you have it, some trivia you may not have known. Have a blessed rest of the weekend.

Second Frame

Well yesterday we had computer problems and I wasn't able to access the internet. Amazing how lost I felt not being able to read my daily blogs???? I actually had to sit and read a book. Maybe it should go down more often??

Today my mom and I went to "Neath the Wreath" at the Plano Center. Wow! I had no idea there were so many women free on a Friday! It was so crowded! But that didn't keep me from buying a few things. I found a picture I could not resist that says "I believe in the sun, even when it is not shining, in love even when I'm alone and in God even He is silent". They say this saying was etched on the walls of a Nazi prison camp. Of course it just spoke of my journey and I had to have it and now it hangs on the wall right by my chair I sit in most of the time. I saw another saying that I liked, but didn't buy it. "When you stumble, make it part of the dance". I thought it was good as well. I just always need help in looking at things from the postitive point of view.

So back to my journey story. We were thrilled when the frame came off so far ahead of schedule and were praising God for His mercy and care. I was getting back to work and actually worked up to 30 hours and things seemed to finally be getting back on track. Then came the bad news. My bone was bending. The doctor described it like a young tree. While it was healed it just wasn't strong enough yet to support me walking so I had to go back into the second frame. Emotionally this was so difficult, physically not so much. I knew what to expect, although this time the tightening of the screws was more painful because there were several more and we were now twisting the bone back instead of moving it down. I didn't have to go to rehab this time. But emotionally I was back on the roller coaster. The "why's" plagued me again. I had given God all the glory and praise for healing me ahead of schedule so why tease me? Why make me think it was sooner, when really it would end up being longer than first said? It just seemed like a cruel twist. Yet I kept telling myself "God is good".

I have said it before but for me what was important is that I kept reminding myself of the truths about God, not focus on what I was feeling. Feelings are so deceptive. But truth is truth and we either believe it or we don't. I am still not 100% at being able to do this, but I am continually reminding myself of the truth. I don't know how much longer it will take for me to not worry that something else is going to go wrong? But this I do know, whatever is yet to come I will be able come through it as well. I am a fighter and as I said in an earlier post, I know the Lord has spared my life because He has a purpose for me. I would like it to be crystal clear as to what it is, but I will wait patiently while He continues to reveal it.

Rehab Take Two

When I got the fixator I had to return to rehab. It was so sweet because my old staff tried really hard not to just get me back on their floor, but to actually get me back in my old room. It didn't work but I thought it was so sweet that they tried. I ended up one floor down on the third floor, but was so touched when they would still come visit me even though I wasn't on their floor. Fortunately, I was able to return to the rehab routine fairly quickly. Once again my favorite part was going to the pool and being able to walk with the frame on. And at least this time I was able to get in and out of bed. I just had to build up the strength in my arms in order to walk with the walker.

I didn't journal during this time for some reason so I don't remember how long I actually was in rehab this time but I think it was just a couple of weeks. Anyway...when I returned home there was quite a bit of pain because we had to turn screws every day to move the bone down.

It was very amazing how the technology actually worked you can see in the x-ray below. At the bottom is where the infection was and then the gap at the top is where we moved the bone down and new bone had to grow. In this x-ray the bottom had not met yet, but it would.

I was thankful for gaucho and palazzo pants. Genell McClendon was sweet and made me 3 covers for the frame that I was able to wear with my skirts and dresses so that it was not so scary for the children at church. I was also thankful for a new bed. Workman's comp got me one of those Craftmatic beds and it made all the difference in being able to sleep with the frame on. However, I didn't have rubber sheets so I kept getting them caught and ripping them on the frame.

The other blessing of the frame is that I was able to return to ministry part time. My favorite memory of the frame was that I had mentioned wanting to decorate it for Christmas and Kelley Thomas came to church with some red garland for me to wrap around it. It wouldn't be until the following year and frame 2 that I actually wrapped Christmas lights around it. I was suppose to wear the frame for 9-12 months but we were thrilled when after 7 months the doctor said it was ready come off. We rejoiced and gave thanks. Once again I thought I was returning to some type of normalcy. But it was short lived. I'll talk about that tomorrow.

The Power of Prayer

Steve and I subscribe to this magazine called Pray. This month's issue has an article called
"Real-Life Stories of Healing". I wanted to share some of them with you.

"Pockets of transformation are springing up worldwide out of the faith and prayer of believers who took God's promise to heal the land literally and are dedicating themselves to living out 2 Chron. 7:14. Here are a few examples.

*In Fiji, people are overjoyed at God's response to their pleas of repentance. In one village. He lead believers to repent for the generational sin of cannibalizing the first missionaries to their island. The Fijians invited that missionary's descendants to receive their humble apologies. In turn the family offered their forgiveness in a moving ceremony that was covered by CNN. Since then, believers have taken as much time as needed to seek God and make certain that they have left no sin unconfessed. Not only have they experienced healing in their relationships, but they also are witnessing the restoration of a coral reef and the return of an abundance of fish. Also in Fiji, a toxic stream running through the village of Nuku suddenly was purified as a result of intentional repentance for generational sin. What is even more amazing is that the water is still polluted above and below the village, but it is clear and healed as it flows through the community.

*In the Canadian Artic, original inhabitants of the land and those who came later held a reconciliation ceremony. As they repented and rededicated a particular plot of land. God overwhelmed them with His quick response. Two days later, 15,000 caribou, a mainstay of life in that area that had been scarce, suddenly showed up at the very spot that the pray-ers had rededicated.

*In Guatemala ever since villagers in the mountain town of Almolonga pleaded for God's healing, the community has been in a state of transformation. More than 85 percent of residents are now followers of Jesus Christ. Jails have closed, churches have replaced bars, and the people are experiencing a healing of the land through faster growing cycles and large crops."

I love reading these kind of stories. Testimonies are powerful. They help us to keep or eyes fixed on that Ephesians 3:20 God that can do so much more than all we ask or think. So what are you praying for?

Angels Among Us

One thing that becomes obvious in your care in the hospital is who is there because it is really their ministry and who is there because it is a paycheck. If you are blessed you have more of the former and only a few of the later. I wanted to tell you today about my memories about a few who stood out among the rest and made my stay at the hospital so much better than it could have been.

