Preparing For The Holidays: Step Five: The Clean Up

Oh my goodness, this house is in such disarray. It is littered with boxes, tissue paper and gifts that haven't been put away. We did manage to pick up the wrapping paper but that was about it. I wish there was a secret to the clean up but there isn't, you just do it. As far as the decorations go, some people like to take them down right away and some like to leave them up till New Years. I like to get them put away and get the house back to normal but I don't obsess over it. For now I will continue to enjoy having all my kids home as long as it last.

Eventually the house will be cleaned and everything will be back to normal. Graham and Andrea will go back to Salisbury and the "holidays" will be over but in this home as well as many of yours Christmas is never far away. Not because decorations are up or there are presents are under a tree but because Jesus Christ lives in our hearts every day.  

A Son At War #7 Separated At Christmas

I've been getting things together for weeks, all I can think of is my baby boy so far from home and everything he loves at Christmas. Surrounded by sand, the metal buildings that make up the base, weapons and the reality that your life could be taken at any moment. What a way to spend these very special holidays, I am determined to do what I can to see that he has some things to make it festive. The first thing to make it's way across the ocean is the tree, 3ft and prelit along with ornaments and various other decorations. He's excited to receive them but even this small tree is too big for his room so he puts it out somewhere for everyone to enjoy. He uses most everything we send to bring light into this very dark corner of the world for his fellow soldiers.

He has sent presents for us from Iraq and I send some for him, marked do not open till Christmas. Wonder can I trust him? Also along with his gifts are goody bags for some of his comrades that he gets to torture them with because they are also marked " not till Christmas ". I get a phone call early one morning from Iraq, it's his 1st Sargent. He saw the Little Debbie Christmas tree cakes and wants one! Garrett won't budge, not until Christmas so he tells him to call me and if I say OK then he can have one. Garrett is convinced I wont give in but how could anyone be hardcore with someone making the sacrifice they are making, not me! It was a very fun call!

Christmas morning arrives and his absence has left a big hole, thank goodness Graham and Andrea have been able to be here or I wouldn't have made it. We get everything ready to skype and open presents together, Garrett is up very late to join us. Skye is a wonderful thing if you have a good connection which does not happen often over there and Christmas morning is no exception. The call keeps dropping and so we have only a few minutes at a time but you can see the joy on his face as we open his very special presents sent from so far away. Then there is the frustration building every time the call drops, and we have to call it quits. Suddenly the miles that separate us are magnified and his absence overwhelms me and the tears come.

After a few moments, I do just like my soldier, I carry on. I have a very wonderful husband, son and daughter-in-law here with me and the traditions that make Christmas unique to our family will move us through the day.

After all, this is what it's all about. God came to earth, a Savior was born, the gift of salvation was given, a way was made to have a relationship with the living God. All because of His great love for us! That is worth celebrating inspite of what ever sadness this world brings. So with a tear in my eye I went about the day celebrating the birth of my Lord knowing that Garrett was doing the same.

Preparing For The Holidays: Step four- presents

When I give a gift I want it to be something valued by the recipient. Something they can use or that would mean something special to them. When they look at it or use it, it will remind them of a special someone or special event or maybe make a task in their life easier. You know how hard that can be.

Our family is big and we draw names so as not to financially stress anyone. Once I find out who I'm buying for I ask someone close to them for some suggestions and go from there. Of course like everyone else I want quality gifts at a good price. I love a deal, so yes I do black Friday, it's a family affair. My sister and nieces, nephews, Bubba and Garrett. We so missed Garrett last year when he was in Iraq! He attacks black Friday like a military mission, going over and around whatever to capture the deal. Make no mistake, he gets it too. We share our lists with each other, devise a plan, divide and conquer.

I hate to return things, any time of the year but especially after Christmas. So I don't want my gifts to put the recipient in that position. I put alot of thought into my gifts, thoughts of the particular person, what they may enjoy, what they may need. The people I give gifts to are people I love and I want to make a difference in their lives even if for a moment or in a small way. Now don't get offended, I love alot of people that don't get gifts! I have often wondered why God didn't make me rich as well as beautiful, I could have handled both but I trust His wisdom. Each gift is bought with that one person in mind and I look forward to giving it and seeing  the reaction of the person receiving it.

