Church! Who Needs it?

Many moons ago, (I whisper 1950's) when I was a kid, my mother used to say to me and my sisters, every Sunday, “I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord.”

Frankly, I did not know why I should be happy just by going to church.  But, Mom and Dad seemed to know.  Each week my Dad polished our shoes and we got dressed in our Sunday best, and we went to church as a family.  I’ll tell you what, when I became a mother, that weekly event became much more of a chore than I remembered it was.  

One of my early memories was when I was maybe four or five years old.  I see in my mind's eye, my Mother, sitting on a chair in our living room.  She was beautiful with long dark hair and she wore a dress with a full skirt, that, when she sat on the edge of the overstuffed chair, the hem went nearly to the floor, showing only her crossed ankles in such a lady-like sitting position.

On her lap was a zither, which is a stringed instrument that she had borrowed from someone because she wanted to  learn to play Jesus Loves Me and a couple other songs for nursery school at church.  I was so proud of her.  I still remember, that was my Mommy, the teacher and she played a music thing. 

Can you recall an early memory of being in church or Sunday School?  

Some of you know how much I love butterflies.  I suppose my love of butterflies started in a Sunday School room at the First Baptist Church in Emporium.  The teachers had set up nature stations to see God's outdoor wonders, indoors.  

One of the stations was a large glass jar with grass on the bottom, a branch with some leaves standing from bottom to top diagonally in the jar and with holes cut in the metal lid for air to get in.    

On the middle of the branch was something that looked like a kind of nut, but it was sticking to the branch.  It was a butterfly cocoon and it took forever to change to a butterfly… and I thought that nothing would ever happen, but I remember being glad to go to church each week so we could see any changes.   

What a miracle that is to innocent young eyes.  I never saw the butterfly coming out of the cocoon, but one Sunday, the most beautiful yellow spotted butterfly was in the jar and the cocoon was empty.  Sort of like the empty tomb, I think.

Did you know that what is the end to a caterpillar is only the beginning to the Butterfly? 

When you were a kid, did you know why we should be “GLAD” to go into the house of the Lord?  

Even though we go to church each week with other like-minded people who become like family to us, It is actually a very personal experience going to church.  

Memories of my Mom with the Autoharp and butterflies in a glass jar, from a long ago experience of going to Sunday School... That's personal.  No one else has that memory in the same way as me.

As I remember, Sunday School and Day Camp were a lot of work for a kid. We had to remember our jackets at the end of the day, because the mornings were cool and the afternoons of VBS were warm.  I lost a couple jackets that way.  

Also, we had to learn a lot of things... like the order of the books of the Bible.  We had to memorize verses of the Bible and sometimes we had homework to talk with our Mom's and Dad's about Bible stuff.  

We learned to be outgoing by acting in plays portraying people in the Bible. And then, there was also for me personally, learning that Zachius was a bad man because he was a taxcollector in Jesus day!!  

My Dad was Shippen Township Tax Collector.  He wasn't a bad man. 

This book, The Bible, seemed to be very important in Sunday School and church.

 

One year, when we were a bit older (maybe 10), we were tasked with picking our favorite Bible verse during Day Camp.  We were to write the verse in raw alphabet macaroni and glue onto a wooden slab.  Then, we were to lacquer it, so it would last a long time.  

One of my haunting “things that never got done” from my childhood, was that I never was able to get lacquer to seal it.  Some of the macaroni letters were then eaten by tiny little bugs.  Such a heart ache for me. I didn’t do it 100% correctly. 

Can you remember something from childhood that you just couldn’t get done?  

Anyway, in choosing the verse, I wanted to be different.  Everyone was doing John 3:16, but I, Cathy Ostrum, had to be more original.  Some were tempted to just do the shortest verse in the Bible… "Jesus Wept", that would take less time and get them to the snack sooner.  But, for me, this task was personal.  I felt that I needed to be profound.  It would be something to last a long time and I wanted to write a verse in macaroni that would truly be my favorite, but I didn't really have a favorite.

Do you have any idea how difficult it is for a kid, with the whole Bible to choose from, to find a genuine, original, favorite verse?  

