Friends

Hello Everyone!!

This post will be about friends, old and new. I find myself today a little richer, and happier, and realizing that life is a wonderful thing.

There was a time in my life when I looked around me and thought that I had no friend whatsoever, no one who loved me, or cared about me, what I thought, felt, if I lived or died, etc. Now, I know that was Satan's work, or maybe it was just depression. When I look around me now, I find friends galore, all over the country. I work alone, just me and my boss. Yet, I have friends in Maine, Texas, Florida, California, Michigan, Oregon, Britain, Africa, Canada, North Carolina, as well as Memphis. Some are old friends and some are new. Some are due to this blog, some are due to other reasons. Some I have met through work, some through Church. One is named just like me! But, all are precious to me. Some are relatives, like my daughters, sisters-in-law, daughter-in-law, and mother-in-law. Most are women, but some are men. Some are from old days like grade school. I have two like that. Actually, I have three, but one - well, she's kind of MIA right now. I need to locate her. Some I have allowed to drift away. I should not have done that. We should never do that. I know that NOW. Because some are gone forever. They are lost to to the unknown or to the grave. And things I would have said, I cannot say.

I've always been a bit of a loner. I was an "only child." You know, one of those kids everyone thinks is spoiled rotten. Some are, I suppose. I guess I was in my way. But, then there's the other side. Who do the folks have to blame when something is done? There's only one person, isn't there? There's no sibling rivalry, so there's a lot of aloneness. The "onlies" tend to rely on themselves. Or, they become entirely too dependent on the parents. For some reason, I was also a bit of an outcast. I never knew why. So, friends were great, but I learned to do without them. Now, later in life, finding myself with so many, even though I don't see them every day, and many of them are on-line buddies, I feel wealthy.

It is so very important that we encourage our young ones, especially girls, to befriend those who are friendless and to take up for those who are being put upon by more popular and prettier girls. Although I may sound like Ann Landers or Miss Manners, I only speak from experience and from what I have seen. We will all "like" ourselves eventually. But, it is easier if we can do it sooner than later, and that happens if we have good, faithful friends to lean on.

With Love, I am totally Over the Hill.

The Body Snatcher and the Only Solution I Can Find

What a Beautiful Vista! This is a photo of Ireland I took off of the internet.

One of the things that you learn as you get older is that you get smarter. In many cases, you get more attractive, or at least, you are more comfortable in your own skin. Then it hits - the Over the Hill syndrome. First, there's high blood pressure, cholesterol, maybe it's diabetes. There are a myriad of things that hit us as we get older. Our eyes fail us, hearing, the hair goes in the men. In the women, it's wrinkes, crows feet, all those cosmetic things that drive us crazy.

Then sometimes, we get hit with horrid things, like cancer, multiple sclerosis or leukemia or equally as evil ailments that rob us of life.

There is an ailment out there that is little known. It hides in the shadows, strikes without warning, steals your health, your strength, your abilities, your hope.

I was never a big fan of scary movies, but if I had to make a parallel to a scary movie, it would be the Body Snatcher. One night, you go to bed fine, and the next day, you wake up, an invalid. You are not the same person any more. Walking, driving, household chores, everything is extremely difficult. If you do any of these things, such as take a walk, or clean your house, you will most likely pay for it the next day by being in bed the entire day, unable to move.

At this point in my life, I find myself afflicted with this horrid disease. It began to come on me I believe sometime in the year 2000. I've always been rather strong willed so I blew it off, and continued to do so. But began having to take thyroid meds and then this med and then that med and on and on we went. After hip surgery in 2001, I was unable to recover as I should have. I found myself falling deeper and deeper into a pit I could not get out of. I would have wandering pains. First, my knees hurt, then my shins, then my ankles. My heating pad was my best friend, along with my Darvocet, which didn't help much.

I realize this is a rather depressing subject, but I beg you to stick with me. The subject is not about ME, per se. There are many of us. This disease is very difficult to get diagnosed and many times, will go undiagnosed. Many times, if you try to tell your doctor you have this disease, he/she will pooh-pooh you, telling you it's all in your head, that you need to lose weight, get more exercise, etc. And, herein lies the rub. If we could, we would. But, we are no longer ourselves. The most evil part of this disease is that there is nothing - no nothing that can be done for the sufferer.

