IT WASN'T SO LONG AGO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It wasn't long so ago..................
It wasn't long so ago when I would be excited about halloween being just around the corner. We would make a costume out of an old sheet or either go through Dads old clothes,  pick out the worst looking and most worn and mom would sew patches on them so we would look like an old bum or a Hobo.  We would put charcoal dust on our face for a special effect and off we would go.  We would gather with our friends in the neighborhood and with an old pillowcase thrown over our shoulder to hold our bounty,  off we would go.  We of course called it "trick or treat" but there was no reason to play a trick on anyone because every house would have a treat for us. Some houses had homemade treats tied up in little bags,  others had fruit and still others had store bought candy.  My favorite house to go to was always the big house at the end of the street that the "Ol  Maid  Sission Sisters" lived in.  I remember they would always place a shiny Silver Dollar in my bag,  which I would immediately fish out and deposit as deep as posible into the pocket of my jeans for safe keeping.  At the end of the night, I would take all of my candy home,  dump it out on my bed and pick out some of my favorite pieces to sample while making sure I had enough to ruin all my meals for at least two or three weeks.  I couldn't wait to get to school the next day to trade stories about our halloween night excursions with my classmates..........Yes,,,It wasn't so long ago............

It wasn't long so ago................
It wasn't long so ago that we would turn the page on the calander and it would be November.  November would mean a short vacation from school at the end of the month.  It would mean the beginning of colder weather.  The changing colors of the leaves and the task of raking them into piles as they fell to the ground.  I've often wondered how many times I raked the same leaves into a pile because as I remember, as soon as they were all piled up,  we would jump into the piles and scatter them all over the yard again, which of course meant they had to be raked up again.  November also meant High School Football games.  I was in what we called grammer school but my older sister, Dianne, was in High School and ever friday night we would bundle up and with Dad at the wheel we would head to Grady Stadium or Cheney Stadium to watch the Murphy Eagles do battle.  I can remember shoe polish messages being written on the back windows of all the cars imploring our team of blue and white to beat our opponents of the night.  And gosh at the crepe paper that was used.  Every car it seems was decorated in their school colors with streamers of crepe paper.  And then at the end of the month,  It was time for Thankgiving.  A time for everyone,   man and woman,  boy and girl to pause and give thanks.  To really ponder how blessed we were.  We would have a wonderful meal of turkey and dressing.  Of yams and green beans.  Of potatoe salad and cranberry sauce.  Of desserts so plentiful that the thoughts of them makes my mouth water still to this day.  But as good as the food was,  that's not what the day was about.  As nice as it was to have a couple of extra days off from school,,,,,,, that's not what the day was about.  As much fun as it was going to the UGA - Ga Tech Freshman game.....That's not what the day was about......It was about the blessings and the joys and family and friends that filled every other day of the year.  And it was about our fathers and grandfathers that had fought to give us this free land.  And it was not only about the men who had given so much of themselves for this purpose but also for the women,  the mothers and grandmothers that had "KEPT" this great country going while the men were away.  And it was about much more.  It was about many things that gave us pause to be thankful and fill out hearts with a fullness that I'm not gifted enough to express,  but if you were there,  you know what I'm trying to say.........................Yes....It wasn't so long ago............

It wasn't so long ago.......
It wasn't so long ago when we would once again turn the page of the calendar.  It was December now.  Winter was now here.  The coldness filled the air and in the mind of a child, the hope for a white Christmas.  This month would bring a longer vacation from school,  a full two weeks.  I couldn't wait for the Christmas Holidays to begin.  There was a special feeling in the air in December.  There were Christmas Parades and trips around the city to look at all the lights that were everywhere.  There was the lighting of the tree on the bridge at Rich's and a trip was always made to ride the "Pink Pig."   I can still smell the Cashews roasting as we would enter the doors at the Sears on Ponce De Leon.  I can still remember the excitement of wondering what Santa would leave under the tree.  But there was something else...yes.... something else.  There was the practicing for the Christmas play at school.  The play was always basically the same.  there was the manger.  There was Joseph and Mary.  There were the three wise men.  There was the Star in the East.  And of course there was the Baby Jesus.  The whole play was about the Baby Jesus.  Oh yes.  I remember it well.....There were other things going on.  There was once again family times.  There was decorating and going out to cut down a tree to place in the living room for the gift to be put under.  Ther were parties and get togethers, shopping trips and hours spent looking through the Sears Wish Book....but....but  In the end..."The whole thing was about the Baby Jesus............ And you know.........."And It Still Is"

