If something is BIG news, it will end up in the newspaper.  Don’t you agree?    And, when it does, we want to cut out the article, or picture, or recipe and save it.  I happen to have some very old clippings that my Mom had saved…and even some my Granny had saved, also. 

One clipping I saved myself was my engagement picture.  That would be some 39 years ago.  Someone took the clipping and had it laminated….probably because the laminating process was new and they thought that would be the best way too save it.  WRONG!!!  The ink from the front has transferred to the back and the words that were on the back have bled through to the front.  The whole thing has yellowed, and you can’t even tell it’s the young, and lovely me! 🙂  I have other clippings from the wedding, but not another one of those.

So, I want to talk today about preserving newspaper clippings.  If you are going to keep them, at least keep them well.  There are 2 ways that you can go about this.  (And this is my preferred method.)  I take the clippings and make copies of them…I also scan them into my computer.   IMPORTANT:  USE ACID FREE COPY PAPER !   I make 2 or 3 copies of the article, in case some one else wants one.  Then I store the copies and the original in a vinyl sleeve.  Plus the info is safe on my computer.  This is a perfectly acceptable way of preserving information if you just want it for a remembrance. 

If you wish to laminate an article  from the newspaper, laminate one of these copies.  If you want it to look exactly like the original…copy it on a color copy machine.

HOWEVER…….if the actual clipping itself is of value to you, there are other things you should do………

Spray the clippings with an archival, acid reduction spray. These aerosol sprays reduce the acidic content of the newspaper, the main source of fading and decay in newspaper clippings. Buy an “Acid-Free” spray at your local craft store.  Treating your newspaper clippings with this spray will help preserve them.

And some other things to remember…

***Keep the clippings in a cool place, away from light and humidity.

***Don’t fold, staple or mutilate the clippings.  Staples and paper clips can cause permanent stains.

***Don’t store the clippings in the ‘magnetic’ type of photo album.  This will hasten the deterioration.  (this goes for photographs as well).

***Do not laminate important clippings.  Clippings of historical events lose their value if they have been laminated. ***Place the clippings in a sturdy 3-ring binder with vinyl sleeves.  IMPORTANT…..Place only one clipping in each sleeve.  Do not let clippings overlap back to back.

Hope this information is helpful to you. 

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Just another thought…completely unrelated to the rest of this post.  That’s just the way my mind works…

If you have any container…say a box or plastic bowl or any sort of decorative box that has an odor to it that you do not find pleasant…this is what you do.  Take newspapers and pull them apart so you are working with one page at a time.  Crumble it up and fill the box with as much as it will hold.  The lid must be able to close tightly.  Leave it for several days.  Some particularly strong odors may require redoing the process. 

There’s no charge for this extra tip…..

Because my Pop sold motorcycles, he knew many of the young guys who Joy and I went to school with.  He took up time with each one when they came in the store to look and wish.  Many of the guys still tell me in  how much he had meant to them.  A lot of them still look him up when they come back in town.  A few days before Christmas 1998, Brian stopped in and was talking with Pop.  He was still in high school, and was friends with Tara, my niece.  He had 4 wheelers and  dirt bikes and rode in the woods a lot.  As they talked, they came to realize that where Pop walked was where Brian rode for fun.

Mom and Pop had gotten started on their home  (#7), and Pop went over every day to check on things.  Even on new Year’s day.  We had all decided that we were not going to gather…too much going on.  In the late afternoon, Mom and Pop decided to go over and check on the house.  All was well, and they picked up something to eat and headed back to the apt.  Pop decided he would go on his walk…even though it was getting late.  Mom said, “Why don’t you just skip tonight.”  But,  a walk was part of his daily routine.   He did turn around and go back for his cell phone, though.  Now, this day 1-1-98…was freezing.  It was so cold that no one was out and about.  Except Pop.  Into the woods he went.  He walked on the familiar trail, staying away from that big mud hole that had gotten larger from all the dirt bikes and 4 wheelers playing there.  On he walked, but turned around before  he got too far, because it was so cold…and almost dark.  Heading out of the woods, he had to go past the big mud hole.  He skirted it again.  He thought. But, all of a sudden, his feet were slipping on  ice that had formed around the hole.  He was falling…and he was falling toward the mud hole.  As his feet went into the water…his left leg and hip hit the cold, icy ground.  Things went fuzzy for a little…he doesn’t know how long.  But, when he came to himself, his legs were in the water…up to his knees!  “I’ve got to get out of this water,” he thought.  And, he started to push himself backwards, he nearly passed out again.  THE PAIN WAS UNREAL!  He immediately knew he was not going to be getting out of there by himself.  It was freezing, literally.  He was hurt and in icy water up to his knees.  He knew no one knew where he was, but Mom and she only knew the vicinity of the woods he was in.  He called 911 on his phone and tried to tell them where he was.   He then called Joy, before he called Mom, because he knew Mom was going to be upset.  Then he called Mom…and as he was talking to her…his phone went dead.  The battery was dead.  In and out of consciousness, he waited and prayed.  The paramedics came to the area, but did not know where to go into the woods to look for him, and their vehicle wouldn’t make it very far without getting stuck.   They went in on foot as far as they could see, but had to come back.   They yelled to him, but he didn’t answer.   Tara and her boyfriend at the time went to get Mom, and Joy headed to the woods.  All anyone knew was that the trails he walked on were across from a funeral home. Sort of.   Panic was close by as everyone realized that Pop was down in the woods,  in the water, in severe pain, and no one knew where he was or how to get to him.  The parking lot of the funeral home is where they all met, but then they decided to walk a little way down to the spot where he entered the trails.  No one knew what to do next.  And so they waited.  And felt helpless.  And prayed.