I went back and forth through the pages and did not have any idea what verse to choose.  Then, when I was about to say, I’ll just choose John 3:16… one POPPED right out at me  as if it was coming off the page for me to see.  

It was on the very top of the page at the left side of the book and the first verse of a chapter in Proverbs.  This verse, has profoundly resonated with me since then. It's the one I chose to write in macaroni.

Proverbs 3:1 – “My Son, Do not forget my teachings, but let your heart keep my commandments”.

This chapter in Proverbs tells you and me, each of us personally, HOW TO DO LIFE!  Following this recipe will bring you, eventually, to a closeness with the One True and Living God.

I'm asking a lot of questions, but did you ever notice that when you go to church, you are told what to do?  

Who wants to get out of bed, search for clothes to wear, that are most likely still in the laundry, get the kids ready, give up breakfast and guzzle your coffee to go somewhere that a person will stand in front of you to preach to you what to do and how to do it?

The preacher says, "Do love your neighbor."

The preacher says, "Don’t lie." 

The preacher says, "Do remember God’s teachings". 

The preacher says, "Don’t murder anyone".

There are absolutely so many rules.

Then at church, you learn that the RESPONSIBILITY for obeying these rules that you are told, by the preacher, falls directly on your shoulders because of something called "Free Will".

The Bible says in Matthew 5:13:  You are like salt for the whole human race…          REALLY?  THE WHOLE HUMAN RACE?

Then Matthew 5:14a says, "You are like the light for the whole world"….        REALLY?  THE WHOLE WORLD?

That, my friends is a whole lot of responsibility!!

Realizing that you have responsibility to be salt and light to the whole world and the whole human race is OVERWHELMING!  I can’t do it.  I can barely keep myself salty and lit!

Then, I reach back in my memory of all those early Sunday School times, and you can do this too, to the thought of my dear late Mother with that zither on her lap.  My sisters and I were her “whole world”.  She was being salt and light to her whole world. 

You see going to church develops that personal relationship with The one who SAVED the Whole Human Race.  Jesus Christ.  

Coming to church as often as is possible teaches you HOW to be the light for the whole world.  This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine.  Hide it under a bushel NO.  I’m going to let it shine. And lessens the personal burden for us of being the light, by showing you that Jesus IS WAS and ALWAYS WILL BE the LIGHT OF THE WORLD.  Jesus Lives and Jesus watches over you and Jesus is The Way, the Truth and the Life. 

You can't learn all that by going to church once a year.  Your children can't learn all that by simply watching you be an example.  They can not see Jesus in your eyes and they cannot develop a close personal relationship with Jesus, unless we teach them through bringing them to church and following the rules ourselves and talking to them about our Faith in Jesus.

Folks, today, live in a different world from those little girls watching their Mom learn to play Jesus Loves Me on the zither.  But those memories of My Mom, the butterfly, the Bible verses and the songs....  That's what helps us to get through every worldly day.  

It is a totally different world for us as adults too, because we see everything through eyes of experience, rather than the innocent eyes of a kindergartner.  

That beautiful butterfly that I saw with innocent eyes, has become, because of my learning in church, the symbol for Jesus, who died and then Lives again. 

That beautiful butterfly coming out of the cocoon sixty years ago, has become the essence of the passing of a loved one from this life into a whole and pain free eternal life with Christ in Heaven.

And isn’t it wonderful that us little girls and boys, all grown up now, have this one place where we can come, as often as we want.  This one place where we can sit and remember and pray for the world and for OUR world, our families. 

This one place called Church, that runs on the rules and teachings of the Bible that NEVER changes and is as vital and alive now, as it was sixty, a hundred, two thousand years ago.

Surely, we can go into our closets at home and pray any time we want.  When we do, we feel so much closer to God and to those who have gone on to Glory before us.  

We talk about our day, we cry for things of the world and we ask forgiveness for whatever we may have done, that we don’t even know that we’ve done.  We pray for miracles and for peace.  

But to publicly come to this gathering place, where we can be supported by others and where we can support other Christians is a God-given freedom that is so PRECIOUS and a God given right that is indescribable to me. 

