Saturday's Scribbles

Good Saturday to you from our corner of Iowa where Autumn is bringing us cooler nights and low 70's during the day.  The leaves on some trees are starting to let go, although our Maple tree will hang on to it's giant leaves until late November.  We don't hear the birds anymore, only geese.  There is an open area in our association that used to be farmed, and hundreds gather there this time of year.  Fall, I love it!

Speaking of Fall, we were hoping to take a few trips after our daughter's wedding, but this lymphedema will now have me with a wrapped arm over a layer of foam and therapy 3x a week for a month.  Can use prayers that after that the swelling will be reduced enough for a compression sleeve.  My niece's hubby is a lymphedema specialist and I now know I need to be really careful not to get a cut, or even a hangnail in that arm....infection comes quickly.  If we lived closer we would be at the Mayo Lymphedema Clinic, I was there once and we were very impressed.  I confess that we are both weary and trying to muster up a better attitude about this new health issue.  Enough already.

Speaking of enough, it is only a couple of weeks until the wedding and I ordered enough dressy type jackets for three people with the hope that one will fit.  I am now on Plan C.  Not a bad choice, but not my first choice.  Isn't it funny how we want to look so dressed up for an event that lasts only a few minutes....buying clothes we may never wear again?  It is so much more important to be there and enjoy the moment which is but the beginning........ Yes, we are concerned about Covid.  Nasty stuff.  Our oldest son is battling a breakthrough case right now and we know others who are.  I purchased a mask with an over lay of lace to be "fancy" at the wedding!  Too bad the compression sleeve I will be wearing just for that day can't be lacy too!  At least my arm won't be obvious with wrapping.

My hubby has been on a strong anti-fungal medication for over 2 months.  Slowly I noticed a change in his personality...a bit irritable......napping 2-3 times some days....and the biggest change?  He would wake up "down" in the mornings.  Totally out of character.  It took me awhile to realize what was going on, we both finally were aware, so he called his doctor who said, "Just STOP taking it!"  He did, and within 3 days he was more his old self.  He took a tumble off a ladder recently, being three steps up and said to me later, "I just forgot I was on a ladder I guess".  Yeah..it was time to get off that drug!  It made me think about all the medications the elderly are put on and how much it changes them subtly over time.  Sad really.  I know my brain is much better since I went off the arimidex.  I still have other symptoms but memory is back 95%.  We just need to always be aware of how medications affect our bodies and our minds.

The other day while surfing through channels to see exactly what we do have I came across one called "Decades".  They carry a lot of the shows from the 50's, 60's, and up.  Mary Tyler Moore Show......Dick Van Dyke show....and many others.  It was interesting to watch some of them...so simple and yet so funny too! Joel and I find little to watch on regular TV anymore.   

Speaking of Joel, he is off to the installation of our new synod bishop today.  I'll be watching livestream on TV.  It is right here in town this year and the new bishop lives right across the street.  Our neighbor was a pastor at the church we just joined and will now be our NE Iowa bishop.  He is a great guy and we think he will do a superb job.

  Joel has been riding more this past week and working on some wood projects. He keeps very busy "putzing" as we call it.  I've been spending way too much time on the wedding "outfit" which means that even though I bought my new pants in a "short" length I still need to hem them up 3 more inches.  Yeah, my legs are that short!  I had to drag out my faithful sewing machine that I have had since 1976 without it needing any repairs.  When our household goods were shipped back from The Philippines, there was some damage done to my old machine and some of our furniture we purchased while there, so the Air Force bought us a new sewing machine!  We also bought a freezer that year that is STILL working. Must have been a good year for machines.  Most of the furniture we bought while overseas was wicker or rattan.  A loveseat, coffee table, chair or two, night stands, and more.  Plus we took a picture of a grandmother clock we wanted down to a builder while there and they made us a beautiful clock. We got the "innards" from Germany via the military.  We love our grandmother clock!

