Category: Aging

Posted on in Aging, Amazing Creations, Faith, Listen, Nature, Prayer, Spiritual discipline

Yesterday is Not Today

I am delighted we have a new beginning every morning. I remember nursing my son and wondering when the first hour of each day occurred. You have to understand that he nursed every three hours around the clock. I had been taught that we should give the Lord the first hour of every day. In my exhaustion, I told the Lord I would gladly give Him the first hour if he would just tell me when my day ended and began!

Each day is a different one, each day brings a miracle of its own. It’s just a matter of paying attention to this miracle.

PAULO COELHO

Pay attention to this miracle. This day. Right here.

So let me ask you something. When you pray do you listen for an answer? If you do not hear an answer right then, do you keep on listening? Do you persist in answering?

I have found that sometimes the answer comes over hours, sometimes over days, even weeks. We have been pondering what to do about our planned vacation to the beach in North Carolina scheduled for September with our now adult granddaughter. This was planned and reserved before the foot surgery occurred. So now the question is, “Will I be able to walk on the beach and look for seashells?” That is one of my favorite things to do.

So I have been praying for wisdom regarding the decision should we cancel the trip or not? The miracle? I feel as if I have been getting answers to the prayer. Many times the answer comes in the form of a question. That is so like my Jesus!

If I cannot or should not walk on the beach could I be content? Content to be at the ocean? Hear the ocean? Feel the thunder of the waves resounding in the air?

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
    his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
    “therefore I will hope in him.”

25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
    to the soul who seeks him. Lamentations 3: 22-25 ESV

New answers every morning. New strength each day. Perhaps a new ability to embrace any limitation I may have come mid-September. Help us decide, Lord.

Posted on in Aging, Challenge, Faith, Listen, Praise, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Trust

Your Tomorrow ….

Starts tonight …NOOOOOO. We have a news channel that says this every day about their broadcast. I suppose they are saying they want us to be prepared, but it is not a good saying to me. “Your tomorrow starts tonight.” We do not even stay up late enough to hear their broadcast.

Guess that news channel never heard that one days trouble is enough for that day.

So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34 AMP

Wise up TV slogan writers!

Posted on in Aging, Faith, Humor, Illness and Health, medical treatment, Memories, Music

Did You Sing This?

As I child I remember the song that went something like this:

Great green gobs of 
greasy grimy gopher guts
Little oggy doggie tails
mutilated monkey meat

That is what my week has been like, coughing up the entrails of this nasty virus.

Bob even asked if our tissues are one ply. No, they are not. These are just two tissue blows!

They say the song is important as they give kids a way to express the gory truth about life, usually to the parents’ disdain.”It is extremely popular because children often enjoy taboo subjects and references to things that are disgusting!”

Nope, not something I coughed up. Just as Osage Orange you might see along the road!

So do not catch this summer cold. It is disgusting and exhausting. Spray, throat lozenge, blow, neti pot, blow, pills, throat lozenge, blow and pray for a good night’s rest!

All the while thumping around in this boot that is beginning to feel massive. Yes, I do need another ice pack!

Posted on in Aging, Amazing Creations, Collection of Quotes, Faith, Focus, Illness and Health, Joy, Just do it, Look, Nature, Praise, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Thanks

A Little Bit of Awe

Bob reads Time magazine. I occasionally pick it up if there is an article that catches my attention. In the throes of this recovery from surgery we both caught a wicked cold. The headache and coughing are exhausting. When I moved his magazine this article caught my attention, “5 Ways to Experience a Little Bit of Awe Every Day. ”My first reaction was , “Not again!?”

I was finding it difficult to think about awe in the midst of the ripping sound of Velcro, hot ortho boot, inability to move about the house without forethought and planning, gripping abdominal pain from coughing so long and so hard. Now someone wants me to find awe?

When I finally stopped long enough to read the article I realized the exercise was exactly what I needed. Dacher Keltner a psychologist and author is quoted as describing awe as the feeling you get “when you encounter things that are vast and beyond your frame of reference,” shifting attention away from self and toward something larger.

You can read the article here. https://www.pressreader.com/australia/time-international/20260727/281754161083947

I read through the list of 5 ways and made myself look away from the coughing and the lingering limitation to my walking ability. I found indeed there could be a shift in my thinking. I knew this to be true, but have not experienced this noticeable shift in several months. The shift is very difficult when you feel unwell.

For example, we had some nasty storms pass through our area recently. One tornado came within a handful of miles from our house. We watched the neighbor’s trees twist and turn in the wind as never before and the elephant ears in our garden were being whipped into a frenzy. I wondered what would happen to the newly bloomed mallow flowers on the shrub next to the giant ears. Two days later we were both marveling at how the flowers seemed to be entwined and hugged by the elephant ears in our garden. In other words, the plants were still standing and prospering despite all the storm threw at them.