Let's talk about the most magnificent gift ever given. It is a gift that was sent just for you, it's what everyone needs even if you don't recognize it. You can't lose it or break it. It is perfect for each one of us no matter who we are, what we've done or where we are. If you accept this gift, it gives you peace in a world where there is no peace. It gives joy where there is no joy, a high purpose to your life and security that nothing can take away. It gives you a relationship with the living God, as a matter of fact it makes you family, His child! It was a very expensive gift, it cost Jesus His life but He gave it willing out of His love for you. So during the season when we celebrate when it all began here on earth, take this gift for your own. It makes the most important difference in your life.

A Son At War #6

For those who don't know me I am a professional clown aka Maggie Mae. This particular morning I am going to perform for a senior group at a church so I am in make up and costume. It takes a lot of time and work to be that beautiful! This morning has been focused on what I am doing and I am ready and walking out the door. The phone rings. The debate begins, do I answer or let the machine get it?

I get the news that has been leaked through the family lines, Garrett's base has been attacked. The problem with leaked news is you don't usually have details or at least the correct details. So then you start to imagine all that could be, I cannot go to pieces, Maggie Mae has to perform. It's hard to describe what I was feeling. I some how knew Garrett was okay, well not some how it was the Holy Spirit. Yet there was an anxiousness as I am wondering if  everyone is okay and trying to imagine the fear Garrett must have felt. I'll have to wait till later to get more news so I'm out the door.

I drive to the church with what I imagine the attack would have been like playing through my mind,it's not pretty.The Pastor is waiting for me outside and I tell him about my phone call, I ask him to pray that I can keep my focus. Once we get in and are ready to start he does pray, not only for me but for my son and all soldiers.As my head is bowed and my eyes closed I fight back the tears that are trying so hard to fall. I've got a job to do, a message to give about the same God that is protecting my son. I cannot lose it, and God is the glue that holds me together.

I do my program and my mind is relieved as I concentrate on the task before me. Maggie Mae takes over and the fun begins, for the next 20 to 30 minutes the magic that is Maggie Mae is enjoyed by all.

Then there is the drive home where I am again wondering about the events of the night before at Garrett's camp. I think about each soldier and pray that they are all okay. I need to get home, get out of Maggie Mae and then maybe I can focus on finding out some more details.

I back into the garage, grab Maggie Mae's props and race into the house. I change clothes and stand in front of the mirror to take my make-up off. I am horrified at what is staring back at me, then comes the laughter. When the Pastor prayed and I fought back the tears, Maggie Mae's mascara had run and I had two big black circles under my eyes! No one had said a thing and I went through the whole program that way! I hoped they didn't think Maggie Mae always looked like that! Oh well just as God helped me focus on the message I gave about Him I'm sure He helped them focus on that same message and not Maggie Mae's raccoon eyes!

Preparing For The Holidays: Step Three- cooking

 Now's the time to get out all those special recipes we love to make at Christmas. What goes better with family and friends but good food. Baking and cooking fill the home with the sweet aroma of Christmas!

I love to make sour dough rolls and share them at Christmas with a tub of honey butter, I must admit I've gotten a late start this year and my first batch will be coming out this week. It takes five days to make the starter! Nothing says I love you like giving something homemade where your time and effort are part of the gift.

We can never match the gift that was given that first Christmas day. The sacrifice Jesus made when He left His heavenly home to come here and endure this world. The nine months Mary endured the ridicule of the world while she carried the savior of the world. All the effort Joseph put into the care of this little one whose real Father was the most high God. Only God could have prepared this recipe. He made it for everyone, you only have to partake.

The following recipe is one of my favorites, it also is good to put in a decorative container and give to friends as a gift with a bag of tortilla chips.

Blackeye Pea Salsa
2 cans Black eye peas, drained
1 can white Hominy
a jar medium salsa
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
3 stems parsley, chopped
mix all and add 1/2 bottle of Italian salad dressing

I hope you enjoy it!

If I Speak and Nobody Listens, Does It Matter?

I'm new at this blogging stuff, I was encouraged at a Writers Retreat to do it. They say it's good exercise for a would be writer such as myself. I always enjoyed writing when I was in school so I've decided to see what develops.

 Why do people write? Maybe to share an experience, or to teach a lesson. It could be purely for entertainment or it can even be therapeutic. Blogging is kind of like writing in a diary except it's one you want other people to read. So why would I share my thoughts and experiences? To prompt other people's thinking or to share something I've learned so you won't have to learn the hard way, like I usually do. Sometimes to see how other people feel about whats on my mind. Is what I have to say about anything really important? No, so I guess you could also conclude my writing is therapeutic and if it speaks to someone else along the way then great!

