Serendipity Sunday

Lately, I have had this almost aching desire to reconnect with past memories through food. 

I don’t know why, but I have had the desire to cook the favorite foods of my family.

I have shared so often that most all of my memories surround food, and really, is that a bad thing?

There is some great comfort in holding that black iron skillet in my hand again.  It holds memories from years of meals provided for our health, so that our health could be used for HIS service, and eat we did, and yes, serve, we did, also.

I loved hearing that line that Daddy said in his prayer each time he prayed, “bless this food to nourish our bodies, and our health to Your service.” 

I think that about sums up the motto of my family.

So, once again, I was reminded this week of yet another family memory.

My cousin asked for the family recipe of Chicken and Dumplings like Mother and Aunt Becky made.  I told her that I really didn’t think there was a recipe, but I would look and let her know.

Mother made so many things from memory, and that is how she taught me to cook.  I have shared that often she would remember a recipe with how many ingredients it had in it~~Eggplant casserole was 5: crackers, butter, egg, flour, onion (salt and pepper was always a given).  Oddly enough, this was one of Daddy’s favorite things to eat, yet he would not eat cooked squash!  SERIOUSLY??!!  Ah, but fry those suckers and he couldn’t get enough, but in all fairness, it is hard to fathom someone not liking that.  LOL

Sooooooooo, into the old file I went, and that is where the serendipity moment happened. 

I didn’t look so much at the recipes, as I did at whose recipes they belonged to.  Memories flooded my soul as I remembered Miss Bertha (and Mr. Henry), Miss Jeannette (and Mr. Horace), Avis (and Holcolm), recipe after recipe from her best friend and classmate, Shirley, my cousin, Trish, and on and on…

My mind recalled moments spent with each as we visited on a Sunday Afternoon, back when people took time to visit their neighbors and to go for a Sunday drive.  I laughed as I recalled visiting the Jones’ and she asked if we wanted a piece of pie.  I asked, “what kind” KNOWING if it were coconut, I would not eat it…I KNEW that asking was wrong, and as soon as it came from my mouth, those Blue laser-beam eyes drilled two holes in my skin.  What is a small child to do~~get in trouble for asking or get in trouble for wasting food!!  Mother tried her best to teach me good manners…she tried… =(

I laughed as I saw “never fail” on a recipe from Miss Jeannette, because Mother had shared the story of Jeannette making some “never fail cookies” that failed all over the cookie sheet!  It became a challenge to find those recipes and exchange them at Christmas.  Miss Jeannette taught Mother, Miss Mildred, and another Miss Mildred, how to knit, and the joke was that Miss Mildred Matthews had to rip her project out so many times, it became mohair!  Priceless…

I giggled as I saw a recipe from Miss Betty B, because when she married Mr. Bill, Miss Jessie (Bill’s mother) was so concerned about Miss Betty B’s lack of cooking skills, because she was, after all, a city girl and she could not have her city girl starving her big old hunk of a strong star football player!!  Miss Betty B “allegedly” made a tuna casserole and a pot of chili every week~~spring, summer, fall, winter!! (yes, I have shared HOW WRONG that is on so many levels.)  BUT, Mr. Bill was a big man, and I think he did just fine and never seemed to starve to death.  Oh, to have one of Miss Betty B’s forgotten cookies right now…That was love in a cookie.

Miss Bertha and Mr. Henry were our special friends.  They lived up the road, around the big curve…YES, there are a lot of big curves around where I live, and you had to know WHICH BIG CURVE someone was talking about!  LOL  Daddy farmed Mr. Henry’s land for many years, and when we had the ice storm of 1970, Daddy went and brought them to our house to stay because we had gas heat and a generator, for use after the milking.  They always had a parakeet, which to a child, is extremely fascinating…even though they have been gone for many years, the tomb markers for their birds still remain in their yard.  I wonder if the owners even know what they are!!

Oh, I could go for days sharing about the olde folks, but I DID find a recipe for Chicken and Dumplings.  It came from Miss Martha Johnson, and mother got the recipe on 2/22/95.  While it isn’t the recipe that Mother used when I was young, I do remember her making this.  I remember coming home to seeing cookie sheets all over the kitchen as they dried so she could freeze some of them!  YIKES, I did not want that many!!  LOL

Miss Ma’tha, was the sister of Avis.  We went to church together and Mr. Foster (her husband) and Daddy always called each other “Lum and Abner”, an old Radio show from the dark dark ages.  Oh, how I loved them.  Miss Martha had such bad arthritis that her fingers were crossed over each other, but she never complained and she never stopped doing ANYTHING.  She cooked, canned, entertained and loved on people better than a person who had no obstacles.  While I truly believe in the goodness of people and that there are so many wonderful, Godly people walking this earth, I am convinced that the mold was broken after Miss Martha was created.  She was a one-of-a-kind treasure! The same is true of her sister, Miss Avis.

