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Big Talkers… Smooth Talkers… think of it as a wolf in Used Car Salesman clothing.
At one time or another, we have all spent time buying a car… time we will never get back. Sitting for hours in an office with lousy coffee, and a bowl of stale candy on a side table. Schmoozing, promising… talking us into compromising our better judgement, in order to get an affordable price on a vehicle they swear is Steal of a Deal!
Now that you have a mental image of a personality trait no one enjoys dealing with, I wish to relate this to a personality trait that sends red flags up for me, brighter than Red Riding Hoods Cape! I know that I used an example about a car dealer, but we all have met folks that act and talk like Grannie but are really not an old woman at all.
Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing, as they say!
I looked on Google for accurate descriptions of Personality Traits, and there is a really interesting one called yourdictionary.com . A wise thing I noted while reading, is the fact that the question we are answering should pertain to someone we know. A trait is an overall thing, a persons natural go to… not an off the cuff reaction or behavior, so car dealerships across America can breath a sigh of relief. You are not all bad… just some.
Quite frankly, we should choose our friends wisely! I come from an old school train of thought… If you are going to talk the talk, then you better be able to walk the walk… A man is as good as his word… do unto others as you would have them do unto you… etc!
As in the wise words of Forest Gump, “That’s all I got to say about that”…
The idea of a message board surfaced in my mind… a place to get the digs on things and stuff for each week.
Things like who wants what for my virtual get togethers, or potlucks…
Things like upcoming books or series…
Perhaps things like your shared Rainbow Days (blessings you received)…
I might leave ideas for you to choose from, in terms of party themes, wish lists, etc.
This can be our Monday Meet Up! You can offer up your requests for ideas or topics, or maybe ask for prayer (No need to panic… I am not Ann Frank and don’t need personal details).
To be quite honest, I am not fully sure of what all will get posted here…. think of it like a mailbox of sorts.
This Week:
Tuesday Talks – I am attempting to take you on my walks with me… Virtually… don’t get too excited because they will only be brief. Following my teenie video, I will leave a link to the song of the week. Whatever song catches my fancy on said virtual walk, will get it’s moment in my Tuesday spotlight!
Just a Bag – While I cannot say for certain, I believe that we are coming to the end of this series, possibly in the next several weeks. I try not to give exact dates for things, as the source of my inspiration (God) tends to tell me things at the last moment.
Live Novel Fridays is returning this fall, starting in October! I am so excited about the upcoming book, but mums the word… no spoilers!
Also, beginning in October there will be Virtual Potlucks every Sunday after Live Wire… check here on Mondays to sign up for dishes in the comment section.
I am totally serious about this virtual thing, and you better start putting together your wish lists… because the sky is the limit! So put your Happy Holiday Hats on early this year, because I wish to bring you the most stress free and celebratory Holiday Season of pure Virtual Joy!
By this point in my life, I have come to an understanding that life runs like sand through an hourglass. The older a person gets, the faster time seems to fly… slipping through our fingers like water, rushing from the mountains to the seas.
Looking back over a good many years of my lifetime, it seems only yesterday that I held my babies for the first time. Time has a funny way of working… sometimes it moves slow and sometimes it flies, as they say. The days of my own childhood seem almost as if they were a dream, or belong to someone else I might know.
Looking at my here and now, circumstances have required that I live only for the day I reside in currently. Self-preservation dictates that I focus on getting through the here and now, because we all know that tomorrow is no guarantee.
Looking forward always sends my hopes and dreams heavenward, where all my stuff is. But for you WordPress, I will rise to the occasion to answer your prompt…
If I were to describe my ideal week, I would envision my children finally calling or visiting to see if I am still well… it has been a year since I have seen my youngest, three since I spoke to my oldest, and my middle daughter avoids me with excuses. Having a relationship with any of my grandchildren is not available. Ideally, I wish to have some love from my children, and then I can call it good! I imagine seeing Jesus returning on the clouds this week, but it is only wishful thinking. He will return when and only when He has planned, and no amount of praying will change that time.
