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    October 01

    F.R.O.G.


    hello-5-08_2.gif

     

    F.R.O.G.

     
    Fully Rely On God!  : -)
     
     

    This is not my creation... I am looking for the url...if you have it PLEASE let me know ! Thanks !

     
     


     

     

     

    FROGS
     
    Once upon a time there was a bunch of tiny frogs.... who arranged a running competition.

    The goal was to reach the top of a very high tower.


    A big crowd had gathered around the tower to see the race and cheer on the contestants....


    The race began....


    Honestly:


    No one in crowd really believed that the tiny frogs would reach the top of the tower.


    You heard statements such as:


    "Oh, WAY too difficult!!"


    "They will NEVER make it to the top."


    or:


    "Not a chance that they will succeed. The tower is too high!"



    The tiny frogs began collapsing. One by one....

    Except for those, who in a fresh tempo, were climbing higher and higher....

    The crowd continued to yell,
      "It is too difficult!!! No one will make it!"

    More tiny frogs got tired and gave up....

    But ONE continued higher and higher and higher....


    This one wouldn't give up!




    At the end everyone else had given up climbing the tower. Except for the one tiny frog who, after a big effort, was the only one who reached the top!


    THEN all of the other tiny frogs naturally wanted to know how this one frog managed to do it?



    A contestant asked the tiny frog how he had found the strength to succeed and reach the goal?


    It turned out....


    That the winner was DEAF!!!!



    The wisdom of this story is:


    Never listen to other people's tendencies to be


    negative or pessimistic.... because they take your most wonderful dreams and wishes away from you -- the ones you have in your heart!


    Always think of the power words have.


    Because everything you hear and read will affect your actions!


    Therefore:


    ALWAYS be....


    POSITIVE!


    And above all:


    Be DEAF when people tell
    YOU that you cannot fulfill your dreams!

    Always think:


    God and I can do this!

    Pass this message on to 5 "tiny frogs"
    you care about.

    Give them some motivation!!!




    Most people walk in and out of your life......but FRIENDS leave footprints in your heart

    In two days tomorrow will be yesterday. Today is no special day and I have no particular reason for writing to you... I have no news to tell you.... nor any problems to discuss with you.... or gossip to tell you... It's only one of those happy moments... when I thought of you... and I would like to share these thoughts with you...
    MANY SMILES BEGIN BECAUSE OF ANOTHER SMILE...

     


    To The World You Might Be One Person; But To One Person You Might Be the World.

    You have been Tagged by the Froggy,
    which means you are a great friend!!

     

     

    ¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»§«¤»¥«¤
    If you fall down 10 times,
    Stand up 11.

    ¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»§«¤»¥«¤

    (There was pics but they disapeared.. WIll I ever find them again ? They were cute froggies !)

    March 07

    We Are At War !

    WE ARE AT WAR!

    In an instant, in a heartbeat, our great nation was aghast,
    As skyscrapers turned to rubble, when jetplanes fueled the blast.
    Terror turned the friendly skies to instruments of hate
    That rained death and destruction down upon the Empire State.

    Twin Towers left the skyline and thousands left this earth
    Without warning, in an instant, godless terrorists gave birth
    To horrid, helpless feelings of a people violated,
    While foreign devils gloated and danced about, elated.

    Then shock increased when Hell descended on the Pentagon
    And proved how unprepared we were to shelter Washington.
    A fourth jetliner, on the way to ram the White House, too,
    Was only circumvented by heroic riders and crew.

    New Yorkers sought lost loved ones, hospitals overflowed,
    Rescue teams cleared rubble and compassion clearly showed.
    Americans united in grief and in resolve,
    As friendly nations showed support that will not soon dissolve.

    A day of prayer was held, led by our president,
    And millions turned to God, for His enlightenment.
    Death and destruction visible on such gigantic scale
    Shriek for retaliation -- God help us to prevail.

    Asking Him to bless our nation and guide our steps aright,
    Our leaders urged Americans to join ranks and unite.
    Flying flags and lighting candles, that unity was shown,
    As the grieving process yielded and a will of steel was shown.

    Worldwide law enforcement now is searching far and wide
    For soldiers of bin Laden, who will find few spots to hide.
    Those who befriend and keep them are doomed to share the fate
    Of terrorists we've pledged to find and incapacitate.

    They can't escape our righteous wrath, wherever they may hide.
    The decent citizens of earth know right is on our side.
    Safe havens will evaporate and assets will dissolve
    For terrorists who tremble in the face of our resolve.

    These butchers of the helpless will find the tables turned,
    And reap the retribution their horrific acts have earned.
    The time and cost to stop this scourge is one we all must pay,
    So generations yet unborn will see a brighter day.

    We have all been victims, those killed and those who weep;
    Our losses monumental; our sorrow sharp and deep.
    War is declared!  We cannot wait for other shoes to drop.
    Search and destroy those murderers, and make the madness stop!
     
     
    If anyone knows whom the artist is of this please let me know the artist name so  can post... OR where this had been found on its site.... THANKS
    November 30

    Here a Frog..There a Frog..Every where a Frog Frog..

    Here a Frog..There a Frog..Every where a Frog Frog..
     
    Gettin froggie with it...
    Gettin froggie with it...
    Here a frog there a frog...
    Every where a Frog Frog...
    Froggie went a courtin he did ride...
    Froggie went a courtin and found a bride...
    A huh...
    A huh...
    They got froggie with it..
    They got froggie with it..
    In the natural way...
    By natures wild Call...
    A huh..
    A huh..
    Many froggy babies came along...
    Tadpoles here..
    Tadpoles there..
    Tadpoles every where
    A huh..
    A huh..
    In the pond they stay...
    Or wherever water may be..
    Till they Grow little froggie legs and are set free...
    A full grown froggie leaves the nest...
    A huh..
    A huh..
    A huh..
    So every where..
    Here..
    And there..
    There are Froggies everywhere...
    Of all colors..
    Some are mixed..
    Some are poison and can kill..
    Many sizes fom micro little..
    To giant size...
    But No matter what their look...
    They still ribbit ribbit...
    And go a courtin on a ride..
    To find a Bride..
    And more little froggies..
    Get froggie with it..
    Get froggie with it..
     
     
     
     

    THINGS ARE NOT WHAT THEY ALWAYS APPEAR TO BE

     

    This was sent to me by a friend in Email... So I do not know where it originated from...

    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Subject: New Bar Stools

    Sisters Mary Catherine, Maria Theresa, Katherine Marie, Rose Frances, & Mary Kathleen left the Convent on a trip to St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City and were sight-seeing on a Tuesday in July. It was hot and humid in town and their traditional garb was making them so uncomfortable, they decided to stop in at Patty McGuire's Pub for a cold soft drink.

    Patty had recently added special legs to his barstools, which were the talk of the fashionable eastside neighborhood. All 5 Nuns sat up at the bar and were enjoying their Cokes when Monsignor Riley and Father McGinty entered the bar through the front door.

    They, too, came for a cold drink when they were shocked and almost fainted at what they saw.      

    (scroll down)

    V

    V


     

     Give us a sense of humor, Lord,

    Give us the grace to see a joke,

    To get some humor out of life,

    And pass it on to other folk.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Now why did I post this ?

    Because this goes to show that THINGS ARE NOT WHAT THEY ALWAYS APPEAR TO BE.....