Think back.....It wasn't so long ago !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HOW DO YOU SMELL? Just something to think about...............

Often times, for no apparent reason, my mind will for some unknown purpose go back into my past. This mind will hit on a subject that I have not thought about in years. This morning it was a bottle of body wash that pushed the start button on this wierd mind of mine. It was a bottle of AXE body wax. Peggy and I had been to the l...ocal Kroger and there on the "mark down" shelf were a bunch of bottles of Axe body wash. My son and grandsons often use this AXE creation but I had always used the old reliable Irish Spring because the smell was good and I liked the price much better than this bottled stuff they call body wash. But as I said they had marked the price way down so I thought I might as well give it a try. Just as a side note, If you use "body wash" have you noticed how much of this liquid gold you waste with each shower. I think half of the bottle goes down the drain without ever touching my body......Oh well,,,Back to my original point. All of this smell good stuff got me to thinking about the trouble and expense we go through to smell good. I can remember when I was very young all the men smelled the same....Old Spice.....Old Spice had a monopoly on the men fragrance market back then. As I approched the teen years, the corporate world learned that teens now had a little money of their own to spend so they might as well cut in on Old Spice's profit margin. Thus we were bombarded with new fragrances. The first I remember was English Leather and then Jade East. I could come up with some great line about why we had an English and an Oriental frangrance but we didn't have a "French Mens Cologne" back then, but I've decided to be nice this morning. Beside we all know you're suppose to bathe before you put on cologne. Anyway, it seems that from the time I was about 12 or 13, every year there has been a new fragrance for men come out and we were told this new or improved fragrance is the best new thing. Many of these new fragrances have been called "Musk" to make us think we will emit an odor the oposite sex can in no way resist. Of course the advertising companys are no dummys either as in their ads they will use a stallion or a big ol' buck deer instead of a skunk or an orangatan as the symbol of their wonderful new product. Yep....My mind spoke to me again and it told me a simple truth...."We have become obsessed with the way we smell." but my observation didn't stop there. Have you ever thought about the way you smell on the inside? HUH you say...What are you talking about you ask????? Well I'll tell you. It seems our focus is always on the outside. I like what Jesus said,
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the
outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of
extortion and excess” (Matthew 23:25). So through all this thinking I have decided
it does not matter how good I smell on the outside if there is stench on
the inside. I want to focus on my inside and make it as fresh as
possible. I want my inside to smell good. That is the fragrance God smells.

Just something to think about !!!!!!!!!!!!!1

A RAINY DAY !!!!!!!!!!!!


Rainy days bring thoughts to the front of our minds. The rain slows down our whirlwind life and gives us pause to ponder how things are and maybe how they may have been. This new found slowness allows us to search for the reasons of our shortcomings and to place blame where blame should be.

Today I thought of a merchant years ago. He had been to a fair and had sold all of his wares. He had filled his pockets with lots of money. He then set out on his journey home for he wished to be in his own house before night.

At noon he came to a town and rested. When he was ready to travel on again, the stableboy brought his horse, saying:
"A nail is needed, sir, in the shoe of his left hind foot."
"Let it be," answered the merchant; "the shoe will stay on for the six miles I have left to go. I am in a hurry."

In the afternoon he stopped at an inn and had his horse fed. The stableboy came into the room to him and said: "Sir, a shoe is needed for your horse's left hind foot. Shall I take him to the blacksmith?"