Experience has also taught me that we can not control some things in life.  Church experience has taught me ... that's OK....  It has taught me that when everything seems out of control on Earth, we still have the assurance that God is in control and that our God is Living and has given us the Holy Spirit to live in us daily.

If God is for us.... Who can be against us?

Have you ever wondered at the fact that while we serve a living, most holy and omnipotent God…. that he invites us to come to be with Him anywhere, any time, any place?

He says, “Suffer the Little Children to come unto me”.  

He touches lepers and the most unloved among us.

He forgives us and stands in the balance for us who are all sinners, before God Almighty.

Jesus shows us, each day, that knowing and coming closer to Him, in a deep and abiding relationship, gives us a special kind of internal peace that nonbelievers can never know.

It’s taken me much of my lifetime, but I think I finally understand why I’m happy when they say to me, let us go into the house of the Lord.

I have to admit, that doesn’t make it much easier to crawl out of bed on a relaxing summer day, or come out from under the covers on a cold winter morning in order to come to church.  It is also a bit daunting to come to church without my Mom and Dad telling me it’s time to get up and go.  And without having them with me here in this place.  Heck, no one even polishes my shoes any more.

But, coming to church is all about that personal relationship building and it is about getting ENCOURAGEMENT to face the rest of the world through the week, when things go wrong.  When you see the terrible news about evil that seems to happen every day, now.  

Every week, when you come into the presence of the Holy Spirit of God with like- minded Christians, your personal Hope is exemplified for yourself AND for the world.  

Your personal Joy is exacerbated by His Word and your personal strength is forged, as iron melts and then hardens..  un-bendable… undeniably strong and when planted firmly in the Grace of God, immovable.

Coming to church is the only way that you and I can maintain our “saltiness” and light personally, for each other and for the whole world. 

Coming to church for our weekly hope and encouragement from our living God is the only way that our light can remain bright and not hidden for the whole world to see.

Yes – I was glad, I am glad, when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord. 

Tell your little ones, tell your bigger ones, every chance you get, that you are glad when it's time to come to church.  

They will know why after a little while or maybe they will know all during their lifetime.

Butterfly Blessings for your week ahead.  Amen

Benediction:  Author unknown - "A Love Letter from Jesus:  My Child I am Jesus who loves you Unconditionally.  There is nothing you can do to make me love you more and there is nothing that you have done to make me close the door. For my love is whole, it is complete , It is Infinite.  You can never fully understand How much I Love you My child, you are so dear to me. You are like a jewel More precious than the finest Gold Just for you I suffered and died And one day I will take all of your Pain and sorrow Away and wipe every tear from your eyes. All I ask in return is that you love me and trust me.  From Your Savior Jesus.

Proverbs 3: 1-12

1 My son, do not forget my teachings, but let your heart keep my commandments.

² for length of days and years of life
    and peace they will add to you.

³ Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you;
    bind them around your neck;
    write them on the tablet of your heart.
⁴ So you will find favor and good success^[a]
    in the sight of God and man.

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not lean on your own understanding.
⁶ In all your ways acknowledge him,
    and he will make straight your paths.
⁷ Be not wise in your own eyes;
    fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
⁸ It will be healing to your flesh^[b]
    and refreshment^[c] to your bones.

⁹ Honor the Lord with your wealth
    and with the first fruits of all your produce;
¹⁰ then your barns will be filled with plenty,
    and your vats will be bursting with wine.

¹¹ My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline
    or be weary of his reproof,
¹² for the Lord reproves him whom he loves,
    as a father the son in whom he delights.

Two Year Old Asks to "Go to the Cross"

You never know when your life event will be an example to others, so be on the alert at every turn.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected that my urine sample could be used as an example to a young man who was not known to me, but let me tell you exactly how that happened.

When I was applying for a new job, sometime in the aughts, I had to go through drug testing to be sure I was suitable for the position at this new company.  It was a sunny day, as I drove into the parking lot of the testing lab. 

I exited my car and looked for the proper door to enter, since I was unfamiliar with the building. 

In my search, I saw a young man, in his late teens or early twenties, and entered the lab testing building right behind him.  Both of us seemed to know the drill and after the technician checked our names and orders for which drugs to test, she gave us the proper specimen cups and sent us to the respective toilet areas.  The ladies room for me and the young man to the men's room for the same purpose.

