Thirty Days of Thankful #21:
I am thankful for the varied communication skills
of Grandma Maud's boys,
Jack, Bill, and Dick Rensel.
They have all served as models for me.
Dick,
the baby,
was an educator.
Each summer
he was a ranger in Glacier National Park
and spoke with thousands of people
from around the world.
The rest of the year
Dick was a teacher in West Glacier Elementary
until the school burned down
due to an art project
gone bad.
Bill,
my dad,
was more of an entertainer.
Waitresses,
craft show customers,
and Walmart walking buddies
were all potential audiences.
My Uncle Jack
loves to talk with total strangers.
Long line at Costco?
No problem.
Doctor running behind schedule?
There is a waiting room
full of interesting lives.
I thought of Jack recently
when chatting with a chauffeur
about the space station
and the Rolling Stones
and the Horseshoe Curve.
Den's flight is late?
No problem.
And Maud had her own communication skill:
she often called all three boys
by one name--
JackBillDick.
I use it
when names confuse me.
"Den.
Luke.
Ummm...
I mean Paul...
JackBillDick!"
God bless you all, JackBillDick.
Thirty Days of Thankful #22:
We are thankful for C.S. Lewis,
who died fifty years ago today
just like another famous person.
Sue received The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
as a ten-year-old,
but was unaware that it was part
of the seven-book Chronicles of Narnia set
until her first year at Houghton.
Aslan reigns!
Let the Narnia Reading Marathon begin!
Den discovered Lewis in college
and quickly progressed from Chronicles
to A Mind Awake
and Mere Christianity
and Screwtape Letters.
His affinity for Lewis continued after college...
Surprised by Joy
and Letters to Children
led to a sabbatical Easter trip
to Oxford and Cambridge.
Den made friends with Peter Cousins,
cab driver extraordinaire,
who made sure he saw
THE lamppost
when areas were closed
due to Mad Cow disease.
"Oops!
Wrong turn!
But, hey, since we're here,
take a picture...."
A few years later,
we strolled the daffodil-studded streambank of Addison's Walk
and quaffed a pint at The Eagle and Child,
the pub where Lewis
and his brother Warnie
and J.R.R. Tolkien
and Dorothy Sayers and
Owen Barfield
critiqued each other's stories.
We are thankful for C.S. Lewis's influence on thousands--
millions--
of believers.
"Christianity, if false,
is of no importance
and if true,
is of infinite importance.
The only thing it cannot be
is moderately important."
Lewis died fifty years ago today,
like John F. Kennedy
and Aldous Huxley.
"Has this world been so kind to you
that you should leave with regret?
There are better things ahead
than any we leave behind."
Thirty Days of Thankful #23:
We are thankful for two-year-old Lucy
who raced across the yard
shrieking "Bop! Bop!"
when Den arrived.
If she had a tail,
it would have been wagging furiously.
We are thankful for five-year-old Anna
who, when Sue neglected
to bring the lobster puppet, "Claw,"
asked Sue to use her hand as a substitute
to make Claw talk.
Anna then proceeded to tell Claw a secret
by whispering to Sue's wrist.
By the way,
Lucy now HAS a tail.
She is thankful
for the clearance fox costume from Old Navy.
Thirty Days of Thankful #24:
I am thankful for the varied communication skills
of Grandma Maud's boys,
Jack, Bill, and Dick Rensel.
They have all served as models for me.
Dick,
the baby,
was an educator.
Each summer
he was a ranger in Glacier National Park
and spoke with thousands of people
from around the world.
The rest of the year
Dick was a teacher in West Glacier Elementary
until the school burned down
due to an art project
gone bad.
Bill,
my dad,
was more of an entertainer.
Waitresses,
craft show customers,
and Walmart walking buddies
were all potential audiences.
My Uncle Jack
loves to talk with total strangers.
Long line at Costco?
No problem.
Doctor running behind schedule?
There is a waiting room
full of interesting lives.
I thought of Jack recently
when chatting with a chauffeur
about the space station
and the Rolling Stones
and the Horseshoe Curve.
Den's flight is late?
No problem.
And Maud had her own communication skill:
she often called all three boys
by one name--
JackBillDick.
I use it
when names confuse me.
"Den.
Luke.
Ummm...
I mean Paul...
JackBillDick!"
God bless you all, JackBillDick.
Thirty Days of Thankful #22:
We are thankful for C.S. Lewis,
who died fifty years ago today
just like another famous person.