First there is Terry. Terry was an African American woman who had an amazing laugh. I wondered if perhaps she was part deaf because she talked rather loudly but she was just this bright ray of sunshine whenever she entered my room. Terry was the aide who took me down for my first shower (I mentioned in a previous blog). Terry had a way of helping you maintain your dignity in very vulnerable positions. She never made you think you were bothering her but that it was her joy to serve you. When I had to return to the hospital with the infection Terry heard about it and came over to visit me. She then fought to have me returned to her floor, when that didn't work she made sure she came down on her break to give me my showers until she made sure the other staff would take good care of me. She was an amazing comfort to me.

Elsie was a really short (about 5 foot) Saudi Arabian nurse. She had a back problem which caused her some major pain but she never let it stand in the way of her service. She loved her son and talked about him a lot. She would just find time to come in and "chat". When I left the hospital the first time she insisted she be the one that pushed me out to the car and actually got tears in her eyes to see me go. She treated me as a friend and not just a patient.

Then there was Judy. I didn't particularly care for her. She was very business like. Very rarely smiled. But one day when I received some disappointing news she came in and found me in tears and to my amazement she asked if she could pray with me. She said the sweetest prayer of comfort over me. I remember being surprised, but thankful. Lesson learned you can't always judge a book by it's cover.

Leah was my occupational therapist. She was the first person I would see every morning as she helped me learn to dress myself and make sure I was ready to go each morning and then I would have her for an hour of arm exercises and 30 minutes of occupational therapy. She would share freely about her life, her husband was in law school. She was pregnant. They did not go to church but knew they needed to. We talked about God, faith and a lot of other things.
She ended up having a baby boy and when I returned to visit her 3-4 months ago she was pregnant again.

Libby was my phyxical therapist. She was an exceptional therapist in that she knew her business and knew how to build your confidence. She had the right measure of "push" and "rest". She wasn't very personable, didn't really want to engage in "chit chat" but didn't do it in a way that you felt she wasn't interested, she just wasn't a talker. She did tell me about going to church with her grandfather at a Presbyterian church in Highland Park. Last time I saw her she was engaged to get married to a guy she had met at church.

Finally, there was Scott. Scott was my nurse back over at big Baylor, both times I got the frame. Scott was the friendliest of them all. Always positive, always encouraging. He definitely has the calling of a nurse. He was the father of three. Fortunately for him, he was able to work the day shift. I just appreciated sweet spirit and the way that he made me feel like it was his privilege to serve me.

I know there were others, but these were the ones that stood out. All of them had something in common, they had joy in serving. They knew their call. They were concerned with meeting my needs. I learned so much from each of them and will always be thankful for the sweet way they allowed God to use them to bless me.

Nothing Takes God By Surprise

I found a new CD at Lifeway a few days ago by Mark Harris. I picked it up for a song called Windows and Walls to see if it was a song we could use for the Women's Retreat since we are having a window theme. That song probably won't work. But there was this one that just touched my soul and I thought I would share it.

Nothing Takes You By Surprise
from the album Windows and Walls,2007

It may be a phone call,
That comes without warning.
And suddenly my heart is breaking.
It may be a headline,
I wake to one morning.
And suddenly my world is shaken.
But every now and then
When life falls apart
There's a truth that I trust,
that calms my heart.

Nothing takes you by surprise
Here beneath these troubled skies,
There's a comfort just to realize
Nothing takes you by surprise.

Sometimes the hard times seem
Senseless and random
Like life's just a series of chances
But come what may you've never
Left us abandoned
You're God over all circumstances
And nothing on earth
Can stop your plans
You're in control

Nothing takes you by surprise
Here beneath these troubled skies,
There's a comfort just to realize
Nothing takes you by surprise.

Though bitter winds blow
This truth is sweet
Things out of our hands
Are still under your feet

Nothing takes you by surprise
Whatever crisis may arise
Jesus you're Lord of our lives
Nothing takes you by surprise

I take comfort in that too, that nothing that happens to us takes God by surprise and He will always get us through it (even it takes a little longer than we hoped!) Hope you can take comfort in that too!

Dealing With Disappointment

First of all let me start off by saying if anyone knows how to post a new header picture and keep it formatted correctly let me know. I have read and read and am not having any luck. As you can see I changed my picture and got it to fill out width wise but it is still way to big (height wise) so if you know the trick please share.

So on August 12,2005 Steve and I were able to move back into our house. There was a yard full of people to welcome us home. Once again such a sweet outpouring of love and I was moved to tears as the group sang "We Love You With The Love of the Lord". It was so good to be home, but it would be short lived. 8 days later I was back in the hospital. I was in therapy and so excited to be finally walking with a quad cane when I felt something go wrong. The therapist dismissed it as being scar tissue breaking up and even had me ride the stationary bike afterwards. The pain continued when I returned home to the point I could not put any weight on my leg at all so we decided to go to ER. X-rays showed the rod in my leg had broken and later we found it broke because I had an infection in the bone. Another month in the hospital, another surgery but this time they also were concerned because they found an abnormality in my heart. This was the first time I was scared of surgery. I wrote my last wishes and notes to my family members, the kids at church, etc. I was so very thankful for a call from Gene Henderson (from Abilene where he was moving his son to college) as he listened to what the other doctor had said about my heart and said he thought I should get another opinion and referred me to a friend of his who worked at Baylor. This doctor was disagreed with the first doctor and said my heart was stronger than the first doctor indicated and he thought I would make it through surgery fine. Sure enough I did (a year later I did a stress test with Gene and it showed my heart was okay).

When Dr. Freudigman talked about the Illizarov frame and showed it to me I thought I knew what I was agreeing to, but little did I know it would be so much more than I could imagine. I agreed to it because my only other option was amputation and I wanted to try everything possible before making that decision. The positive aspect of the frame is that I was still able to bear weight on my leg. I had to be back in rehab to gain strength to do it and that was another experience that I will blog about tomorrow.