As I came out of the bathroom, the technician was talking with the young man and she did not seem pleased.  During her excited lecture, she hurriedly reached my way, indicating that she wanted my specimen cup. 

As she took it in her hand, she held it closer to him and immediately said, "See, it is supposed to be warm, like this". 

The look on my face must have been priceless, and similar to the young man's, I must admit.  She finished checking me out of the building, as the man waited for her next direction. 

I was sort of in shock.  Never would I have guessed that my urine would be an example of anything public.  Wow!

There is the reason that people say, "You can't make these things up". And, I really enjoy writing about true life events.  Some make people laugh.  Some make people cry, but truth is better than fiction and God does have a sense of humor.

Take for instance the time when our church choir was getting ready to sing at the community church service on the fifth Sunday of the month. Something happened with the technology that morning. 

The choir was standing in front of the church and we were all ready to belt out the amazing choral number that the nine of us had prepared.  However, this was a different church than usual and the music would not queue up on the sound system because of some glitch.

While the director and a member of the choir went to help the situation and get the music playing, there was an awkward silence as the choir looked at the congregation and the congregation looked at the choir. 

The pastor broke the silence and asked if anyone knew any good jokes.  Not being shy to speak out, this was a great time for me to fill in the awkward silence with a story about my granddaughter who is wonderful, vivacious, smart and beautiful.  She is also two-years old and the absolute sunshine in my life.

So, I brazenly spoke up and said, "Have you heard about my little granddaughter?  She is two years old and since I am the part-time secretary for Grace United Methodist Church, she comes to the church with me on occasion when I'm folding bulletins or whatever. 

At this Easter season, there is a life-sized cross that stands prominently in the church sanctuary and her Pappy took her to see it the other day. 

We have a rather large sanctuary with huge stained glass windows and this tiny toddler walked about fifty feet down the center isle, almost in slow motion, with her eyes fixed on the lifelike cross in the center of the altar area.

She is only about two and a half feet tall. So, this large cross made a very big impression, as she looked, for the first time in her life, at the greatest of Christian Symbols.  The look in her equally large eyes was wonderful for a grandmother to see.  The awe and majesty were prominent.

When we went back in to my office, I took a couple small wooden crosses down from the bookshelf and let her play with them for a bit.  The porcelain ones stayed on the shelf, as she had already tried to clap while holding two pieces of my porcelain nativity, at Christmas.  The camel did not fair very well in that incident.

At two years old, she is more verbal then most, so as we went home she repeated the word cross a few times and I talked about this being the symbol of Jesus's love for her and me.  As we passed by a couple churches, she said, "Cross" at each. 

I thought this was a good lesson that would have to be repeated through the next few years in order for it to firmly stick in her mind.  I wanted her to remember, even after I'm not here to tell her, that the cross is a great symbol of love.  But she was proving to me that it was starting to stick, already.

This was the beginning of her understanding that we should all "go to the cross" at some point in our lives.  She may not understand why, just yet, but that will come the more times she actually does "go to the cross".

After that day, whenever she sees a church, while we are riding in the car, she will say, "Cross".  Remember that she is only two and has a limited vocabulary, when she wants to go with me to my work place, she says, "Go to Cross"? 

So, I will take her "to the Cross" at every opportunity I have left, just so that she can learn about the LOVE that poured out from that Cross for HER and for me on that Good Friday."

This is the example that I told the congregation that day.  They seemed to enjoy the story and as I finished this life example, the sound was also fixed and the choir was able to sing the song we had prepared. 

A couple weeks later, on Easter Sunday, no one remembered what song the choir sang that day, or that there had been an issue with the sound system, but at least two people commented and remembered the story about my granddaughter.  They asked, "Is this the "Cross" Granddaughter"? 

I have to admit that I like telling this story of my granddaughter as being a good example, rather than the story of the first good example I remember.

This leads me to ask you, what is the story (or two) of your best examples in life?  You're welcome to comment here.

