by Sharon O | Nov 21, 2013 | Uncategorized
It is one week from Thanksgiving.
The day we stop and for once hopefully become thankful for what we are abundantly blessed with in our lives.
So many have so little and even if we have the large table full of assorted dishes that will fill ourselves to a comfortable fullness.
I pray we stop and say thank you to the one who blesses us with all that we have.
It is no accident that we set a day aside for ‘giving thanks’.
In fact it is something we should do more often than our once a year gathering.
It is good to become grateful for many blessings given to us.
I remember as a young person we would go to our grandparents house for a day of food and desserts.
The thanksgiving day parade on the console tv was part of the tradition too.
We would fuss with rollers in our hair or later a hot curler to make ourselves more presentable.
It was considered a dress up day.
No jeans or a casual look.
When we were small we wore dresses and tights with shiny shoes.
The table was set with beautiful china, cloth napkins and crystal goblets.
The candles with flames that flickered and the light above the table would reflect a beautiful display of color on the cream colored ceiling.
The ladies would gather in the kitchen as our grandmother would stir the pots and prepare the food.
The men would gather in the living room away from the women and children chattering.
It was always traditional in style and recipes.
Always predictable.
I love the memory I have of the beautiful table and the time shared.
It wasn’t always a warm fuzzy feeling but it was a memory.
Sometimes it would be nice to go back in time and do it once more.
To see my grandmother busy in her kitchen stirring the pots on her simple stove.
But that is not possible she has been gone many years now.
So we create our own memories and traditions.
Only ours is more relational and more relaxed.
We will have the fire in the fireplace and the children playing.
It all adds to the family atmosphere.
One week from now we will be busy in the kitchen preparing a meal and we will stop and
for a few minutes share together what we are thankful for.
In that process I pray we will remember
it is always good to say ‘thank-you.’
by Sharon O | Nov 17, 2013 | Uncategorized
The excitement in the air
The surf roaring and a gentle wind
The call of the ocean and
The sand welcoming three little boys
Anticipation and wonder await them
Three little boys imagining what it would be like to feel the soft sand between toes.
Three little boys waiting and wondering what kind of sand castles could they build.
I love the beach for children there is never a dull moment.
There is time to run and jump and play and for all the children a time to relax and for grandma’s and grandpa’s it is a time to make memories.
There is no better place for the wonderful picture of childhood.
by Sharon O | Nov 14, 2013 | Uncategorized
I was going through some of my old pictures on line and found this one.
It is my grandson walking the fence.
When you can’t see what you want to see.
Or visit with who you want to visit with.
The best choice is to get a new perspective and go higher.
It is a very definite way of looking beyond your view point.
If he stayed lower than the fence he could only see ‘so much’.
He remains limited by the walls around him and the lack of vision.
We stay that way too many times.
We can’t focus on what is out there because we remain behind the walls and fences of our lives and we can’t problem solve enough to see it through new eyes and with a new perspective.
How can we see the problem from a new viewpoint and a new position.
I love this picture because is shows us ‘boys’ and their desire to climb.
It also gives me something to write about and to share.
Something to think about.
by Sharon O | Nov 8, 2013 | Uncategorized
Sunday we went to the beach to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary.
Yes I said ’40th’.
I can hardly imagine or believe it has been that long.
We were 18 and 19 and very much believing in the fairy tale life.
When you are young all you have is your parents to follow as examples
or the Walton’s on TV.
We played house for the first few years not really knowing how to do it or what that even meant.
Not ever understanding the hard work it would take throughout the years ahead of us
to remain faithful through the good times and the bad.
To encourage and believe in each other.
To be cheerleaders for each other when others pulled us down or under and to pray for each other when we just couldn’t pray for ourselves.
To face life together with one goal and one direction and that was forward.
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| The blessing and prayer |
At the altar we bent down in the posture of prayer in front of all those who were invited and we prayed the prayer that all newly married couples should pray.
Lord help us.
On the afternoon of November 3rd many years ago.
We entered the room alone and left as a family.
Life changed in new and different ways for each of us.
We chose after a few months of being married to start a family.
Our son came first then our daughter a few years later.
Our family of four grew and changed and so did we.
Throughout the challenging and difficult times of being young and married.
We chose to to remain faithful through the good and not so good.
There were health issues and heart issues we worked on and through.
Each one of them brought us over again and again to the decision to remain together.
I won’t tell you it has always been easy.
But I will say we sought counsel and guidance when we couldn’t figure out the issues between us.
No one told us it would be easy to share life together.
Sometimes life is messy and difficult and hard and confusing.
But through all that we made it.
It has been a blessing to walk together each year and see how our lives have changed.
We are grandparents now and we are growing old together.
We are blessed beyond all that we could ever imagine.
Living life together has been good and hard and stretching and peaceful.
Isn’t that the way it’s supposed to be?
We’ve been through it all ~ the good, the bad, the very good, the very bad, and the inspiring moments that make it all worth while ~ and you have been there with me every step of the way.
