Betty Whitaker Jackson

First thing, Happy Birthday to my Dad in heaven. How I wish he’d lived to know my grandchildren and been part of all the communities I’ve lived in, but God numbered his days, as He numbers all our days, and left many with good memories of Loren James Whitaker, Sr. I miss the years we could have had.

Continuing with my Mah Jongg story: Yesterday a lady here at Glenbrooke took a patient hour and a half or so to…..

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I suppose the saying, “You can’t teach old dogs new tricks” might apply. Yesterday Ev and I attended the first of, I hope many, ice cream socials at our new senior facility. The staff here tries to involved people in activities, meals, trips, and events to bring us together in a sense of community. It’s admirable. Many of the people here are singels without nearby family members, and it is important that they fellowship with others.

We are part of…..

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One of the great things about being in a new community is learning things from new people we’re meeting. Today we went to a birthday celebration for August birthdays. Ev was invited because his birthday was July 20, and we had just moved in. We had the pleasure of meeting a retired dentist, ninety years old, who was seated by himself. We enjoyed talking with him. At the beginning, he seemed to want to be by himself, but after short…..

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For those considering a move such as the one we’ve just completed (no the boxes are not all emptied, the place is not finally organized, and the paintings are not hung), I’ve learned some lessons that might save you aggravation and grief.

Number 1: because we’ve been so blessed with  item s attained over our fifty-five year marriage, we’ve become complacent. While we’ve appreciated owning many of the items others have deemed appropriate, many are no longer needed in our…..

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The dust is settling after our eventful moving week, that is if you discount the torrential rain the last few days. Wow.

We are getting settles, and have entertained (not in the manner to which we are accustomed, you understand) with the family of nine celebrating the two grandpas with delightful chocolate cake. We haven’t received our new furniture yet, so we were on folding chairs, rocking chairs, porch chairs and two antique rocking chairs that seem to always come…..

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Well,   we’ve  become landless…first time in our married history we haven’t owned a house (or mortgaged one). Yesterday we paid off the mortgage,  and bills and became independent livers in our new home. There’s something freeing about all this, but it’s not without cost.

Ev and I are exhausted, physically and mentally. This whole month’s adventure is not to be relived. Too many decisions, too much accumulated stuff, too many unknowns, but God has been faithful through it all.

This…..

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Well,   we’ve  become landless…first time in our married history we haven’t owned a house (or mortgaged one). Yesterday we paid off the mortgage,  and bills and became independent livers in our new home. There’s something freeing about all this, but it’s not without cost.

Ev and I are exhausted, physically and mentally. This whole month’s adventure is not to be relived. Too many decisions, too much accumulated stuff, too many unknowns, but God has been faithful through it all.

This…..

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There’s something cathartic about moving. The dictionary meaning of catharsis is: 1.the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions.” It is true that we become emotionally attached to things, or the idea of possession of things, and moving brings all the “stuff” of ownership to the surface with surprising results. For instance, the toy that a baby played with has special meaning; the dried rose kept from a baby’s baptism, the wedding gift from a…..

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Last night’s awesome “Rite of Spring in Summer” was just awesome, but what followed it was a thunderstorm of epic proportions. Witnessing God’s power with concert goers huddled together at Holy Trinity in north Melbourne was quite the experience. For over an hour we witnessed lighting strikes one after another, thunder that shook the building, and torrential rain that  flooded an aisle in the auditorium. Added to the mayhem were musicians with their precious instruments, elderly people in wheelchairs and…..

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No matter what else is going on in my life, I’m passionate about my writing. When I have a project in mind, I think about it, I dream about it, and I must work on it at least a little bit. So, even with packing boxes scattered all over the house, with things staring at me that I must complete, with Mary’s birthday tomorrow, with concert weekend and all that implies with our volunteering, and movers coming in three days,…..

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