Thankful day

I came into the office earlier and found Peepaw writing a list of things he is most thankful for. After reading it, (which made me cry) I asked his permission to share it with our family. My list mirrors his, for the most part, but I will add a few thoughts of my own after his.

My Savior and King, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who came and took on human form and died for the sins of His people, chosen before He created the world, and Who arose in triumph from the tomb and ascended to the place where He now reigns, the place where I will go when my sojourn here is done. I can never comprehend the scope or depth of what He has accomplished, and I can never be grateful enough.
My beautiful, devoted, faithful wife, Sadie. She is the best human being I have ever known in my life, and has made my life full and complete. She models Christ’s love in so many ways, not the least of which is that she loves me in spite of my many glaring faults, and she loves me fully.
My precious Mother, whom I wish could be with us today. She gave me life, she sacrificed for me in ways I still don’t know in full; she showed me what it means to be Southern and reverent and tough and how to walk in the Father’s creation with an eye to the fragility and wonder of each day.
My sons, Jason and Josh, and the strong, fine men they have become. Both of you have taught me valuable things…and neither of you knows the extent to which you have hallowed my life and given me hope for the coming years.
My grandchildren – Ruth, Rhiannon, and Jackson. They are healthy and safe and they know they are loved, and this is enough.
My two daughters-in-law, Karen and Mollie. Beautiful and loving young ladies, they adorn our family like living jewels.
My valuable and cherished friends, who are like breathing treasures to me. I love each of you and daily ask God’s blessings on you and your houses.
My church family and my brother officers – we have so much work to do, and my own resources are so meager, except through Christ!
The Holy Scriptures, which have never been anything to me except comforting and instructive.
My job and the necessities God provides through this medium.
Our little farm and the agrarian peace with which it fills our bones.
Turkey with crispy brown skin.
A red dog with soft brown eyes.
A mean yellow cat and an eccentric white cat, both of whom have loved on me when I was sick, tired, confused, and scared.
An old truck that runs just fine.
Shelves full of books.
Eyes that, while beginning to fail, can still read those shelves of books.
The soft stroke of music across my ears: Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, and so many other composers’ works.
Poetry, the lightning rod of the soul.
Sadie’s little hand on my rough, wrinkled one, whenever we sit next to each other
Real Christmas trees and the way their aroma fills the house.
Computers and high-speed connections that allow instant information and correspondence.
The snort of a deer in the pre-dawn stillness at our little farm.
The delighted squeal and the pointing finger of a golden-haired granddaughter.
The way the barn cats look at me when I come out of the door with a sack of food in my hand.
Sadie’s little feet and her sausage toes.
Mother’s teaching Sadie how to make chocolate gravy and delta-style fried chicken.
Pocket watches and handkerchiefs and pocket knives.
A single candle in a cool room.
The high wind in the top of the pine tree outside our bedroom window.
Laser printers, with their speed and crisp output.
A relatively pain-free body
The fact that I can still hear most of what I try to hear.
The particular blood in my veins, and the mighty deeds of those who went before me with the same blood in their veins.
The fact that rap music, most of today’s popular music, and Wayne Newton’s music is not mandatory listening material.
The way Bonnie just slunk into the room with a piece of purloined apple in her mouth.
Leather work gloves.
Songbirds in the bare tree in the front pasture.
Well-oiled firearms and the lack of immediate employment for them.
The variety of food that God provided for us.
The fact that I don’t have to pretend to enjoy listening to Johnny Mathis’ bizarre voicing of the song “Sleigh Ride.”
The woods behind our house, where I spend so many hours walking and praying and prowling and avoiding work.
The lines on my face and the gray hairs on my head and in my beard.
The crisp quiet of this day, in my home, with my wife, beloved of my God and my family.

And now my own list...

I am thankful that God chose me to be His.

I am thankful for my wonderful, loving, and caring husband. He is my best friend.

I am grateful that God allowed me to be Jason and Joshua's mom, Karen and Mollie's mom-in-law, and Ruth, Rhiannon, and Jackson's Meemaw.

I am thankful that I was able to hear Ruthie and Rhiannon say, "I love you, Meemaw".

I am thankful for our precious little pets and especially for getting to care for Sophie for 14 years.

I am thankful for my home in the mountains.

I am thankful for long distance service so I can hear my children talk to me.

I am thankful for a mind that holds a lifetime of memories.

We just finished filling our tummies with Peepaw's YUMMY turkey and my dressing with all the fixin's. Pumpkin pie is waiting in the wings. I think it's time now for a little walk to help digest that feast. I hope and pray you are all having a happy Thanksgiving and that you will be safe in all you do.

I love you all so very, very much.

Mom/Meemaw

8:09 p.m.

When is the last time that y'all were surrounded by an absolute absence of man-made light and sound?

Last night, Peepaw, Bonnie, and I went on a little adventure. We grabbed a flashlight and headed toward the cemetery. It was around 9 p.m. and it was pitch black outside. The only illumination was from Helen and Ernie's garage doors where they have some decorative lights. The moon was a teeny little sliver but the night was clear and we could see most of the stars.