"Let it be ," said the man; "the horse can very well hold out for a couple of miles more. I am in a hurry."

So the merchant rode on but before long the horse began to limp. He had not limped long before he began to stumble and he had not stumbled long before he fell down and broke his leg. The merchant had to leave the horse where he fell, unstrap his bag, take it on his back, and go home on foot.

"That darn nail," said the merchant to himself, "That is what has caused all this trouble."

As I set here in the rain today, I think of all the "darn nails" that have been in my life. If only I had listened to the stableboy more often.

Just something to think about on a rainy day.

THE PERSIMMON TREE


I walk slowly to the front door and stare out the window at the world God has placed in front of me.  It is indeed a beautiful day.  The thermometer says 87 degrees and the sun shining through the trees creates shadows that dance to a tune that is playing somewhere deep in my memory.  As I survey the green grass, something grabs my attention with a quickness that is surprising to a mind  as slow as mine has become.  What catches my eye are the leaves on the ground under the Persimmon Tree.  The Persimmon is called the fruit of the Gods and has a reputation of being very sour and making your lips pucker, but if you will wait until all the leaves fall from the tree,  the fruit becomes as sweet as anything.  The leaves are now falling from my Persimmon Tree and the ones on the ground have turned a beautiful golden yellow.  This is also a sign that it won't be long until fall.  That's right, I tell myself.  In the blink of an eye the summer of my 65th year will be gone.  When I say  "65 years"  it seems like a long time, but when I remember some things,  when I recall some memories and events,  it seems as if it was only yesterday when these things took place.  Monday will be August 12th.  On August 12,  1968,  my good friend Ken Blair lost his life in Vietnam.  Surely that wasn't 45 years ago but the calendar doesn't lie.  It was only four years before that  Ken and I had been down at the Georgia Tech Dome to watch the Georgia High School State Championship Basketball Game.  We had not a worry in the world.  Seems that it was only a couple of years ago.  And my daughters.  They can't be more than teenagers......  They just can't be!!!!!!!  It was only like a few months ago they were running around with their Cabbage Patch Dolls.  And the memory of Josh riding in the snow in his battery powered Big Foot truck.  That must have been last winter......  It can't be very long ago because the memory is too clear.

My eyes return to the Persimmon tree and I say to myself..."Be Patient....the fruit will be sweet in time."   What a lesson there is to be learned from this.  Time is the first gift God gives to each of us but for most of us, it takes most of our lifetime to learn how to use it.  A well known pastor was once asked what his most profound regret in life was:  His answer..."being in a hurry."  That's where I've lived most of my life......  "In a Hurry"  .... I've always been in a hurry it seems.  I was in a hurry to do this and do that.  I was in a hurry to grow up.  I was in a hurry to buy this and a hurry to learn that.  Now as I look back I was in a hurry because I thought I was saving time.  In reality by  living this way,  I managed to lose time,  never to be recaptured.  Think about it.....By hurrying our whole life,  we miss out on so much of life.  Sounds contradictory doesn't it but it's not.  By hurrying to save time you really lose time.  It took most of my life to learn this.

I'm now 65 and God has slowed me down.  I'm not in as good of health physically as I once was.  I have arthritis and bad knees.  I don't tell you all this for sympathy or pity.....OH No!!!!!!!......  I praise God for my ailments.  Oh sure I have some discomfort but nothing that is unbearable.   But you see, the benefits I receive because of what most people would call problems are unbelievable.    I can no longer hurry when I walk so I now have time to look at the beauty around me as I walk through my yard or stroll through the park.  I use to never really be aware of all that was around me.  Now when I go out to my shop or to feed the chickens,  it takes me twice as long as it use to and now I have time to  look at the wonders of His creation.  When I'm around my children and grandchildren,  I notice and hear things that use to just pass me by.  Last week we were in Mentone Alabama for the Worlds Longest yard Sale.  All of our children and grandchildren but one came up to spend the night.  The one had to work and couldn't come.  What a blessing it is to watch how they all get  along and how they watch out for each other.  Because of the closeness of Cindy and Vicki in age,  Peggy and I always said they raised each other and then when Josh came along they were older so it was like he had three Mamas.  Now I am so proud of the job all three are doing raising their own children.  There is a closeness and a love that I may not have seen a few years ago.  I was in to big of a hurry......

