Tag Archives: #amblogging

Anticipating heaven. | Janet Perez Eckles

12 Dec

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

Janet Eckles Perez

 

Once in a lifetime you meet somebody that prompts you to say, “I want to be just like her.” Let me tell you about Karen. Like millions, she has faced cancer, but hers is a rare type;., the survival rate is alarmingly small. Yet, for years, she has defied all odds and survived its claim on her health. But Karen hasn’t just survived; she is living her days to the fullest. Though years of treatment have zapped her energy, she keeps going, again, defying all odds, baffling all doctors.

But Karen has another secret: she has no fear of death. She knows Christ. She knows heaven awaits her. And certain of her eternity, her courage can fill her hospice room. Karen displays the confidence few possess. She has even taken her husband shopping for the suit he will wear at her funeral.

Like many of us have chosen the centerpiece for the table at our wedding reception, Karen has chosen her tombstone which you see in this picture. (click link below to visit Janet’s blog) Could it be that Karen was put on this earth to fulfill God’s unique plan and also to teach the rest of us that death cannot bring about fear? Death of the physical body is the doorway to life eternal, the beginning of the perfect life, and the anticipation of glorious living.

As of this writing, Karen has been told it’s only a very short time before she faces Jesus. But she holds to her faith. She has all plans in place.

She has prepared her family. And in doing so, perhaps she prepares us to see her example, so that we, someday like Karen, will declare the words of Paul: “Where, O death is your victory? Where, O death is your sting?” “…

Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 16:55 and 57) Has Christ who lives in you also erased the sting of death?

Read more:  Anticipating heaven. | Janet Perez Eckles

 

I’m working on a new book. And this time, a hot topic will fill its pages:

• What does God say about immigration?

• Does His law contradict man’s law?

• Is deception justified when facing desperation?

The answers will be in the book…and as always, I’m in prayer for wisdom and God’s favor.

Tags: , , , ,

Teddy and Praise Dancer

7 Dec

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Author, Poet and Artist

 

My pal Onisha and I sometimes get into writing letters as they were written earlier in our lives. Now they seem old-fashioned because of the way we meandered when we wrote them, but since it’s almost Christmastime, we thought you might like another glimpse at the way things were.

DiVoran:

Here are a couple of our old friends. Teddy is on your left and Praise Dancer on your right. I imagine you figured that out.

Teddy and Praise Dancer

 

Onisha: Adorable!!  Are these friends at your house?

DiVoran: Yes, they live in the scriptorium. Mother crocheted Teddy’s clothes. I’ve had him since I was five. That makes him sixty-two years old, and he’s an excellent listener.

Onisha: I wondered who crocheted Teddy’s outfit. How wonderful that you have been able to keep Teddy and his clothes all these years without loving him to pieces.

It’s wonderful to have him. Mother crocheted two outfits when she was here one year, so his clothes aren’t vintage. Mother could just look at something and crochet it, but she never figured out how to follow a pattern. Crocheting was the way my mom kept her sanity. We can all use a pastime that will do that for us. She made decorative pillow covers, granny patterned Afghans, and lap robes for the nursing home. When she was ninety, she crocheted butterflies and attached magnets so you could put them on your refrigerator. All friends and family had something she had made, but only Kewpie Doll has this little set.

Kewpie

 

Onisha: People like that have an inner eye that can see how things go together. It is a gift. What is the story behind Praise Dancer?

DiVoran: You are so kind to ask. Sure, Praise Dancer has a story.

When Julia Cameron wrote another book after “The Artist’s Way,” I rushed to buy it. One of her assignments in “The Vein of Gold,” was to, “make a creativity doll.” That’s how I got Praise Dancer. With a few items from the Craft Department she became something besides a cotton body, curly hair from a package, and a bit of tulle and paint. She and Teddy have been good friends for about twenty years. Poor Raggedy Ann used to be Teddy’s best friend but she now lives in the old doll cradle with the “Winnie the Pooh” gang. Alas, although Praise Dancer doesn’t have a heart she is still a sweet girl and she loves the Lord. I suspect she dances for Him when we are sleeping.

 

Onisha: Praise Dancer does not need a heart on the outside, it shines on her face

DiVoran: Here’s Teddy and Raggedy Ann, they were so glad to have a visit during the photo shoot.

Teddy and Rageddy Ann

 

DiVoran: Thank you for saying Praise Dancer was loving as well as beautiful.

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Toy Truck

29 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

 

I admit it – I love to look at the e-mails we are sent, and I enjoy most of the facebook stuff I look at. I also have to admit that on FB, I usually just look for the “pictures” and videos rather than all the verbiage presented there.