This was a time where I really struggled with my relationship with God. I just did not understand why he had brought me all this way to just have me start all over again. I thought I had the faith of a mustard seed and had prayed that there would be no infection. I even followed the instructions of James 5:14-15 and called the elders and asked them to pray taking God at His word that the prayer of faith would heal me. But it didn't. I began to wrestle with
"what do you do when the God who can do anything chooses not to?". I knew he could, but he didn't. I thought I had enough faith, did I not? I don't know that I ever came to grips with these questions but what I did learn is that my relationship with God cannot be determined by what I feel. I just kept claiming His truth and trusting in what I know instead of how I felt.
And all I can tell you is this. Without God I was digressing into such a black hole and I did not like where it was leading, so I decided to look toward the Light. Each day got a little better. I am still not all the way back but I know I am still moving toward the Light and thankful for a Father that is patient with me while on the journey.

Home From Rehab

One of the things that was difficult for me during recovery was the "one step forward, two steps back" phenomenon. I would praise God for something He did and then it seemed there would be a set back. Unfortunately, I don't think I learned to praise Him for the setbacks as well. I thought my intentions were pure when I prayed "if you will.......I will promise to give you the glory." But what I didn't do is give God the glory whenever He didn't answer the way that I had asked.

I was so glad to be leaving the hospital when the time finally came, but so disappointed that things had not worked out in the remodeling of our house and it would not be ready so we had to move into a motel for six weeks. This was probably the hardest time of my whole recovery.
The motel was so confining. I still was confined to the wheelchair and there was not a lot of room for it even though it was supposed to be handicapped accessible. In fact the first place my workman's comp rep had found for us didn't work at all (the wheelchair could not make it around the bed), so we found a different place. I think the hardest part of this experience is that Steve was at work all day, my dad was really ill at this time and my mom was caring for him, so I was fairly isolated. And...there was either the bed or the couch to sit on. Just not real comfortable. The positive was that it made me appreciate home so much more!!

During this time my mom would come over 3 times a week and we would be picked up and transported to rehab. These were not just routine trips. Each one was adventurous in it's own way. Mostly a comedy of errors. Fortunately nothing serious ever happened. It was a blessing to have my mom with me, she would sit at the pool while I exercised and help me get dressed and undressed. It was also during this time that she would help clean my wounds and cover them with this special tape so that I could swim. She was a source of tireless support.

One thing that was a blessing about the motel is it was an extended stay kind of place so they provided breakfast and light dinners every night. Steve would usually go down and get me something for breakfast and leave it before he went to work, and then all I had to do is warm it up in the microwave. A lot of people were bringing us meals, but when there was a lapse we could just get some dinner at the motel as well, so that helped. The lifesaver for me was the blessing of my laptop that the church had been so very generous to provide for me. Emails were my life line.

A sweet memory during our stay at the motel was July 26, 2005 when so many of you turned out for my birthday at the Golden Corral. What a surprise!! It was so very humbling to see so many people fill an entire room to overflowing to celebrate my birthday. I felt so loved. There were even some old friends from Mesquite there. To this day we still don't know how they found out about the surprise, but it was good to see them. It really was one special birthday.

While things weren't perfect and conditions, rehab, etc. were still hard never in a million years did I think something could go wrong and things could get worse. But they did. I'll talk about that next time.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. Take time to thank God for your homes, families and friends!

Real World

I know we all hear that there are existing witches, but don't know what any of us conjure up (like that play on words?) in our minds when we think of them. If you didn't see it yesterday this article was posted by the Associative Press about a witch in Maryland who won the Lottery. You can hear him speak at http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.winner02sep02,0,4817510.story

Rather frigthening to me. Wonder how many students will actually attend that school?

My Thoughts On Halloween

Okay...right off the bat I realize this post will not win any popularity contests and I know that a lot of people do not agree with what I am about to say. That is okay...I am not writing this because I need anyone to agree or I want to convince you to believe what I believe or will be upset if you disagree. I think what I am getting ready to say falls right into the passage in Romans 14 where we are told not to judge each other but if I consider something wrong for me then it is wrong. I am not saying it is wrong for you OR that I am more spiritual for thinking the way I do.

That being said, I have to confess every year I really struggle with Halloween. How can I not when I love children like I do? I want to participate because of my love for them and the opportunity to outreach to my neighborhood, but for about 15 years now I have not. It all began after I read Joe Beam's book Seeing The Unseen and realized what a powerful entity Satan really is. I started asking myself questions like why I enjoyed going to movies that would scare me to death? Did the Lord really take delight in me when I was watching these movies that left me scared to walk into my own house when it was dark? And Haunted Houses, the more you scream the better right? I have done plenty of screaming? But again where did I think God was when I was participating in these activities? Or how about the times I dressed up as a witch? Verses such as Galatians 5:19-20, Deuteronomy 18:9-11 rule out the concept that there could be "good witches". We grew up on the Wizard of Oz, we know that Glenda was a good witch and Samantha Stevens was definitely a good witch! How Satan loves to disguise himself as angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).

I then studied the beginnings of Halloween and was convicted further. I don't have to tell any of you about that, you know the history and all about All Souls Eve, etc. But the real deal breaker for me was when I heard a policeman give a talk to a group of us about what he had seen transpire on Halloween for many years. That there are real witches and warlocks among us and Halloween night is their biggest night of celebration and worship to Satan. There are animals and even humans (usually children) sacrificed on Halloween. I decided that perhaps instead of passing out candy I could do more good my trying to pray protection over the innocent.

I know that we have tried to downplay the evil in Halloween and make it fun for our kids, and most of us dress our children up in cute costumes. And most of us find fun ways to celebrate Halloween with friends in a non frightening way but for me personally I don't want to do anything that gives Satan more reason to infiltrate my mind and heart. Usually when I bring up this subject someone will say "well Christmas was originally a heathen holiday too, do you celebrate it?" Yes I know, and yes I do. The difference is that Halloween has not been redeemed for the Lord. Christmas is all about giving glory to God for the gift of His Son. There is no longer any hint of evil in Christmas (in my opinion).

So there you have it, my feelings on Halloween. I don't have any close friends that agree with my position and a couple of them even taunt me every year, so don't feel like you need to agree with me either. It is just since this is my first Halloween blog I felt I should just let you all know my thoughts. NOW if anyone has a few pieces of chocolate you would like to offer me I will not refuse (just kidding!)

I do have to share with you how cute my grandnephew Talon looked in his first Halloween costume. Such a sweet boy and your first time to see his mom (my namesake) Danette Lynn.