So, I will share the recipe and stop walking down that crowded street called: Memory Lane.  I am so thankful that road is crowded with folks that I love…I know that street is paved with gold, and I can’t wait when it is my turn to visit them again!!  WOW…But until then, there are recipes and memories to share.

I will tell you that the BEST broth comes from cooking a small WHOLE chicken.  While this is totally gross to discuss, the bones and the skin are what gives the broth its great flavor.  I always cook at least two whole chickens, so that I can freeze the broth and the chicken for later meals.

Chicken and Dumplins

Boil chicken in water (in pressure cooker)…Take out chicken after it is cooked…Let cool to debone…

Use 2 cups warm liquid (broth).  Add enough PLAIN flour to make a stiff dough.  ROLL VERY THIN.  Do not roll all the dough out at once…Place the dumplings onto a baking sheet until they’re all cut out and drop into boiling liquid one-at-a-time.  Stir GENTLLY…Cook 15-20 minute until done, and add chicken pieces back in with dumplings…IF you need more moisture, just add water until you are satisfied with consistency.

Ok, so I didn’t want to eat Chicken and Dumplins until the second coming of Christ, so I used 2 large thighs (bone and skin) and boiled in a pan of water (about ½ gallon) for one hour.  I removed the chicken and ½ cup of broth.  I added plain flour (I lost count, but it was at least 1 ¼ cup) until it was not so sticky.  I then moved this to a floured piece of freezer paper and worked more flour into the dough until it was stiff and no longer sticky.  I, again, was too lazy to find the rolling pin, so I just spread it out with my fingers and got it pretty thin.  I cooked the dumplins for at least 20 minutes.  Then I added the chicken~~always add your chicken after, or it will become stringy~~yuck!  It was plenty for me and Charcoal to have a big bowl.  Yes, Charcoal ALWAYS wants more.

Yep, it tasted like I remembered, and I laughed as I recounted how Daddy hated dumplins.  He also hated biscuits, which Mother could make perfectly, with one hand tied behind her back.  She was often called the most “wasted” biscuit maker, because Daddy didn’t like them, but let me tell you, my brother, Brian, could eat his share, Daddy’s share, and anyone else who didn’t want theirs.  Yes, there was the night of a LONG walk because Brian ate too many “Riz Biscuits” and was miserable…LOL

Yep, we laughed about that for years…

It really is the simple things that are the BIG THINGS in the end...Find those blessings in your life and hold them in your heart for memories during tough times...~~charlotte

Monday Musings with a sad heart...

There are some days that cause your heart to sink.

Today is one of those days.

It was 13 years ago, I was awakened around 6am with Mother at the bottom of the stairs calling me to say that Daddy had not made it to dialysis.  I rushed to put on a bra (yep, tmi, I know) and ran out the door as I was praying each step for God to be with me.  I KNEW what the possibility of me finding was, and I was afraid…no, that doesn’t even begin to explain my emotions…I was terrified.

Mother said, “I love you,” as she always did, with me rushing to the car.

I followed the path that I knew, all too familiarly, that Daddy took when going to town. 

As I neared the end of Hyde Road, I saw a stranger, I learned later, that lived across the road from where Daddy’s truck had gently eased off the road into a small ditch.  I KNEW…

Immediately, a fog engulfed my body, that I believe now, was the way that God protects us.  I went through the motions of what I knew I had to do.  I sat in the truck alone with my Daddy for the last time, as I told him that He was the best Daddy I could ever have wished to have.  I thanked him for loving me and I had no idea how I would go on without him, but I would do the best I could.

