Happy Birthday, Johan ~

You love, and you are loved ~ You are a beautiful part of our lives ~ And it does not matter if we're in Gatlinburg,

dressed up in a tux in Knoxville,
or having a meal in town,
you are the man I love.
The man I prayed for and needed.

I love you, Johnny. I always have. I always will.

Blog Watching ~

To dress up your blog, you must visit HotBliggityBlog!

I love their backgrounds and they update weekly!If you're looking for a neat treat,

check out Bakerella! These are the cutest

Pie Pops & she has since added Apple Pops

made from chocolate cake rounds!

I am enjoying the memories of Raymond Elliott and the early days

of Montgomery Bible School, which I came to know as Alabama Christian.

Visit Ann Street Memories and if you know of someone that attended

during the years 1942-'65, have them get in touch with Bro. Elliott.

Let's get their memories included.

And my day wouldn't be complete without visiting

Melissa Lester at A Little Loveliness. She not only

brings smiles to my face, but tugs at those heartstrings.

You know how I love sharing photos of our family.

Here are some recent ones from our Mississippi babes.

They recently spent a week at the Neshoba County Fair,

and many memories were made. Here's Stacey with Austin

and sweet 'laina. School begins this week for them, so I'm sure

this break was much needed. Austin begins first grade this year!Here's our Leslie, with Marley, our grandog.Marley's a sweetheart and totally spoiled.

Hm, I think a trip to Mississippi is in order.

Remember the Mayonnaise Jar ~

When things in your life seem too much to handle,

when 24 hours in a day are not enough,

remember the mayonnaise jar.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up an empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly and the pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full, and again they agreed.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up the remaining spaces. He asked once more if the jar was full and the students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

"Now," said the professor, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things, your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions. If everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else, the small stuff. If you were to put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

Hmm, Something Is Wrong With This Picture

You know in this household, our blood runs crimson.

However, that is NOT why I am about to say what I am about to say.

If you look at the rear window, you'll see that I am strictly truthful

when I tell you this picture was titled, How Auburn Launches a Boat.

And yes, I laughed out loud, and knew I had a post for tonight.

I have always been extremely blessed to have girlfriends.

In every facet of my life, at every stage of my life,

there's been girlfriends ~ those wonderful women

that laugh with you, cry with you, and sometimes,

just sit quietly with you and watch the world go by.

Some of them go all the way back to grammar school, and

there's some that have brightened my life

just in the past few months. They all remain good friends.

Great friends. And there are quite a few that are my besties.

You know those, the ones that know more about you

than your minister. Or your mother. Or most of your friends.

One such friend will leave tomorrow. While she was here,

we've gotten together with other besties and it's always fun.

Girlfriends make time for each other.

Girlfriends are always only a phone call away.

Girlfriends make life a bit easier, and loads more fun.

Just Bits & Pieces

Deborah is still here with us and today we wandered downtown. I found a gorgeous bracelet at Carol Brooks. You've got to visit that shoppe! They have some of their fall and Halloween items up and decorating the front windows. I also got a cute little 'Cowardly Lion' figurine with his TrickorTreat bag. Lunch was at Marchelle's and too good! Crab cakes, roasted potatoes and grilled asparagus. Yum. (Jenny was the one that made me aware of how good crab cakes could be and I'll be forever grateful.) I have so enjoyed this visit with one of my bestest friends. We have laughed, shared, cried, and laughed some more. I'm going to miss her.

We drove out to visit with Jenny and the boys, and while there it began raining! And thundering! And lightening! Don't you just marvel at the power of nature and the beauty of His handiwork! Noah is sick with croup, but looked better yet sounded really hoarse. Jenny is very, very pregnant with Elle and you can see her latest pic here.

Tonight we camped out in front of the tube to see if Jillian and Ed are still a couple (they are) and nothing spectacular jumped out as this season's The Batchelorette drew to a close. A neat way to end a great day.

Friends, Food, & a Film!

What do you get when you take a best friend,
delicious food, an attentive waiter, four hours

of laughter, girl talk, and more laughter,

and a super cute movie?!One great time!

(And the four hours? That was just dinner.)

I haven't had a chance yet to really explore this site, but as many of you are already in my area I wondered if you might like to connect with this site as well. There is a section where you can find other blogs in your part of Alabama! You can click on the picture (which is actually their header) and link to the site. Add your name to their Mr. Linky and get on board! They have a button you can add to your sidebar, but I find it easier to right click on the header, save it to my computer, then upload under 'Add a Gadget', add the website address, and presto, you have your own button and you don't have to worry if it's too large to fit your sidebars!

Universal Health Care Program

"You can avoid reality if you choose to do so,

but you cannot avoid the consequences of avoiding reality."

