Monday, January 30, 2012

Queenie, all dogs go to heaven


well my dear ones,


Sometimes people or pets
may come into our lives
for a very short span of time.

As my friend, Ashton says,
"I like to think that every life,
 no matter what the length,
 is important
 and enters into the world for a reason."

I concur,
and would even extrapolate that
to include relationships;
I think that all relationships,
no matter how brief,
have something to teach us.

This morning,
I was traveling back from a wedding
and a visit to my brother's house.
While driving down the freeway,
I was passing by a dog in the median
when I saw it get up on its paws
and try to crawl across the road.

I got on the grass of the median
and backed up to where the dog was.
By now it was in the middle lane
of the three southbound lanes.
It was so scared
that it didn't fight me as I picked it up.

A couple of Mack trucks in that lane
switched lanes and nearly drove up
on the grass to avoid us
(which was cool of them)
when they saw
I was trying to help an injured dog.

I put the dog in the back of my truck
and tried to pet it and calm it down.
There was an exit right there,
so I got off and asked a woman
at a gas station there
for directions to the nearest vet.

I kept the window behind me open
so I could talk to the dog
as we traveled down the road,
to try and keep him calm;
I thought he was a male,
so I called him Rexie;
but later learned he was female,
so I changed that to Queenie
(names ending in "e" seem
 to have a calming effect
 on children and animals *shrugs*).

The people at the animal hospital
were really, really nice;
but the doc there said
that Queenie was hurt too badly;
both her hips were shattered,
and that she would have to be put down.

She asked if I wanted to stay,
and I said, "yes."
So the doc and the technician and I
all prayed over her
while she was put to sleep.
(and I cried like a little baby!)

So, what do you think?
In the eyes of God
does it matter that this dog
died in a vet's office
and not all alone in the road?

I think yes.

In the final hour of her life,
Queenie had a name,
and an owner
(I listed myself as her owner of record;
 just like with the sanctuary, as I see it,
 whatever person or animal in need
 God chooses to put in our path
 is somehow our responsibility).
Also, she died surrounded by people
who were praying for her,
and held by someone who loved her
even if it was only for a short while.

And in the final hour of her life,
she affected other people's lives:
the woman at the gas station,
the police woman who had to direct me
the last few blocks to the animal hospital,
the receptionist at the hospital,
the technician,
the doctor,
and me.

Come to think of it,
if you are reading this,
then I guess Queenie is still affecting lives.

Here's a pic of the little spud in my truck:



What a sweet little girl;
I only wish I could have done more for her.

I may have only had her in my life
for an extremely short time,
yet she taught me a very valuable lesson:
love is not some commodity
that you can run out of;
the more love you give,
the more God will replenish it
and give you even more love to give.
There's no limit to the number
of pets or people you can love.

Thanks, Queenie;
I pray for a place for you in Deep Heaven,
and someone to love you there
as you should have had here.


grace, peace, and love to you,

dave



"And God shall wipe away all tears
 from their eyes;
 and there shall be no more death,
 neither sorrow, nor crying,
 neither shall there be any more pain:
 for the former things are passed away."

      --- Revelation 21:4

Queenie, rest in peace, 30 JAN 2012

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Caleigh, words from Heaven



well my dear ones,


It's easy to take time for granted,
to think to ourselves,
"oh yeah, I'll get to that...someday."
Hence, we don’t meet everyone we'd like to
because we tell ourselves
we have plenty of time...

Today I had to go to a funeral for a friend,
actually for his daughter, Caleigh;
although I worked with her Dad,
I had never met Caleigh,
yet I "met" her today;
she spoke to me from Heaven;
and through the voices of those she loved,
those who loved her,
I heard her spirit quite clearly.

Caleigh only lived to be 17,
so her friends are young;
it's hard for people of any age
to get up and speak in public,
so I give them a lot of credit
for many of them did;
and while some broke down in tears
at the conclusion of their piece,
that only added a strong testimony
of the depth of their love
for their friend.

One spoke of being lonely,
and Caleigh was there to be a friend;
one spoke of having no lunch,
and Caleigh shared hers with her;
one spoke of being trapped in her shell,
and Caleigh broke her out of it.
one spoke of how whenever he was down,
Caleigh would lift him up;
many spoke of how Caleigh was full of smiles,
and loved to share them,
and how she always had a kind word to say
about everyone.