But, you know, all those times you think you’re alone…you’re not.  And, when you think that no one knows where you are… someone does.  And, when you think the situation is hopeless….it’s not.  When you belong to Jesus, you are  like His child.   And, He watches all you do and all you say, and everywhere you go.  Just as an earthly  father watches over his children, and protects them…so much more does our Heavenly Father.  “God is with you in everything you do.”   Genesis 21:22.     Do you notice there are no restrictions on that.   It doesn’t say when you are in church, or when you are at the grocery store.   He just is with you…always…wherever you are.  Even if you are in the woods, and hurt and wet and freezing and scared.   Or standing by a busy highway knowing your loved one is lost and hurt. “Be strong and courageous.  Do not be terrified.  Do not be discouraged.  For the Lord your God goes with you.”  Joshua 1:9 

But, how could God help now?  He may know where Pop was…but no one else did.  As Tara and Joy and Mom and the paramedics  stood by the road, prayers were in their minds.  Prayers for help.  Prayers for someone to do something!  And, as they stood there with the traffic whizzing by, God answered them.  The driver of a truck that had just passed by recognized Tara. He knew her well enough to know that if she was standing by the road in that area,  something must be wrong.  So, he turned around and went back.  It was Brian.  He had just returned from deer hunting.  Tara told him what was going on and that no one knew where Pop was.  But, Brian said, “I know exactly where he is.”  And, his truck , with those big ole tires and loud motor, could easily go there.  So the Paramedics got their things and hopped into Brian’s truck and he took them straight to Pop.  Any doubts that God was ordering the steps of His children that day?   They checked him as best they could by the headlights of Brian’s truck, and they saw that he was hurt extremely bad, and the situation was quickly becoming critical.  By the way…he was only 72 years old!    They pulled him out of the water, and put him on a board and  strapped him tightly.   Pop was going in and out of consciousness from the pain.  The area was so much muddy slush with areas of ice everywhere, they knew there was no way to carry him out.  So into the back of the truck he went.  Brian turned the truck around and headed out.  The paramedics were not able to give him anything for pain, since they could not even assess the injury. They tried to hold him still as the truck bounce d along the trails and through the holes. He was near incoherent from it all.  “I must be hallucinating,” he thought.  “I’m seeing deer all around me.”  No. He was not hallucinating.  He was in the back of the truck all right…but he was next to a massive deer that Brian had shot that day!  Can you even imagine?   If he was getting out…it was gonna be on top of a dead deer!!!    You know, God doesn’t say we’ll always be comfortable with the way He decides to answer our prayers.  But, bear in mind,  if Tara and the rest had decided to wait at the funeral home…they couldn’t have been seen by passing traffic.  The way the area is where they were, they would only have been seen if they were standing where they were.

The rest of the story is anticlimactic.  He got to the hospital, and soon was in surgery.  His leg and hip were torn to pieces. It was so bad they could not even fix it properly.   They had to put a big plate in it, and a rod down the length of his leg.     It partially healed but after a few months, he realized something was not right, and the doctors agreed with his assessment.  So that called for more surgery.  However, this time enough of the leg had healed that they were  able to fix it the way it needed to be.  It was over 6 months before he was over it.  Sorta.  Kinda. 

And, the building of their house continued through all of this drama.   Mom had to take over the job of overseeing the builders.   And, the house got built.  The were able to move in and get back to some semblance of normal.  Whatever that is.  They loved ABODE #7 and lived happily ever after there for several years, celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, and many other special occasions.

Mom moved one more time, ABODE #8 , for her.   And, now she  lives in a mansion and is walking on streets of gold.  The walls around her are made with precious stones.  And, she is waiting for us to join her.

