Today is Alex’s birthday. He is 29 years old. I don’t know if I can tell you all that is in my heart about this young man. He was always different from his brothers. They both had a darker coloring like me and Don…Alex was blond, blue eyes, and very fair skin.
He’s always thought and acted on a different level. His spirit is that of a gentle soul. He has an amazing tenderness, but he also is strong and brave. Adam and Ian both got their fair share of spankings, but a spanking wounded Alex’s spirit…that was not the way to discipline him. He had to write me a full page report on the subject at hand. Oh, how he didn’t want to do that!
Cousins at play…NC…….1985
We became aware of his disease when he was in the 8th grade, and it changed the life of our whole family. Instead of going off to college, with fraternities, and studies, and girlfriends…he went to doctors, and doctors and more doctors. Instead of choosing a major and making career plans….he was trying medicine and therapies to help him deal with pain. Instead of walking in graduation and receiving his diploma and degree…..he was trying out wheelchairs and walking canes to help him stay mobile.
He is blessed to have 2 brothers who love him and are always there for him to lean on. He has a SIL who loves him also. He has cousins who would do anything for him. He has aunts and uncles who help us search for doctors. He has a Dad who has provided him with a beautiful apartment in our home. Here he has complete privacy and we are near to help if need be. His grandparents have always spent hours in prayer for him and have been a source of strength. Many of our friends are available for him at a moment’s notice.
Even though he is in such terrific pain all the time, he reaches down deep and summons the strength to get out and be with those he loves.
He shows us all the meaning of bravery, and is an inspiration to any one who knows him. And…he has a new best friend!
As his mother, my heart breaks every day. I see him suffering and I want to do something…anything. But, we have been to doctors all over the country. We are continually searching for someone who knows enough about his disease to offer him some help. We are confident that God will lead us to that person, if that is His will for Alex. And, if it’s not, then we will continue depending on Him for strength each day. We will praise Him for all that He has blessed us with. Look at how He blessed us in the middle of the pain and helplessness. He led us to a doctor who fixed so much of his vision. This was just dropped in our lap…we weren’t searching for it or seeking help for his vision. But, God knew…and in His time, He gave Alex his vision back, by working through his brother, Ian. And, the biggest bonus…Adam is seeing much, much better also. What a reminder that He is watching all the time, and He knows what we need. I thank Him for sending Alex to our family. He has taught us all such lessons, and he fill our life with joy. Happy, Happy Birthday!
For the last 2 weeks, Dothan has been thinking of little else than PEANUTS.
Dothan is a city located in the southeastern corner of Alabama, situated approximately 20 miles west of the Georgia state line and 18 miles north of Florida. Its name derives from Genesis 37:17: “letus go to Dothan.” According to 2007 Census Bureau estimates, the city’s population was 65,447,making it the largest town in this part of the state, and the combined population for the entire Dothan metropolitan area was 137,916.The city serves as the main transportation and commercial hub for a significant part of southeastern Alabama, southwest Georgia, and nearby portions of the Florida Panhandle.
Since more than one-fourth of the U.S. peanut crop is produced within a 100 mile radius, with much of it being processed in the city, Dothan calls itself “The Peanut Capital of the World.” And, so,The National Peanut Festival (NPF) — the nation’s largest peanut festival — is held each fall to honor peanut growers and to celebrate the harvest season.
The National Peanut Festival is the United States ‘ largest peanut festival. The festivities include games and amusement rides on a large midway, animal acts, agricultural displays, an outdoor amphitheater with live music concerts by national recording artists, beauty pageants, arts and crafts displays, contests, food and a two-hour parade. The National Peanut festival also sponsors and holds field crop exhibits with prizes awarded to each exhibitor.The 9 day celebration of the peanut harvest attracts more than 120,000 people, and has a history of 56 years.
The peanut festival also has other competitions, including Sewing , Cake Decorating, Photography, Cooking ,Art.
