Poems, Personal Stories, and Observations

Archive for the ‘Personal story’ Category

Let the little children …

Some people have a lot more appreciation of children than I do. Part of that may be my upbringing, or the feeling that, though children can be delightful, they create a lot of work. Put it down to my laziness, perhaps, which is one of my many faults. Also, I was not raised with a strong work ethic, as many are fortunate to have been. Or even, perhaps, because I don’t know/have the best childrearing skills, I find it difficult at times.

Fast forward to my current life. Having had the blessing of two children in California, one who is in her late twenties and the other in his early thirties, my husband and I moved to Ohio three years ago to be near them and our grandchildren. Being in my late sixties, I envisioned a life of relative ease, compared to when I was a full time mom/homemaker, who volunteered and did some part time paid work.

It has turned out that I work a lot harder than some other periods of my life. I’m growing vegetables in our backyard. I grow a lot of these from seed, in our basement, and when I grow too many, I pot them up and give them away. I do a lot of the other garden work, except lawn mowing, and large shrub and tree trimming. Of course, there’s house cleaning and laundry, and washing dishes by hand, since our dishwasher is not working correctly. I do some cooking, but not every day, and we are fortunate to be able to eat out sometimes. We also have two cats, one of which requires medicine twice a day. Church and volunteering takes up some time, about 10-12 hours per week. There are other day to day tasks, and somewhat frequent doctor appointments, averaging once or twice a week.

The other added task — or opportunity, or blessing, to put it positively — is helping watch our three current grandchildren. I rarely do this alone, but usually with my husband or with the other grandparents. Even with their help, I find it very tiring at times, but also rewarding.

So, a few days ago, while anticipating the fun and the work, I was partly excited and partly grumbly. Part of me wanted a nice quiet, peaceful day. I kept praying for a better attitude, and the Lord answered me by putting a Scripture verse in my head: “but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”” (Matthew 19:14). I knew then that I could count on God’s help, and that He was, and is, changing my attitude for the better.

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Commentary, Personal story

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Date Night Near the Little Miami

My husband and I decided we’d like a night out at a nice restaurant which we go to occasionally.  It is situated right on the Little Miami River in Ohio, with some outdoor seating.  

It was Saturday, and as we approached, I said, “Wait, it’s Saturday after 6, probably crowded, and they probably have their amplified music.” We don’t like amplified music at meals because it’s hard to hear each other when talking.  And as we drew near, the parking lot was full to overflowing, so we passed by. We would go again on a slower night, because the food is excellent.

So, what next?  I saw a sign for the Schoolhouse Restaurant.  It’s a unique place, sometimes with long waits, but not always.  I said, “Want to go there?” and my husband agreed.

We entered and asked the person at the front, “How long is the wait?” 

The man answered, “I can make it as long as you want!”

Actually, unlike two other times, we got seated pretty quickly.

Two special things about this restaurant:

1) It’s a real old schoolhouse, built in the 1860s.  The menu is on a chalkboard on one wall of the restaurant.  There are many schoolroom artifacts, such as maps, a globe, and pictures of Washington and Lincoln.

2) The food is served family style, meaning you do order an entree, but then everyone in your party shares the side dishes of coleslaw, salad, mashed potatoes, kernel corn, green beans, and corn bread with butter.

Near the end of our meal, I noticed a first responder talking to a woman two tables away.  Emergency vehicles had quietly arrived, and apparently she was having a health issue.

On leaving the restaurant, we saw a fire engine, an ambulance, and a sheriff’s car outside, all blocking our egress.  No problem, we were not in a hurry.  I went for a walk and my husband stayed in the car.

Shortly before the emergency vehicles cleared out, I saw the distressed woman walking with an officer, so I guess she was somewhat okay.

Always an adventure when you go out for the evening!

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Personal story

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Home Sweet Home!

Some interesting observations of southwest Ohio, in contrast to my previous home in the SF Bay Area, California.

1) If you want to hire someone for certain services, like tree trimming, gutter cleaning, lawn mower tune up, HVAC service, etc., expect to wait 6 to 8 weeks until the people are available. This may have to do with weather fluctuations and/or lack of personnel. You will eventually come up in the queue and they will give you a ring.

2) Some towns allow golf carts to drive on non-major roads.