People came and went, the policeman was so kind as he handed me Daddy’s wallet and recounted the contents.  The EMTs checked to ensure he was dead, and Mr. Mack said he would drive the truck home, as I went to tell Mother that Daddy was dead.  I can envision her standing on the steps as I approached the house…She knew…

The morning is as clear to me as anything ~~Brother Kyle, the pastor where I worked, and Brother Joe, our Pastor, came…Tim stopped by from the funeral home…Amy brought paper plates and to say that they were headed for FUGE.  We laughed as I busied myself by taking Daddy’s sheets from his hospital bed for the last time…I looked to see the rest of the Jam Cake that was on the table and how it was Mother’s fault that Daddy died because he couldn’t bear the thought of eating that cake since Mother had tried a new recipe…I was kidding…kinda…

We had phone calls to make and all I wanted to do was to cry.  I sat in his chair and looked at the cross saw Mother had painted with the image of Daddy standing on the porch of where he was born…

News spread quickly and food started coming.  Fed, one of Daddy’s dearest buddies, appeared at the door holding 2 pounds of BBQ that he made…one dear young man , a lawyer, had been riding his bicycle out our way when he got the call from his wife and he turned around to stop by to give condolences…FOOD…everywhere.  That night, I sat on the floor TRYING to shove FOOD into the fridge.

We made the arrangements for the visitation and the Funeral Home…

The fog remained and I went through the motions…music was selected…friends were greeted and I remember telling God that Eternal Life BETTER NOT be a myth and I BETTER get to see Daddy again…Yep, God just kept loving me as I grieved…

I have spent my time trying to remember Daddy’s LIFE instead of his death.

I laughed just two days ago when I found two packages of roast beef in the freezer that had gotten pushed behind other food treasures.

Daddy LOVED a bargain.  When he would leave his ROMEO CLUB members (Retired Older Men Eating Out) at McDonald’s he would go to the store to see if he could find some marked-down meat.  He would come home with a roast, most every week, and he could care less about the meal of roast, potatoes, carrots, and onions that Mother cooked.  It was the next day that he EXPECTED a hot roast beef sandwich.  For those who don’t know, it is: toast, roast, mashed potatoes and gravy…EVERY week, we had that.

Daddy was so easy to please, but he just wanted the same few things over and over.  It was rather comical since he said that Mother and I studied the cookbooks more than we ever studied the Bible…sigh…

As I made Beef/Potato hash from that meat I found, I caught myself snickering as I recounted the MANY hot roast beef sandwiches we had eaten, and how, it was probably 4 or 5 years after his death before I made another one. 

My mind wandered as I remember bizarre things about Daddy~~he answered the phone by saying “nal-right”, which he denied saying, but Mother and I laughed at him and would mimic him in the background.

I flashed back to my college days when I would run home to pick up something and then head back to school, since it was only a 2 hour and 15 minute drive, door-to-door.  EVERY time I walked into the house, mother would say, “What are YOU doing here.”  I would reply that didn’t make me feel very welcomed.  I would laugh as I walked to the stove to discover they were having hash for supper.  I loved hash, but really, is that ALL they ever ate?  Mother kindly informed me that if I would CALL before I came home, then she would fix whatever I wanted!!  It was so fun coming around the big curve before the house and walking into the milk house to see my Daddy.  His grin was priceless!! “Why, hello, gal…”

He would sneak away and come to visit me at school, sometimes.  There was the one day that he and my boyfriend appeared at our apartment on the same day…ROFL  It was all cool, because they loved each other, but made for an uncomfortable moment, thinking WHAT is DADDY going to THINK!!  LOL

Daddy was the first one to arrive at the hospital my Junior year when I had my first kidney stone.  He stayed until he knew that Mother and my brother would be there in just a few minutes, so I wouldn’t be alone.

Daddy and I spent countless hours at craft shows.  He would greet me from work, with his silly grin, as he showed me what he had gotten cut for me that day, and he would proudly proclaim: “I’ve got your table set for you, gal.”  I would then leave a new stack of patterns at his place on the table when I would leave for work, with a note saying, “Whose table is set, now.”  I also remember the one time I didn’t wake him up to answer the phone as I was heading out the door at 7:01.  I left him a message.  That night, I was greeted by a very unhappy Daddy who told me to NEVER tell someone he was asleep at 7:01!!  I just laughed…I told him that I was certain that he had not lost the respect of a fellow farmer and that he had earned every single minute of sleeping past 7 that he ever wanted.

I was Daddy’s shadow until the day that he died.  I seldom said that I was too busy to go somewhere with him.  If he asked, then I went.  He would drive around the “circle” every night before dark, and many times, I went with him.  We would stop by and talk to a neighbor sometimes, but most times, we just drove and looked.  The neighbors called him “The Mayor”. 

