When You Must Say Good-Bye

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Have you ever watched a favorite Youtube channel for years then it, eventually, becomes like fingernails on a chalkboard to you?

This week that happened to me. 

"Maggie" began her (Christian)channel sharing recipes, gardening tips, homemaking and decluttering advice, fun thrift shop finds, creating food gifts, but these past months? Oh dear. It's like a poverty mentality wrapped around her brain and won't let go.

Saving money. Now it's all about saving money. Keeping what you have. Pinching pennies. Creating a small, spendless life.

No videos about, "Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

Nor, "It is in giving that we receive... God loves a cheerful giver ... Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed... whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully."

No talk about tithes, offerings, freely giving, freely receiving.

And these were my mornings' first videos while drinking my cocoa, words which set my day's tone!

Following much conviction, I said good-bye. Unsubbed. Walked away.

Instead, this morning, I chose a Darling Desi video and ooooo! Fresh, jubilant, joyful air. Like being able to breathe again. Desi focuses on giving us her whole heart. Ideas, joy, laughter, creativity, ways to be happy in hard times, gratitude, hope for brighter days coming and more.

It's impossible to click away from Desi's videos (most) without a big, dreamy smile.

What Tom and I discovered around 2021? We've always tithed, but as long as we also give offerings freely to help others... as long as we do things like order delivery (lunch and groceries) with a focus on supporting our neighbors who work those places ... as long as we give whenever God presents a need we can fulfill---

--then He keeps pouring money into our bank account. At this stage of our lives, there's always money when things break down around our 95-year-old Hobbit Cottage or unexpected bills drop into our mailbox.

But only if we keep open hands to others and give and give. First.

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It's important what we watch! --

Does anyone have recommendations of Youtube videos where there's much joy and giving to others, ones like Somers In Alaska? They're a perfect example of what I'm searching for.

Oh and after 5 1/2 weeks of that virus, I finally began to feel semi normal, like health was here to stay! So grateful, trust me, and again, a special thanks to all who prayed for me.

And honestly? It's gonna take weeks to rebuild myself after this. It was so rough. Truly.

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God Gives Abundantly But You Still Have a Scarcity Mindset

7 Brutal Decluttering Hacks for Seniors

Tiny House For Her Golden Years

Ariel's Hallway is Finished!

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Give. Then give some more. Then watch your life change forever.  ツ

Please remember: My posts are always about more than they appear to be. 

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 "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." ... Matthew 6:14,15

And Then She Was In The Basement Nearly Crying ---

So there I was down in the basement with my face against our new washing machine's top. Trying not to cry. "Why is this happening? All of this?" I whispered.

The machine wouldn't fill. After lining up the settings, I pressed the start button, yet only a bit of water trickled in, then stopped. Tried it again, same thing.

And that's when I leaned upon the machine, wanting to crumble. These past 4 weeks! The exhaustion, the coughing, hearing loss, uti, fibroid issues, bad outside air quality (so no sitting outside to heal), trying to keep up with housework, 3 weeks of men tearing out our street to repave it (boom! crash! boom), the loss of all but my indoor tomato seedlings, my laptop threatening suicide, and that very morning Tom awoke with excruciating hip pain --

But God reminded me of the beautiful moments. 

Help for weeks from Tom and Naomi. A card and letter from a friend. Facebook messages wishing me well and lots of folks there praying for me. Last week when Tom and Naomi oversaw the entire washing machine installation and carry-away. Emails promising prayers. The days we had sunshine and others with rain for my gardens. And what did we do before helpful Youtube videos?

I lifted my head. Eyed that start button then pushed it one more time. Poof! It began filling normally.

Oh, how times like these dip us down to the deepest pools of gratitude. So deep, that we learn to view everything (everything) through eyes made new by all that gratitude water.

Whew.

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For the record, our former washing machine was 20 years old and I'd babied it along for months. I specifically asked Tom to order a very basic machine as much like the old one as possible, but there are still a few too many little green lights on it for my liking.

