Truly Unconditional - A Love Story

With the flu running rampant in town, I was not surprised to find the doctor's waiting area over-full. As I stood for a moment by the front desk waiting for a seat to clear I had the opportunity to do my favorite thing: watch people. Scanning the back of the room I saw an eager face grinning and nodding at me. When we made eye contact her eyes lit up like sparklers on the Fourth of July and she motioned for me to come sit next to her.

As soon as I sat down she opened the coloring book she was working in to a new page and offered to let me color with her. The elderly man sitting next to her said gently, "Sally, lets not bother the nice lady, okay Honey?" I assured him that I was honored to be allowed to share in the fun.



"I like kitties best," she said as she thoughtfully eyed the box full of crayons on the table in front of her. "What's your favorite color? I like purple best."

"That's really neat, Sally," I said, "because that's MY favorite color, too!"

Sally already had the purple crayon in her hand, poised to tint the flowers on her page. She only hesitated a second before she handed it to me.

"You can go first." she said as she patted my hand, and for the next while we colored and giggled as only little girls do.

Sally and I finished one set of pages and were about to start another when the nurse came out and called her name. With loving patience the kind old gentleman helped her gather up her crayons, books, and sweater while the nurse waited for him to escort his wife of 63 years into the exam room.

"To love a person is to learn the song that is in their heart, and to sing it to them when they have forgotten." - Anonymous

Photo courtesy of www.dhs.ri.gov I wish I'd thought to take a picture of the real couple.

Rest with The Father, Bryson Drago Ross

Bryson, the son of Shellie Ross aka Military_Mom on Twitter, died today after a tragic accident. He was only two years old. Please take a moment to offer a prayer for the Ross family and if you have time, go post your condolences on her Twitpic tribute to Bryson or leave her a comment on her Blog 4 Mom page.

Hold on 'till Tomorrow

There are no words to ease the pain.
Nor enough tears to wash the sorrow.
There is only the knowledge that you are loved,
so hang on 'til tomorrow.
For in the morning all things are made new
and though your babe is gone,
the love you shared will carry you through.
So hold on till the dawn.
The night time comes to steal your peace
with the deafening quiet it brings.
But close your ears and open your heart
because that's where His voice sings
So rest your weary mind tonight;
Know that your son rests well
With the Father of all who knows the pain;
Whose teardrops also fell.
No, there are no words that can ease the pain.

Nor tears to wash the sorrow.

There is only the knowledge that you are loved.
And you WILL see him tomorrow.

~Tish Raiford (c)2007

AARP Letter Part II - The Firestorm.

OH MY! What a firestorm that email/post caused! I never knew that so many of you had so very, very many strong and diverging opinions. (Yes, I'm totally lying!) I am honored that you feel confident enough in our friendship to be able to speak your mind. (And knowing me that well you realize that was my goal from the get-go, don't ya! MWAHAHA!)

First - Please stop with the "You're a racist" stuff. If I was a racist or a bigot, half of you wouldn't be on my mailing list in the first place.

Second - Please stop with the "To hell with them all" comments. If I believed that the only people who belong in America are Americans I'd need to delete about 2/3 of the people I really care about off my Christmas list. Just about the only ones left would be Hubby's paternal family since they are directly descended from Native Americans.

Since most of your comments have to do with just one topic, I'm going to answer you all at once to keep from getting typer's cramp.

1. Immigration: A. The problem is not just Mexicans. B. I am not against immigration. When done properly the resulting cultural diversity makes for a richer and much more interesting life experience. What I AM against is the encouragement of people to hop on over expecting to get all the rights and privileges of those who came here through proper channels or worked their butts of to make it legal once they got here.

I do not want all "illegals" deported. I know and love a great many who either are here or come from families who came here in the dark of night. By and large they are honest, hardworking people who just want what we all want: a better life for ourselves and those we love.

What I DO want is to find a way to make EVERYONE accountable like the rest of us because I also know a number of people - not just Mexicans and not just illegals - who are here doing their prospering thing but never paying a dime in taxes yet enjoying the educational and social benefits afforded by those of us who do.THAT bugs me! No matter who you are or where you are from, PAY YOUR FAIR SHARE OF THE FLIPPING TAX BILL.


While I'm on a soap box, whether one is born here, crawled through the desert or floated for days on end to get here, mooching is not acceptable. Period. And we, as a nation, need to stop encouraging it by allowing people to just take and take without giving anything back. As any good parent knows the more we give our children without expecting them to earn it the more they want and the more they feel entitled to get everything for nothing. There's a lot of infrastructure work out there that needs doing. As far as I'm concerned, every able-bodied person who expects something free should be required to get out and paint, nail, mow, clean, etc., etc., etc....

Come on, folks, we are a bunch of smart sunnaguns. Surely we can figure out a way to allow people to come here and participate in (not mooch off of) our American dream!


2. Healthcare: I am NOT against healtcare reform. I AM against letting the government run it. There needs to be some major changes across the board. I have my opinions and my own fears.
Mostly I fear allowing the government to take over cuz they don't do such a good job at stuff, ya know...

