June 12, 2013 Greetings My Friend, Warm weather is finally here. It is April and we’ve had a long winter. I am not a big fan of cold and snow and ice. So I am delighted with the warmer weather. I am walking most days again….I need to walk because I have osteoporosis and I haven’t been able to sleep all the way through the night in a while. The walks are helping me to sleep again and yup I love that too. Junior opened the front door, we have no screen door and frankly I am enjoying the breeze, the smells and the sights. We won’t do that for much longer because the bugs will be out in full force, now though it is nice. I am hoping we put up a screen door because I love looking out, feeling the breeze etc. I have learned how to use my smart phone to take pictures and post them on FB. I am finally able to put more current pictures up of the progress Junior is making on the house. Junior has started in the kitchen only to stop and work outside. As much as I try to be understanding I struggle with his work style. For me I tend to work one project at a time until it is finished. Due to his bad back Junior tends to work on things as his back allows him to which means he can switch jobs several times a day. That said our home is looking more and more like a home. I am helping with the upkeep a bit more than I have in the past….that makes me real happy. I had been thinking about sweeping the floors. I have noticed that Junior tends to like keeping the rugs swept. It dawned on me today….I could keep the wood floors swept. If he enjoys sweeping the rugs well that is ok. Junior and I tend to work like that. We find the things we do and enjoy. I do the sheets for the bed, clean the sink in the bathroom. When we first married Junior told me that he liked to keep the toilet seat up. I felt that is was not worth the fussing so I told him. I didn’t care as long as I did not have to look at yellow stains so Junior keeps the toilet clean and it works! We both tend to help with the food preparation. At times I do most of it and at times he does. Again it works. I’m glad he does not expect me to make him 3 meals a day. I like cooking to a point. I like making something that we will eat for 2 or three days before making something else. Lately for dinner I eat a can of beans of some sort. We eat our big meal at lunch time. Junior’s ribs continue to hurt from his accident. He is moving around better but he is still slow because his ribs hurt. I again am thankful that both guys and the other lady were not hurt real bad. In my heart I am grateful for the prayer asking God to watch after Junior. I believe God allowed the accident but they weren’t hurt bad. There may be a lesson in this somewhere for one of the people that were involved or even each one. Junior went to talk with our Minister the other day about the accident so I believe he is sorting through and trying to learn a lesson if there was one for him. As I have walked deeper with God I find myself looking back at things that have happened. I try to see the lesson in the incident. Many times I find a lesson and I grow in my faith journey. I believe God is talking to us a whole lot. It is learning to still my thoughts and let God open my eyes when I realize many of life’s lessons I’ve been given. Long ago in my first marriage I found myself fainting and vomiting at the altar. As I look back I realize God was trying to get me not to marry this man. After years of arguing and fighting we finally divorced. At that time I did not know how to “hear” God. Today though I tend to step back and examine things and many times I am amazed at the lessons. Junior takes most things to God first. I am learning to do this more but Junior has had his faith walk a lot longer than I have. I watch Junior pray through various things and then I find I learn to pray through more and more of my life’s events as well. From the start Junior was pointing me to a faith journey and how to go about it. At first he kept saying “What does the Bible say.” I got irritated with that comment and began reading the Bible. I was amazed that I was able to understand it. I had thought I was not educated enough to grasp the lessons. I believe in what Junior taught me. I don’t read until I’ve asked God to help me learn the lessons He wants me to learn. It works it really does because I am amazed at how a simple passage can open up for me from year to year. I try to read the Bible day to day throughout the year and I am blessed when I keep up with this habit. I find myself growing, trusting God and loving life. It is amazing to me. I’d like to encourage you to begin a daily time of reading your Bible whether on line or in an actual Bible. Between daily prayer time and reading the Bible I find myself growing and trusting God more and more. I also find life is sweet even when life has turned out differently than my dreams. My dream these days is to seek God and His direction in my life. Yup it works and it is sweet! May God bless you and keep you, make His face to shine upon you. Love Janet