No post on Thursday and no one said a word! If anyone would have, I would have noticed it myself. Wednesday night's posting seems to have taken the place of a Thursday in my mind, which is definitely NOT a good sign! However, due to not writing the blog I instead worked on the bi-monthly newsletter sent to members away and shut-ins, printed it off and ready to mail. We are having a Greeters Orientation at church in a week or two so I got those guidelines written up and sent to Pastor for his review. The morning was spent first talking on the phone with Justin and then heading to Bible study at Victory. Earlier it had been as thick as pea soup out there but it was cleared by the time I drove across the bridge.
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Justin was cramming for his mid-term test in political science and shared a few interesting items with me. Sort of makes me wish I had studied this when I was young and could absorb. But then, I did not care! Now that I care, I cannot absorb. Because of the cramming, he opted to not attend Bible study. Next week he will be there, as will Linda, for which I already braced them. Three church secretaries in one room---can they stand it?
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After the class we were in the office talking and Pastor Hoyer commented about his sermon theme being about End Times. I made the remark that it was nearly time to sing "Jerusalem, the Golden" and he picked up the unfinished service folder and said, "We are singing it this Sunday." He said it was the new tune which, of course, I expected it to be, and then he asked, "That's your favorite hymn, isn't it?" I had already begun tearing up, and I said it was, asking him if he read that in my blog. He said no, Bonnie, the secretary, had told him. They must have been talking about me!! We sort of touched on a few things in class, when he described how, at our baptisms, our souls are already in heaven. "I'm but a stranger here, heaven is my home..." he recited. What a wonderful hymn and memory it stirs for me, as well as a picture of what awaits us...
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On the ride home I tried once again to call my mom but got the answering machine. Hmmm.....where could she be? Aha, it is newsletter day at First German. I dialed the number and when the secretary answered, I asked, "Is my mama there???" Linda laughed, saying Mom just finished her coffee and muffin after working on the newsletter and was going to head home. How funny! Later on I called Mom and talked with her at some length. Normally I speak with her every other day but had gotten so busy with all this other stuff and did not call for a few days. My sister is moving into the same building where Mom lives, having given her notice at her "old" place. With a great deal of relief, believe me! It makes me happy that Mom will someone under the same roof as she in case she needs something.
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A huge mistake, listening to "In Christ Alone" as I try to write. Almost can't wait for my funeral or one of the other's who have said they want this hymn sung at their service. "...what heights of love, what depths of peace..."
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Originally I had planned to worship at Victory Sunday to sing "Jerusalem, the Golden" (yeah, right, who am I kidding???) but I understand there will be special visitors at G.S. this weekend whom I cannot miss. Some of our former members, the Vances and Heldman's, are passing through on their way to Orlando. Kelly's oldest son, named Alexander Timothy, in memory of my Timmy, is being treated by the Dreams Come True Foundation to some time at Disney, as he was born with spina bifida. It works out well since they have family and ties in this part of the world anyway, and it makes me happy to be able to see them. The last time Paul and Kelly came through, I think it was the last time anyway, they stayed with me at my lake house. I remember Kelly gave me tiny red hat, because when they were with me, I "had" to attend a Red Hat Society event with Martie and I did not like it! I fussed, "Those Red Hatters got NOTHING on me!" so she bought me a tiny red hat, saying that was the only one I was ever going to need! I am so excited to see them all!
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Last night was spent working on Joanne's mailing after she delivered the inserts and the labels for the back of the envelope. Setting up in the family room on the glass topped table, I got busy folding and stuffing, gluing, and then applying the "referral" label to each piece of mail. Not quite 200 envelopes, ready to go in less than three episodes of "House"! She did not bring the stamps so I had to drop the finished envelopes at the office this afternoon. There I got to see my friend, Christine, who was busily putting a listing into the computer. Joanne was out taking care of something with her dad, which I knew, but I got to see many of the agents and staff in their full-out Halloween regalia.
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After RE/MAX I went to Office Max (almost maxed out!) to return my carrying bag for the laptop and exchanged it for a router. Hopefully Justin will take care of that on Monday when he is here. He says it is simple to hook-up but I defer to him on this type of thing. Also on the list was a memory card for my new smaller, purse-sized camera, which strangely enough, did not come with any. What's up with that??In the building business, it baffled me that washers and ranges did not come with a power cord, it had to be purchased separately. Sewing machines, also, did not come with the foot pedal to operate it, had to be bought separately. Yesterday's newsletter took lots of paper so I bought a ream at the register. It was wrapped in pink which made me wonder if the paper was pink too. There is a limit to how much pink paper a person needs---I can't believe I just said that!
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It is nearly time to meet Martie for our after work adult beverage and repast so must go and make myself beautiful after sitting here bawling my eyes all down my shirt. Note to self: no more listening to the Supplement when trying to make sense in the blog!
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Loved talking with Rosalie this afternoon, by the way. Hal has a brand, new shiny hip on his right side, having the replacement the same weekend that Pastor Schuppe was at their church for missions. She felt badly they were going to miss seeing them, but he came over to their house to pay them a visit! I would love to have heard that conversation, or those, as the case might be. The following week Rosalie got to see and hear Paul Prange at her church, whom she knew as a vicar many years ago. He sat with them at their table afterwards for the feast and they got all caught up. She told him how wonderful it was to have both Schuppe and this Prange in so short a period of time. Both were described to me as being " gifted" men, and I will threw in, so is Pete gifted! No argument from Rosalie about that either, as she was with me for about 10 days after Timmy died. There is nothing like good, Christian friends, to go with your family!