Yep...I'm 65 years old......You might say I'm in the fall of my life.  And if you say that, I can assure you that the leaves of the days and years of my life are falling to the ground as I enter my fall season.  And these leaves,  each and every one of them, are a beautiful  golden color and I count and admire and enjoy each and everyone that lays before me on the ground...... for you see,  I now have a new found patience, and as each leave touches the ground,  the fruits of this life become sweeter.  As sweet as anything.....  Now  I'm in a hurry no more for I have plenty of time....... I have plenty of time for you see..." I stand on the edge of eternity."

May God Bless you with a new  Patience.

AND YOU CALL THESE LITTLE BLESSINGS?


Yesterday my family met at my niece's house to thank God for the blessings He has bestowed on  us.  Even though we have done this before,  for some reason this time seemed different to me.  I had a really good time at Susan's house but after we left, my mind continued to think of the many blessings I receive from God and so often take for granted.  I guess you could say I had my very own little Thanksgiving Day in July.  I have decided to list some of the things I'm thankful for and in so doing, I hope to come back and read this list later,  maybe add to it,  and maybe I can even have my own little Thanksgiving Day in another inappropriate month,  say like September or January.  Anyway,  here goes:

First of all,  I "really" am thankful for this day.  It is a gift of God and it is given to me to use as I wish.  I just hope I will do something with it that will please the One that gave it to me.  I am thankful for the the green grass that cover the earth.  For the way it feels under my bare feet even though I'm not a child any more.  I am thankful for the comfort it gives my body as I lay down upon it and stare at the beautiful blue sky.  We have had artist that have painted masterpieces for hundreds of years but none that have ever exactly matched the perfect blue that God gave to the sky, and for this beauty I am thankful.  I'm even thankful for the clouds that spurred my imagination when I was a child.  These strange, ever changing masses of vapors,  that even to this day give me pleasure.  I thank God for His wisdom to include these in His world.   And as I continue to look up,  I am thankful for the rainbow,  for the colors that I see but mostly for the promise from God that it stands for.......Ohhhhhhh....The Blessed Assurance.

I'm thankful for the gentle rain and the cleansing smell it produces on a spring day.  Have you ever thought about being thankful for some of the smells we enjoy everyday?  Like the smell of a board as it is pushed through the table saw or the smell of a freshly mowed lawn.   Or of the fragrance of the Gardenia bushes when they are in full bloom.  And oh yeah,,,,,not to long ago I can remember smelling the freshly turn earth as I was preparing to plant my garden.  It was a wonderful odor that brought a smile to my face.  For these,  I am thankful.

I'm thankful for my family and yes,  many time I even take them for granted.  I'm thankful for when the phone rings and the caller I.D. says it's one of my children.  I don't like to talk on the phone for long periods of time but just the knowing that it is one of "mine" makes my heart flutter.  And this may sound  silly to some of you  but I am so thankful when one of our children or grand children are over and they just naturally go to the pantry or refrigerator to get something to eat or drink without asking.  I'm thankful that they consider our home their home.   And I'm not thankful when they leave but I am so thankful for the arms I always feel around my neck and the words of  "I love you PaPa" I hear as they walk out the door.  I'm so thankful to be loved.  And I'm thankful for a loving wife that knows the meaning of "family."   A wife that I enjoy being with and doing things with.  A wife that has a giving nature.  It doesn't hurt that she's a good cook too.  I'm thankful for my Sisters and brother-in-laws and nieces and nephews -in-laws and  great nieces and great nephews.  It is so wonderful to have a loving family.  I can feel God's hand upon us.