I was so happy that I was able to stand by his casket without a single regret.  That doesn’t happen often.  I did all I could do for him and I was so proud to have been his little girl.  I don’t know how I got so blessed.  I got to be his little girl for 40 years, and I know so many don’t get that much time with their Daddy’s.  I don’t think there is a day that goes by that I don’t miss him, but I hope that I will honor him by the way I live my life.  I know, not many people have a parent that is most always within 232 acres of them, so I don’t take my upbringing for granted.  I was “packed” back to the house more times that I can count because I would fall asleep to the hum of that little red tractor.  I was lucky to drag my toes through the freshly plowed red dirt of the field as I followed him.  I held that tape measure as he walked down the row to mark off the land for the crop.  I silently snickered in the back seat of the car as we came around the big curve and Daddy would say, “look at those cows heading to the back field” because it was time to gather them to milk.  I loved being in the truck beside him as we slide into town after the snowfall.  I loved riding in the back of the truck or on the back of the wagon he drove to the back field.  I looked at him with scorn as he allowed Brian to give me an unripe persimmon.  I clung to his leg for comfort when someone dared to speak to me and I was too painfully shy to answer, but let them remark about my “BLACK EYES” and I would in no uncertain words, tell them they were BROWN.  He was my super hero!  My protector…those soft hands of his were strong and gentle.  That silly tongue being stuck out at me during the prayer when he would bring the offering to the altar at church is a priceless memory.  HOW blessed am I!

Good night…sweet dreams and I love you…~charlotte♡

Music Tuesday, December 2, 2015

I can think of no other season where Music is such an important part of setting the atmosphere…Who doesn’t crank up the radio when their favorite song comes on the radio…Who doesn’t longingly wait to hear their favorite song for the first time of the season…WHO doesn’t reach for the volume to turn down that song that has been heard one too many times, weeks ago!!

I got into the car on Friday night to go get Chinese food for supper and when the Christmas music came on as I turned the switch to the car, I just sat and smiled.  As I was driving though, WHAT was played but that annoying version by Clay Aiken of “Mary Di-you know”!!  ARG….DID has a D on the end of it…I appreciate his attempting to NOT say “Mary DID JEW KNOW” like most every other version does, but COME ON…did you not LISTEN to the final cut before releasing…heavy sigh…(sorry, you are going to find that version really annoying now that I have pointed that out…)

Mother did her best to teach us proper grammar and the pronunciation of words, and when I would say, “DID JEW KNOW…” she would say that she was not Jewish…I looked at her and would try again…FINALLY, me being the smartie pants that I have always been, I got a come back to her comment. I informed her that Christ was Jewish and I was simply trying to honor our heritage! …silence…laughter…whew…I didn’t get punished this time for “sassing”!

OK…back to the topic of GOOD and POSITIVE…but it was funny that I would hear the one song I didn’t WANT to hear EVER.

Tonight, as I watched the children singing LET THERE BE PEACE ON EARTH on TV, it brought tears to my eyes to THINK of the horrible things that are happening in our world.  I prayed for each child as they showed them with their smiling faces and thought that somehow, music seems to make things better. I wondered how music had possibly changed the lives of some of those children.  I HOPED that somehow, someone would hear their message and it would start a change in their heart...I prayed for safety for those children...

Music has always been an important part of my life.  I started piano lessons in the 3^rd grade and then piano/organ and then voice lessons…I am somewhat of a music snob, but the funny thing about me is how I love LIVE bluegrass music…No, I don’t want to listen to it on the radio or as a recording, but I love to watch the musicians and how they seem to know EVERY bluegrass song ever written.

For several years, we would travel one weekend to Norris Dam and stay in the rustic cabins (ok, that meant there was no remote control for the TV~~the NERVE!!) and would attend 2 days of the Appalachian Homecoming Festival.  We would meet our friends, Mr. Mack and Miss Stella and Mr. Mack’s sister and brother-in-law, John Bruce. I would usually fix one meal at our cabin for the “old folks” to sit and visit and then one night, we would go to the local restaurant, Golden Girls. 

The musicians would come to the restaurant and after they ate, they would gather in each of the rooms and would play and sing…it was AMAZING.

When you attend events like this, you will often see the same people year to year and will usually strike up a nice little chat with them.  While we didn’t ever speak to this lady, she would appear each year, wearing a flour sack dress…I am not sure of the significance of that, but ALWAYS she wore a flour sack dress…AND she drove a Mercedes…hmmmmmm….no judgment…just strange!