Outings and Hospital Food

Once I mastered transferring in and out of my wheelchair they let me practice on a car. Yes they have a car frame in rehab and I practiced transferring on the sliding board from my chair to the car. When I was able to do it, then they had to watch Steve and my mom help me and as soon as they were approved we would be able to have an outing from the hospital. So on June 4th I was able to leave the hospital for a few hours! I wanted a steak so one of the therapist had given us directions to a Texas Roadhouse. Well, we could not find it and when we reached Love Field we turned around only to discover we had run over a nail! A few blocks later we pulled into a Lexus dealer. They were great and helped us get the tire fixed at no charge! They told us that there was a Texas Land and Cattle nearby so we headed there, only to find when we got the wheelchair out the cushion was missing. They had to take the wheelchair out of the trunk at the car dealership to access the temporary wheel. We rushed back since closing time was close and sure enough the cushion was there. We were then back on our way to Texas Land and Cattle. That meal was so delicious after 7 weeks of hospital food!

Two days later I got to start pool therapy. Now talk about an amazing feeling!!! They would roll me into the pool in a waterproof wheelchair (I would first have to transfer from my chair to that chair and then back again when it was over). Because you are buoyant in water I was able to get out of the chair and walk! I could not believe how great that felt to have both feet back on the ground again. I was able to walk back and forth the length of the pool. It was great.

The next weekend Steve and I would venture out and try to go to a movie. Nothing was really on, but we went to see "Bewitched", and then we ate out at Outback. On this outing we did learn is that places are not necessarily handicapped friendly. The theater's wheelchair access was in the first three rows of the theater, so watching the screen that close up was challenging. Then at the Outback we went to they had not trimmed their bushes and they scratched my arms going up the sidewalk. The following weekend we tried to go eat Mexican food with my mother and dad. I forget the name of the restaurant but after transferring out of the car and my dad pushing me up this 90 degree angle big hill, we discovered my wheelchair would not fit through the door. This was not the main entrance to this restaurant (it had stairs and double doors) this was the bar entrance, but it is where they had they ramp. So we just had to push me back down and ended up at an El Fenix down the street. But again it was just good to be out and eating something besides hospital food.

I was not as appreciative of hospital food as I should have been. My main complaint is that they served the very same meal on each day of the week. Breakfast rotated between eggs, bacon and biscuit, to pancakes and sausage. I could ask for cereal for an alternative.
I finally complained because I was getting tired of eating chicken every other meal (although prepared in a different way) and found out there was an alternative menu that I could order like a baked potato, or fruit plate etc. and that helped it not be so monotonous. I remember about this time Dan Stevens was in the hospital for some reason and where he was (Medical City) he actually got to order from a menu whatever he wanted any time of the day. I thought that sounded wonderful. However in retrospect because I have no will power where food is concerned I probably would not have lost the 100 lbs I lost if I had been on that menu. It also helped when my doctor kept telling me to eat more protein, so I would get people to bring me bean and cheese burritos from Taco Bell. You just learned to appreciate the simple pleasures.

So if you were in the hospital what do you think you would miss eating?

Just For Fun

Tonight is not a night for reminiscing on my journey. I have already been very emotional today for some reason. So....just for fun go to this site and take this test. It was kind of fun. Steve sent it to me and he got 17 correct. I got 16 (I always knew he was smarter than me).
Let us know how many you get? You have the power to make us feel better or worse :)

http://www.oldjoeblack.0nyx.com/thinktst.htm

We Are Family

I honestly don't know how people survive tragedy without faith community. I know they do, but I cannot even imagine how difficult it must be! This morning I just sat in worship and looked around at all the people who have blessed me. There are so many, young and old. Over and over children have told me that they are praying for me. Logan Strother told his mother Janet right after my retirement in June, "mom I am just going to keep praying for Ms. Lynn until you tell me not to." The entire Richardson East family has and is such a blessing.

Bill Thoma fasted every Saturday for me for almost a year. Talk about a humbling experience knowing that someone was giving up food every week and praying for you! The sweet times we had with our Life Group who were faithful to bring communion up on Sundays for me and Steve. Let me just say for me it was so much more meaningful to take communion with people than the times communion was brought to us and we just took it by ourselves. I think that it is what God meant it to be community. And while I am thankful for every time someone thought of us, it was more meaningful to take it with those that surrounded my bed.

Let me tell you about some more visits that blessed me. I hope singling some out does not make anyone else think that their visit was any less meaningful, because as I said yesterday every visit, every call, every card was appreciated and meant so much.

-One day Grant Lovassen brought me Baker's Ribs for lunch. Now I had never had Baker's Ribs so that was a real treat, but just that Grant would come on his lunch hour. I don't know that I had ever had a conversation with him at church before, but Steve had been in a group with him for awhile and it was so thoughtful for him to come.

-One day Wayne and Sandy Brumley came to visit. For those of you who don't know them, they are both blind. They took a taxi and found their way to my room. I was so touched that they cared enough to make the effort and was so blessed by their sweet words.

-One of my first visits in rehab was from Brett Yniquez and Wendy Wilson. Brett and Wendy were to of the kids from the church in Mesquite. We had spent some time together in a music program and at church camp. My heart was so touched that they were now freshmen in college but came to see me in the hospital. Brett was always one of those very quiet kids and I had no idea that anything I did had any impact on him. God was able to use his visit to teach me a sweet lesson.

-One day I picked up the phone and Karen Heflin asked if Matalee could sing me a song. I said "sure" and waited for her to sing "Jesus Loves Me" or something like it since she was only 3 at the time. Instead imagine my amazement when she started singing ''I am the sheep and the Lord is my shepherd watching over my soul. My soul to keep guarding over me ever, watching wherever I go". Then she belted out "And when the wind blows he is my shelter and when I'm lost and alone he rescues me...." I was so filled with emotion and learned that God can minister to you through a 3 year old. (by the way another time she called and sang "Lay Your Burden Down". I will always cherish those two songs because of sweet Matalee.

-I also recieved such a array of gifts (flowers, lotions, books, cd's, etc.) but the one gift that really touched my heart was a CD from some of the other children's ministers in the Dallas/Fort Worth Area that I had been meeting with once a month for about 7 years. Andrea Cooke from Riverside had them compile a list of songs and the reason they chose those songs and copied them to a CD for me. It was an amazing gift and brought me many hours of comfort. One particular song by Natalie Grant "Held" really brought me to me knees in prayer over and over.