If you don’t feel good and are limited in your physical function one challenge you don’t want to encounter is the invasion of the tiny black ants. One treat I am allowed is a couple of ginger snaps or a few select low carb cookies with my morning coffee. I opened the can with the coconut cookies and it was literally crawling with ants. So many in fact that I just threw the cookies away. There was no way to pick off a few and save the cookies.

Bob helped me pull things out of the closet and vacuum up ants. I sprayed bug killer and shut the pantry door. If would take hours to wash things off and replace them in the pantry. By the time I was finished I was exhausted. At some point in the housekeeping event I remembered the verse about consider the ant you sluggard, while contemplating how do they even get inside this house? Look they are congregating around the edges of the dishwasher. How do I spray there?

6 Go to the ant, you lazybones;
    consider its ways and be wise.
7 Without having any chief
    or officer or ruler,
8 it prepares its food in summer
    and gathers its sustenance in harvest.
9 How long will you lie there, O lazybones?
    When will you rise from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest,
11 and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
    and want, like an armed warrior. Proverbs 6:6-11 NRSVUE

We find those tiny critters on the dining room table. I will occasionally find one walking up my arm. I am getting to the point if I feel like something is crawling on me I check to be sure it is not an ant.

There is the reset button! This invasion did not have to be more fuel for frustration and despair! We may never win the battle with the ants, but we can hold a little bit of territory. There are likely ten thousand upon ten thousand ants living in our backyard alone. When Bob pulls up a solar light to change the battery he often encounters them going mad up his arm and all over the light. A moment ago he saw none. Then wham he is battling for his own skin.

This marvel is occurring in all the neighbors houses. Some even find the ants where this is no food about such as in an office. Yet the ants explore and send out sentries and food gatherers. Can we just for a moment be in awe of them?

This awe is one thing that makes it possible to turn away from the attention my ailing self demands and look to the Lord. This marvel, even for a moment, helps me move towards praise and pray again. It is no slight thing to find a way to focus on the Risen Christ when your body of flesh is clamoring so loudly. Here again is a big reason why I admire Amy Carmichael so much. Her writings delineate her turning away from the flesh and the world to God Almighty.

You might want to try it today, if even for a moment.

Posted on in Aging, Challenge, Faith, Focus, Joy, Just do it, Listen, Praise, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Thanks, Trust, Worship

Zing!!

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 NIV

And God said, “Gotcha, Molly!” Indeed my attention was fully clasped upon that verse.

Yep, I have at times been less that patient in my afflictions. Not always joyful in hope. Trying to be faithful in prayer, but even there I often fall so short.

And where was I convicted? While watching a movie on the channel Great American Family. During recovery, I spend most afternoons watching a movie and trying to do a few rounds of crochet. This particular channel is showing Christmas movies and at commercial breaks they show a Scripture verse.

So there I was with foot elevated, coughing and being convicted that maybe I could live Romans 12:12 a bit better.

Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; persevere in prayer. Romans 12:12 NRSVUE

Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. Romans 12:12 NLT

Rejoice, be joyful – can you do that even when forced to stillness, Molly?

Patient in affliction, in trouble – healing is going to take almost every single day of this summer season. And then I will need to learn to walk with this new equipment in my toe, or as my friend Dan said, my own “hardware store” in my toe.

Persevere, keep on, be faithful in prayer – yes, those needs, Molly. There is the one across the street still battling cancer and now a widower. The church as we try to reach the hurting with the Good News and comfort of Jesus. There is Pete’s family as they prepare his house for the market and decide what to do with his belongings. The one who suffers from Parkinson’s. The two widows down the street. The other with the awful struggle with antisynthetase syndrome. She who is practically bedridden with back pain and a variety of other ailments. The needs for prayer are always there, Molly. Will you be faithful as the Holy Spirit leads you to pray?

Lord, forgive me I pray for falling short of this call from Paul. Help me to bring joy to your heart. Help me to hear you singing over me. Please do not stop encouraging me to do better as your child and daughter of the King of Kings. Amen.

Posted on in Aging, Challenge, Faith, Illness and Health, medical treatment, Praise, Prayer, Thanks

My Neighbors

I have told you about my neighbors who were both diagnosed with different forms of cancer. His is acute lymphoma requiring many transfusions, chemo drugs, pump, hospitalizations, etc. Hers was pancreatic and she was given 3-6 months to live. Thank you for your prayers on their behalf.

