Chapel of Hope Stories

Dear Reader:

I have always been drawn to morning glories and I find myself walking over to the side fence to check on the ones planted beside it each morning. They are really growing and spreading…each bloom a purple vision of loveliness.

I am always tempted to pick one of the morning glories but I hold off because I know their life expectancy is very short as it…only a few hours until the morning passes and the hot afternoon arrives. It is then that they begin to visibly wither under the hot heat of the day.

The other evening… a bloom had been knocked off by one of the thunderstorms last week and it was just lying in the tall grass…I picked it up and went back to the front porch…plopping down on the top step to admire its beauty… even in its last waning stage of life.

It was then that I remembered it! A story Aunt Eva told me about my father the day I was born…that involved morning glories.

When we moved from North Carolina back to mother’s home in Laurens, South Carolina I had very mixed feelings. I was leaving behind close friends and two cousins who were more like sisters. I was leaving the only home I had ever known and especially, as a child, I didn’t like change…but sought consistency and security.

I would be starting high school  in the fall…in a new school which is always a little nerve-wracking. Of course, on the bright side… I had cousins in Laurens too, who I loved, and I would be closer to Aunt Eva, mother’s sister, whom I adored too.

Mother, realizing, my hesitation over the move, decided to go all out for my 14th birthday that year (Sept.24) which fell on a weekend. She had all the extended family over and cooked my favorite dishes and desserts. There were lots of presents and promises of future shopping trips to Greenville for some new school clothes.

Our house in Laurens had a patio and a sloping back yard that finally stopped by a wooded area. We were all out on the patio eating when Aunt Eva commented on the beautiful morning glories still blooming in the fading late afternoon sun that fall day. She then whispered something to mother and mother smiled gently and nodded her head.

And that is when I first heard the story about daddy and the morning glories. I heard mother laugh…and I wanted to know all about the story.

Apparently fourteen years before, when I was born in late September, a vacant lot next to the house where my parents were living, was filled to the brim with morning glory vines…apparently just as beautiful as they were the night of my 14th birthday.

Eva had been called to let her know of my birth and she was to pack her bags (knowing Eva I am sure they were already packed) as she would be staying with mother to help her with Ben and the baby (me.)

When Aunt Eva got to the hospital…lots of flowers, from family and well-wishers, had already arrived…but several straggly vines of half-dead flowers were drooping all over the hospital counter. When she asked about it…mother just laughed.

Apparently daddy had run home, earlier that morning, to check on the babysitter and Ben and he was rushing to get back to the hospital when he noticed all the beautiful morning glories. Not knowing anything about flowers… he cut several vines while they were in full bloom, threw them in the car (thinking the hospital would have plenty of flower vases) ran a couple of more errands and arrived at the hospital with several vines of drooping morning glories.

He was all smiles and so proud of his accomplishment (in the floral arena of life) that the nurses and mother kept a straight face and went on and on about how beautiful they were. As soon as daddy left…one of the nurses soaked them in a sink full of water….nursing them along with as much care as given mother.

When Eva arrived and heard the story…they all chuckled again…but now Eva had an idea…she took a few flowers from each arrangement and made a new one weaving the morning glory vines/blooms around each flower. It turned out to be the most beautiful arrangement of all.

Mother remembered daddy told the nurses and her that when he saw those beautiful purple flowers he knew they were perfect for his beautiful little girl. Like the short life expectancy of the morning glories, themselves, little did daddy know, at the time, that he would only have five years with his little girl.

Of all the memories of past birthdays that story means more to me now than any other…I read recently that one mother said she always told the birthday child in her family the story of his/her birth on each birthday. It was the highlight of the birthday child’s day….”Please tell me about the day I was born.”

I love that idea! In fact…before I forget… I plan to write a story for each child and grandchild about the day he/she was born with all the antics, funny happenings, and sweet memories from that day and give the story to them, as a keepsake, this year.

So until tomorrow…Let us never forget the power of a story on the day a loved one is born…so that the child will always know he/she was/is loved beyond measure.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Dear Reader:

The old hymn, “We Gather Together”  is most often associated with Thanksgiving or a way to sing “grace” before a meal with a large gathering or group.

Yesterday, as I watched the proceedings, in my cool air-conditioned house…of the crowds standing in 90 degree (plus heat) … patiently waiting on the hot sidewalks and streets of downtown Charleston…(for a chance to get into the arena where the funeral service for Reverend Clementa Pinckney was to be held)….I, once again, marveled at the power of love…which is synonymous with the power of God. After all…God is Love.

The idea that love is the strongest force on earth was certainly re-enforced yesterday by the sheer number of individuals (both local, national, and international) who came to Charleston  for the sole purpose of gathering together with their fellow man to show hate that the love in Charleston is too strong to allow it to settle in and stay.

