"Go and sell what you have.": 2017

Thursday, August 10, 2017

I am stubborn, and proud of it!!!

People declare,
"I am stubborn!"

-like it is a badge of courage!

"a distinctive emblem worn as a mark of office, membership, achievement, licensed employment, etc."

We BRAG About Being Stubborn.
..... like it is a virtue!!!!

OR,

We declare it is inherited, it is a trait that has basically been passed down and can't be avoided.

I can't point fingers.... because

I am sure those fingers would point right back at me.

BUT.....

When we so proudly declare,

I AM STUBBORN.....

-let's call a spade a spade.

From Wiki:

To call a spade a spade ...is a figurative expression which refers to explicitly calling something as it is,^[1]

by its right name.^[2]^[3]

Honestly,

We declare, "This is the way I have always done it..."
(implying that we cannot change).
Really?
Is it that?
Or we
CHOOSE not to change?

Or, we declare-
I will do this no matter who it affects or how it effects someone else because
that is what I want...

Let's call it what it is. . .

"I am going to do what I want, when I want, the way I want."

We proudly like to call it "being stubborn."

What it is:

Selfish.

self·ish

ˈselfiSH/

adjective

(of a person, action, or motive) lacking consideration for others; concerned chiefly with one's own personal profit or pleasure.

synonyms:

egocentric, egotistic, egotistical, egomaniacal, self-centered, self-absorbed, self-obsessed, self-seeking, self-serving, wrapped up in oneself;

When stubborn becomes an excuse to just do what ever we deem is most important to us at the time,

irregardless of how it may affect others...

it is not a gold badge,

it is not an inherited trait.

What it IS....

It is a choice.

And the CHOICE is:

What ever we want to do,
is most important.
We are going to do it no matter
who it could negatively effect.
We are going to do it
and DECIDE that it caused no harm to anyone.
We are going to DECIDE that it caused no stress to anyone.
We are going to do it
because that is what we want to do.

It is selfish.

Friday, July 14, 2017

Remind yourself of the good in your life! Count your blessings!

For the past year and a half,
I have counted the hard times.

There have been many these last months.

march 2016 -Tom's back put him out of work for months.
I struggled with his care, and got buried under paperwork
for insurance, for his job, for disability. ...
doctor's visits came regularly ... at least three a week.

may 2016 - I started a new job, learning new things. I felt like an idiot
being trained by a young kid. Starting new at 60 years old. I now was
to be the one who did the job away from home. I had to overcome my
fears. I had to face learning to be the driver, no longer the passenger. . . literally and
figuratively.

My life feels like it has been changed forever.
Things I used to do and enjoy.... hang with the family, work in the yard,
photography.... seem so far from my grasp, and my energy.

august 2016 - Pop died.

sept. 2016 - The sewer line collapsed.

The brakes on the Jeep gave out.

oct 2016 - Tom's foot became infected after trying to fix the sewer line. I struggled with more paper work, learning the new job, learning how to care for Tom. then...
A hurricane came.

Our twelve year old, 130 pound dog was dying, and I was struggling with his care because he was so large. I couldn't get him to the vet.
He had a massive lump on his side. During the hurricane, our other dog had jumped on top of him, lanced the lump by accident and it was leaking everywhere. Tom would be coming home from the hospital, dealing with osteomyolitis.... I couldn't have bacterial infection everywhere with our dog sick as he was.... I finally found a vet who would come to the house to 'put him to sleep'.

Nov. 2017 - Tom's Jeep engine blew.

Jan. 2017 - Tom had a job lined up. We thought he was better. The weekend of my

birthday, he became ill again, ended up back in the hospital.
Inspite of how I tried to keep up with all the paperwork......
I found out while He was in the hospital...waiting for surgery, that his insurance was gone. More paperwork, dealing with disability, piled under bills, still learning a new job, still learning how to care for my spouse.

Feb 2017 - Tom lost his job.

April 2017 - Tom went in to get his foot checked. He was excited because it was healing so well. But when he went in....he found out he needed surgery on the OTHER foot. A Fifth surgery. We were trying to keep from being deflated.

May 2017 - Tom lost his mom.