I only hope that God can use me to bless others the way these people and so many others (including some of you readers and lurkers) have blessed me during this journey. You will never know how much each and every heart gift meant to me and pushed me on in my recovery! I praise God for you all!!

He Is Able

A song that came to mean so much to me during rehab was "He Is Able".

He is able, more than able to accomplish what concerns me today.

He is able, more than able to handle anything that comes my way.

He is able, more than able, to do much more than I could ever dream.

He is able, more than able, to make me what he wants me to be.

Every time the physical therapist asked me to do something that seemed impossible, I would just start singing that song in my head and the Lord would help me endure.

I prayed hard that my leg would heal and I would not have to have a wound vac. But that was not God's plan. The open wound where my bone went through my leg would not stay closed once they removed the stitches so it was forced to heal from the inside out. I was hoping that I could glorify God by it healing faster than the doctors had ever seen, but whatever reasons that was not God's plan either. So they taped tubing into the wound and sealed it and then this machine pumped all day long. Everywhere I went, it went. But the disappointment of that was offset by the fact that I could bear weight on my left leg on May 25th. Six weeks from the accident. I was amazed and so excited. It meant going from 4 people helping me get out of bed to just me and one aid. It meant that I could begin using a walker. The first time I stood on the leg with the walker I lasted 20 seconds! I would build up my strength a little each day.

A couple of things I remember that were special to me during this time were:

• Deb Tietjen brought me a chrysalis to watch, it was amazing and I was disappointed when I was out of the room when it turned into the monarch butterfly.
• Scott Collier came up to visit and pushed me outdoors (the first time I had been outdoors in 5 weeks) and the sun felt so good, however he was in a long sleeve shirt and tie and I am sure it was not so good for him.
• By this time Bob Legan had begun calling me every Tuesday afternoon and praying for me on the phone.
• I met a woman named Mary who was hoping to avoid an amputation, but in the end did not. She was a single woman but her extended family was in Amarillo.
• There was an elder from Highland Oaks who heard of my accident and he began visiting with me every week and praying over me. His name is George Baker. He is really one of God's angels here on earth.

It would take pages and pages of blogging to mention every visit, every call, or card/note I received. Each one a precious reminder that I was not being forgotten. I remember committing to myself that when I was able that I would try to be better at remembering others who are in the hospital or ill at home. It just takes a few minutes of time to make that call and it means so much to the person on the other end.

Rehab

So you might wonder when you cannot put weight on either leg what kind of rehab can you do? Transfers. Once I could push myself up in the bed, then I could move over to the side of the bed. They have a transfer board and then a piece of slick material you put over it to make you slide across it easier. You then put the board between the bed and the wheel chair and

pull yourself over. I don't remember how long it took before I could do this on my own, but it was awhile. Nevertheless the techs would pull the material and that would slide me over. My first exercises were arm exercises that you do with a theraband. Different colors are different

resistances. The first day I could barely do it and had to leave the room with nausea. But everyday got a little easier, and by the end I could lead the class if they had asked me. These were hour classes. So my day began at 8:00 a.m. with breakfast. 8:30 I would get dressed. 9:00 they would take me downstairs and I would practice transfers. 10:00 I had recreational therapy where I chose to paint ceramics. 11:00 was the arm exercises. 12:00 was lunch, 1:00 was talking to the social worker, 2:00 was more transfer practice or leg exercises. 3:00 -5:00 I was allowed to rest in my room 5:00 was dinner. 6:00 was a shower and then the rest of the evening I was free.

Successes were being able to sit in my wheelchair for longer periods of time. Being able to master the theraband. Being able to transfer to a chair because then I could also transfer to a shower chair and be able to take showers. Had to gain strength in my arms so that I could begin mastering rolling the wheels of the wheelchair on my own. One day they took me to a hallway with a fairly significant incline and made me roll down it and up it. Down was fairly easy, up not so much. When I asked why I was having to do this they said because I might be somewhere like a restaurant where I needed to go up a ramp. To which I replied "why would I try to do that when I would just have someone push me?" Anyway...I just did as I was told. Also I was given written exercises to help my thought processes come back. At first I could not add or subtract or remember words in sequence, but that all returned rather quickly.

I hate to admit it but I watched a lot of television. I became addicted to Everybody Loves Raymond because it was good for a laugh (I had never seen any of the original episodes). And I became a Suduko addict. I had not played it before either, but enjoyed working those puzzles for a past time. It would be a while before I could read as my vision was fairly blurred. I am thankful that the days were full of activity as it helped the time go by quicker. I was very thankful on May 8th when I finally passed the swallow test! I have never been a very good water drinker, but I remember that water tasted so good! It gave me a much better picture of what it means for us to thirst after the Word, and let Jesus be our Living Water. There is a great song by Dennis Jernigan that I played quite a bit about the lessons I was learning about water, called "Like A River". I will print the lyrics later.

Blessings on everyone's weekend.

Break From The Narrative

Thought I would take a break from the journey narrative today to just share a couple of neat things. Maybe this happens to others of you in the blog world as well, but this week I got an email and a blog entry from two strangers. The first is Christy from Tennessee she had spent her honeymoon in Kauai in July and wanted a couple of my pictures I posted that she did not have, she then sent me 4 that I did not have. So I wanted to share them with you because I had mentioned them in the earlier posts.

Bali Hai from South Pacific.



This is Kong Mountain. Can you see the profile of King Kong's face? They filmed Raiders of the Lost Ark and 6 Days 7 Nights here.

This is sleeping giant mountain? Can you see him?
Every time we drove out or into the southern part of the island we were staying on we went through this tunnel of trees. Was glad to get the picture, because I never took one.

Second was a blog post from Stacey. She is getting a fixator on her leg in a couple of weeks. She had an accident a few years ago and her leg was not set correctly and now my doctor is going to re-break it and correct it with a fixator. She found my blog by Googling Dr. Freudigman's name and found my blog from when I posted about him back in April. So we have made contact and I was able to reassure her that Dr. Freudigman is an amazing doctor and answer some of her questions about the fixator. She emailed me today the story of her journey and it is just awesome to have another believer share their story of how God has sustained them on this journey. It was also an amazing way for God to confirm in me one of the things He has done for me on this journey.



