Sunday, February 27, 2011

Sunday Quiet Time



When I see the sun beaming through clouds, it always makes me think of God.

Psalm 104:33    I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being.

Happy Sunday!


Friday, February 25, 2011

Homesteaders

This is a picture of my great grandma, probably taken in the 70's.  This is pretty much how I remember her.  I was a teen-ager when she died.  I remember being sad but as I think back, I don't really remember having a lot of interaction with her.  I saw her only as she was then, an old lady.  I don't remember her being terribly cuddly or warm but she was always nice to us.  I do remember her Southern accent with a voice that stood out in a crowd.  We didn't have any cute name we called her.  In fact, I remember that we called her, "great-grandma".   It seems strange now that we didn't call her anything warmer or shorter.  I wish we'd called her Grandma Rhoda.  Too late now.  I'm sure at the time she was wearing this dress,  I probably just thought of it as an old lady's dress.  Today, as I look at this picture, I'm thinking, "Is that Orange Paisley?!"  

This is her in her younger years.  She and my great-grandpa were Wyoming Homesteaders.  They left North Carolina and arrived in Wyoming on an emigrant train.  My Grandma Rose was just a baby at that time and the homestead was so far out in the boonies that Grandma Rose was an adolescent before she ever got to come into town! 

Now, I am awed by what they did and how their life was.  I wish I'd had sense enough as a child to ask her questions about her life.  I really know nothing of her life before Wyoming.  I've heard stories of their homestead years but not from her point of view.  What was it like to live in a drafty log cabin on the Wyoming prairie?  How in the world did they provide food for all their children during the long winters?  Was she ever scared?  Did she ever have a moment to herself?  Did she have a chance to have fun or was her life always a struggle to keep up?  What about her faith?  How much contact did she have with her family in North Carolina?  Who helped her when she gave birth?  What was her grocery list like when my great-grandpa went to town maybe once or twice a year?  How did they make money?

So many questions.  Too late.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

My Life Was Interrupted

I am attending a Women's Bible Study at our church.  We are about to complete our study of Jonah by Pricilla Shirer.  It is not the first time I've studied Jonah.  It seems each time I go through  it I get something new from it.  Pricilla started right off talking about how Jonah's life was interrupted.  That caught my attention in a personal way...


My life was whirling along just as I'd planned in early 2010.  I was working as an oncology nurse and absolutely loved what I did.  Yes, it was hard and stressful at times but I found such satisfaction working with these people.  I was up close and personal with people who were often discovering they were able to draw upon a strength they previously hadn't even acknowledged.  It was beautiful.

Then, early last year I got sick.  That's not supposed to happen!  I am a caretaker!  I was treated.  I got better.  I got sick.  I was treated.  I got better.  I got sick.  I went to the hospital.  I was treated for a long, long time.  I got a bit better.  I got sick again.  You get the idea.  Each time I got better, I returned to work.  Finally, it became apparent that I needed to give up the job I loved, at least for now.

MY LIFE WAS INTERRUPTED! 



So, what now?  Maria (my daughter) and I came up with a plan to build on a little home business idea.  I'd made and sold a few pieces of jewelry before but was always too busy to really do much.  But now, we've made all sorts of things!  We've had a lot of fun and I've really enjoyed being creative.  It's been such a joy to be with Maria and Cordelia (grandaughter) so much.  There are many good things about it but I still fretted that I needed to get back to taking care of patients.  I thought that was my calling!

Through this study I've felt myself becoming more relaxed about the changes.  One of the things that bothered me was that being an oncology nurse felt like a ministry to me. I felt it was God's plan for me.  Well, it was, but maybe not forever...or maybe not again for just awhile.  Now, I realize that it doesn't have to make sense to me, but it is important that I just trust God to lead me to what his plan is for me.  It's humbling and it has been a bit hard on my ego, but it has been a growing experience for me for sure!  I don't know where it's going from here, but I know who is in charge!

The title of this blog, Only The Manager, is a result of this study and my life's interruptions.  God is the owner of my life, I am only the manager. 

I bet you've had interruptions as well.  I'd like to hear about them. (That sounds strange to write since I have only 1 follower right now, but who knows?)
Meet Miss Jane.  Jane is a ladylike cat.  She's generally quite polite where food is involved and that has always kind of surprised me.  Her sister cat, Mindy, is very shy.  When I am offering cat treats, Mindy wouldn't be brave enough to ever get anything if it weren't that Jane is polite and shares nicely. 
All that ended when I purchased catnip flavored treats!  Jane can't help herself.  I scattered a few around the floor (so they get to "hunt").  She couldn't get from one to the next fast enough!  Poor Mindy didn't even make it to the banquet until it was all gone.
Now, I wait until both cats answer my call before I serve the treats.  Also, I put a few right by Mindy, just to be sure.
Someday I'll introduce you more thoroughly to Mindy.  I'm not sure you are ready for that yet, though. She's the craziest cat I've ever known and I've known a lot of cats!

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Painting

I was painting our bedroom recently.  As is my custom, I began with a message.  I like thinking that what I wrote is still there, under the coats of paint I added later.

Monday, February 21, 2011

A Little Visitor and Her Friends

This little beauty came by today.  We watched WonderPets! 
                    That's a pretty sweet way to start the week!                                              

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Kathy Mattea or The King's Speech

Today my husband and I were planning to go out of town overnight.  The highlight of our trip was to have been a Kathy Mattea Concert.  I've enjoyed her music for years.  She was the first person I heard sing the song, " Mary Did You Know?"  I loved that song instantly!   We sing it at church each December now, and my kids watch to see if I'll cry.  Sometimes I do a little bit.

Anyway, the weather didn't cooperate.  Wyoming was hit with a lot of snow.  I'm sure that if someone was needing one of my kidneys or something, we could've made the trip.  However, it was just a bit too risky to make the trip for fun.

So.... onto plan B.  We went to see the movie, The King's Speech.  It was about Queen Elizabeth's Dad, King George VI.  Actually, most of the movie was about his speech impediment.  It sounds like a strange topic for a movie but I gave  it 5 stars out of 5.  I thought it was a charming movie, well-acted and well-directed.  It isn't a life-changing movie, I suppose, but definitely worth our time.  It took our minds off of Kathy Mattea for a bit. 

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