Straining Onward

Oh, the Wonder

Maker of the sun,

He is made under the sun.

In the Father He remains,

from His mother He goes forth.

Creator of heaven and earth,

He was born on earth under heaven.

Unspeakably wise,

He is wisely speechless.

Filling the world,

He lies in a manger.

Ruler of the stars,

He nurses at His mother's bosom.

He is both great in the nature of God,

and small in the form of a servant.

~ Augustine ~

Just do it!

***** VOTE *****

This morning at the polls a gentleman handed me a small piece of paper impressed with these powerful words:

"When you become entitled to exercise the right of voting for public officers, let it be impressed on your mind that God commands you to choose for rulers just men who will rule in the fear of God. The preservation of [our] republican government depends on the faithful discharge of this Duty; if the citizens neglect their Duty and place unprincipled men in office, the government will soon be corrupted; laws will be made, not for the public good so much as for selfish or local purposes; corrupt or incompetent men will be appointed to execute the Laws; the public revenues will be squandered on unworthy men; and the rights of the citizen will be violated or disregarded."

----Noah Webster (1758-1843), Father of the Dictionary & American Patriot

"No people will tamely surrender their Liberties, nor can any be easily subdued, when knowledge is diffused and Virtue is preserved. On the Contrary, when People are universally ignorant, and debauched in their Manners, they will sink under their own weight without the Aid of foreign invaders......Let each citizen remember at the moment he is offering his vote that he is not making a present or a compliment to please an individual - or at least that he ouoght not so to do; but that he is executing one of the most solemn trusts in human society for which he is accountable to God and his country.......Religion and good morals are the only solid foundation of public liberty and happiness."

----Samuel Adams (1722-1803), Father of the American Revolution, Patriot and Statesman

Knick-Knack Paddy-Whack.......

Give the dog a bone..........

This old man.................

Came rolling home..................

Quite the genius machinations by John McCain, do you not agree?

Nevertheless, he has not earned my vote.

Read Carmon's brilliant analysis at her blog as well as the links she provides.

Please research, think, and most of all.....pray.

Happy Sweet Sixteenth!

Anniversary, that is. We're celebrating our sixteenth today. That's it?!!! Seems like we've always been together as one. Time flies when you're having fun, right? And yes, it has been sweet, and I am eternally grateful to our Father for His grace in allowing me a husband I do not deserve.

Here are sixteen things I love about Dwayne, not in any particular order, and there are way more than this, but since it's our sixteenth, there is one for each year.

1. He loves the Lord and His Holy Word.
2. He loves me unconditionally.
3. He loves our children the same.
4. He honors his parents (and mine, too).
5. He is the opposite of me……..patient and easy going!
6. He overlooks my numerous faults on a daily basis.
7. He’s smart and is always learning.
8. He continually seeks the truth and strives to live by it.
9. He’s a good boss to his employees.
10. He’s honest and honorable in business affairs and in personal life.
11. He’s strong and handsome.
12. He likes the same things I do…..books, antiques, good music.
13. He’s a skilled craftsman and musician.
14. He unselfishly lets me drive when we go out together.
15. He works hard to provide for us without ever complaining.
16. He’s fun to play with.

And just a personal note to Dwayne...........

In Which the Menagerie Expands

A few weeks ago I heard an insistent mewing at our porch door. Wondering how our house cat had gotten out, I quickly opened it asking in a puzzled tone, "Calvin, what are you doing out here?"

Much to my surprise, a tiny face looked up at me and inquired, "May I come in?" To which I replied, "Why certainly, my dear. What's one more mouth to feed?" Well, it was dark and rainy and she was so scrawny looking. I thought it was a neutered male until I donned my reading glasses and took a closer look. Oops. Sorry about that. Or should I say, "Uh oh."

Meet Lucy

We hung some posters on telephone poles and in convenience stores, the result of which was a rash of crank calls from local boys (bored with their video games, no doubt) stuttering, "Uh...we found your cat. Nyuk nyuk." Hm. Guess they need extra help in reading comprehension as the posters said, "Found kitten."

Looks like she may have been abandoned. Too bad. She's a sweet kitty, and after the initial "Who are you and what are you doing in my house?!!" by Calvin, they seem to have grown accustomed to one another to point of even sleeping together.

The downside is that Calvin has replaced us as his playmates with Lucy. No more hide and seek. No more hiding under the coffee table and pouncing on us as we enter the room. No more games of "BOO!" No more lying on the landing and smacking us in the head as we go down the stairs. Anna's not happy about that but I don't think we are quite ready to adopt a pony or puppy for her just yet. I'm glad they get along so well. Calvin is actually affectionate with her.

Just love that long-suffering look on her face. "What I put up with for room and board." A couple minutes later she gave him a good smack across the puss and knocked him onto the floor.

We brought her to the vet who gave her a clean bill of health. She is very small for her age which he thinks may be around two years or a bit less. Until he checked her teeth, he thought - as did we - that she was about six months old. I've been feeding her several times a day to build her up since she's so thin, and it looks like she's gaining weight, but........is it from an increase in calories, or.......what do you think? Is she - ahem - shall we say, with kitten?