Oh, and I am feeling much better from that virus, maybe 85%. Thanks if you prayed for me. You'll never know how much I appreciate it.

Please pray for Tom. He's going to try sitting very still this weekend then see his acupuncturist on Monday.

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To give you an example of how badly I felt, I finished reading only one book last month! My goal is eight. Plus I bought two new middle grade books, but have not even opened them. So unlike me!

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Clinging to this one, trust me!  --

'They' say not to talk about illness--and to an extent I agree when it's the only thing one speaks of. Yet if no one ever shares this stuff then others will think everybody else is feeling great and they, themselves, are alone in their hard times.

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Please remember: My posts are always about more than they appear to be. 

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 "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." ... Matthew 6:14,15

Where She's Kinda Sorta Back

... whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."   ---  Philippians 4:8

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Still here! But just barely. Gah.

Eighteen days ago I came down with a covid-like virus with lots of tiredness, coughing and another temporary partial hearing loss. I reread my post regarding my first bout in 2023 and uh-oh! My attitude sounded much more positive.

But back then, I'd not been bombarded the entire prior year with long lists of sad, challenging things. When you're repeatedly beaten down, it becomes more difficult to keep fighting.

Many's the time I've yanked out my copy of Battlefield of the Mind. This feeling like biblical Job isn't a good look for me.

Anyway, finally the tiredness is disappearing, most of the coughing and if I tilt my head a certain way, my hearing improves. Slowly I'm keeping up with housework, for always I recall how Almanzo Wilder jumped back far too soon from diptheria and had a stroke which affected him his life's remainder.

Wouldn't want that or a relapse, either.

Keeping this short, I'll just add that for decades I've aimed at creating beautiful days, but these past two weeks? I've switched to, instead, reveling in beautiful moments. To treasuring any loveliness no matter how tiny or short-lasting. 

To celebrating and savoring any task accomplished, anything which lifts my battle-weary spirit--and you know? That's become an even sweeter way to live.

Notice our lilac bush in the header? It's never before looked so full. And that's even the one which, years ago, contracted a disease. Taking a hand saw to it, I cut it down to a stump.

Sometimes we just need to let God prune us way, way back for the beauty which will appear later on.

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Oh, the temptation when one is sick to believe the world cannot spin without her! But instead, may it be a reminder that--although we have a part--it's not a 24/7 one. God places people here to take up our slack at such times as these to both help and humble us.

"Without patience, Life is extremely frustrating."

-- Richard Carlson

It amazes me how I'll have an overall bad day, but God can enable me to recognize many beautiful moments.

What matters is that I don't meditate upon the blinding negative circumstances, instead.

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And as I wrote at Facebook:

This morning I stepped out to the sunny porch to read and our young nextdoor neighbor (20's?) was mowing his lawn. I thought, "Oh well. I'm just thankful the sun is shining after all our dark days and it's not too warm to read."

Soon, the mower stopped and our neighbor said, "I can finish mowing later since you're reading your book right now."

Oh my. Who does that? Our sweet, kind neighbor, obviously.

I told him, "Oh! That's ok. I'm good at concentrating on my books. You go ahead and finish. Thanks!"

And considering I'm still not feeling 100%, his kindness was a huge blessing for me this Wednesday. Really, it takes so little for us to bless one another in unforgettable ways. We've had many neighbors, but NEVER one that cared that the lawn mower might be an inconvenience to a neighbor.

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And wow! May God greatly bless this young couple for helping me through these past two weeks via Youtube. Not only have they taken me places I'll never visit, but their expression of such unity and matching of temperaments blows me away. (Kinda makes me feel that, at that age, Tom and I did everything wrong.) シ

What a blessing to watch their joy and appreciation of everything!

(I've many favorites of their videos, but here's just one.)

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We watched the latest George Foreman movie and really enjoyed it.

Here's a tiny house story I enjoyed.

Elegant Rustic Grandma Chic

Living Simply In a Garden Shed

Never give up!

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Please remember: My posts are always about more than they appear to be. 

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 "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." ... Matthew 6:14,15