    The lesson hear is make sure you KNOW what you are gonna talk about.... WHEN you go spread GOSSIP... as human nature proves we do........

    God does NOT like us to tell tales on FOLKS.....

    LIES are from the deceiver of lies... satan/devil/Lucifer(Or any name he holds).

    Sure we misunderstand and get folks in trouble, by us not knowing what the truth was sometimes,But we can go undo a mistake when we make a false accusation against someone...

    HOPE YOU got a KICK out of the NUN HABITS ABOVE !  I DID !!!!!!!!!!!!!! A REAL KICK ON the BUTT !!!!!!!!!  HAHAHA !!!!!!  BARSTOOL LEGS...GEt It ????

    YOU

    MUST

    Click Pic

    Below V

               V

    November 28

    Relationships of any kind

    Relationships of any kind 12:12 PM

    Jealousy is a killer of self, of relationships of any kind, and of Godly Spirit !

    I learned the hard lesson of Jealousy I had it BAD !

    BUT GOD kept telling me HE was the only one whom has the right to be Jealous ! AND it is TRUE !

    Its very hard to figure out in a situation, well am I reading this right or not... In that situation SEEK GOD ! If you do what is Godly right, and JUSt Bless your enemies.... THEn GOd will take care of the situation ! And you stay in the Spirit of GOD by responding In Spirit ! Acting in Belief GOD will take care of you !

    DEAR Jahovah JIRReh Please heal this jealousy.. as You have done mine... Please let them have PEACE !   Help these children to seek you in all situations they come across! IN JESUS NAME  - AMEN !!!!!!!!

    BY Patsy M.Powell
    November 21

    LOVE Lost...Love gained...

     
    Why have I not been working on this site much late......... BUSy with a caPiTaL B.....
     
    I have a lot of things going on in my liFE...DON"T we all?
    I have maNY sites I am trYinG to keep UP with....THEN added a neW one ! Don'T we jUST love the NET?!
     
     I DO!
     
     THEN their was a new LOVE... I mentioned Frank in Poetry I wrote... The one I thought was the LOVe of my life.... BOy was I mistakeN....... HE cared for ME... BUT HE did not LOVE me...Though HE did have me fooled! AND HOw! Then i fooled mYselF TOO !
    When Ya been abused and dumped on! Mistreated and CheaTeD ON... Its hard to see truth when blinders are wanting LOVE...AND Love is wantinG Blinders ! In other words your mental scale weighing is fighting ...LOVE ^yes... NOT LOVE...no-v... So time can onlY tell!
     
    Well tiMe tolD!  Frank kept saying i love you as a frienD... Leaving notes to such... Love You as a FRIEND!  BUt when i asked him if he wanted me to Pack and leave....I DOn'T KNOW?!  Like not sure!  WELL you want us to stay and see for the next 6 months...yeaR?  I DON't knoW?!  BUT theres not another womaN !  Frank I believe 95% theres not another woman! YES 5%  I thought someone else! 
     
    MY mom asked suRe it ain't another maN? NO mom he is too much of a MANS man to be gaY !!! WAIT mom...WHAt did I just say... HE does hang out with guys MORE.......Like 97 % moRE ? HMM???  NO I do not think so........BUt yea, I got to wonder.......
     
    Well time did tell........
    BUT is was the SPIRIT of GOD telling me move on...
    YES GOD... I am a Christian.... I had backslid.... I prayed and prayed LORD what do I do... I got myself in this mess for LOVE as we call it!  Which way do I go.... SHOW me the DOOR of THY will........
     
    OUT of the mouths of BABES!!!!!!!!!!
    MY four year old grandson started sayin:
     
    MAWMAW move back to your beautiful HOUSE!
     
    MAWMAW BUY loTs and LOTs of chocolate. why? Cause me and bubba wants chocolate milk,chocolate candy and chips! Bryce added logneY(balogney) and IENERS(vienna sausages). OH  added Walker, MAWMAW..... Frankie can't stay the NITE!
     
    Frankie don't love you no more mawmaw....
     
     
    Grandson knew NOTHING of my situation... nothing about my thoughts... OUT OF THE MOUTHS OF BABES!!!
     
     
    A friend Prophesied on MY SON SONS WILL HAVE KINGS AND PROMINENT PEOPLE BOW TO HIM. HE WILL BE A WORKER FOR GODS GLORY!!! SERIously!!!  I believe iT!!!!  I told the friend how strangers would come up to my Grandson Walker, as a infant. They would pray over him in stores like Walmart, Kmart, Mall, and cafes like Barnhill's (where his mom worked theN)  JUSt PRAY over him,  some would speak, some just prayed silent and left!  Walker was hooked to apnea machine because born early.Little wires coming from everywheRe, Lungs were underdeveloped. He had to be on meds to make him sleep and meds to wake him up. because of the caffeine and the lungs I guess working improper.
     
    BUT more and More my Grandson surprizes me HOW much the SPIRIT can work through HIM! Like Last week choir director said,''WE are starting childrens choir", " I need volunteers!". They said Walker Jumped up on the pew "hoLLeriNG ME!", " I wanna sinG!" Director said," there if a small child can any of us can!".
     
     
    And So i packed and left going to MY beaUTifuL house in Alabama....
     
    Family and friends you need to see him...You need this guy....That Guy....HE'd be GOOD for YOU!
    I want GOD to lead me to one this time! I would say!
    God will have to put one in my laP litterally, for me to get anotheR! My picks been wrong picks ! Gods will be the right Pick! 
    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     
    WELL GOD HEARd.........
     
    Though it was a metaphor...
     
    A few months later....
     
    I went to visit a ex neighbor. I visited her before. With and with out her kids there. She been kidding me for years..."I'M gonna get you married to my soN !... YouR goNNA be my daughter in-laW !". I just laughed it off cause HER son was a friend, and I was better friends with his girfriend. Well he and she left and moved way up North.  I had not seen them for a year. This day i decided to go see Betty(ex-Neighbor) Guess who opened the door?!  BILLY !   Bobby(Betty's daughter, and I had run in to each other, and came to her moms together)and I stepped out of my van and to the house. Billy(NEW MAN) opened the door to the house seen his sister. WHO'S VAN? MINE !  I said stepping out from behind his sister. DanG Ya'll ain'T coming in ! And slammed the door ! HIS mom was holleriN who's out there?!  He said NO bodY !  I SAID NO bodY?!  WHO's NO boDY sure not me !  Before His mom seen me she HOLLERED "PATSY you bettER let her in that dooR!" she told BILLY.  LOL!! As I stepped in Billy was talking bent over into my ear, YOU STILL IN DENILE !   I said YES still in deNiaL ! Then retracted, NO your in DENIAL !   I said I ain't seen ya in a year give me a hug, and HE did !
     
