Easter Celebration

God certainly answered our prayers for rain this weekend. We had a tornado warning on Friday evening. I do what is necessary for safety, but I never really get in a dither because one is so powerless in those situations. Bill was pulling me away from the kithen window because I was enjoying watching the hail . It looked like popcorn dancing. I guess Toyotas have hard finishes on them because we haven't found any dings from the storm.

We had torrential rain all day Easter Sunday. In spite of the downpour, I had 18 in Bible Study class which followed our 9 a.m. choir rehearsal. Isaiah shared that his father always bought a 36 inch chocolate bunny for him and his family in Brazil on Easter. It was filled with more cahendy and small toys. Sue shared that she grew up in a legalistic churh that did not celebrate Easter at all. Tears welled up in her eyes. Pete shared that since he left the Catholic Church and learned what it meant to really know God, everyday has been Easter for him. Wow!

Our worship service was powerful. Lori Edwards signed to a song I had never heard. In the lyrics , God says, "My love, rise up. I have conquered the grave." The Spirit of God came down and the entire congregation rose to their feet and began clapping. I have never seen anything like it before!!! Lori just kept signing to the music. It was beautiful! When she finished, our choir sang the musical, "Hallelujah, Praise the Lamb". My favorite song in the musical was, "No More Night". The words continue, "no more pain. No more crying again."

After church, Mom and her friend, Shirley joined us for lunch. I had made potatoe salad and baked a cherry pie on Saturday. Before church, I put a ham in the oven and tossed a salad. Mom brought a fruit salad and a sugar free banana-strawberry pie. I had invited Uncle Johnie but his church was having a dinner. It was a blessed Easter, and life is wonderful when you can celebrate it with family and friends.

Midweek Madness

I am reviewing my students for their comprehensive test this Friday in every class this week. The poor students have to label all parts of speech in sentences. I decided I like teaching reading and writing more than grammar.

We have had a dry spring. We are praying for a storm tonight, although we can do without a tornado and hail. We are planning to grill on Easter but it may be a bit wet.

I'm going to the pool with Bill in just a few minutes, but thought I would try typing on the laptop and see if I get paragraphs. I really prefer typing on the larger flatscreen desk model.

I must report that I am excited for Noel. His heart specialist at St. John's in Springfield has found some doctors in St. Louis and Cleveland that may be able to help him. It's the first sign of hope that he has had. Even Mayo Clinic could not help him. I will never give up praying. God majors in the impossible. He doesn't always do things our way, and that seems to bug control freaks.

OU game and Walters

an

Palm Sunday Weekend

Friday evening, we had my Bible Study Class in our home for an Easter potluck. There were 16 who brought their most delicious cuisine. After dinner, we played a few games. Bill found some Bible quizzes which were lots of fun because people would make up answers when they didn't know. In one game, Bill read the Ten Commandments and asked which number it was. We all learned that we really didn't know them in order. I had planned an Easter hunt in our backyard, but the wind was so strong on Friday, I just gave the prizes away. The adults loved it! Saturday morning, I took Mom some food from the party, then Bill and I headed for Norman. He had bought $5 tickets to the OU Red and White game. It was a gorgeous day, and we got a little pink from the sun. We watched Landry Jones in action and that was fun. We left the game a little early to pick up Roy and Marlene Walters. They had flown from Michigan to their daughter's home in Kansas. Then, they drove together to Norman for their grandson's birthday. Ben is a new OU law student. His wife teaches English. We took Roy and Marlene to Marie Calendar's for dinner. The Walter's have been our neighbors on Bar Lake in Manistee since Bill and I married. They were so sad when we sold the cottage last summer. We have rented a condo on Lake Michigan and plan to go back up this August. The Walters begged us to come a few days early and stay with them on Bar Lake. We have agreed. When we returned from Norman which is 30 minutes down the road from us, it was still nice outside. Bill and I decided to walk the new trail that has been made in the park behind our house. It took us about 15 minutes to complete. Sunday has been very busy. After teaching my class, I accompanied Bill on his trumpet. He played, "The King Is Coming" for offertory. The choir sang one of the numbers from our Easter musical for special music. There are 14 of us. Our guest speaker was Richard Smotherman. He is District Attorney for our county. He gave his life completely to Christ a few years ago. He said that he had seen so much in his job that he thought he was going to implode. As a result, he had wandered far from God and almost lost everything. One day he drove away from his office and went to the Unity Hospital chapel to be alone. He poured his heart out to God and asked God to put his life back together. Now, he prays with convicts and their families. He has a heart for children who are victims of crimes and does all he can to help restore lives. During the invitation time a man in his 70s made a decision to follow Christ. His son and daughter-in-law were in tears. God is a God of restoration and miracles.