~Ayn Rand

The question was asked recently, to Obama on an ABC Special on Health Care, "Mr. President, will you and your family give up your current healthcare program and join the new "Universal Health Care Program that the rest of us will be on?" Obama ignored the question. He never answered it.

A number of senators were asked the same question and their response was always, "I'm thinking about it." It was also announced, on the news, that the Kennedy Health Care Bill has been worded so that Congress will be EXEMPT! So, if it's not good enough for our President and Congress to want for their families, it's still okay for the rest of us?!

I have listened to CNN, FOX News, MSNBC (thank you, God, for a husband that enjoys staying on top of the news) and I am concerned, very concerned, with this health care package being discussed and pushed past us. I remember my parents traveling in Canada and hearing Daddy talk of the problems they had/have with their health care and that he prayed America would never, ever walk that road. Now the leaders of this country want to put us on that same path.

What can we do? We are a Grassroots country and yes, what you say and what you do matters. If you do nothing more than Google and research what I have just written, if you do nothing more than pray that Obama's plan will NOT become law, you are still doing something. Call, email, write your leaders. Finding the information is as easy as getting on a Search machine. I've found a couple of sites that will go a bit more into the little that I have brought to you this morning. Click on one of the cartoons to be directed there.

And again, pray. Pray unceasingly for America. There is still so much good here, but it is ultimately up to us to keep it that way. And yes, we have to stay on top of the government we put into office.

I know, I know this is a bit serious for a blog but it was/is important to me and I wanted to put it out there. I will be interested to see how you feel ~

A New Place To Visit

Many of you know Bro. Raymond Elliott and already follow several of his blogs. He now has another that I think you may find interesting and you may have something to add to this blog! Especially those of you that attended Alabama Christian College during the early years! I'm sure he would appreciate you heading over there, reading his opening post, and spreading the word to those you may know that would enjoy reading about those days of yore, and just maybe they can email Bro. Elliott and add to this blog with posts, memories, and photographs!

Head on over to Ann Street Memories, and leave him a comment. Then, if you haven't already done so, visit his other sites. You'll be glad you did. John loves Hunting Humor & Tales. I'm a bit partial to Early Morning Meditations.

And it's Friday! I have a dear friend coming this weekend and will be staying with us before she takes a flight to Virginia. I am so looking forward to getting together with girlfriends. I'm sure there will be much laughter, love, giggles, and lots of good food. I pray that your weekend is filled with many moments of love and laughter as well ~

You Were A Good Man

(The following is simply because I want to always have this available ~ there is a bit of Charlie Brown in each of us and tonight I was trying to remember where I placed my copy of this poem. Posting it here, I have it readily handy forever.

The doghouse sits silent
The pitchers mound, too.
Linus cries in his blanket
The whole world is blue.
The round headed kid
Whose life was disdain,
Will never feed Snoopy
Or play baseball again.
I watched him stay humble
At Halloween time;
When rocks filled his bag,
His heartache was mine.
Christmas was Peanuts
And that sad little tree;
Linus made us realize
What Christmas should be.
Pigpen’s life
Was a dust-filled swirl;
Charlie Brown’s heart
Was a red-haired girl.
The World War I Ace
Shot the Red Baron down;
Then snuggled with Woodstock,
Down on the ground.
They attached to our souls
They were part of our hearts;
In the morning over coffee,
On the TV in the dark.
So our world is a much
Lonelier place tonight;
A legend has passed into the light.
And somewhere a beagle howls
A most pitiful sound,
He’s lost his best friend.
You were a good man, Charlie Brown.

"The Eagle Has Landed"

I cannot believe I missed this day! Yesterday, 40 years ago, Neil Armstrong uttered the famous words, "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed." Oh.Wow. I remember this day and I remember my dad speaking of it at the dinner table. He took us outside and we stared upwards, looking at that place in space where dreams existed. Maybe it wasn't made of cheese!

My next favorite part of this exciting time was after describing the surface dust as "fine and almost like a powder", Commander Armstrong stepped off the footpad, and into history, when he said his famous line "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind". And we all cheered. We were all on that moon with him. We took that step. We saluted that flag.

Yeah, it was an extremely exciting time for America. I remember my grandfather talking of how he had witnessed the coming of the Ford vehicles and now here we were with men on the moon. He used to say "those weren't the good 'ole days, THESE are the good 'ole days". And he was so right. If we could go to the moon, we could do anything.
(Neil Armstrong, Commander; Michael Collins, Command Module Pilot; Edwin 'Buzz' E. Aldrin Jr., Lunar Module Pilot) You can click on either photograph to be directed to more information on this incredible time in our lives.

A Princess & Her Birthday ~

This is Miss E and her parents ~

She had a birthday recently, and guess what she got?! Every princess needs a crown all her own.
Of course, every princess has a prince
to make sure everything goes as it should. And of course,
every prince simply adores a princess.
Oh, what a beautiful love story.