    Well the night went on...the more it went on the more he got closer toWarDs me. If I moved over he would wait a bit and move over to me more... WheN i turned my head he would inch closer. If he got up to get drinks and such he would sit closer noticably! When i went to the bathroom, I came back and grinned ,and moved to the other end off the sectional couch. He would say Now then. His mom and sister would go to LaGHING out! MOM said "YOU cut that out Patsy,",  I done told Ya your gonna be my daughter in-law . Bobby said "Your already family, you might as well be familY !". Billy said HMMM?!  GrinninG. Later that night as we watched tv.. Bobby left... Billy got drinks(SODA) and served me... when He sat down he sat right up against my leG !  I moved over some, but couldnt much, I was almost in his moms lap! Billy said, GOT ya against a wall !  I laughed !  Later in the night he got up to change the movie. When he came back He swooshed down in one quick smooth motioN ! Relaxed out across the couch and plopped his head barely oN my leg !  I thought I should move !  BUT didn't. He got up to change the next movie, and Plopped down this tiME!,Right dab in my LAP !!!  I looked down and saiD, COMFortable??? HE smiled a GORGEOUS SMILE,SayinG YEP.. I sure AM, Looking into my eyes! His eyes were dancin and laughing with GLEE!!!! MY hearT leapeD !!!!!! I went to leave little later on... NO you can't we wont see you again for months. Billy asked his mom, "When you see her last mom? "ME a year", he said !  His mom replied, Its been 4 months. HE grabbed me and said your staying ! I'll sleep on the couch... NO I'm going home! No its tooo late!!  You might get hit by a drunK.... Bobby may be on her way home now from being out and hit you !  HE grabbed my KEYS from the table, "friends don't let friends drive with drunks on the road! ","NOW! SETTLED !".
     
    We sat to watch more tv...His mom went to bed...See you in the morninG Patsy snICKERING..... Billy once again started tracking me down I ran awhile! BUT when I remebered earlier, MY thought was, I said GOD would have to put the love of my life into my laP ! AND HE DID !!!!!!!! GOD absolutely PUT him in my actual LAP !!! LOL!!!!!!!  So I did not move when he GOT real close......Staring at me like he done most the day and nite! I turned and stared back into his eyes and said YES? HE said I just like to look! Your CRAZy I remarked. HE touched my face lightly!  I pulled his long, curling lightl, strand of hair from his face. He kiSSeD me! I kiSSeD back!  OH..WHAt a Kiss..It was Light but strong.... Warm and inviting... He pulled back and Looked into my eyes! He grabbed me and pulled me to him and fire was lit in the next kiss.... I said I am afaid I am Dreaming! Why? he said. CaUse I only dreamt of a chance ever with you!  He pinched me as if tickling.. I said YEp !  I am awake! HE said NO dream then! We went to bed... He said I'll sleep on the couch... I said No i will sleep on the couch, you sleep in your bed... He said lay down with me... I said if you promise...HE said what.. I said to do nothing BUT sleeP.... HE said Promise as he held my hand on the way to bed. He kissed me lovingly and said good night. I said night. Fully clothed, holding each other we drifted right off to sleep.... when we woke he kissed me and said be right back. I went to the living room.... In He walked, carrying what he Promised before we went to sleep.... A BIG BOWL OF COCOA PUFFS !  LOL !!!!  I kept mY promise,HE said !  I said YES both your Promises !!! HE said not that i wanted to keep the other and grinneD !!!!!!!! 
     
    When I went to leave they said..Stay!  I gotta get home, I said.... Billy said only if ya come for supper... I can't I got to cook what I thawed out, Chinese !  His sister Bobby walked in.... Where ya been all night.... Billy and HIS MOM said HERE, grinninG ear to Ear. I stayed a bit longer and Bobby and I left...
     
    SO she said what happened? I said we watched tv.. He chased me more after you left... we slept.. she said and? I said Thats it! She said slept as in sex? NO i said....... i made him promise at 3 this morn that Only if HE PRomised to do nothing, I would sleep in the bed with him! HE Kept his Promise!!!  She said all these years we finally gonna get you married to Billy!  I said WE will see!
     
    We went to Sulligent 15 miles away to help a friend of Bobbies. When we delivered the needed things for them. We went back to my Place. I said I do not even want to cook chinese...Just something QuicK! She said get what you got and will go back to moms.  NO I said !  Why not? Its late! She said No its not its only 7:30. Its later than that,I said coming to see the clock. She was right only 7:30. We got the stuff went back to her moms! Walked in... PaTSY mom screameD! BIlly JUST grinneD and said YOUR in DeNial !  Bobby and Mom Betty said Yep she's in DeNiaL !  I said, Maybe Not in DeNiaL anYmoRE !!!!!!!  Billy said WHAT? I said maybe not in DENIAL anY MORE!!!!  AND grinned at HIM!!!!!!!  WE went out later to the Opry Hall and had a great time,Me ,Billy, and Bobby. Till Bobby left with her friend....Setting me up grinning when she left! Little while later clappin to the music...Billy yawned and put his arm swiftly behind me... From the cornr of mY EYE ...I seen that FAKE FAKE ! I said as I turned to HIM smiling with Glee!  HE just squeezed me and pulled me to him and kissed my cheeK!
     
     
    Oh the thing about denial....BILLY used that line eveRy time I ever seen him.... When He was with his girl friend or not. Never did he come on to me. And His girlfriend Knew I was attracted to him. I told HEr I been attracted to Billy, first time i ever seen him cross the window, going to move his mom in next door! BUT he is your Man and I would never do Nothing to hurt yours and My friendship! I never did either!
     
     
    BUT Now that SHE is way up north.... and HE said  It was over to her.... to her!
     
    Well that changes EverY thinG Don'T IT ?!
     
     
     
    Hope you enjoyed my Romance meetinG... I DID !!!! Time will tell........
    BUT I got a Peacefull easy FeelinG!!! YEP !   I believe this IS IT !!!! AMEN !!!!!!!!
     
     
     
     
     

    FROGGIE with IT ?

     
    If ya wondered why I got froggie with my site.....
     
    The country in me I guess!
     
    I was born in a small town of a 15 mile radius city. Today its a 20 mile radius and growing. Growing fast since we put the bypass in off the 2 main highways.
     
    Anyway I was raised here on Part Since I was a Army brat!
    We moved here and there in childhood. When mom and dad divorced, when I was ten years of age. We still traveled to see him, where he was stationed in the US though.
     
    One of the Georgia visits I really LOVED Frogs! WHY DO YA ASK ? Well my step mom was nice. But she always sided with her kids even when her kids were wrong. One day my brothers and I(real brother and step brother) went bicycling around the Columbus,Georgia trailer park they lived at. We found step mom laying out alongside the Pool side. With the only pool in the trailer park it wa s packed! I went up to tell mom we was gettin hungry, and we wanted the key to get in the house. SHE stated coldly,WELL you will just have to wait! Come on mom its been awhile since we ate breakfast. NO you will wait. Well as I turned looking at the ground upset I seen a Frog! OH BOY... I thought I will get her! SHE was terrified from from FROGS !  My brothers said low voiced YOU BETTER NOT! The fence is between us,i said ! And I threw the frog over the 6 foot fenCE! IT sailed perfectly on the light breeze! AND FOUND his marK! RIGHT ON step moms BELLY above her belly button! Mom opened her eyes looked dowN..AND....... SHE JUMPED like a ROCKEt ouT of her lounGe chair ScrEAminG BloodY murder !!!!  WHAT was she screaminG ? PATSY(indixiesheart) I'M GONNA WHIP YOUR ASS! I heard her clearly OVER all the people laughinG. As I was lookinG back while in a run, cause she preceded to find the exit door of the pool! LOL !!! I was booking got my bike and haULED butt I mean! My Brothers had done went a spell up the road, so they would not get into trouble for my get even with step mom...LOL !!!!!!!! they knew me to well that yeA I would do it!!!!!!! LOL !!!!!
    Well I went and stayed around the trailer park watching every nooK and crannY for step mom to find me...SO I could run..... I wound up hiding on the huge sewer or water line going through the wood area(we often would play there,playing chicken to see who would back down before gettin pushed off).I stayed there till about 6 when I heard DAD yelling PATSY get your ass home noW! I knew she done told him! Plus I was to be in before dark,and sun was settin. SO I grabbed bike heading back KNOWinG I was gonna get a lickiN GOOD! AND I Did !!!! AND HOW!!!! DAD was never easy with that old armY belT! MOM said I told you you was gonna get a whippiN! I said YEA but atleast it wasn't You whippiN ME ! MAN I should have kepT my mouth shUT!!!!! DAD grabbed me and gave me another GOOD whippin and made me appolagize to my step mom! THAT huRT more than the LICkiN I GOT !!!!!! LOL !!!!!!!!
     