Since I am strongwilled, I have refused to give up hope that I would someday get better. I've only been diagnosed for a few months, but have known that something was desperately wrong for a long, long time. I can't and won't tell you I haven't gotten angry and complained and yelled and cried and all of those things - I have. But, when I get my wits back, I go to the Lord and tell Him I'm sorry, that I love Him.

You see, my strength has been in my Lord. I know He has a purpose in this, I just do not know what. Possibly to make me depend on Him, to make me listen to His still small voice instead of depending on myself, which I have been so likely to do all of these years. I don't know.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is not fatal. Sometimes you wish it was. But, with the help of others and the knowledge that God is in Control, I will prevail.

Maybe He gave me this to minister to others. If so, so be it. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is GOOD, and He will take care of us, if we let Him.

To God be the Glory, Amen

My Love of Birds

Hello everyone!

Today's article will be about my love of birds. This love began early. I don't know how early. I learned after I became a "birder" that my grandmother also shared this passion, as did my favorite aunt, her daughter. I've always loved nature, being outdoors and things wild. But birds - they were special. I remember that at one point in my life I worked with a lady who had what she called a side porch. Occasionally, she would come in and say, "Those d--m birds woke me up again this morning!" I recall thinking to myself, how much nicer than an alarm. I can't think of anything nicer than waking up to bird song. No, I realize there are a few people that disagree. Vinnie, the character in "My Cousin Vinnie," for instance. He probably would prefer an alarm. To each his own.

When I decided to pursue the hobby of birdwatching, now commonly known as "birding," the first thing I had to do was buy a field guide and a pair of binoculars. I opted for what was the best field guide at that time and probably still is, if you're going to have only one, Peterson. Now don't get me wrong, there are many field guides out there and they are all good in their own way. I have found that what works for me is to have more than one on hand. The Peterson guide has drawings instead of photos. That may seem like a drawback but usually, it isn't. The photos will usually catch the birds at the wrong angle. But having both on hand is a good thing.

The next task was to learn the birds. I would spend hours pouring over the field guide. Then I got another field guide and I would spend hours pouring over it. Now, we all know the common birds of our area, Robins, Blue Jays, Mourning Doves, House Sparrows, etc. But, I began to realize there were many more. My husband would take me to parks, wooded areas, lakes - any place where birds I had not seen before might be seen. It was such a joy. Of course, all of my friends dubbed me "Miss Jane Hathaway" of the Beverly Hillbillies fame, although I never wore a silly costume like that. I took all of the magazines, and whenever I could afford it, I would buy the latest field guide or book. On one occasion, my husband asked me if I didn't think I had enough bird books. I told him a birder could NEVER have enough bird books. I think most, if not all, birders would agree with me.

Now, years later, I am not able to get out and go "birding." But, I have my books, I have the internet, and I have my memories, memories of walking down the lake at Morrow Mountain State Park in North Carolina and being "followed" by a Prothonotary Warbler. I also have many other memories that are oh so precious to me. I can't list them all here.

I am hoping that I can share my passion with my grandchildren when they are old enough. My son has expressed an interest in birds and did volunteer work last year at Flamingo Gardens in Hollywood, Florida, taking photos of the there birds for their website.

If you have never taken a look at birds, I urge you to take time to look at them, appreciate their music and beauty. They are fragile, and yet they are so very strong. A Ruby-Throated Hummingbird will make the flight across the Gulf of Mexico non-stop. It is the size of a Fisher Price Little People toy (approximately). The more I learn about them, the more I love them.

**Ask Me About My Grandchildren--

I always wondered what that meant. Now, I know. I have three of the most precious (well, what do you expect me to say?) grandchildren on the planet. Adam will be five in December. He is very smart. Right now, we are having a bit of a problem with him because he is having a bit of a problem with the school he is in. But, he is in PreK, and the teacher is teaching him on a second grade level. Whenever she leaves him to teach the other less advanced students, he gets a little - distracted. Andrew, who will be three in November, is just a normal little boy. He loves his matchbox cars and his Little People toys. Victoria is Florida. I don't get to see her much. She will be a year old in December.