Perhaps “hate” might have better luck surviving and thriving in another town, state, or country…but not in our beloved “Holy City.” We simply don’t have room in our hearts for anything else outside of love…because love is all encompassing.

After yesterday’s service I think we can all agree that there was a sense of “Thanksgiving” present…thanking God for giving us a Clementa Pinckney and so many more good men and women to fight the good fight for equality and respect for their fellow man.

And welcome back Reverend President Obama…it was good to see you again…the fiery orator with blazing eyes filled with renewed determination to change the things that hold our country back from being the best it can be. (And a great singing voice in addition….)

The origin of the hymn “We Gather Together” dates back to the 1500’s and was written in response to a war between the Dutch and the Spanish Empire.

The story begins with Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.  He had been born in the Netherlands (Holland), and his empire included the Netherlands.  Charles and his son, King Philip II, considered it their duty to eradicate Protestantism, which had established a strong foothold in the Netherlands.

The Dutch rebelled and many Dutch Protestants were executed for their beliefs against Catholicism. Eventually, however, the Spanish were weakened by the fighting and forced to leave…bringing about the “Golden Period” in Dutch history.

This hymn was written near the end of the 16th century (some say 1597) to acknowledge that turbulent past and to look to a better future:

“We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing” acknowledges their need––a need made apparent by the suffering they had undergone.

“He chastens” alludes to the events just past.

“The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing” alludes to the violence of the Spanish soldiers–– a violence now stilled.

“He forgets not his own” is a tribute of praise to God for allowing them to emerge triumphant from their turbulent history.

………………………………

Lyrics to this Famous Hymn

* As you read the lyrics you see how appropriate they are for the tragedy at the Emanuel AMS church…

1. We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing;
   He chastens and hastens His will to make known;
   The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing;
   Sing praises to His Name; He forgets not His own.
2. Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,
   Ordaining, maintaining His kingdom divine;
   So from the beginning the fight we were winning;
   Thou, Lord, were at our side, all glory be Thine!
3. We all do extol Thee, Thou Leader triumphant,
   And pray that Thou still our Defender will be;
   Let Thy congregation escape tribulation;
   Thy Name be ever praised! O Lord, make us free!

………………………………………………………………………………………………

So until tomorrow…There is no doubt in my mind that all the souls of the nine congregational members have been “made free” by the love of God.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Dear Reader:

Brene Brown, Ph.D. (The Gifts of Imperfection) has observed and identified the one single thing that separates the men and women who feel a deep sense of love and belonging from those who don’t…the belief in their worthiness.

In order to do that we must let go of the fear of what other people might think about us and instead “own our story.”

When we finally reach the realization that all the time we have spent in our lives “performing, perfecting, pleasing, and proving” for others’ high opinions of us has been wasted time… then we understand that this same amount of time would have been better spent living inside our story. Being true to the person God expects us to be…not man.

Our greatest challenge in life is believing that we are worthy right this minute of love and belonging…not when we have achieved self-imposed prerequisites. Examples:

1) I’ll be worthy when I lose twenty pounds

2) I’ll be worthy if I can get pregnant

3) I’ll be worthy if I can get/stay sober

4) I’ll be worthy if everyone thinks I’m a good person & parent

5) I’ll be worthy when I can make a living selling my art

6) I’ll be worthy if I can hold my marriage together

7) I’ll be worthy when I make partner in my firm

8) I’ll be worthy when I win my parents’ approval

9) I’ll be worthy if he calls back and asks me out

10) I’ll be worthy when I can do it all and look like I’m not even trying

Any of these sound familiar…some of them sure do for me! We are our own worse critics…we set improbable (if not downright impossible) goals to accomplish before we can open ourselves to love and acceptance. Why do we do this to ourselves I wonder?

It would be easy enough to blame the media, advertising and many other modern-day culprits…but this strange phenomenon has been around since the beginning of time or  as the old joke goes:… When Adam and Eve ate themselves out of house and home.  

In order to change our perception of love and belonging to the concept of “being” and not necessarily “doing” ….we must look at love as unconditional and understand the difference between “fitting in” and “belonging.”

“Fitting in” means assessing a situation and becoming who we need to be to be accepted.

“Belonging” (on the other hand) doesn’t require us to change who we are; it requires us to be who we are.

………………..

So until tomorrow…Let us allow Your light to shine upon us and through us so it can be passed on to others in a circle of love, belonging, and acceptance…without any “if’s” or “when’s.“

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

* I checked in on Master Rutledge yesterday and watched him for awhile to give Walsh some time to run errands. He decided to be a pirate…lots of “AARGH” going around and even a dangling earring (mine) for effect.

