Returning to the Puzzle Metaphor

 

Those of my readers who are students of the Bible are familiar with the above verse. Truly, in God's calendar, there is the right time for everything. It may not seem like the right time to us, but the God of the universe is in charge and even the most untimely events are in His ultimate control and for accomplishing His purposes.

Me (yellow) and Sister D (orange)
watching a Colorado rodeo during a rain storm
2017

It's just been an odd-feeling time. I'm starting to lose count of how many of my peers have recently died, but the number has increased even in the short time since I began composing this post!! 

Sister D and I (pictured above) have been close BFFs since, I don't know, maybe 2003? We met at church in Denver. Then sometime after that, 3 more gals became close with us for a total of 5. We got together often to celebrate our birthdays and for anytime we just needed girl talk, food, and laughter. Oh my, the laughter!

Then one of our group, a single gal, suddenly died. Probably a heart attack or something similar. She had put her dinner into the microwave and stepped out to her patio to wait for it to cook when Jesus came to get her. She was found a day or two later after her employer reported she had not shown up for work. 

We all sat together at her memorial service and bawled out loud together. We knew she was in a much better place, but her absence was deeply felt by all of us.

Years went by and 3 of us moved out of Colorado but still kept in touch. One remained in Denver.

left to right: BeeBee, Peggy, Sister D, me

The year after I moved to Florida, the 4 of us all got together at my home in Jacksonville. At the time my house was huge, so I could accommodate my 3 guests each with their very own bedroom and not everyone had to share a bathroom! (!!! those were the days!)

L-R: me, Peggy, BeeBee, & Sister D

My late husband was the designated chauffeur and he rented a larger vehicle so we could sightsee together in comfort.

L-R: me, BeeBee, Peggy, & Sister D
St. Augustine

We took them to Jacksonville Beach, walked the pier, and ate lunch. On another day we went to St. Augustine. Lunch on St. Simon's Island was a big hit, too. The laughter was frequent mixed with occasional tears as we remembered our dear Sandy and shared tender things one tells only the closest of friends.

A photo moment on St. Simons Island, Georgia, 
L-R: me, BeeBee, Peggy, & Sister D

Then a few years later, after a mighty battle with health problems, our Peggy was called to Heaven. Her battle was long but my understanding was that her actual passing was gentle. Again, we have no doubt where she is today.

This past week another one of us slipped off to eternity. BeeBee's service was today and although Sister D and I could not make it to Texas for the observance, we were there in spirit (and also in the slide show of photos from BeeBee's life). 

BeeBee had a strong ability to make us all laugh so hard that we ached. One year for Sandy's birthday, she invited us to her apartment. Just as lunch was finishing up and we thought it was time to leave, she told us to stay. A visitor was coming. 

She had hired an Elvis impersonator to come croon his songs to us. It was so real and kind of intimidating as he got right into our faces to sing and carry on. We will still be talking about that for all of eternity, I'm sure of it!

In the mix with all these memories, Gary and I have been informed of the recent deaths of others. When news of 2 more long-time family and/or friends came just this afternoon, I felt almost inconsolably sad. As many of us at this season of life are discovering, this is when many in our peer group come to their earthly end. That's just the way life works.

I'll be honest and just admit it. Food provides a measure of comfort. Recently I commented about the benefits of pasta. Today it was ice cream topped with blackberry jam -- and TWO scoops, please! Gary suggested this. Very timely.

I was texting with Sister D (who is not my relative except we have called each other Sister D and Sister B for years because we are sisters in Christ). Sister D said her dessert of choice today is a peach dumpling (because the Palisade Peaches in Colorado are out right now -- I miss that!).

Getting back to the subject of jigsaw puzzles (my last post), Gary and I completed one the other day that had 6 missing pieces! SIX!! Today I returned it to the library in our community center with a note.

Sometimes in our lives there are losses that make us feel incomplete. Yes, as Christ-followers we know we will see our saved loved ones when we get to Heaven. We have no doubt about that.