    My step mom and me still laugh over that one..... we sorta became friends and family over the years! Sorta, because we found OUT, she was the reason we seen very little of daddy! Out of her own sons mouth! SHe would tell him you want that family go back to it, but you will not see our child(half-sister). DAD was between a rocK and a HarD place! BLESS HIM(he is gone now since 97').
     
     
    Well HoPe you enjoYed the story on why Froggies are my friends!!!!!! LOL !!!!!!!
     
     
     
    GOD BLESS You and Your bunCH of HOODLEmS.....LOL !!!!!!!!!!!!!
     
     
    October 25

    GOOD MOVIE

     
    I Know this MOVIE HE is talking about..Though I remeber not the name  I will watch for it and POST it !  Awesome movie..shows kindness in a time of grief from all parties! -INDIXIE
     
     
     
     
    This from my friend and American hero, Bootheel Bill. Thanks for your service to our country and for your enlightening e-mails. Maybe another reader has additional insight about Silent Night.

    Every year before Christmas a movie is shown on the Hallmark Network...the title is Silent Night. The story is told by a Dutchman who was a boy during the Battle of the Bulge.

    He and his mother were staying in a cabin in the Ardennes Forest. A squad of German soldiers came to the door and said that they were lost from their unit and would like to be given shelter for the night and the mother said OK.

    Short time later a squad of American soldiers also knocked on the door and also being separated from their unit and would like to spend the night. The mother, not wanting this to turn into a shootout at the OK corral said fine but she would have to separate them from their weapons. The son carried the weapons out to an outhouse and put them away.

    The soldiers spent the night sharing cigarettes and stories and just about daylight an officer wearing the uniform and rank of a MP captain also came to the door and read the riot act to the GIs for socializing with the enemy.

    When the soldiers were given their weapons, the MP captain said that he was a German SS officer. The Germans left with the SS officer...they with their rifles and he with his Schmeisser sub machine pistol and the GIs went in search of their unit also carrying their rifles.

    At the end of the movie the Dutchman asks that any of the soldiers that were there to please get in touch with him. I would like to get in touch with him and tell him the rest of the story. I was in that battle that the army never called the Battle of the Bulge. On my discharge it is called the battle of the Ardennes Forest.

    When the battle started we were given word to be on the lookout for Germans who spoke American English (many of them born in America) who had American uniforms and weapons maybe driving jeeps or 6-bys. We were supposed to stop anyone who we didn't recognize ask for the password and question them in a way that would trip anyone who hadn't been in America lately.

    I don't think that the Germans who left with the SS officer lived out the war. I had also been separated from my unit and didn't know the password or the countersign. When I was challenged I wasn't carrying a rifle and I was alone so I told the guards that I had been on night patrol with King company and was headed back to my outfit to get my cigarette ration. I was alone and they probably didn't expect any Germans could fake a West Virginian accent and they said pass on. Of course, I thanked them for not shooting me.

    I believe that what happened to the GIs when they were challenged and not knowing the password, carrying their rifles and maybe out numbering the guards, ended up in a shoot-out so they never survived the war. I tried to contact the Dutchman through the Brussels Belgium news and through the Hallmark Channel but never got in contact with him to tell him the rest of the story.

    Bill Wilt
    Silver City, New Mexico

    PS: This might be the boy in the story:  http://webpages.charter.net/wjpbr/vincken.html and http://www.afn.co.kr/archives/readings/truce.htm.
    Looks like he passed away in 2002: (http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2002/Jan/11/ln/ln37a.html).


    Please click here.


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    September 18

    THE BIRTH ORDER OF CHILDREN

    THE BIRTH ORDER OF CHILDREN - oh so true  


    Your Clothes:



    1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon  as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.

    2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.

    3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE your regular clothes.


    Preparing for the Birth:



    1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.

    2nd baby: You don't bother because you remember that last time, breathing didn't do a thing.

    3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your eighth month.



    The Layette:

    1st baby: You pre-wash newborn's clothes, color-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby's little bureau.

    2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.

    3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't they?



    Worries:


    1st baby: At the first sign of distress -- a whimper, a  frown -- you pick up the baby.

    2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails  threaten to wake your firstborn.

    3rd baby: You teach your three-year-old how to rewind the mechanical swing.



    Pacifier:



    1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the floor, you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.

    2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the floor, you squirt it off with some juice from the baby's bottle.

    3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt and pop it back in.



    Diapering:
    1st baby: You change your baby's diapers every hour, whether they need it or not.

    2nd baby: You change their diaper every two to three hours, if needed.

    3rd baby: You try to change their diaper before others start to complain about the smell or you see it sagging to their knees.



    Activities:
    1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics, Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.

    2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.

    3rd baby: You take your infant to the supermarket and the dry cleaner.



    Going Out:

    1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter, you call home five times.
    2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a number where you can be reached.

    3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call only if she sees blood.





    At Home:

    1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day just gazing at the baby.

    2nd baby: You spend a bit of everyday watching to be sure your older child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.

    3rd baby: You spend a little bit of every day hiding from the children.



    Swallowing Coins (a favorite):
    1st child: When first child swallows a coin, you rush the child to the hospital and demand x-rays.

    2nd child: When second child swallows a coin, you carefully watch for the coin to pass.

    3rd child: When third child swallows a coin you deduct it from his allowance!!




    Pass this on to everyone you know who has children...


    or anyone who KNOWS someone who has had children...


    (The older the mother, the funnier this is!)





    GRANDCHILDREN: God's reward for allowing your children to live.

     (this was sent to me  I do not know whom the author is) (SO TRUE)

    September 12

    TIME IS NEAR !

     
     YOU know that for many centuries... People have said CHRIST is coming....
    AND YES HE IS in the PRoper Timing for it according to GOD"S Will!
     
    So many say well that is a bunch of baloney! JUst because they have not seen it happen yet ! If you have GOD then it will be a HAPPY TIME to see the LORD ! BUT if you have NOT GOD then you better be glad you have more time TO GET ready !
     
    AND the reason I brought up this TOPIC is because GOD has really had my mind on this TOPIC over the years...and ESPECIALLY NOW !
    With all the talk in the news... NOW and every second the BIBLE is Predicting faster and faster the PROPHESY of REVELATIONS, that was predicted many CENTURIES of OLD. MANY instances over the centuries it has been said CHRIST will be here soon! AND NOW even we say HE WILL BE HERE SOON !   IT looks more like it will happen in OUR 20th CENTURY ERA.... BUT REMEMBER only CHRIST KNOWS the exact TIMING! CHRIST SAID "I will come like a thief in the night ,be ready!"
     