I think it was the last year that we attended, we ended up in the same little room that John Hartford was in.  He wrote GENTLE ON MY MIND (made most popular by Glen Campbell) and won about 4 grammys…read about his fascinating life if you aren’t familiar with him.  He was an amazing musician and a fun character.

Being raised close to Music City, we were always taught to leave musicians alone…I can’t count how many famous people I have sat next to and simply smiled at them so they could enjoy their time with friends or family without being bothered.
 

On this night, as John Hartford and LeRoy Troy were jamming, in walked FLOUR SACK LADY.  She would not leave them alone.  She kept asking for a song and would try to give some words and on and on and she would NOT go away.  It was OBVIOUS that she was annoying Mr. Hartford, but he remained kind and tried to get rid of her…What is funny about the song she was describing, I am CERTAIN that he knew it, but for whatever reason, he kept insisting he didn’t know what she was talking about…

As we were watching this unfold, and go on too long, Daddy leaned back, crossed his arms on his chest and said to me where our table could hear it, “I KNOW that Song, but I AIN’T gonna help her or sing it!!”  WE immediately burst into laughter.  Being inquisitive, I asked Daddy what it was and he told me, but I had never heard that song, but I FILED it away for future reference.

A couple of weeks later, I was to play the piano at church by myself since the organist attended a yearly reunion.  I picked my songs carefully, as I often tried to do and I found a VERY SPECIAL SONG for the Postlude.  As the service came to the end, and the Benediction had been delivered, I started playing, “Life is Like a Mountain Railroad.”  I saw Mother stifle a laugh as the choir left the sanctuary.  Daddy came up to me after the service with that silly grin of his and said, “Whatcha playin’, Gal?”

It became a great joke with Mother and Daddy and me.  I played it several times from then on to remember the fun times we shared.  We had this song played when they brought Daddy’s casket into the funeral.  I KNOW he was smiling in Heaven.  If you haven’t heard this song, go to You Tube…I like the Stephen Curtis Chapman version that is there.

I shared on my Facebook post a few days ago, that Daddy’s Favorite song was “Give the World A Smile Every Day”.  He would sing this in the car many times as we would be going somewhere and he would attempt to sing all 4 parts~~it was hilarious and he would get that silly grin of his as we watched him giving us a smile…We had this song played when they took the casket out at his funeral…WHAT better testimony to his life!!  Again, go to You Tube and watch The Cathedrals sing this song if you haven’t heard it!  You WILL smile.

I wonder how I got so blessed to have the parents I had while others got crappy parents…I don’t understand WHY I was given the BEST that Life had to offer while others didn’t…It took me a long time to realize that not everyone had parents like mine.  Oh, how blessed we were!

I am giving THANKS today for the GIFT of Music…to be raised in a home with meaningful SONGS is truly a gift that I do not take for granted…

BE the MUSIC for someone today…Sing your LIFE in perfect harmony with the qualities that are pure…honorable…kind…loving…beautiful…supportive…Make a JOYFUL NOISE!!

I wish blessings for you…~charlotte

Thanksgiving on the Back Porch, Thursday, November 26, 2015

Blogger must be off for the holidays, so no cute inspirational graphics...just me and my words..

I don’t think it is a great secret that I wish I could just scooch past holidays without having to comment to individuals…the questions of DID YOU HAVE A GOOD DAY…WHAT DID YOU DO…and so forth, you know, those words we offer out of kindness…Those words almost push me into a state of SHEER FEAR, for I have no satisfactory answer, other than fine…

USUALLY, the day was NOT fine, but who really wants to hear that! I have learned that is the simplest way to have people exit your life…who wants to have a “Debbie downer” around~~ my apologizes to all those named “Debbie”.

I feel great sadness as I see the postings of wishes for the day…of talk of family gatherings…or the food that is being prepared to share with a family…Tears flow quite easily…I numbly scroll through them TRYING to muster the joy that they were meant to illicit…I don’t begrudge their wishes, they are just painful for me to see.

