Ignoring His Eyes Upon Us July 28, 2021 - My freedom, my rights, my choices!" My, my, my, how many times have we heard those expressions! "You can't make me do something I don't want to do!" Well, folks, we have a bunch of people saying such words to excuse some inexcusable actions. We have read some mighty nasty headlines lately about personal freedom. "FLIGHT ATTENDANT PUNCHED IN THE FACE!" “MOM’S PUSH AND YELL WHILE CHILDREN WATCH" "CROWD APPLAUDS WHEN TOLD AMERICA WOULD NOT MEET VACCINATION GOALS!" Most of the behavior making the news involves COVID vaccinations and mask-wearing. "I ain’t wearin’ no mask!” “That pandemic is a hoax!… Read More Our Children are America’s Tomorrow July 21, 2021 - "Grandma, why do your hands look like that?" She asked as she held my hand and pointed to all the freckles and visible veins. "Well, honey, unlike you, I have light, fair skin, which often comes with freckles and veins." I decided that was the best answer to give a five-year-old, but she kept the conversation going. “Grandma, why do I not have freckles?” "Well, your Italian skin is like your grandfather's and mothers. It is a bit darker and prettier than my old spotted mess. There are all different types of skin, just like there are all different colors… Read More Into the Wild Blue Yonder July 14, 2021 - There are times in our lives when we need to reorganize our priorities to rediscover the fundamentals of happiness. Often, we don't understand what causes our sadness or lack of enthusiasm. The pandemic threw most of us off track. We were not able to freely visit those friends and family we usually see. We resided in a bubble and accepted our fate. Most of us wrapped ourselves in our own little cacoons and quietly coped with our fear and loneliness. It was almost selfish to complain because, for many others, their worlds were utterly shattered. So, I strived to keep… Read More My Grand July Tradition July 8, 2021 - It is July!!!!! The month we light up the sky with fireworks, hold family reunions, watch the kids squeal at the pool, or catch an ocean wave. I am not sure this summer is entirely typical, but somehow it all feels better. This July, perhaps, we relish those simple summer rituals more because we are hopefully heading to something akin to "normal." One of my favorite July traditions, however, is not related to summer. When the temperature rises to scorching heat each year, this old gal heads to Hobby Lobby to watch the staff begin displaying Christmas decorations. As I… Read More My Name is “Old Glory” June 29, 2021 - As my cousin drove his ATV over the Tennessee hills and green pastures to show me his farm on a recent visit, I could see from afar our American flag flying high above the main house. It was as if the banner owned the sprawling land below and she waved her stripes declaring so. God’s lush acres encased by an azure sky dotted proudly with the red, white, and blue depicted a picture-perfect Americana post-card. Once we arrived back at the house, I looked toward the banner high atop the flagpole. Old Glory’s ends were frayed and worn, her stripes… Read More Avoiding the Final Exam June 23, 2021 - Often, I find hidden gems regarding life in cartoons. For example, Garfield is hiding under the covers in the Sunday newspaper because it is his 43rd birthday. He is uncomfortably aware that growing older does not exude the same celebratory excitement as when he turned five. Snoopy is determined to win a tennis match. But instead winds up sprawling and dazed on the court in defeat with a tennis ball stuffed in his mouth from his opponent's first serve. And, in Blonde, young Elmo announced to a stunned Dagwood that he is raising the price of his lawn cutting service… Read More A Letter to My Father June 14, 2021 - Dear Dad, I am not sure if you can view this from Heaven, but since you flew there in 1999, I often feel you are beside me. But, of course, you know us earth-bound folks can’t see for looking sometimes, so I might have missed you. A few things happened since you left. I married again in 2005, and I believe you would like this guy. He, just like you, reminds me to turn off the lights, close the doors, and keep the car clean. You must have hand-picked him to keep me straight! I know your dying wish was… Read More Where our History is Written in Stone June 8, 2021 - On the first Sunday in June in Monterey, Tennessee, where I was born, citizens celebrate Decoration Day. There are