We headed through a pasture across from us and stopped once in a while because Bonnie would look back behind us as though she heard something in the woods. It was kinda scary but fun. I had to use the flashlight to guide my way most of the time because I didn't want to step wrong and twist my ankle. I had it on at one point when a truck was going down the road and around the curve in front of our house. We noticed that they slowed way down because I think they saw my light and probably wondered what kind of hooligans were walking up to the cemetery at that time of the night. Thankfully, they just went on and we proceeded to climb the hill. Once we reached the cemetery, we found a clearing and sat down, with Bonnie acting as the sentry as she parked herself right in front of us and guarded us. It was so beautiful, y'all. As our eyes got accustomed to the dark, we could see the headstones and the shadows of trees and rocks. We laid back on the grass and looked up at the sky, hoping to see a shooting star. We had learned from a friend that when you see what looks like a plane in the sky but it's got no blinking lights, it is probably a satellite or a space shuttle (we saw neither). We were looking for the different constellations and could see a few but there were enough little wispy white clouds to partially cover a lot of the stars. We decided we might try to get a telescope one day. I took an astonomy class in high school and actually did very well because I found it so interesting. We had a planetarium at Forest Park and the highlight of my day, as a junior, was going to that class.

After I got off work yesterday afternoon, Peeps and I drove to Gate City as they were having a "holiday open house" at a few of the businesses. We strolled through a couple of antique shops but didn't find anything but it was fun to look. Then we ate a late lunch at the Hob Nob and came on back home and relaxed. Today was a cool, cloudy day and perfect for a little afternoon nap. We each picked a couch to lay on and got settled in to sleep but after about 15 minutes, Bonnie and Purrl decided to start playing chase, so that was short-lived. It was just enough to refresh us, though.

At this time of the year, we are keenly aware of the distance between us and all of you. But you are always, always in our hearts and we will focus on how much we love you and we will be so happy when we're together again.

I love you,

Mom

3:02 pm

Hi, kids! It's a gorgeous day here at P. C. It's about 72 degrees and sunny and breezy. Just perfect for being outside. Bonnie is pacing behind me right now, wanting to go out and do some hunting so I think a nice, long walk is in order for her, me, and Peeps.

We've had a restful weekend. Yesterday, we drove to our friends' house and spent part of the day with them. They live north of us and it takes about an hour and a half to get to their place. We had a treat for our meal....grilled quail and homemade dressing w/gravy. I was a little worried about the quail - I'm not sure why except that I'm just funny about eating new things. I actually ate quail when I was a very little girl. PaPa and Uncle Gordon used to go quail hunting and when they got their quota, they would bring them back to my grandmother's house where they were plucked and cleaned and Grandmother would bake them. They really and truly do taste like tiny little chickens and the drumsticks are about the size of two matchsticks put together. The only bothersome thing about the whole meal yesterday was that I could see where my little quail's neck was and so I got rid of that part really fast and pretended that I never saw it. We saved all the little teeny bones and gave a few of the smallest ones to their newly adopted dog, Harley. He is about 6 months old and just showed up on their front porch last week and won't leave! He's part German Shephard and very, very cute and obedient. They didn't really want a dog but he's worming (no pun intended) his way into their hearts very quickly. As they told us more than once, "he is doing everything right". I think they'll keep him and I'm glad for that.

On the way home from church this morning, Peepaw looked over on the side of a hill and hollered, "Look at the turkeys"! There were 10 wild turkeys just munching away on the grass. They were so pretty - I hope someone tells them that Thanksgiving is right around the corner so they can find a hiding place.

I'll leave you with a picture that Peeps took of a sunrise the other morning. It's just too pretty for words. I love and miss you all so very much.

7:54 p.m.

Lookie at what Peepaw and Meemaw got today!

I work with a woman named Kathy (the groomer at my job) and she mentioned to me the other day that she remembered me saying I was looking for a china hutch. Her sister, Brenda, is moving out of a large home into a smaller one and was wanting to "get rid" of some of her furniture and didn't want to bother with having a yard sale. Kathy told her not to sell this hutch until she told me about it. When she told me what Brenda was selling it for along with the matching dining room table and chairs, I about fell out of my chair. It is incredibly reasonable and I about told her I would buy it, sight unseen. She had Brenda's son email me photos of everything. After work today, Peeps and I caravaned to Brenda's house. They had the furniture out on her carport all ready for us to load and even had carefully wrapped the glass shelves in newspaper for safe travel. I have Peepaw's mother's dishes in it now. They are so precious to me and we use them every Sunday. We've got the old table and chairs out in the yard barn and will keep it for someone who might need it one day. Grandmommy and I picked out that table and chairs when I was about 12 years old. It's been moved around all over the country. We've sat at that table and shared meals with those most precious to us. Our little animals have wound their way around the legs of the chairs and there have even been puppies to teethe on it. We've sat at that table and played games and we've cried in heartwrenching grief over the deaths of loved ones at that table. If it's possible to love a table, then we do. We love that old table. And it will stay in safe storage until it's needed again.

We're enjoying really cold nights and mornings. We've had to scrape frost off of the windshield of our vehicles for quite a few mornings now. I love, love, love the wintertime and am so grateful that if we have slippery roads on a workday, my co-workers understand that I won't risk my life to get there at a certain time and they will cover for me until I can get there. Peepaw has that same deal at his job and that is a real blessing. Even on some of the snowiest days last winter, we noticed that the highway crews kept our mountain roads clear with one or two exceptions. We're also looking forward to getting a woodburning stove installed soon. We found one in Johnson City that we both like (my only request was that it have a glass door so we can see the fire) and we're pretty sure it will fit right into the existing fireplace. That forced hot air is not healthy to breathe in all the time plus the coziness of a fire is something I've been looking forward to since we moved to Possum Cough. We will also make sure that whatever we end up with can be used to cook on in case we lose power.

Well, we're eating late tonight so I'll close for now and tend to supper.

We love and miss you all very much.

Meemaw