Yep…still here.
That’s the question that’s asked a lot by everyone we come in contact with who knows we shouldn’t still be here. Here it comes…next question…”when are you leaving?” I just shrug my shoulders, squint my eyes and say, “I don’t know.”
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This morning, I had to make a trip to the University of NE Med Center for blood work. Nothing serious, nothing to worry about, just a routine checkup. When I arrived at the diagnostic center, I was met with a full house. The place was completely full of sick and hurting people. There was one chair left so, of course, I took it. The man I sat next to began a simple conversation.
He had a friendly face but a sadness hung there. We began our conversation with just the friendly usual…weather, politics, etc. We eventually dug a little deeper and I found out he came here every week. “I have bone cancer, and hepatitis C and …” I immediately felt guilty for sitting next to this man. I was here just to have blood drawn.
He talked – I listened. He threw in the, “but it’s all a part of God’s plan”. I knew then that the chair that was left was also a part of God’s plan. I came here this morning with a heavy heart. Why? Because my “problems” seemed so large. After talking with my new friend, I realized I have NO WORRIES!
My new friend was dealing with a hole and the hole was getting larger. The medical bills had forced him to sell everything but his pickup. He has a home but he’s 3 months behind. He can’t get a job because of his medical history. He’s trying to stay on top of utilities. Obamacare would cost more than his house payment. So he was literally taking one day at a time.
He started to cry. “I understand why so many people commit suicide”, he tells me.
My heart hurt for this man. So I prayed for him. I’ll never see him again but he knows he’s in the hands of the One who can help him. For this I am thankful. God bless you, Michael! And…thank you, God, for that divine appointment this morning!
April has whizzed on past and has left me wondering where the time goes!
HAPPY MAY DAY – well, a little late.
Traditional Easter picture – 2014
Head on over to Housewives of Rural America to read my latest post, “take time for tradition“. These days, I’m doing good to get something on this site let alone on some that were promised a while ago. So, in order to see what’s up with the Z Crew, for now, check it out.
I’ve been away for a little bit…
I’ve been extremely busier than normal with putting together a fairly large event for the U.S. Custom Harvesters. We’re celebrating our 31st annual convention and trade show in Wichita, KS on March 6 – 8. It’s been a work in progress, that’s for sure. The biggest event I’ve ever done was Jamie and Curt’s wedding. That seems like a piece of cake. 🙂
Jenna, on the other hand, knows exactly what this is all about. She’s the trade show coordinator for CLAAS and travels the farm show circuit with the CLAAS equipment. She knows how hard it is to make things work and click and look good and deal with stress. So, for the past several days, I’ve talked to her about all of this because she knows and understands.
I woke up this morning with the realization that things would never be the same again around this household…Taylor has officially moved out. For the longest time, I denied the fact. I knew that when Jenna bought a house, Taylor’s intentions were to move in with her. The house was bought and updates have been in the process ever since. I just kept denying the fact that eventually Taylor would be leaving the nest. It happened – yesterday. Maybe it was a good thing it happened yesterday. I was gone ALL DAY with a bus activity for the high school. I left home at 6:00 a.m. and returned at 8:30 p.m. The first clue that things would be different when I got home was the text I received from Taylor:
“All moved in! I just need somewhere to sleep now ha ha” and this picture
As I mentioned in one of my last posts, I struggled with the Christmas spirit this year. I’m still not REAL sure what the reason was but I sort of think the fact that we started hearing about what we should purchase before Halloween had something to do with it.
The event that jumpstarted the ‘ole excitement of what Christmas is all about was a bloggers gift exchange spearheaded by none other than Jamie Rhoades of This Uncharted Rhoade and Laurie Link of Country LINKed. These two gals must have known I was having an issue and decided to fix it for me – and include a few others, as well. Thank you, Jamie and Laurie!
The turkey is cooking. One pumpkin pie baked and another apple in the oven. Why not two in the oven? I’ll show you why:
I reached for my address book this afternoon and thought, “You know, I should share this with my friends”. I wish I knew what year I started filling this with family and friend’s addresses. If I were to guess, I would say 25 years ago. This little book is full of history!
Last year, while at the NAFB convention, John Deere was handing out green duct tape. I thought it added some nice color to a book that was needing a little TLC.
The view from my window today on a dreary, wet Autumn day.
The last month has yielded a few new experiences for me. One of them being asked to participate in the Housewives of Rural America blog which ultimately landed me on the “Freshly Pressed” page of WordPress.com (an exciting moment!). Being involved with this awesome group of gals has also brought back memories of who I was 30 some years ago. You see, I view myself as the “older, wiser woman” in this group. I’m not so sure that I like the hard reality that I’m not as young as my mind has me believing that I am. Jim’s dad once said something that I now understand a whole lot better, “Sometimes I have to stop and remember that I am 80 years old”. I can honestly say, I understand! My mind wants to trick me into thinking that I’m this 30-year-old person rather than nearly 52. Does this make sense? I honestly don’t feel as old as I am (until there’s a little pain here or there).