Rutledge’s teachers sent over this sweet poster for their “missing child” Rutledge! (Rutledge tells everyone his name is RUT RUT DING-TRUCK!)

*Rutledge experienced his first River Dogs game last Thursday…Walsh has a great story about how they miraculously caught the ball…(a tall tale for sure)…since they were handed the ball as a memento for little Rutledge’s first game…still…too cool! And too nice!

* Sherri put her whimsical chicken I gave her in the vegetable garden…too cute!

* I thought this sign was appropriate most early mornings or evenings this summer…placed it on the front porch.

Dear Reader:

Yesterday I was scrolling through some documents…still trying to attempt to clean some out when I came across the title of today’s blog and had forgotten all about this little poem I wrote about the chapel several years ago.

When I got the pictures from Fran Townsend and Evans of their visit there last week a type of homesickness swept over me.

Aren’t there just some places on earth that we sense immediately are on hallow ground? It might not mean the same thing for everyone but when we find our “spot” it certainly means something to us.

Lincoln consecrated and dedicated the battlefield at Gettysburg during his famous address ….stating it was on “Hallowed Ground.”  He could feel the voices there from the departed and he knew he must not fail them with his own words to convey the appreciation that everyone should feel for their ultimate sacrifice on that gray afternoon  in November of 1863.

It was only later that the story came out that Lincoln excused himself before the ceremony and walked off into the woods, alone, to the forest that outlined the battlefield. When an aide sought him (to let him know it was time to go to the platform) he found the President kneeling in prayer.

This story was passed down from generation to generation in the aide’s family until a sculptor, upon hearing it, sculpted the kneeling President and today it is found in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

Every time I visit St. Jude’s Chapel of Hope I, too, feel like I am on hallowed ground. But it is even more tangible than that….I feel like I am coming home again…

The little stream that runs behind the chapel babbles its welcoming sound, the chapel serenely nods and ushers (gently holding my hand)  me back in. And the spirit of Beverly Barutio, the creator and owner of the chapel, seems to smile in relief and joy that I am well enough to return again.

The little chapel in the woods is my refuge from the storms of life. A place of renewal and hope. A place of faith and trust. A place of prevailing peace.

I can feel it calling me again….it always starts with a soft urging that crescendos into a stronger voice letting me know it is time to return and rest my body, soul, and spirit.

I do believe it was a God’s Wink that I “accidentally” came across the little poem again…a reminder that there is a “Balm in Gilead” and a special one in Trust, North Carolina for me.

“A Chapel in the Woods”

(By Becky Dingle)

There is a chapel in the woods

A refuge from the storm

A place that offers love and hope

… When one feels lost and torn.

There is a chapel in the woods

In a little town called Trust

A place that offers solace

When hopes have turned to dust.

There is a chapel in the woods

A promise built for God

A place that heals our heart and soul

… With a gentle spirit’s nod.

There is a chapel in the woods

For you to take a peek

And feel St. Jude’s healing touch

Come find the peace you seek!

………………………..

So until tomorrow…find your place of refuge and remember to return to it periodically to restore your strength and soul.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

* Update on Rutledge…he stayed with his grandparents yesterday and all went well….except trying to keep him stationary is going to be tough!

I have to go see my little boy today and check on him.

Yesterday I had the sniffles…sore throat and faucet nose…but no fever…just want to make sure I don’t have any fever or anything ( I don’t) ….all we need is a sick little boy with a cast on.

I got some blood work done yesterday and then slept and rested until meeting Sherri Houston for a late lunch/early dinner at 4…we finally made a connection….we never got together for Christmas last year…so we were too happy just to spend a little time together and get caught up.

I shared some of the garden with Sherri and then gave her a whimsical chicken to put in her vegetable garden.

And look what Sherri had found for me at Christmas last year  (which I will leave up every day) ….Hope and a Dolphin!  Perfect…so excited!

Dear Reader:

I have lived long enough to realize that after every major storm there comes a time of stillness and intense beauty. I have lived through several hurricanes, including Hugo….and I , now, realize that all destructive forces have a time restriction on them….but the beauty of God’s World is never-ending.

Monday I left my neighborhood around 5:30 to pick Anne Peterson up at the Charleston Airport. In my neighborhood it was still hailing with strong gusts of wind spraying the torrential rains sideways against the car when I headed out…

But by the time I reached the airport all was quiet….I looked at the temperature gauge in my car and it said 67…I almost fell over…when was the last time I saw that number?

I rolled down the windows in the cell phone parking/waiting area and the breeze felt wonderful. A streak of light sprayed across the gray skies like a smile spreading across our city.