However there's another very sad part of the healthcare thing that dovetails in with the immigration thing. I recently had to take one of my 'kids' to the local county hospital. But that's a story for tomorrow. Come on back for the continuing saga of the AARP letter and its fallout.

Until later,

Peace, Blessings, Love, and Respect to all.

Letter to AARP

I know I promised you a story about unconditional love today. That was before this came into my mailbox. I think it's worth sharing.


I LOVE THIS! I totally agree with it. If that makes you not like me, sorry. I'll love you anyway.

Peace, Blessings, and GOD BLESS AND PROTECT AMERICA!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This was sent to Mr. Rand who is the Executive Director of AARP.

THIS LADY NOT ONLY HAS A GRASP OF 'THE SITUATION' BUT AN INCREDIBLE COMMAND OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE!

Dear Mr. Rand,


Recently you sent us a letter encouraging us to renew our lapsed membership in AARP by the requested date. I know it is not what you were looking for, but this is the most honest response I can give you. Our gap in coverage is merely a microscopic symptom of the real problem, a deepening lack of faith.

While we have proudly maintained our membership for several years and have long admired the AARP goals and principles, regrettably, we can no longer endorse it's abdication of our values. Your letter specifically stated that we can count on AARP to speak up for our rights, yet the voice we hear is not ours. Your offer of being kept up to date on important issues through DIVIDED WE FAIL presents neither an impartial view nor the one we have come to embrace. We do believe that when two parties agree all the time on everything presented to them, one is probably not necessary. But, when the opinions and long term goals are diametrically opposed, the divorce is imminent. This is the philosophy which spawned our 200 years of government.

Once upon a time, we looked forward to being part of the senior demographic. We also looked to AARP to provide certain benefits and give our voice a power we could not possibly hope to achieve on our own. AARP gave us a sense of belonging which we no longer enjoy. The Socialist politics practiced by the Obama administration and empowered by AARP serves only to raise the blood pressure my medical insurance strives to contain. Clearly a conflict of interest there!

We do not understand the AARP posture, feel greatly betrayed by the guiding forces that we expected to map out our senior years and leave your ranks with a great sense of regret. We mitigate that disappointment with the relief of knowing that we are not contributing to the problem anymore by renewing our membership. There are numerous other organizations which offer discounts without threatening our way of life or offending our sensibilities.

This Presidential Administration scares the living daylights out of us. Not just for ourselves, but for our proud and bloodstained heritage. But even more importantly for our children and grandchildren. Washington has rendered Soylent Green a prophetic cautionary tale rather than a nonfiction scare tactic. I have never in my life endorsed any militant or radical groups, yet now I find myself listening to them. I don't have to agree with them to appreciate the fear which birthed their existence. Their borderline insanity presents little more than a balance to the voice of the Socialist mindset in power. Perhaps I became American by a great stroke of luck in some cosmic uterine lottery, but in my adulthood I CHOOSE to embrace it and nurture the freedoms it represents as well as the responsibilities it requires.

Your website generously offers us the opportunity to receive all communication in Spanish. ARE YOU KIDDING??? Someone has broken into our 'house', invaded our home without our invitation or consent. The President has insisted we keep the perpetrator in comfort and learn the perp language so we can communicate our reluctant welcome to them..

I DON'T choose to welcome them.


I DON'T choose to support them.


I DON'T choose to educate them.


I DON'T choose to medicate them, pay for their food or clothing.


American home invaders get arrested.


Please explain to me why foreign lawbreakers can enjoy privileges on American soil that Americans do not get?


Why do some immigrants have to play the game to be welcomed and others only have to break & enter to be welcomed?


We travel for a living. Walt hauls horses all over this great country, averaging over 10,000 miles a month when he is out there. He meets more people than a politician on caffeine overdose. Of all the many good folks he enjoyed on this last 10,000 miles, this trip yielded only ONE supporter of the current administration. One of us is out of touch with mainstream America . Since our poll is conducted without funding, I have more faith in it than one which is power driven.


We have decided to forward this to everyone on our mailing list, and will encourage them to do the same. With several hundred in my address book, I have every faith that the eventual exponential factor will make a credible statement to you.


I am disappointed as hell.


I am scared as hell.


I am MAD as hell, and I'm NOT gonna take it anymore!



Walt & Cyndy

Miller Farms Equine Transport

http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/aarp.asp

I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO KEEP THIS MOVING FORWARD

Skywatch Friday - A crown of clouds

For more great sky shots head on over to:

Cow Power

Wow! It looks like they finally found a way to covert all that methane gas into usable energy!

Peace, Blessings, and MOOOOOO

Progressive Thinking

Earlier this year I decided to switch our car insurance to Progressive. I'm so glad I did! I love their online account management tools. I love their rates. I love their customer service people.

Now, you know that I normally rant on the bad customer service I receive. Honestly, though, I cannot find anything to complain about here! No, I'm not getting paid to do this. I just thought you might like to know that I don't always just complain. I also thought that, if you're looking for new coverage that I'd recommend these folks. Besides, That Betty Boop-ity gal is just too cute.

Peace, Blessings, and Safe travels!