rambling rosemarie

After weeks of dry heat we've been treated to a week of steady rain. We needed it. My lawn was the brownest I have ever seen it so the week of rain is bringing it back to life. During the dry spell most of my neighbors lost their gardens. The heat of the sun and the abundance of rabbits turned victory gardens into dust bowls. In Kentucky, people depend on God to send the rain to keep their vegetable gardens alive long enough to harvest. I cheated. I used a soaker hose to keep my three tomato plants, egg plant, bell pepper and chard alive. I couldn't afford to water every day but I did water enough to keep them growing. I was very happy to have the rain come but I knew that it would cause me some gardener's grief and not just in the plethora of weeds that would ensue. I have always had veggies growing in a garden and in California they grew with little or no fuss. You stick them in the ground and know that every couple of days you will probably have to turn the hose on...

The day before yesterday I reached down to grab my roomie's study bible and completely destroyed the uneasy truce I had with the pinched nerves in my neck. Zowie! I had electric shocks go all the way down one side of my body and instant muscle spasms. She and I were the only ones that knew that had happened. Yesterday I got a call from Sue, the secretary at my church, and she told me that someone had made an anonymous gift to me and that I would love it. I had been talking myself out of going downtown to run errands but found the idea of someone giving me an anonymous gift way too intriguing. I went down and presented my perplexed and anticipatory self to Sue. Sue had a big grin on her face and handed me a bag which contained a Kindle. I was dumbstruck. I have been contemplating getting a Kindle since they first came out. I kept telling myself to set aside some funds to make the purchase. My funds, like those of most in this economy, seem to be shrinking daily. Each ti...

The hard times of life. The times when your are bruised and raw. When it hurts to breathe and each beat of your heart feels like it is sending glass shards through your soul. That's when it happens and you know. Your circumstances are horrible. You cannot imagine why everything has gone so horribly wrong all at once and in a nanosecond you are transported from the abject poverty of puny faith and hopelessness to knowing that you are safely tucked under God's wing. You know that all of your doubts to the contrary cannot keep you from His grace and mercy when He chooses to bestow it upon you. I have had some of the hardest months of my life thus far come crashing down on me like waves, forming a tsunami of circumstances. Circumstances way beyond of my control, threatening to take my feet out from under me. The last three days have been full of anguish for me. My sister called and through her sobs and heartbreak all I could understand were the words, "Daddy is dying....

I was blessed today. Two women from my church came over and cleaned my house. They came in with their own supplies and dusted, vacuumed and polished. It was a humbling and delightful. They even brought me some delicious chicken salad with yummy grapes and nuts in it and let me tell you, it is tasty stuff. Just before they arrived my home health nurse came and checked my wound. It is looking better, praise God for antibiotics, but it is still open and oozy in a couple of places. While the two lovely women from my church went from room to room blessing me, my nurse decided it would be a good time to begin preparing me for the next stage of wound dressings and recovery. I think she was hoping I wouldn't create a scene with company there. Currently each day I pull out about an inch of packing material from each open wound and cut it off and throw it away and then redress the top of the wound with gauze. It's quick and painless though somewhat gross. Think of a cross between ex...

I have been absent because of an incarcerated/strangulated umbilical hernia which tried to kill me and for which I needed emergency surgery. The story is a great one of God's providence and care for me. It has done much to increase my gratitude for the simple blessings of life and I hope to blog all about it later. Right now I am exhausted and need to spend time mending. I was 4 hours in surgery, 5 days in ICU, 3 days more in the TU and have been home for about 24 hours. I need more rest and more time to reflect. I do not want to lose the significance of this blessing in my life. I don't want to go back to life as it was before. I want to retain this appreciation for my insignificance and my utter dependence on Him. As my physical strength returns I don't want to my faith to diminish. That and the risk of infection are my two greatest obstacles if God should lead you to pray for me.

A couple nights ago I had the opportunity to check in with my buddy, Carla. This working for a living thing that I am doing now is getting in the way of my time on-line with some wonderful friends. Carla is a cyber-sibling extraordinaire! I have told you all before that she is one of those Proverbs 31 types; wife, mom to seven, grandmother to one, homeschooler, blogger, webmaster, businesswoman, author...... getting the picture? The only thing the Proverbs 31 woman had over on Carla was some servants to get the housework done. In the midst of her other official roles Carla has been doing things like encouraging me to write. Ok, so she isn't perfect! She's getting there! She has also been a good sounding board. We share struggles. She and I are very different women. I am more of a Proverbs 32 woman who accomplishes very little and gripes about it a lot. We have had some similar difficult experiences and so we share some common struggles. It is really a gift when God gives you so...

There are times in your life where you know that God has taken you by the scruff of the neck and left your feet dangling just above the earth. Sometimes He does it to keep you from running in front of a fast moving truck. Other times He does it to give you a "time out." He even grabs ahold of us to get us to focus. It's as if He is saying "Whoa! Nice shooting, Tex..... but the target is over here!" It can pinch a bit when the Almighty grabs you, but occasionally He does it to lift you up and show you something. The last two days have been so full of blessing that I can scarcely believe it. I have whined and prayed and blogged about not having something to do. I have asked God to give me something to be passionate about. For nearly three years I have done my best to open some doors. I realize most folks would like to be retired, but I am not ready for it. I finally gave up and said "God if you want me to do something, you need to plop it in my lap....