Anne’s plane was on time, so by the time we reached her home…darkness still had not completely descended. I had updated her about the powerful thunderstorms in Summerville and I was hoping she would have no large fallen branches or broken garden statues.

All was quiet….just the sound of rain still dripping off the roof…and instead of seeing any destruction all we saw were happy daisies, playing in the rain, welcoming Anne back home.

Anne had to  scramble to a church meeting and I  headed for Mt. Pleasant to spend the night there… so I could keep Jakie yesterday.

As I pulled into John and Mandy’s neighborhood I found myself taking a left at the end of the long entrance driveway… instead of a right to their home. The last rays of the sun were going down on the lake (that runs throughout the neighborhood) and I wanted to see it. Just as I stopped the car and walked to a look-out pier…the scene I had hoped to capture materialized right in front of me.

I thought to myself…how many times do we have to witness God’s Love to believe in it….beyond a shadow of a doubt? Love always wins…Love always wins….Love always wins!

When I got to the house….Eva Cate had gotten a Baby Alive and she was so excited…feeding it, giving it a bottle, changing its diapers…( However, I couldn’t help but think that she had a real “baby alive” living right there with her named Jakie.)

As I watched her role play “mommy” I remembered a quote I had come across earlier in the week. It stated: “The opposite of play isn’t work…it is depression.” 

With Americans working longer hours and refusing to take vacations…this quote takes on even more significance.

I have to admit that I like to stay busy too, on the whole, but it has been my grandchildren who have taught me how to play again and see the world through the eyes of a child…the wonder and freshness of it.

I, only had Jakie to keep yesterday, because Mandy was chaperoning Eva Cate’s camp class to the SC Aquarium. So we got to play and play and play on the floor, make new squealing sounds, jumping up and down (didn’t know the old gal could still do it) with Jakie in his “jumper.” His favorite thing to do.

Today Jakie turns 9 months…my shared birthday grand child…soon he will be walking…but right now I can still hold him and rock him and whisper sweet dreams to him.

HAPPY  NINE MONTH BIRTHDAY JAKIE!

One last rambling thought…When I saw the photos Monday morning of the thousands of people holding hands on the Ravenel Bridge (Sunday evening) to show unity in our “Holy City” (over the Emanuel AME tragedy)….a new thought popped up from a secret hide-away spot in my memory.

The thought centered around the most poignant scene in the original movie “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”  In spite of everything that the Grinch had done to destroy Christmas…he had not been successful. As he stood on that mountain waiting to hear wails of disappointment and sorrow as the sun came up…he heard, instead, the beautiful voices of all the Who’s in Whoville singing together, breathing together with hearts beating together…to bring in Christmas Day.

They had gathered in a large circle, old and young, small and tall, to welcome Christmas one and all. And they were all holding hands…united as one voice.

As the old Grinch listened to the voices singing “Welcome Christmas…Welcome Christmas Day“…he wondered how Christmas came…just the same. How could it be so?

And then the thought appeared…Maybe Christmas doesn’t come from the store…Perhaps it means a little bit more.

The Grinch Ending (Original 1966) – YouTube

… And that is what transpired on a beautiful bridge in a beautiful city…still healing from an attempt by someone to steal “Christmas” from us.

But this misguided young “Grinch” has learned the same lesson…Instead of breaking people’s faith….it, only, has grown stronger…Instead of spreading hate…love has grown in abundance. Instead of separating races and cultures…we have united together as a human race….accepting each other as we are.

So until tomorrow “Maybe love doesn’t come from a gun store…perhaps it means a little bit more.”

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

*Mollie sent me these precious photos taken by her friend Sarah (sarahlizphotography20.pixieset)  from their Father’s Day brunch…

* Hot off the press…I had just finished posting these pictures last night when I got a text saying that Rutledge might have broken his leg and they were with him at MUSC.

It was a swing accident…the x-rays didn’t find a clear-cut fracture but Rutledge can’t  stand or put any weight on his leg without it crumbling from under him..

With toddlers apparently…it is sometimes hard to tell about a fracture so the MUSC doctor on-call decided not to take any chances. She went ahead and put a cast on the leg. They are going to leave it on for a week and then re-check it.

Rutledge is very brave…. and Boo Boo is so proud of him…but also  sad that he got a boo boo owie on his leg. Love you Rutledge….this….much!