 I have been doing self massage for lymphedema all week and I have walked 20-35 minutes this week, hit the pillow at night by 9:45 most nights and started reading a new book my sister Jan sent me written by author Nicole Philipps from South Dakota.  A few inspirational podcasts by Kathy Vallotton have given me a spiritual boost.  

I think it is time to end this ramble........or scribble.  Today I am grateful for being able to start rehab this Monday, finding a Plan C to wear to the wedding, fall weather, gathering geese, old TV shows, phone calls, texts, photos we get through our phones, laughter, tears, neighbors and a new bishop too, podcasts, porch sitting on a cool evening, and so much more.............

Enjoy your weekend!

Saturday's Scribbles

Good Saturday to you from our corner of the world where beautiful Fall days have graced us this past week.  Loving those Autumn days with dryer air, cooler nighttime temperatures, and all the sounds, smells, and colors of Fall beginning to arrive.  There is nothing not to like about Fall except that it goes by too quickly!

 Thursday we drove to a nearby town to see our youngest get another fitting for her wedding dress.  She is getting married in a few weeks.  So happy for her and her fiancé.  Was fun to see her in the dress....so beautiful!  Both her and the dress!

This past week has had me at too many doctor appointments, although we have had mostly good news! I finally did get the results of the biopsies in the stomach and the colon polyp.  All were benign and normal.  Yay! The eye shot went well, and things are "holding steady".  I did end up at the oncologist again due to fluid building up in my arm, wrist and hand.  An ultrasound followed to rule out any blood clots.  There were none, so now I head to the Lymphedema people at the therapy center.  There is one more test she wants me to have ~ a CT on the chest wall to once again "rule out" cancer.  That will happen after the wedding, but when I told here I was so weary of all the tests she replied, "We are trying to take care of you the best way we can and you have had breast cancer twice, the second time very advanced."  Reality bites.  So, I am trying to be grateful for their continual watchdog attitude while trusting God with my healing, my life.  Sometimes practicing "each day is a gift" takes some effort when you want the whole package. 

After the doctors call in Friday afternoon we were both feeling a bit down.  While surfing the TV we ran across one of my favorite movies, "The Proposal" with Sandra Bullock.  It cracks me up no matter how often I watch it.  We laughed ourselves silly, which was a good way to end the day!

I have been stepping up the walking to 25, 30, and sometimes 40 minutes a day.  Joel has gotten in some biking, and is "putzing" on projects outside and in the garage. He is off to "Gabby Grandpas" this morning for an outside coffee chat with a few guys he knows.  I spent countless hours online again looking for something to wear to the wedding ~ just saying, it seems to me Covid has affected everything including available clothing to purchase!  Not much inventory.....

Speaking of that virus, all I can say is "Judas Priest"...(an expression my mom used).  It is over the top once again and we know so many people with breakthrough cases.  People vaccinated who are so thankful because they have gotten sick anyway, but able to stay at home for the most part.  Someone I know says it is a 5 hr wait to be seen in ER in large hospitals south of here.   Our county's numbers have risen greatly, and we are definitely more cautious now when going out and about.  "Lord.....listen to your people praying...." 

Speaking of the Lord, last Sunday we became members of a local church.  We hope to get involved more now that Joel is "officially" retired and not feeling the desire to be working in ministry.  Oh, I know that could change, but for now we sit together in a pew on Sunday mornings and I like that after 41 years!

We watched the movie, "Red Joan" this past week.  It was based on the oldest and longest active spy for Russia in Great Britain.  It was interesting and we had to look up a bit of info on her ourselves.  She was in her 80's when arrested.  We always look forward to the new fall TV schedule, but I am not sure why, as most shows we find un-watchable!  I guess we are always hoping for something light and upbeat that has clean humor or something without nightmare-producing drama or terror!   So thinking back on TV, I can't help but remember some of our favorite family shows like "Happy Days", "Laverne and Shirley", "Cagney and Lacy", "The Carol Burnett Show", "The Wonderful World of Disney" (Sunday nights with popcorn and pop), the original "Magnum P.I.", "The Waltons","The Partridge Family", "Little House on the Prairie",  "The Brady Bunch", "The Rockford Files", etc. etc.  What favorite TV shows come up for you?  