Recently she was hospitalized after being very ill and in bed at home for about 4 days. They got her re-hydrated but it was decided she should enter the Hospice program. She was admitted to Hospice on Friday I believe. We were all praying fervently for her. Saturday morning she was unresponsive. She passed on Sunday morning. May she rest in peace eternally with God our Father.

She suffered very little pain which is amazing as Pancreatic is said to be one of the most painful cancers there is. Her prayer for several months was that the Lord would simply take her home. I was always baffled by why she chose to undergo chemo, but she did. My prayer when she was admitted to hospice was that she would not linger, for the sake of her husband and children. She and Chuck were married for 63 years.

Please pray for her husband, Chuck, and their 3 sons. I heard there will be a celebration of life sometime in August? I have no details on that.

Ginny had the most incredible lovely white hair. She could cook like a professional. She made a popcorn treat that we took to calling ‘crack.’ She had her sons make some right before she went down hill. Knowing I was recovering from foot surgery she sent some to our house with the instructions to eat 4 pieces for pain! Or however many I needed. Always the clown.

She volunteered for years at Clermont Mercy hospital as a transporter for same day surgery patients and also at the front desk. She told so many stories about her youth I would have trouble relating them to you here. She will be greatly missed.

Posted on in Aging, Book quotes, Challenge, Faith, medical treatment, Praise, Prayer, Rest

Routine?

It used to be that the most distasteful thing I had to endure regularly was when the insulin pen ran low. Then I would use one needle to inject the remaining fluid from the pen and endure another needle to inject the remaining dose out of a new insulin pen. That might sound petty since the needles are so tiny, but when you feared needles as a child of three years old, two needles, no matter how small, are at minimum a psychological challenge. Now even that routine will need to change. Seems the pharmacy can no longer stock the insulin pens I know as routine! Waiting to hear from Doc what to do next!

Then I twisted my knee on my good leg. The twist was bad enough that when I would try to stand I was grinding my teeth in pain. That made things so that I needed to use a wheelchair instead of the knee roller.

Oi, yoi, yoi – frustration, exasperation. A friend who is a retired physical therapist brought a raised toilet seat that was even higher than ours, and much easier to use. She taught me how to move so I could avoid that awful knee pain. Bob bought me a compression brace for my knee (which I am still wearing). Another friend brought me her fancy knee brace which the doctor approved. Two weeks later, yes my knee is better, but I do not quite trust it yet.

About the only routine I have right now is almost no routine. Bob has gotten in the habit of setting up the dining room table for me to drink coffee, read my devotions, etc. I am able to fix my coffee and get the milk out for it. He is kind to return it to the refrigerator for me.

From there the day is determined by who is coming over, what my to-do list looks like for them, whether Bob needs to go some place or not. He is exhausted from doing all the shopping, etc. My day is mostly determined by how much time I can tolerate having my surgery foot on the floor.

Do you recall the post I made not too long ago about an ordinary day?

Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. Let me learn from you, love you, savor you, bless you before you depart. Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. –Mary Jean Iron

Oh yes, that normal day of the not too distant past was a treasure indeed! I looked at my foot this morning and could not imagine how I will ever get it in a shoe again. But that too, will eventually become normal and routine.

Cherish what seems boring and normal and routine today. You never know when it will change as if a tsunami has hit your life!

Be willing to praise God regardless of the current circumstances. Years ago someone asked me how I was doing. I replied something like pretty good under the circumstances. They asked in what they likely thought was an encouraging voice, “What are you doing under the circumstances.” That truly was not helpful. To me a more Scriptural stance is to praise God in every circumstance.

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NRSVUE

I freely admit there have been a few times the last few weeks when I have lost sight of the presence of the Lord. Melted into a puddle of tears and some self-pity. But the Lord is always at my right hand and willing to comfort me if I will but reach out, upon the Trinity, place my trust there.

So even if you are not able to give thanks in all circumstances, at least circle back to knowing the Lord is with you and resume praise and prayer.

So just spoke with pharmacy and doctor’s office. I will need to learn how to use syringe and insulin vials as the back order is to at least Mid-August. After pharmacy sells me Rx I need to make an appointment with the RN for education on how to do this method.

Also, the child how hated stitches, just removed two pieces of black stitches from the top of her foot and her heel. Gross! And large!! I give thanks for the stomach to remove those stitches. I am grateful I live in a country where insulin is available to me. Whew!!

Posted on in Aging, Collection of Quotes, Faith, Illness and Health, Obedience, Prayer, Rest, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Trust, Yield

Collection to Calm and Bring Joy

A recent quote from the Calm app reads: “We do not need to be fixed. We try to use more force and the key is how to use less force. How to become more efficient rather than more effortful.” wrote Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen.

Can I do that? Just breathe and use less force in seeking change or comfort?

Another quote. The Danish writer Isak Dinesen wrote, “All suffering is bearable if it is seen as part of a story.”