Rides and lights seem embedded into the night sky. The sounds of joyful shrieks slice through the air as the ferris wheel comes to a stop. You feel like you can see the whole world. The world is no longer dark. It is brilliant and exciting, and you are at the very top of it all. The ferris wheel comes down, and you are in the thick of a jungle of carnival exhibits, games, and more. Time itself whirls around you as though this energy will last forever though it is for just a moment.
And to top it all off, on Saturday, the big parade through downtown Dothan. Each community has its own float, and another for the queens from there, as well as businesses. Then there are the bands, and the peanut growers, and the military vehicles. The favorite for my children was always the big monster / tractor like truck that would come through the streets and drop thousands and thousands of parched peanuts in the street. Everyone runs to fill a bag or a cup and munches on them as the rest of the parade passes by.
This event is a ‘given’ in our area. So many county schools prepare all year to show their cattle or pigs or sheep. The bands practice, playing and marching, to show off for the crowd as they march in front of their community’s floats. Such fun…such mayhem…such tradition. The coming of ‘the fair’ is our signal that the holiday season has started…….we’ve just added one more celebration!
I don’t think my Mom ever was too big a fan of the parades. I don’t remember going too much as a child. I must have gone some, because I have some memories of us sitting on the curb together. And, I remember that there was always a friendly rival between the Dothan High School Band and the Carver High School Band. That was before the two schools were joined to make 1 high school. After I married, and had small children, we always went with my sweet MIL, Elizabeth. She loved parades, and she loved to have all the children there with her. Sweet memories.
And, it’s over…for another year…the queens have little to do until they crown their successors next summer. The recipes that won the recipe contest, have been printed in the newspaper and cooks all over the area have already tried them.
The youngsters that caught a pig in the peanut-oil greased pig contest have taken their little piggies home to fatten them and bring them back next year for judging. The World’s Best Corndog man has packed his little cooking wagon and moved it to the next event. And, the carnival rides have been loaded and moved to the next town…to delight children …of all ages…there as they did here.
I ran across an article today that I found very interesting. It was from a Time Magazine article, dated 8/19/10/, titled : TEN THINGS TODAY’S KIDS WILL NEVER EXPERIENCE
1. Camera film…..2. Land line Phones…..3. Real Books……4. Being Lost…..5. Music Videos on MTV…..6. Walkmans…..7. The Glory Days of Nick at Night…..8. Czechoslovakia…..9. Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Terminator…..10. Tan M & M’s.
Most of these made sense to me, but I called on my resident ‘Expert on Current Affairs’, AKA Alex, to help me understand the list a little better. Some didn’t make sense to him, either. So, maybe they will to some of you.
1. Camera Film…..Now, here’s one I do get. I have always loved making pictures. And, have always had a camera at my disposal. But, I wish I had a $ for every time I put a roll in the camera and it didn’t roll onto those teeny, tiny, little bumps that the squares on the edge of the film were supposed to catch on! Then, what to do? Do you risk opening up the camera to carefully try to slide them on without letting too much light into the camera? Or, roll all the film on through and just throw the whole roll away? Or trust that it’s in place and make a whole roll of the beauties of St. Thomas, or your newborn, or a mission trip to New Orleans? And, it’s not…in place…and the whole roll comes back with just a black box on each pic. And, you still have to pay for the processing. BIG BUMMER! And, just so you know, the newer ones that said all you had to do was stick the roll in the back and it would do it automatically…didn’t. So, I, for one, am forever thankful for digital cameras…where you can make all the pics you want and delete the ones you don’t, you just have to be careful not to drop it. Because that will kill it…every time you drop it…even on different brands of cameras. I’m just saying….
2..Land line phones…..a few, like us, still have them. But, more and more are giving them up. I remember my cutest ever Pink Princess Phone…rotary dial of course, that I had when I was a girl. Many an important life decision was made while talking on it! Or so I thought! Now, they are all punch numbers, but maybe they will pass away to never never land, too. I remember, too, when the first answering machines came about. Do you?