    O LORD HELP us that seek THEE to be READY ! WHATEVER comes, and WHENEVER the time ! IN JESUS NAME AMEN !
     
    The TIMES TO COME  will be alot worst than the awful times over the past centuries ! WE have more knowledgable people... MORE vast technological weapons.... MORE people wanting to WAR TOO !  PEACE is trying to leave...and HATE filling in its place! WHY ???? CAUSE satan is out there with more force because the time is DRAWING NIGH ! HE is NOW more than likely already the ANTI_CHRIST ! AND REMEMBER ANTI MEANS AGAINST ! SO satans name is AGAINST CHRIST = ANTI CHRIST in the time before CHRIST returns !
     
    THERE will be the time FOR THE MARK OF THE BEAST which we may already have been in some...but the ACTUAL MARKING to tattoo you so to speak is to come ! THIS IS  something you will have to have at the time to buy and sell ANYTHING! IF you have it not you will NOT be able to eat and get supplies ! SO THIS WILL BE a TEST.... A TEST OF FAITH..... TO KEEP STEADFAST IN GOD AND TRUST HE KEEPS YOU TAKEN CARE OF WITHOUT THIS MARK ! OR TO DENY CHRIST JESUS SON OF GOD AND DIE ! DIE TO BE IN HELL WITH satan... you choose!
     
    HELL, HADES, whatever the name.... IT means to be CAST AWAY FOM GOD...AWAY FROM LIFE EVERLASTING IN HEAVEN !
     
    I have always believed there is a hell.... GOD said so in HIS WORD...and I believe !
    I have always remebered, reading and hearing, about what will happen to non belivers. And any that do not follow GOD and HIS will,"GOD WILL CAST YOU INTO HELL FOR ETERNITY !"  GOD SAYS IT I BELIEVE IT !
    BUT TOO I believe that GOD"S Word says also... (I believe in REVELATIONS)..about.... hell and all and its inhabitants will be purged with fiery flames to nothingness.... (ANY THOUGHT FOM YOU ON THIS?) I believe GOD was stating that those cast into hell with satan ,his demons, and unsaved.... WILL be cast from HIS PRESENCE EVERLASTING into oblivian...or other words emptyness...non existing... burned to dust and blown away! WHY DO I CONCEIVE THIS .... GOD'S OWN WORD SAYS " GOD CANNOT LIVE WHERE EVIL AND FILTH ARE...FOR HE IS ALL GOOD AND RIGHTEOUS !" THAT is why GOD REMOVED HIMSELF TO HEAVEN !  THE VEIL WAS BETWEEN US TILL CHRISTS RETURN>>AND CHRISTS VICTORY !  THEN the KINGDOM of GOD will be REPLINISHED NEW upon the PURGED EARTH !  GOD ALWAYS REFERRED to THE NEW JERUSALEM and to the TEMPLE BEING REOPENED ! GOD'S RETURN- AMEN! 
     
    Purging is a process where everything is burned. Burned away the filth to clean and let the new grow and take place. LIKE when we were younger and mom,dad,or,mawmaw and pawpaw would burn off the yards of their homes to keep weeds away(YES YARDS-grass was for the rich that could afford the lawnmowers or the paid help to mow it)! AND the gardens would be burned off to better the garden soil for new crops(this is still done).
     
     
    We all go through a PURGING  process.....
     
    We saved Christians get sifted and purged by tests.....
     
    Tests to see if we stay steadfast in GOD ,SON(JESUS-CHRIST),AND HOLY SPIRIT !
     
    THESE tests are what we get when we step out of the will of GOD, THAT WE ALL DO saved or not !
     
    THESE tests teach us LESSONS by GOD'S hands to make us the vessel HE needs us to be...
     
    GOD DID NOT choose for us to step out of line... BUT because we do.. then we are chastized LIKE a GOOD FATHER does...
    AND then HE puts us back on the right track...with the new lesson learned that we need later on in our life.... for the works GOD will use us as HIS vessel for ! AFTER ALL you cannot help someone in your life if you have not lived what they have gone through ! AND we all have a different walk and lessons...... YOU KNOW THE different GIFTS GOD gives us for HIS GLORY!
     
     
    AND I SAID that WE ALL get these purging tests..... even the unsaved, heathens, sinners, backsliders,unbelievers,CHRISTIANS.
    WE all were unsaved..... we all get so much on us we humble down till we cry out......
    THING IS WHAT ARE YOU CRYING OUT FOR AND TO WHOM ?
    THE EARNEST,TRULY seeking , REACH OUT IN HONEST HURT,HUMBLENESS, SEEKING, GOD,JESUS,HOLY SPIRIT!
    BUt all of us do this ...ITS JUST not all of humanity DOES it !
    Others cannot fathom or believe enough to get there....
    AND some JUST does NOT want to believe at all..... THIS is usually ...scared .... WHAT IF?...
     
    LET ME tell you about a what if.......... WHAT IF.... YOU WHAT IF YOUR LIFE AWAY TO HELL........
    YOU can ALWAYS say...OK LORD JESUS.... I have heard of you..... AND IT IS A NICE CONCEPT... WILL YOU PLEASE.... SHOW ME.... MAY I have the CHANCE TO MEET YOU.... PLEASE HELP ME....
     
    IF NOTHING happens........ well ..... your in the same boat....
    BUT IF HE SHOWS you....... WELL YOUR SHIP HAS COME IN BABY !!!! HEAVENLY SPIRIT SHOW THYSELF to the asker BY JESUS HOLY NAME AMEN !
     
    LEt me add have heart enough to want a difference... and Faith enough to believe it can happen !
    CALL ON JESUS HE WILL ANSWER.....
    HE will forgive your sins far as the east is from the west which is ETERNALY ENDLESS...
    HE WILL SHOW YOU A NEW HAPPINESS in a LOVE above all you have known on this earth........
     
     
    I KNOW HE IS MY LORD MY SAVIOR !
    PRAISE FATHER(GOD),SON(JESUS)AND HOLY SPIRIT(OR HOLY GHOST)!
     
     
     
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     I came back and read this: I need to add something about the Mark of the Beast I left off;
     
    Not only will we need this Mark for needs of food,clothing,and ect......
     
    THE Mark of the BEast Primely first of all will be...........YES LORD....... OR YES satan.........
    THERE is absolutely NO inbetween......
    YOU either have GOD and excepted the BLOOD OF JESUS as REdeemer SON of GOD......
    OR YOU have CHOSE satan and HELL forever.......AND will be cast from GOD forever.......That is what hell is to be always away from GOD....to be purged to non-existence......... PURGING is a firey beyond measure burning of trash to ashes........
    Such Purging will be worse than a nuclear bomb or many nuclear bombs......Only the saints and saved Of Christ will be able to withstand it !
     
    FREE will of choice........YEA or NEY.........That simple !
    Whats your choice !
     
    In CHRIST
    Patsy
    10-19-2006'
     
     
     
     

    SAFETY=PEACE ... KILLING=DEATH

     
     
     
     
    This video is funny in a waY.....
     
    AND disturbing in a way.....
     
    WE all could carry guns... like these people are pretending to have ! AND shoot one another as shown. THEN less people who want  to KILL would be on this earth!
    OR we can all carry a gun and all back off at the end and walk away alive and peaceful...KNOWING well if I pull my gun...everyone else will TOO ! And  know next time I pull my gun I may be shot....Or I will kill someone and have to live with that all my life !
     