Sue received The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
as a ten-year-old,
but was unaware that it was part
of the seven-book Chronicles of Narnia set
until her first year at Houghton.
Aslan reigns!
Let the Narnia Reading Marathon begin!
Den discovered Lewis in college
and quickly progressed from Chronicles
to A Mind Awake
and Mere Christianity
and Screwtape Letters.
His affinity for Lewis continued after college...
Surprised by Joy
and Letters to Children
led to a sabbatical Easter trip
to Oxford and Cambridge.
Den made friends with Peter Cousins,
cab driver extraordinaire,
who made sure he saw
THE lamppost
when areas were closed
due to Mad Cow disease.
"Oops!
Wrong turn!
But, hey, since we're here,
take a picture...."
A few years later,
we strolled the daffodil-studded streambank of Addison's Walk
and quaffed a pint at The Eagle and Child,
the pub where Lewis
and his brother Warnie
and J.R.R. Tolkien
and Dorothy Sayers and
Owen Barfield
critiqued each other's stories.
We are thankful for C.S. Lewis's influence on thousands--
millions--
of believers.
"Christianity, if false,
is of no importance
and if true,
is of infinite importance.
The only thing it cannot be
is moderately important."
Lewis died fifty years ago today,
like John F. Kennedy
and Aldous Huxley.
"Has this world been so kind to you
that you should leave with regret?
There are better things ahead
than any we leave behind."
Thirty Days of Thankful #23:
We are thankful for two-year-old Lucy
who raced across the yard
shrieking "Bop! Bop!"
when Den arrived.
If she had a tail,
it would have been wagging furiously.
We are thankful for five-year-old Anna
who, when Sue neglected
to bring the lobster puppet, "Claw,"
asked Sue to use her hand as a substitute
to make Claw talk.
Anna then proceeded to tell Claw a secret
by whispering to Sue's wrist.
By the way,
Lucy now HAS a tail.
She is thankful
for the clearance fox costume from Old Navy.
Thirty Days of Thankful #24:
I am thankful that we are toasty warm,
snug and comfortable
on this ten degree morning.
Wood smoke is wafting from the furnace chimney,
smoke from home grown trees.
-Den
...and in case there is a cold spot on Den's lap,
Chai the Cat
has that covered.
-Sue
I am thankful that the squirrels in my brain
have To-Do lists.
With the holidays coming,
it's a bit busy up there
with recipes,
ice castles,
pulleys,
the history of Penfield,
first grade's performance of A Christmas Carol,
layout for a climbing wall,
the Ireland book's future,
boycotting Black Friday
not to mention the awful Greedy Thursday,
the possibility of a winter storm,
the church's Christmas program,
and Claw's broken spring.
Den's mind
is a bit more organized--
he remembers where he writes things down--
lumber railroads,
fundraising for the County Historical Society's
new genealogical center,
hunting season,
keeping the pipes from freezing
and other maintenancy things,
a mountain teacher's journal
to transfer and edit....
And speaking of editing,
it's time for a small commercial:
Bard's History of the Old Bucktails
is now available
both in hardcover
and softcover.
Den spent two years
transferring Bard's text
from nineteenth century newspaper articles
to the computer.
This primary source document
with some pictures not previously published
is available
if you Google the Clearfield County Historical Society.
You can save the postage fee
if you visit the CCHS Open House
this Saturday from 1-4.
Free cookies.
It was obvious
when we visited Mom yesterday
that she has no To-Do list.
This is perhaps the most
disconcerting thing
about nursing homes.
I am so used
to centering my life
around DOing.
She spends her time
just BEing.
The scripture
"Be still
and know that I am God,"
applies to Mom and her friends.
Perhaps I need to learn
yet another lesson
from her.
Balance DOing
with BEing.
And don't do it barefoot.
Or,
as they say in the old songs,
Shoe be do be do.
Thirty Days of Thankful #26:
I am thankful for peanut butter,
a seemingly healthy alternative
when no one feels like cooking.
Creamy peanut butter
melting over hot buttered toast.
Crunchy peanut butter
if you want to live
a bit on the wild side.
It sits on the shelf for weeks
without going bad,
without getting lonely
because jelly is always there
being sweet.
Peanut butter is main course material
that also functions as dessert.
Just add chocolate chips
or chocolate syrup
or ice cream.
Or all of the above.
Thirty Days of Thankful #27:
I am thankful for the ability to read.