I’ve been really amused by some of the pictures on FB. This one really caught my eye and had a good laugh over it. When I showed it to Fred, he laughed, as well.

1

What do you think? Cute, huh?

But think how creative that truck driver was to put this together. It didn’t really take a lot of thought to do this, but gave a great deal of enjoyment to those who saw it.

The same could be said of the things we say and do in our lives, to those around us. Do we say and do things that bring joy to those we live with? Or to our neighbors? Or to our fellow church-goers? Or have we become so jaded that we don’t have any joy left in our lives?

Recently I had total knee replacement – not a fun thing, that’s for sure. It was done to help relieve the pain in my knee, since the “cushion” in my knee was gone, and the two bones in my knee were grating upon each other. Ouch!! But through the surgery and the following physical therapy, I’ve tried to keep an upbeat spirit. One of the best exercises was what they call “foot pumps.” I joked that I would probably wake up from the anesthesia saying “foot pumps….foot pumps.”

I’ve joked with the therapists and their assistants. When the therapist commented that I wasn’t “grunting and groaning” when he was severely pushing on my leg, I told him that my mind was saying “I can do all things through Christ who keeps pouring power into me….. I can do all things through Christ who keeps pouring power into me….. I can do all things through Christ who keeps pouring power into me…..(and by the way – that’s what the Greek actually says!)” And he laughed. I’ve gone back to see the nurse on the floor of the hospital where I was for four days. She was such an inspiration – she even pulsed pom-poms as encouragement for us to get up and walk! She always had a smile on her face. And she seems pleased when Fred and I go back just to see her. We get hugs.

My time in the physical therapy clinic is past now….anything else I “recover” will be by my own working out. Recently on FB, I saw a video clip of a little girl – she couldn’t have been more than 1½ years old, trying to walk to her encouraging Daddy. The thing that impressed me was that she was trying to learn to walk with a prosthetic leg! I saw that and said to myself…”Well, Judy, if she can do THAT, you can just suck it up and dig in and work to get this leg back into shape! No more belly-aching!!”

Everyone says that laughter – a good old-fashioned belly laugh – is some of the best medicine anyone can have in healing. And that’s why that toy truck struck my funny-bone. It gave me such a good laugh, that my spirits were lifted.

And here’s a directive from scripture:

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: REJOICE!

Philippians 4:4

Tags: , , , ,

The Tricycle Veteran

23 Nov

My Take

DiVoran Lites

 

Author, Poet and ArtistOne day I saw a seemingly elderly person riding an adult tricycle with a dog on a leash. What a good way to exercise your dog if you can’t walk well, I thought They traveled slowly so that the dog had time to eat grass, examine a fire hydrant, and stare at bigger, barking dogs behind fences.

Actually, I thought the person was a man who wore a tee-shirt, cargo shorts, athletic shoes and a baseball cap. Today when I met the pair on the trail, however I learned the rider is a female, and so is the terrier. I’ll call them Sue and Bess.

As we talked there on the trail, I read Sue’s hat brim. The words were, “Thank a Vet.” I wondered if she was a vet herself or if the hat belonged to her husband. It didn’t take long to find out, because Sue began to tell me what a fine service dog Bess is. Seeing my curiosity about her own condition, Sue told me she has a heart problem because of an industrial accident with a poisonous substance. She said, I’m the only one alive out of seventeen people who were in the space that day.

1

Sue and her dog went their own way then, and I went mine. In a moment, however, I turned around and there they were coming back. I like to walk at my own pace when I’m ready to go. It’s often at different parts of the day. I’ve made some friends on the trail and we always enjoy running into each other. Sometimes there will be two and sometimes three of us standing and talking for a short time.

On this day, the trike went downhill fast and the little dog trotted along on short legs. Going uphill the trike went slowly and laboriously. We eventually got into a rhythm and as we went along Sue talked about herself and Bess.

Bess’s story included being picked at the SPCA over a black lab pup, which, as Sue put it, would have been a lot easier to train. “It took eight years for Bess to start paying attention. She’s been a real asset, though, in the last four years when I’ve really needed her,” Sue said.

Sue also told me that in the service, she was a professional dog trainer. She trained Rottweilers and German Shepherds. I asked what the dogs’ jobs were and she said, “Bomb sniffing for the Rottweilers, and drug detection for the German Shepherds.” Sue was also an Intelligence Agent for a spell. She says there are an awful lot of lies in the news these days – she knows.