*** Please take a minute and read Kaitlyn’s heartfelt message about the Emanuel AME tragedy…it is quite powerful and will lift you up. Go to ( swiceGOODyoga)

Dear Reader:

I have to confess that sometimes I just don’t want to sing certain hymns in church…maybe they’re new with a difficult melody, or slow and drawn out or have 6 or more stanzas. I am afraid my “inner grunt” might surface when I turn to the hymn page….secretly praying the pastor will say that we will only sing lines 1, 3, and 5. (put us our of our misery sooner)

Now give me those “old time religion” hymns and I will bellow them out ( can’t carry a tune in a bucket) with the best of ’em. I love spirituals, haunting/poignant melodies, or peppy feel-good songs with a good beat.

Then yesterday I read a fascinating (at least I found it so…hope you do too) article on the real importance of singing together. My whole perspective has changed on this age old ritual.

Source: All I Really Want: Quinn G. Caldwell

 “There are something like 5,400 animal species that make complex, intentional, repeatable, musical vocalizations. Which is to say that there are about 5,400 animal species that sing. The majority live in the trees, a few live in the oceans, a very few live underground, but there is one – only one- singing species that lives on the ground. You guessed it: us.

Humans are also the only singing species with a precise and shared sense of rhythm, which is what allows us to sing together. Two birds might sing the same song, but they can’t coordinate it. They can sing next to each other but not together. 

Another thing:If a roomful of people sing at the same time, they start to breathe at the same time as well. And not only that, but studies have also shown that when people sing together, their hearts start beating together too. And if we’re singing together and breathing together and our hearts are beating together, then it’s like we are one body…one spirit.

And what is even nicer, in a church setting, is that we can make a bigger claim that we actually become the body of the One to whom we are singing. 

Other animals stop singing when danger approaches…but humans sing louder the closer the danger gets. We sing together and become large and we become a Body that does not back down.  So come all ye faithful and sing! We are One in the Spirit!”

…………………………..

So…no more complaining from me…in fact…give me a hymn right now with six stanzas and I will sing loudly, off-key, and be one in the spirit…breathing together with synchronized hearts.

* We Are One in the Spirit – YouTube

So until tomorrow let us all sing our praises to God…for His special gift of song to us.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

* Honey is hard at work…this piece is called Tigg’s Pond.…a demo at a show. So pretty…it looks like a large lily pond floating on the water.

Kaitlyn made this birthday video for Rutledge! So sweet!

Dear Reader:

Starting with Libby’s birthday earlier this month… the Ya’s decided that we would take time to tell each other what we really feel about our special friendship (that have persevered over a span of almost five decades.)

The special birthday Ya would receive a card from the other Ya’s revealing the strengths we each attribute to her… and a list of  adjectives that readily come to mind when we think of that friend.

As I was watering the garden (yesterday) and watching certain plants wilting under the seemingly endless, hot, acrid conditions…I glanced over at my lantana and it seemed to be smiling back at me….looking serene, cool, and comfortable in this hot weather.

The lantana have been subjected to the same challenging conditions as the other plants but, obviously, something set it apart from the rest..it can persevere while other plants wither and fall.

It was this “Eureka” moment that made me realize that the one strong connective “thread” that the Ya’s  all share…is perseverance. We are all survivors…when the going gets tough…we dig in and get tougher. We are “Lantana Ladies!”

Part of that “digging in” includes revealing our innermost thoughts and feelings, usually reserved for only ourselves.

Anne emailed me yesterday and said that she and some of her family had gone to see the latest Disney Pixar movie….Inside Out and loved it! She told me I would really like it too and it would give me a lot of material to think about on the blog. She thought she could even use some ideas for the Sunday School class.

The premise of the movie centers around the notion of what would happen if our inner feelings got out and took control of our lives. If we could no longer mask our deepest feelings but reveal them for all to see. If we could only live in the moment…in our short-term memory…without a long-term memory…how would our lives change?

For many of us….we would have to let our deepest thoughts emerge under the heading of  “I Thought it was just Me.” We would have to reveal those secret “terrible thoughts” that scare us in their bizarre intensity.

Here is a clip from the movie showing the fight of inner feelings to get out. “Inside Out”

nside Out Official Trailer #2 (2015) – Disney Pixar Movie HD

As humans we manage to turn our own worlds upside down because we don’t think we deserve happiness and fulfillment. Now be honest…hasn’t someone out there gone through a period of bliss where everything just seems to be coming together…clicking in perfect harmony?

But…instead of rejoicing in this abundant period of happiness…we sabotage these wonderful moments by downplaying our feelings…sticking them into neutral?

Why? Because we are afraid that (based on life experiences) the pendulum will swing as low as the earlier high….and we don’t want to subject ourselves to that sharp descent from happiness to despair.

We would rather settle for a life of mediocrity….a mediocrity of goals, ambitions, and dreams. We would rather follow the path most traveled than to branch out and pursue the small voice inside us…begging us…to make the most of our lives here on earth.

