2009-06-21 Driving on Empty

Today is Father’s Day and there was a carry-in dinner at the church. I got a good recipe for Cream Cheese/Cool Whip Pie with fresh Strawberries. Yum! Yum!

After I returned home I decided to drive some back roads with the pick-up and photograph any old barns I might encounter. I changed into a blouse & slacks and drove East out of town. My plan was to drive parallel to 54 Hwy to Nevada, Mo and buy gas once I got there. Soon, however, I came to a T in the road and since I didn’t want to drive on the paved highway, I chose to take the road away from the highway. It was a while before I was able to turn in the right direction. After a bit, I had to make another turn. I was in unfamiliar territory, but I felt I was traveling in the right direction. How I wished for a map. At least I was on a paved road which indicated it was “K” highway, but I wondered if indeed I was going in the right direction. Why, I could be traveling South toward Pittsburg, but there was no indicator where I was, except for the sign that proclaimed “K”.

The engine sounded a warning ping, letting me know it was low on gas. “Oh dear!” If I ran out of gas, I guess I could call 911 on my cell if need be. I had just gotten a new phone and did not have the numbers I needed stored in it. I sure felt foolish at the position I had let myself get into. I resolved to not tell anyone of this situation. I could stop at a farm house and ask for help, but most places looked as though the residents were gone. I couldn’t help but think of the weird circumstances I would encounter if I chose the wrong place. Then, I determined that if someone was mowing their yard, weeding the garden or whatever…I would stop and ask them without getting out of my vehicle, but I saw no one!

I turned off this main road thinking I had gone far enough and I wasn’t headed East after all. I only knew I needed to get to a town soon. I carefully watched the gas gauge as it crept ever closer to the empty mark. After a couple of miles, I found myself at a highway. It turned out to be the highway I needed. I breathed a prayer of relief and am so glad the God watched over me.

Clay Balls

Clay Balls
A man was exploring caves by the Seashore. In one of the caves he found a canvas bag with a bunch of hardened clay balls. It was like someone had rolled clay balls and left them out in the sun to bake. They didn't look like much, but they intrigued the man, so he took the bag out of the cave with him. As he strolled along the beach, he would throw the clay balls one at a time out into the ocean as far as he could....
He thought little about it, until he dropped one of the clay balls and it cracked open on a rock . Inside was a beautiful, precious stone!
Excited, the man started breaking open the remaining clay balls. Each contained a similar treasure. He found thousands of dollars worth of jewels in the 20 or so clay balls he had left.
Then it struck him. He had been on the beach a long time. He had thrown maybe 50 or 60 of the clay balls with their hidden treasure into the ocean waves. Instead of thousands of dollars in treasure, he could have taken home tens of thousands, but he had just thrown it away!
It's like that with people. We look at someone, maybe even ourselves, and we see the external clay vessel. It doesn't look like much from the outside. It isn't always beautiful or sparkling, so we discount it.
We see that person as less important than someone more beautiful or stylish or well known or wealthy. But we have not taken the time to find the treasure hidden inside that person..
There is a treasure in each and every one of us. If we take the time to get to know that person, and if we ask God to show us that person the way He sees them, then the clay begins to peel away and the brilliant gem begins to shine forth.
May we not come to the end of our lives and find out that we have thrown away a fortune in friendships because the gems were hidden in bits of clay. May we see the people in our world as God sees them.
I am so blessed by the gems of friendship I have with you.. Thank you for looking beyond my clay vessel.
APPRECIATE EVERY SINGLE
THING YOU HAVE, ESPECIALLY YOUR FRIENDS!
LIFE IS TOO SHORT AND FRIENDS ARE TOO FEW!
Pass this on to another Clay Ball!!!

Do not ask the Lord to Guide your Footsteps if you are not willing to MOVE your Feet!


Author unknown

It Was a Mulberry Tree

It Was a Mulberry Tree

I’ve spent most of this morning down loading and printing directions for a Basset dog in Pastels, that is the current dog we’re working on. I don’t like the looks of their big saggy eyes. There’s more to come on it as it’s the current work.

I also downloaded (complete) the directions to do a Chihuahua, I don’t care for their looks either, but will try to do a pastel of it and see how it turns out.

I went out to the garage to see what I could use for a Mahl Stick,
http://lindateachesart.typepad.com/linda_teaches_art/2005/12/mahl_stick_make.html
which is a stick I would use to rest my hand on while painting, in the midst of some work or other, so as to not smear what is already there.

Well, I got side tracked as usual! LOL I saw the pruners and found some gloves, no spiders lurked inside, and proceeded to cut down what I had thought was a Rose of Sharon, but discovered it is a Mulberry tree. I hacked it down. The trunk is about 3 inches in diameter, so I left most of it for someone else. I piled the branches up and figure I’ll direct my yard man to put them into the back of the pick-up. Whew! The temp is 82° and I seriously needed to catch my breath.