There, that’s all I got! I find it best to just plan for the here and now… tomorrow will get here when it gets here and I have things to do in the Today part. One of which is making your cupcakes and tea…
You may already be aware of how much I love the Psalms, and have a special appreciation in my heart for David. I take such great encouragement from both his great love for God, and his great failures. David was real just like you and I, with the same temptations, fears, and obstacles to overcome in his life. And yet, in the midst of all he lived through, this man wrote some of the most heartfelt and profound words, to and about God, that I have ever had the pleasure of reading!
One of David’s Psalms struck a chord with me this morning, Psalm 18 in fact, because he was living on the edge of a knife during the time this was written. God had just delivered David from the hands of Saul. First of all, I cannot fathom fleeing for my life from someone I thought loved me, let alone keeping a good attitude. Secondly, if I had just survived a loved one trying kill me… I am fully unable to account for what naughty things might be spilling out of my mouth as an afterthought.
Yet David wrote such an account of things, I am left with a greater appreciation, as to why David was considered a man after Gods own heart, as they say.
As I sip my morning coffee and prepare to spend some time in the word, it disturbs me to think we would place any amount of respect for an athlete over other types. I could understand if the only other people I know were athletes, maybe, but playing a sport does not really make you a person I can respect.
It is Sunday morning and I am in a Jesus state of mind, so the only athlete coming to mind is Him! He ran a race… and Won it… ahhhhhhhhhhh… there is the respect! Thank you WordPress!!!
We have all been there… those days where everything seems to be going sideways and not in our favor. The list of what we have no control over seems insurmountable, compared to what we can effectively do to hold back the onslaught of what the world throws at us. It leaves us dizzy with the maelstrom of possibilities to either succeed and survive, or fail and be sucked into the vortex of our final end!
For some this idea seems ludicrous… my life isn’t that hard, is it… really? From the outside of a persons difficulties, it is so easy to think they are making a big deal out of simple things… maybe they are, but who is qualified to judge? From within that person’s reality, things can seem so impossible and just too much to deal with! Why do you think therapists are so widely utilized? Everyone needs to be understood and feel worthy of sympathy or compassion. It is just so sad to me, that we have to pay money to get love… unconditional love! What is worse, is that we are willing to pay first, before allowing God to give it to us for free!
Before you think that I am refuting how necessary Therapists are, I will assure you that I find professional care necessary when needed, whether it is mental, emotional, or physical… no digging on our pros out there… they are basically out there giving of themselves to a degree I could not do justice in describing… on my best writing day!
That being said, lets get back to my point… surviving the day to day…
Notes to Self are just that… personal notes reminding me to stay the course, keep looking up and reaching out! Most days are very positive and productive, while I do have those days resembling what I spoke of in the beginning of todays Note. For this reason, I chose to add Note To Self #4…
“All the days ordained for me, were written in Your book, before one of them came to be”. Psalm 139:16
I can rest in assurance that He is a big God… even if I cannot see what is ahead, I have not walked this journey alone. God has been with me all along! I can trust that He has me safely within His hands, and this verse encourages my spirit! Hopefully it will encourage one of you…
When I game, I don’t just game… I spend all my time (in game) collecting every stray animal I can find within that map! Do I pay attention to my team (husband and brother in law)? Nope! While they are off slaying enemies, you will find me searching…
While the guys are sneaking into enemy camps and stealing all their stuff, I am looking for little ones… innocent little creatures that I can rescue (club unconscious) and raise as my own.
As I play a mix of MMORPG games, I have amassed quite a menagerie of virtual pets…
You could even say that I am THE MOTHER OF DRAGONS… and horses, and cats, and wolves, and a Pheonix, and 3 Pegasus, an Elephant, and two Rhinos!
Of my all my virtual companions I have my favorites…
Careful, I have not trimmed his nails this week so if he scratches you, it’s gonna make a mess on my virtual carpets.
Next, there is Oberon and Lady Idris from Ark…
This picture is just an example… mine are darker in color.
These are not my personal pictures in game, but you get the idea…
I personally prefer the Ironbelly Ancient Dragons… you don’t want to know how many I have or how many different breeds I have collected… Let us just say that I have a pretty extensive breeding program in Ark.
Lastly there are my horses…
Oreo is actually a Grey Roan but I just grabbed this picture for an example. I have too many horses you see, and it would be unfair to any one of them if I put another’s picture up for your viewing pleasure.