I have spent most of the day on the back porch throwing a rawhide (yes, for those of you who are my FB friends, it IS the one with Parfum De Urine {said in my sexiest French voice, but remember, I am 53 and single, so it isn’t very sexy}) with Charcoal.  I have enjoyed the warm sunshine (don’t hate on me because it is around 70 and I am sitting outside barefooted with my pjs on) beaming down on my face.  As I sat here with my eyes closed and them glowing orange from the beautiful sunshine, I have, once again, been transported to the days of having a family…

I looked at the cabin~~old and falling down, like many of the memories~~ and flashed back to the numerous times I was on my belly trying to lure some new kittens out for me to play with…I was AMAZING at catching new kittens.  I could out-wait those little suckers like a Hawk eyeing its prey…funny, for a gal who has no patience!  Having my hands scratched and bitten until bleeding was never a deterrent for me.  I would hold the kitty, pat them and talk soft words of reassurance to them until I felt I had to let them go, only for the chase to begin a little later…poor kitties…

I remembered the days of playing catch with the middle child…I was and am still AWFUL at catching.

Most days were spent playing with Brian, my brother who is 2 years older. I recounted the games of HORSE…jumping off the roof of the small shed…swinging until the swing set shook…walking to the pond to watch the bullfrogs jump in and hoping to see a turtle…skimming stones into the water…running into the house crying because Brian was trying out his “ras-lin” moves on me or giving me an Indian burn…watching the spiders weave their webs or catch their prey…following Daddy around like a little puppy…being awakened as he carried me back from the field because I feel asleep to the hum of the tractor (BEST pacifier for a kid EVER)…running into the house to show Mother something I had found~~she was NEVER too busy to stop and look and to comment…countless walks down the road (barefooted) on the blazing hot blacktop to go to the milk house to see Daddy, Son and Bob and to put the feed into the trays for the cows…

I recalled the SOUNDS that once were in our home…the family gatherings that were filled with laughter…conversations…food…love…Now, the silence aches.

I have reflected on the posts about the “empty chairs” and have come to the conclusion that those empty chairs, through death, are often a part of the scheme of life, BUT what saddens me more, is how those “empty chairs” should have been filled with new life…new children…new in-laws…new friends and the fact that they remain empty, breaks my heart…

I don’t think I will ever understand the dynamics of a family.  To have had such a wonderful group of Godly people who taught us what is important and how we are to act, and yes, THREATENING to haunt us if EVER we fought over material things…HOW could it have gone so wrong?  But then, I realize, we all make choices and choices ALWAYS have consequences…There is no fighting…only deafening SILENCE…

Thankfully, tomorrow is another day (SCARLET…um, Sheila)…and with it will come the newness of the day…a clean slate…another chance to make a positive difference in the world…to try just a bit harder, to accept the consequences of the choices I have made or have had to accept because of the choices OTHERS have made…it is all just called LIFE…

We take the good, we take the bad, and there we have~~the Facts of LIFE!  ;)  

Lest I be accused of being the Thanksgiving Grumpy Green Guy, I DID fix me and Charcoal some crunchy cornbread and some cream of chicken to go over it...He liked it VERY much...we also had popcorn with butter and Coke (he eats the ice).

My apologizes for those feeling sad for me right now…please don’t because I REALLY am FINE…I just have a little problem with 3D people, these days.  I do much better with the flat-screen type!

I have counted my blessings and have prayed several prayers of Thanksgiving…I am glad that I have chosen to live my life THANKFULLY each day, not relying on only ONE appointed day to Give Thanks.  

Challenges are not unique to only me…we all have them~~some by our own choice, and some just because LIFE happens and we sometimes, really do reap what we sow!  BUT most of the time, I think we are granted GRACE and MERCY and given SO MUCH BETTER than we deserve…

I am one who has gotten SO MUCH BETTER than I deserve!  The foundations laid for me in my past have helped make my journey so blessed.  I am counting my blessings today…YOU have crossed my path and have made a difference in my life, so I offer THANKS for that…I’m not so sad…just waxing sentimental…

IF you are reading this, MAKE TIME for those you love…if you are in a relationship that makes you CHOOSE to leave your family or friends, PLEASE get counseling, because that is NOT how God wants us to be…STOP nit-picking your family apart…support them…accept them…love them, because I PROMISE the things you don’t like in someone else, can be FOUND in YOU (my momma taught me that!)…the next time you get ticked because your husband left his dirty socks on the floor, just throw yours down there with them and laugh your butt off instead of being angry over something that does NOT matter in the grand scheme of life.  Quit telling your friends what is WRONG with your spouse, or making sexist jokes, because they destroy a relationship…Tell your friends about the AMAZING things that you love about your spouse, your in-laws, your children and extended family! It is a HABIT…make it a good habit.

Oh my little peeps, life is so short…so fragile…so important!  SEEK ye FIRST, the kingdom of God and ALL these things will be added unto YOU…I send Blessings to You that are too many to count!...~charlotte