But to be real for those of us still standing on earth's dirt, the absence of our loved ones is real. It's left to us to learn how to get along without them and that's no easy task. 

Sometimes (often, actually) those of us left behind don't handle the situation very well. Things are said and done that are regretted later. "Mistakes were made," to quote a current grocery store commercial. 

But eventually the sting of the loss softens. People need to relax and let go of the fear, the anger, and all the negatives that came into play. We are all doing our best to cope and to be at peace with ourselves and with each other. 

If we do that, the picture tends to come together and even become beautiful. 

Until next time, grace and peace be yours in abundance. (I Peter 1:2)

Barbara

Seeking the Cool Places

 

Early Floridians were surely made of sturdy stock. That has to be true since they persisted in settling here in spite of nearly year 'round heat, insects, reptiles, and hurricanes. 

Of course we have central air conditioning now. Otherwise, I would not be a resident of the Sunshine State and the Lightening Capital of the United States.

Oh wait! I just now did a fact-check and learned (to my surprise) that Oklahoma (the land of my birth, by the way) has recently unseated Florida as the lightning capitol of the USA; this is according to recent annual environmental monitoring reports. 

Returning to my reasons for this post, we have not allowed the daily heat and humidity to stop us from getting out and about -- as long as our destinations have air conditioning, of course. But we are spending a little less time on the lanai because it has only windows and fans, no A/C. Time spent out there has been abbreviated in spite of the new furniture that we love.

In "Seeking the Cool Places" we drove across town to the Appleton Museum of Art. It is a part of the College of Central Florida, here in Ocala. Admission is free for the entire month of July. 

I have been to this museum several times in the past 7 years of living here, but Gary had not. These whimsical  elephant sculptures playing in the fountain were a fitting welcome on a hot summer morning.

In addition to the appeal of an air-conditioned venue, we wanted to see the advertised patriotic display for our nation's 250th Birthday. One long wall was devoted to a time line of Florida's history from [way back when] to present day. That was tricky to photograph, so I don't have that to share, but it was very informative.

Of particular interest to me was this quilt (below) made entirely of Prairie Points (uniform squares of fabric folded to make points) and sewn together:

Those who do not quilt may be surprised to learn that a piece such as this is quite heavy. There is no way a person could comfortably sleep under this even on a cold Florida night!

There were references to wars of the past, which always catches Gary's interest.

The museum has many other exhibits but we saw what interested us the most and then exited through the gift shop. 

Keeping up with my usual habit, I bought a refrigerator magnet to remember the occasion and also a post card to send to my sister-in-law. She lived in this town for many years but now lives farther north. She has encouraged us to visit this museum, so I sent the post card as proof-positive that we had.

the boy, Jody Baxter, main character in
The Yearling

On another day we took a couple of neighbors to lunch at The Yearling, an "old Florida" restaurant that I included in a post this past April. Named in honor of the well-known book by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, The Yearling is quite rustic with a lot of dark wood, many antiques, taxidermied (is that a word?) animals, countless old books for sale, and several dining rooms of varying sizes. This place is an icon.

"Old Florida" has grown on me over the years since I moved from Colorado. It portrays this state before the Mouse bought up a lot of land, followed by Sea World, Universal, and others. Especially for those of us who have "been there, done that, bought the T-shirt" at the flashy theme parks, these quieter historical locations hold a lot of appeal.

When I moved to Florida in 2017 (and then to Ocala in 2019), I barely remembered the story from my younger years of The Yearling. 

I knew nothing at all about the book, Cross Creek, also written by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, until our late blogging friend and New England resident, Vee of "A Haven for Vee" assumed I was aware of all that. I checked the book out of the library, bringing myself up to speed. 

I also watched two movies that have been made, based on the book, Cross Creek. I enjoyed the second (newer) film more than the first, although it did depart from the book. Here is a link to that one, the 1983 movie trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nC7ikRDWkwg

The menu at The Yearling serves venison, gator, cat fish, and other exotics as well as burgers and more traditional fare.

