Roy and I just came back in from the front yard. He added raised bed soil to several of the raised beds and checked on a few of the shrubs. The forsythia is blooming as well as the peach, red bud and dwarf dogwoods. The willow tree is all a buzz, really with bees hanging out in the top branches. It is true that bees are as busy as bees. Cha Nay Nay spent a lot of time with me out there as well as Fido, although he likes to help Roy. The clover is everywhere, the thickest and most prolific I have ever seen it.
This morning we did the Publix thing. There was an older, really older couple that arrived about the same time as we did. They parked in the pick up or curbside grocery places. I told Roy every time we were on the same aisle with them that I wanted to yell in my best Gomer Pyle voice, "citizens arrest, citizens arrest!" We stopped at the BBQ truck across from the post office on the way home. Delicious! I was hoping for some banana pudding cause they had it one time last week at another site. No pudding but Roy got me a cookie.
The lesson of laying down your Is*ma*l has had me thinking a lot more. Of other times, I let myself respond in not the best ways. Really powerful effect in how I respond or responded to things. There is a fine line of beating yourself up verses letting it all go to the Lord and learn of His ways. Sometimes we and most certainly I am guilty of responding, well that's just who I am. There are all kinds of personality tests to take and use for back up. But the whole Romans 12:1-2 doesn't take that into account. It is God working within us, our personalities, both real and imagined...ha, making us like Him. Using our brains, gifts, and personalities.
******
Well, it must have been the fresh air but I have been up most of the night. Really have had a difficult time sleeping. I was productive though, cleaned out the pantry, worked some on my lesson and responded to a message. Since we had planned to go to Sam's and pick up some bagged soil, I just stayed away and if need be, if haha, I could take a nap in the afternoon. Only can get five bags at a time this round, so we picked up a couple of other items. The best being, our Sam's now carries the Fancy Feast cat food. Yay!
We got home and with the temps going into the high 70s, we did some of the prep work once we got home. The clover is taking over but that is a Mike the Mower Man task. We got some of the soil mixed into the raised beds, better distributing the egg shells into the mix. We won't be able to plant tomatoes until in May, but soil prep keeps one occupied garden wise, until the next stage of the process.
Roy was able to get his workout in. So all in all with bags of dirt to be carried and toted, along with his regular workout, he did quite well.
******
Fourth Friday in a row of rainy weather. I don't mind it cause it helps me sit down and get all my notes together for Sunday. This morning on FB memories, a post from 2009 reminded me of the difficulties with my father and knowing his actions, now seeing in hindsight, helped spiral my mom quicker into her dementia/Alzheimer's. He had called and as I debated on whether to answer or voicemail it, I decided to answer because we were so close to his upcoming heart surgery.
It was the all too familiar ring tone of my father that momentarily stopped Roy and I from our cleaning duties yesterday. I hesitated to even answer the phone because there are times it is best the calls go to voicemail and then have time to pray and think before calling back. Sometimes time diminishes the drama or whatever was so urgent a couple of hours ago, cannot even be recalled. Since my dad is anticipating heart surgery sometime after March 23, I thought best to answer. He began saying what he always says, "Nancy, this is your father." Yep a little too Star Wars but I don't think he has ever seen the movies to enjoy the humor of his words. And the next statement always holds an element of surprise, "Do you have a few minutes to talk?" OK, at that point my brain is sounding the alert alarm and calling my body to all hands on deck. As he begins to talk I either heighten the alarm to Anne Frank sounding sirens or the three buzz sounds on the radio for the prepare alert during bad weather. He asks me about my blood type, which is O-. He says did you say B, did you say B? I have type B and type B's have more tendencies to get cancer. I'm sorry, but you are going to get cancer. Me thinking, what the heck? I again told him O-. He was rather disappointed to hear that news. Then he gleefully told me well, I wasn't out of the woods, I could get cancer. Who does this? It is usually an over worrying and micro managing mom who calls with this kind of information.
In hindsight, I can see that narcissistic personality all over this. Roy also talked with him that day and found out that my father wasn't having valve replacement surgery but going in as an outpatient for some tests. I think this is the first time that my father dealt with Work Mode Roy. He is totally different in work mode. He gave my father some marching orders and out of shock in how talked to him, we remember my father doing everything that Roy demanded uh requested. How timely as we begin to study Jacob, the deceiver as well as being the deceived. An encounter with God transformed Jacob, sadly I cannot say the same about my father. I do love that his friend/caregiver asked him every time she saw him, if he really knew Jesus. She'd go over the plan of salvation with him on every visit.
I've been reading a biography on Donald Barnhouse, well known preacher in the 1940-1950s. His second wife wrote it and man oh man, it is powerful. This man really had a way with the scriptures but knowing the change in him, later in life not so bombastic but loved people God's way. I am also reading the Cloverdale or Cloverleaf novel of Miss Budge by Daphne Simpkins. Such a message given in the folds of a fictional church and friends. Along with the study and reading I did for last week's lesson, as they say, I have more than I can say grace over but in a reading world, it's a great place to be.
Maybe it is the rainy weather but The Boys are quiet this morning. GMoey is extra needy, Mr Mo is slinking around and Willie is more affectionate. Or maybe they've done something that we haven't discovered yet. Even Roy is napping but he had a busy Thursday.
No comments:
Post a Comment