Friends,when we belong to the Lord, He will always do what is best for us.  We may get our selves into some big messes…but He is always ready to help us.   Our family and friends see clearly how He chose to help Pop on that New Year’s Day.   “The Lord has done this; it is marvelous in our eyes.”  Psalm 118:23    And, so I am happy to share this story of what God can do.  And what a marvelous story to tell our grandchildren.  “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders He has done…so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and in turn would tell their children.”   Psalm 78:4-6

 Oh, FYI…..Pop says he is not moving again until he moves back in with Mom!

I need to set up this story before I start.  Otherwise it may not make sense to some of you. Plus, the back story is just as good.

My Pop loved to make my Mom happy.  He tried to accommodate all her wishes.  He loved doing this and she loved it as well!  DUH!  And, boy did she have wishes!  When they came to Dothan in around 1950, they moved into a  new home…ABODE #1.  They stayed there, on 3rd Avenue, until I was in the 6th grade..around 1965.  They built and moved into a new home on Florence St…..ABODE #2.   And, there they stayed until they built a new home on Lizzy Lane in 1982…..ABODE #3.  In a year or so they added a pool and then a pool house.  They loved living there.  Our whole family enjoyed them living there!  They backed up to the golf course, and there were plenty of woods nearby for Pop to ride his motorcycle through.   The children would swim, and Joy and I would fix lunch in the pool house.  In the summer this was an every day affair.  We also used the pool house and the surrounding land as the base for a camp we did for quite a few years.  It was for the girls, grades 1-6, and their missions class at church.  Then we had to do one for the boys, too, because they were jealous!  Also, there was a culvert that had an area that Mom and Pop made into a little pond.  The boys would fish there.  Wonderful days…some of my best memories!

For some reason, Mom decided that she was tired of living in a house.  She decided that she wanted to move to an apartment.  Pop said fine, and she was off and planning the move.  She sold alot of her furniture and had a huge garage sale. [OK, I have to say this about my Mom.  I loved her dearly, and still do.  However, she would do things sometimes that just blew me out of the water.  She used to complain about all the ‘stuff’ I had, but she had just as much!  We discovered lots of it after she moved to Heaven.  Where she and I differed is that periodically, she would get on a tear and throw bunches of her ‘stuff’ into the garbage.  Well, I take that back…she laid it out beside the garbage pickup cans, so if someone wanted it, it was easy to get to.   OH, my friends, many are the times I would drive up to her driveway and see something that had no business being thrown away.  I would just get it and put it at my house.  Tina lucked up on several bags of beautiful garlands and greenery that she had thrown out.  She is still using it to decorate with.  Who knows what went that never should have.   Bless her heart, when she cleaned out—-she cleaned out!   Once Mom saw a beautiful vase at my house and asked me where it came from.  I told her that I found it in a pile of trash and rescued it.  She said that she used to have one like that and she needed to see if she could find it!  I said nothing.]  Back to the garage sale.. she just wanted to get rid of everything.  I went over to help her…and headed off a tragedy!  When I walked out to the pool house where she had everything set up, I saw a woman walking out of the door with my Mother’s crystal goblets that she had gotten when she got married.  I always loved them….and I was not about to let them get away!  I said to the lady,” I’m sorry, but there was a mistake, and those goblets were not supposed to be in the sale.”  She said, “Sorry, they are mine now.”  Now, I did not want to get ugly…but she started it!  So, I said, “Ma’am, I just can’t let you take those glasses.  They are too special to us.”    She said, “Well, I do not have to SELL them back to you, you know.”  I was getting a tad bit upset here.  I told her, “Ma’am, I guess you don’t understand.  This is where my family lives.  And, WE get to make the rules around here.  And, the rule is that my Mama’s wedding crystal  belongs to her daughter and that is ME.  And, I just can’t let you walk out of here with my glasses.“  She just looked at me like I was the crazy one….so I decided to finalize the deal.  I said, “You see those 3 wild boys out there in the woods…(my 3 boys whopping and hollering like they had not been let out of the house for a week)..”.they belong to me.  And, they would love to play a new game called KEEP THE NICE LADY FROM GETTING TO HER CAR!  She got mad then.  And, I knew I had gotten started running my mouth and didn’t know when to stop.  I did not know what was coming next.  But, then she said, “Fine, I’ll sell them back to you.  There’s 6 of them, so that will be $30.00.”  I paid her and she gave me the bag that held the glasses.”  She was mad.  And, I was ashamed of myself, but, I was mad, too.  But, not as much I was going to be.  Mom came out about then and asked what was I doing with those glasses.  She said that she had just sold those a little while ago.  I said, “I can not believe you were selling your wedding crystal.  If you didn’t want it, don’t you think that I would want it?”  “Well, I didn’t want those old things.” she said, ”  I never liked them anyway.  I was glad to get $3.oo apiece for them!”  “3 dollars apiece!  Did you sell them for 3 dollars?” I said.  She said, “I just told you I did,” she said, “why does it matter?”  Realizing that I had been ‘had’…I just decided not to let her or anyone else know what I had done.  “It doesn’t matter, really, I was just wondering,” I said,  ” I got the glasses and that is all that matters.”  And, it was.  And, they are still mine.  I think they are beautiful.  Before we moved here to the Creek House, I never had a place to display my china or my crystal.    There was just not room for a china cabinet in our small eating area.  But, when we moved in here, those 6 glasses were the first things I put in my new china cabinet.  And, they make me smile every time I see them.  The little cream and sugar in front belonged to my sweet MIL, Elizabeth.