Mary Anne Barnes said it so much better than I could, so I will quote her here and hopefully she will not mind. Yesterday in Ladies Bible Class Karla asked if anyone had a time when God took pain and turned it into joy they could share with the class. Mary Anne said when her 13 year old son died that "God gave her the credentials to be a comforter". 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." I am thankful that God is using my experiences to help others who will have to wear the fixator. I was part of an online support group, but logged off of that in July after spending 2 years with people from all over the world.

So for those prayer warriors out there Stacey will have the fixator put on in two weeks and will have it on for 6 months. She has two young girls. I cannot even imagine how I would have made it if I had children to care for while wearing the frame! She can use our prayers.

Beginnings of Rehab

Being moved out of ICU to rehab was such a big deal. It was a sign that life was going to continue. I remember having the why thoughts here as well. Why was I alive? I knew it was either because God answered all the many prayers that were being prayed for me OR it just was not my time yet. Didn't really need an answer, as either way God still had a purpose for me. In the months to come I would have moments that I wished it had been my time or God hadn't answered all those prayers because I really knew what Paul meant when he wrote in Philippians 2:22-24 about feeling torn between being with God and being here. He says it is far better to be with Christ, but there is work for him to do here. Rehab was going to be such hard work and heaven would have been so much better, but obviously I wasn't going to heaven and rehab was not an option, so to work we went.

I moved into rehab one afternoon and was told we would start the next morning. I said "right". Sure enough bright and early 8:00 a.m. to be exact they came in and put my clothes on me. Real clothes not hospital gowns! This was done by the occupational therapist Leah. Next came the physical therapist Libby. She wanted me to push up from a laying position to a sitting position. I tried, but there was no way. She kept working with me and 3 days later I pushed myself up. Later that day I would meet Lauren, she would be the therapist that would help me deal with my emotions. (I didn't realize till posting here they were all L's) except for Susan, she was the speech therapist. She gave me another swallow test. I had prayed all night long that I would pass it and be able to have something to drink. Well for whatever reasons that was not God's will. I still could not swallow, but guess I was a little better because we went from swabs to this stuff called Thicken Up. I remember being so thankful. It came in flavors and at least it was something, but that gratefulness was short lived as it was really yucky stuff!!

Kind of got ahead of myself. The first time they tried to shower me was a real adventure. Since I was totally non weight bearing I had to learn to transfer out of bed into a wheel chair. Since I could not even sit up to transfer they had to be creative. I guess they knew that a "real" shower would do wonders for my morale. So they called in several nurses who all took corners of the bed sheet and they moved me over to a rubber cart. That cart would not fit in the bathroom in my room so at night when the pool was closed they rolled me down to the showers there. Then they proceeded to wash me and my hair with this amazingly warm water.
While I was so embarrassed to have someone seeing me naked and washing my most intimate places, it was just wonderful to have that warm water covering me. The one aide I remember doing this was Terry and I remember her because over the months to come she would take such very good care of me. I will share another story about her later.

It didn't take long to lose all sense of modesty in the hospital. When you are totally incapable of caring for yourself, someone has to do it and gender does not seem to be one of your choices. So you just learn to be grateful.

The first few nights in rehab were difficult because I had a roommate who had also been in a car accident but had significant head injury. They had her in a bed that was like a cage so that she wouldn't try getting out, but because she could not really communicate or know how to ring the buzzer, she would just rattle the cage until someone came. Once again my headphones came in handy, but lights kept coming on and off all night. So the next thing that my mom or Steve (can't remember which) found for me was a mask I could wear over my eyes and that helped me sleep better. I don't remember her name, my roommate. But I remember feeling sorrier for her than myself. Her grandmother came in from out of state to help take care of her because while her mother lived her for some reason she could not help. But to be honest because her needs were so great we began praying for a private room, and in 4 days God answered that prayer and it was such a blessing. Over the next few weeks I would see my old roommate in the hallways with her grandmother and we would say hello and she actually was able to leave much sooner than I and was transferred to wherever her grandmother lived so it would be easier to take care of her. Guess that is where I will stop for today.

I will add this. Today was Ladies Bible Class and as always Karla Hale was an amazing spokesperson for God. We are studying Philippians and today's lesson was entitled "The Prerequisite for Joy is Usually Pain". She began by asking me how thankful I was to be vertical, and I said "very thankful". Then she asked the entire class how many had awoken this morning and thanked God for being vertical, or being able to see etc. I have to confess that some days I am much better than others that I am vertical, however there are still many days that I forget that and wish I had my life back as I knew it pre-accident. I am looking forward to the day I can embrace the joy of this journey. I know it will come. I am just not there yet.

Waking Up

Thanks so much to those of you that have affirmed my efforts to journal via blog the journey I have been on. I appreciate so much your sweet words.
So when you wake up from being in a coma for 3 weeks you don't realize how long you have been gone. Who knew that in three short weeks of not moving that you would not be able to move at all? The first thing is seeing the faces of those you love looking at you with more love in their eyes than you have ever seen. Of course I couldn't say anything (though I tried) because of the tracheotomy. But those eyes! Most filled with joy, some filled with tears. Just realizing that you are alive and you are still here. I was so thankful for those sweet faces.
Like I said, I couldn't move. Couldn't lift my hands. Since I couldn't talk, I tried to write. It was impossible. What did I want to say? I wanted my cd player and cd's. Music has always been the way that God and I have connected. I love listening to Contemporary Christian Music and at that time there was some songs by Selah that were really ministering to my heart. Especially I remember "You Raise Me Up". It is hard to explain the comfort I had when I placed the headphones on my ears. I just remember giving Steve a big thumbs up. And being the sweet husband he is within a day or two he had bought me these new noise canceling headphones, instead of those little stub things you stick in your ears.
Once I awoke it seemed things moved rather quickly as I recall I awoke on Wednesday and by Monday morning I was in rehab. In the meantime they sent different therapist into my room. The physical therapist would have me move my arms and my legs somewhat. Trying to comb my hair was a major feat. The occupational therapist came in with this bonnet that you put on your head and it shampooed your hair. That felt so good, as it was warm. Somehow it worked even though you did not rinse it out. The speech therapist of all things did a swallow test? I did not pass, so I was not allowed to eat or drink anything. They gave me the swabs that were lemon flavored that I could suck on. I knew I was getting better when I started complaining that I was thirsty and just wanted some ice to suck on.
I am not sure why Baylor's ICU is set up the way it is, but you were not in a private room. There were 5-6 other people in the room with me all in critical condition so it was always busy with activity, another reason the headphones were helpful. I had the first of many nurses that would bless me over the next few months. His name was Chip. He was so very attentive and just so very kind. He even rolled me himself from ICU to my new room at BIR better known as Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation. That is where we will begin next time.
Let me close my saying one the blessings of the 3 weeks I was asleep is that Kerry and Pam Miller had bought a book for people to leave me messages and it has been so sweet to read those comments and prayers over and over again. What do people do that go through this kind of tragedy without a Christian family? So many of you did so many different things for me, Steve and my family. Each and everyone will have an eternal impact. The most amazing thing to me is to how news spread to so many different places and how many people took the time to try and contact us. People I never met were praying for us. It is indeed humbling and again such a testimony to being part of God's church. It is not just local it is EVERYWHERE!