June 2017 - I have been getting sick alot. I found mold in the living room when I pulled up the tile.
Under the mold was a cracked foundation. We were told it would cost thousands to
fix it.

June 2017 - I was at work, when I found out that Tom was in an accident.
He totalled the suburban. It was our only means for me to get to work

.

July 2017 - Have had a lot of sinus and tooth issues....
Just had a root canal.... well almost

.... they had to stop it. They said the tooth was too far gone.
I ended up going to
an oral surgeon to have the tooth extracted, yesterday.

I said Lord, "I am trying to keep from being bitter, resentful, angry, I am always so tired now,
and hardly have energy to spend time with my family.

One day at a time, be patient and strong,
calm under trial, sweet under wrong.

God said, "It has been a year of blessings,
Count them.
Count THEM instead of the hardships."

Tom's foot was saved.
The chiropractor helped his back.
Tom's work paid disability for a long time.
I got to see Pop at the fourth of July celebration.
Tom was able to drive to Chicago to see his mom.
He was with his mom, reading a bible verse to her...
"When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am."
John 14:3
Tom was with her in her last moments.
Suzanne and Sandy brought me on a trip to a beautiful lake...
to help me get some energy back.
I was directed to a vet who could administer to our dog what was needed.
Our sewer is fixed. It is paid for in full. Thank you to family.
Our suburban was totalled, but no one was seriously hurt.
We got a newer, better suburban, and it is paid in full.
I 'just happened' to get a job with amazing insurance that has paid most of our bills.
One bill was $152,000 - our portion was zero!
My boss has let me work just nights, and less hours so I can go to the doctor appointments with Tom.
I was able to learn a new job!
TJ and Cayci were able to let us use their jeep until we got another vehicle.
We have been able to pay for new parts, new engine for the Jeep....
so it will be running again.
Tom has lost a hundred pounds.
Tom was approved for social security disability.
My cracked tooth was causing me to get constant infections and fevers,
now, hopefully my health will get better after this extraction.
We were blessed with some unexpected money to pay many bills.
We have had other much lower estimates for the cracked foundation,

and we can easily pay for it.
We have a home to live in.
We are healthy.
We have two more grandchildren on the way.

We have three beautiful children, their spouses and families.
Count your blessings!

WHEN YOUR HEAD IS ON THE PILLOW,
AND THE DAY IS ALMOST DONE...
COUNT YOUR MANY BLESSINGS,
COUNT THEM,

ONE BY ONE.

Monday, May 1, 2017

You can't eat a diamond.

The couple that wore these two rings

have been together over 32 years.

He could not wear his ring after it was broken on the job.

Even if he wanted to,

He could not wear jewelry in his line of work.

Now, however, he has been out of work for over a year

with disabling health issues.

She, long ago,

sold the diamond for bread for the family.

The jeweler, who bought the diamond said,

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

She said,

"You can't eat a diamond."

Her arthritis swollen hands now

can no longer wear the ring.

She has gone back to work

as her spouse no longer can.

If you are engaged,

soon to be married..........

Don't argue over silly things like rings.

Life is not about stuff.

It grows old, gets sold, tarnishes,

gets broken, no longer fits.

Love each other.

Not the stuff.

Sunday, March 19, 2017

Giant Wooden Spool Playground.

So, one day my son showed up at the house with a great present for me.
It was a massive 300 pound wooden wire spool.
He wheeled it to the back yard.
Initially I had thought it would be a good table to use for my garden.
But when he wheeled it in and flipped it on it's side,
I realized it was way too tall for me to use to put my plants on.

So it sat.

Christmas came.
We used it as a display table for our minions Christmas inflatable.

And then...
again....
it sat.

I couldn't do anything with it. I couldn't move it, because it was flat on its side
and much too heavy for me to flip.

So it sat.

One day I was on the twenty five year old swing that we had purchased
when our kids were little. My grandchild wanted to push
me and her sister on the swing.....fast.

That was when the quarter century chain finally gave out.
And there we sat, on the ground.

I promised my granddaughter that I would fix the swing.

So, piece by piece, I ordered parts and put it back together.
Then an idea took place.

I asked my son to please come roll the huge wooden spool
over near the old swing set.

He did this for me.

Then, I pondered.