RedBud Trees

Weekend Fun

Well, it seems that my computer doesn't like double spacing, so I still have no paragraphs. I'm told that I need a new computer. Bill wants to wait until his current on-line class is finished, so that we can get a new printer to match the new computers. That's fine. Saturday morning, I took Mom with me to Lowe's to shop for gardent products while Bill worked on his class. I bought more river pebbles for my flowerbed and geraniums for the patio. Later, Bill and I took taco salads over to Mom's apartment for lunch. She paid a fellow to plant her flowerbed and it looks beautiful! In the afternoon, Bill and I went to the Hornbeck to see, "Unknown". When the movie costs $1.50, our certificates last forever! The movie is a thriller and I never figured out exactly what was going on until near the end. Very good! We had 16 in Bible Study Class yesterday. We continued our unit on grief and how to deal with it. I still don't know how people deal with grief who are not believers. My class is coming to our home this Friday for an Easter potluck. Everyone seems to be looking forward to it. I plan to hide candy in our backyard for the adults. I think we all enjoy being a kid sometimes! When growing up, I always had a new dress for Easter, and my family went to a fancy restaurant for dinner. Easter continues to be one of my favorite holidays. Celebrating new life in Christ should be exciting!

Paragraph Test/Music/Gardening

I typed my last blog as usual. However, when viewing what I had typed, I noticed that the double spacing that I use to separate my paragraphs were not there. I'll check after I type this blog to see what happens. Every week is different for me. I have been teaching the interactive classes after school for my friend who has gone to nursing school. This is highly unusual because she is 55 years old. She says she loves it! I was told to do whatever I wanted in these classes, so I have been playing the keyboard and singing. They have learned, "Unchained Melody" which the students knew from the movie, "Ghost" and "Do-Re-Mi" from the movie, "Sound of Music". They like that one because we hear the chimes play it on the St. Gregory's campus. Yesterday, I was tending the soil around my roses and laying more weed pads and pebbles. (They are so heavy.) Keri's kids called to thank me for the Easter package that I sent. I was glad they stopped me because I was already tired from swimming earlier. While at the pool I learned a valuable lesson. There was another couple there with us. The wife was extremely fluffy, and her husband was in relatively good shape. They had their arms around each other and acted like newly weds the entire hour. After watching this, I told Bill that it was possible that I'm on the wrong path. Instead, of watching my weight and staying active, maybe I should put on a few more pounds! He just started laughing, and told me how proud he is of me. It does make one realize that personality and sweetness are the most important factors in a relationship.

Weekend Events

The last few days have been a whirlwind of activity. Sunday morning, I taught my Bible Study Class. The lesson was concerned with the grieving process which we all go through after losing someone we love. I really asked God to help me teach that lesson because I knew that I had a man attending for the first time who lost his wife and daughter one year apart. There were 17 people in attendance. After we had discussed the topic for about 10 minutes, I asked my friend Sherry to sing the song that she had sung in worship 2 weeks prior. The words say something like this -----one by one He took everything from me, until I was empty and He could fill me again with His love. As Sherry sat in her seat and sang quietly, I could hear the tears in the class as we all thought about people we have loved and lost. Not all losses are through death. Easter choir practice went very well. We will sing on Palm Sunday. Sunday evening, we attended Butch Bradley's ordination service at Wallace Ave. Baptist Church in Shawnee. Butch has been my banker and was a FDIC examiner for several branches. His mother was our county treasurer until she retired last year. Butch is 41 years old and is excited about his decision to be a pastor. He graduated from OBU and took seminary courses but wandered away from God for a time. He feels a real concern for college kids because they are trying so hard to be intellectual and find a reason to live life their own way without accountability. Yesterday, Bill and I traveled to Edmond with 7 other teachers. The TLC in Edmond is on the Oklahoma Central University campus. We spent the day learning about new technology in the classroom. I did get excited about a new portable whiteboard that is used with the TV screen. It's back to class this morning. After class I have to swim and do some gardening.

Sunday, April 3rd/Title Correction

I've had little time to blog this week due to Bill resuming his on-line teaching for Grand Canyon University. The course is Communications and Media. At present, he has 24 students. Some usually drop out as time goes by. We both continue to teach at TLC as well. I have a Saudi lady in one of my classes who attends class with her brother. I was surprised last week when she took off her headscarf during the break and she revealed partially bleached blond hair. My brother, David, called me last week to ask how we liked the book cover that he sent. I told him that it was great! Then he told me that I had written in my blog that the book title was, "The Chipotle Ritual". Sorry, David! (I guess I like that title.) The actual title is "The Chiapas Ritual", Book one of the Chipotle Saga. Chiapas is a state in southern Mexico where David lived for many years. I really didn't make that mistake on purpose. The most important event in my life last week was going back to my dietician. Sarah is a tall thin woman with shining black hair and eyes. She instructed me to leave off the mayo when I make a sandwich, to use only Parkay spray butter on baked potatoes and English muffins, and to swim 3 times a week. She also told me to eat almonds or string cheese and fruit everyday at 3:30 p.m. so that I won't be too hungry for my evening meal. I've already lost 3 pounds. I don't want to lose too quickly because I've watched my friends get lots of wrinkles. No, thank you! We've had some really warm spring weather this week. Eighty plus today! I took the patio furniture out of the shed and went shopping. I took Mom with me to Lowe's and bought some no-weed pads for the flowerbed. I also bought some white pebbles to put on top of the weed pads. The cedar bark blows around and turns to mulch. Tomorrow, Bill and I are going to Edmond for a teacher's seminar. I'm learning to hate those, but they are a must to keep one's job. I think I would rather spend the day teaching. Tonight, we are going to our friend's ordination to the ministry. I will have to write more later because it is time to get on the road. So much going on!