3. Real Books…..I just don’t think so. Remember, this is their list, not mine. But, I do not think real books will ever go out of style. At least, I hope not. I have a Kindle, and I like it OK…but it in no way compares to a book! The feel of a book, the turning of the pages, the smell of the print and the dust, the yellowing of the edges on older ones…you just can’t get all that in a piece of plastic with words that scroll on a screen! Long Live Books…in their original form!
4. Being Lost…..The GPS has taken care of that! Don has one that is built into his truck, I have a portable one, and now my new phone has one built into it! I guess if you are techno savvy enough, you’ll have it made. I have no illusions that I will ever be techno savvy…..and am sure I will forever rely on the kindness of my children! Now, Alex did something to my phone, so he could tell where I am at any time. His phone, which is just like mine, will tell him and even show him on a map where I am!!!!! I left and went to my friend Bonnie’s house and he said he could follow me on the map the whole way! I’m not sure if I like that or not. Sometimes, it’s nice to just get lost and nobody know where you are for a few hours, don’t ya think? I wonder if I turn my phone off if I could disappear…just don’t think I like being tracked. When you think about it…(and I know Alex was just playing with it)…that could be quite scary. But, having the GPS in the phone is a nice feature.
5. Music Videos on MTV…..Alex answered this one for me. He says you can only watch the videos on there late at night or early in the morning. The programming is mostly taken up by reality shows and the like. According to Alex, Fuse is the place to watch music videos. I never heard of it, either. The singers still make the videos, he says. And, you can also see them on the Internet anytime you like.
6. Walkmans…..Oh, yes, I know I bought a many of these for my 3 boys! How great it was to be able to carry your music around with you! You just HAD to have one, with a certain kind of earphones that gave the best sound. And, to be honest, I had one, too. But, these are gone, too, and the cute little cassette tapes with them. What do you do with all those cassette tapes that had such wonderful music on them? And, I have several that were recordings of my children. Sad, a little.
7. The Glory Days of Nick at Night…Alex got the biggest smile on his face when I read this one to him. “Those were the best times,” he said, “me and Ian and Adam would watch all those old shows.” I asked him which ones he remembered. “Get Smart was the best, but it came on at 8:00,and that’s when my bedtime was. I would always try to sneak into you and Daddy’s bedroom and watch it real quiet.” I asked if I ever caught him. “Sometimes”, he said. He told me they also loved to watch the original Batman with Adam West, and Green Acres. What fun and innocent shows to watch. Compared to the filth on now, it’s enough to make you want to throw your TV out the window! I would hate to have little ones watching what is on these days.
8. Czechoslovakia….. Czechoslovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe, which existed from October 1918, until 1992. On 1 January 1993, Czechoslovakia peacefully split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Oh, well…it was a hard word to say AND spell, anyway!
9 Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Terminator…..I don’t get this one. Why can’t they watch the old movies? Alex said he thought it may be because Arnold can’t make any more new ones…he’s too old! His words…not mine!
10. Tan M & M’s…..In 1995, the candy head honchos ran a promotion to let the consumer vote on which color would replace ‘Tan’. The choices were Blue…Pink…or Purple. ‘Blue’ was the winner and ‘Tan’ faded away as ‘Blue’ came to the forefront! As I was checking this one out, I saw that there are petitions and FB pages in place in an attempt to ‘Bring Back Tan’.
They went on on to add ‘watches’, ‘writing in cursive’, and ‘the awesomness that was Nirvana’…that was a rock band…and I knew that….Curt Cobain and Courtney Love.
Well, that’s it. That’s their list. What would you add to the list? Here’s a few of the things I remember coming into the marketplace…and leaving.
These are some of the things I remember at their beginning. I can vividly remember getting our first color TV. I do not remember the year, but it was before 1963, because we moved from that house about then. I recall that Joy and I were disappointed that all the programs were not in color! The first color TV system began commercial broadcasting in 1953…the year I was born! And, actually, the cable TV programs began the same year. Then came a product called ‘Lazy Bones’ in 1956. Can you guess what it was? That’s right…the remote control! But, it is very much still in use!