Butterfly Blessings,
Cathy

Exercise in Writing: "B is for Bible"

Back in the "nineteen hundreds", even as I was in grade school, writing was something that I wanted to do.  I wrote programs for my mother's mission society at church, I wrote an Easter Message which I presented and I really loved going to the library to research books for writing projects at school.

In my twenties and early thirties I enrolled in English and Writing classes at Penn State University but as a "non-degree" student because I didn't have the time for full time studies.  But I took the classes because it was my feeling that someone had to "train" me to write.  Concentrating on that art, I did have an article published in August 1989.  Therefore, I am a professional writer, as I received $50 for that article.

The publication was, State College the Magazine and the title of my article was, "Building a Family: Adoption as an Option".  In my mind, my writing career was started but I held the magazine in my hands for the first time, two weeks before my family and my life would be changed forever.

My writing career had to be put on hold when my husband was hit by a car and suffered severe brain damage on August 23rd, 1989.  For the next eleven years I would raise my two adopted daughters as a single mother while care giving to my disabled husband, now unable to parent with me.

Now, at sixty-five years old, looking in the "rear-view" mirror, I see that writing is my gift from God and that during all the years hence that first article, I was working on my "research" for topics that He wants me to write about.

Recently I was gifted by the book, "A to Z Devotions for Writers".  The author, Pamela D. Williams, is a new friend and the wife of a pastor.  This book is exactly what I needed to encourage my writing, again.

Here is my exercise for B is for Bible: Writing from God's Word.  (I hope you enjoy and make comments below.)  

Writing Application:  Psalm 102:18 - "Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord."
How I feel it applies to writing as a ministry.

All through the ages there have been stories passed from generation to generation.  Some even took the time to chisel the stories into stone walls.  Because there were no written words, they told the stories in pictures.

The above verse tells us that Praising the Lord is so important that even people "not yet created" must hear the truth about who the Lord is so they may praise his name.

My mind is starting to slip a bit in the memory department.  There are so many things that I want to tell my Grandchildren and I'm sure that I will not live long enough to tell them all that I want.

Having the writings to refer to following death, it is like having your loved one right here, with you.

Even though the mind is slipping, I still remember my grandmother singing praises to Jesus and going to church every Sunday with her white haired sisters. Sitting a couple rows behind her in church, the picture of their three heads bobbing ever so slightly, remains a vivid part of my memories.  I remember the calendar towels she gave us each Christmas, too.  I don't have them any more but there must have been at least ten years worth.

If my ministry is to teach my children and my children's children and so forth, about Christ our savior... And I know that it is my ministry to do this.  Then writing my stories of Faith and Experience is vital to helping move my children's children and many future generations, firmly into the arms of our Lord and Savior.

If only they will read and accept and know that I speak the truth.  If you can't believe your Grandmother, who can you believe?

The Real Cathy

Great Grandpa's 85th Birthday Cruise

Eighty Five years of age is something to celebrate.  BIG TIME!  Little did we know that my Dad would be celebrating in the Caribbean without us.

Let me back up just a little.

Months earlier Steve and I decided that we wanted to cruise with some friends on the Royal Princess, just as we had a couple years earlier for our honeymoon.  

Cruising the Caribbean is so much fun, hopping from island to island on an all inclusive resort with casino gambling to boot. We enjoy playing cards and we don't spend any more than we budget.  (cough, cough)  Well, at least not most of the time. 

All the delicious food and drinks we can ingest are aboard ship for our consumption.  There is Las Vegas style entertainment every night and all we have to do is walk down to the theater deck for that.

We love walking around the deck and stopping from time to time to watch the beautiful sunsets.  Please note that we stay too long in the casino and never make it out of bed to watch the sunrise.  So, the sunsets are even more beautiful.     

Ok, so we set up a "group cruise" with Princess Cruises and three pairs of our good friends, signed on to cruise with us.  Non of them knew each other, but because we knew them all, there was no question but that a great time would be had by all.

Then, I got the brilliant idea that because my Dad's eighty-fifth birthday was happening during the dates of our cruise, we would invite him to go along.  

It was our birthday gift to him.  My Dad is so youthful, we knew he would have a great time and we would be there to watch and be sure he didn't get lost in the Caribbean.  He is very outgoing and would love meeting all our friends. It would be a B L A S T!