I didn't start out to write devotions or even talk about God, that's for people holier than I am. Or so Satan would have me believe but as I began to talk about my life and the things happening in it, it seems only natural to bring Christ into it. He is a part of everything in my life and the only important thing in my life. So if  I speak about what happened to me the other day and nobody listens, does it matter? No but if I speak about Christ and nobody listens, does it matter? Only for eternity.

Leave me a comment so I'll know somebody was listening

A Son At War:#5-

I've got to get a handle on this. I turn the computer on first thing in the morning and check for word through e-mail and see if he's on facebook or skype. There is 6 to 7 hours difference between us depending on what Daylight Savings time is and I'm wondering what his night was like and his day. They are under orders not to reveal  to people back home when there have been attacks but like every where else there are leaks.

I try to go about my day, carrying my computer with me from room to room as I clean so I wont miss him. I hate to go anywhere for fear of missing him but I realize I cannot become a hermit for the next year. I know when he gets into a routine we will find our own routine for communication.

When we skype the connection is not usually good, the picture is not clear, the sound is not good and the call drops frequently. It's very frustrating, especially when you know our soldiers who are providing communication, are charged eighty something dollars a month for Internet. Even with all that, I am thankful to be able to see his face, kind of and hear his voice, most of the time.

How ever we choose to communicate, letters, e-mail, phone calls, skype, texting or face to face. When communication stops the relationship breaks down. How do we think God feels when we go through out our day and won't take time to talk to Him? How would you feel if your child got up in the morning and left the house without speaking to you?How would He feel if we were desperately waiting on a word from Him like I did from Garrett? His word ( Bible ) is available to us, we just must chose to sit down with it and give Him our attention, He is waiting to speak to us through prayer. There is no relationship more important than the one we have with the living God, He has already given His life for us and has risen to new life that awaits all those who belong to Him.

Preparing For The Holidays: Step two-decorating

After the house is cleaned it's time to get out the decorations, ours come out of the basement. This part of the process is not enjoyable and the grumbling echoes all the way up the stairs. It's funny how many things your family members can realize they forgot they need to do at that moment. After all the boxes arrive upstairs I am left to take my trip down memory lane. Each box opened reveals treasures, carefully wrapped in tissue paper. Some older and some acquired more recently but treasures all the same. As each one is unwrapped, admired and put in it's special place, I remember. Maybe it's one of the boys coming in from school with an ornament clutched in their little hand they made that day and his smile as it was placed on the tree or in another place that said we valued it. Some are gifts from friends and I am reminded of the blessing they have been in my life. For some it's a remembrance of special places we've been and things that are special to us. What ever the boys were into that year, I know you all have those karate Santa's , Santa's with basketballs or maybe even super heroes. I realize again just how quickly the years have passed. Then there are the ones that honor loved ones lost, I see their faces and fell the emptiness their passing has left in my life. Year after year they are a part of our Christmas just as they will always be part of our life.

Then I begin to prod my husband, it's time for the lights! He doesn't enjoy it even though he's a master at it. We put colored lights on the tree and white on everything else. My favorite thing is to sit in the dark living room watching the tree twinkle. The glow it cast across the room is magical.

My favorite decoration though is the Nativity, the very reason for Christmas. I have a small collection and they are placed all around the house. I imagine all the emotion Mary must have been dealing with during the birth of her son. Knowing that one day she would give Him up for a world that would not even realize the significance of it. Yes I do love all the Christmas decor but nothing more than that original Christmas light that came into the dark world when it all begin and still shines to this day.

A son At War: part four- Waiting For News

It's very early in the morning, Bubba and I are awaken from a sound sleep by the ringing of the phone. We both are throwing off the cover and out of the bed in one motion, racing for the phone. It must be Garrett, thank goodness we weren't going for the same phone, it could have been disastrous. It is Garrett and the sound of his voice is music to our ears. Over the next year our lives will revolve around the phone and computer for e-mails, instant messaging, facebook and skype. Waiting to hear his voice and see his face, even if it's fuzzy . Just to know for now he's okay.

It is not lost to me the sacrifice of those who have gone before us. The days when all they had to look forward to was a hand written letter and by the time it arrived their soldier's situation would have changed many times. The worry with nothing to comfort them but their faith. The same faith that will get me through this year. I have it so much better and so does my soldier. He can let me know something he's longing for from home and I can have it to him in a week or so.

We are thankful for technology but more than that we are thankful for our God. The God of yesterday and of tomorrow. The God who will spend everyday with my son in that war zone and who in the midst of it all will show him amazing things. In this and this alone I have peace.