Daydream Believer

Remember that song, by the Monkees? Whenever I hear it, I want to cry. When I was a girl, seven or so years old, I remember sitting out on our front porch and listening to it. It reminds me of my youth. As a kid I couldn’t wait to be an adult and now not a day goes by that I don’t day dream about being a kid.

Since I last wrote, my sister had gallbladder surgery and then six weeks after my Dad died, my aunt passed away. It’s a crazy, mixed up time for us. None of it seems real and I at times I really believe that someday everything will be the way it was. All that I can ask from anyone right now is prayer. Especially for my mother. It has hit her the hardest. It was her husband who died, and her baby sister she lost. If we didn’t have faith in Christ and the promise of Heaven, we’d be lost right now. In many ways we are lost, but we know that we’ll find our way again and that it won’t always be hard for us.

I don’t know much else to say. I have been writing; manically almost. Whether it’s much good or not, time will tell. I have tried my hand at shorter pieces and have submitted them to various places. Maybe this sounds crass, but it’s to make a bit of a name for myself and earn a little money. I need to do something.

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers. God bless and love to you all!

Random Chanukah Thoughts

I wish that I could celebrate Chanukah, and other Jewish holidays too. I suppose that there is nothing really preventing me from doing it except my own ignorance of the holiday and laziness. Despite my belief that we have Jewish heritage, we’re Protestant and have never observed the holiday. I know some about it but not nearly enough to celebrate it properly. There is a Messianic Synagogue in town and we have attended it and could probably celebrate it with them, but the last few Saturdays have been too hectic to visit.

Thanks to my Mom, I first learned about Chanukah when I was a teenager. She had heard about it from my Grandma. Actually, the word “Chanukah” wasn’t mentioned at all; we called it the story of the Maccabees. Where Grandma picked up the story of the Maccabees, I don’t know, but early on in my parents’ marriage, she shared the story with my Mom. Then later on Mom passed it on down to me. When I started doing research about Judaism I learned that Chanukah was the result of the Maccabees. Not only that, I discovered that Chanukah was not the Jewish version of Christmas, as I had thought. It was a holiday that proceeded Christmas by several hundred years.

I wish my church, and all Christian denominations, observed Chanukah and the other Jewish holidays. I mean there is more of a Scriptural basis for the Jewish holidays than there are for the Christian ones. Jesus really wasn’t born on December 25; the 25th was originally a pagan holiday and the early church replaced that holiday with “Jesus’ birthday.” Don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas and I do my best to remember Christ at this time of year. But I think adding Chanukah and the other Jewish holidays to our “Christian” calendar would increase our understanding of the Bible and the Jewish roots of our religion.

Whenever I study about Judaism, I feel closer to Christ. He was a Jew; He celebrated Chanukah, Purim, Passover, Rosh Hashanah, etc. I think Chanukah ought to be as respected and as valued as Christmas. Whenever I spot a menorah in someone’s window, I think “right on.” It’s something to be proud of and I wish that I could share in that pride.

Oh well, maybe we can celebrate it next year. Have a Happy Chanukah!

When Its Hot, It’s Hot!

Whew! Summer may have officially arrived a few days ago, but here in Indiana it already feels like the dog days of summer. We don’t have air conditioning and have to make do with screens in our windows and fans. It doesn’t bother me so much unless I’ve worked hard outside and need a reprieve. The nights can be stifling as well, but other than that it isn’t too unbearable.

We have a garden too. Of course a lot of folks have been planting gardens this year, titling them “Recession Gardens.” It’s sort of a throw back to WWII when families planted Victory Gardens in their flowerbeds to save money and to “win the war!” I’ve discovered something, I like working in our garden and I’m actually good at it. Whenever I finish with it for the day, I feel a sense of accomplishment. When Dad said it was too hot to work outside today, I felt disappointed.

Mom is still looking for a job. There are job openings at Kroger’s, K-Mart, Fashion Bug and clerical position at a local hospital. As for Dad, that job at the local high school didn’t pan out. However a couple teachers might be retiring this year so we’re in prayer that something might work out.

Our church is doing better and it doesn’t look like it’s going to close. People were just taking for granted God’s hard work and needed a wake up call. I actually, I needed one too. Often enough I forget to pray for my church and the minister, his wife and all the other elders and deacons.

Right now I’m editing my series and am now working on the third book. There’s a lot to add and revise in this one, but not as much as I’ll have to do until I start revising the fourth. I’m finding that information in post-WWII Poland is scarce. Most of the non-fiction books out there deal with the political aspect rather than the every day life of the average Joe, which is what I need.

When it Rains, It Pours

Ain’t that the truth! To begin with, a few weeks ago my Mom learns that as of Sept 30th, 2009, she will no longer have a job at the local university. It’s difficult not to have hard feelings over this because the reason she was laid-off has nothing to do with financial difficulties; it was over a personal vendetta. Mom was/is so devoted to her work, she gives her all and to see her treated this way more than hurts. There is a silver lining to this though, she’s no longer have to endure their grief. And it’s more than likely that Dad will be working full time at a high school. You know the old saying: when God closes a door, He opens a window.

My Dad’s cousin went in for surgery corroded artery and had a negative reaction to it. She had to be sedated and put on a ventilator. She’s puffy and her blood pressure and potassium levels were hinky but now seem to be improving. Yesterday she opened her eyes, was responsive to her sister and family, and could answer some questions. Any prayers you could offer her would be appreciated. Not only for healing but for peace of mind. She’s kind of a Nervous Nellie when it comes to things like this.

Saturday, June 6th was D-day, you know; the 65th anniversary of the Allied invasion of Normandy and Nazi occupied Europe. That day is always important to us because so many of our relatives served in WWII and were involved with it (particularly our Grandpa). His younger brother Allen went over on D-day plus 3 (June 9, 1944). Anyway, Uncle Allen died on Saturday, at age 87. He was such a sweetheart; he was the type who brightened the whole room just by walking in. Our Grandpa died when we were young, and it wasn’t like Uncle Allen took his place. But he was always kind and supportive of us. He’d patiently answer our questions about WWII, the past, family history and never displayed any jealousy or annoyance whatsoever when we’d bring up our Grandpa or brag on him. He was proud of his older brother and helped fill in a lot of gaps that we had about Grandpa’s military career. Uncle Allen will be missed by all, but he’s so much more content where he is now than where he was. He was in and out of the nursing home for the last year and was completely miserable there. That long with the fact that his sweetheart, Alice, no longer recognized him (she has dementia) broke his heart. But there’s no doubt in my mind that Uncle Allen is completely whole; he was always vocal about his faith in Christ. I can easily imagine him walking down a street of gold, chatting with his older brother and sister, maybe even eating a banana. (He loved bananas.)

And for the last bit of news- I got a call from Mom. The church board members met yesterday after we were dismissed and discussed finances. According to Mom, it was decided that if tithing doesn’t improve, our church will close… BY THE END OF THIS MONTH!!! Not to brag, but we tithe out 10% regularly so our conscience is clean. However, so many others don’t. This really bites. Because of the selfishness of others we all must suffer. Okay, I shouldn’t judge, but it hurts. Spring Creek just celebrated its 20th anniversary a few months ago. Please, please, please pray that God will move on the hearts of the congregation to give. Please, I’m begging you! I don’t know what I’ll do if this church closes; I’ve grown more spiritually here than at any other church I’ve attended. I know God’s Will be done in the end, but sometimes that’s a hard pill to swallow.

If you’re interested to learn more about our church, please click here.