Decisions, decisions

I spent most of this past week catching up. Since I was gone for a few days the previous week, I'm trying to get things back in order. Not from Kerry - from my own self!

I met with my doctor last week so he could check on my back again. He had given me a shot of cortisone a couple of weeks earlier that helped somewhat - but neither one of us is sure how long it will last. We both know this is going to end up with me having surgery - but I'm trying to put it off as long as I can. He is not one to push - he knows that I'll know when it's time.

I also met with the doctor that did the surgery for my bowel obstruction last year. When he saw me, the first thing he asked was why I was walking funny. I guess I hadn't noticed that I had been. He could tell that I'm favoring one side. He urged me to listen to the doctor who is treating me, for other things can start to be affected while I'm favoring my bad side.

Good grief. I feel like I go around putting out fires all over my body.

I joined Kerry at the temple for his shift this past Thursday. I decided to run some errands after seeing my doctor in Columbus and dropping him off. I also wanted to spend some time in the temple thinking and considering some things I have had on my mind. It's nice to be able to remove myself from the pressures of the world, the phone, the computer, etc. and just commune.

They happened to be short of workers that night, so they asked if I could help them out. Of course!

We got home late, fell into bed, and I got up and drove to Columbus again. It was my day to work. And...I really don't mind. I love the work we do there. I'm probably a better person because of my time spent there.

Our church's General Conference was these past two days, and it was wonderful. When I was a girl, we could only hear a scratchy broadcast over the PA system at the chapel. Now, we can pull it in right over the internet. How wonderful! The speakers were wonderful, and they said the things I needed to hear. Over and over, I was impressed with the emphasis of God's love for us, and His Son voluntarily took upon Himself the sins of all of us. I know these things - but I also need to hear them over and over again. You can see vignettes of the talks at www.lds.org

This week is another very busy week. I thought when we became empty-nesters that our life would be a lot less complicated. In many ways it is. Gone are the days when we were busy all day and busy all evening. But now, it's a different type of busyness. Or maybe it's the fact that it takes us twice as long to do half as much.

I don't know. I just don't know.

I have loved this crisp, colorful Ohio autumn weather. I have made soups, one-pot sausage meals, homemade bread and apple crisp and dressed in blue jeans and sweatshirts every day. It is so beautiful. So, so beautiful. I'm glad I have eyes to see the colors, ears to hear the crunch of leaves, a nose to smell the leaves and wood fires burning, the sense of touch to feel the cool air, and a tongue to taste the harvest. I have no reason to complain. No reason at all.

I've enclosed some goodies to read at the end. Love to y'all...
Miss P

"What we love, determines what we seek; what we seek, determines what we think and do; what we think and do determines who we are and who we will become!" - (Message given by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf Saturday morning)

"You make choices every day and almost every hour that keep you walking in the light or moving away toward darkness. Some of the most important choices are about what you set your heart upon". By: Henry B. Eyring, "Walk in the Light&qu...ot;, Ensign, May 2008

"It requires courage to make good choices, even when others around us choose differently. As we make righteous choices day by day in little things, the Lord will strengthen us and help us choose the right during more difficult times". By: W.... Craig Zwick, "We Will Not Yield, We Cannot Yield", Ensign, May 2008Read

READ THIS VERY SLOWLY.... IT'S QUITE ENLIGHTENING!Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine. I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible. How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word 'refrigeration' mean nothing to you? How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched 'Jeopardy' on television?I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, 'How about going to lunch in a half hour? She would gas up and stammer, 'I can't. I have clothes on the line. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast, It looks like rain.' And my personal favorite: 'It's Monday.' She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.. Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect! We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Jimmy toilet-trained. We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet.... We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.. Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of 'I'm going to,' 'I plan on,' and 'Someday, when things are settled down a bit.'When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas.. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious.. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of roller blades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord. My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years.... I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process.. The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.. Now.. go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to... not something on your SHOULD DO list.. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say? And why are you waiting? Make sure you read this to the end; you will understand why I sent this to you.. Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry go round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground? Ever followed a butter fly's erratic flight or gazed at the sun into the fading night? Do you run through each day on the fly? When you ask, 'How are you?' Do you hear the reply? When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head? Ever told your child, 'We'll do it tomorrow.'And in your haste, not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch? Let a good friendship die? Just call to say 'Hi? When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift..... Thrown away... Life is not a race. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over.

