My Valentine

    Happy Valentine's Day to all my family because it is a day to remember those you love. My special Valentine is Don my husband of 56 years who gives to me daily the kind of love that some only receive on special days like Valentine's Day and Mother's Day. He looks after my every comfort. He never complains or expects any notice of all he does. I watch him as he does all the chores of upkeep that this home and 20 acres requires. I look out from my warm house to see him hauling wood from way across the yard to the house and down to the furnace room, I hear him up on the roof clearing the frozen vents and cleaning the chimney's of the fireplace and wood stove, I hear the scraping sound of the roof rake as he clears the roof of the heavy snow so gutters can run when the thaw comes, then he is down stairs draining the water heater and changing filters on the furnace. Everyday he goes out to fill the bird feeders and put fat out for the wood peckers, a Pileated wood pecker eats a lot of fat. He sprinkles some cracked corn around should the turkeys come by. He carries the table scape's out to where the foxes come to eat, we have 5 beautiful foxes that come at dusk. And if he does not have enough to feed he is hoping that the Pheasant hen and rooster he saw just up the road will come to eat under his feeders. He patiently holds doors so people can pass through, he always opens doors for me, something a friend noticed and admired. He sees to it that I do not spend too many days at home by taking me out for breakfast or lunch. Is he perfect, perhaps not to others but too me as I sit under his arm on the couch each night to watch television he is perfect enough. I get my valentine from him daily in actions not cards . Love should be given out in daily doses so that it grows stronger as the years go by. He is not a joiner nor does he care for large group events but never the less he took me to the church Valentine party the youth put on, because he knew I would enjoy it, and I did, but I knew it was his gift to me. You see this things never go unnoticed I hide them as jewels in my heart.

Are you available?

   This was a day that I have waited 12 days for, to get out of the House, I had hopes of going to church but when Don saw the extreme low temps. he said no but if it warms up enough at noon he would take me out to lunch. Goody it warmed and it was wonderful to drive the familiar route and enjoy a meal out. My knee is still swollen but I can walk without aid of the crutches and I feel so free.
   You can always tell when people have been sick or wounded themselves because they are the kindest and most considerate to people who are hurting. They bring things like home made cookies or fruit or like my neighbor, home made chicken noodle soup, but they sit down and visit and hug you when they leave. You feel loved and cared for and I believe you heal faster. God uses your lips to express love and your arms to hug with. Are you available? Some researchers say that when we touch someone there is something that transfers they can't quite put a name to it but there is a reaction. I think it is God using you to send healing vibes to that person, Jesus always laid hands on the sick.
   Today we received a phone call from Don's sister Lorraine in Florida.  My heart aches as I listen to all her health problems, she wants desperately to sell her home and move nearer her son Randy and wife Terri, but the market being what it is she is trapped. Randy who is a doctor wants his mother near him where he can get her the care she needs. What I hear is someone who is alone and afraid. She needs the human touch. She needs that person who comes with warm cookies fresh from the oven, a cup of coffee, someone who will sit down and lend an ear, someone who will give her a hug and a promise to return, someone who will pray with her. Lorraine holds her little dog and says it's nice to have a warm body near you. Do you realize how many people move among us and no one ever touches them. I ask for prayers for her
   I have received so much from friends and family, cards, gifts, food and visits and how it made me feel was loved and I think God is saying to me " remember how it made you feel go out and do likewise".

Days in between

   These are days in between for me as I wait for the day of my coming surgery on my knee. There have been days when I waver as to whether I should still do it, but those are only days when my knee feels better then the day comes when pain returns and I know I must. I had never heard of a torn meniscus but now I know it is quite common and some of my friends tell me they have had the surgery. They all say to go have the surgery because more then likely my knee will get worse and I will wish I had it over with. People have been so good to me through all this, cards and visits from the church and friends, I won't forget their thoughtfulness.
   I have had something to get my mind off my knee, it is something we bought...a bread machine! I have never had one before and it has been fun trying the different recipes and peeking in the glass lid to see the bread mix, knead and bake. I may need to buy shares in a dairy where I can get all the butter I want because home made bread takes more butter. I got a recipe off the Internet for whole wheat bread and oh it turned out so good. My system does not like white bread but whole wheat bread is fine so it is important to me to get a good bread and if you have priced the better whole wheat bread you know it is expensive, I figure I save $1.50 a loaf. It takes me no time at all to put the ingredients into the machine and then I merrily go on my way while it goes about the task of filling the house with the wonderful scent of baked bread.
   Now I think of myself as old fashioned but really am I? Let me think... I have two dustbusters because I hate crumbs or lint on the floors and I have my wonderful electric Eureka Quick Up vac which weighs next to nothing and has a very long cord and does such a great job I don't have to drag out my heavy vacuum. Oh yes there are the two computers I spend more time on then I like to admit. Perhaps I think I am old fashioned because I like to cook from scratch so we don't eat all the wrong fats and fill up on chemicals with names I can't pronounce. Have you notice there are no such labels of contents on fresh vegetables. I read the label on a bread wrapper and it listed 30 things that went into that bread and one of them was the dreaded corn syrup, and I know it only takes 5 to make bread. Hmmmm. Well it's time to stop here and go take my bread out of the machine, OH BOY