 I have struggled this week with people's reactions to wearing masks.  It just blows my mind.  Not that people have feelings about wearing them, but their responses to the "rules" set up by states, or businesses concerning wearing them.  I think about the many who have physically attacked airline attendants for enforcing a rule the companies have set up for protection of others.  I can't help but shake my head over the three women from Texas who physically attacked and punched a young woman who asked them for their vaccination cards before they could eat inside at a NYC restaurant.  Here is the thing, they KNOW the rules are there, they KNOW they will enforce them so as far as I am concerned they should be charged with premeditated assault.  The rules apply to everyone.  No one is exempt.  Don't want to follow them?  Don't fly.  Don't eat inside.  And for heaven's sake, why is your response violent!?!  There is such a sense of entitlement in our country. We all need more checks and balances in our lives.  Such anger.  We definitely need God more than ever, don't we.  

So this week I am thankful for persistent doctors who annoy me but want me healthy, for walking more, for seeing our youngest in her wedding dress, for texts, phone calls, funny movies that make us laugh,  for Fall colors, smells and sounds, for the power of prayer, for good news, for a church membership, for Joel's loved and support, for rules that protect, for each day, and so much more.........

Enjoy your weekend!

Saturday's Scribbles

Good Saturday to you from our corner of the world where Fall is gracing us with cooler temps at night and a bit of color here and there in the leaves.  We are not seeing or hearing many birds ~ just crows and Blue Jays now, but soon we will be able to hear the ducks and geese as they gather to fly south.  Fall is slowly beginning to grace us.  I only wish the season was longer....much longer.

Today is September 11th, and the 20th anniversary of 9-11.  I am sure we all can remember what we were doing that morning....where we were when terrorist attacks shook up our country.  I was sitting in our living room recliner watching Good Morning America when it was interrupted by the report of a plane hitting one of the World Trade Center towers.  I called Joel to tell him as he was already at work.  He said "okay, see you for lunch".  I don't think he realized it was a very large plane.....and only a few minutes later I watched the second plane hit the second tower.  I called Joel and again and he said he would be home in a short while......and then the Pentagon was hit......and this time when I called him he said, I am on my way home.  We all realized quickly that our country was under attack, didn't we.  I remember talking to our oldest in Chicago and asking her where her husband was, was he ok....as who knew where these terrorists were going to hit next.  I prayed for our son working as a police officer in a big city....I could not pull myself away from the TV that day......or the next.........or for so many days after that.  It shook our country, the world, to the core.  

Joel had served in the Air Force for 8 years, and when we knew that President Bush was declaring war, Joel and I discussed him going back in as a Chaplain.  Turns out he was too old at age 55.  They needed priests but not protestant pastors.  And that was okay.  

There have been several shows this week on the TV about 9-11 and one that Joel and I watched was called "Women of 9-11" with Robin Roberts.  It was difficult for us to watch so I cannot imagine what those who lived through it feel...........those who lost loved ones........those who experienced the weight of it all as they relive that day and what followed.  We did see a program last night on Minnesotans who experienced 9-11 first hand or in the war that followed.

Six months after 9-11 Joel went with other Lutheran pastors across the country to NYC and the surrounding state to help out by giving pastors a break from what they had been dealing with.  Joel (and our son Matt) went out to New York for 5 days.  Joel ended up going to the oldest Lutheran church in the whole state to give that pastor a rest.  Being there and going to NYC itself, seeing "Ground Zero", and the city six months after this horrific event, was sobering and raw and Joel felt, a privilege.  