3) People in my neighborhood WAVE TO EACH OTHER 90% of the time, whether you’re both walking, both in cars, or one of each. I even had a police officer wave at me. 😊

4) When you apologize for what you think might be a mistake, people say, “You’re good!”

5) This neighborhood is super quiet, except when there are occasions for fireworks. Some nearby neighbors had a lot of cars at their house (party?), but it was the quietest event I never heard. Also, there seems to be a gun range nearby, but I haven’t figured out where.

6) It’s definitely bug season now, as I have about ten bites at the moment. Thank God for Caladryl (calamine lotion)!

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Personal story

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Lost Item Axiom

For the last several days, we’ve been looking for our glue guns so that my hubby can fix a wooden item. After several days of searching, we happened to be at a store, so we decided to buy a glue gun, reasoning: “Maybe we gave the old ones away.”

Well, an hour after we got home, I happened to be in the basement for another reason, and noticed an open moving box with four shoebox-sized boxes inside it. Spotting one of them, I thought, “Wait a minute, that looks like the old glue gun box.” Sure enough, it was.

We will be returning an unopened new glue gun soon.

Axiom: If you can’t find an item, buy a new one, and the old one will soon turn up.

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Personal story

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Beautiful and Terrible

I was visiting my medical oncologist for a follow-up appointment. I’ve been apparently cancer free for about five years now, after bouts with kidney and breast cancer. Fortunately both were detected quite early on.

While waiting in the exam room, I looked up to notice a white board with scribbled writing on it. The first scribble, on the upper left, was: “Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don’t be afraid.” The second scribble, in the lower right corner, said “Fear ye not, for I am with ye. Yea, I am with ye always.” Then in the upper right corner was a picture from a movie, I think, but the caption was, “Hasta la vista, melanoma — the Terminator.”

These little sayings struck me profoundly. ”Beautiful and terrible,” for sure. The world is full of so much suffering, like cancer, war, violence and hatred, to name a few, but with so much beauty as well: nature, human love, forgiveness, mercy, art, and many other things. But the saying ends bravely with the words, “Don’t be afraid.” Upon further research, I learned that the quote is by Frederick Buechner, a Presbyterian minister who had a painful childhood, his family moving about almost every year, and his father committing suicide when he was fourteen. Despite those events, he went on to become a prolific writer and a preacher.

The next saying echoes the first, although its original was written long before the first saying. Again, “Fear ye not.” As far as I can tell, this is partly from Isaiah 41:10 and from Matthew 28:20, or perhaps three or four other places in the New Testament where Jesus tells his disciples to not be afraid. I think we humans need constant reminders not to be afraid.

So, the doctor arrived and after some discussion, I was told I could finish my five years of medication in June. Also, after the exam, he said I was healing well. So it was all good news. When he went out the door, I got emotional, I suppose from relief that all was well. As I went to the car and in the car, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed. ”I shouldn’t even be alive, and here I am!”

All praise to God, who has allowed me to continue living for His purposes, which I don’t always know or understand.


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Personal story

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The Quirks of Family History

So my husband spent much of his young life growing up in eastern Ohio. Since he had many, many cousins, I started gathering data to keep track of everyone, but also got interested in the past.

I learned that his ancestors on his dad’s side came to America a few years before the American Revolution (unlike mine, who are very recent). Eventually some of them moved to western Ohio.

Another interest of mine is cemeteries, and when we have time we visit them at random. One day we picked a cemetery in Indian Hill, Ohio. While walking around, Tom asked, “What’s that pyramid-like structure over there?” We walked over, and much to our surprise, the pyramid had the original spelling of his family name carved on it! It was a family plot, and upon researching, the persons buried nearby were relations. Amazing!

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family, Personal story

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Nostalgia

So I seem to be getting more and more nostalgic.

Recently we were on a day trip in our car and inquired from someone about how to get an ice cream cone. I had said to my husband that I thought at least once in a summer, on a hot day, a person should buy an ice cream at an ice cream shop. I wanted to enjoy that happy memory.

Well, we ended up at a soft serve place, kind of like Dairy Queen or Foster’s Freeze. I ordered a SMALL chocolate cone, dipped in chocolate, like my dad used to get us as an occasional treat.

When the item was presented, it was more like a GIANT ice cream, about five or six inches taller than the top of the cone, and at quite a low price! As a child, I might have gotten one that was three or four inches taller than the cone, at most.