    Then there is always the...... be PEACEFULL to begin with.........RIGHT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
     
    Anyway....Your choice !!!!!
     
     
    MY choice...PEACE !
     
     
    LOVE IN CHRIST !
    PATSY
     
     
    August 29

    My Stay

    My Stay
     
     
    To have Thy complete Will
     
    In my life is what I want
     
    But it sure is hard to be that Christian
     
    And walk the way Jesus believed
     
    To be kind to others
     
    Though they say awful things
     
    To forgive them
     
    When you know they are doing you wrong
     
    To not want to kill the enemy
     
    That just harmed my child
     
    Jesus believed to show God in us at all times
     
    To Bless those that persecute you
     
    And let God take revenge against the evils they gave you
     
    God says HE is the Way the Truth and the LIGHT
     
    No one comes by HIM but through Jesus HIS Son
     
    So I pray to the Father in Jesus Christ's name
     
    And ask him to help me walk the Will He has for me
     
    To help me through the purging flames
     
    That is sifting out the weeds and dirt
     
    Making me the clean vessel HE needs me too be
     
    Be My stay Lord
     
    Be my stay when I am week
     
    When I can do nothing but cry
     
    During the many times I am so confused
     
    Trying to decifer between your truth and satans lies
     
    When my ills and pains are way to much to bare
     
    Reach out and help the pains 
     
    But let me continue in the tests you are testing my Faith with
     
    Thou are my Shield and Buckler
     
    My El Shedai
     
    And My Jahovah Jireh
     
    Whom provides me with all I need
     
    Walk with me Precious Lord
     
    And I cannot fail
     
    No man can harm me
     
    No not one
     
    With your Love and Protection guiding me
     
    You my Lord saved us
     
    According to the plan
     
    To spread the Gospel of God
     
    Through out the Lands
     
    Let me Lord be a Fisher of Men
     
    I have Two volunteering
     
    Willing
     
    Hands
     
    Amen
     
     
     
     
    Thank-You Father,Son, and Holy Spirit !
    Patsy M.Powell
    August 29,2006'
     
     
     
     
     
    August 28

    In Thy Will

     
    In Thy Will
     
                                                                                    
    In Thy Will                                 
                                                                                                                                                                                                   
    Precious Father
     
    In Thy Perfect Will I wish too be
     
    All my life I got side tracked
     
    And No more wish to be lost
     
    But in Thee
     
    And Thee in me
     
    Thy Perfect Will Is never off course
     
    That would make you a liar
     
    God Is truth And Righteousness
     
    All my life I have seen
     
    That without the evil
     
    We would not know the Good
     
    Good Of Jesus Christ
     
    And all He stands for
     
    So too be side stepped
     
    Is not off my path
     
    But along the Path
     
    It is the struggles
     
    That see if I stay steadfast
     
    God sifting the seeds
     
    Getting rid of the weeds
     
    To make me more beautiful
     
    For my walk with HIM
     
    I had cast a lot of prayers over time
     
    Answered and unanswered in my mind
     
    But God my Father heard each one
     
    Giving those that would not harm me
     
    While keeping harmful ones at bay
     
    God my Father kept me safe
     
    We could have had sweet Peace
     
    All the evils never to have been born
     
    But in God's Infinite Wisdom
     
    He let free Will be born
     
    Simply by planning the apple tree
     
    For Eve to pick Its sweet appealing fruit from
     
    And God knowing all things
     
    Let a serpent deceive Eve
     
    Eve with this Wisdom of Evil
     
    Then took the fruit of deception to Adam
     
    No more Good to fully reign on this earth
     
    Toils were born for everyone to work
     
    From there came the line of David
     
    Where the Crown of Life was born
     
    In Jesus Christ
     
    Son of God
     
    Our Redeeming Saviour and  Lord
     
     
     
     
    Thank You Father God for Thy Infinite Wisdom !
     
    Patsy M.Powell
     
    August 28, 2006'
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    August 02

    Anonamous Poem (far as I know friend sent it too me)

    Subject:
    If tomorrow starts without me

    A few weeks ago a woman was killed in an auto accident.
    She was very well liked, so the office shut down for her funeral.
    On the day the workers came back to work, they found this
    poem in their e-mail that the deceased woman had sent on Friday before
    she left work to go home.
    P.S.) If You Know Whom Wrote This Please Let Me Know So I Can Put Her Name On Her Poem-Thanks!I Believe this will be read at My funeral when God calls me ,along with one I wrote for My funeral. Let me see if I can find it now...Hmmm where is it.....????????..... Found it!   Will post under hers.-        indixie
    If tomorrow starts without me

    "If tomorrow starts without me
    And I'm not there to see,
    If the sun should rise and find your eyes all filled with tears for
    me.

    I wish so much you wouldn't cry
    the way you did today,
    While thinking of the many things
    We didn't get to say.


    I know how much you love me
    As much as I love you,
    And each time that you think of me
    I know you'll miss me too.

    But when tomorrow starts without me
    Please try to understand,
    that an angel came and called my name
    And took me by the hand.

    And said my place was ready
    In heaven far above,
    And that I'd have to leave behind
    all those I dearly love.

    But as I turned to walk away
    A tear fell from my eye,
    For all my life, I'd always thought
    I didn't want to die.


    I had so much to live for
    So much left yet to do,
    it seemed almost impossible
    that I was leaving you.


    I thought of all the yesterdays
    The good ones and the bad,
    I thought of all that we shared
    And all the fun we had.


    If I could relive yesterday
    Just even for a while,
    I'd say good-bye and kiss you
    and maybe see you smile.

    But then I fully realized
    That this could never be,
    For emptiness and memories
    would take the place of me.


    And when I thought of worldly things
    I might miss some tomorrow,
    I thought of you, and when I did
    My heart was filled with sorrow.


    But when I walked through heaven's gates I felt so much at home, When
    God looked down and smiled at me From His great golden throne.


    He said, "This is eternity,
    And all I've promised you."
    Today your life on earth is past,
    but here life starts anew.

    I promise no tomorrow
    But today will always last,
    and since each day is the same way
    There's no longing for the past.


    So when tomorrow starts without me
    don't think we're far apart,
    For every time you think of me
    I'm right here, in your heart."

    Send this to all those you care about

    and back to the one who sent it to you.
    because you never know what's going to happen tomorrow

    Show them how you care, before it's too late.

    May God watch over you and your family now and always.

    There is no right time to do the wrong thing

    there is no wrong time to tell someone you care.
     
    ..................................................................................................................................................................

    Happy Birthday Giclee Print by Steve Collier

    My Birthday In Heaven

    I do not wish for a funeral to see me off

    I have seen enough death in my family and friends passing

    I have seen to many hardships near deaths doors just in my life

    It is not I that lie here in this coffin but my body

    My soul is with the Lord being prepared a new wardrobe to wear

    So in remembrance of me its all right too shed a few tears

    But let it be Joyful tears when you remember me

    Think of me in the good times we shared as family and friends

    Too my Children I leave my love as well as take theirs with me

    Too my Family and Friends I take the love and memories we’ve shared

    And I know You will also Take my love and memories with thee

    I am passing from this world of natural flesh only

    I am receiving My spiritual body I will attain for Eternity

    I go to be with My Lord God Almighty

    I can only hope I fully lived the plans He set for ME

    Yes I am Saved By Thee Grace of Christ Jesus

    Please My Loved Ones share this also

    I wish too see You All once more

    On God’s Celestial shores

    Always remember I LOVE YOU !!!