Besides the heart problem Sue has PTSD and epilepsy. When she’s about to have an epileptic attack, Bess insists on going home an hour and a half before the cataclysm arrives. If they are on the trail she turns around in the direction of home and barks continually until Sue consents to go along. Sue doesn’t understand how Bess knows she’s going to have an attack. Bess was never trained for that.

When we got back into our neighborhood, the two of them had to travel in the street. I said goodbye and thanked Sue for serving our country. She said, “Thank you so much for saying that. People hardly even talk to me. Maybe I’ll tell you a funny story next time.”

God be With You Till We Meet Again

Tags: , , ,

Smiles

27 Oct

1

 

A word from DiVoran

 Because I remember her brothers from our childhood, I particularly loved this email from my friend, Patricia. Sometimes I was invited for supper at the Franklins and it was a world of difference from eating in a restaurant-booth with my one younger brother, though I do love my brother. Patricia had five brothers– riches indeed! What I liked most about them was that they were so sweet and funny. Patricia and I were in our eleventh and twelfth years and her bothers ranged from about eight to sixteen. Patricia has always been petite, but she never had any trouble handling all those boys and even enjoying being with them.

Now I’ll let you get to Patricia’s story

Patricia

I went to the funeral of a friend this week.  She was always relaxed, pleasant, and friendly no matter what, and had a wonderful sense of humor.  She was also a leader, planner, and song leader in our prayer group. She had suffered from cancer, and knew the end was near.  She planned the simple service, including the songs.  It was very simple and wonderful.  I also noticed she, in her witty little way, included some readings for her family. I smiled through the whole service and whenever I think of her, I have to smile.  I understood that her last words to the pastor were: “Well, father, see you in heaven.” The pastor smiled, I’m sure.

Today, we went to a breakfast in the social room at the church my friend had attended.  On the way in, we met a widower we know, and asked him to sit with us.  As I was looking around, I saw my friend’s brother by himself (the brother of the lady who died).  I motioned for him to join us. A smile lit up his face and he hurried over.  Another widower came in and we gestured for him to come over too.  The four of us enjoyed some great stories together.

When we go to the ranch country where my husband grew up, we go out to meals or coffee with several of his lifelong friends. A lot of times I’m the only woman. We have a lot to talk about. One time they were trying to recall something and the suggestion came: “We should ask the old-timers. We are the Old Timers.” Everybody smiled that time.

I’ve often felt left out because we didn’t live where either of us had grown up. That’s what gives me the tendency to look for others who might be alone too.  At breakfast that day, I turned around and saw another parishioner eating alone, so I invited him to come and sit with us. We were all enjoying getting better acquainted and sharing stories.   About that time, a woman dressed as a nurse came up and speaking directly to me said, “You and your five men come on over to the health fair across the parking lot. It is free.”  I was startled the way she said it, but then I had to smile.  Yes, I always seem to end up with a bunch of guys, I have since I was a kid, and didn’t think a thing about it.  I don’t know what she was thinking.   I was just thinking how people do not seem to smile much anymore, and had decided to make a special effort to make it happen. When it does, it’s heavenly, and none of us feel lonely anymore.

 

 

 

Tags: , , , ,

Practicing the Piano

25 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

I’ve mentioned in previous musings about how I started taking piano lessons the day I started first grade – and they continued until I graduated from high school. I was not a very accomplished pianist at that time. Perhaps still not, but more than I was at that time.

1952-Our new piano

1952-Our new piano

I remember my brother, Bill, saying how much he hated practicing the violin – so much so that our parents gave up and let him quit. Well, I pretty much had the same feeling about the piano. Yeah, I wanted to play that instrument, but just didn’t want to devote the time to practice! But they wouldn’t let me quit.

In going through some old papers recently, I came upon this poem.

2

My mother, at some point in time, found it and cut it out and sent it to me. It depicted how I would “practice” so much of the time. I remember one particular time that I just sat there on the piano bench, not even touching a note. Mother was outside, hanging up the clothes on the clothesline, so I didn’t think she would hear me. When my “time” was up, I just skipped outside, ready to get to something else. Mother looked at me and said, “Did you have a nice nap? Now get in there and practice!!” Trudging back to the piano, my thought was, “how did she know???”

But, as with all things, practice…practice…practice is what it takes to get a command of any instrument. I learned that the hard way, whether the piano or the organ (still not my favorite instrument to play). As I said before, I have the talent, but I don’t have the gift of the instrument. I’ve never been able to just sit down and play something for my own enjoyment. I wish I did or could – it would have made my practice time so much more enjoyable.