Being a hot day, we decided to eat the cones inside to prevent melting. Ha! Soon enough, we had ice cream dripping off our faces and onto the table, with piles of napkins to mop things up. A clerk took pity on us and offered cups to put the mess in. Finally finishing up, we thanked the clerk and left.

Next day, our blood sugar was way up (we are both Type 2 diabetic).

Well, it was fun, but maybe in the future I’ll try to make new memories, since the old ones don’t always work.

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Personal story

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Veterinary Nurses

This past week my husband and I have been veterinary nurses for our older (about 13 years old) cat Josie. The vets diagnosed her with rhinitis, sinusitis, and gastritis. Yikes! I can’t figure our how she got the infections; she’s an indoor cat living with one other indoor car and my husband and me.

The whole week has been a great exercise in patience: giving the cat pills (4 to 5 a day), feeding her liquified cat food through a syringe (3 to 5 times a day), and cleaning up the ugly messes she makes at her water bowl. She was drooling a lot and her eyes and nose were a mess.

My husband is an angel in the patience department. He has gotten several scratches. I was ready to give up half way through the week, and he said, “Why are you so negative?”

One can debate about how much time and money to spend on a pet, but as long as there’s reasonable hope of recovery, which the vet thinks there is, we can keep going, unless it interferes with higher concerns (grandkids, etc.). Of course, we are retired so we have the time, but even before this, I don’t know if I’ve ever had so many physical tasks (the vegetable garden, for one, and except maybe when the kids were young) in my life. I suppose that the one time we had a renter living with us was also a lot of work.

God does care about animals. Were not many of them saved on Noah’s ark? But humans have priority.

“For every animal of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird of the mountains, And everything that moves in the field is Mine. (Psalm 50:10-12)

“Should I not also have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 people, who do not know the difference between their right hand and their left, as well as many animals?” (Jonah 4:11)

“Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.” (Matthew 10:29-31)

‘Then he said to them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that has fallen into a well, will you not immediately pull it out on a sabbath day?”’ (Luke 14:5)

About ten days after the first symptoms, Josie is starting to eat on her own again. The extra care is paying off! We’ll keep it up.

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Personal story

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Refugees

Last Saturday at our church, we had an event that was part of a series on Truth, Goodness, and Beauty. That particular night was about Goodness, specifically how even through difficult circumstances, there is a lot of good to be found. That night a family of five (most especially the mother) presented their story of fleeing Ukraine as refugees of the current war. I was intrigued to hear about their experience, especially since my parents were refugees from Hungary around 1946.

While the mom was speaking, I found myself on the verge of tears several times. Throughout the talk, she cited Bible verses that had given her encouragement. She talked about their decision to leave Ukraine, which included leaving her parents behind. It took them five days to reach the border, with hundreds or thousands of cars creeping along the roads. Many people along the way offered them food and clothing. Gas stations gave out a limited supply of fuel. When they did reach the border, others helped them with paperwork, etc., and they entered into Poland.

Soon after, they were offered beds and showers at a convent. It was their first safe place where they could rest and get cleaned up. That was another highlight of the goodness of others. In five more days, they were able to come to the United States. They received a lot of help, during the total of these ten days, from the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic organization, of which the father is a member. Eventually the mother’s parents also came to the United States, in an even shorter time frame.

After the talk, I approached the mother to thank her for coming, and mentioned that my parents had been Hungarian refugees. Then I started crying and had to quickly escape. After so many years, and the fact that my PARENTS, not me, were refugees, I didn’t understand why I was reacting so strongly, and perhaps I never will. I was amazed that after the Ukrainian family’s ordeal, the mother was able to stand in front of an audience and not break down.

I won’t go into it much here, but I thought of many reasons why my parents situation was a bit different and possibly more traumatic, but not necessarily. For one, it was a much longer process for them; they were refugees for perhaps five years, not ten days. Their travel to the United States was much longer; perhaps about two months by boat and train; no jets for them! But there could be other reasons: emotional, family background, financial, and other factors.

In the end, I’m very grateful that the United States accepted them and that I’m here today.

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Personal story

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The God Who Loves You

Here was another life-changing book for me. I can’t find the exact quote, but the idea in the book that hit me like a ton of bricks was “God creates only out of love. That means He made me only out of love. Therefore, my reason for existence is love.” Something like that, anyway. I will edit this if I can find the exact quote.

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book review, Personal story

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