I built a full stable in both games. While I don’t have a long list of favorites here, I do love my Oreo. Now I know that he looks exactly like two of the others in my stable, but Oreo is my pal. I don’t just feed him vines like the others, no no… He gets only the finest bark available with my Eldarian Pick-axe!
Ok ok… I have thoroughly geeked out right in front of your virtual eyes! But, hey… this is the cheapest and easiest way to relax and I can have as many babies as I want without all the messy clean up and vet bills. A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do…
Well, since I have been sharing my thoughts, insights and discoveries about Church, I wanted to share with you what I have decided! My search for church brought me to the discovery that it (church) is a never ending story, and I will explain why…
Studying Gods word and seeking a more complete understanding of what Church was, is, and should/could be… is a lifelong pursuit! I believe that it is supposed to be, otherwise, I could just read it, learn it, and then retire in my own self-righteous arrogance about my own Godly wisdom. What a waste…
If I am His Church… through the righteousness of Christ Jesus… then it stands to reason that I must flux and change, as time goes on and God dictates, to fulfill His purposes. The church should go to where there is need… maybe that is why my house has wheels… I dunno…
If I am His Church… through the righteousness of Christ Jesus… then it also stands to reason that my lobby (my heart) is always open to receive visitors… This House of God is always open! The beauty of my lobby is in the fact that it is just that… a Lobby! It is not a therapist office, as I have no degree… it is not a coffee shop, but it does have a fountain of living water within it… it is not a place to like, share, or I will friend you if you friend me… this is not Facebook!
If I am His Church… through the righteousness of Christ Jesus… then it finally also stands to reason that this hostess is not expected to be flawless, nor wiser than any other traveler that stops in… That is Jesus Job… He already did that! What I am is a willing and obedient child of God… broken and yet whole… flawless and yet faulable… perfect in His eyes with all my scars still visible on my skin… I am a tender of my scars… caring without judgement… so far from perfect that I am just what the Doctor ordered!
Through the righteousness of Jesus, this vessel has become His light in the darkness! Our broken down old RV is my chariot, and my soulmate is my trusty and faithful Steed/Guardian! Were it not for God seeing my unformed body when I was woven together in the depths, there would be no hope for my existence. With that being said, I wish to be your hostess in said Lobby… whether you stop in and say hello, laugh with me about something, cry with me over a hurt, or quietly take a drink from the fountain and be off, I will be here.
I wish to extend an open and never ending invitation to visit this lobby… I do not care who you are, why you have come, what you do in your off time, or if we agree on everything in life… why do we have to agree on everything? That is where judgement steps in, and that is not my department… no thanks! Just laugh at my silly word prompts, grab a cookie, and if ever there is a time when you just need some love… I will be in the lobby.
Starting Monday, I am going to be doing things differently throughout the winter months. Mondays will be a message board, of sorts, for all of you to get an idea of what is coming up. With the picture changes to reflect the changing season, I am wishing to use my site for themes of gratitude, warm holiday recipes and memories. If you are wondering why I am doing this, it is sort of my first attempt at celebrating a full holiday season… virtually! We are going to have potlucks, gift exchanges, parties… but all are virtual and free… the sky is the limit, right?! Trust me, I have a plan so all you have to do is check the Monday Messages to see what the week will hold.
Now that I am getting a clearer picture of the direction God is pointing me in, regarding Church, I find it rather appropriate that my title reads “Journey with Me”… don’t you?
In a world where talk is cheap, one would think it would be quite easy enough to pick a word and throw it on the WordPress Imaginary Burn Pile. Personally, I honestly could not come up with even one. I am not sure if it’s because I don’t want to, or because I can’t choose.
The first thing coming to mind was, “Sorry”. The next word was “Me”… then it went to “I”, and then it went to “why is this question peeving me off”? The merry go round had begun to turn, and I began feeling a bit nauseated as I tried to hold onto the idea behind removing a usable word… I am a writer for crying out loud! Words are all I have! Calm down, calm down… we are not heading into an emotional breakdown… more like a Dr. Seuss story.
