Journey Out of Pink

We had a tornado touch down in our county today. It got pitch black here and rained hard. The sky began to look an eery shade of green and I expected a tornado to drop down right in our back yard! Thankfully it wasn't close to our house this time. We prayed before the storm started asking God for protection. We've really had some weird weather this year and next week is supposed to be a repeat of today. All this is going on while up North they're getting ice and snow! Flowers are blooming everywhere and look so pretty other than being covered in pollen. This time of year the blossoms pop out just in time for Easter. I love seeing all the beautiful color but the pollen irritates my eyes and sinuses. Today I went for my pre-op bloodwork. Knee replacement will be April 18, so please be praying then. I'm very nervous about it and the rehab after. I definitely don't want to go through any more pain. I've had my share in this life. I guess the older you get the faster...

Some days you just get antsy and have to get out of the house. That's the way I felt yesterday. It was a dreary, gloomy day and was drizzling rain but I knew if I stayed inside, I'd get depressed and I didn't want that. After talking with my husband, we decided to pack a picnic lunch and head for our closest state park. Weekdays aren't normally busy.  Pulling out our big Buccee's insulated bag, I quickly made sandwiches, bagged up some chips, gathered fruit, and slid drinks into the bag. Next, I tucked in paper plates and napkins. Within fifteen minutes the bag was packed, I'd grabbed a jacket, and we were out the door.  It was spitting rain as we drove to the park but we didn't mind. The weather app said it'd be letting up soon so we were hopeful.  We arrived at the park and half an hour later and found hardly a soul visiting. Our stomachs were growling so first stop would be a covered pavilion where we could eat without getting wet. It was nice to feel...

I have four children whom I dearly love, but it's hard to spend time with them because none of them live close. And while I do my best to be part of their lives through phone calls, texts, and emails, I'd rather see them in person on a daily basis like I did when they were younger and all lived at home. I understand they're grown and have their own lives. I'm proud of each of them and know they're busy with their own families, but I still need them.  My youngest daughter is in constant touch. I get phone calls every day and our relationship is just about as tight as it always was but with the others, it's a challenge. My son works 2 jobs and is now spending time running back and forth helping take care of his grandchildren. My oldest daughter lives in another state and is always busy with her 5 children and their extracurricular activities. My middle daughter only lives about an hour away, but homeschools her daughter and spends a lot of time serving in her chur...

It's the middle of March and it's 70 degrees. The air is humid and eery. Weather men are predicting powerful storms tonight and the possibilty of long tracking, deadly tornadoes. As we sit outside, we can feel a type of energy in the air. It's ominous and makes me nervous.  In 2021, an EF4 tornado hit downtown Newnan which is about 15 miles from our current house. Back then, it was less than 10 from where we lived and we stayed up all night praying as we huddled on the floor of our laundry room. That was one of the scariest nights of my life.  After that huge tornado slammed into our city and decimated it, I told my husband we needed to be better prepared for the next weather event. I ordered some thick, sturdy bike helmets from Amazon. I bought a solar cell phone charger and gathered thick pillow and blankets. We came up with a plan. The next time tornadoes were predicted, we were going to be ready.  I don't like living in "tornado alley," a wide swath of lan...

This morning was my annual visit to the oncologist. For the past week, I've been dreading it and no matter how hard I tried to think positively, it seemed the louder the devil's whispers became - "So what if you've been cancer free for 11 years. You don't know if it won't ever come back again. When you least expect it, it could pop back into your life." And then I could almost hear an evil laughter in the background. I knew those were only lies of the enemy. I was a child of God and I trusted Him to keep me in the palm of His hands no matter what. If He chose to let cancer back into my life, He'd equip me to fight it. If He choose to keep me cancer free for the rest of my life, then I would continually thank and praise Him for His goodness and mercy. Either way, I had to have faith and I had to have hope.  My appointment was at 10:00 AM but I woke at 5:00 AM. I was nervous. Every time I've gone in in the past, I've felt pretty certain I was goi...

Today is my son's 49th birthday and I can hardly believe I'm old enough to say that. It seems like yesterday I was heading to the hospital to give birth for the first time. I was so young and so very scared. I had no idea what to expect - no childbirth classes to prepare me to breathe properly or ride out the pain. Instead, as each labor pain grew in intensity, I struggled against it feeling like I was about to split wide open and just when I thought I couldn't bear another second of terror, my beautiful baby boy arrived. I'll never forget how it felt to have him placed in my arms. His tiny body cradled against me, I felt such love and utter infatuation. Finally, I had something or someone to call my own.  How could the time have flown so quickly? 1976 seems a lifetime away. Looking back, I marvel. I was such a child when I gave birth for the first time only I didn't realize it at the time. I was just 19. By today's standards, I would have just graduated college...

Back in 1997, I read a little book called "Tuesdays with Morrie." I'd forgotten all about it until last week when I found a copy at a little free library. Taking it home, I put it on my TBR (To Be Read) shelf and said I'd get to it when I'd finished a couple of other books. (Normally I'm reading 2-3 books at a time.) Reading is my guilty, not guilty pleasure.  Passing the shelf yesterday, I glanced down and saw the book on top of some others. Hmmm. I know I've read this before, I thought, but maybe I'll read it again since it's been years. I don't normally do that. Once I've read something, that's it. I don't revisit, except for the Bible which I read cover to cover annually.  Picking up the book, I read a few pages and my memory was refreshed. The story was about an elderly man who was suffering from ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. There's no know cure and I was very familiar with it, you see, my maternal Grandmoth...