Being a grandmother is a great joy. Most grandparents will tell you that if they had known how much the little darlings would mean to them, they would have skipped the kids and gone straight to the grandkids. Grandparents and grandchildren are so close to each other because they have a common enemy the kid's parents. Ha! My daughter didn't think that was very funny. It is an opportunity for Grandparents to do a lot of the things they didn't have the time or the money or the sense, in some cases, to do when their own children were young. Parents, don't wish for your children to not grow up. Not that you can't stop the growing proccess, but you would be missing out on the best part of their lives, and yours.

With love, I am totally Over the Hill.

Autumn, Grandsons, and Things

Hello everyone!

I hope all of you folks out there in blogger land are doing well. I am going to start this blog differently, with a Scripture. This is one of my favorites.

"Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls." Jeremiah 6:16

We live in a world that is speeding up, leading us into ever more confusing areas of life. It is difficult to know what to do sometimes, especially if a person is young, because of peer pressure, pressure from what is seen in ads on TV, magazines, billboards, etc. This is a good verse to remember when confusion sets in. In the book of Judges a phrase is repeated over and over, "and every man did what was right in his own eyes." Unfortunately, it was not what was right in God's eyes. It is important for us to remember that just because it is an accepted practice in our society, it is not necessarily a right thing. God has His laws. They are clear in His Word. I have found that joy, true joy, is in the attempt to follow God's will and His ways. Stand in the ways and see, look for the old paths, where the good way is, that's where the rest is. With Love

I have quite a few friends in mourning this morning (that's another set of duplicate words I will have to explain to my grandson) of the Chicago Cubs. Many of us were hoping they would break their curse and get it done this year. Ah, but there's always next year. Joe Torre has something to prove to the Yanks and I think that is the point. And to quote our good friend Forrest Gump that's all I have to say about that!

My young grandson Adam, whose photo is above, and I had quite a day together yesterday. Adam will be five in December. He can read, write and reason like a child much older. Of course, you must remember I AM, his grandmother. We were having a discussion yesterday about the words "son" and "sun," and the difference in the two. When a person usually meets a four year old, the child usually drops his eyes and begins to contemplate his shoes. Not Adam. He will tell you everything about himself in five minutes. He is presently attending a Catholic school, although we are not Catholic, and has already learned to recite parts of the prayers in Latin. I'm not terribly excited about that, but the concept of his learning Latin does excite me. Now, understand, I personally refuse to get involved in this election. Please don't comment on this. But, my daughter, Stacy, Adam's mother has enough excitement about Barak Obama for ten people. Adam walked into my house yesterday and said to me, "Gramma, talk to me about Barak Obama." Did I mention he's four and one half years old?

The weather has been beautiful here in southwest Tennessee, cool clear nights, warm sunny days, very dry, just the kind of weather for a beautiful Autumn. We are still having Hummingbirds. I saw one on the feeder yesterday morning. One of my birding Gurus, Laura Erikson, says that the feeders should be left up all winter, as does the official Hummingbird website. From September 15th to October 15th approximately, we were covered up with Ruby Throats. It was terribly exciting. One beautiful Sunday afternoon, they buzzed and twittered around the house and feeders, and drove my two cats crazy, especially the younger one. My husband, Robert, set up his video camera and took about twenty minutes of video through the screen. We tried to capture some stills, but the combination of taking the video through a screen and those little wings beating at however many zillion times a minute - well, it didn't work. All I can do is tell you it was marvelous.

I am looking forward to the arrival of the White-Throated Sparrows and the Juncos, the winter visitors, and to the Sapsuckers. There are other winter visitors, but they are the most visible. I haven't mentioned that I suffer from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which has made getting out and doing any birding these last few years very difficult. Now that I have been diagnosed, and am on medication, maybe I will feel like getting out and doing some birding this fall, and especially this next spring, but that is a blog for another day.

With love, I am totally Over The Hill.

Martha