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March 16, 2008
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=========================== TODAY'S ARTICLE ==========================
Events and Emotions, by Katha Winther
We've all had hectic and trying times in our lives. Many of us have
said, "What a bad day it was!" Have you ever had a particularly bad
week, when everything went wrong? Can you think back over your life and
remember an especially bad year? For me, 1985 and 1989 were two years
that weren't very good. On the opposite end of the spectrum, we've had
those magical and wonderful times that we've never wanted to end.
Life brings us a few ups and downs. Sometimes life's events come at us
too fast to take it all in at once. Other times, the burdens seem to
linger on and on. Have you ever experienced a week, or so, of mixed
events, all charged with emotions?
The "things of life" have occurred far too fast for me recently. I've
needed to buckle my "emotional seatbelt" in order to ride it out. On
the heartbreaking end, my cousin's wife in Utah complained of headaches
and went to the hospital. She died twenty-four hours later of brain
cancer. No one knew that she was ill. It was a shock.
On a happier note, some family members traveled to Sherman, Texas, to
celebrate my father's 100th birthday. The day before, he lead a song
during the morning worship service -- "When We All Get to Heaven." I
was so touched to see him lead that song. We had a wonderful reunion --
seeing so many of our friends from the congregation.
Many people sent cards to my father. The telephone rang off the hook
all day. Several friends dropped by to visit. One of the friends who
appeared on the doorstep was the minister who officiated at my wedding.
My husband and I had our picture made with him. It was an awesome
feeling to know that we were all together again within a few days of
our 40th wedding anniversary. Our wedding had taken place in Sherman --
we live in San Diego -- and it was great to see him after all these
years. Coincidentally, we saw the best man from our wedding at the
church building.
He is with us in the ever-changing seasons of life!
Daddy's birthday dinner and party were low-key. He didn't want any
fuss. I couldn't believe that my father had turned 100. I had never
even attended a birthday gathering for a centenarian. My parents'
picture was on the front page of the local newspaper with a nice
article about his life -- see the links below.
Within a few days of that happy occasion, we had another sad one -- my
father-in-law's memorial service. He was a good man. Among the pictures
and flowers at the front of the church building, one unusual item stood
out. It was a large candy bar: dark chocolate. Only a family member
would have grasped the significance of the candy. He loved chocolate,
and had us trained to give him dark chocolate for any gift-giving
occasions. He had become diabetic in later years, and wasn't supposed
to eat it. One of his grandsons broke off little pieces of the
chocolate bar to share during our time of light refreshments after the
service. I almost "lost it" when I ate that little piece of chocolate,
and thought of "Fafa" -- his affectionate nick-name.
Today is our 40th wedding anniversary. We'll celebrate by going out to
eat tonight -- just the two of us. Later on, when things settle down,
we may take a belated anniversary trip somewhere. However, I've taken a
real live trip down memory lane over the past few days -- that's
sometimes the best kind of trip. Every year on our anniversary, my
in-laws used to send flowers as their way of wishing us well. My
mother-in-law called events like this "victories and milestones." We
lost her two years ago, and the anniversary flowers stopped at that
time. I almost expected flowers today, and then remembered that they
weren't coming. However, I also remembered the joy of years past, when
things were different. What a blessing!
If you're celebrating, sorrowing, or somewhere in-between, remember
that God is with us always and loves us, no matter what. He is with us
in the ever-changing seasons of life!
There is an appointed time for everything, and a season for every
activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time
to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a
time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to
laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter
stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to
refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and
a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to
be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a
time for war and a time for peace (Ecclesiastes 3:1-10 NIV).
---------
(c) 2008 Katha Winther <winther1@cox.net>. From her book As I Was
Saying, all rights reserved.
RELATED LINKS:
* Former Grayson County attorney turns 100
http://www.herald-democrat.com/articles/2008/02/08/local_news/doc47acde00307e3589419686.txt
* God is Close!
http://www.heartlight.org/gallery/1235.html
* When to Say
http://www.heartlight.org/feature/sf_990303_thankyou.html
This article can be found on the web at:
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200803/20080316_events.html
=========================== FEATURED PRODUCT =========================
WILD AT HEART, by John Eldredge
Helping men rediscover their masculine heart, this is a guide to
understanding Christian manhood and Christian men.
http://shopping.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/link?153
Find more great books, CDs and videos at the Heartlight store! With
each purchase you make, you're helping to support Heartlight's
ministry. Thanks SO MUCH for your help!
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