So, it was all set.  The embarkation passes were printed.  The airplane reservations were made and we drove to Philadelphia. 

This was the day before embarkation from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on the Royal Princess.  The same ship we cruised on our honeymoon.  We were to fly out of Philly airport early the next morning.   

I was so excited that I found it very difficult to sleep that night.  Just like a kid waiting for Christmas day. 

That is why I was awake at 3:00 am.  

My cell phone was charging on the night stand which was on the other side of my husband.  But something in my heart said that I needed to take a look at it right THEN.  

So, I poked Steve and said, "Are you asleep"?

I'm not sure why he was so grumpy when he said, "Not any more".

As quietly as I could, I said, will you hand me my cell phone.  I didn't want to wake my Dad who was sleeping in the other bed.

As Steve handed me my cell phone, it vibrated and a text message came in.  It was from our future son-in-law.

Andrew said, "I'm not sure if you will get this message before you fly out, but I wanted to let you know that Stacy's water broke and she is in the ambulance on the way to Danville to have the baby".

I was in shock.  We were supposed to go on our cruise and have another 3 weeks before the baby was due.

Was this really happening?

I jumped out of bed, but was still as quiet as I could be and went into the living area of the hotel suite we were in.  Steve followed me out wondering what was going on.

There we were, in our pajamas, in a hotel in Philadelphia, and my daughter was having her baby!  

I called Andrew to be sure that it wasn't a "false alarm" and he assured me that they had been to the hospital and because she was only 34 weeks and they had no NICU at Lewistown hospital, the ambulance was taking her to Danville, where they did have a NICU in case it was needed.

After I talked with him, I stood there with my mouth open and my cell phone in my hand while my brain tried to process everything.

There was one thing for sure, I had to return to Danville and I couldn't go on the cruise.  But, Steve and my Dad could go. 

Steve looked at me like I had two heads and said, "I can't go without you".  

Just then Dad came out of the bedroom and asked what was happening.  After the explanation and while Steve and I were still trying to sort out plans, he just sat very quietly.  But, his brain was churning.

We did take out the trip insurance for any emergency, so I felt fairly certain that would not be an issue.  But, just as we had decided to pack up the car and head for Danville, Dad had a different take on the subject.

He looked very calculating and said, "Well, I can't think of anything that a great grandpa can do in a case like this.  So, I would like to continue on the cruise". 

Another little shock went through my body.

I was about to be a grandmother for the third time, not sure of the outcome for this premature baby and my 85 year old Dad wanted to get on to an airplane, by himself, and go on a cruise to the Caribbean.

This was all my brilliant idea.  Without me going along, I was sure he would get lost down there and I might never see him again.  

What a conundrum I was in!  But, how do you tell your Dad, "No".

I couldn't.

That is when I traveled with him, on the hotel shuttle, to the airport and made sure he was at the proper gate for the proper plane to take off and land at the proper airport.  I knew he would at least make it that far because it was nonstop!  

As I waited with him at gate 22, I made sure, three times, that he had his passport and his embarkation papers.  I also gave him the cell phone numbers of each couple going with him from our party and my planner book.  

With a lump in my throat, I asked him to journal in it on each day and tell me everything he did on his cruise.  

To tell you the truth, I stopped short of pinning his name, address and destination on his shirt pocket because I didn't want to embarrass him.

Then I said, well, I really should get back to the hotel.  I gave him a tight hug and a kiss, then walked away slowly, turning around three times to check on him.  (Hey...it's what an older daughter does.  Don't laugh)

I rode the shuttle back to the hotel where Steve was waiting.  I was still in disbelief and still in shock.

Text messages are wonderful things.  So, I got on our group text (forgetting that Dad got these texts too) and explained to my sisters, nieces and older daughter that Stacy was having her baby and I had just put grandpa on a plane where he was no longer in my control. 

My sisters were not pleased with the situation either, as indicated in their texts. (they also forgot that Dad would get these texts as soon as he landed)  They said, "Oh, Cathy, I don't know about this."  