Brene Brown, Ph.D (The Gifts of Imperfection)  gathered her courage (before five hundred participants in a parenting seminar she was presenting at)… and gave this personal revelation:

“I gave an example of standing over my daughter, watching her sleep, feeling totally engulfed in gratitude, then being ripped out of that joy and gratitude by images of something bad happening to her.”

Brown continued the story by saying that when she finished revealing this most personal, secret feeling…you could hear a pin drop. She thought “Oh, God, I’m crazy and now they are all sitting there like…”She’s a nut…How do we get out of here and can we get our money back?”

Suddenly the deadly silence was broken by a woman sitting in the back row…sobbing…loudly…and then a shout from another parent demanding “Oh my God, why do we do that? What does it mean?” The auditorium erupted in some kind of crazy parent revival. As I had suspected, I was not alone in my feelings.

Fear and joy…why do they seem to go hand in hand? Brown summed it up saying:

The dark does not destroy the light; it defines it. It’s our fear of the dark that casts our joy into the shadows.

So until tomorrow….Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”-Psalm 30:5

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

* I had a wonderful “aha” moment yesterday. Mollie and the boys stopped by the house while Tommy and Kaitlyn were over visiting. Kaitlyn and I offered to keep the kids to give Mollie time to run to the store and pick up some steaks to cook for Walsh when he got off work this evening.

Rutledge was so excited to be at Boo Boo’s…immediately he asked for the dolphin rocker. Tommy brought it over from the other side and Rutledge happily rocked back and forth.

Kaitlyn and I took some pictures of him rocking…then Kaitlyn videoed him giving the name of the dolphin.

She asked “Who are you riding Rutledge?” and he replied “HOPE” over and over. She played the short video back and suddenly the moment became memorable… hearing that sweet little voice saying “hope.”

Here was my two year old grandson….repeatedly stating that he was riding HOPE…and all I could think of was that my wish for Rutledge would be that he would always ride HOPE through life.

Later he grew tired and climbed up in my lap and fell asleep…I didn’t realize how big he had gotten until then…the days of curling up with Boo in the rocker are coming to an end…childhood is so (sadly) short.

Yesterday at 10:00 our congregation gathered outside the sanctuary with children’s handbells…Jeff, our pastor, read scripture and Dorothy, our associate pastor, made remarks about the tragic shooting at Emanuel AME. Then, in a circle, we rang the bells, one person at a time.

Suddenly…the lyrics to the old Peter, Paul, and Mary song “If I had a Hammer“) rang out in my mind….especially the second stanza…it certainly summed up this poignant moment.

If I had a bell,
I’d ring it in the morning,
I’d ring it in the evening,
All over this land

I’d ring out danger,
I’d ring out a warning
I’d ring out love between my brothers and my sisters,
All over this land.

* Doodle, Harvey, and Catherine stood by me in the circle…it is nice to be with family on these type of life occasions, isn’t it? 

* Take a moment and listen to this powerful folk song from our past…still appropo today.

Peter, Paul & Mary – If I Had A Hammer – 1963 … – YouTube

Dear Reader:

I was clearing off my dining room table a couple of days ago and spotted this Hallmark bag (I had been given after purchasing some cards earlier in the week) …

Before I tossed it…I read the words on the bag and immediately thought that a blog could materialize from the words.

“Life is a Special Occasion”

Hallmark explained this tagline that was created in 2011 with:

Hallmark introduced the Life is a Special Occasion tagline in 2011 to communicate the role our brand plays in peoples’ lives during both the big milestones and the small moments that happen any day.

Hallmark nailed it right on the head with this thought…we don’t have to be celebrating a birthday or anniversary to celebrate life. Every day we can select from any number of opportunities that come our way to celebrate life.

Yesterday…Rutledge was beside himself with excitement! The family birthday party had finally arrived for our terrific two year old. I went over to Walsh and Mollie’s around noon to keep the boys while she ran errands to get ready for the party.

* Tommy and Kaitlyn, also, came over and helped decorate and set up for the party. We all shared in the babysitting joys.   It was truly a family affair!

* Mollie and some of her friends had surprised their husbands with brunch and a round of golf Saturday….so sweet…especially since Walsh had to work today on Father’s Day! So we had a combo Happy Daddy’s Day and Happy Birthday yesterday!

As I looked into Rutledge’s excited face…a thought popped up in my mind: Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could, somehow, harness all that birthday excitement felt as a young child and bottle it up? We could, then, take a sip every day from it…every day of our lives.

One blog writer had some ideas on how to accomplish this premise without bottled excitement. She listed five ways to celebrate life every day.