Contemplating The Past 31 Months

Sometimes I am not sure whether blogging is for me or for my readers? I do know that it is usually something I want to say and just hope you want to hear, so I guess it is more for me although it was important to me to know how many people were actually interested in what I had to say so I put a counter on my blog to show me. I am humbled that about 25 of you a day come by and read this blog. All that being said I am starting something new today. I am not sure how long it will last, but have felt the prompting to begin and we will just see how it goes.
For a couple of weeks I feel I have been prompted to write about some lessons I have learned on this journey I have been on for the past 31 months.

I wish that I would have known about blogging from the beginning of my accident. It would have been easier to write about it then trying to recreate those memories now. I did journal some, but it was very inconsistent. So these posts will probably be pretty scattered and not in any certain order.

I don't know if I will ever come to terms with the "what if's" of this situation. I know it doesn't do any good to dwell on them and I can't change anything. Nevertheless, my "what if's" are: what if I had taken the Tollway that night instead of Central Expressway, the thought did cross my mind. What if I had not been talking on the cell phone, would my reflexes have been faster, would I have been driving in another lane? What if no one would have stopped to help that night? Praise God for the good samaritans that did stop and stayed with me until the paramedics came and called Steve and my parents for me. What if the guy that had hit me had stayed and faced the consequences? Or better yet showed some compassion and remorse? I have to admit I have let him have more of my life than I should have by being angry. Not so much that he was drunk and should not have been driving, but more so because of how he has significantly altered my life and has no idea what he has done. I know because of how he ran he is the type of person who probably would not care anyway, but sometimes I still dwell on the what if's.

How I admire paramedics! They answer call after call never knowing what lies ahead. I really don't remember much about how they rescued me as I think God has protected me from those memories because there must have been so much pain involved. I remember them getting me out of the car, but then nothing after that until I woke up 3 weeks later. I know that there are some studies that indicate that people can hear when they are in a coma, I don't remember much. I do remember some very strange dreams. The one I can share with you is that someone dropped me in the "return box" at Blockbuster and when the clerk saw me she said "I know this lady, she isn't suppose to be here she is suppose to be at Baylor". Now remember I have no recollection as to how I knew what hospital I was in. The rest of the dreams are much more bizarre and I don't like to talk about them. I have asked God why that time could not have just been lying in the valley of the shadow of His wings and feeling the peace of the running water and blue sky?

I don't want this to be too long everyday, so I will do my best to just do what is coming to me in small pieces. I will end to day with a really cool quote I saw on a plaque in a cool little gift shop called the Basket Case (on Coit and Campbell). Evidently it is attributed to Abraham Lincoln. "In the end it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."

A Little Gilligan Trivia

So we learned a little Gilligan's Island trivia on our Kauai Movie Tour.


The pilot had three different actors for the Professor, Mary Ann and Ginger. I guess the public didn't like them so they changed the three from when it first aired November 1963 until the show aired again in September of 1964. Did you also know that Jerry Van Dyke audtioned for the part of Gilligan? I just can't imagine anyone being Gilligan but Bob Denver.

They replaced the three of them after the pilot. And changed their occupations. Mary Anne and Ginger were secretaries and became an actress and farm girl. The professor was a high school teacher and changed to a college professor.

It also had a different theme. Why would they have chosen Calypso music for a South Pacific location? I think it is good they changed it. If you are interested you can listen to it here: http://www.sitcomsonline.com/sounds/GilligansIslandpilot.wav

In tropical sea is the tropic port,

Vacation fun is the favorite sport,

This is the place where the tourists flock,

Renting the boats at the busy dock.
Two secretaries from U.S.A.

Sail on the Minnow this lovely day.

A high school teacher is next aboard;

All taking trip that they cannot afford.
The next two people are millionaires;

They got no worries, they got no cares.

They climb aboard, and they step inside,

With just enough bags for a 6-hour ride.
Tourists come, tourists go;

Tourists touring to and fro.

These five nice tourists, they take this trip,

Relaxing on deck on this little ship.
The weather is clear, and the sun is hot...

[ sound of thunder: kaboom! ]

The weather is clear? I think it is NOT!

Tourists come, tourists go;

Tourists tossing to and fro.
The captain is brave

( Aye! Carumba! What a storm! ).

The captain is brave, he's a fearless man,

And Gilligan help him all that he can.

The wheel, she break, and lose all control;

S.S. Minnow do the rock-and-roll!
The sea is now calm, and the weather grand;

There is the Minnow upon the sand.

What happen now, will give you a smile:

The adventures of Gilligan...and the Skipper...And the Millionaire... And Mrs. Millionaire... And the other tourists...on Gilligan's Isle! [ end credits ]
We leave all our friends on this tropic shore,
Perhaps they will be here, forevermore.
Maybe a rescue will set them free?

Tune in next week, and then you will see!

Oh To Be Young!

We just received this picture of my niece Alyson (Aly). She is a junior in high school and this was her prom picture (guess they have them in the fall in Washington instead of the Spring?)