A different experience had me re-imagine, recall if you will, a situation that brought me incredible delight. I remembered how sore my jaws were after smiling so hard on our wedding day.

September, 1970

I was instructed to apply that image when in distress. Molly, recall that joy when TMJ hits. (as part of having Fibromyalgia, temporomandibular joint pain (TMJ) can occur. It is usually short lived, i.e., a day or two.)

Linking TMJ and joy. Worth a try! This page from my Mary Engelbreit calendar expresses it well!

Art by Mary Engelbreit Quote by Manson Cooley

Another quote read, “The most valuable thing we can do for the psyche is let it rest, wander, live in the changing light of a room, not try to be or do anything whatever.” May Sarton

By the time this post is up I will know if a date has been scheduled for my revisionary left foot big toe surgery. Take out steel plate and 6 screws, clean it all up, remove any new arthritis, replace it all. Eight weeks NO WEIGHT BEARING. In other words, sit down, rest, wander in my mind, live in the changing light of a room and not try to go any where except on a knee scooter-roller whatever you call the contraption. Not try to do much of anything.

Doc told me a year ago I need to have it done as it did not heal correctly six years ago. I asked what if I don’t have it done? He said eventually you will not be able to walk. Well, I am having pain and spasms in that foot. Every night I must elevate it and even ice it.

Yep, seeking all the calm and joy I can store up for this adventure!

Not certain which book I was reading but it said, “How often we are headed in the wrong direction, fighting the wrong fight, battling with reality and losing. I thought of the aspects of myself that are like this woman and this man: how I strive over and over again ….”

“I am somewhat dismayed at how often we hang on where we need to let go and give up where we need to persevere.”

Lord my God give me wisdom to let go into your arms. Give me strength and courage to persevere when I feel like giving up. Help me entrust my life to my faithful Creator.

Posted on in Aging, Art, Faith, Family, Humor, Music, Special Event

July 1984 and 250 Celebration

Everything in the stores is red, white and blue anticipating the celebration of the birth of our country. I even saw a Coke in a round bottle in red, white and blue for the FIFA games! Have not seen this much patriotic color since after 9-11. READ ON CAREFULLY OR YOU MIGHT MISS IT.

Looks like something a six year old would delight in!

So imagine my surprise when I recently unearthed this quote from our son. He had to be all of six years old!

Jeff, “You should have seen who played the Star Strangle Banner!”

I never wrote down who played the Star Strangle Banner that year, but it might be an appropriate name for the theme this year. God help us all.

Posted on in Aging, Book quotes, Challenge, Faith, Illness and Health, Marriage and Memories, Obedience, Praise, Rest, Spiritual discipline, Surrender, Thanks, Trust

Think on This One

Grateful living is important in the world because in our constant pursuit of more and better we can easily lose sight of the riches that lay right in front of us and within us. Guri Mehta

Are you in a constant pursuit of more and better?
Do you easily lose sight of the riches that are right in front of you?

I can do both of those things. I can be in constant pursuit of more and better, and likely do it with no conscious effort. So soaked in this American culture, asking where is the next great thrill? Where is the next thing I can afford to add to our collection of things? Things we cannot possibly take with us.

What about the things right in front of me? Can I realize there are riches? Not just compared to impoverished countries, but compared to my life decades ago. Yes, there was a time we barely scraped by with the funds Bob earned. We worked and scrimped and saved. Now we are both retired from earning wages and live off what we saved and what he inherited from his parents. Living conscious of our means we seek to not go into debt we cannot repay.

But what about the non-monetary things? The experience of living in close proximity with the neighbors who are both terribly ill makes us more aware of the treasure our love and marriage provide. They have five or six more years of marriage than we do, but in this day and age the longevity of our relationship is nothing to sneeze at. We are blessed.

I have always said, “Divorce is not an option. Murder maybe, but not divorce!” And yes, there are times when we each think of murdering the other. We have not changed each other over this half a century as much as we have adapted to one another. Yet, we are deeply blessed. Grateful living indeed.

As my chronic pain seems to increase and health challenges arise I want to see the life I have as one to be celebrated with gratitude. As evening falls and the physical problems seem to intensify I want to find a way to enter into acceptance of them and rest without trying to do battle. It has been said that we increase our suffering by resisting and wanting things to be different than they are. I know that to be true.

Lord, I need your help to come to the place of rest in all of this. Your remind me in Matthew 11 “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.” Yes, Lord, help me enter into your rest when it comes to evening pain and distress. Help me rejoice in your presence and great promises. I know you have promised to stay with me to the end. Be very present Lord, I pray.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit 20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”Matthew 28:19-20 NRSVUE