ANYWHO…..they finished their sale, and did, indeed, move to an apartment…..ABODE#4.    I asked Pop today why they moved.  And, he said that he  thought he was getting old (65) and it was hard for him to keep all the yard work done.  [I must interject right here, that he was mowing grass, and weeding flower beds just last summer…at 84!!!  But, he’s not going to do that anymore.]

I am afraid that the Apt. people did not expect what had moved into their midst.    And, I’m sure that whomever moved into #268 after them, was very grateful that they did!  They were in one apt. and decided that they wanted to be on the second floor, and so they moved across the complex to a second floor.  Then the changes began.  Even though they had repainted the apt before they moved into it…Mom wanted it painted in ‘her’ colors.  And, so she had it painted.  Then, every time she looked at the fireplace…she got so sad.   There was NO mantel!  This would just not do, as she loved to decorate her mantel.  And, so, she got permission, and had one made and hung!   A BIG ole mantel!   And, how could anyone ever enjoy living anywhere in the Deep South without a nice ceiling fan?  So they picked out a nice one and installed it.    They removed wall paper in a bedroom, and installed shelves all around the room in the guest bedroom.  And, finally, it was done to her liking.  Well…to her liking for about a year.  By then, apartment living had lost it’s appeal, and they began building a new home…..right in front their ABODE  #3.  This was a beautiful home…2 stories, and all to her liking….ABODE #5.      We all loved this house.  It had a big porch on 3 sides with rocking chairs and swings…very Southern.  She  had the yards landscaped beautifully where once was a treeless empty lot.  She planted blueberry bushes that the children loved to pick for her to make pies with.  They lived there about 2 years, and bet ya can’t guess what came next.  Yep, they decided they did not like living in a house that had stairs.  And, so they were going to build a smaller house to better suit their needs during their later years.  So, back to an apartment…not the one they had totally remodeled.  Someone was living there and they weren’t about to move.  So this was just a regular apt, ABODE #6.  And, since they knew they were not going to stay there, they managed to live in it just as it was.  And, they were happy there…the only exception being that Pop missed having woods to walk and ride in.  He did, however, find a place to walk. 

Below is my humble attempt to show you where Mom and Pop made their homes.  Houses 3–5–7 are all right together.  I think I made the cul-de-sac a little out of proportion.  Oh Well…

Now this is what where I wanted to start this post.  But aren’t you glad you know all the back story?  So, I will end Part 1 here…and pick up THE GRAND ADVENTURE  in the next post.  You can’t even imagine……

If I was fortunate enough to have a dollar for every time I have travelled the roads from Dothan to Birmingham…I’d be living on the beach somewhere on Maui in my very own beach house with big ole doors that open out to the sand and the beach.  It would be big enough for all my friends to visit at the same time.  And, it would be decorated in the most beachy beach decor around.  And, I’d have a cook and a butler, and of course a housekeeper!Several years ago, Mom and I were travelling to Birmingham with Alex to see one of his doctors.  Now Alex didn’t particularly like having to go, but Mom and I didn’t mind.  That’s cause we could usually figure out a way to get some shopping time in.  This was before Mom began having so much trouble with her arthritis…and she could go on and on and on!  When Alex got old enough, we began staying at the Wynfrey Hotel.  Now The Wynfrey was our choice because it opened up into  a huge mall…the Galleria.  Alex could stay in the room if he wanted, or he could go out to the electronics store for a while.  Also, if Mom got tired she could go to the room and rest a while.   If Alex wanted, he could stay in the room and watch TV and it was easy for Mom or I to pop in and check on him.   

Well, we were travelling on a cool, fall day…enjoying the scenery and talking about first one thing and then another and back to the first!  It’s amazing how we could solve all the world’s problems on that short 3 1/2 hour trip!  But, we could!  On this particular day, there was quite a bit of traffic.  We had remarked about it several times.  And, so many big trucks.  Alex had told us he was going to lie down.  I told him that was fine…but, he had to keep his seat belt on.

