Over Hill, Over Dale

All you Army folks out there will remember this one..."over hill,over dale, we will hit the dusty trail..." How come the trail has to be dusty? What gives? Is this akin to "anything worth doing is worth doing well?" And how come I am always thinking in riddles or rhymes? Is there an issue here?

Well... back to the dusty trail... For me, it was dusty & hot & tiring...at first. However, the longer I have walked this trail that God has placed me on, it has become easier, fun & actually pleasant. How did I find this trail you ask. Well it wasn't easy. Before I even arrived at the dusty trail, there was the dark & gloomy & stinky trail. In the vernacular...that one sucked. Everyday on that trail was difficult. Nothing happened according to MY plans. Of course, for me, my method of handling disappointment was to fuss (translate scream) louder...but the trail stayed the same...dark, dank & like a dungeon. I walked that way (for a long time) until I gave up, sat down on the trail & said, "God I can't do this any longer." It was almost as if He was waiting for me to surrender! Another trail opened up. Not very glamorous looking but better than the one I was currently on. I decided to change trails.

Was it worth the risk? Yes. Was the new trail hard? Yes. Am I glad I hit that dusty trail? Yes. I did not know in the beginning that my life would blossom, but the dusty trail was better than the dark & gloomy trail where I had been. Today I have peace, joy & love in my life and a lush, beautiful trail to follow.

Are you facing change? Perhaps it is a good thing. Sometimes a trail that is dusty at the beginning will lead you to peace & contentment. I hope so.

Jack and Jill...

Okay, okay...I know...this obsession with rhymes surely has to end somewhere! If I tell you that I MUST write about these phrases that "pop" into my head, what does that say for my state of mind?  Oh well...here goes:

"Jack & Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down & broke his crown & Jill came tumbling after" (I am supposed to at this point give credit to the original author but I don't know who that is. It's not me. Can we leave it at that?)

Poor Jack & Jill, there they are in a heap at the bottom of that hill. What the heck happened? It makes me think of a married couple...trudging along in their lives, working together towards a common goal when life deals them a wicked blow. One or both struggle with a severe problem & lose the way. They both fall. It's a mess. Divorce, sick children, death of parents/sibling/friend, long term illness, accident, loss of job, cut in pay, or, even (believe it or not), great success, prosperity, fame... the list is endless. Whatever the cause, their common purpose & togetherness is lost.

I don't know what "the rest of the story" was for Jack & Jill. I do know there is help & hope for the rest of us. That hope arrives in the person of Jesus Christ. There is no mess too big or problem too small that He does not care about. Do you need help today? Just ask Him. What...you don't know Him? Just ask about that too.

There Was a Little Girl...

A favorite nursery rhyme goes, "There was a little girl who had a little curl right in the middle of her forehead. And when she was good, she was very, very good and when she was bad, she was HORRID!"

Makes one think, doesn't it? Or..maybe not. Well, it was a silly notion anyway...that we have a choice.  A choice of how we want to be in life. Much of my life I allowed circumstances to control me. Was someone angry with me, I'd be angry with them. When afraid... I became a screaming, crazy woman. Probably akin to the HORRID girl with the curl. Ask my hubby & kids.

But with Jesus & the help of a 12 step program, my life changed. I was given choices. Seeing as how what I had been doing had given me terrible results, the choice of learning how to behave differently was easy. The decision was easy but, the work to learn new ways has been (still is) hard. Was it worth it? YES.

Just In The Nick of Time

The rain that fell yesterday & today was most welcomed here in hot, dry Oklahoma. You might say it came "just in the nick of time." The prairie lands to the west had started to burn. People lost their homes & possessions. The outlook was not good. Day before yesterday I received via email a heartfelt prayer chain...praying for rain...for relief. Did it "work?" Who's to say. Rain came. Just in the nick of time. Our parched land & parched people received a respite from the searing heat & drought.Thanks God.

Things Are Getting Out of Hand

Or...Give them an inch & they will take a mile. Whatever. The idea here is, I have to pay attention...to my life, to stuff, to everyday mundane things that happen in my little world.

Earlier today I posted a photo on Facebook of a vine that had crawled across our front porch and is even now busily winding its way up a porch chair leg...off to God knows where. You see about 2 months ago, I spied this morning glory vine in my front flowerbed. Humph, I said to myself, must have originated from the byproduct of a bird who we fed during the horrible snow we Oklahomans experienced last winter. It's little, I'll let it stay since it's already survived so much. Besides, I thought, I have enough "stuff" to do, let's not add more work for this slothful lady to do!

Well, MISTAKE! Despite this being the worst summer Oklahoma has EVER had, this little vine has flourished beyond all comprehension and is now a first class nuisance that will take sweat & toil on my part to eradicate it. Oh my gosh, I could have nipped it in the bud 2 months ago easy peasy!

The lesson here for me is that this can happen in my life if I'm not paying attention. One little game online turns into 2 hours missing from my life. One potato chip used to lead to eating the whole bag (not now, but that's a story for another day). Are you getting the drift? Something that starts out small & seemingly of no consequence can turn into a monster. Do you have any innocent, little vines in your life?

If A Shoe Fits - Part 2!

Who knew this crazy phrase would still be in my head! I thought the last post would eliminate it from my brain...but nope...it's still there so more must be written. Lucky you.

How about the positive side of "when the shoe fits?" Am I thankful for the "things" in my life that are "fitting?" I hope so. It takes work for me to me to think positive and look at my blessings. You know,  the times when the shoe fits... like granddaughter taking ME for a pedicure (she paid!), or when a friend is involved in a motorcycle wreck and lives to tell the tale, or the hummingbirds that fly around my front porch,or the cloud that has blocked the sun & dropped the temperature from 108 to 100... and on & on it goes. My gratitude list...many times of the shoe fitting. How about your shoes? Do they fit or not?