I had my own transistor radio when I was a school girl. As did most of my little friends. I do remember how disappointed I was when I realized that it would not run forever, due to a dumb thing called ‘batteries’! And, I felt even worse when Pop told me that I had to buy the new batteries with MY allowance! I ask you, is that fair???? 🙂 A few years later, I had an 8 track tape player put into my car. Then came the cassette tapes, and they are about gone now.
I don’t know if this is still done in other places, but it has ceased here….Home milk delivery. I can barely remember Mom having me to put the empty bottles on the front porch, and bringing the milk inside the next morning.
I recall when we bought Adam an Atari, one of the first video gaming systems. He was 5 or 6. And, I also remember when the talk started going around about the World Wide Web…not that I understood it, just remember folks talking about it.
Oh, time passes and the things we think are so important come and go, fade out and something else,in, and we so quickly forget what was and look ahead to the next new thing. And, I suppose there always will be that…the next new thing. As long as God allows this world to continue and smart men and women dream. Dedicated scientists and doctors spend their lives trying to rid the world of diseases and illness. I pray so often for someone to discover a way to help those who suffer with cerebellar atrophy, like Alex. And you have diseases that are more real to you that you want to see eradicated. Other scientists look for ways to bring food and water to the millions who will die of starvation, if someone doesn’t help. Tiny babies with swollen stomachs and sad eyes never learn to smile, for their lives on this earth are so miserable. So many inquisitive minds full of great intelligence will never learn any more than the ways of their elders because there is no one to go to their village and teach. No one to open up the wonders of this world to those who want so badly to know.
God help the great minds today use their gifts for the greater good of all people. To serve those with little chance of a better life if they don’t. Help me remember that I have a part to play in the global community, as well. I must pray…daily…for these. I must contribute my monies to programs that promote the right things. Help us to all be more mindful. Amen.
EDITTED: You have added typewriters, and ice trays! Also carbon paper and mimeograph copies.What else can you think of? Here’s some more: home hair dryers, Cracker Jacks with a REAL prize, Magic Decoder Ring, Cartoons andSerials at the movies, joy ar receiving a quarter, playing outside after dark till parents called you in! Sending in boxtops for a prize….I actually remember sending in actual box tops. Now there is a tiny little square on the box that you send in…and they still call it a box top!
My! I have been surrounded by death all the last few weeks. We lost 2 fine men in our church recently. Then, yesterday, one of the dearest women, went on to glory! She wasn’t my aunt, but that’s what I called her…Aunt Eunice. She taught me piano for many years, and was organist in our church. Her daughter and I were close and I went on summer vacation with them many times to Gatlinburg, Tenn. She knew the Bible, chapter and verse. And, she became a wonderful Bible teacher to many newly marrieds in our church. She could explain Revelation better than anyone I knew. She will be missed…but she is where she has always wanted to go.
For as long as I can remember, my parents and she and her husband had been good friends. She has been quite feeble lately and in a wheelchair. She was not able to be out and about much. But, after Mom died, she made it a point to call me one day. She had quite a few questions about Mom, and was concerned that Mom had suffered or been in pain before she died. I explained to her that Mom had only a few minutes of pain, before she left her house, but no more after that. She was so happy to hear this. She cried a little and then she said, “I just had to make sure.” She then told me how much she loved Mom and Pop, and Joy and I. And, I reminded her of how much we loved her. We then said our good-byes. Aunt Eunice, you were a special lady. I’ll miss you.
And this morning, I got a call from my cousin, Lisa, in NC. She had the sad news that my mother’s sister, Aunt Della Mae had died. As far as I know this was not expected.
She was a dear, sweet lady. Her husband, Uncle Jefferson, died quite a few years ago. My cousins Kaye, Tony, Jeanie, and Kim adored her. They had given her quite a few grandchildren…who she enjoyed very much. I am just so sad to know that her children, my cousins, are going through what Joy and I did recently. And, as with Mother, she did not linger in pain. I am so thankful for that. Her children have sweet memories, and those will give them comfort. But, most importantly, they know she is in Heaven today with her Savior. I imagine that Mother was there to greet her with open arms!