Now, let me say right here that those big trucks get on my nerves.  They will scare the mess out of you or go so slow you need to stop!  The only time I don’t mind sharing the road with them is in bad weather.  Then, I look for the biggest truck I can find and get right behind him.  And, there I stay.  I do not try to pass, I do not change lanes, me and The Big Truck Protection Company just keep on truckin’.  I do not like to drive in bad weather.  Now, I’m not talking about a little rain…I’m talking about a big ‘ole gully washer!  You have those where you live?

Well, back to the story for today.   Anyway,  pulling up behind me comes several big log trucks.  I despise big log trucks.  The are definitely NOT a member of  The Big Truck Protection Company!  I think the drivers of these trucks are  reading the wrong kind of maps…if you know what I mean?  But, how could you?  I don’t even know what I mean!  I was just trying to very nicely say, “THEY’RE CRAZY”!  There I said it!  I know probably your father or your husband or your son or other assorted male family member drives one and now I have offended you.  Please forgive me.   I am sure they are the exception to my rule.  

Several of these came speeding up behind me, passed me, and then slowed down….we were going up a long hill.  I was using my cruise control.  It helps me stay in control of my speed, ya know.  I tend to go juuuuuust a bit over the limit.  So, rather than slow down, I just calmly pulled out and went around the one that was right in front of me.  My Mom said,  “I have never liked those log trucks.  I think they are dangerous.”  “I don’t either…they make me nervous,”  I answered.  Mom said that she had a friend who was killed by one of the trucks.

As we drove on, I noticed that the same log truck  that I had passed was coming up behind me….very fast.  I really thought he would hit my car if he did not slow down!  I began looking around me for an escape if need be.  I was afraid to slow down, because he was going so fast.  And, there was nowhere to go.  I was in the right hand lane.  The left was full of cars.  There was no shoulder…..just a drop off some 50-60  feet.  Straight down.  I was pretty sure something was going to happen that I was not going to like.  You better believe that I was praying.  This was before Carrie Underwood sang that song, “Jesus Take the Wheel”.  All I could say was “Jesus.”  Quietly.  I did not want to scare Mom or Alex. 

At the last moment (before hitting me from behind), he pulled into the left lane.  Whew!  I could breathe again.  But…not for long.  The worst was just beginning.  As he began to pull ahead of me…he also began to come back over in my lane.  Way before he should have…he began moving back to the right lane.  I knew there was no place to go but down.   And, I knew I was going to have to take that way.  Mom had not noticed what was happening now…and Alex was asleep.  There was the tiniest sliver of level ground next the road, and I tried to get over to that as far as I could.  But, that was not what the trucker had in mind.  He kept coming over until I had no choice but to leave the highway. 

It’s strange how things begin to move in slow motion even though you are tooling along at 70 mph.  In my mind, it became clear to me that I had to try to drive down the embankment…and I knew that I had to go down at an angle.  I am not at all wise about driving and cars and such, but I knew that if I went straight down the car would flip. And, friends, I was not scared…the strangest calm came over me and I just knew what I had to do.  At the bottom was thick woods.  So, I said, “Mama, hold on, hold on, hold on!”  And, as I was talking I was driving…down the embankment…at an angle.  And, friends, I made it down,  and was heading towards the woods, and clear as a bell, I heard a man’s voice say, “STOP–NOW!”  And, that’s what I did.  I could not move for a minute.  WELL  My  little mother was out of that car and scrambling up that embankment, before I could even turn the car off!  I yelled after her, “Mama, come back, we’re OK.”    She said she was going to get a tag number!  Well, no way could she have gotten a tag number, but she thought she could.  I jumped out of the car to go after her.  Friends, 3 or 4 big trucks  stopped to see if we were ok.   They just stopped right there in the middle of that 4 lane highway!  One of them said yelled,  “if you are OK, I’m going after him.”  Another trucker said he would call the state trooper on the radio.  He said and” I’m going to tell him you did nothing wrong. ” Two ladies stopped and said,” we saw the whole thing.  We knew what was going to happen.  We were praying angels all over your car.”    A man and his son in their pick up  said they would stay with us till the police came.  He was so kind.  He said,”Don’t you worry now, little lady.  We’s not going to leave you out here by your self.”

Now, Mama was pacing on that little sliver of level ground.  She was trying to think what to do so she could do it.  But, there was nothing to do…we just had to wait till the State Trooper arrived.  And, so the man and his son in the pick up truck told her that it would be better for her to wait by the car.  And, down that steep embankment she came…with their help.