Source: mbg (mind/body/green)  “Ways to celebrate life every day” Andi Saitowitz 

1. Fill your home with flowers, love, and music . We don’t always need a specific reason or date to party. Life’s a party and the fact that we have so much to live for, appreciate and share is reason enough!

2. Spoil yourself. It doesn’t have to be something luxurious and expensive. But small treats and reinforcements for acknowledging how far you have come, how strong you are and how special you are is something we can do every day. Even allocating a few minutes of “me” time is a treasured treat for most of us. 

3. Blessings and gratitude. We don’t need to let the people we love know it only once a year. We can make sure that the people who mean the most to us, always know they are valued, appreciated and needed. Not only when we thoughtfully create a birthday card filled with wishes, blessings and thanks – but every day, expressing how lucky we feel to have them in our world.

4. Dance. Moving your body is something we do every anyway so why not do it with style, passion and enthusiasm. The same way we feel free and full of energy on the dance floor, that’s how we can live every day. Play your favorite song and dance like no one’s watching you. Enjoy what you do and have fun! 

5. Superpowers. On our birthday we feel special, purposeful, filled with hope and possibility – we are powerful. We forget that we have superpowers that are with us always and it is our choice whether we use them or not to do so much good in this world. 

* For me….having a happy place that fills me with a mix of joy and peace is something to celebrate every day of my life. In fact I ordered this plaque for my Happy Room last week.

I, originally, intended to switch the color to yellow or orange (of course)…and place it on top of my wood burning stove…but, then, it suddenly dawned on me that I now have more happy places within and outside my home than wooden plaques.

So…I just need to carry the wooden plaque around with me…everywhere I go… to show everyone I meet…because wherever I go should be my happy place in life.

So until tomorrow let us remind ourselves to bring joy and happiness as we journey through each day.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

It was definitely Rutledge’s favorite day….he and Eva Cate played and played in the “giraffe” pool and had a ball! And of all the wonderful gifts Rutledge got… from scooters to lawn mowers to trampolines to trikes and so much more for little tykes…a small white truck was his favorite.

We thought it was going to be too hot…but there was a cool breeze outside yesterday and Eva Cate and Rutledge took advantage of the giraffe pool (along with Poogan) to have fun in the summertime! In the end….with family…all we need is love.!

* And we end on our last special occasion for today…Happy Father’s Day! To all the wonderful fathers in the world….we love you!

* Hot off the press this morning…more celebrations coming in….

* Joan and W. T.’s 45th wedding anniversary….Congratulations! ( Anybody see a resemblance between W. T. and Jakie…strong Turner genes floating around!)

* And look at what happened with Lee in his ping pong tournament! Congratulations! Hope Ben saw it! U2100 NC State Championships

* And to all the other anniversaries going on (Facebook is packed with them this morning (Libby…love the photo of your dad and mom…adorable)…Now Let’s go celebrate life today.

Dear Reader:

I had a letter from Honey yesterday (with some pamphlets included) from a wonderful “treasure” she and Tarshie (Honey’s daughter) discovered in Clayton, Georgia.

The family was in Clayton for a reunion with Mike’s side of the family. Honey and Tarshie decided to go to a special festival (one of Mike’s cousins told them about) while Mike played golf one day.

Honey said I would have gone “nuts” looking at all the gardens this church has…like: a sanctuary garden (plants along the pews) a memorial garden, the dry river bed garden, the play ground garden, the butterfly garden, the sunflower garden, the container garden, and the labyrinth garden. Wow!

The container garden, displaying a diversity of plant containers, gave some church members the idea of offering a workshop on making homemade hypertufa bowls and troughs.

This is the same material that contains my impatiens that I got from a vendor a couple of weeks ago at the Summerville Farmers Market. They work fantastic!

Anne, Honey sent the directions (from the workshop) on how to make one…a new project might be looming!

When Honey and Tarshie first walked into the church they saw a frame for a bottle tree….minus the bottles. Instead it was called a Blessing Tree. Tags were hanging down in place of bottles for people to fill out and place back on the “tree.”

I loved the concept….so I decided to integrate both ideas…keep the bottles but add a blessing inside each…on my bottle tree.

Each month I will write out a “thank you” on a strip of paper and place it inside a bottle on the tree with different colored ribbons attached (to each blessing) hanging out of the bottle…to make it easy to remove and pull a blessing out to read.

My first thought was to thank God for giving me life.  According to the dictionary, “blessing” is a favor or a gift from God. God, not only gave me life, but He placed me this amazing country, in this wonderful state, and in this sublime town I call home. I have blessings…Godfold!

* Sandy Fraser responded to today’s blog post with this perfect scripture:

You’ve given me a new idea to celebrate our many blessings. It brings to mind 1 Thes.16-18: Be joyful always;pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances..

