There’s nothing more jarring and/or disconcerting than when your car tire hits a pothole, when you’re driving down the road at full speed!
You’re lucky to keep the car on the road, not to mention, trying to hold onto your coffee without wearing it… am I right?!
I suppose it’s nearly as jarring to hit a speed bump, but at least you get vaulted into the air, so you can keep going. Not a pothole, no no! Those will either stop you in your tracks, trying to catapult you through the windshield… or worse yet, you might just find yourself trying to stay out of oncoming traffic. If you’re lucky, the car’s tires will only rub the curb. I think we’ve all been there at one time, or another.
That’s kind of how life experiences tend to make us grow… by sheer force! Sink or swim, life or death! You have to think fast, choose wisely, and definitely know how to put out fires, stop the bleeding, as well as, knowing where the Band-Aids are hiding!
At least my car (life) comes with a stellar manufacturers warranty. My agent always fixes the damages, putting me back on the road, quickly. I will admit that my car usually ends up facing a new direction, but with a full tank of gas and new driving instructions.
Pothole experiences are where God does his best work, I think. He makes the best corrections, top notch repairs to all damages, and he even provides the most beautiful band-aids.
The most precious time in my journey, hands down, was having and raising my three daughters when they were babies!
Don’t get me wrong, I carry their older years in my heart as well, but the baby phase was the most difficult to leave behind.
The doctors said I would never conceive … and if I did, I would not be able to carry a baby to full term, due to my medical history. I had a great many difficulties in my young life, of which, now is not the time or place to go into in any great detail. I will simply say that babies were not supposed to be in my future!
I became pregnant 8 times, losing 5 in order to have the three that I did carry to full term. The sicker I was, the better, because I knew my body was holding on to the pregnancy. I relished every bit of morning sickness, every stretch mark, crazy cravings and chubby pounds I gained.
My first daughter didn’t want to exit the building, forcing the doctor to induce my labor 2 full weeks after my due date… she is my stubborn Drama Queen, to this day!
My second daughter and I both nearly died in childbirth, as my placenta ruptured prematurely, causing an emergency Caesarian section. She was born 2 weeks early and still weighed in at 8 lbs. 6 oz. when she arrived. She was a very fussy baby, being dubbed Kaitlungs… though, to this day, she’s the quietest and most reserved daughter of all three!
My third daughter was the easiest pregnancy, easiest delivery, and tiniest of the three… born 2 weeks early and weighing in at a solid 8 lbs. She literally shot out and landed in my doctors arms, being dubbed the surfing baby! She is most like me, of all my girls… just as strong minded, sassy and bright!
It was after her delivery that my doctor said, no more pregnancies … the risk was just too great for me to continue having babies. Thus, my season of bearing children had finally come to an end.
You may scoff, but I miss every detail of those years… every sleepless night, every tantrum, every band-aid handed out! I miss nursing my babies, changing their diapers, cuddling and rocking them gently, while they slept in my arms.
If I could, I would have bottled up and saved the smell of their breath, their skin… their hair!
If only I had made recordings of their laughter, cries, shouts, whispers and bickering… oh well, no more woulda coulda shoulda, in that regard!
I did make journals for each of them, with letters and stories of things they did and said, that I have saved all these years… I tried so hard to plan ahead, knowing that memories fade and things can so easily be forgotten over time.
Thank goodness I did that, because even if I had to say goodbye to that phase, I can easily go back through those books and memories, remembering and cherishing them over and over. Who knows, maybe one day my daughters will want those books to read with their children… maybe not. I’m still glad I dreamt of them, birthed them, raised them, and wrote things down for them… that way it’s not really goodbye to that phase, is it? My blood runs through their veins… they will always be my babies… and I will forever be their mother!
I don’t desire to actually look like Mary Poppins, nor am I dreaming of being a Nanny to any child in particular.
To be the woman who could travel by umbrella, I could go anywhere… but that’s not it!
To be able to pop in and out of paintings, allowing me to travel through space and time to visit places I would otherwise never visit… nope, not that either!
For just one day, I would absolutely love to be Mary Poppins, in order to use her magical bag! You know, that carpet bag that could pull out any sort of useful or magical item I might need at the moment. The things I could do with that bag, even if it were only for the time stipulated by the daily prompt.
Just within walking distance of my RV, there are so many things I could use that bag for… like feeding the homeless I see walking around, or going door to door looking for things to hand people, hoping to lighten their burdens and brighten their day. The bag could house money, food, clothes, toys, tools, and/or vitamins and medicines they might not be able to locate.
But it’s more than just using the bag for things… no no… it is the freedom to give, that the bag offers! You see, Mary Poppins took the bag with her everywhere she went. Whatever was inside the bag needed to be taken to where it belonged. Mary Poppins never sent things in her bag through the mail… she always did the foot work herself… or the umbrella travel… or the horse racing… or the tea time on the ceiling… see?
I don’t need Mary Poppins magical loving heart, as I’ve got a real one that offers its own sort of magic… I just need the bag for the day.
When will we learn that words, just like guns, can be use for both good and evil alike?
You can remove all weapons from the hands of a man, but if his heart is still filled with wickedness, he will find a different weapon to replace the one taken!
If you’ve unsuccessfully changed the heart of a man, it won’t matter what words, weapons, or any other tools you give or remove from him… the heart is what determines how the tool is used!
Last I checked, only God can change the heart of a man. So, there simply aren’t any words worth removing, in my humble opinion. There are, however, a couple nefarious characters I’d like to permanently ban, but that’s not what the prompt was asking. We must stick to the prompt, right?!
Here, have a cookie, but you might want to pick off the cartridges first…
At this present moment, my most favorite person to be around is my newest granddaughter, but I’m being partial, I realize.