I knew that Mom needed to sit down and Alex was still in the car.  So, we walked back down to the car.  We went around to the front of the car.  There was a thick area of vines and scrub trees that had caught hold of the car and held it tight.  We heard water…running water.  Looking through the vines and trees, we saw a creek, another 10 feet below us.  It was full of water and it was running fast.  The state trooper said it was at least 5 feet deep.  IF I had not stopped my car when I did…we would have ended up in the creek.  We both got back into the car and shut our doors.  Alex lifted up his head from the backseat and said, “Mother, why have you been driving so crazy?”  “Well, Son, look around and see where you are! ” I said.   He looked around and then said, ” Mama, what in the world are you doing down here?”  And, I told him that I was taking a nap and when I woke up there I was!!!   He did not think that was funny!

Finally the State Trooper came, and we told him our story.  He said that he had 3 other troopers looking for the truck ever since the other trucker called to tell him about it.  And, he said, “There are big roads and little roads, dirt roads and pig trails all back in this area.  That trucker knows all sorts of places  to hide until tomorrow or the next day.   We will never find him.”  Well about that time the trooper got a call on his radio that another trooper had a big logging truck pulled over on one of those back roads.  So, the trooper said for us to get in his car.  We were going to see if I could identify the truck.  Oh!  My!  I had no earthly idea if it was red or green or blue or polka dotted.  But, the trooper said, “Ma’am, you saw enough of the truck to know if this is the same one.”  I got in front, and held his computer and stuff in my lap.  Mom and Alex got into the back.  You know those little cages they put the criminals in?   That’s where they were.  The nice man and his son in the pick up said that they were going to wait there to make sure the car was safe…and in case some of the bigger trucks came back.  And, so we drove.  And, drove.  And drove.  We had left all the paved roads and were now on the dirt roads and pig trails.  And, the trooper?  He was not driving at a safe rate of speed!  I decided not to point this out to him…didn’t seem like the best time to do it.   I turned around once and looked at Alex and his grandmother…sitting in the lock-up cage…in the back of a state troopers car…on a dirt road…with a maniacal trooper on a mission!  Their eyes were big.  And they were holding on to each other for dear life.  I gave them a little smile and figured I’d better just keep my mind on the trooper.   And, then on a dirt road with trees and vines and and such so thick it covered the road like a canopy…right beautiful, really. There was a log truck…and a man standing in the road…and another trooper car with lights flashing…and the trooper talking to the man.  We approached from the front of the logging truck.  I told the trooper I needed to see the back.  And so we drove around the truck and cars and went down the road about a 1/2 mile.  He turned around and turned to me and said, “try to remember how it felt when you knew you were going to have to leave the road.”  I did what he said…and all the time he was driving.  As we came up to the truck Mom and I said…at the same time, “That’s not the one.”  Couldn’t tell you anything about the one it was…but knew this one was not!  The trooper said, “See, I told you that you would know.”

The troopers came and asked me again in the driver’s presence if this was the one.  And, I told them it was not.  Then that burly, unshaven, big bear of a man came over to the window where I was and leaned in and said, “I’m so sorry this happened to you.  But, some of those drivers are fools.  They think they own the road.  Best you stay as far away from them from now on.  Now, is there anything you need?  I’m at your service, if I can do anything at all.”  I shook his hand and told him that we were fine and thanked him for his kindness.  We went back to the car.  The trooper called a wrecker to come and pull us out of the ditch and back up the steep hill.  I thanked the man and his son that had stayed at our car and offered to pay him for his time.  He said, “Just pass it on ma’am…that’s all we need.”   Then the state trooper looked at me and said, “Were you driving, Ma’am?”  I told him I was.  And, then he said the strangest thing.  He said, “Well, Ma’am, there is no way that you could have driven your car down that embankment.  It’s impossible to do without flipping the car.”

I let that sink in for a minute.  And, that same sense of calmness came over me again.  That ‘peace that passes all understanding’.  And, I looked back at the trooper and said, “Actually, it wasn’t me driving at all.  I was just sitting behind the wheel.”  And, he looked at me and smiled, “Yes, Ma’am, you’re right.  You’re sure right about that.”

The wrecker pulled the car out.  He did not try to drive the wrecker down there…the trooper stopped the traffic on the highway.  The he hooked something to the car and sprinkled some magic dust and said some magic words and ‘POOF’  the car was back on the 4 lane.   He bent something back off of the right front tire…so it wouldn’t scrape.   He drove it down the road and came back.   Then, he said, “You’re good to go.”  The trooper waved us on.  The wrecker headed back to Montgomery.  Mom took an ativan and laid her car seat back and closed her eyes.  Alex lay down in the back seat again…with his seat belt on.  And I put the car into Drive and set my sights on Birmingham.   And, as I drove, these words quietly escaped my lips…an old Michael W Smith Praise Song we used to sing with the Youth when my boys were in this age group at church.  The words came out.  They came from my soul.  They came from that place where we communicate with Our Father.  They rose without any conscious thought on my part.  They were words of thanks.  They were words of praise.

Amen and Amen!