In 2013 we drove to a Lutheran Healing Conference in Connecticut.  While search for a whole foods one day we asked a woman if she could help us out..  She was very cautious until she saw our plates that said Iowa....then she talked to us.  We told her we were heading to NYC soon and planned to see "Ground Zero, the museum, and the place where the names were etched in granite.  She told me that she and her husband knew several people who died that day and they had never been down there.  Too painful.  Back here in Iowa we knew of no one who died or was affected.  It is sad and held some emotional from a distance memories, but certainly nothing like those whose lives were centered around the East Coast.  Some of the stories shared are sad and painful to hear, and yet they are the stories of people who have mostly picked their lives back up and moved forward as best they could to be grateful for each day.  And is that not all we get?  One day at a time....

We headed to Rochester MN this week to shop.  So many stores have closed down here in our city that it is difficult to find any dressy clothes.  We have our youngest getting married this fall and I have found it very difficult to find anything to wear.  Seriously.  I have not shopped for a few years and wow...there is zippo out there.  And buying on line is not so easy either!  Anyone else struggle with shopping for clothes?  I keep telling myself something will come up but oh boy time is a wasting!

Joel is off biking this morning with a group from Trinity Lutheran Church.  We become members there tomorrow.  It is a bit strange to be in a church where Joel is not the pastor.  We are adjusting..........(grin)  It took me a few days to get back to myself after the procedures.  I just don't do so well with meds used I guess.  

Today I am grateful for how our country came together after 9-11 as it gives me hope for the future.....grateful for the peace that comes from knowing where our loved ones reside after death, grateful for the clothes I will (future tense) soon find for the wedding!  Grateful for Fall colors, smells, and weather, texting, phone calls, hugs, laughter, tears, and gift of life!  

Enjoy your weekend!

Saturday's Scribbles

Good Saturday to you from a cloudy, gray day here in Iowa.  Low temps and high humidity are making this a  "I want to curl up with a book" day.  Our resident baby squirrels are out and about now making their way into the world.  They are fun to watch as they cautiously scamper across our loose rock around the tree and house out back.  Exploring the world away from the nest!

Speaking of that, three of our grands are off to college again, one for the first time.  Cautiously they make their ways into the world away from their home "nest".  Often challenging for the parents, especially if they are just sending them off for the first time.  Lots of prayers lifted I am sure, as they make their way in this world.  We remember it well,  And surprisingly enough, I remember 55 years ago going off on my own to college and how much I missed the family.  I was both excited, scared, and wondering just what was ahead for my life.  I do remember after I had been there a couple of weeks, calling home and crying.  My family got up from the Sunday dinner table put away the leftover food and took off to drive two hours up to see me.  That was a long distance "in those days" and I always remembered that day as special!

On Tuesday we were able to spend nearly 3 hours on Skype catching up with dear friends.  They are such a blessing!

Earlier this week was spent preparing for two procedures I had on Thursday morning.....the Oncologist wanted to rule out problems with my stomach or intestines because of the Iron Deficiency Anemia....it took 4 months to get in because of Covid back up.  I was quite nervous about it, but they found nothing in my stomach or duodenum and the intestines were clear except for 1 tiny polyp in the colon,.  Yay.....Hopefully we are done with tests for awhile.........When I woke up Friday morning I realized that I did not remember getting dressed, eating applesauce, or getting to the car after the procedures Thursday.  I did not remember the ride home either.  I guess I asked Joel at least 6 times what the doctor had said.  He kept a close eye as I slept the afternoon away on the sofa.....Don't you wonder what we say to the doctors and nurses while under "conscious sedation"?  When Joel came out of his two years ago he started talking about how much he wanted a cheeseburger!  Every time he woke up he would say.....BURGER!!!  I want a burger!  Finally after a half hour of it I said, "Joel you are annoying me!  Stop asking for a burger!"  Haha......On the way home my brother-in-law stopped at McDonalds and bought him a burger.  When we got home he ate the burger and then slept 4 hours...........We still laugh about that.