Someone Always Comes ~

In the movie, Passengers, one of the main characters says something to the effect, "Someone or something always comes to help you, to make it easier." And the movie comes together, and you realize what the plot is, what the message is.

I was expecting a suspenseful thriller; what I wasn't expecting was this feeling I am experiencing right now. At this moment. Nauseated, but thrilled. Wanting to slip back into those 'zones' I found comforting after the accident, and during recovery, yet almost afraid to go back there and remember.

John is sitting not four feet from me, yet my mind is wanting to take me worlds from here. And the thoughts crowding my mind, my memory, are coming too fast for my fingers to type. I want to capture what I am feeling. I want to know that there is someone out there that experienced what I experienced. I want to know that there are others like me, that crossed over and came back. I want to know I am not alone. I want to know, are we alive?

You have no idea. You have no idea how it feels to be there and then to be sent back. To come back and wonder if everything is real. Or is this still a dream? Is this bits and pieces of life as you knew it? To think that what I know as life now is only a fragment of what the movie The Matrix was based upon.

There are times my mind screams for validation that I am alive, that I did not remain dead that April day. It was such a beautiful day, my memories of our trip to Birmingham are so clear and bright. Turning to look at Johnny, thinking how handsome he was and how good life was.

Remembering seeing Tim Buck walk toward us with flowers and thinking that I barely knew him, that I had only gotten his daughter on my class roll, yet he cared enough to be there. To come as we waited for my name to be called. My name. It was called.

It was called and I walked through the door, following the nurse. Changing into a gown with that hideous opening in the back. Getting up onto the table, and telling her the IV didn't hurt as she apologized for the prick. Then telling her I wasn't feeling as sleepy as I knew I should, watching her as she brought another syringe up to the IV and touching my hair as I heard her say, "Nighty night, Mrs. Hood".

And I open my eyes. And I know, I am not alive. To know, I am dead. And there is someone on my right. Now I wish I had looked to see who, what was there. Was it someone I would have known? I don't think so. I can almost assure myself it was a heavenly being. A messenger.

"Someone comes to make it easier, to help us find our way." Who was there for me?

John is sitting over there talking and talking and I get the feeling he is trying to include me in his day. All I want to do at this moment, at this time, is get lost in what happened then. And I wish Greg was here for me to talk to, to share with.

I can't share with John. Not like I can with Greg. Greg. Such a blessing in the form of a Christian counselor. Trained in helping those of us with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD. A fancy name for the mind not being able to handle what was, what might have been, and what actually is.

John doesn't like to remember that time. It hurts him to hear my pain, my fears, my questions. Basically, I keep them to myself. But I have to tell you, there are still times, even after three years, that I wonder if this is all real. If I am existing on a separate plane in life from reality.

Why does talking of death make so many people uncomfortable? I love telling what I saw, what I felt, what I know is there. I have read since the accident, when looking for answers, that severe traumatic experiences heighten one's sensitivity to life. Extrasensory perception. Maybe it just heightens us to what is already in front of us, what is just waiting to be felt, to be known. If we would just take the time to be a child again and notice.

I know this. Life is far shorter than we realize. He tells us it is but a vapor. It is no more than the breeze on your face. And there are those around, angels if you will, that are ever present. Right now they are having a difficult time comforting me because I have wrapped myself in the memories of that time in order to capture what I am feeling. Because I want to remember. There are things I want to remember, that I still feel my mind is shutting out. What is still there to recall?

Why the need to write this down? Why did I grab the laptop as soon as the movie was over? I would like to think that there is someone that will read this and not be afraid to leave me a comment. Or leave an email. Saying they have been there. They saw what I saw, and they are still dealing with living today and having the memories of the event that took them to Paradise.

I have learned many things since that April day ~ a few major ones would be that even death cannot heal family issues when lies still prevail; our nightmares are just that, nightmares, and life has its equal moments of light and happiness; and that we do not cross over alone. There is someone, something that comes to make the way easier.

Watch for His angels. Watch for those things you can't explain. Look into the eyes of those you pass. I promise you, when they look at you and smile, you'll know when you've been in the presence of angels. And yes, they can look just as human as you and me. Sometimes my whole being overflows with things I feel the need to say, to share, but then I realize it's a bit overwhelming. A bit to much for some, for most, to comprehend and understand.

I can tell when you are uncomfortable when I speak of these things. You begin to fidget, to glance away. You reach out with your hand to shush me, to quiet me. You tell me you're sorry. It's like trying to quell a bubbling brook.

I'm afraid to scroll back through this and see how long it is. What I have typed. What I have shared. I want to hit the 'publish' button and have this out there. For all to read. And just maybe, someone will be there. Someone like me, that feels as if you have a foot in both worlds. What is, and what will be. Just maybe, there's someone.

Are you out there?