Gifts from our children are always among the most special.  So cute when they are small…it’s always fun to see what their little minds will come up with.  As they become older, their gifts become different.  It’s obvious when they begin to really think about their gifts and the likes or dislikes of the one who they are giving to.    That is an important skill to have, I think.  It is so easy to go into a store and get a gift…any gift…whatever is closest to the cash register…and if it is already wrapped, that makes it all the better.  But, to spend the time to really think about what the recipient would like, or to really think about what message you want to send by the giving of the gift, is a skill that is sometimes hard to learn.  Can’t you tell when the giver has really put thought into choosing your gift?  And, isn’t it obvious when they haven’t?  I’m not talking just about children and family here, but friends, as well.

Several years ago, Alex gave me this piece from the Willow Tree Collection.  He said the sweetest words to me.  He said,  “You  hold my heart, everyday.  I could not make it without you.”   Well of course, that melted my heart.  He and I are very close, and we are together every day.  I am his legs, when he needs something.  I am his sounding board, and I am his friend.  And, I am blessed to be whatever he needs.

Ian has given me gifts through the years, but I’ll tell you about 2 of them.  He was fortunate enough to take an extended trip to Europe several years ago and to Ireland and somewhere else across the ocean the next year.  While he was in ‘somewhere’, he discovered the wonderfulness which is Burberry.  He started sporting a very nice Burberry wool scarf in their signature plaid.  What can I say?  I like the good stuff, too.  It just looks and feels better.

On Christmas morning, we began opening gifts.  First he handed me a small, flat package.  I opened it and saw the box said Burberry.  I thought he had just reused the box that his scarf came in.  I opened it up and there was a Burberry wallet!  Needless to say, I was shocked.  I can’t believe he used his money to buy that for me.  But, he did, and I love it.  I use it everyday.

  There was another gift from him that day.  And, as much as I loved the wallet…this is the one that brought tears to my eyes.  He had chosen another of the Willow Tree figures.  This one:

He said that this reminded him of the way I had always covered him with love and care.  My, my…my heart is melted!

And recently, he did it again.  He went looking for a sign, and when they didn’t have it…he had them to make it!    I love words and things that say words of encouragement or affirm our faith.  So, this was a wonderful gift.  Here it is in place!

Now that oldest son of mine and his sweet wife have been very kind in their gift giving.  Suzanne has a talent for always choosing perfect gifts.  She puts a lot of thought into each one. I love beautiful pottery and she has given me some that is fabulous!   But, this one was Adam’s doings.  For a while he was seeing a doctor in Montgomery and was not able to drive.  So, I took him up for his appointments.   Now I have been travelling back and forth to Birmingham since I was in college.  And, to get there from here, you have to go through Montgomery.  A few miles before you get to Montgomery, there is a cluster of old buildings.  They have been there ever since I first began travelling this road.  My favorite of the buildings is the smallest.  It had the most unusual shape to it.  I used to wonder what it was used for.  It was really too small to live in, but not big enough to be a meeting place for very many people.  We stopped one day and Adam climbed over the fence and made lots of snapshots of the house.  I was the look out, in case the police came to arrest us for trespassing.  Which we were…at least that’s what the sign on the fence said!    I don’t usually condone a  flagrant disregard of the law….but this was just too enticing!  I mean, the architecture of this building was so interesting to me that I just NEEDED a better look! [ And, hey, this is the South!  I’m pretty sure that if I tracked down the owner and told them what I wanted to do, they would have said,  “Well, Shug, you just go right on in and make all the pictures you want.  Stay long as you want.  And, if the Sheriff comes by in his police car, lights flashing, and siren blowing…just tell him Billy Bob said it was just fine!” ]   Adam was happy to be my partner in crime.   Actually, I think  the whole thing  was his idea, really.  Yes, I’m pretty sure it was.  🙂   I could see the headlines in the local paper….

 **********LOCAL MOTHER AND SON ARRESTED BREAKING INTO  PADLOCKED GATE ON RARE OLD SOUTHERN BUILDINGS.  THEY SAY THERE’S A PERFECTLY GOOD EXPLANATION……(BUT DON’T THEY ALL)  STAY TUNED FOR A LIVE INTERVIEW FROM THE  SOUTH MONTGOMERY COUNTY JAIL…BUT REALLY WE ALL HAVE COME TO THE SAME CONCLUSION…THE MOTHER WAS THE RING LEADER OF THIS GANG, AND IT WAS SHE WHO LED HER UNSUSPECTING SON DOWN THE PATHS OF UNRIGHTEOUSNESS!  FILM AT 6:00! *************

 But, at Christmas, he surprised me with a large print.  He had it printed on a metallic paper, and had framed it beautifully!  It is a treasure.   {This pic does not do it justice}

A closer view…..