Gary and our friend Darryl had burgers and fries. Vickie and I chose salads. We joked about our choices. Gary and I have a personal rule that we "don't eat scavengers." 

When I say that some of the walls are lined with books, I am not exaggerating in the least. There is a sign that says the price of each book is inside the cover, so you can buy them if you want.

Those who read my blog post last April will remember the 13-foot gator on display. But for those of you who didn't see it, here he is:

And then, just to be a bit macabre, here's another view I took this week: 

This is the gator's gaping open  mouth -- truly the stuff of which nightmares are made!!

While I'm most definitely not a lover of reptiles of any kind (ok, maybe turtles are an acceptation ....), you may agree that they do make for interesting "blog fodder."

We all thoroughly enjoyed both the food and the atmosphere. I brought home about the last 1/3 of my salad to enjoy for supper that night. Among the choices of salad dressing was Mango Cream. I took a chance with that and was not disappointed. It was all so very good!

As I conclude this post on seeking the cool places, a verse from the Old Testament comes to mind:

The Lord watches over you,

the Lord is your shade at your right hand.

Psalm 121:5

A commentary I read explained it this way, "God is close by to protect you from the heat and heavy burdens of life." I like that. We all need the safety and comfort of His protection. I seek the Lord daily for those very benefits.

Until next time, stay cool in grace and peace.

Barbara

That's Life

A peaceful sunrise at Daytona Beach
from my camera in 2022

This week's writing prompts from Joyce led my thoughts to pondering lessons learned, reasons to be grateful, and acknowledging the benefits of adversity. If you want to link up with your own responses to the questions, click here.

1. What's something you enjoy now that your younger self would never have appreciated? .I've learned to be at peace with patience, which I define as "choosing to wait instead of fretting." Patience is a choice.

2. What was peaceful about today? .The retired life is, for me, relatively peaceful most of the time. Oh, there are the appointments for doctors and dentists, car maintenance, unsavory TV news, and life-threatening traffic (all of which are players for us this week). 

Ford dealership comes to our home
 for oil change and other services

To answer the question as to what has been peaceful about today: coming indoors to air conditioning after our daily bike ride, preparing a quiche for lunch and watching my husband get a second helping, and just in general deliberately focusing on the everyday blessings that can disappear at any time for all kinds of reasons. 

3. It's National Blueberry Day (July 8). Will you celebrate?  You can have one of the following right now-a slice of blueberry pie, a warm blueberry muffin, or a stack of blueberry pancakes...which do you choose? I would not refuse any of these options, but I do like fresh blueberries in pancakes. 

This or that-blueberries or raspberries? blueberries or strawberries? 

.Any of the above. . . . . maybe blueberries the most??? But with that said, the blueberries need to be fresh (No! to the canned ones that come in boxed muffin mixes)

4. Do you need a break? . Yes. From what? .The heat. I KNOW I'm not alone with that feeling. It's been a hot summer in so many places, including Great Britain and Europe, not just here in Florida.

5. What has surprised you most about getting older? .Relationships -- the ones that have lasted and the ones that have not. I'm realizing this is just life and not really unusual nor necessarily a bad thing.

6. Insert your own random thought here. .All 3 of my children have birthdays in June-July. Now fully grown with families of their own, each one of them is employed with the desire of their heart ("What do you want to be when you grow up?"). 

One is an international aviation pilot, one is a free lance graphic artist, and one is in the entertainment industry. I am pleased with their achievements.

learning life skills
1978

family hike in Colorado Rocky Mountains
1982

Children are a gift from God;

they are His reward.

Psalm 127:3 The Living Bible

 

Scripture tells us that children are a blessing from the Lord. While this is true, the word, "blessing," means more than happy, or fun times with rewards. "Blessing" is also God's means of "continuing education" for adults, whether they are parents or not so that we learn how to cope with life. That means sometimes our blessings feel more like the opposite!

