Just missing my Granny, that's all. 

Day 23.  Is your guardian angel watching over you?  Maybe you're working him too hard.  All my life I have known that there are angels keeping watch over me.  One day, a lady in our church asked me to turn on the angel lights for her.  She could see I didn't understand.  So, she said, you know the lights on the wall.  I did and I saw what was talking about.  With the house lights off these lights throw a reflection on the wall that looks like, well, angels, minus the wings.  The scallops on the glass even project folds in the robe.  So now whenever I turn them on I look to make sure the angels are there, and they are.  Just another reminder that I am never alone.  Thank you Jesus.

I hear the train a comin'.  It's comin' round the bend. And I ain't seen the sunshine since I don't know when.  It's the orange blossom special. 
Well, that's all I know of that song.  Trains always remind me of road trips when I was young.  Sitting in the back of the station wagon looking out the windows for anything.  Those were the days before hand held video games and DVD players.  I had a little transistor radio.  It was blue and it had FM.  oooooh.  So, I would be there listening to the radio and counting train cars, waving at the engineer so he would blow the whistle.  But, the caboose was the best, I don't know why.  I wonder what my kids will remember when they look back at their life.  Will they even remember trains?


Day 21  Some things get better with age.  Like classic trucks.  When I was a child I thought like a child, I acted like a child.  Now that I'm a man, well,  I still think like a child.  When I act like a child, though, I end up with very sore muscles.  So my body ages faster than my mind.  But it's not time to be put out to pasture.  This truck is waiting to be restored.  And when it is finished it will be a work of art.  I may never be a work of art but I am a piece of work.  Look out vintage years, here I come. 

The sky was dark, the moon had just sneaked over the horizon and wasn't casting it's light over the landscape yet.  And there, standing, at the edge of woods looking in, stood a small figure.  He was broad at the shoulders and thin at the waist, and looked as if he hadn't had a good meal for days.  His fur was starting to matt together and his stance was a bit shaky.  "I have to go in there?" he asked himself.  Slowly, one step then another very hesitantly he began his journey.  What secrets did this dark place hold?  Would he be able to overcome his fears?  Would he find his strengths?  All these questions flooded his mind as he slowly made his way further into the darkness.  The darkness, yes the darkness, began to swallow him until he had vanished in it's grip.  The trees stood tall and menacing but never moved or made a sound.  It was as if they were expecting a visitor tonight.  He could barely make out the eyes that were watching him.  What were they waiting for?  Terror overcame him. 
     Ok, I'm sorry this post is a bit longer than usual.  I just wanted to stress a point.  We are controlled by our fears.  It's a sad truth, but it is truth.  The more we fear something, the more it controls us, and fear paralyzes.  The good news is that we can overcome fear.  Maybe by staring in it's face and calling it what it is or maybe by small steps a little at a time.  But, most importantly, always with the help of Jesus. 


One of the simple pleasures in life is finding an easy way to make the family happy.  My family loves s'mores.  And I love to make them, and not in the microwave.  Roasting the marshmallows is all the fun.  If I can't roast them out side I use the fireplace.  What ever I have to do to keep them happy.  Oh, and this one is mine.  Yep, it's all about the family.

Day 18.  Several years ago I started a small collection of Nativity Sets.  I don't just pick any set I see.  It really has to peak my interest.  It really started when my mother-in-law got one for me.  It is from Mexico and made out of clay.  So I started looking at nativities from different cultures and made from different materials.  I don't have a lot, but they are all different.  These are just some of the wise men from them.  I have nativities made from olive wood, clay, ceramic, alabaster, and pewter.  I haven't found one made from onyx yet, I think that would be really cool.