Truthfully, though, I wouldn’t say that I necessarily have names of people on a list that I’d prefer to be around. I generally love to be around anyone desiring fellowship, needing encouragement, or especially those in need of prayer.
Society currently seems to be buried in their smart phones, completely oblivious to everyone and every thing around them. Nobody holds a door open, or even acknowledges when someone holds it for them. And, there’s little to no eye contact. Get in, get what you need, and get out! Don’t make any sudden movements, or hold eye contact for any length of time, with anyone!
I think the problem stems from many differing sources, and I’ve not the time nor energy to spell them all out. What I do know is that there are indeed those still out there, somewhere, in dire need of love, tenderness, forgiveness, human touch, and guidance.
If you’ve not noticed any hungry eyes near you, then maybe you’ve stopped looking.
I realize how much easier it would be to turn to familiar, and safe favorite people, but perhaps we’ve been called to do much more. What if that’s where the problem lies, deep in the heart of man. Our natural bent is toward self… self-preservation, self-esteem, self-love, and self, self, self! I’m not even off the hook, here.
Having a generous heart is taught, contrary to what some may believe. No one is born with a benevolent heart, even if I think my SugarPlum is perfect in every way! She’ll need to be shown, hopefully, by the village of family that surrounds her on every side.
Perhaps, if more of those villages start popping up, society might have a chance at becoming better than we are, thus far. Just sayin.
How many of those receipt checkers at the grocery store, actually check the list and then compare it to what’s in your cart, item by item?
Why do dogs turn their noses up at certain foods, and yet they’ll happily go for an all-you-can-eat buffet at the litter box?
It’s too bad that people don’t tell lies as adults, like they did when they were children. It would be so much easier to find out the truth of a matter. Most children end up giving themselves away, just by the look on their faces.
Aren’t you glad that they came up with better thermometer’s than were used, back in the day. Could you imagine if adults still had to take their temperature with a baby booty thermometer? I think I’d rather deal with the fever!
Is it me, or are nearly half of our commercials these days made with either really bad actors, movie stars needing to make their mortgages, or simply ai generated ones? It’s like their not even trying to impress the viewer any more.
When asking Google about how many years it’s been since credit card spending became a thing, this was the response I was given…
AI Overview – It has been approximately 30 years since the very beginning of online credit card spending, which took off with the advent of secure, mainstream e-commerce in the mid-1990s.
1994–1995: The first “secure” online credit card transactions occurred around 1994 (with the introduction of SSL encryption and early browsers like Netscape). Amazon was founded in 1994/1995, marking the beginning of the e-commerce boom.
Late 1990s/Early 2000s: Online shopping became more than a novelty and gained momentum in the late 1990s as internet access became more common, with platforms like eBay (1995) and the founding of PayPal (1998) fueling the shift.
2000s onwards: By the mid-2000s, online credit card payments had established themselves as a standard, secure payment method for consumers.
While the first online transaction was made in 1994, it took several years for it to become truly “mainstream,” making the shift roughly 30 years ago from 2026.
I never said that my Thursday Thoughts would be organized in any particular way. Most of the time, I simply sit drinking my tea while letting my mind wander over this and that. You might think it odd, or a worrisome habit of what might be called scatterbrain. No matter! I just happen to have a very imaginative and busy brain.
At my age, which is nearing 58, it’s vitally important to keep the brain engaged and actively learning. This is partly why I ask myself random questions and then go look em up on Google. Trying to exercise my brain with those silly phone apps only aggravates me. Anytime they put a timer on a game or activity, it’s no longer fun for this girl. I like to be challenged but not with a timer… too much stress.
Maybe there’s just too much old school in this brain, but if it ain’t broke… well then, don’t try fixing it!
I think Eustace spent too much time on the tractor yesterday while we were gone. He was still working when we got home, and stayed out until after the sun went down. The camel looked positively exhausted when he came in for dinner.
I walked him out to the barn after dinner, just to tuck him in for the night. When I went out this morning to check on the camel, I didn’t have the heart to wake him. He looks so peaceful, doesn’t he? What ever would we do without this cheeky, yet, oh so loveable camel, I wonder. I’ll just be grateful for him being here.
I think we should all have someone like Eustace, don’t you? Someone that always thinks of us, of our health, and of our happiness. You’ll have to find your own, though, because this camel is taken!
Ahhhh, the laws of nature, the laws of Government, and yes, the laws of mankind, themselves. One might pick from any number of lists, in order to locate a law that seems in need of being changed. Would the change even remain, once enacted?
If we’ve learned anything at all regarding the law, it’s that if man is involved in it’s creation, modification, or even dissimilation… it won’t last!
After all these generations of humanity, we still struggle with racism, hate crimes, corporate greed and injustice, along with a completely inadequate educational system. Why is this still occurring? Human Nature, that’s why!
Until we learn that we never had any power in the first place, we’ll never stop making mistake after mistake after mistake!
I vote that instead of trying to find some law that we think we have the power to change, we start giving God the space to start making changes within our very hearts! Big, and very powerful changes are possible from the smallest of humble surrenders. I know who holds the power… and it’s neither you nor me, but God and God alone!
When I am weak, He is strong!
When I am lost, He makes a way!
When I am powerless, unseen, and discarded by a very broken and fallen world, He lifts me up, surrounds me, and covers me with His providence… and His Power! Since I never had the power to change the world on my own, in the first place, I never really lost anything of myself, aside from the fear, shame and self-loathing that usually comes with existence.
Since God’s the only one with any true power to change what needs changing, I choose to let Him do that which I cannot! That’s all I wish to focus on til I get home…
Journey With Me! 