We have enjoyed the redneck jokes for years.. It's time to take a reflective look at the core beliefs of a culture that values home, family, country and God. If I had to stand before a dozen terrorists who threaten my life, I'd choose a half dozen or so rednecks to back me up. Tire irons, squirrel guns and grit -- that's what rednecks are made of. I hope I am one of those. If you feel the same, pass this on to your redneck friends. Ya'll know who ya’ll are.

You might be a redneck if: It never occurred to you to be offended by the phrase, 'One nation, under God.'
You might be a redneck if: You've never protested about seeing the 10 Commandments posted in public places.
You might be a redneck if: You still say ' Christmas' instead of 'Winter Festival.'
You might be a redneck if: You bow your head when someone prays.
You might be a redneck if: You stand and place your hand over your heart when they play the National Anthem.
You might be a redneck if: You treat our armed forces veterans with great respect, and always have.
You might be a redneck if: You've never burned an American flag, nor intend to.
You might be a redneck if: You know what you believe and you aren't afraid to say so, no matter who is listening.
You might be a redneck if: You respect your elders and raised your kids to do the same.
You might be a redneck if: You'd give your last dollar to a friend.
If you got this email from me, it is because I believe that you, like me, have just enough Red Neck in you to have the same beliefs as those talked about in this email.
God Bless the USA !


Keep the fire burning, redneck friend.
IF YOU DON'T STAND BEHIND OUR TROOPS FEEL FREE TO STAND IN FRONT OF THEM .
IN GOD WE TRUST

THINGS YOU DON'T HEAR ANYMORE........ Be sure to refill the ice trays, we're going to have company. Watch for the postman, I want to get this letter to Willie in the mail today . Quit slamming the screen door when you go out ! Be sure and pull the windows down when you leave, it looks like a shower is coming up. Don't forget to wind the clock before you go to bed. Wash your feet before you go to bed, you've been playing outside all day barefooted. Why can't you remember to roll up your britches legs? Getting them caught in the bicycle Chain so many times is tearing them up. You have torn the knees out of that pair of pants so many times there is nothing left to put a patch on. Don't you go outside with your school clothes on! Go comb your hair; it looks like the rats have nested in it all night. Be sure and pour the cream off the top of the milk when you open the new bottle. Take that empty bottle to the store with you so you won't have to pay a deposit on another one. Put a dish towel over the cake so the flies won't get on it. Quit jumping on the floor! I have a cake in the oven and you are going to make it fall if you don't quit! Let me know when the Fuller Brush man comes by, I need to get a few things from him. You boys stay close by, the car may not start and I will need you to help push it off. There's a dollar in my purse, get 5 gallons of gas when you go to town. Open the back door and see if we can get a breeze through here, it is getting hot. You can walk to the store; it won't hurt you to get some exercise. Don't sit too close to the TV. It is hard on your eyes. If you pull that stunt again, I am going to wear you out! Don't lose that button; I'll sew it back on after awhile. Wash under your neck before you come to the table, you have beads of dirt and sweat all under there. Get out from under the sewing machine; pumping it messes up the thread! Be sure and fill the lamps this morning so we don't have to do that tonight in the dark. Here, take this old magazine to the toilet with you when you go, we are almost out of paper out there. Go out to the well and draw a bucket of water so I can wash dishes. Don't turn the radio on now, I want the battery to be up when the Grand Ole Opry comes on. No! I don't have 10 cents for you to go to the show. Do you think money grows on trees? Eat those turnips, they'll make you big and strong like your daddy. That dog is NOT coming in this house! I don't care how cold it is out there, dogs don't stay in the house. Sit still! I'm trying to get your hair cut straight and you keep moving and it is all messed up. Hush your mouth! I don't want to hear words like that! I'll wash your mouth out with soap! It is time for your system to be cleaned out. I am going to give you a dose of castor oil tonight. If you get a spanking in school and I find out about it, you'll get another one when you get home. Quit crossing your eyes! They will get stuck that way! Soak your foot in this pan of kerosene so that bad cut won't get infected. When you take your driving test, don't forget to signal each turn. Left arm straight out the window For a left turn; left arm bent up at the elbow for a right turn; and straight down to the side of the Door when you are going to stop. It's: 'Yes Ma'am!' and 'No Ma'am!' to me, young man, and don't you forget it! Bring back any Memories? Sure did for Me! I think I heard everyone of them.