Thank you, Caleigh; message received;
you didn't just talk it;
you lived the Jesus thing
(love God; love others);
you lived your whole life loving others;
and by putting joy into their lives,
you gave us an example of how to live.
May God bless and keep you.



grace, peace, and love to you,

dave



"And God shall wipe away all tears
 from their eyes;
 and there shall be no more death,
 neither sorrow, nor crying,
 neither shall there be any more pain:
 for the former things are passed away."

      --- Revelation 21:4

Monday, January 16, 2012

tough days



well my dear ones,


We are now in the middle of what I call
the tough days, the blue days,
the days between Christmas and Valentine's Day.

These are the days when someone
who has lost someone they love
can be struggling to get by.

A few days ago, I went to mail a package.
The place was crowded,
and long before I got to the counter,
closing time arrived,
and the one woman working there
(it's a small Post Office)
had to let each person out
after they were finished with their business.

Since I was the last one in line
(coincidence?  I think not =>),
eventually, she and I were the only ones there.
I've chatted with her a few times,
so I asked how her Christmas went.
She said, "...not good..,"
so I waited,
and in time I found out
that her Mom died just before Christmas.

She was hurting;
and since there was no one else around
she came out from behind the counter
and gave me a hug
while I prayed with her
for God to give her some peace
...in God's own good time.

Each day, we pass by those
that might seem OK on the surface,
but are nursing heart-felt hurts
known only to God and themselves.

May you always be ready with a smile
or a sympathetic ear
for those who need it.

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to you,
and have a great week!


grace, peace, and love to you,

dave



"What we have done for ourselves alone
dies with us;
what we have done for others and the world
remains and is immortal."
                       --- Albert Pike

Sunday, January 01, 2012

what money can't buy (or "Little Mermaids")



well my dear ones,


I hope you got you something nice for Christmas;
as for me, what I wanted
all the money in the world could not buy.

Some months ago,
my wife was diagnosed with MS;
and when someone you love has health issues,
it makes you totally re-evaluate
what's important in life.

I did a lot of praying
(which is really all one can do
 when things are beyond our control
 ...as most things actually are =>).

Her doctor wanted my wife to choose
from a variety of drugs
(to control the symptoms
 of tremors and loss of balance),
all of which have nasty side effects.

One day, my wife told me she wanted
to try and take Tai Chi,
a soft martial art which is
actually recommended as a possible
physical therapy by the MS foundation;
however, she couldn't find a school
anywhere near where we live.

Fortunately, I had gone to Man Camp
(a place where guys go to, hopefully,
 learn to become better husbands)
where I had heard about Tai Chi
from my friend, Jason,
but only because I had "defected"
from the Tinkerbells
to the Little Mermaids. *lol*

Yes, the woman who sets up Man Camp
(Thanks Miss Jessi!)
picks the names for our small groups;
last year, she named them after flowers;
this year, it was female Disney characters.

So, it was only because I switched
and became a "Little Mermaid"
that I happened to be sitting near Jason
when he mentioned that he did Tai Chi
each morning.

Hence, when my wife couldn't find a school,
I recalled what Jason had said,
jumped in my truck, drove to his school
(only 2 miles away; how cool is that?)
and verified that he did indeed
run a Tai Chi class each morning,
a special class (i.e. not listed on his sign)
he had started for people struggling
with various medical conditions.
I told him about my wife's MS
and he said he was sure he could help
and to bring her on down.

My wife (Marcia) signed up that week.
The type of Tai Chi she does there is
a special healing form known as "Qi Gong"
(also called "Chi Gong"; various spellings),
a type that helps your body to use
its own internal energy to heal itself.
My wife's now been going to this school
just about every day for the past 4 months
and it has been a major blessing for her!
Her symptoms are now under control,
thank God...

...and I do!

Who led me to go to Man Camp?
Who led me to switch & become a Little Mermaid?
(and proud of it *lol* since it helped my wife)

Our bodies and minds
are marvelous works and wonders.
And God can bring healing and hope
even at the darkest of times.

No matter what the past,
I am praying that you have
a blessed and awesome New Year
filled with light and hope.


Have a great week!


grace, peace, and love to you,

dave


"I have come that they may have life,
and that they may have it more abundantly."

                              --- Jesus