Here is a picture made in 2007, of Mom and her brother and 3 sisters. Aren’t they all beautiful? They are all such wonderful people. These aunts have been in my life since I was born, even though we lived 600 miles apart. I am so thankful for that. I am blessed to have watched and learned from them. And, my thoughts and prayers are with them, her brother, and the rest of the family as they deal with the next few days and weeks.
L-to-R…Marie…Mom…Elwood…Della Mae…Evelyn
I love this passage from 2 Corinthians…
2 Corinthians 5…NLT
” 1 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies.[a]4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it‚Äôs not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.
6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. 10 For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.” AMEN and AMEN
1. When I was in Birmingham a few days back, Ian brought me a gift. He said since he would not be with me on my birthday, he wanted to give it to me now. He went into a store selling signs with many different sayings but not this one. So he had them make it special for me! I love it! I found the perfect place for it! And, I think it looks great!
I love giving gifts. Always have. I think long and hard about my gifts and am on the lookout all through the year wherever I go. I despise the idea of having to buy a gift, at the last minute, and putting no thought in it. AND, I am so proud of Ian for thinking about what I would like and getting it made. Lots of thought! Thanks, Ian!
(JUST A NOTE)… Why ‘The Creekhouse’? When we began building our house, I found that I felt boastful and inconsiderate when I would continually refer to ‘the new house’. I wasn’t, but I felt like others may begin to tire of hearing about it. And, I wrote about it so often on Gatherings, it just bothered me to continually say …”in my new house…”. Also, being a voracious reader, I always loved it when old Southern homes had names. Yes, Tara was one of those homes. We have a lady in our church who was involved in music all her life. She was the organist at church, and she taught organ and piano for a hundred years (Joy and I included). Her daughter was a special friend and I spent many summers on vacation with them. Anyway, her home was filled with kids taking music for as long as I can remember. She named her home, ‘The Harmony House’. Loved that. My home is on a street that has a creek running from one side of the road to the other. There is also a very quaint wooden bridge that you cross mid way the road. The name of the street is Cross Creek Lane. I could have called it The Cross House, but that felt like we were always mad at one another. So, since ‘creek’ was in the name of the street, and I had to cross a ‘creek’ every time I left or came home…I chose The Creek House.
It is just fine with me if you think it is silly. I don’t mind a bit. I’m still going to call it that, and I’m old enough now to be a little silly if I feel like it.
2. We had 2 very fine men, ‘pillars of the church’ as they are sometimes called, who died on Monday and Tuesday of last week. Neither was a big surprise, but they have been such fixtures at Southside, they will be greatly missed. Both of them had children that grew up with Joy and I, so we have known them as long as we can remember. Both of their wives are still living. I wanted to show you the beautiful flower spray that one of them had on their casket. This gentleman was such an outdoors man…he loved fishing especially. I just thought this was so perfect. Very masculine, and tied to what he liked. The spray on the other casket was equally as lovely, this one was just so different.
Do you see the about midway the last picture…all the way to the right….the fish! There are 2 of them! Neat, huh? And, did you notice the burlap netting in the first 2 ? It all looks so masculine and so appropriate for him.
3. Alex has been having a really bad few days, so I have been getting to have some of the ‘Finn Duty’. We went out a little while ago, and even though he stayed under my feet most of the time, I did mnage to get a picture or two. He is a sweet puppy and just is in love with Alex. He actually whines when Alex moves out of his sight!
Over achiever ? He tried his best to run with this stick, but it kept getting stuck on other plants. Cute, cute, cute!
“Mommy, let me smell the flowers.”
“Wait, Mommy! I need to kiss the angel!”
