The Lion at the Window

The house was very quiet.  Everyone but my cousin Susie and I were sound asleep.  Susie and I had been entertaining each other with scary stories of wild animals that existed outside when we all were in bed.  Being from the piedmont area of the mountain range, we just knew that bears, panthers, and bobcats roamed the area at night.  They came down from the mountains at night and carried away livestock and small children.

This was the time when no one locked their doors, and we slept with the windows up in the summer.  Thank goodness it was a little cool that night, and we had our bedroom windows down.  We lay there in the dark talking about the animals that could be lurking outside right that very minute.

Susie and I had an active imagination.  We liked nothing better than to work ourselves up into pure fear with each sound in the night.  Susie and I loved to take a situation and hang in there with it until we were scared out of our wits.  This was exactly what happened that dark night.

Our house had a hallway with a bathroom at the end of the hall.  On one side of the bathroom was my brothers' room and on the other side was my room.  As you started down the hall to the bathroom, was our parents' bedroom.  Mama and Daddy were sound asleep.  I could hear Daddy snoring.  I recognized that sound and I was sure that it was not a wild animal which had made its way through the unlocked door.

In the quietness and darkness of the night, Susie and I heard a sound outside of my window.  It was a low growl.  We got very quiet and listened.  The growl grew a little louder. Was that closer than before?  We got up and slowly made our way to the hallway.  It was extremely dark as I felt my way to the door.  We stepped into the hallway and as I put my hand around the bathroom door to flip the light stitch, it happened.  The lion let out a roar!

I left Susie to fend for herself as I hurried down the hall.  Actually I don't remember going down the hall.  One minute I was standing next to Susie and the next minute my knees were in Daddy's stomach!  When he was able to talk, he was not a happy man.  Of course, I couldn't get out the word "lion"!  I stammered and sputtered until Susie was standing next to the bed.  She finally got it out what we had heard.  A lion was outside our window!  We heard it!  It as going to get in the house!  An unhappy Daddy told us to go back to bed.  There were no lions in the yard.  Can you believe he made us face our danger and go back to bed?

It is me again, Lord, thanking you for a loving Father who watches over us even in our hour of fear.

A little Georgia Wisdom:  Never, under any circumstances, jump on your dad with your knees in his stomach.  It takes his breath away!

No Market for Frogs

Children have a weird sense for business--especially bored children like my cousin Bruce and me. It ,again, was summer.  Bruce and I have great memories of long, hot summer days.  The red dust was like fine powder as we walked bare footed across the dirt road.  What to do today, was weighing heavy on our little minds.  Then we saw it.  The fattest old bull frog you ever saw.  Bruce had the idea that we could open a pet store right on the side of that red dusty road and make a fortune.  All we needed were a few more frogs and we were in business.

We took most of the morning looking in the places that we had seen frogs before.  With a little searching, we found a few more.  Man, we were gonna be rich!  Aunt Opal had a big wash tub which was the perfect container for frogs.  We place large rocks in the tub, put water in it so the frogs would have some, and set up shop.  We weren't getting any customers.  What could be wrong?  Of course, we hadn't seen a car all morning.  That could be the problem.

Soon our little minds were distracted to move on to some really important activities that needed our attention.  But not to worry, we had moved the large tub under the shade of the old china-berry tree.  All afternoon we played in the fields and in our favorite place--the big ditch.  It was a hot day and we played hard.  Bruce and I decided to rest in the shade and have a cool drink.  We got our water and took it out to the old tree.  It was then we actually thought about our frog enterprise.  What we found was one of life's lessons.

Our shade had moved.  Yes, the shade had moved!  The large tub with our frogs was exposed to the hot Georgia sun.  Instead of having nice frogs to sell as pets, we found baked ones. We had killed our business.  The innocence of our child minds had been shaken.  In good faith we had left the frogs with water and a shade, but we hadn't factored in the sun.  Our first major experience with being responsible ended in the death of our business.  It was a tough lesson for seven year olds.

It's me again, Lord, thanking you for allowing us to grow from our mistakes.

A little Georgia Wisdom reminding you that life lessons are sometimes hard and we need to stay focused.

"It's me, Daddy."

My dad love to deer hunt.  He planned his vacation around deer season and needless to say, my mother hated it.  Mom loved the beach, but dad loved deer hunting.  This was a yearly discussion.