No one else could be such a loving and wonderful partner.
God knew ahead of time that we needed to be with each other.
Happy Anniversary… to us.
~ Happy 40th ~
by Sharon O | Nov 2, 2013 | Uncategorized
The month of Thanksgiving.
The learning to give thanks with a grateful heart and spirit.
The time when we reflect back and then forward for things we have been blessed with.
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| photo by Shelley C of Oregon |
Thanksgiving.
I am beginning to start a thanksgiving list.
Every day becoming aware of what I am thankful for and how I can say that to myself and to others around me.
We have many things to be thankful for we just have to become aware of them.
As we go about our day think about what you are grateful for and what you can do to become more thankful and more appreciative of what surrounds you.
Then be bold enough to say it.
Either by speaking it out loud or writing it down.
Will you join me on this journey as we travel forward in an attitude of thanks?
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!
by Sharon O | Oct 26, 2013 | Uncategorized
If I could tell you where my heart resides
it would be in the prayers and the hopes and the dreams
of these precious ones.
If I could tell you where my heart has grown
it would be on the days where we first met each one
of these precious ones.
If I could tell you about the sleepless nights and restless days
it would be the journey of being a grand parent
of these precious ones.
If I could tell you about the moment my heart swelled with pride
it would be when we heard the voices and saw the first steps
of these precious ones.
Nothing ever takes the place of knowing that you are instrumental and impacting
to the lives
of these precious ones.
The role of a grandparent is to walk alongside and be a cheerleader
to each one
of these precious ones.
A grandmother is a little bit parent, a little bit teacher, and a little bit best friend.
author unknown.
A grandmother is a mother who has a second chance.
author unknown.
A grand father is someone with silver in his hair and gold in his heart.
author unknown.
Grandchildren are the the dots that connect the lines from generation to generation. Lois Wyse.
by Sharon O | Oct 23, 2013 | Uncategorized
Driving in the fog this morning gave me many things to think about.
When the way is not clear and the vision is blurry and
even feeling very unsafe
we can only look straight ahead and follow the line to the right of us and the left.
If we dare to do something different it could cost us something such as our safety or even our life.
It is dangerous to drive in the fog.
We cannot see when there is no clarity or vision.
I personally don’t like it.
It scares me for there are many unknowns.
Life is like that sometimes.
In the process of going from one place to another.
We have to learn to trust.
We have to learn to grip the wheel and not distract ourselves.
As we know from the past eventually the fog clears and the vision becomes normal.
Right now I look out the window and it is a crisp very sunny fall day.
But it didn’t look like that at seven in the morning.
It is about perspective.
Sometimes our attitudes are foggy and we can’t see past our issues.
Sometimes we block our own journey
because of the heaviness and unforgiveness we choose to carry.
It is not helpful to walk around with our heads in a fog.
Life is a lesson and it remains our choice how we will see it.
I choose to trust even in the fog and
I also choose to praise when the sun comes out.
It is all about over coming and knowing
that just as we see the fog lift on the outside and a new view arising our hearts can be lifted too.
photo’s by P.j. DiBenedetto
by Sharon O | Oct 15, 2013 | Uncategorized
We need to find God and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness.
God is the friend of silence
See how nature
trees
flowers and grass
grow in silence
See the stars
the moon and the sun.
How they move in silence.
We need silence to be able to touch souls.
Mother Theresa
by Sharon O | Oct 9, 2013 | Uncategorized
Lately I have been driving early in the morning.
To be out in the dark and observing the sun rising is new to me.
The start of a new morning begins as I drive down the road.
I am often reminded that each day we get a fresh clean slate.
We can choose if we want it to go bad or not.
Even in our struggles that others may put towards us
it is still our choice to decide behavior shown or words spoken.
It is a challenge for us on a daily basis.
Do we show kindness?
Do we smile?
Do we pray and ask good things for others?
Are we grateful that we can get up one more day and breathe
the breath of life and hope and goodness?
Even when it is hard to find those things
they are there right in front of us.
We choose the direction we are giving out to others.
Every day we are given a choice and
I pray we make a good one.
photo by Margo L of Yamhill
by Sharon O | Oct 6, 2013 | Uncategorized
I am not sure where this photo came from
but what I do know:
it is welcoming.
I could sit there in the quiet and listen to the water and perhaps geese flying in the sky above my head.
I could see the clouds form assorted images and let my imagination rest and relax.
Fall trees cover the landscape as the crisp wind tells me I might need a sweater.
Maybe I would have a good book to read or a full glass of tea.
Maybe I would have a sketch pad to re-create the beauty before me.
Maybe I would have a hot cup of coffee and a plate of cookies.
Perhaps I would do nothing but enjoy the silence and say a prayer of thanks.
It is welcoming and peaceful for all to see and observe.
I am not sure where this photo came from
but I thank whoever took it.
It is a blessing.
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