4. AWARD TIME ! My sweet friend, Debby, of Just Breathe, has honored me with this “CHERRY ON TOP AWARD”. Isn’t that nice? I thank you so much, Debby, and will try to live up to the spirit of the award. (I am so sorry that I can not link to her site, but Ian has not taught me to do that yet on this new blog. Tried to figure it out…couldn’t. She is linked in my ‘LINKS’ section, however)
The rules for this award are:
1. Thank the person who gave this award to you.
2. Copy the award and put it on your blog.
3. List three things which you love about yourself.
4. Post a picture you love.
5. Pass this award along.
THREE THINGS I LOVE ABOUT ME
1. I love the fact that I am not bound by a ‘black/white’ viewpoint. My mind has always been open to quirks and differences and ‘other than normal’ way of seeing things. But, always within God’s laws. I have never been able to color inside the box…there’s just so much wonderful space outside the box!
2. I love the fact that I have learned how to use a computer, and have chosen to write a blog. I love the fact that I am not afraid to let you see who I really am…warts, grey hair, tummy rolls and all!
3. I love the fact that I have dear friends in many differing walks of life. Some from church, some from school, some from childhood, some I have never met IRL, but we meet every day in the Tblogosphere and some…just because. I love that I can share my life with a plethora of friends and am at ease with them all.
And, now a picture I love…Joy and I on Maui in March. This represents fun, and secrets, and support, understanding, and sharing, and love…all the things we share as sisters.
4. While at the grocery store the other day, I picked up a 6 pack of these. I don’t know why…I haven’t had any of these in ages. But, I’m so glad I did, because THIS DRINK IS GREAT !!!!! I had forgotten just how good they were. Very refreshing! AND, they come in 7.5 oz cans that are 100 calories each!
I went back to the store this week, and picked up some more…I thought! However, I did not get the F*nta brand…I got the S*nk*st brand. THERE IS A DIFFERENCE ! I will buy some more, and they will be of the F*nta brand ! I’m just saying…
5. Aren’t these great dishes? Can you see there’s a little nest on the bowl. Wouldn’t they look great on a wooden or woven charger? I think I could probably do a lot with them….if they were mine. They may or may not be living in my kitchen. If they’re not…they should be. And, if they are…well…then…that’s just a good thing! ( The color on the second picture is correct.)
6. Don walked in one night this last week, and handed me a shopping bag from Veriz*n. I looked inside and saw this:
Really…and this is the truth…all I knew how to do was open the box. Which I did. Inside the box was a tiny little instruction guide. Obviously it was written for someone who had spent years as a cell phone designer and programmer. It was intended for someone who understands ‘flash’ and ‘froyo’ and 3 Gh and ‘OMAP processor’…and other such foreign words. It had nothing in there for the average consumer who knows that when a phone rings you answer it and say ‘Hello’. I expect a guide to be just that…a guide. It should be in easy to understand steps that doesn’t assume anything. Such as 1. Take the cord and plug it into the phone and the other end into a socket. Wait 2 housrs while it charges. 2…Unplug the phone from the wall. 3…Locate the ON/OFF button…it is located on the upper right corner of the phone…turn it to ON. 4…Good for you! You have sucessfully charged and turned on your phone! What a great accomplishment! You deserve a break…go directly to the nearest Dairy Queen and buy a Blizzard of your choice! We will continue with the next lesson tomorrow and in just 3 short weeks…you will know how to use your new Dr*id 2!!!
I am a Christian woman who has survived many years on the planet. God has blessed me with a wonderful family: husband, 3 sons, a dear DIL, and a precious grandson. I also have dear friends to keep me inspired. I am an artist of sorts and am finding my way through the great blessing of retirement. I recently retired after 20 years as a music teacher. Life is good!
My Boys
"All your sons will be taught by the Lord; and great will be their peace." Isaiah 54:13
Read their stories... Adam Alex Ian
Hello, my name is Everly. I am a blogger living in New York. This is my blog, where I post about interior design and decoration. Never miss out on new stuff.
Hello, my name is Everly. I am a blogger living in New York. This is my blog, where I post about interior design and decoration. Never miss out on new stuff.