If The Shoe Fits

As soon as I posted my last blog, another phrase "popped" into my mind. I thought...really? And I tried to ignore it. Finally I asked myself, why was I ignoring this strange urge to write? Hadn't I created this place so I could comment? What was holding me back? Sloth...yup. Good ole American laziness. If I write about this phrase, then another might show up. Duh..isn't that the idea.

Now that you have a glimpse of my erratic thinking, here goes...

We old timers know the rest of the phrase: "If the shoe fits... wear it." Why would anyone want to wear a shoe that didn't fit? Why would anyone suffer pain from the pinching of a shoe too small or the rubbing of one too large. Wouldn't that person stop and take off that shoe? You would think.

Yet, I submit, we suffer daily in our everyday lives. We say we are fine when we are not...ouch. We offer to help with a project when our time is limited.. pinch, pinch. We ignore our health, finances, relationships etc. We suffer pinching pain in our lives. Why don't we stop & take off the "shoe" that doesn't fit & find one that does?

All In A Day's Work

Here's another phrase..."all in a day's work." What does that really mean? Does it mean that in my day's work I must accomplish "all"? If that's the case, I am in trouble! Too much slothing still happening in my day! How come I have to work anyway? And...is this actual physical labor or mental struggles or a combination of both? See how I can complicate things? Actually it's my sloth at work here. If I think about "work" long enough & make plans to start work, I am not actually working...but I can look busy while planning. Hmmm...

I learned the definition of the word procrastination last week. It is the act of delaying action on high priority tasks by substituting action on lower priority tasks. Ahem..that would be me... i.e. watering the flowers outside (love) instead of washing the kitchen floor (hate)...but the flowers will DIE in this heat!! See??

Whatever my day's work consists of, I will have joy. I will give thanks for all my blessings. And I will definitely  be content to ride one more day in God's pocket. Peace

Tis The Season To Be Jolly

It has been a while since I posted anything. That's my nature...get off to a start & then fold. I don't want that to happen this time. Perseverance, keep on keeping on & all that stuff...anyway...

Usually a phrase gets "stuck" in my mind & stays there, hovering around until I write. Well, the phrase "tis the season to be jolly" appeared in my mind about a month ago...right about the time the pastor of my church passed away suddenly, tragically, unexpectedly. Darn. How could this possibly be the season to be jolly? It's not.

The main advantage I see in growing old is, finally, realizing I do not have to please anyone. I can be sad. I can be mad. Feelings are neither right nor wrong, they just are. So, even if my own mind is the one telling me to "be" a certain way, I can choose otherwise.

This is just a season...seasons pass on...seasons change. That's life.

Whose Shoe Is That Anyway?

Driving down the interstate at 65 miles per hour there's not much to see. But, every so often, laying beside the road is a shoe. I said a shoe..just one. Does any body miss this shoe? How did it find it's way to the side of a busy highway? Is someone in trouble? Do I call and report..what?...a shoe? I can visualize how that call would go (can't you?) so I don't make it. Just watch the shoe whiz past the window. It's still there a week later. One of life's unanswered questions.

A close second to the shoe question is the question about the homeless people living along the river. We happened to look over a railing at something and saw 4 sleeping bags lined up in a row. There was an assortment of "stuff" too. No people at that time. Where are you? How did life come to this for you? What about winter?

 The weather took a turn for the worst. Torrential rain and tornado warnings. In the back of my mind, I thought of the 4 sleeping bags lined up in their neat row...on the ground, under the bridge. Are you okay? Should I "do" something? I can visualize what might happen here too if I made a report.

Whose shoe is that anyway?

I Remember Mama

Back in the 1950's I watched a television show called "I Remember Mama." It was the story of a warm, loving family helping each other with the issues of life. Of course problems were solved in the space of an hour and all was well by the end of the show. I miss that time. Perhaps because I was a child and all things seemed possible, I looked forward to adult life with eagerness.

Now, sixty years later (did I say 60?), life has a different feel. My mother passed away last year and with her passing came the end of an era. I miss her. Sometimes I just want to feel her presence, for her sweet spirit to be in the same room with me. She was a good woman who always placed the needs of her husband & child first. She was a terrific cook (her key lime pie was to die for), a prolific seamstress and kept an immaculate home. I was most fortunate. While our problems didn't get solved in the space of an hour, they did get solved. Mama provided a quiet oasis for a man and a child to lay their burdens down. Thanks Mama. I miss you.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

Well..now what? I have this corner...Cilla's Corner to be exact. Once my first post was accomplished my mind went blank. Go figure. This from a lady whose father-in-law once said I had enough mouth for 2 sets of teeth. Guess the mouth was going without the brain.

So here I am with a perfectly fine place to talk & my mind is blank. Some would say that is a good thing. I know my thoughts can make or break my day. Been there done that & sometimes the outcome leaves a lot to be desired!! LOL.

Today is Graduation Day in this family. One grandson is moving on from grade school, while another is launching out into life from high school. Definitely the time for words, for congratulatory sayings, for advice....Maybe just a heartfelt hug, a kiss, and a a whisper of "job well done" will suffice.

I am following my yellow brick road and they have theirs. God speed.

I am a blogger! Go figure

Wow...just like that I am a blogger! Never mind that a year ago husband & I were clueless as to "blog." What's a blog?" we'd ask each other. Finally  I googled the word...imagine that... a web log. Okay I'll bite...what's a web log and why? The world is changing & as I age I am amazed at the rapidity of it all. I know everyone says that time goes faster as you get older but this is ridiculous. How does one keep any secrets?