One year Daddy shot a deer.  You cannot imagine the joy he had with that deer.  He had the head mounted and it hung in our living room.  Daddy was so proud of that deer.  You could say it was is pride and joy.

The house I grew up in changed a lot over the years.  Imagine, if you will, a three room house.  Now, I did not say a three bedroom house; I said a three ROOM house!  As the family grew, so did the house.  The first addition was to add two more bedrooms, another kitchen, and an indoor bathroom.  No one can express the joy of going to an outhouse in the winter.  Once the wind blew ours over, but that is a story for another day.  There was snow on the ground that day too.  Looking back, that was a funny sight.

Well, I should get back to the deer story.  After my youngest sister and brother made their arrival, Daddy and Momma decided to add more rooms to the house.  The only place they could build  was up, so a two-story house was born.  Remember we started out with three ROOMS and now, the house will have six bedrooms and two bathrooms.

Sherry and Terry thought it was fun to go up the stairs to the unfinished second floor. They like to look where their rooms would be.  On this particular day,  my dad had given the two instructions not to be up there. The floor was not in place; and the lower ceiling beams were now the exposed floor beams for their rooms upstairs.  Daddy sat on the front porch enjoying a summer afternoon.  Then it happened!

My sister Sherry had come through the ceiling into the living room barely missing the deer head-- and its antlers.  She landed on a soft chair, but her pride was in need of medical attention.  Daddy hear the crashing sound and jumped out of his chair on the porch yelling for an answer to his already answered question of what happened.   A weak voice answered, "It's me, Daddy."

Daddy didn't have to punish anyone for disobeying his orders.  Sherry had been punished enough and Terry, well lets just say he was thankful it wasn't him.

It is me again, Lord, thanking you for being there when we fall.

A little Georgia Wisdom reminding you to take the time to listen to what your heavenly Father says.  You will avoid the fall.

"God Doesn't Talk to Me"

Seven year old Gracie and I had been watching the movie "Love Comes Softly."  She was very interested in the movie and especially their dialog about God.  This interest extended into Primary Church the next day and was even stronger after the lessons taught by Miss Janni and Miss Rachel.  Why had God not talked to her? Gracie was so focused on the fact that God had not talked to her. She wanted Him to speak to her so she could hear His voice.

All day we talked about how God talks to a person and the possible reasons she had never heard Him..  Why does God talk to some people and not to others?  I explained that God spoke in different ways to people.  That it wasn't always an audible voice that one would hear with their ears, but with their hearts, and as she grew older she would be more aware of God and would be able to hear His voice within her, but for now the Bible was God's word and that He spoke to children through their Sunday School and Primary Church teachers, the pastor, and their parents.

Gracie is a very talkative young lady.  As the old saying goes, "she could talk the horns off a billy goat!" As we got ready for bed, and after we said our prayers, she said again, "God doesn't talk me."  She began her line of questions again still not satisfied with my answers.  Finally  I reminded Gracie that she was going to have to talk less and listen more.   

It is me again, Lord, thanking you for the innocence of children and the hunger they have for learning about You..  

A little Georgia Wisdom:  We need to talk less and listen to God more.  Remember Psalm 46:10,  "Be still and know that I am God." 

Joseph was a Step-dad

Have you ever thought about Joseph's important role in the life of Jesus?  Joseph was chosen by God to be our Lord's earthly father.  As Pastor James Lyons, of Camp Creek Baptist Church, pointed out in one of his sermons, "Joseph was Jesus' step-father."

A "step-parent" is seldom given a lot of credit for being a caring, loving, and responsible parent.  But, Joseph was given this responsibility  to the Son of God!  What an amazing position of honor!

Have you ever thought about the training Joseph gave Jesus?  Joseph was a carpenter by trade.  I would imagine he spent countless hours teaching Jesus the tools of the trade and in return Jesus taught him about his heavenly Father.  I would imagine the conversations were intense as Joseph learned about God from his step-son.

Jesus obeyed his heavenly Father and honored his earthly father.  There are many undocumented years when Jesus was growing up with Joseph and Mary.  Jesus would have been wise beyond his years and his earthly parents were probably amazed at what they learned from his teachings.