Oh yeah! My mission…I almost forgot. The mahl stick. I found a yard stick in a square shape, but soon discovered a long handled windshield scrubber. Just about the right length to use for a mahl stick and I think I won’t even have to discard the scrubber part.

Now, back inside to rest and cool off. I poured a glass of ice tea, but it has a little wrong taste to it. I’m not liking the flavor. It’s the second time I’ve had to pour out a whole pitcher of tea. Yesterday, I rinsed the jug out with bleach water, confident the next batch of tea would taste better, but it doesn’t. I wonder if I should just throw the tea bags away or use a new pitcher? Darn it!!! I want some GOOD tea!

Texas Blue Bonnet Quilt

For about a year now, the ladies in our churches sewing group have been working on a quilt to auction off to raise money for Fort Scott Christian Heights School here in Fort Scott, Ks. It is finally finished and just in time for our yearly Country Store. I may have contributed a stitch or two, but I usually concentrate on embroidering tea towels to sell in our booth at the Country Store.
I should have taken a photo of the "signature block" on the back of the quilt as this was my own creation. The little signature block is similar to the one on the quilt. I'll share how much money it bought at auction this Saturday, May 2nd.

A Letter in the Mail

A Letter in the Mail

Do you remember, before the advent of computers, and cell phones, with their instant methods of communication, the excitement you felt whenever a letter came to your mailbox? Besides the telephone, which was regulated to local calls only, the daily mail was eagerly anticipated.
Now, I’m not talking about periodicals or seed catalogs, although each of those had their ranking, but a newsy letter from a close friend or family member far away? How special did you feel when a letter had your own name on it? Why, you were on top of the world! You eagerly tore open the letter and retreated to a quiet spot to consume it’s contents. Afterward, this letter was put in a special place to be re-read later for a special pick-me-up that usually rejuvenated your whole being.
Today’s form of instant communication, with it’s accompanying instant disposal, leaves a sour taste in one’s mouth. Letters are no longer received in the mail to be bundled together after being enjoyed, tied with a pretty ribbon, and put in an old trunk to be opened and read again on a rainy day. Rather we rely on the computer and/or cell phone to leave quick messages that after wards are lost in cyberspace forever.
Sometimes the older ways turn out to be the best after all.

Kathleen Durbin May 11, 2006

A Story About Spring

A Story About Spring

I was lying dormant in the ground, unaware of the bitter cold around me. My life force had retreated to it’s smallest capacity to survive the winter months.

Starting in the fall, I had soaked up the sun’s golden rays and I had absorbed all life giving nutrients from the soil to become larger and more healthy in order to endure the bitter weather .

Soon, I could feel stirrings within my central being. I started to feel a small breath of warmth around me. I knew that soon I would swell with life and burst forth from my winter prison. Days passed, and slowly the warmth spread throughout my being. I could wait no longer. I knew the earth worms had started their work of turning the soil making it soft and easy to traverse.
I could feel the sun growing stronger with each passing day.

Now, the time was at hand. I grew even larger and a central stem pushed forth from my bulb into the warm soil, and soon I was reaching toward the sunlight and warm breezes.

I burst from the soil with gay abandon. The sun warmed me daily and the gentle rains nourished my whole being. Cells divided and grew into leaves, and soon my blossom came forth from an unlikely green stem. I was whole and radiant with my lovely blossom and sweet scent. I was joined by others of my kind until we had spread a colorful carpet of blooms and filled the air with our pleasing fragrance.

Who am I? My name is Daffodil and I am perfect in the sight of my Creator.



Kathleen Durbin
© March 2006

A Mother’s Kiss

I wrote this one time while my mother was still alive and I returned home to another state, still with the memory of her kisses.
A Mother’s Kiss

A Mother’s soft, sweet kiss is first felt when we are newborn babes. These kisses
continue to be bestowed on us throughout our lives. There are always plenty to share
with others in our family.
When we are infants, we delight in her kisses of affection..
As toddlers we are too busy exploring our world to have much time to accept these kisses.
Then we are school age and are just tolerant of her attempts to cuddle and give us kisses.
As we become teenagers, too many times we feel ourselves too worldly to receive
these displays of affection. Then we are young adults & have moved away from home
and her kisses are too few and far between because of distance. We may grow up and
have children of our own and then we are the ones bestowing kisses on an ever
changing young person. All too soon our Mother depends on us to give our kisses to
her. She may be far away and in a nursing home and she clings to us when we visit,
stealing kisses to cherish when we are gone. The cycle is complete. We leave her,
tasting her soft, sweet kisses for the remainder of the day. If we are lucky, we keep a
special place in our heart filled with kisses to bestow on her when we next see her.
A Mother’s soft, sweet kiss: a memory to cherish always.


© Kathleen Durbin September 2000

Dedicated to my mother: Pauline Wordehoff