........without even leaving my home! Kari Hahm sent the link to her dad's funeral service which was recorded and then posted for others to "attend" in absentia. My niece, Alayna, has already watched and listened, and I knew I was going to do it this a.m. on the "big" computer vs. the laptop in order to get the best sound and reception. Glad that I did, as the privacy of my room is needed for this service. No, I did not know Curt, but look forward to the day that I do meet him in heaven.
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So far the hymns have been wonderful, of course, with the grade school children of their congregation singing "Children of the Heavenly Father" and reciting the 23rd Psalm in the King James Version. The congregational hymns to this point include "Be Still My Soul", "Behold a Host Arrayed in White", "I Know That My Redeemer Lives", "I'm But A Stranger Here", and "For All the Saints...." It is like being at my own funeral, as well as revisiting Timmy's with some of the same hymns chosen.
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Yesterday Robbie played the post service music including "Lift High the Cross" which I sang from the pew as we waited to be ushered out. Our delightful young man, Ryan, smiled at me and started to sing too as he went passed my pew. He had nicely assembled and distributed the palm crosses for us to wear on Palm Sunday.
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"But yet there breaks a yet more glorious day; The saints triumphant rise in bright array; The King of glory passes on His way. Alleluia!" CW 551 st. 7
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Saturday, you may recall, was our Easter 4 Kids program at church. We had about 25 kids this year, compared to the 40 we had at the Christmas 4 Kids event. I am hopeful that once we have our classroom building completed, soon, I pray, we will have more resources, publicity, and whatever else we need to conduct a full-fledged outreach effort through these programs. The turnout for Yard Day, held at the same time as the children's event, was remarkable and the property spruced up very nicely. Looks great! I will have photos in the next posting of our eager workers!
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My responsibility was the registration table, getting the kids checked in, name tags filled out, and sent on their way to the church for the opening devotion. From there they went to lesson, craft, snack, and games, with a closing service at 11:45 a.m.
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The idea of the snack was so interesting: the kids were given a crescent roll, unfolded, which represented Jesus' grave. Jesus was represented as a marshmallow, rolled into the crescent by the children, and then baked. They pretended three days were passing as the rolls baked, and then when they bit into their finished roll, it was empty! Like the grave was on Easter morning! What an amazing picture this made for them.
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Saturday night was dinner at Mongo's with the Rosses and extended family. I was invited to Bruce and Sandy's afterward for cake and ice cream but I respectfully declined as I had one more place to be yet Saturday night----in my own building! My neighbors in the south penthouse were hosting a house concert for a young man's musical group, a graduate of St. Johns CDS, from where Justin graduated. His name is Kort McCumber, and I hope you music aficionados look him up. He plays the sort of music my brother-in-law enjoys and might perhaps host in a house concert of his own......I am only suggesting, David, only suggesting.....Kort's mom was a music teacher and director at St. Johns, too, as well as a musical partner for my neighbor, Donna, whose flute concert Joanne and I attended last Sunday.
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The concert was lovely though a bit chilly after the sun set and the breeze came off the river. My guess is there was about 80-100 people on the south balcony. As you might know, I met lots of people there, including a new lady who wants to come to Art Guild with me Tuesday night. She lives on the property but not in The Palace and I will go out today to scope out which building she is in to make it easier to find tomorrow night.
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(Warning!)
Also there was a neighbor from downstairs whose grandson, Brooks, was in Timmy's class at St. Johns. Brooks had his friend, Wyatt, there with them and after the concert, Judee, her son, Bill (Brooks' dad), and Wyatt came down to my house to see the piece of artwork the school children completed of Timmy's and signed in their pre-k handwriting. They are now going on 13 years old, and both boys were taller than I am, go figure! They liked seeing their names on the art work and seeing the names of their classmates, some of whom are no longer at St. Johns. I told Judy and her son, Bill, how Justin and I went through the toys this past week to donate them to a church VPK program, and she asked me how I do it. Until then I held my tears in place, but one sneaked out and hers did too. The boys were uncomfortable a tad, but I assured them that this was natural, what Mom's do. It was brief and we quickly recovered as they looked at the other artwork, Justin's mostly, and I gave my sales pitch for Great Hang Ups shrink-wrap ability as well as framing. No commissions, please.
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Not quite a year after Timmy died, I was tending the flower bed and marker at the grave site, back when I was there daily. A car pulled up but I kept working on things, not paying much attention. When I looked up, here came Brooks and his dad, with Brooks carrying a bouquet of flowers. His dad said Brooks still talked about Timmy often and wanted to bring him some flowers. No one knows just how significant that gesture was, unless you have experienced something like this yourselves.
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Brooks birthday party in October of 2000 was the first and only party Timmy attended as a school boy, to which his dad took and picked him up. I was at another birthday party the same day with Justin, we had to split the parties between us, and Brooks' was closer to the office for his father to do the drop off and pick up. We did not know that normally parents stay with their kids at the parties.....but Timmy did fine. I still have the Thomas the Tank Engine train whistle from Brooks party in Timmy's memory box on the hall table. I should have shown that to him, too, but I think those two boys probably had had enough trips down memory lane that night. Not me, I can down that lane over and over again, lest I forget!
The freshly painted ceramics, some of which were gifts in Timmy's memory now showcased against the red mulch. Thanks, Fausto!
Look at this shot of all the women hard at work sprucing up the flower beds and mulching them! Twila is manning the hose, thinking about spraying Shiloh in her stroller. In the background Sue is using the shovel to clean out along the curb, more than the leaf blower could handle!
During the Easter 4 Kids event, the kids are enjoying their sweet treat made with a crescent roll wrapped around a marshmallow, which disappeared when baked. Like putting Jesus in the grave, and three days later, He is not there! I thank the Lord for the willing and imaginative people running these programs at G. S.!!!
Look out! Here comes Twila with the hose and she is not afraid to use it!!! The grease board invites the parents to come back to see the closing program for Easter 4 Kids, hoping they do eventually come back for their kids! At the registration table, I handed each parent a piece of paper about the closing program, telling them it was their claim check for getting the kids back....some were not all that interested in getting them back!
Lonnie and Ellen are busy in the front flower bed making sure all is tidy and nice for Easter Sunday and ever after, I hope.
Jackie, Janet, Jim and Renee discuss the modis operandi for the flower bed along the church where the Sunrise service will be held. Lonnie dug out the day lilies from previous plantings, split them and then the team got busy and replanted them, along with some fresh annuals. 
This is the Thursday dinner, "Breakfast for Dinner". See all the yummy looking food? The food pales next to the good company though. Do I always have that bald spot on the back of head or is that from my nap?
Justin was the only male at the dinner and he came because he wanted so badly to see Miss Brenda. He had not seen her in a long time and misses her, as well as the other ladies at this table. It seems the manners classes I took him to years ago have paid off!
Justin is just barely visible in the kitchen behind the fridge door, perhaps getting out the champagne which we enjoyed in our cranberry juice. Delicious and refreshing, I think it is called an "Hibiscus". See my plate there, by the soda can? I could barely finish all the good food, but believe I did clean the plate once, but not the second time. Too good! Two people were missing from this table---Judy R. and Linda J. If my memory serves, Lynn might have been here for a themed dinner in the past......help me out here, Lynn, if you remember.....