I can see Joseph take the little boy hands of  Jesus when they went into the city or traveled together.  The precious hands of the Savior.  He didn't know that one day those hands would  have nails driven through them, or the little feet that carried the little boy Jesus as he walked with his step-dad would have nails driven through them. Joseph didn't know what the future held for his step-son.  Joseph knew Jesus was special and the son of God, but how would he have handled the information that Jesus would die a painful death for the sins of the world?  That he would die for Joseph's sins and Mary's sins.  The knowing would have been too overwhelming.

God knew exactly who would be the perfect step-dad for Jesus.  What an honor for Joseph.

It is me again, Lord, thanking you for the precious blood You shed for my sins.

A little Georgia Wisdom reminding you to honor the men who have the important role of "step-dad" to a child.  It is a position not to be taken lightly.

Aunt Dovie

Aunt Dovie lived a long life and was, herself, a wealth of information.  She was up at dawn and worked until the late evening.  She believed you were to hoe your garden early in the mornings, and that the afternoons were used to get things done around the house.  She stayed busy.

Aunt Dovie never bought dirt.  As a matter of fact, she would think one was crazy to buy dirt!  She would get her bucket and shovel and to the woods she would go,  She would dig away the leaves and look for the blackest dirt she could find.  This was the richest dirt to use.  After filling her bucket, she would go back home and make another trip to the barn where she gathered the rich deposits of the cows.  Mixing the manure with the dirt, she would plant in pots.  Her plants came from folks who let her have cuttings or seeds.  Her plants were beautiful.  A person must ask for cuttings or seeds; if not the plants you took would die.  You never "steal" a plant, cuttings, or seeds.

Aunt Dovie lived through a time when ladies' dresses touched the ground.  She told me how, as a little girl, she love to watch the long skirts roll the little stones as the ladies walked in their long skirts.  That was a good memory of her childhood which held many painful ones.

She lived during a time that her father had the ultimate say without questions.  When she was eighteen years old, she eloped with my uncle Roy.  They left in a buggy and went to church where they were married.  Her father came looking for her with a hickory to whip her, but by the time he found her, she was already married.

Aunt Dovie lived through the Great Depression.  It was because of this hardship, she made sure she had plenty of food canned for the winter.  She had a storage building in which she stored all her canned foods and a freezer filled with more food.  She would never go hungry.

It is me again, Lord, thanking you for the gift of knowing wise folks like Aunt Dovie.

A little Georgia Wisdom reminding you to talk to the elderly folks in your life and treasure their advice.  It never hurts to be prepared for the future.

Cameron, the Teacher

January 15, 2011 is a special day.  My grandson, Cameron, will be 18 years old. This is the age when young men sign up for Selective Service or "the draft" for the military even though one has not been implemented since 1973.  It is time for young men and women to register to vote.  Eighteen years of age is a turning point in a teenager's life.

Cameron is a special young man.  God has given him to us for a reason--to teach us.  Cameron teaches us unconditional love.  He doesn't speak, but he communicates his love to all of us with his gentle manner and loving ways and his sweet smile and, the feel-it-all-over laughter. Cameron teaches us that we don't need words to tell others how we feel, and he teaches us that music is a universal language; the rhythm is the same.

Cameron needs special care.  He depends on others to take care of his needs and in return he gives love and understanding.  Cameron doesn't judge people.  He accepts them.  We have learned these life lessons from him.

Cameron won't ever be able to drive a car or play baseball.  He won't run the Peachtree in Atlanta  July 4, but he will continue to win our hearts over and over again as he melts us with his sweet smiles and his feel-it-all-over laughter.  No, he won't register to vote in the 2012 elections.  He won't even care who the candidates will be on the ballots.  He might, however, be affected by Obamacare as a low priority medical care patient.  I'm not sure where he would fit on that scale.  I shutter to think about it.

Cameron will be eighteen years old.  We were not sure how long we would have him with us when he was first born and weighed 1 pound and 13-l/2 ounces.  The doctors could not assure us that Cameron would reach  this age, but the Lord has blessed us with Cameron who will forever be our "Little Man."

It is me again, Lord, thanking you for a special grandson who teaches us life lessons.

A little Georgia Wisdom to grow by:  Never overlook the life lessons taught from the most unusual sources.  God uses all His children, even the ones with physical and mental limitations; they are the ones with the most to give.