 Before Adam and Suze gave me the large print, I had taken one of the snapshots  that showed the unusual shape and framed it and placed it in the library.  When the people came to hang the drapes in the house, one of the men asked me where the picture was taken.  I told him and lo and behold!  he had some information about the place.  He said back in the woods behind this place, there was a small settlement of people.  They all worked for the same man as farm hands.  The farmer paid them well and looked after their well being.  This little place was a church. 

He built it big enough to hold all the adults that worked for him.  I suppose he was not interested in church growth.  Anyway, it is very good to know what it was used for.  It is my dream to have that exact little building sitting in my backyard!  Since I probably will never see that…looking at the picture lets me dream about it anyway.

And, one of the best gifts of all time…for me, at least.  When my Pop took off to Africa, to work with some missionaries for a while, I asked him to bring me a zebra skin.  Well, he took my request seriously.  Several months after he returned this and several other skins arrived.  Turns out that the herd of zebra where he was, needed to be thinned out.  Because of famine, there was not enough food to keep all the animals alive.  So, the government sanctioned the shooting of several of the older zebra and some of the sick ones.  Pop was very fortunate to get in on this.  And, fortunate that he was able to get the hide shipped out of the country.  They did not allow the skins to leave the country anymore.

When this came, I was so excited to see it!  But, it is big!  Mom did not want it to be displayed at her house.  When I first married, we lived in a small apartment in Birmingham…..no room there.  Then when we moved back to Dothan, our first house was tiny…really tiny……no room there.  Then we bought the house we lived in for over 30 years.  There was no space to put it out there.  Well, it could have gone on the floor in the den, there, but there were 4 wild things that lived in the house with Don and I.  3 human males and 1 canine male.  Wild, I tell you…that zebra  would have been drug round the house and yard before I could turn around good.  I was able to share it quite a bit through the years.  I would take it to schools and churches to show it.  But for the most part of 40 some odd years, it stayed rolled up in a garbage bag in a closet.

But, I always said, that one day I would have a place to display it.  I wanted a library with the zebra skin on the floor.  I wanted that skin to be seen and appreciated.  And, no one else in my family, immediate or extended, cared one little whit about this beautiful skin.  So it was now or never.    That was one of the things on my ‘HAVE TO HAVE’  list when we began planning The Creek House.  So, there it is…on the floor in my library!  And, I love it!  Isn’t it amazing how beautiful and artistic the black marking are?  Did you know that the stripes go right through the mane?  So, thanks for the skin, Pop!  It’s finally found a place to rest!

I must add this one.  It may not meet all the other requirements…but it for sure was the funniest!  Here you see me opening a gift from Joy. 

 It is a lap desk, which I really loved because I had a new laptop.  If you look closely at the picture, can you tell that Joy is looking for something?  Well, she was……she was looking for the gift I had given her just a few minutes before.  She loved it.  Because she had a new laptop!  Yes, we gave each other the very same gift!!!

AND…when we returned from Maui last year, she had been a little sneak!  When I opened my luggage…tight on top was a wrapped package to ME!  I hurriedly opened it and this is what I found.  Joy had bought this beautiful sun catcher of the Bird of Paradise flower, which grows wild, I might add.  It was just a little surprise to always remind me of the wonderful time we had on our Maui Adventure.  I hung it in the window right next to the day bed in the studio…and there it hangs still.  Such a sweet reminder!

Oh, I could go on and on…but, this could get old for my readers.  Let me just say that I am so blessed to have wonderful friends and family who care enough to search for gifts that are different and unusual and suited to my aesthetic.  And, I try to do the same!  But, as wonderful as all these things are…that is just what they are…things!  Not worth much in the grand scheme of things.  And, I mean the REALLY grand scheme of things!  Not a single one of these will go with me when I move on to Heaven…and when I get there, I won’t be wishing I had any of it with me.    So, it’s all just ‘icing’….that yummy little extra on the top!   Fun to have and use…but no lasting value.  Fun for me to search and plan and purchase for others in my life…but, if I have  not told them about the GREATEST GIFT…then the other things are as dirt.

We read in the Bible that “Every good and perfect gift comes from above…”  James 1:17.  Now if this is so, all these wonderful things that are such treasure to me are all gifts from God.  Have you ever thought about gifts that way?  It is God who allows us to have pretty things.  It is He who allows us to have gifts that make our life easier.  It is He who allows us to receive such pleasure from the little treasures we obtain along the way.  I don’t think He minds this at all.  He gave us the capacity to appreciate and enjoy the things that the world offers.  But, I DO think He expects us to give to Him first.    And, He expects us to love Him above all other people and things.   Because when you get right down to it…..the best gifts do not come wrapped in tissue and placed in a beautiful gift bag with ribbon tied to the handle!