I'm thankful for my friends.  I'm thankful when I reconnect with a friend from long ago and discover that he or she is doing well.  I'm thankful that life has treated them good.  I'm thankful for a firm handshake from a man and the gentleness of a woman.  Call me old fashion if you want to.  You see,  I'm thankful I'm old fashion in some ways.  And when a family member or a friend passes away,  I'm thankful when I hear they were a believer,  a child of God, for you see ,,,, it makes me thankful I will someday reunite with them.  Yes once again..." Blessed Assurance."

Oh I could go on and on but I need to go out and check on my new chickens, ( for which I am also thankful for) and I don't want to completely bore you with my thoughts.  But as you finish reading this,  I ask you to  "Thank God for this day"  and if you are especially thankful for something,  share it with us.  I would love to hear your thoughts.  Why you ask?   Because you see.....I'M THANKFUL FOR YOU !!!!!!

May God continue to bless us all.

THE "COOP  D' VILLE"


On the television show Pawn Stars,  the Old Man sometimes uses the phrase "Some people's children" when talking about his son and grandson.  Sometimes I use the phrase "Some people's wives" when referring to my wife Peggy.  Most times her ideas are great.  Most times her ideas even bring me enjoyment.  In fact,  most of the time, I'm glad when she shares one of her ideas with me.  But then sometimes I just shake my head and say,  ( usually under my breath of course so she can't hear me, ) "some people's wives."   One of those times happened a few months ago when Peggy said to me......"We need to build a chicken coop."  Well I knew in this case "We"  meant "You" and I also wondered what we needed with a chicken coop.  So,  to find the answer to "Why do we need a chicken coop?"...I went to the reason for this question, which was Peggy.  Her answer made perfectly good sense when she answered   "To raise chickens.".......Hmmmmm I mumbled while scratching my bald head.  Then my second question was directed to myself......"Why do we want to raise chickens?"

I immediately told my wife,,,,, "I'm not gonna slaughter  any chickens."  Now don't get me wrong.  I love chicken.  Chicken is probably my favorite meat and if cooked properly is very healthy,  but if the Good Lord had want me to slaughter my own chickens,  He wouldn't have put a Kroger up on Hwy. 5.  She then informed me she just wanted hens so we would have fresh eggs.  As she mentioned fresh eggs my mind again started working in that weird way it sometimes does.  If you read back a couple of sentences,  you will notice I mentioned the word ...HEALTHY....Hmmmm I said.

As most of you know, a little over two years ago I had my heart rebuilt.  That's right.  My heart was reconstructed with four bypasses and a new valve.  A Pig Valve if you will.   The doctor told me I hadn't taken very good care of myself.  When he finished with my surgery and was about to send me on my way,  he told me I had been given a new lease on life and unless I was ready to check out of this place,  I needed to take a little better care of myself.  I had given cigarettes up a while back and hadn't  been much for alcohol for years but now I needed to put the pipe down and eat a little more healthy.  There's that word again ...Healthy....  Well, I did put the pipe away and for awhile I ate very healthy.  I had my weight down and was feeling good.  Then it happened.  I started going back for seconds.  One donut turned into two.  One scoop of ice cream turned into the whole pint.  Darn,,,,, food sure does taste good!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then I realized I was headed down the wrong road again so I ask my doctor to set me up with a nutritionist.  This he did and once again things were going good.  Then,  as I stated earlier,  my wonderful wife has this great idea.  She wants a  "chicken coop".  Again I shook my head as I said to myself,  ( of course under my breath again )  "My Wife the Chicken Rancher".....Then,  as my mind was working' I thought,  "surely I can talk her out of this."  After all,  we hardly ever eat eggs any more.  You know..."the HEALTHY  thing.....eggs are full of  cholesterol.   Maybe she just needs a pet I thought.  I had asked her a while back if she wanted another dog.  She said she didn't as it would be hard to go anywhere over night because we would have to ask someone to feed it.   I know....we could get a herd of turtles.  They are maintenance free and I remember once my Uncle C. W. fed me some turtle and it tasted real good and I hear it's pretty healthy.  We could have a snake farm.  I once ate rattle snake and I even liked the taste of it.  Or even an ant farm.  They say ants are full of protein.  I once had an ant farm when I was a kid and it was no trouble at all until I dropped it and it broke and those little suckers went everywhere.  Mom had me walking around for a week with a can of Raid performing chemical warfare on my pets.  I became the Jeffery Dahmer of the ant world.  I think that's why I have a hard time even today killing anything.  Or how about a cat or two I thought and then I shook my head again.  NAWWWW I said to myself...I never really have liked cats but again I thought to myself...I do like Chinese.