However, my nieces texted that Grandpa "would be just fine" and he "would probably have a better time without us, than he would with us".  I wasn't quite sure what to make of that, but went with the encouragement.

As we were driving to Danville, a few hours after sending these text messages, Dad evidently landed in Florida and replied, "Will you girls calm down?  I will be just fine, just like my granddaughters say".  

At this point, there was nothing more to do but drive to Danville and wait for my newest granddaughter to arrive.  Below are some pictures and the daily report of what grandpa did on his cruise to the Caribbean.  Who would you say was right?  His daughters or his granddaughters?


BIRTHDAY CRUISE:

DAY ONE:  EMBARKATION
Muster call @ 3:15
Gathered with life jackets at Princess Theater
Dinner with the gang at 5:30 
Concert
To Room 

DAY TWO:  AT SEA
Dawn and Bob write:  Missing you but hoping all goes well w/Stacy!  Love.
Sharon & Tom write:  Wish you were here.  I hope all is well. Prayers are with you.
Karen & Ed write:  Miss you - talking about you!  Congrats grandparents! prayers with you!
Dad writes:  Having a great meal in the Concerto Room.  Everyone misses youse guys.
Listened to talk about shore excursions.
Joined the Pop Choir

DAY THREE - AT SEA
0700 - Visited fitness center but decided a one mile walk around the deck worked well.  Plus walking from room to events was good exercise. 
1000 - Ran into a lady (Glenda from VA) that I followed thru boarding for over an hour.  We talked & I had a picture with her
1300 - Pop Choir rehearsal
1730 - Formal Dinner

DAY FOUR - ARUBA
0700 - up to fitness deck, then to breakfast
Relaxing day.  
Did not go ashore to Aruba
Had lunch and a lady asked to sit at my table -- Mary  from Minesota.
1730 - Evening meal - Sharon not there, Dawn & Bob not there.  Karen and Ed were there.
1900 - Went to evening show with a fantastic lady singer & impressionist Christiana Bianco?

DAY FIVE - Bonaire, Caribbean Netherlands
0700 - Breakfast 
0800 - Walk around Bonaire - A lady talked to me about my hat so I had a photo with her - Janice from Boston.  
0900 - Did some reading on deck
Observed game of bean bag toss
Met Christina Bianco and had a photo with her.  Bianco is top singer and impressionist (see above)
1200 - Brunch time
1300 - Princess Pop Choir rehearse, photo with Director Renee
 1730 -  Dinner at Concerto with all of our friends. Dawn had info and photos of Stacy & baby Skylar.  Photos of each couple and since I needed a partner, I asked our waitress Eugenia Ostapenko to sit with me and I had a photo with her.

DAY SIX:  Grenada
0700 - Walk around exercise deck
0800 - Breakfast with Karen and Ed
0930 - Reading while waiting to dock
1100 - Practice with chorus
1200 - Eat Lunch - small today
1300 - Off to Grenada, walked around shore stores, no purchases
Talked with a couple from GA.  The man was in military who served till retirement.  Now they go on cruises regularly.
1730 - Eating time
1900 - Hawley Magic Show - Fantastic

DAY SEVEN:  Dominica (DOM-IN-EEK-A)
0700 - up and at'm
Talked with a Korean Vet from New Orleans
Not going ashore - Leaving port @ 3:30
1000 - No chorus practice today
spent morning reading
attended bean bag toss
1200 - lunch on Horizon Court
1300 - Cabin Rest
1400 - Reading my Kindle while wandering around ship
Hot weather outside
1530 - all aboard
1630 - as a Casino VIP - I received a free bottle of wine
1730 - Time for supper
All in attendance except Cathy and Steve
1930 - Saw Stage show - singers & dancers "What the world needs now" 
Sat with four folks from Canada
2000 - Bed

DAY EIGHT:  St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
DAD'S EIGHTY FIFTH BIRTHDAY
0700 - Put on my 1932 shirt
0730 - Breakfast
0830 - Met a guy who was also born in 1932 - May
0930 - Went into St. Thomas
Called Cathy, then Lori, plus texted all I was at St. Thomas
Purchased two items only:  A T-shirt for me & a baby souvenier shirt for Skylar
1230 Light Lunch
1300 Relaxing afternoon
1400 Finished my kindle books
1630 All Aboard
1730  Evening meal - Birthday Time -- all of us there. 
1930 Showtime - Alley Cats Quartet -- Be Bop from "50s - 60s"
2000 Retired