No that is not her date, it is my brother Brad :)


Isn't she a pretty girl? I hate that I have never lived close to her or her sister Alyssa and they have grown up without me knowing them very well, but imagine why this picture was a surprise to me when I had taken this picture just six months ago!

Her sister Alyssa is a beautician and I guess without even telling my brother they changed Aly's looks for the prom. Imagine his surprise when she came in the door! I don't think I would be brave enough to do this drastic of a change to myself when I was her age, or for that matter even now. I remember the one time in high school I tried to die my hair blonde and it turned out orange!! It will be interesting to see how they get it back to her natural color of blonde.

Last Post On Kauai

You all have been so kind with your comments the past few days about the Kauai postings. I am glad you have enjoyed the pictures. I have to admit I am a really bad picture taker. I just point and click. Don't know much about focusing (I think my camera does it automatically). I do know how to zoom in. So, I am thankful some of the pictures turned out okay. I didn't take near as many as I wanted to because I was too cheap to pay $45.00 for another memory card (that was the price at K-mart).

Anyway...my last day in Kauai was spent again sunning at the pool and reading a good book "Sure As The Dawn" (the last in the Mark of the Lion series). Then Friday night we went to a luau at the Sheraton. On Kauai anyway this is the only luau that is actually outdoors (the rest are indoors). I found that really interesting. I guess I thought they were like the movies where you sit in the sand on the beach. Nope, we sat at table and chairs. It was still a lot of fun, and very interesting watching all the different kinds of Hawaiian dancing. I was glad so many of the costumes were really modest and the dancing very elegant. But it was still fun to watch the traditional hula dance as well. Boy can they move those hips! Anyway, here are the pictures.
The girls must have changed into at least six different outfits from head to toe.

This was the group that sang. I thought it was neat that before we ate the announcer said we where going to say a prayer of blessing and this group sang "Praise God To Whom All Blessings Flow" in Hawaiian.

My sister Caren reminded me that when we were younger that she, I, my sister Cathy and cousin Janet all bought matching outfits and wore them to Six Flags one year on vacation, so she wanted she and I to buy matching shirts in Hawaii. So here we are.

So this is the final post on Kauai. What a blessing it was. For those of you who are Richardson East members and had a part of giving the finances that made this trip possible, I am so very thankful! God used your generous hearts to bless me in another Ephesian 3:20 way--beyond all that I could ask or imagine.

Movie Tour Pictures

This is the backdrop of where Elvis sang The Hawaiian Wedding Song in Blue Hawaii it is at the old Coco Palms Motel which was pretty much destroyed in a hurricane in 1992 and no one has redeveloped it.


Can you see the coconuts in the tree? My first.


My sister Caren and I standing on the bridge where Elvis sang the song.


Another picture of Gilligan's Island

This is Hanalei Valley. That name ring a bell?

Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea...
In a land called Hanalei.

Did you know that song was about smoking pot? I had no idea!!

This was also the set for the movie Uncommon Valor.



I am trying to figure out why I didn't get a picture of Bali Hai and South Pacific??? Not sure, but anyway...


There is also a mountain called Kong Mountain that looks like the profile of King Kong but none of those pictures turned out either.


This picture had nothing to do with the movies but I took it to show how they build houses near the water. I am thinking if you are handicapped I guess you have to put in an elevator.





So tomorrow I will be actually posting the pictures of what we did a week ago on Friday.

Kauai Continued

Okay, pictures are finally loading. These are the ones I mentioned in yesterday's blog.

They say roosters and chickens are so rampant because there are no predator birds on the island

This is Spouting Horn (the lava tube)

Found out these trees are called Banyan trees.

This is Wimea Canyon, "the Grand Canyon of the South Pacific" The colors of red were magnificant.

Blue Hawaiian Helicopter Tour.

Saw at least a dozen waterfalls, this was the biggest of them. The helicopter pilot said there were not as many falls because they had not had much rain.

On Day four we took the day to sun at the pool and then in the evening we went to a Dinner Theater presentation of "South Pacific". It was fun and they did a really good job. The guy that played Stewpot was particularly funny.

Day Five we took a Movie Tour and saw where they made several movies, television shows and a Paula Abdul video (woo-hoo). I'll have to post those pictures later, as Internet Explorer is not downloading them again (Ugh!)

Kauai Day Two and Three

Well...lot's of good guesses as to what the beach picture is but noone was right. Here is a hint:
Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale,
A tale of a fateful trip
That started from this tropic port,
Aboard this tiny ship.

Yep, it is Gilligan's Island. I will tell you more another day about what we were told about the original pilot of that show.

OKAY AFTER TRYING TO POST PICTURS SINCE 3:00 THIS AFTERNOON (it is now 11:30 p.m.) I AM GIVING UP. I WILL POST THIS ANYWAY BUT WILL HAVE TO TRY THE PICTURES AGAIN LATER.

We spent the second day at a coffee plantation, but I did not take any pictures. Don't know why other than I am not a fan of coffee. We then went to Spouting Horn. It is a lava tube and when the waves come in they shoot up it and make a loud "whooshing noise" and the water comes up like "Old Faithful" unfortunately I could never get the camera fixed exactly right to get the best affect. Also to the right I could see a sea turtle, but my zoom would not get it either. There were several vendors there selling jewelry and I got a jade, coral and opal stone ring and a pretty black and white faux pearl necklace. I also bought a turquoise stone bracelet that has already broken and will have to be restrung.

We then ate at a place that advertised having the best coconut shrimp in the world. To be honest, I like Red Lobster's a lot better. But it was fun eating outside with the roosters and chickens hanging around looking for a scrap. We then drove up the canyon with our hood down on the convertible (again no picture) to see Wimea Canyon (the grand canyon of the South Pacific) It was really pretty with all the red dirt and amazingly cooler. I was thankful that I could walk the long journey up to it.

Then on day three came the highlight of the trip. A helicopter tour of the island. It was so amazing! My pictures did not turn out real well, but I got a DVD of the ride along with all the dialogue of the pilot who was describing everything to us. He said we were not seeing near as many waterfalls because they had not had much rain, but the ones we did see were amazing. So this was a great time other than the few minutes I got air sick. Praise God for the "comfort bags" or that is what the pilot called them anyway.