So, back to our conversation from a moment ago… I am a writer, and somewhat of a shut in, with few souls that I engage with face to face, with real word sounds. The thought of removing any word from the English language seems ludicrous to this girl! It is not the words’ fault when hoomans misuse, overuse, or even abuse the words’ use. That’s like asking a diabetic to stop taking insulin because they are doing the injection wrong. We do not do that because they would die without the medication. We take the time to educate them in properly administering the life saving drug. I think the same thing goes for words!
Using the word I in writing, expresses perspective… using the word me takes focus off of you and uses the writer as the example… and using the word Sorry is my true humility for any misstep taken.
I guess my take away here is to be careful what I speak, whatever words I use… I am truly sorry WordPress, I tried to decide on an answer for you, but for me… words are how I take you places, show you things, and share with you who I am…
Maybe it had to do with my childhood… or possibly the memory of very poor healthcare, from those touting their hypocritic … I mean Hippocratic oaths. Lets just say, they gave a less than convincing effort at caring for my health, than I think this earthly body deserved.
That being said, I do believe that there are good doctors out there… but boy is it hard to find one that listens and actually tries to help. I hope that you didn’t pick up on it, but I have been struggling for the last few days. I had to go get a check-up. My friend finally convinced me to apply for Medicaid and food stamps which I felt awful about. But it had to be done!
I have not been to a doctor since the shutdown, and it hasn’t been easy… but at the same time, I think it also saved my life!
You see, I have several health conditions that at one time, had me taking 6 medications. I felt like a numb Zombie most of the time, unable to find the energy to get beyond the medicating fog… eventually gaining a great amount of weight that landed me in a recliner for 12 to 14 hours a day. The saddest part of things was I still hurt constantly… and if I missed even one dose of my meds it put me in such a tail swing that I would crash and end up in the emergency room. During the shutdown was my last crash! From the anxiety, stress, and eventual homelessness I fell apart!
The long and short of it was, I dropped off the grid and nearly died. I lost over 100 lbs and not the good way… either starving or throwing up whatever I ate. Nearly all my hair fell out, and I am self-diagnosing but I think I am still working my way through PTSD. I could take a wild guess and say my condition started when I was born and just followed me all these years. Take your pick as to any number of the really crappy poker hands life dealt me, for this self diagnosis.
Anyway, I feel better now than I ever have, aside from a few things. Wisdom dictated that I seek professional assistance to check bloodwork, blood pressure, and those sort of things. I will admit that my right arm has not been working and my right eye has a cataract, and I need a doctors help. They are much better qualified in this regard.
Requesting assistance seems reasonable to me, until I am asked to trust a stranger for anything. Trauma has a memory you see…
Fear has been knocking on my door since I made the appointment, and my faith has been working overtime to answer before I get there. I rescheduled once, but it was justified. This time I meant to go through with it, using my husband as my personal cattle prod. Had he not been there when they handed me the health survey, I would have turned right back around and left… I’m just being honest.
The questions were redundant, ridiculous, and in my opinion, seeming only to wonder if I drank, smoke, or was sad… not kidding… three separate forms asking the same questions. Not once did anyone care if I was sad, when we were denied unemployment, or as the sheriff taped the 72 hour final notice on our front door. It is so hard to let go of old hurts! My spirit is calm and at peace, but my physical body fights me so much… reacting out of a childlike self-preservation survival mode. God walks with me one day at a time, and never rushes me into something I am not prepared for… that’s how He rolls!
Looking back on things, I can see God’s faithfulness… connecting me with probably one of the nicest group of professionals I have ever met. Remember that I am a Chatty Cathy/Loud Mouth Frog/Wolverine, to anyone not resting safely behind a computer screen. The entire staff handled me with attentiveness, kindness, professionalism and genuine compassion. God is Good!
They successfully drew my blood for testing, without me passing out on the floor. I told you about my childhood grange hall vaccination memories… that stuff messed me up!
Today, however, I did get a pretty pink band aid after they drew my blood. In the end it was a success I think! I will get referrals for my cataract and arm issues, hopefully skirting around any surgeries or drugs… here is hoping, but I will do what must be done to keep seeing and using my arm. I need em if I am to keep turning summersaults all over our virtual lobby!
Journey With Me! 