I had forgotten about a special poem that I love until I came across it the other day (after the Mother Emanuel AME tragedy.) It struck a chord with me concerning the things we think we want and the blessings God knows we need.

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve

I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.

……..

I asked for health, that I might do greater things

I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.

…….

I asked for riches, that I might be happy

I was given poverty, that I might be wise. 

…..

I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men

I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.

…..

I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life

I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.

…..

I got nothing that I asked for, but everything I had hoped for

Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.

I am, among all people, most richly blessed. 

………………………………..

So until tomorrow… “Remember that God gave us life that we might enjoy all things.” What a gift! Don’t forget to say thank you.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

* While sticking my “thank you” message in the “blessing bottle tree” I noticed two beautiful green plants staring back at me from below in the green foliage…it took me a minute to recognize them…poinsettias that I had taken off the porch after Christmas and placed under the bottle tree.

A true miracle…in all this heat….they are, not only surviving, but thriving. Isn’t life mind-boggling?

* And speaking of blessings…guess who just had a little baby boy…AMBIKA!  She promises pictures soon…here is some information:

Hi Becky, please do wish Rutledge from my side as well… By the way, the good news has arrived… God blessed us with a baby boy on 14th June 2015… We have named him Ajay Daniel… Ajay means Victorious….Will post his pics soon… Right now a little busy practicing motherhood … Thank you so much for your prayers… Tc

* I, also, heard from Fran Townsend…the family is in the mountains on vacation and after hearing of the church tragedy back home in Charleston…she and Evans decided to find St. Jude’s Chapel of Hope (not always an easy thing to do)… to seek solace there. I am so envious…wish I could click my fingers and be there too. Because that is the place that gave me solace when I most needed it.

Dear Reader:

Today’s blog post will be brief…though the grief that we all feel as low country residents, who adore our “Holy City,” will not be. This particular grief will linger forever in our memories and hearts.

How true this statement is…if we didn’t love and care for our fellowman…we wouldn’t ever feel grief…but the price would be too high for us to contemplate. If we never felt grief …it would be because we had never loved. The essence of that thought is more tragic than anything else imaginable.

So let’s do pause today and grieve…grieve for the families who lost loved ones in the senseless assault on innocent churchgoers worshiping in a place of God. Grieve for the family of the assailant whose lives, too, will be forever changed. Grieve for the assailant, himself, who lost his way in life and will pay a high price for his destructive actions. We pray that God be with him …for like us, he is a child of God.

In a passage from a short story entitled “The Rose Babies” by Georgia Hubley (from Chicken  Soup for the Gardener’s Soul) the author remembers a lesson her mother taught her.

” Most people press a flower in a book when they wish to keep it as a memento. My mother doesn’t believe in preserving  a memory by hiding it. Her motto is, “Don’t press it. When will you look at it again tucked away in a book? Make it grow! Enjoy its beauty as a living flower, not a withered keepsake.”

What a wise woman…and from her we learn that the memory of this incident can never be hidden away. But we can take this tragedy and turn it into something of beauty and meaning.

Perhaps we should plant a garden with nine trees surrounding it to remember the nine fatalities of this tragedy.  Then we could plant all kinds of beautiful flowers to put a smile on passerby walkers…and remind everyone to “enjoy its beauty as a living flower, not a withered keepsake. ”  

So until tomorrow…From out of this seemingly senseless tragedy…will burn a ray of hope that will, in turn, become a ray of change for our community… bringing us all closer together.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

*Many low country natives woke up to the terrible news of the AME church tragedy yesterday…but little Rutledge just woke, up, innocently, to his second birthday…with all the excitement of spending the day with his mommy and daddy…a special day.

God’s way of letting us know that life continues after the most heartfelt tragedies….a celebration of life with a two year old.

An extra celebration involved including Lachlan’s third month anniversary of life. Tommy and Kaitlyn kept Lachlan yesterday evening for Walsh and Mollie to take Rutledge to his first River Dogs game…a big birthday!

Kaitlyn emailed me two photos as proof that Tommy changed his little nephew’s diapers…a first for Tommy!

Rutledge reading a bedtime story to his little brother to end his special birthday!

Can two years have passed already? How precious time is, as well as, my two boys! Love you Walsh and Rutledge!

Yesterday I was at the Turners keeping Eva Cate and Jakie…Eva Cate was very interested in the news about the tragedy…I explained the situation to her the best I could… suddenly she closed her eyes and prayed to Jesus that He take care of all of them and love them when they got to heaven.

Out of the mouths of babes…I did have to keep giving the grandchildren extra hugs and I didn’t want them far from me.