Children are a catalyst for adult studies in sacrificial service, countless coping skills, balancing priorities, learning when to hold on and when to let go, and adapting to what is natural in the seasons of life. As stated earlier, this is just life.

Until next time, grace and peace.

Barbara

Graduating Out of May With the Hodgepodge

 

United States Air Force Academy graduation 
from a previous year

Responding (late) to Joyce's Wednesday Hodgepodge questions,  I'm touching on several subjects. If you want to link up to the Hodgepodge on your blog, click here.

1. Do you like your name? Are you named after someone (grandparent, etc)? If you have children how did you choose their names? 

The name "Barbara" means "beautiful stranger." While the "beautiful" part is debatable (depending if it's a good hair day or not 🤭), I have spent more years than some as a "stranger." The careers of both my father and my first husband transferred my family many times. I'm very experienced as the new kid at school and the new mom on the block.

Do I like my name? Yes, now I do, and most especially since my husband told me on one of our first dates that he likes my name. People have asked me over the years if I want to be called "Barbara" or "Barb." I've been open to both, but as I age, I really don't like being called "Barb" because I don't want to be a barb (a sharp point or a cutting remark) to anyone. But if you call me Barb, I'll just let it go.

My father liked a first cousin with this name and so that's why he gave it to me. My late husband and I debated for a long time regarding the names for our children. That was a long time ago.

2.  A piece of red velvet cake, a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a slice of blueberry pie? You can only have one...which will you choose? If you could pick any red, white, or blue dessert other than those listed here, what would you choose? 

Those are some tough choices because I would not turn any of them down. Since it's 90 degrees outside right now, I'll go with the vanilla ice cream.

If I were to choose any other red, white, or blue dessert that, too, would be tough. Just about the only dessert I can think of that I DON'T like is mincemeat pie. But since you asked, I'll say that Strawberry Pretzel Dessert. is a favorite. (click on the name for a link to the recipe)

3.  What's a job you'd like to try for just one day? 

I have been pondering this question since Joyce came out with this week's Hodgepodge questions and I honestly can't think of a burning desire to try any job that I haven't already done. Of the several jobs I have had, my favorite was the receptionist at a Christian radio station back in the mid-1990s in Colorado Springs.

4. Any patriotic decor in your home currently or coming up this summer? 

Yes, in my previous blog post I shared a snapshot of the dish towel Phylis had sent to me. Here it is again, this time on our refrigerator handle. 

In my husband's office is the flag his late wife was given when she retired from government service. 

In our living room is the flag given to me at my late husband's gravesite service. Pictured above is a tribute to our late spouses. It was Gary's idea that we set this up. His wife is pictured on the right and the photo on the left is of me with my late husband and our Cocker Spaniel.

You'll see this snapshot again in July. I cross stitched this design in 2019. The pattern is by Heart in Hand, "4th of July Bird." To order this pattern, click here.

5. It's the end of May, so let's exercise our brains. Sum up your month with an acrostic using the word MAY. We can do it!!  

I am drawing an absolute blank with this one, so I came up with a sentence using the 3 letters given. 

Many patterned And Yellow pieces make up my newest puzzle project.

300 oversized puzzle pieces

I'm interested to see how other bloggers respond to this question!

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

As this month wraps up, there are a lot of graduations. FaceBook has posted some photos from a previous year's graduation ceremonies at the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA). I have lived in Colorado Springs twice in past years, a truly beautiful place. Of the pictures posted on FB this week from the USAFA, this one is my favorite:

This is where the graduates get their diplomas with the Rocky Mountains to the West and the Air Force Thunderbirds flying over the football stadium. 

Here is a blessing for graduates:

The Lord bless you and keep you;

The Lord make His face to shine upon you

and be gracious to you;

the Lord turn his face toward you

and give you peace.

Numbers 6:24-26

Until next time, grace and peace.

Barbara