I haven’t used my talent on the piano for several years now. I still have my books and I do sit down occasionally to keep my hand in, but not very often. I still love to play the old hymns – and some of the arrangements of some new songs. But I still must have that piece of music in front of me in order to play it. None of it comes naturally.

But if I am ever needed, I can, and do, pick it up and play. God has given me the ability to be able to play for Him and His Kingdom. I play for His Glory, and that fills me up like nothing else.

Judy at the new piano-1952
Judy at the piano-1956
Judy at the old upright 1951
Judy and niece Renie Lites-1963

I am blest.

Tags: , , , ,

Flying Legends Airshow~Part 9

21 Oct

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

Flying Legends

Day 9 – Thursday July 9th

1

After another great English breakfast at the Riverside Pub, the first museum on my list today was the City of Norwich Aviation Museum, located adjacent to the Norwich Airport. This was a small museum with 12 beautifully restored aircraft displayed outside. However, two of their displays were a Vulcan bomber and a Nimrod naval patrol aircraft. It’s amazing to me how these small museums manage to acquire these very large and rare aircraft.

2

Next it was on to the Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum in Bungay. This museum consisted of some 13 nicely restored outside static displayed aircraft and two Quonset hut type buildings of WWII memorabilia. This was one of the few UK aviation museums that did not have a Vulcan bomber in their collection.3

The Parham Airfield Museum turned out to be nothing more than a small restored control tower which was closed that day. I am assuming that the control tower contained memorabilia related to the U.S. 390th Bombardment Group that was based at this field during WWII.

4

The Ipswich Transportation Museum has the largest collection of transportation items in Britain devoted to just one town. Everything displayed in the museum was either made or used in and around Ipswich, a county town in Suffolk. This included cars, trucks, buses, and trollies. The museum also includes many items of the Ipswich Engineering Collection.5

This turned out to be a fairly short day and Greta took me past the Box Bush Cottage B&B Iocated in St. Edmunds the first time. After I re-entered the SatNav, address she took me right to it. Box Bush Cottage is a lovely 200 year old two-story home situated on approximately 20 acres of beautiful farm land. The owners Nick and Emilie were some of the greatest hosts a person could ask for. They had beautifully landscaped yards and gardens. They also had some black Chochin China chickens, a really cute pet goat, and a couple of the cleanest small pigs I’ve ever seen.6

Nick is a roofing contractor and amateur race car enthusiast. He owns and was preparing his Morgan Three-Wheel Super Sport for a hill-climb event at Shelelsey Walsh in Worcestershire on the following Saturday. In case you are like me, having never heard of the Shelelsey Walsh Speed Hillclimb; it is a 1000 yard long 10-16 degree incline course that hosts one of the oldest motorsport events in the world (begun in 1905). I was very interested in the Three-Wheeler since I had only seen photos of them at car shows. Nick informed me that the Morgan Motor Company began hand building the first “Cyclecar” in 1909, which was the company’s original Three-Wheeler, that Mr. Morgan called the Morgan Runabout.

7

Because of its superior design, it wasn’t long before the Morgan Cyclecar was entering and winning Cyclecar races throughout the UK and Europe. These race wins culminated with the winning of the Cyclecar Grand Prix at Amiens in France in 1913, against much opposition from many continental four-wheelers. After that victory, Morgan named one of his most popular Three-Wheeler models the Grand Prix.

8

In 1920 Morgan introduced the four-seat Family Runabout three-wheeler which helped put economic travel within the reach of most families. Morgan Cyclecars continued to be improved and upgraded thru the years, and in 1931 the Super Sport was introduced.

9

After WWII Three-Wheeler popularity declined such that production was finally discontinued in 1953. Morgan continued building automobiles, but then some 60 years later, in 2014, by popular demand, the company “Reimagined” their Three-Wheeler to 21st century standards. Nick’s new and improved Morgan Three-Wheeler is a beautiful machine, and I wished him and his son the best of luck at Saturday’s hill climb.

10

—–To Be Continued—–

Tags: , , , ,

The Price of Exercise

11 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

 

In previous musings, I have mentioned that I have been an “exerciser” for most of my life – well, at least most of my adult life. I guess I really became serious about it while we were living in Panama City, Florida in the early 1970’s. We were actually living on Tyndall Air Force Base (AFB).

1

 

I don’t really know what motivated me to start jogging, but that’s what I did. The ground there is pretty flat, so there weren’t any “hills” or even much of any kind of incline to thwart my progress.

