Chapel of Hope Stories

Dear Reader:

I have been using these cold, wet, windy days inside… to begin looking through old books …deciding which to keep and which to give away. Suddenly I came across The Book of Awakening by Mark Nepo. As I flipped through the pages … I landed immediately on a writing … that started out… ” There is a Buddhist precept that asks us to be mindful of how rare it is to find ourselves in human form on Earth. It is really a beautiful view of life that offers us a chance to feel enormous appreciation for the fact that we are here as individual spirits filled with consciousness….and that the Divine Revelation that no other life form has the consciousness of BEING that we are privilege to…. not in the form of water, minerals, animals or plants … humans make up a very small portion of life that has the wakefulness of spirit that we call ” being human.”

… That is because we human beings are directly connected to and made in the image of God. This direct connection can never be broken.

Every morning when we wake up… we should start with a prayer of gratitude for being human.

Daily activities we can do to become more aware of our place in the sun…

1. Sit outside or near a window and observe other life forms around you( squirrels in my planters looking for nuts)

2 Think of the pebble, bark, or the stone benches or sculptures in the courtyard … and center your breathing on the interior things that you can do that they can’t… understanding life is sacred.

3. Do one thing that only humans can do… like pray!

4. And finally … when the time arises… pray with reverence and GRATITUDE!

Dear Reader:

A few days ago I heard from one of my best teaching co-horts in the Social Studies Department at Alston Middle School.

Patty was an amazing teacher and when the Social Studies Department would meet monthly …we all had the best times laughing together and planning fun events and creative lesson plans.

It all came to an end when Patty and her family moved to Simpsonville … a beautiful quaint town in the Greenville vicinity.

Over time we quit communicating regularly …until just a few years ago I got a call from Patty … her beautiful daughter was just diagnosed with breast cancer-she now too was a teacher, married with a little boy and as strong and stoic as her mother. I immediately promised to contact her and share my experiences.

That year at the Breast Cancer Clemson game… she became the breast cancer representative … her smiling face looking down from a large poster.

Her whole family joined her in the fight… Patty subbing for her daughter when she had chemo sessions or felt too badly to return to the classroom. Today she is in remission … praying it will stay that way…releasing any concerns over to her Creator.

Like me she turned her condition over to God and she hasn’t looked back.

When Patty contacted me a few days ago she asked if it would be all right to send a new ” Thought for a Day” every day to me. I replied ” Certainly!”

She and her retired teaching buddies and other friends share these thoughts daily …sending new thoughts out … as memorable quotes of encouragement and to simply keep in touch. Great idea! Occasionally I will continue to pass some onto you… like today’s title!

My planter just showed it’s last full blooms …dangerously tilted now and leaning over… tied it to a stake but the stalk filled with blossoms is winning the game I fear… looks like the stem could crash or split any moment. But even if this happens …what happiness it has brought me and we just have to remember to savor the memories and wait for the future! Such is life!

Jo said another song she thought of while watching the ants save their own rain forest from humans drilling into tree trunks was Frank Sinatra’s High Hopes. Especially this stanza…

” Just what makes that little old ant, think he’ll move that rubber tree plant?”

” Anyone knows an ant …can’t … move a rubber tree plant… but he’s got High Hopes! ”

And every day beauty pops up in front of us … if we just stop long enough to absorb it.

Have a blessed day!

Dear Reader:

I remember when I was teaching the Civil War Unit… I would story-tell many sad but courageous stories while playing the tune ( not the lyrics ) of ” When Johnny Comes Marching Home. ”

Without fail one student would start singing ” When the Ants Come Marching Home” and everyone would start laughing. ( I would laugh and then continue the story ” A Cold Cold Night.” ( a hauntingly chilling tale) and soon the students were once again engrossed in the story. ( I never told the ” Ants” student that his version happened every year. )

The title ” Tree” picture is an Cacropia” tree found in Panama. Ants have been seen helping wounded trees in Panama! How?

When holes were drilled into a Cacropia tree trunk… the ants emerged from their homes to patch up the wounds… significantly reducing the size of the holes. Within 3 hours after leaving them the trees began healing … then they were completely healed within a 24 hour period. Ants… the heroes of Panama!

Yesterday KC came over bringing homemade spaghetti… unbelievably great! She also went around Chick Filet and they were still serving the Peppermint milkshake… such a great memory when we first tasted it. And then to me to my bank to withdraw money … so nice!