It is Labor Day weekend and as we were chatting with one of our sons  this morning we asked him if he remembered what we used to do on Labor Day.  He said no, and we said ~ clean out the garage!  We were not always very good at having fun I'm afraid.  We had to chuckle because he was doing the same thing......cleaning the garage.  Subconsciously ingrained?  Hmmmm  

We thought about going somewhere this weekend once we realized it actually was Labor Day weekend......but with Covid rearing its ugly head and cases multiplying in our area and medical procedures this week we figure maybe a ride to a nearby lake may be our only venture out.  Although tomorrow there is an antiques in the park event in a nearby town.  We went a few years ago and bought a church pew that sits in our entry way.  We love it!  I guess we could watch a movie.........or maybe we should ~ clean the garage~?!  There's a novel idea!

We have an extended family member going through a tough time.......and tough surgery and recovery.  What I love about our family is that they are a praying family!  We know the power of prayer and I love that we share requests with each other and send them off to our kids, and we have generations of family praying for each other.  What a powerful gift!  What a privilege to pray!  Spending time talking with Jesus about our needs and desires.  Of course He already knows what we need, but He tells us to ask.........to seek..........to knock.  He tells us to pray always and constantly.........about everything.  I am loving our praying family!  So thankful for them all.

Speaking of thankful. today I am grateful for medical procedures that rule out....that bring answers...I am thankful for the rain we have had, the baby squirrels that are growing up, the grands who are blessed to go to college and their parents who support and love them, thankful for the privilege to pray, for the prayers of family and friends, for a long Skype talk with dear friends,  for texts, phone calls, and emails, for our own church pew that speaks of our long history in ministry, and for so much more!

Enjoy your weekend!

Where Is Your Happy Place?

When I was a eleven years old, I lived in the front half of a small house with my mother.  Off of the bedroom was a small storage closet area with a window and attic access.  I kept my dolls and doll bed in that attic area and when I was home alone I would often go upstairs into the bedroom storage space and pull my dolls out of the attic to play with.  I loved the sunshine filling the cozy space with light, and I loved talking and playing with my dolls when I felt lonely.  I had seven of different shapes and sizes.  I still have one of those dolls and recently Joel pulled the doll bed out of our attic over the garage. Seeing it once again brought back memories of me in my "happy place".  

One of our children talks about a happy place they go to.. it is a bit bigger than the small storage space of my childhood,  it is a relaxing place that brings into the atmosphere a sense of peace, joy, and "all good things".  We visited there in May, and the sense of peace and contentment we felt there gave more definition to their description of this "happy place".  It could be felt by both Joel and myself.

One of our children lives in the country and Joel and I love sitting on their porch any time of the day or night.  There is such a sense of history and generations of the past that comes through.  It is quiet and nature is at it's best when we sit on this porch.  Another "happy place" that brings a sense of calm and peace to quiet the soul.

I expect that Heaven will be such a place.  Recently I watched a brief teaching by a philosopher that mentioned that those people who believe they will go to Heaven really DON'T believe that they will...they just use that to comfort themselves about what happens after they die.  At first it angered me and then it saddened me that this great "mind" was so lost.  Certainly when I think of my sister Jo now, I see her smiling, laughing and healthy with her bright blue eyes sparkling.  She is in a "happy place".  

I am not so sure that our secular world understands what is slowly ebbing away.  I just read that the chief chaplain at Harvard is an atheist.  That cannot even compute in my brain...chaplain....and atheist?  Something is so wrong about that......he would not be who I would turn to in time of need.

Getting back to happy places, I expect you all can think of one or two.  And if you cannot I suggest you create them in your imagination.....or right in your home.  God invites us into His "happy place" as He dwells in our hearts.  That peace that passes understanding.........or that Heavenly realm that awaits. We used to sing a song as a family called, "Heaven is a Wonderful Place"...........

Heaven is a wonderful place.............filled with glory and grace

I'm gonna see my Savior's face.....Heaven is a wonderful place.

I'm going there!

I am learning to quiet my soul by going back in my mind to places that bring me calm and peace.  That front porch, or that cabin, etc.  Places where my soul is quieted down and God's presence sustains.  I am hoping to create more of those places!  So, I ask again, Where is your happy place/