And so it was, that I was jogging for about three months before I shamed Fred into getting into the program with me (he says we were actually RUNNING – not jogging!). We would get up quite early and go out together. When we came home, Fred would shower and get ready for his work day while I got the girls up and breakfast on the table. After everyone was gone, then I would go out for another run. I timed myself once, and found that I was running four miles in 28 minutes!! Not bad for an old lady of 40!

And speaking of an “old lady of 40,” perhaps the motivation was that I decided that I did NOT want to be a fat old lady, and was half-way to both! At least, that’s what I told Fred! And so, the exercise program began.

Some form of that exercise continued for many years. We were in Panama City for five years, then in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas for one year (Fred was in school – not the prison!!). And in case you don’t know – it SNOWS a LOT in Kansas! But we bundled up, including ski masks and did our daily run. Then on to Germany from there.

It wasn’t long before I discovered aerobic dancing while in Germany, and realized that I couldn’t do both the jogging and the aerobic dancing, and since I was teaching the aerobic dancing (and getting paid for it), I stopped the jogging. I continued teaching, even for about seven years after we rotated back state-side.

While I enjoyed the results of all that exercise, I can’t honestly say that I enjoyed the exercise itself. The aerobic dancing was by far more fun that jogging, but it was still exercise, and I was still dripping sweat like crazy!!

In any case, I found this cartoon once, and thought it described my attitude toward exercise exactly. I hope you enjoy it, too! Credit to Johnny Hart:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: , , , ,

Settling in for Fall

8 Oct

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

I'm a winner

I think we may be settled into the mountains for the duration of fall.  Of course, I may be wrong about that. We tend to have trouble settling in one place.  Last weekend we attended a family reunion in the Raleigh, NC area. When my mom’s family gets together, a lot of talking and laughing goes on and a lot of food gets eaten. As the food line was forming, my cousin, Nancy and I were eyeing the homemade mac and cheese and considering our chance of getting some before it was gone. I talked Nancy into sliding through the line and getting us a plate of the yellow yuminess to share while we assessed the various cakes and pies on display. As the line shortened, Nancy took up a place in line but I headed straight to the desserts and grabbed a piece of the chocolate cake that had been teasing my taste buds. Have you ever eaten a ding-dong cake? Oh my. For a while now, eat dessert first, has been my motto when the desserts look especially good.  It would have been a tragedy if I had choked on a fried corn bread stick and missed that cake!

On our drive back to the mountains, we noticed that more trees had begun to clothe themselves in their fall wardrobe. Next week the colored leaves are supposed to be at their peak and we are looking forward to having family come and stay for the week. Fall also ushers in craft shows, festivals and an abundance of apples. I have apples cooking in my crock pot as I type this. I went to the vegetable stand this morning and chose an assortment of local varieties to make applesauce and I added a touch of local honey to it. I know it will be delicious because I think I sampled every type of apple as I peeled them.

This morning a low fog hung over the mountains. The contrast of fog and fall color was beautiful and oddly soothing. Our flowers haven’t made up their mind about fall. The roses continue to bloom and the blue Hydrangea, which did not bloom all summer, are blooming now. I think we missed giving them a spring feeding and confused them with a late summer feed.

Got a little behind on weeding!

The cool weather here is a blessing after the heat of Florida. I plan to enjoy every moment of it. Wherever you are, I hope you enjoy your version of fall too.

Tags: , , , ,

Writing and Painting

21 Sep

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Author, Poet and ArtistWhen I started writing blogs for Old Things R-New and Rebekah Lyn Books, I was working on the novel, Go West and enjoying it immensely. Painting had taken a back seat and I thought I was over it. But people kept saying they liked my prints and the paintings on my walls and when I remembered how much I enjoyed splashing paint around. My fingers began to itch for a brush. The more I painted, the more I neglected the things I thought I ought to be doing. I wrote out several long talks with the Lord asking how I could find time to paint and to keep up with my writing goals, as well and he gave me some new ideas. Finally, my angel, and enabler Onisha and I sat at a table in the Target Starbucks and talked it over. I had also been writing paraphrases from the Bible and I wanted to illustrate them. Onisha suggested we serialize the novel and use it instead of blogs and she liked the idea of the Promise Posters too. So now, I’m painting and writing and I’m having a wonderful time. If you see any Go West illustrations or Promise Posters you’d like to buy, they will be available as framable art and note cards at www.creativeartworks.com. Come join me in my new big adventure.

Read more about DiVoran’s adventures  Writing and Painting

Tags: , , , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →