Chapel of Hope Stories

Dear Reader:

For as many years as the Ya’s have been going to Pawleys Island for our winter retreat, it has been the little building directly across from Carolina Corner that has intrigued me.

Each year Libby and I have the same conversation…It starts with me asking, “Now what is that little place called, how long has it been there, and what was it originally?” 

Libby always responds with “A boathouse of some kind I believe and I think it might be under some kind of historical registry or protective status that ensures its permanence there. Linda and family are just happy to have it across from them because it is low to the ground and provides spectacular views (from their porches) of the creeks and inlets.. They won’t ever have to worry about somebody building a taller house and blocking their visual imagery of the marsh and water.”

This conversation is usually followed up by us skimming through books on the history of Pawleys and trying to ‘google’ information…all to no avail. So this year, Libby told me she was calling Skip Clarkson…her brother-in-law…“He will know something about it, she told me, or at least he will know somebody who does…I guarantee you. ” She was right on both accounts.

Meantime, as I look back at old pictures I have taken of the boat shed over the years, I realize I have become somewhat obsessed with it and the mystery held within. These are just a few pictures taken over the past retreats…in fair weather, rainy weather, sunrise, sunset, and even posing in front…It is like a ‘mecca’ calling out to me.

There are stories within that building that want to be heard…all stories want good listeners.

*( Is that a cat in the road?…Hummm?)

Yes I LOVE the little mystery building, for whatever reason, across the street. The other day I was watching the old movie “Magificent Obsession” with Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman; I took time to write down the famous line spoken in the movie about obsession and using it wisely…

“Once you find the way, you’ll be bound. It will obsess you, but believe me, it will be a magnificent obsession.”

With Skip’s information…I now know that the little “shed” across the street has seen much laughter and camaraderie over the years. It, once, provided a place for outdoors people to gather and tell a joke or two… or mostly tall tales about the size of fish they caught.

I believe it is that same warm spirit that lingers and radiates inside outwardly…even until today. A magnet that draws me closer with each visit.

Skip replied to Libby’s request for more information quickly…He, too, had heard different stories about the origin of the boat shed… so he went to a friend who gathered the information for him and passed it along.

It was Walter McElveen who steered Skip to the right place to find the ‘story behind the story’of the unique boat shed. Similar to Tom Hudson’s situation with a historical family cemetery coming with his house/property…neighbors who live in a house just north of the boat shed actually own it today. And like Tom…they, too, feel a responsibility to maintain its “lineage” for residents and tourists alike, who remember this special place with much fondness.

“Bill’s Boat Shed”

Our story begins with a family by the last name of Doar…It is a father-son love story of shared interests and a deep-burning passion for boats and the sea. For many years the boat shed continued to be looked after and tenderly cared for by the Doar family until it was finally sold. Bill Doar, an attorney with the McNair law firm in Georgetown, recognizes the parallel between the story of his father’s boat shed and the evolution of the island, itself. He remembers: “It holds its share of island memories, not only for our family, but for everyone else who has seen it stand through the years.”

“My father, W.W. Doar, a World War II retired Navy veteran, built the shed, simply called “Bill’s Boats” in 1950. Tourists would rent a boat from him for a few hours or even a day to explore the rivers and creeks around Pawleys. I worked there for a summer or two when I was 17-18 years-old. I would rent boats to fishermen (and women) who wanted to try their luck at the abundance of trout, bass, and crab found in the creeks and marshes. These are some of my fondest memories…’the magic and memories of growing up on Pawleys Island.’

Bill remembers his father never wanted to be far from the water and would work the boat shed from his summer house which stood on the creek at the north end of Pawleys.

A friend of the family and Pawleys Island resident, Chip Lachicotte, recalls, “As a young boy I remember the little building beside Myrtle Avenue that everyone knew as Bill’s Boats. “Mr. Doar operated it for years as a boat rental business, but also as a home for his own passion…fishing. If I remember correctly it would be just before Thanksgiving when Mrs. Doar would have to practically drag W.W. back to town, kicking and screaming, to live out the winter until he could do it again the next year.”

*W.W. (Doar Senior) captained  a U.S. Navy landing which made eight to ten trips to the beaches of Iwo Jima with Marines and equipment. Perhaps it was this dramatic episode in his life that drove him to a follow a quieter life style as a civilian after the war.

Bill (Doar, Jr.) concludes…“He loved the shed, the peace of Pawleys Island and the enjoyment both brought him.”

William W. Doar Senior, poses in 1952, in the doorway of Bill’s Boats...his boat rental business on the north end of Pawleys.

The building and boat slip remain on Myrtle and Second Avenues. For two summers, W.W. Doar and his son Bill, a Winyah High School graduate, rented out orange Jon boats, trailers, and crab nets. They also sold minnows, tackle and cokes at 6 cents a bottle!

Bill Doar wrote a small memoir of his life growing up on Pawleys Island, sharing his father’s love of the sea and fishing, called The Magic of Pawleys Island (Published in 2006)

Update: Bill Doar Jr. just recently retired from his law practice in 2016. Maybe, like his father, he, too, will find the “peaceful and quiet life” his father so sought, after the war.

(*Personally, I would love to hear more stories that stemmed from the boat shed over those wonderful years spent together…father and son.)

So until tomorrow…For me, the mystery is solved. I now understand why I am drawn to the ‘little boat shed’ each year I come to Pawleys. It is a “magnificent obsession” with me because I have been bound to that boat shed since I first saw it. It stirs something within me.

It is love.

Love never dies and there is still so much love within the walls of this boat shed that it spills over, while simultaneously luring us over to it, to come hear the stories again.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

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Thanks Honey for my beautiful piece of ‘Honey-produced’ pottery – a wall flower holder…decor for my deck.

Thanks Luke, for drilling nails into the brick for me to hang my special decorations…I got this letter sign while at Pawleys!

Dear Reader:

I have come to the conclusion that it is  small comments or remarks in life that sometimes lead to the most exciting adventures! *It was Tom Hudson’s friendliness and sharing of the secret cemetery that lead us to that nostalgic discovery.

Then to kill time while we were waiting for Jackson to arrive in Georgetown (from Columbia) to meet us at the River Room Restaurant for our annual kick-off lunch, Brooke and I wandered in and out of a couple of boutiques like The Sly Fox and Sully & Bay on Front street.

While talking with one of the proprietors…she asked where we were staying in the area…Pawleys Island…and then immediately told us we would be able to witness the historical “move” of the Pawleys Island Chapel from its home in the marsh across the street to an empty lot for repairs to be completed.

Anybody who has ever spent any time on Pawleys …recognizes this famous little chapel. With only 202 seats it is full most Sundays with church services conducted seasonally…finishing up the last summer service on the last Sunday in August. Because several weddings were already “booked” through December…the move had to wait until February. Lucky for us to get to witness it.

The little chapel started out being a residence for the Pentecostal Holiness Church in Georgetown. In the late 1940’s it was dismantled and transported to the island where it rests on land given by Dr. and Mrs. J.H. Porter.

This “Little Chapel that Could” has survived many storms including Hurricane Hazel in 1954 and Hugo in 1989. Every time it has needed repairs the people of Pawleys and community organizations, like the Pawleys Island Rotary Club, have stepped up to the occasion.

*I found this excerpt from an article written by Tommy Howard “Pawleys Chapel to move for Repairs” which gave more history to the chapel. And thanks Libby for your website!

“...The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and DHEC had to give their approval because the Chapel is on pilings along the edge of Pawleys Creek.

The State Historic Preservation Office helps make sure historic places and structures are properly cared for.

Starting back in Colonial days, plantation owners would move across several rivers for the summer to Pawleys Island. Household goods and furnishings, clothing, food, and kitchen utensils would be loaded on wagons and taken across two or three rivers, perhaps – the Black, Pee Dee and Waccamaw – to spend the time on the seashore.

A major part of the reason at the time was to escape what they called swamp miasma or swamp fever.”

* It was during the 1800’s period of Pawleys Island history that the parsonage/rectory held summer evening services You might remember this rectory turned into Brooke’s friend’s summer beach home when their family bought it many years ago. It preceded the Pawleys Chapel.

The replacement of the Pawleys Chapel’s temporary home site was Brooke’s and my first stop as we headed out on our “mis-adventures” last Wednesday.

We could hardly get past all the construction on the narrow winding road around Pawleys. Other spectators had also stopped and were taking pictures of the little chapel’s temporary residence until repairs are made. I hopped out to join them.

Hopefully one day I will be at Pawleys during the summer and can attend a church service in this special little chapel. We always like to pull for the underdog and this little chapel has taken on some big hurricane adversaries and still has its doors open to worship God. It really is “The Little Chapel that Could.”

So until tomorrow…

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

*Tuesday I got back ‘in the groove’ walking again and this was definitely my ‘delight of the day’ or ‘beauty of happiness.’

All of us Ya’s are recognizing we are becoming more and more creatures of habit. We always talk about trying a new restaurant out for our end of the retreat evening…but then we always talk ourselves out of it…like Brooke said, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

We love the little restaurant, Chive Blossom, located just off Pawleys North Causeway. It is conveniently close, the food delicious, and the staff friendly. *The only thing we have changed in the pattern is the date…we  go two nights before we are to leave instead of the last night…( it makes the dinner kinda sad.) Instead we eat all the left-overs the last night.

Susan Swicegood, Kaithlyn’s mom, who has one of Khaleesi’s pups, sent Khaleesi a pretty new outfit for spring. Go Mimi!

Dear Reader:

Many of you read the popular blog post last year…“The Legend of the Pawley’s Island Shell.” It was my most read post of 2017. It was actually a summation of the Ya Ya’s annual winter retreat at Pawley’s but the legend of the famous local sea shell really caught readers’ attention and imagination. *(Posted on January 24, 2017)

The Legend of the Pawley’s Island Shell | Chapel of Hope Stories

Even though I didn’t find a Pawley’s Island sea shell on the beach, last year,  I was given a small Pawleys Island sea shell at Whitmire’s Fine Jewelry Shop as a token of friendship to a customer (me) interested in the story behind the “jeweled” sea shells and the process of the transition.

And yes…2017 was very good to me…I think the little shell did “Bless my presence.”  One…I am still here…and two…changes transpired that turned out to be good in the big picture and taught me (once again) the important lesson of keeping an open mind to all changes that beset us during our lifetime. So thanks…Little special Pawleys Island sea shell, and Whitmire’s Fine Jewelry shop! 

(*One of the first owners at Skip and Scotty’s beach house last Tuesday night (we visited for Happy Hour) had a mounted display box filled with original Pawleys Island sea shells they had collected. I took this as a sign that the story would continue because Mr. Whitmire, the owner and talented designer, would be at the shop when I went later in the week. My hunch proved correct!)

Last Thursday arrived and this time Mr. John Henry Whitmire, the owner and “magical transformer” of shells into silver and gold, was hard at it in his work space. His graciousness and friendliness, as well as, the welcoming aura of his shop and employees, made me feel right at home.

I think the tale of Rumpelstiltskin is definitely a metaphor for the life of John Henry Whitmire…he, too, can transform (not straw) but Pawley’s unique sea shells into gold…and silver. And he can do it being a “prince” of a fella to boot!

Mr. Whitmire showed me the prettiest little small pierced earrings in silver he had just finished making. So intricately elegant! He then took me down memory lane to the epiphany experience he had watching the waves come in one day at sunset.

The glorious lights of the waning sun hit the sea shells perfectly (as they washed ashore) turning them into hues of sparkling gold and silver…a natural treasure trove of beauty beyond the imagination.

A thought ran through his mind…‘What if I could turn sea shells into gold and silver jewelry …If I could create a beautiful token of Pawley’s for residents and tourists alike, to take home to remember this wonderful slice of heaven?’ (He had discovered there was one sea shell Pawley’s residents claimed as their own and Whitmire knew this was the shell that would be the axle for his wheel of dreams.)

His second good fortune was to take a class at USC on metal design…the seed was now planted… perhaps there really was a way to turn shells into gold and silver!

Mr. Whitmire’s major in Creative Writing (with an emphasis on Metal Works and Design) from USC definitely helped him transfer his own dreams to the design skills necessary to morph imagination into reality. (I remember last year his assistant showed me the created casing that the small sea shells were placed in to start the 34 hour transition period required to make these exquisite works of art.)

These bracelets are some of Mr. Whitmire’s latest designs he shared with me…aren’t they gorgeous? What a keepsake for years to come of the wonderful memories at Pawley’s Island!

So until tomorrow…Let us always follow our dreams…because they will come true if we never give up and always follow the light!

“Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh

Here is a new (sample) business card given out at the shop….information and origins.

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*And speaking of art…Anne repainted my fading grandchildren’s tree markers while I was at Pawley’s…they look just like the day I first received them! Thank you so much Anne!!!! The Japanese Maples are so happy to have their name plates placed by them again…and the grandchildren will be so happy!

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*A Belated Happy Happy Birthday to our girl Honey…her birthday was Monday March 5. Her father nicknamed her Honey because of the color of her hair…but she is a “honey” in so many ways…she is sweet, always ‘busy as a bee’ helping other people with a wonderful golden aura around her. She has got a “honey” of a husband who shares her love of pets and crafts. She is rich in so many ways…the best kind of ways. Happy Birthday friend!!!

Dear Reader:

It was while Brooke and I were posing all over the wrong beach house last Wednesday that we had a God Wink…actually a double one. (since we bumped into him twice.) A gentleman, Tom Hudson, and his adopted dog, Jacob, stopped Brooke and I, while taking snapshots of historical markers. Tom told us that if we loved history…to come see the cemetery adjacent to his home on his property…there was history to be found there…dating back to the mid-1800’s.

So before we returned to Carolina Corner Wednesday we crossed back over the Causeway (following Tom’s instructions) and saw his beautiful home growing larger and larger as we neared the mainland on the other side of the causeway.

Tom and his wife, Lily Grace, left Washington, DC to retire at Pawley’s Island near family. When he bought the property he was told of the overgrown cemetery adjacent to his home and wanted to know more about its occupants and the best way to preserve the family cemetery for the future.

I really felt a sense of being in a sacred place with the combination of the beauty of land and water providing the back backdrop of this well- attended cemetery.

Today there is an historical marker telling the story of the cemetery its location and history…and how it came to be.

Tom, his wife Lily Grace, and wonderful neighbors worked hard to restore the disappearing cemetery…hidden under poison ivy and all kinds of thick foliage. Once restored the Hudsons and neighbors brought closure to the cemetery with a service that many friends and neighbors attended. They  felt it was their duty to uphold the promise made to Sarah Shackleford back in 1848…“to protect in perpetuity her backyard graveyard.”

Here is a link from a local news article done about this unique service and a promise fulfilled…at long last. (“A Promise Restored”)

News for Pawleys Island, Litchfield and Murrells Inlet – Coastal Observer

When Tom Hudson discovered my last name was Dingle, he immediately asked if I was kin to the Pawleys Tip Top Inn Dingles, especially to Robert and Rene Dingle…the owners and cooks. I explained the relationship was on my ex-husband’s side…they were his aunt and uncle.

He laughed and told me that he and Lily Grace were eating lunch there one day…and Rene brought out a bowl of cucumbers and onions soaked in vinegar…he asked what the name of the dish was and Rene replied: “Dingle food!”  (Too cute…I only got to eat there one time when Mandy was little and ready to play on the beach…not eat…so don’t remember too much except it was so yummy!)

(“Remembering Tip Top” (The Tip Top Inn floated out to sea with Hurricane Hugo) Keels Culberson  Swinnie- KeelsArt. comPrints)

Pawleys really is a hidden treasure with no businesses allowed on the island and only two causeways (north and south) to connect it to the mainland…you can almost feel the residents of the past who once came here to frolic on the beach.

Georgetown County Library Archives (photo)

The hammock you see in this old photo (dated 1900) is now symbolic of Pawley’s Island…Pawley’s Island Hammocks. Here is how it all got started…excerpt.

(Pawleys Island is one of the South’s best-kept Secrets (Caroline Eubanks)

“The island best known for two things: hammocks and cheese. In the late 1800s, local riverboat captain Joshua John Ward designed a rope hammock to sleep in instead of the traditional canvas versions. His legacy is now one of the most popular hammock brands in the country, still operated by his descendants. Buy your own at the famous Original Hammock Shop, which has been selling Ward’s products since the 1930s. Palmetto Cheese is another definitive Pawleys Island brand, one of the top makers of pimento cheese, a Southern staple.

So until tomorrow when we return to the Hammock Shops and find Mr. John Whitmire of Whitmire Jewelers inside with more stories to tell of the Pawley’s Island Shells. Until then…a personal thank you goes out to Tom Hudson for his friendliness, kindness, enthusiasm, and welcoming spirit to share his love of Pawleys with Brooke and me. We loved his dog Jacob too…he is the ninth adopted “older” dog the Hudson have taken in for an ever-lasting home experience.

“Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh

*Yesterday I kept Eloise for Mollie and colleagues to talk to Senator Tim Scott’s office about potential legislation to protect consumers from mis-labeled beauty products and potentially harmful ones.

I had gotten Eloise a robe with pink bunny ears at the beach…definitely a little big but Ya’s here is a “Pinkie Robe” lover too. I tried it on her on the table and she fell fast asleep….with it on. Jackson, Mollie loved your adorable little fun in the sun outfit for Eloise this summer…the nine months size should be perfect…and Honey those cowgirl boots you sent are a hoot…I feel like Eloise will start ruling the roost with boots made for walking…all over her big brothers! 🙂

Lachlan couldn’t stand it and had to try on the robe too…here comes the middle child wanting his attention moment ..we middle children have always had to fight hard for our fair share. Della and Eloise.

Dear Reader:

There was never a more appreciated sight for all the Ya’s as when we pulled into the driveway at Carolina Corner and knew we had made it to our official  “End of the winter retreat.”Hallelujah!

We had already experienced a wonderful surprise while stopping at our favorite Georgetown seafood restaurant “haunt” and meeting a fellow Erskine classmate, Chuck Ewart. It just made our day and set the upbeat mood for the whole retreat.

What are the chances of something like this happening…but we took the God’s Wink and the wonderful cuisine as a sign we were in for a amazing gathering…and we were! (I was too excited to see Chuck to remember to take his and his beautiful wife, Jo’s, photo before they left…hate it when I do that!)

*We almost didn’t recognize our restaurant at first…they were in the process of painting it a bright cinnamon color…but it had the same good food inside!

Then, when we arrived at the beach house Libby told us that we had an invitation from another Erskine classmate, Scotty Clarkson (Libby’s sister-in-law) and her husband Skip ….to join them for Happy Hour at their beautiful scenic beach house! Our retreat was off to a roaring start…What fun to catch up and make more connections than we knew…from the past and present. Storytelling at its best.

The next morning Brooke and I decided to do some exploring around Pawleys. Brooke wanted to find a friend’s beach home she had told her about and to use the access to the beach if we wished.

So “Sherlock Holmes and Watson” started off on their first “misadventure” of the retreat. It is a good thing we can’t see into the future because we were just about to make a quite comical/embarrassing mistake.

*In retrospect I probably should have followed this ‘wise advice’ …Just keep this embarrassment to a minimum…but I still wake myself up laughing about it.

We found the beach home and followed the directional clues (we thought)…. Then we posed all over the house…on the porches, hammocks and even the beach. We thought we would send the photos to Brooke’s friend.

I forwarded the photos on to Brooke later that day so she could send them to her friend thanking her for the access to the beach and letting her know how much we enjoyed seeing the old Pawley’s beach house. Five words came back from her friend…“You’ve got the wrong house!”

(All I can think of at night is this house having a roving security camera that took our “model” photos posing all over this unknown house…What would the owners think…don’t even want to go there! Would we be thrown in jail for being “basket cases?” Does anyone even use that term anymore?)

Brooke didn’t have on her glasses and mis-read a 6 for an 8 for the address. There is a lot of difference in the two houses…too too funny. So the next day we returned to redeem ourselves and found the right house. It was an historic landmark and once had been the All Saints Summer Parsonage/The Rectory. 

The building had been constructed in 1848 and was used as the summer parsonage for the All Saints Episcopal Church for a long time. Many rice plantation owners attended evening summer services there. It was sold by the congregation in 1960 to its present owner…Brooke’s friend’s family. Isn’t that interesting? All along the side porches were remnants of the rectory’s meetings…long green pews that could seat many people running down both sides of the porches.

It had taken us to the “End of the Rainbow” but we found it! 🙂

There was a bird’s nest third story look-out on their family pier and one could see up and down the (almost) entire landscape of Pawleys. Spectacular and secluded (by brush and foliage) at the same time!

On this “mis-adventure” a gentleman (walking a dog and watching me taking photos of historic markers)…stopped to tell Brooke and myself about a secret graveyard that most people pass and never know about…He knew because it is right next to his new home and he cares for it.

*I must have another blog to tell this story, along with the Pawley’s Island Chapel story, my return to Whitmire’s Jewelers with another story on the mystery of the Pawley’s Island Shell…and a nostalgic story on the famous boathouse that lies in front of Carolina Corner.

So until tomorrow… There is more to come…a week of adventures and “mis-adventures”…the best kind!

“Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh

(*Occasionally I found time at Pawleys to respond to some of your wonderful comments and I will begin responding again this week but wanted to let you know that just reading them makes me feel so good!)

*Squeezed in among the Pawley’s Island retreat was a surprise birthday party for Walsh by Mollie (and what a surprise it was) and some national attention to Beauty Counter…a company based on selling safe beauty/body products to customers of all ages. (Mollie is a top regional consultant for this company)

I had time to stop by and see the grandchildren coming back from Pawleys (and some friends from out of town who came to the party.) I think one day this week I will probably pull a Rip Van Winkle and just sleep a couple of days. Still it was so worth it and so much fun…I think Jo Dufford, one of our loyal readers, summed it up best with the last line:

Thank you for all the wonderful blogs we enjoyed while you were putting your feet in the ocean, feeling the sand between your toes, eating too much, laughing a lot and enjoying the best friends ever. You have to come home from such a wonderful week truly uplifted and feeling so loved. 

I do.

*Eva Cate and Eloise spent some bonding time together…my “E” granddaughters.

Vickie’s (terrific neighbor) and my time-shared rose bush is back…better than ever…here is the first rose of the season…perfect! beautiful! Something special about that first rose!

Dear Reader:

The more we hear of inexplicable acts of terrorism the more we wonder what possibly could have happened (in many cases in a perpetrator’s young life) to make someone succumb to such senseless acts violence.

We keep seeing the same pattern over and over…the perpetrator is classified as ‘mentally ill’ or a non-conformist, a loner, or a ‘lost soul.’ Outside of physical problems…this leaves a wide open vacuum of causes that no one seems to be able to quite figure out.

The other day in Bob and Fran German’s book (101 Ways to Be Young At Any Age) they talked about the “invisible” people in society and how they are treated…or basically ignored by the mainstream too often.

The more I thought about it…the more each of the faces we have seen on the news or in the papers recently…had, also, been “invisible” for too long…and by committing a heinous act against society their face was finally visible…for the wrong reason.

In their article… Bob and Fran talk about how important it is that we recognize all the “invisible” people who do the “invisible” jobs that people ignore or take for granted. We need to promote recognition and kindness as a way of thanking people with jobs that too often go unrecognized or unappreciated.

“You can make someone’s day and enrich your own, by doing small but meaningful acts of kindness to people you encounter who seem to be invisible to most.

A smile and friendly ‘hello’ to food servers, store clerks, grocery baggers, delivery men and women and other usually unnoticed fellow humans can make a big impact.”

It is important to “humanize” everyone in our society regardless of social, financial, or job status. If not…it is far too easy for these individuals to begin to regard themselves as worthless and unnecessary…ending their low self-esteem  in self-destruction and/or taking out their non-acceptance status on a society they have come to resent and hate.

Everyone wants to be accepted, everyone wants love. The complexities of terrorism in today’s world is just that…complex. Still, basically love is stronger than hate and recognizing “invisible” people goes a long way to our taught acceptance of all God’s children.

I think how fortunate I am to have been born into a loving, supportive family, and been blessed to have wonderful friends. This past week, shared with the Ya’s, has just reminded me how blessed I really am.

Before situations get to the point where they make the nightly news…we can all start simply, daily… giving compliments, greetings, and thank you’s to the “invisible”  people around us who need this recognition to help them value themselves as a productive and necessary part of the world in which they live.

So until tomorrow…Thank you Father for friends and family and open our eyes to our ‘brothers and sisters’ who might not have the same support system we do. Let us be there for them and recognize them for who they are….one of Your children…just like ourselves.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

“Big Red” will welcome me home with blooms galore and a happy smile!

Dear Reader:

What is it about all the Ya’s being together that makes everyone sleep so wonderfully? Definitely, I believe, a sense of security but it is even more than that..it is a lifetime of memories that lull everyone to sleep at night…bringing such comfort and excitement over the pending days of awakening and being together again…college days re-lived.

The first day I usually go over my mental check-list…did I ask the neighbor to pick up the mail, another one to check on the garden and potted plants to see if they need water and just to keep a general outlook on my home while I am away? Once I go over my (Did I do it?) list…I can let all the daily tasks at home…stay at home… and finally relax. The hardest part is the preparation for leaving.

When I came across this story on sleeping and security…I felt like it was perfect timing.

The Wonderful Slumber of  Being Prepared

Years ago a farmer owned land along the Atlantic seacoast. He constantly advertised for hired hands. Most people were reluctant to work on farms along the Atlantic. They dreaded the awful storms that raged across the Atlantic, wreaking havoc on the buildings and crops.

As the farmer interviewed applicants for the job, he received a steady stream of refusals. Finally, a short, thin man, well past middle age, approached the farmer. “Are you a good farm hand?” the farmer asked him. Well, I can sleep when the wind blows,” answered the little man. Although puzzled by this answer, the farmer, desperate for help, hired him.

The little man worked well around the farm, busy from dawn to dusk, and the farmer felt satisfied with the man’s work. Then one night the wind howled loudly in from offshore. Jumping out of bed, the farmer grabbed a lantern and rushed next door to the hired hand’s sleeping quarters.

He shook the little man and yelled, “Get up! A storm is coming! Tie things down before they blow away!” The little man rolled over in bed and said firmly, “No sir. I told you, I can sleep when the wind blows.”

Enraged by the response, the farmer was tempted to fire him on the spot. Instead, he hurried outside to prepare for the storm. To his amazement, he discovered that all of the haystacks had been covered with tarpaulins. The cows were in the barn, the chickens were in the coops, and the doors were barred. The shutters were tightly secured. Everything was tied down. Nothing could blow away. The farmer then understood what his hired hand meant, so he returned to his bed to also sleep while the wind blew. They had been prepared the whole time.   (Author Unknown)
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So until tomorrow…I will admit that ever since Hurricane Hugo…whenever the wind gets up I am fidgity… so I would probably have been one of the farmers that was not interested in the job. Yet, ironically, I continue to live along the beautiful coast of the Atlantic Ocean and ‘take my chances’ each Hurricane season because I have fallen in love with my low country home. I now turn the potential storms over to God and can even sleep knowing that no matter the outcome…everything will work out.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

*Apparently we have had some rain this past week and I am so glad…the garden has really needed a good rain…the new flowers and bushes are thirsty for all their hard work coming to bloom.

Dear Reader:

Every time I still read a one-liner or a funny anecdote from the wonderful humorist Erma Bombeck, I find myself either sneaking a grin or just right out howling in laughter. I thought today would be a great day to share some of her wonderful humor that still brings laughter to millions, even after her passing.

In this first anecdote Bombeck’s humor reminds us to look deep within ourselves to admit we have experienced similar insights ourselves.

A stranger, exuding joy,  went into church one day, a church that was not his own.  He mingled about with the parishioners patting them on the back, talking loudly and laughing in a gesture of friendship.  The parishioners were shocked with his familiarity and horrified at his “lack of respect” for a place of worship.  He was asked to leave.

On the doorstep, he was approached by God who said,“Cheer up, fella, I’ve been trying to get into that church for years!”

*Source: Dare to Make a Joyful Noise Unto the Lord! by Erma Bombeck
in Ocala Star-Banner, February 26, 1970

Some Bombeck one-liners to make us smile…

“Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died!”

“If you can’t make it better, you can laugh at it.”

“I’m not a glutton…I am an explorer of food.”

“My theory on housework is, if the item doesn’t multiply, smell, catch on fire or block the refrigerator door, let it be; no one cares, why should you?”

“The odds of going to the store for a loaf of bread and coming out with ONLY a loaf of bread are three billion to one.”

So until tomorrow laugh….

Only you can’t just shove it in a drawer to be dealt with later. Or throw it on the floor..but we can laugh and laugh we must!

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

I put my Spring sign out by my tree…just to let my tree know its owner thinks it is spring…so be springy! 🙂

Dear Reader:

This story reminded me of Mollie and Eloise returning home last Sunday after their adventures together that required some last minute re-scheduling and unforeseen flight delays (on the flight to Phoenix)  synonymous with air travel these days.

The Journey

There were two warring tribes in the Andes, one that lived in the lowlands and the other high in the mountains. The mountain people invaded the lowlanders one day, and as part of their plundering of the people, they kidnapped a baby of one of the lowlander families and took the infant with them back up into the mountains.

The lowlanders didn’t know how to climb the mountain. They didn’t know any of the trails that the mountain people used, and they didn’t know where to find the mountain people or how to track them in the steep terrain.

Even so, they sent out their best party of fighting men to climb the mountain and bring the baby home.

The men tried first one method of climbing and then another. They tried one trail and then another. After several days of effort, however, they had climbed only several hundred feet.

Feeling hopeless and helpless, the lowlander men decided that the cause was lost, and they prepared to return to their village below.

As they were packing their gear for the descent, they saw the baby’s mother walking toward them. They realized that she was coming down the mountain that they hadn’t figured out how to climb.

And then they saw that she had the baby strapped to her back. How could that be?

One man greeted her and said, “We couldn’t climb this mountain. How did you do this when we, the strongest and most able men in the village, couldn’t do it?”

She shrugged her shoulders and said, “It wasn’t your baby.”

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So unto tomorrow…What we do for love…the impossible made possible by God Who loves us as His Children.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

March 1! Wow! Say “Rabbit”!  Hope it is a wonderful month for everyone!

Dear Reader:

Last Saturday when Tommy and I were watching Rutledge and Lachlan in the park near their house…Rutledge was swinging high enough to jump on a cloud…at least that was what he wished for he told Tommy and me. He wanted to catch a cloud to ride to heaven on…

I told him that there weren’t any or hardly any clouds out that day but the time would come, in the blink of an eye, when this magical ride would happen ..but not this day. He just grinned and kept pumping away.

So when I came across this Native-American story…my mind immediately went back to Rutledge’s comment…only this time it is the “little cloud” that learns something new.

“The Epiphany of Little Cloud”

The Thunder-beings were busy giving birth to new clouds, sending them to dance in the blue playground of sky. Grandfather Sun provided the glittering sunbeams, which acted like jump ropes for today’s newborn white, puffy Cloud People.

One of the most curious little clouds wandered off on the winds. She decided she was going to have a talk with Sacred Mountain. “Grandmother Mountain, I’ve come to ask you if your forests need rain today,” she said. “I want to be of service, and so I thought I had better find out what is needed most.”