    And Know I Will Be Near You If GOD Allows !!!

    So no I do not wish for a funeral to see me off

    So come now and Wish Me Best Wishes for My First Birthday In Heaven !!!

    LOVE YOU ALL ALWAYS’S and I THANK GOD FOR YOU

    MY SON’S , DAUGHTER’S, FAMILY, and LOVED ONES

     

     

    (personal message for my loved ones)

    See you when you reach HEAVEN, I am not alone but with God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost !!!

    And with all our family and friends that went before me.

    Hey, I can see my loved Pets too !!!!

     

    Patsy  Powell

    indixiesheart

    March 20, 2006’



     
    July 18

    First Penny

    First Penny
    By Bernice Bywater

         My husband and I had birthdays six days apart.  We always celebrated on a day in between by giving ourselves a joint present.  One year we decided to buy a rosebush.  So, on a cold, blustery January day, we set off eagerly for the nursery to make our selection.  After much thought, we chose a gorgeous, velvety, deep burgundy rose named 'Mr. Lincoln.'  With tall, straight stems, it's as stately as our sixteenth president.  It was sure to do well in our Northern California climate.  And since my husband's name was Abe, we thought it a good match.
         We followed the planting directions and by early July, the 'Mr. Lincoln' bush was loaded with lush burgundy blooms.  I cut bouquets for most of July and well into August.
         Years earlier, my husband and I had started a tradition.  We loved to take early morning walks together.  On our walks, the first one to spot a penny could keep the coin for the day's good luck.  At the end of the day, the "First Penny" was deposited in a small crystal dish.  When there were enough pennies in the dish, we'd go out for an ice cream treat for two.
         Years passed, happy years when the roses bloomed and the copper coffer grew.
         Then, it was over.  On a July second, when 'Mr. Lincoln' was in full bloom, my own Abe died.  There would be no more walks, no more talks and no more First Penny contests.  I went to the garden that day, cut a bountiful bouquet of the roses and tearfully closed a chapter of my life.
         Or so I thought.
         A decade passed and on another July second, I set out on my solitary walk.  As I passed our rose garden, I thrilled to the bounty of blossoms on the 'Mr. Lincoln' bush.  My walk took to me to a nearby park, and, as I came up behind the bandstand, there on the path, shining in the morning sunlight, was a bright copper penny!  When I got home, I took the long-unused crystal dish out of the cupboard and put my First Penny in it.
         Each morning in July after that day, I took a walk and found a First Penny - sometimes shiny bright and sometimes tarnished - but always there.  I began to look for it eagerly.  I sensed that a countdown was underway, though I didn't know to what.  One penny, two pennies, three pennies - more.  At the end of July, thirty copper coins were in the crystal dish.
         August first brought me the shining realization that the pennies were counting the days till our wedding anniversary on the eighteenth.  If I found one every day between the anniversary of Abe's passing on July second and our wedding anniversary on August eighteenth, I would have forty-eight pennies.
         Suddenly, I had a thought.  Could it be?  I counted out the years.  Yes, it was true: This would be our forty-eighth wedding anniversary!
         I'm not a superstitious person, but I got hooked.  The small ritual became a consuming passion.  Eighteen days until our anniversary!  I scarcely slept at night waiting for the dawn and First Penny.  I found the penny on the path in the park, in front of the convenience store, in the parking lot at the mall, and in front of the grocery store.  Not a day was missed.
         August eighteenth arrived.  There were forty-seven pennies in the crystal dish.  Would there be that last forty-eighth coin?
         On the afternoon of our anniversary, I drove to the supermarket to pick up some groceries.  On the way back to my car, I looked down and there it was: First Penny, shimmering brightly in the late-morning sun!
         But there was more.  When I returned to my car, there, on the hood, lay a single, long-stemmed 'Mr. Lincoln' rose!
         I picked it up reverently and pressed it to my lips, allowing the tears to flow unashamedly.  How could this be?  How had he done this?  As I stared at the lovely flower in amazement, a young man closed the trunk of the neighboring car and walked up to me.  "Oh," he said.  "Sorry!  That's for my wife.  It's our anniversary."
         "That's quite all right," I said, smiling at him through my tears.  "Thank you.  Thank you so very much."  I handed him the rose, and he smiled at me.
         "You must be thinking of someone special," he said gently.
         "Yes," I replied, "and he's thinking of me."

    Reprinted by permission of Bernice Bywater (c) 2000 from Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Cynthia Brian, Cindy Buck, Marion Owen, Pat Stone and Carol Sturgulewski.  In order to protect the rights of the copyright holder, no portion of this publication may be reproduced without prior written consent.  All rights reserved.

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    My Heart is on the Line

    "My Heart on the Line"

    By Frank Schaeffer
    Tuesday, November 26, 2002
    The Washington Post

    Before my son became a Marine, I never thought much about who was defending me.  Now when I read of the war on terrorism or the coming conflict in Iraq, it cuts to my heart.  When I see a picture of a member of our military who has been killed, I read his or her name very carefully.  Sometimes I cry.

    In 1999, when the barrel-chested Marine recruiter showed up in dress blues and bedazzled my son John, I did not stand in the way.  John was headstrong, and he seemed to understand these stern, clean men with straight backs and flawless uniforms.  I did not.  I live in the Volvo-driving, higher education-worshiping North Shore of Boston.  I write novels for a living.  I have never served in the military.

    It had been hard enough sending my two older children off to Georgetown and New York University.  John's enlisting was unexpected, so deeply unsettling. I did not relish the prospect of answering the question, "So where is John going to college?" from the parents who were itching to tell me all about how their son or daughter was going to Harvard.  At the private high school John attended, no other students were going into the military.

    "But aren't the Marines terribly Southern?" asked one perplexed mother while standing next to me at the brunch following graduation.  "What a waste, he was such a good student," said another parent.  One parent (a professor at a nearby and rather famous university) spoke up at a school meeting and suggested that the school should "carefully evaluate what went wrong."

    When John graduated from three months of boot camp on Parris Island, 3,000 parents and friends were on the parade deck stands.  We parents and our Marines not only were of many races but also were representative of many economic classes.  Many were poor.  Some arrived crammed in the backs of pickups, others by bus.  John told me that a lot of parents could not afford the trip.

    We in the audience were white and Native American.  We were Hispanic, Arab and African American and Asian.  We were former Marines wearing the scars of battle, or at least baseball caps emblazoned with battles' names.  We were Southern whites from Nashville and skinheads from New Jersey, black kids from Cleveland wearing ghetto rags and white ex-cons with ham-hock forearms defaced by jailhouse tattoos.  We would not have been mistaken for the educated and well-heeled parents gathered on the lawns of John's private school a half-year before.

    After graduation one new Marine told John, "Before I was a Marine, if I had ever seen you on my block I would've probably killed you just because you were standing there." This was a serious statement from one of John's good friends, an African American ex-gang member from Detroit who, as John said, "would die for me now, just like I'd die for him."

    My son has connected me to my country in a way that I was too selfish and insular to experience before.  I feel closer to the waitress at our local diner than to some of my oldest friends.  She has two sons in the Corps.  They are facing the same dangers as my boy.  When the guy who fixes my car asks me how John is doing, I know he means it.  His younger brother is in the Navy.