Mandy returned and continued re-decorating… what a lucky mother I am!!!

So until tomorrow… If ants can save trees in their short life span … we certainly can save others in difficult circumstances and share our God-given talents!

Dear Reader:

Mandy arrived around 10 and left at noon… my ” Happy Place” Christmas Decor completely put up in organized boxes …as well as we got the whole apartment re-organized … ( first time since we first arrived… so now I have a dual happy feeling … Christmas decor gone for another year and my other rooms systematically reassembled. Come with me and see! All I can say is “Less ( really) IS Best! “

So until tomorrow… John 15: 4-5

” Remain in me, as I also remain in you ( and together we) will bear much fruit.”

So when times get tough…remember…” Let us abide in God. Together we can bear much fruit.”

Dear Reader:

Mandy is coming this morning and together we are going to “un-decorate.”My heart is sad. For two glorious weeks the Angel tree has been lit-day and night. My favorite time is early evening as I turn off all the room lights except the television ( Christmas movies, then New Year’s celebrations and finally the Clemson -Kentucky game ( Whew! I still haven’t completely recovered from that game) but I have lOVED just staring at the tree in wonder.

But now it is time to let go of the Christmas decorations while maintaining the Christmas spirit!!!

Walsh, Mollie, and kids spent their New Year’s celebration at a beautiful old plantation with lots of Civil War history -friends of theirs whose family own it in Denmark, SC…and this year where Eloise spent her sixth birthday!

Yesterday… Mollie,Rutledge and Eloise came to open Boo and Mandy’s birthday presents… bringing Chick Filet … that made me happy!

And it accompanies some upsetting news the Ya’s got from a text from Brooke yesterday. You might remember she took herself to the ER Christmas Eve for congestion, got an x-ray and then all kinds of medicines and drugs to knock it out.

Apparently it wasn’t enough… Brooke felt worse and worse and in the text yesterday disclosed she had tested positive for the flu and also now has Covid… Brooke has been bedridden since Christmas Eve (actually before that) …how did all these ” plagues” get to her?

Brooke needs prayers… she is a ” tough cookie” but she could definitely use some tough Divine Intervention! (Audrey Hepburn had it right about helping others! )

So until tomorrow… Look Up! Then pray for help when needed and give gratitude for the holy hand extended!

Dear Reader:

The old history teacher in me… gets emotional every time I read the Emancipation Proclamation each New Year’s Day -it still sends shivers down my back.

The public reading of the Emancipation Proclamation in South Carolina took place near Beaufort SC at Camp Saxton. 250 years of slavery abolished with the stroke of a pen! Thousands of black soldiers who fought for the Union, as well as, slaves who escaped the plantations … came to hear it in South Carolina.

Today the Emancipation Proclamation can be found in the National Archives in Washington DC.

The first reading took place 161 years ago but aren’t we still fighting to maintain our freedom ? Aren’t we feeling more and more that dictatorship rhetoric is a possible reality…non-believers in the Constitution and that ” We The People” – the true democratic government of the United States… is splintered … thus allowing our personal freedoms to be put in serious danger? We must fight to maintain democracy by our voices and actions! It is up to us to save our personal freedom !

I started off New Year’s Eve eating a delicious spaghetti dinner with the Turners.. so yummy! While waiting to eat… Eva Cate showed me her bedroom that she had completely re/done and the mirror I gave her for Christmas! She is her mother’s daughter… Mandy is the most organized person I know!

AND… to squeeze in one more happy event …New Year’s Eve brought Eloise’s birthday around for the 6th time! Can’t believe my youngest grandchild is turning six… and what an entrance she made… not only arriving just short of the New Year but she also brought SNOW!!! ( Unfortunately she and Mollie were stranded for two more days because the roads were too icy to be allowed to leave. )

Happy Happy Birthday my much loved and precious granddaughter Eloise!

Tommy and Kaitlyn went to Tennessee to visit her grandmother Judy… she is amazing … fighting a second return of cancer in recent years while being in her nineties… stoic pioneer stock with a great sense of humor!

So until tomorrow… Wishing you a year filled with laughter, surprises, and happiness. May we all have a vision now and then, of a world where every neighbor is a friend.

You might remember I predicted two new blooms today and my prediction came true with three buds ready to burst open… replacing the old with the new!