Well,  once again Peggy got her way.  We built her a chicken coop.  Remember here, "when I say we, I really mean me".  Since we live in Douglasville we call it the  "Coop  D' Ville".   We haven't got us any chickens yet but maybe we will this week.  Peggy says we can give the eggs we don't use away.  We're just extended the acre plus farm.  All of our other animals are wild so domesticated chickens may be a pleasant thing to have around for awhile.  You see,  the birds we have eat all our cherries and blueberries.  The squirrels eat all the apples and pears.  The deer eat out of the garden and this year the rabbits have gotten fat on the beans.  I would love a good ol' pot of rabbit stew.  Well  at least the critters have let us have the tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers.   I guess we will have to buy the food for the chickens,  then I will have to learn the southern pronunciation of "guano".   As a young fellow I just called it chicken _______!   You can fill in the blank !!!!!!

SOME PEOPLE'S WIVES !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

EULOGY AT THE FUNERAL OF AUNT FRANCIS

Isn’t God Good?

Today we come together to celebrate the life and the home going of Aunt Francis.

On Saturday morning at 1:30 AM, The Lord called to Aunt Francis and said welcome home my child. Job well done.

Some people would say, “Well I see you lost your Aunt Francis.”

I would reply “ No, Not at all.

You may lose your car keys or you may lose your billfold but we didn’t lose Aunt Frances.

You see….we all know exactly where Aunt Francis is.

Yes….God is Good.

When Marlene asked me if I would be willing to share some of my thoughts and memories about Aunt Francis at today’s service, I must admit that at first I was hesitant.

You see, I’m not a trained speaker and I’m a very emotional person.

I told Marlene I know I’ll get emotional. I know I will breakdown and cry.

So, if and when I breakdown…Don’t mistake my tears as tears of sadness….

OH NO…Don’t mistake my tears as tears of distress or despair.

The tears you see are tears of Joy…..You see…My heart overflows with joy at the memory of Aunt Francis.

Joy for the reunion that is happening in Heaven and joy for the life that has been lived on this earth over the last 100 years by a wonderful and loving lady..

If I close my physical eyes, my minds eyes open and take over what I see.

I feel a stillness.

I see a peaceful night with a sky full of more stars than we can comprehend.

I see a campfire …..and sitting on a log by that fire is Uncle C W and Uncle Brodus and Uncle Harold.

And on another log sits Uncle Ralph and Uncle Ray and Uncle Frank and my Dad Jack.

And Stuart is there poking the fire with a stick.

If you remember it was always hard to get Stuart to just sit down and be still and relax.

He had to be doing something. He hasn’t changed I guess.

And as the men sit there telling tales and sharing memories, Uncle Frank gets the attention of all the men as he points at all the women standing in a clearing in the moon light.

There’s my mom Wilma and Aunt Mary and Aunt Larue and Aunt Betty Kitchens and Aunt Betty Hogue and Mama Hogue and leading in their conversation and laughter is Aunt Frances……

And then Uncle Frank says “ I always told y’all them Hogue girls were tough ol’ birds. Gosh it’s good to have them all together again.”

OH what a reunion it must be.

But I not only like to think about what is happening now.