    Why were I and the other parents at my son's private school so surprised by his choice?  During World War II, the sons and daughters of the most powerful and educated families did their bit.  If the immorality of the Vietnam War was the only reason those lucky enough to go to college dodged the draft, why did we not encourage our children to volunteer for military service once that war was done?

    Have we wealthy and educated Americans all become pacifists?  Is the world a safe place?  Or have we just gotten used to having somebody else defend us? What is the future of our democracy when the sons and daughters of the janitors at our elite universities are far more likely to be put in harm's way than are any of the students whose dorms their parents clean?

    I feel shame because it took my son's joining the Marine Corps to make me take notice of who is defending me.  I feel hope because perhaps my son is part of a future "greatest generation." As the storm clouds of war gather, at least I know that I can look the men and women in uniform in the eye.  My son is one of them.  He is the best I have to offer.  He is my heart.
    June 30

    My Hand's are Here Waiting

    My Hand's are Here Waiting
     
     
    Hello my little men
    Do you want to hold my hand
    Let your small fingers grasp mine
     
    Hold my hand when you want too
    Hold my hand cause your scared
    Hold my hand to be secure
     
    When you cross the street
    Be sure to grab hold
    When Something scared you
    My hands here to hold
    Whenever you want a touch
    Grandma is here to give you her love
     
    You never have to push or fight for my love
    Grandma has 2 hands
    When You do not want to hold my hand 
    I have a lap for you to sit in
    And to arms to hug you close my dears
     
    Whether grandma is near or far
    I will  always love you the same
    And my hands are here waiting
    For your fingers too grasp
     
    You are my little men
    And I love you both the same
    Just like I did with your uncle and dad
    I hold tight with love to your hands
     
    One day when you are my big men
    You will have to grasp my little fingers
    Into your two sets of hands
    And you will always know
    Grandma's hand's are always here to hold
     
     
     
     
    To my 2 grandsons Walker 4 and Bryce 2
    ThanK God Almighty for You Both!
    You are Blessings!
    Patsy M.Powell (Mawmaw)
    June 30, 2006'
    June 22

    The Truth and the Light

     
    Jesus sits here Near me
    And He sits there near you
    He is near us in Spirit
    By the Angels He sends us
     
    When we are in despair
    And humbled to our knees
    As we call out for Jesus
    He Himself appears
     
    Jesus wants our company
    He bids us with His Love and Care
    But we simply forget this
    When we lost our innocence of a child
     
    So grief we get
    From the wrong paths we chose
    They bring us caotic feelings
    That grow and grow and grow
     
    We wonder why are we here
    Noone loves me
    But that is a lie satan tells our minds
    So in this desperation
    At the point of suicide
    We learn Jesus Loves me
    Theres a point to our lives
     
    So call upon Jesus
    He loves you and I
    He was created by His Father
    To show us a Good Life
    As well as He died that we may live
    No greater a love than to die
    That others may live
    Others being You and I
    He covered our multitude of sins
     
    Jesus Christ Is the way
    The Truth and the Light
     
     
     
    Praise You My Lord Our Reedemmer!
    Patsy M.Powell
    June 22, 2006'
    June 07

    Naming Worms

     
    Naming Worms
    By Allison McWood

         I think my dad wanted a son.  Instead, he got three daughters.  Seeing as how the son he anticipated was never forthcoming, Dad decided to improvise and I, being his youngest, won the privilege of being nurtured outdoors.
         Being turned into a tomboy didn't bother me in the least.  I loved putting on my plaid, flannel shirt and doing things outside with Dad, especially fishing.  Whether we oared across a lake in a rowboat or hiked down a cliff with nothing more than a hook and some string, I could think of no better way for a dad and his little girl to spend the day.
         I would marvel at how patient and focused Dad was when he fished.  He would concentrate on his line for hours at a time.  If he was any more calm, he would have slipped into a coma.  This used to drive me bananas.  Being seven years old, I craved more excitement.  I imagined a huge fish, bigger than me, gulping down my bait and flapping ferociously in the water until I heroically hauled it into the rowboat.  This never happened.  Instead, I would spend my time watching Dad as he stared intently at his line.  He never blinked, sometimes for the whole day.  How could he be so patient?
         One day Dad's patience was put to the test when my fascination shifted from the fish to the bait.  While waiting for a nibble on my line, I peeked into the can of worms we had in the rowboat with us.  I dug my little fingers into the moist soil and pulled a resisting worm from his burrow.  I let him squirm (I decided it was a "he") across my hand.  It tickled.  I took another worm from the can.  Then another.  Then another.  Soon, three or four worm heads popped out of the soil to see what all the commotion was about.  I was in love.
         I felt as though I had made a can-full of new friends that would keep me company during these long, uneventful fishing trips.  Each worm was given a name according to his personality.  When you are seven years old, worms have personalities.  There was something endearing about my mucous-covered companions with no faces.  I promised each of them that not one would be put on a hook and fed to the fish.
         Then disaster struck.  Dad pulled Hamilton out of the can.  I gasped in horror as he attempted to manipulate his poor, writhing body onto a hook.  There was a terrified look where Hamilton's face would have been, if he had a face.
         "Daddy, No!  Don't put Hamilton on the hook!  He's my favorite!"
         Dad raised an eyebrow.  "You named the worm?" he asked in disbelief.
         Exhaling and shaking his head, Dad pulled out another worm.  It was Wigglesworth.  He was the skittish one who was particularly worried about being used as bait.  I had made a special promise to him and could not possibly allow the poor little guy to be hooked, for I was a woman of my word.
         "That's Wigglesworth!  Don't hurt him!"
         Dad's frustration grew as he pulled more worms from the can.  First Winthrop, the shy worm.  Then Slimey, the friendly worm.  And Marvin the show-off.  Finally, Dad pulled out Maxwell, Sammy, O'Reilly, Buster and Doug.  Dad groaned as I pleaded for him to not hurt my friends.
         "Don't tell me you named all of the worms in this can."
         With a sheepish nod, our fishing trip was suddenly over.
         The next day, Dad drove into town and picked up a bucket of crawfish.  When he brought them back to the cottage, I opened the lid and peeked in.  I heard a despairing yelp emerge from his throat - I turned around to see him running frantically toward me, with his arms flailing and a look of terror on his face.
         "No!  You have to quit making friends with the bait!"

    Reprinted by permission of Allison McWood (c) 2000 from Chicken Soup for the Fisherman's Soul by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Ken McKowen and Dahlynn McKowen.  In order to protect the rights of the copyright holder, no portion of this publication may be reproduced without prior written consent.  All rights reserved.

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    May 23

    His Hand Hold's Mine

    His Hand Hold's Mine
     
    As a little girl with cotton blonde hair
    I played with my Daddy upon the bed
     
    He let me do things even though I was small
    Like throw his cigerrette down the camode
    Boy I thought it was something to hold fire
    And flush the comode
     
    He was not part of the family no more
    As we got Older
    But he was always my Dad
    Whether we got to see him or not
     
    Now and then over time
    We would get a call
    Daddy's coming to see us
    And I would dance the charleston jig
    To a Marty Robbins record
    As mom would laugh at me
     
    And once again Daddy would hold my hand
    Putting us three in his ride for the weekend
    Teenager now I would watch the way to his house
    Telling him every nook and cranny to Alabam
     
    Dad was funny most the time
    He was mean at times
    But he was always Dad