DAY NINE:  AT SEA
0730 - Breakfast
         Met a young gal from Romania - Camella - Had a photo with her.
1000 - Culinary Demo & tour of Galley
1100 - Talked to Elena - a Jr. Comptroller who acted in a photo with me, pretending to give me advice
1230  Pop Choir Rehearsal
1400  Met a lady in a room where we were reading - She reminded me of the Carter relatives.  She asked about my cruise and I had a photo with her - Shirley from VA
1700 Pop Choir Concert -- Well attended, good response from the crowd.
1730  Supper with all our friends
1930  Singers/Dancers Spectacular Show Excellent
2130  Back to room

DAY TEN - Princess Cays, Bahamas
0700 - Breakfast
0900 - Read Articles for Leaving the ship tomorrow
           Pack up
1000 - Went ashore to Princess Cays, Ate lunch there
One of the crew who met us at our evening meal & served for Breakfast talked to me with a big smile.  I had a photo with her making believe she was chastising me.  Litinka from China

DAY ELEVEN - Fort Lauderdale
0800 - Disembarked Fort Lauderdale, Fl
     Got a room at the Holiday Inn Express at Crown Plaza, Ft. Lauderdale Airport.  Stayed the night for a 0700 - flight the next day

Monday - Arrived in Philadelphia, Jon & Kim pick me up and go to Cathy and Steve's

The end.

Ps:  Who knew they had a fitness room aboard ship?  Let alone that 0700 hours was a real "wake up" time.      

Introduction

All I've Ever Wanted

Have you ever looked back on your life and noticed that the whole picture is made up of a bunch of paths that seem to be woven together?  

You can reflect, as you visualize the whole, on how, during and at the end of each experience, the choices you made clearly set you on particular paths.  

Eventually, each path chosen becomes strong and straight and is woven into a whole lifetime tapestry with pictures that only you can see using your mind's eye.  

Some paths of our tapestry are dark and scary, while other sections of your tapestry are bright and beautiful.  Each section highlighting the pieces of your life as you had lived those times.  

The dark and scary sections are the paths that you wish you hadn't had to go down.

The beautiful pieces are paths you wish you could remain on forever, without making any further choices or continuing with any more experiences.  

The rules of life say that you are not able to reverse course on your path, no mater how hard you try.  

Life rule number one:  You may not erase life paths from your life.  You can only go forward in time, making (hopefully) better choices (at least the best you know how from experience) and weaving your paths over and under each other, until the tapestry is complete.

My tapestry is, at the time of this writing, sixty-four and a half years in the making.  A relatively short lifetime, and I know that many do not make it even this far. Hopefully, I will have many more threads in my weaving.  

Those remaining threads will not be major, new "paths".  They will be bright and gleaned from the lessons that I've learned on each of my paths, through life and my choices. 

In my life, there are more dark pieces than I would have liked, but the bright pieces woven throughout, make the whole tapestry so beautiful and give it bright integral rainbow colors.  

While I look back in my mind's eye, I can see that the dark pieces were necessary and actually help the whole picture be clearly beautiful. That is impossible to see on those dark paths of life, as you live them.

So, I believe the bright and beautiful parts of my tapestry are what Heaven has waiting for me.  I'll be living eternally with Jesus, my Savior, and my loved ones who have completed their weaving.  

I will go through my after-life in Heaven in my happy corner, made up of the brightest and most peaceful pieces of my life tapestry.


In the posts of "My Real Faith Seeds" blog, I will take the reader along those life paths. My hope is that my experiences may help someone get through, continue on and never give up in their path through life. 

The posts will not be in order of how they were lived, but will be stories in and of themselves of true times in my life.  You can determine the bright threads from the darker sections, always knowing that there is no giving up.  

Get to the end of all your paths, through faith and then, you will be able to look at your tapestry with pride for having gone the distance.  

It is true that whatever God brings you to, He will bring your through.  Never give up.