A twist of fate this July 2nd.

July 2nd took a little turn as Bruce made an improper dismount from a ladder, broke the stew out of his wrist, hence swan neck break, making a visit to the Stringfellow Memorial Hospital ER where the staff took excellent care of him, met Dr. Stokes who performed surgery to make necessary repairs and installed an external fixation device that you see here in the photo. A night was spent in the hospital where more excellent care was given and then sent home to recover and rest, something that is hard to do in a hospital. That's the short version:)

In Search of Trust by Darrell Scott

Guess our national leaders didn't expect this, hmm? On Thursday, Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton , Colorado , was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee. What he said to our national leaders during this special session of Congress was painfully truthful.

They were not prepared for what he was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert! These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt that God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness. The following is a portion of the transcript:

'Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.

'The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used.. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart.

'In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defen d the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent.

I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy -- it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best. This was written way before I knew I would be speaking here today:

Your laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your words are empty air.
You've stripped away our heritage,
You've outlawed simple prayer.
Now gunshots fill our classrooms,
And precious children die.
You seek for answers everywhere,
And ask the question 'Why?'
You regulate restrictive laws,
Through legislative creed.
And yet you fail to understand,
That God is what we need!

'Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, mind, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual presences were present within our educational
systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact. What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs -- politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws. Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount o f gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.

'As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America , and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him. To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA -- I give to you a sincere challenge. Dare to examine your
own heart before casting the first stone!

My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!'

Do what the media did not - - let the nation hear this man's speech.. Please send this out to everyone you can.

God Bless

Exactly The Right Words

"A grandfather was walking through his yard when he heard his granddaughter repeating the alphabet in a tone of voice that sounded like a prayer. He asked her what she was doing. The little girl explained: 'I'm praying, but I can't think of exactly the right words, so I'm just saying all the letters, and God will put them together for me, because (God) knows what I'm thinking.'"

Susan Diamond-Montgomery, AL

God is wondrous!

I get a daily dose message from Elice McNeely. They are usually short and to the point but they had been missing for several days and yesterday she caught up.

It is wondrous how God works this all out for our good, in his timing, as we have had an 'interesting' season here lately. Yes, that's code talk but I'll let you figure it out.

Anyway, let me share the six doses I received yesterday, in order of my receiving them, notice that they are not in the order that they were sent. Let me confess to you that I read the first two then started deleting them, thinking that I was receiving duplicates, an email snafu of sorts, plus, I was 'very' busy, but then realized that God was deliberately encouraging me through these messages, at a very important time, so I retrieved them. So, here they are:

10:56 am sent; received at 11:14 am

God sends trials not to impair us, but to improve us.

11:00 am sent: received at 11:16 am

God may conceal the purpose of His ways, but His ways are not without a purpose.

11:01 am sent: received at 11:55 am

God guides us...He leads us step by step, only when we look back do we realize that He was always there...leading us.

10:57 am sent: received at 11:58 am

To defeat Satan, surrender to Christ.

11:15 am sent: received at 12:01 pm

Our best friends draw us closer to Christ.

11:02 am sent: received at 12:03 pm

While we may not be able to control all that happens to us, we can control what happens inside us.

I am blessed indeed!
Rhonda

A side note: as I was typing this today, Abbey the cat has snuggled up next to me on the sofa and is laying her cheek at my left elbow and is purring.

First Tomato of the Season

My first ripe tomato of the season came from an unexpected place. Not from the big whiskey barrel planters I carefully set my best tomato transplants and cages in. No, from the small compost pile at the edge of my lawn. I had some scraggly looking transplants left over and a pile of grass clippings. As I recall, I just scooped out a hole in the grass clippings and stuck a couple of tomato plants in them and watered. Yep, first ripe tomato came from there.

Sinking my teeth into that ripe tomato was a joy. Memories of many ripe juicy tomatoes came flooding back. This is a taste you just don't find at the big box store it seems, and never in the off season. Anyway, as I was enjoying that first moment of tomato joy, I realized that I needed a picture for my Dad. He's been asking me if I have any tomatoes yet ever since we completed the construction of the backyard greenhouse in January. I started from seed and Monday I picked the first tomato. A few more are now on the counter riping up for me but here's a picture of the first one, minus a big bite, taken with my cell phone.

Yep, summer has come to Alabama:)

Waiting

Have you ever been tired to the bone? So tired your face hurts? I've had a nagging headache for about three days now. I think it is stress related.

It seems the times are trying and some answers that I need are not coming along too quickly. I think waiting is a very hard task. Maybe you have it mastered?

Perhaps I will wonder out to the greenhouse and piddle with my plants. It seems to be a good place to be to get reminded of the One who has all the answers. Perhaps in the quietness of it all my headache will ease in the company of the One.

Rules for Driving in Tulsa

I didn't write this, someone named Vaughn Clark did, but it is so true, I thought it good to share, as someone who has driven in Tulsa many times. Here I was all these years, thinking it was only me:) Enjoy!

Only those who drive in Tulsa or have driven in Tulsa will appreciate this. If your Tulsa map is more than a few weeks old, throw it out and buy a new one. If you're in Broken Arrow and your map is one day old, then it is already obsolete. Forget the traffic rules you learned elsewhere. Tulsa has its own version of traffic rules. All directions start with "Get on Memorial" which has no beginning and no end. Everything in Tulsa is "just off Memorial." The morning rush hour is from 6 to 10. The evening rush hour is from 3 to 7. Friday's rush hour starts Thursday morning. If you actually stop at a yellow light, you will be rear ended, cussed out and possibly shot. When you are the first one on the starting line, count to five when the light turns green before going to avoid crashing with all the drivers running the red light in cross-traffic. Construction on I-44 is a way of life and a permanent form of entertainment. All unexpected or strange sights are explained by the phrase, "Oh, we're in Jenks." If someone actually has a turn signal on, it is probably a factory defect. All old ladies with blue hair in Mercedes have the right of way. PERIOD. I-44 is called the Skelly Bypass. No one has ever figured out what it bypasses... State Highway 51 is either the Broken Arrow Expressway or the Keystone Expressway, depending on which way you're headed. US64 comes up Memorial from Bixby, joins 169 for a few miles, and then heads west with SH 51 towards Sand Springs. Several highways like the Creek Turnpike have no number. We don't understand it either. Maps of Tulsa show an Interstate 444 in downtown Tulsa. If you find it let us know. The alleged I-444 is half of the inner-dispersal loop, which is not for the faint of heart. Highway 169 in rush hour is the Tulsa equivalent of NASCAR. Just shut up and drive like the rest of us. If asking directions along North Utica or in west Tulsa, you must have knowledge of Spanish. If you're on east 21st Street, Mandarin Chinese or Vietnamese will be your best bet. If you stop to ask directions on Pine or Peoria, you better be armed. The minimum acceptable speed on the Broken Arrow Expressway is 85.Anything less is considered downright sissy. If it's 100 degrees, Thanksgiving must be next weekend. If it's 10 degrees and snowing, it's homecoming at TU. If it's rained 6 inches in the last hour, and it is spring, it's opening day for the Drillers. If it is fall, the Tulsa State Fair is going on. All amusement parks, stadiums, arenas, race tracks, airports, etc., are conveniently located as far away from EVERYTHING as possible so as to allow for ample parking on grassy areas.
With these simple rules in mind, you are now ready to drive in Tulsa. Please try and keep up.