I also like to remember the past.

A few weeks ago, my wife Peggy and I went to visit a lady that is Peggy’s second cousin who lives in Paulding County.

As we were talking. This lady mentioned that she owned a Cemetery lot here at Mt. Harmony.

I had no idea she had ever lived in Mableton.

As we continued to talk, I found out that years ago Aunt Francis had been her Sunday School Teacher.

I had never really thought about Aunt Francis being a teacher, but now, as I remember some of my times spent with her, I can see that she was teaching us in everything she did.

Why didn’t I see this before?

I wrote a blog about Aunt Francis’ 100th birthday last September.

I mentioned how I can remember when visiting her I would be playing with some toy cars in the room next to the kitchen and with all the windows open how she would be singing hymns aloud for all to hear.

She was teaching me at my young age not to be ashamed of my faith. To make a joyful noise and to praise God.



As I received comments from her grand children and my cousins about this blog, it was amazing how they also remembered her always singing hymns.

And not just the chorus or first verse. She would always sing the whole song.

In her singing she was teaching us all to do the job right and if we were gone to do something, to make sure we finished our task.

I remember we were once going on a trip to Houston Texas and thought it would be nice of us to take Aunt Frances to Dallas to see Jimmy on our way and pick her up on our way home.

　

I was so smart back then it never crossed my mind to look at a map before leaving.

You see, Dallas isn’t on the way to Houston.

Going to Houston by way of Dallas is like going to Miami by way of Memphis Tenn.

It was a long trip but Aunt Francis was a great traveling buddy. She told stories and sang songs and kept us laughing the whole way.

She made the trip much shorter and the journey a pleasant one.

We owned a Motor home at the time and on the way Aunt Frances got locked in the bathroom going down the road at 70 MPH.

All she did was laugh at herself in what some would consider an embarrassing situation.

In her laughing she taught me that sometimes you need to laugh at yourself.

I can remember after we moved to Kirkwood, Aunt Frances driving all the way out there from Mableton and just the two of us going down on Decatur Street to the Pawn shops looking for antiques.

I was only 7 or 8 years old but on those excursions she was teaching me to appreciate the things of the past and to have respect for the beauty of well crafted things.

On one of these trips, I recall she bought me my first set of Golf Clubs.

She was teaching me the gift of giving and although I don’t think she knew it at the time she was also teaching me that I would never be able to hit a 1 iron straight.

She was teaching me that there are some things no one can do.

Yep…My Aunt Frances was a teacher and I think the most important lesson she taught me was about family.

She taught me that without family, you don’t have much.

I learned much of her teachings about family through her children and times I spent with them.

Some of these times they probably don’t even remember.

Like the time Marlene and Dianne were going Ice skating for the first time.

I still remember their excitement before and after going.

I can still hear the giggling of the two young girls.

Or the time when Stuart came home from basic training a he gave me his Marine baseball cap. It was bright red with a yellow “M”. I wore it everywhere with pride as a young boy.

And I fondly remember Nicky taking me squirrel hunting down on the Sumner’s property and him teaching me to keep the lake between me and the Sumner’s house so we would get caught.

I don’t think we were suppose to be there.

And Jimmy,,, I remember you coming and taking me to qualifying down at the Atlanta speedway.

I was about ten years old but Aunt Francis had taught you to spend time with your kid cousin and to nurture him as he grew up.

　

She taught through example that you love, that you support, that you share and you stay in touch with family.

It’s not important that you give material things to each other but that you give of yourself.

Yep…Today we celebrate the life of Aunt Francis.

She was born Sept 25, 1912 and went to be with the Lord on June 29, 2013.

But one of the big lesson she taught is that the birthday and the day you depart this world aren’t what matters.

It’s the time in between those days that matter.

Yep…. Aunt Francis is now reaping her rewards but may her teachings, her memories and her stories live on for many years.

They will live on through all of you and may God bless her memory.

And once again I say,,,,,,, Isn’t God good.