Fifty-one years ago,
my first grade teacher, Mrs. Deemer,
and her friends Dick and Jane
taught me to read.
(Kindergarten was only
for city kids
in those days.)
Finally,
the Little Golden Books in the bookcase
made sense!
I spent hours each summer
lying on the porch swing
reading.
Black Beauty.
Pippi Longstocking.
The Bobbsey Twins.
The Shy Stegosaurus of Cricket Creek.
Nancy Drew.
College brought Narnia
and Gene Stratton Porter's nature books.
I spent Paul's infant days
with James Michener.
In recent years,
I buy Philip Yancey books,
used of course.
I have started down a path
that I cannot finish,
as any list would be incomplete.
Reading
is sometimes preferable
to listening
as the brain squirrels
can go at their own rate
and not get distracted.
Reading
is almost always preferable
to meetings
as the book won't notice the
expression on your face
and ask what you are thinking
and then get ticked
because you have an alternate viewpoint.
Of course
the books are better
than the movies!
Maybe there is one exception,
but I can't think what it is....
Thirty Days of Thankful #28:
Happy Thanksgiving Day!
For smoke from the chimney,
snow on the ground,
snow blowers
and sweet potatoes,
Lord we thank Thee.
For fresh carrots,
fresh air,
fresh sheets
and family
and friends to sleep in them,
Lord we thank Thee.
For pumpkin pie,
pilgrims for decoration
and people to share life with,
Lord we thank Thee.
For tea,
toothpaste,
timers,
time off,
turkey
and Turkey....
Luke should be on the road by now
bringing John
who is from Istanbul, Turkey....
Lord we thank Thee.
May the words of our mouths
and the thoughts of our hearts
be pleasing in Thy sight
on this official Thanksgiving Day
and
every
day.
Thanksgiving blessings to you
from Denny and Sue
Thirty Days of Thankful #29:
I am thankful to have lived long enough to have wrinkles.
Yesterday
I was brushing my teeth
before we left for Yohes
when I looked in the mirror
and noticed
The Mother Of All Neck Wrinkles.
It was like a toothless old woman
smiling at the base of my neck.
It reached
from west to east,
from sea to shining sea.
If I were on a crime show,
it would show the guest star
exactly where to cut.
If I stand tall
and lift up my head,
it disappears.
It occurs to me
that I could trace its location
with a sharpie marker
and then do a trick
of making the black line repeatedly disappear under the sag
by doing a short-and-tall neck dance.
However, prior experience tells me
that sharpie lines on skin
last a long time,
so that magic trick
will go untried.
This morning
I think of friends
who predeceased their wrinkles,
who did not
live to see their children grow up.
I am thankful
to have lived long enough
to hug grandchildren.
I am also thankful
for turtlenecks.
Thirty Days of Thankful #30:
We are thankful for manna.
Daily.
Remember the story of Moses
leading the Israelites through the wilderness
and how God provided manna to eat
each day?
"Just in case" takes up
a substantial portion
of my brain.
I have loads of red ribbons for Christmas wreaths,
a giant pile of black turtlenecks
to cover yesterday's wrinkles,
a basement cupboard of toys
for classroom
and grandgirl use,
loads of pie pans
so no one needs to return them,
not to mention piles of dishes
in case one breaks
or we have a big crowd.
(Hey,
it was Jackson China
at Goodwill
and I had a half-off coupon!)
We still have rice left from Y2K--
did you know rice can last
for thousands of years?
Den is similar.
He has his boxes of nails
and wire
and windshield fluid
and oil
and extra saw blades.
Just in case.
I am the same way
with writing projects.
I brainstorm ideas
and get the first draft done.
On the first of November
I wrote the first "Thirty Days of Thankful" entry
when Gilda didn't get picked up for speeding.
(At the time,
I thought I had invented this idea.
Ha.)
I then listed twenty-some other ideas
so the November project
would be easily completed.
The list was unnecessary.
Daily,
new thoughts occurred
as vision developed
to see how blessed Denny and I are.
Every
day.
Like manna,
"The steadfast love of The Lord never ceases.
His mercies
never come to an end.
They are new every morning.
Great is Thy faithfulness!"
PS. Thank you for reading these entries
over the past month.
It's now time
to write the Christmas newsletter
which is somewhat similar
but the brain squirrels
handwrite it
and draw small pictures
and send it snail mail.
If you want to be added to the list,
private message us your address.
Daily blessings,
Sue and Denny
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