Dear Reader:

One memory from my childhood was our annual trip to Grandmother’s house at Christmas. The road we took back in the fifties and early 60’s were the backroads between Fayetteville and Laurens… mostly along country roads with lots of cattle so we kids played the old game of ” Counting Cows” …but if you passed a cemetery ( through your side of the car window) you lost all your cows and most likely the game too…unless your opponent brother( David) ran into more cemeteries than you. As soon as we saw the town of Laurens sign … we proclaimed the winner with the most cows left….

There were many quaint little rural towns along the way but we always stopped to eat lunch in Pendleton at the same restaurant-forget the name but the owner recognized us every Christmas and gave us kids candy for the rest of the trip. Loved that tradition!

We always left the restaurant to go to the general store that had a sign inside that read ” What’s Old is New” ( I never “got it” as a child… but mother nodded and always said ” Amen.” )

Today on New Year’s Eve …writing my Happy New Year 2024 post…let’s all look on this new year as another opportunity at living the very best life we can while retaining our own good memories that we should take with us … the OLD into the NEW!

Case in point: My magical Christmas Planter. Look and see the new miracles arriving just in time to greet the New Year!

Around two am Sunday morning… I went to the restroom and to get some water-the new stalk was leaning way over… found some green leftover ribbon and secured it to the original stalk ! ! It is happy again and I pulled off the withered original blooms!

This is her favorite book -can hardly wait!

And speaking of shelves… Mandy and I are going to have to get creative and find a way to put up one… the first two books completed are:

Yesterday ( before and after the game I finished a paperback book … soothed me back to my contented ” magical” soothing state!

So until tomorrow … if you want to bring Magic into the New Year … pick up a book that catches your attention and let the magic flow into 2024.

Dear Reader!

Tommy and Kaitlyn drove up to Tennessee yesterday to have a short visit with her grandmother, Judy, who is in her nineties and , is fighting cancer for the second time in recent years. She is amazing… sending out Christmas cards and get-well cards all, including me, while fighting her own health challenges! What a role model in perseverance she is to her family!!! Have a good visit!

Yesterday as I walked around my new happy place… I took in just how many cardinals have arrived over the holidays and there are several left behind in Summerville…

My first encounter that started my “Sammy the Cardinal ” on-going story started several years ago …tenuously… he attacked both my rear view mirrors on my old Saturn Vue …which later was stolen twice by a high school student and completely damaged.

During this crazy time… Sammy the Cardinal returned to apologize and began flying over and around me every time I worked in the gardens . We became such good friends that while typing my blog posts on my old desktop computer… by a window overlooking the side garden -Sammy would land on the outdoor window sill and peck the screen telling me ” Hello” while he strutted back and forth!

Older readers remember these days and now I have accumulated so much good luck from my ” Sammies” I think it played into my recent health improvement surprise!

And what about those Tigers… I went over to my neighbor’s ( Ann who grew up in Clemson) apartment and we both screamed in unison… such a nail-biting game! But the last second’s win brought such happiness!

So happy the Tigers pulled it out for a win on Tommy’s birthday! 🎉🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡

So until tomorrow… A very Happy Day… leading us into hopefully a much calmer tomorrow! Let the LIGHT SHINE BRIGHT!

Dear Reader:

Just a few days ago we recognized Walsh’s ( Kringle Dingle) birthday on the 23rd and I brought him home on Christmas Day.

Today is my youngest’s son ( Tommy’s birthday ( Deduction Dingle) and we brought him home on New Year’s Day! Lots of fun memories!

But this year to add even more fun to his birthday… The Tigers are playing Kentucky in the Gator Bowl this afternoon! So exciting! 🤞🤞🤞

For mothers… adult ” children’s” birthdays are spent in memories… so with the help of Doodle sending pictures of Tommy at his grandparents ( Poppy and Dee Dee’s house) growing up and playing with Doodle’s youngest daughter ( Katherine ( Kitty Kat) about a year or so younger … blessed with the best grandparents ever!

Tommy and “Kitty Kat “

Then … years later Tommy met Kaitlyn in Law School and as the saying goes… “the rest is history”……starting with a honeymoon in Dingle Ireland followed by subsequent returns!

So until tomorrow…

I love you Tommy! Happy Birthday! Love Mom💗😘💗