two main cemeteries in this small town, and most of us whose heritage dates to the pioneer days honor the remains of those we love by decorating their graves with flowers. When my parents and brother were still living, we tried our best to visit on Decoration Day no matter where we resided. Every June, as we walked among the headstones, Dad would tell us stories regarding uncles, aunts, friends, or grandparents as tears fell from their memory. When many relatives… Read More Welcome Summer with a Sunny Spirit June 2, 2021 - The pool is open, kids are squealing, gardenias are blooming, and the fish are hungry. Summer is back!!!! I believe it has been gone a very long time. I wasn’t really sure we would see it again. However, now, I want to yell like a preschooler coming down a slide, jump off the diving board, and cover myself in gardenia perfume! Yessir, summer has decided not to quit on us! Hallelujah! I plan to relish every single day of heat, each flower that blooms, and every bite of ice-cold watermelon. I vow to thank the good Lord daily that my… Read More Salute the Vietnam Warriors May 27, 2021 - While recently thumbing through my old Tennessee and Georgia high school yearbooks, tears pooled in my eyes. Yes, they were all there, young men with hope in their eyes and their youth on the edge of disappearing. I wonder what they would have accomplished in their lives if they had the promise of a future. Would they laugh as I do at the silly antics of a grandchild? Would they still possess the impish grin the camera caught in the 60s? Maybe Howard would have made it onto the big screen with his good looks. Perhaps Bobby would be a… Read More The Music Just Beyond the Doors May 19, 2021 - Years ago, shortly before my mother passed away, she described a vivid dream she experienced one night that prepared us both for what was to come. In the Tennessee mountain town where she and I were born, the vacant old Imperial Hotel stands frozen in time as if passing years dare to touch it. The brick three-story building next to the train depot was built in 1909. Weary rail passengers would spend the night, enjoy a good meal, and feel the cool air as it whirled around the mountain. The Imperial boasted 30 rooms and indoor plumbing, which in… Read More “Where the Hilltops Kiss the Sky” May 5, 2021 - "Home is where one starts from." T. S. Eliot I stood in front of the white clapboard house, which lay in stark contrast to the bright green surrounding it. Rolling hills of lush spring grass cascade down the backyard that is alive with budding hardwood trees and birds flitting between the branches. The simple structure needs a bit of work, but what a sight to behold. My parents built the house a few years after they married in 1939. While viewing the home on Hoyt Street, I thought I heard the faint sounds of a baby crying from the bedroom. … Read More The Green Hills of Heaven March 30, 2021 - “Grandpa! I had a funny dream last night!” I exclaimed while my grandmother prepared my breakfast. “What kind of dream did you have, sweetheart?” "I dreamed I was at the top of a hill where the grass was so thick and dark green it felt like plush carpet. The sky was as blue as one could imagine, and just as I started to race down the hill in my bare feet, I grabbed your hand. Grandpa listened intently as I continued, “But, Grandpa, when I looked at you, you were my age! Your hair was the color of amber, and… Read More Run into the Arms of Tomorrow March 17, 2021 - As I sat in the lobby of a hotel recently while visiting my daughter and granddaughter in Florida, I had the pleasure of seeing a family reunited. The grandmother was sitting near me when her three small grandchildren rushed through the lobby doors. The little girls ran as fast as they could, jumped into her arms as tears formed in her eyes. Her daughter followed the racing girls and embraced her mother for far more than seconds. Their happiness overwhelmed me, and I found myself smiling from ear to ear underneath my mask. Who knows how long it had been… Read More WELCOME! May 20, 2019 - Welcome to my new site! Here you will find stories, both old favorites and new ones which I will change often. I will also write a post when something strikes me or I need to share important news. You can send me a note, a question, or a request. I would love to hear from you! In the meantime, keep reading, be inspiring, and change the world with kindness. Blessings, Lynn Read More
