If you've been to my house, you've probably noticed the large glass jar on the table by the front door. That's my "Treasure Jar" and I started it about 8 or 9 years ago as a place to keep all my little treasures. All those delightful, joy-bringing trinkets that I couldn't bear the thought of passing up or throwing away, they all get added to my Treasure Jar.
This past week, I outgrew my first jar and added a second jar to the table by the door. Two Treasure Jars! Oh my!
Vintage keys, medicine tins, little bottles, patches, tokens, crystals, key chains, metal lipstick tubes, random earrings, beads, vintage lighters, buttons, little dolls, belt buckles, scout pins, Christmas ornaments, watch faces, metal toys, sewing kits, door knobs, metal hardware, pill cases, compacts and everything in-between - they all have a new home...in my Treasure Jars.
It has been 19 years. Nineteen years since that tragic September morning. I wanted to share with you my thoughts from that day and I thank you for reading.
One September 11, 2001, I was working at ESPN Radio in Bristol as the Office Administrator. I had been there for six years at that point so I already knew that I worked with some extremely talented and dedicated co-workers. Today, when I think back to my 12 years there, one of the things that makes is proudest is the ability of my department to come together and work as one that September morning.
When tragedy strikes, your first thought and reaction is natural; you want to make sure your family is safe. I was making phone calls to my family and still trying to grasp and understand what was happening around us that morning. Meanwhile, my co-workers had done that too, but then they had to quickly move onto the next step. They still had a job to do.
Management, on-air hosts, producers, board operators - everyone had to quickly come to terms with what needed to be done to keep the shows on the air. All the prepared topics and sports news for that morning show were quickly scraped. The on-air hosts not only had to process what was going on, they had to be able to talk about it on-air too.
I knew that I could not even fully grasp what was unfolding around me, never mind having to compose myself and articulate it to millions of people. I still think about how tremendously difficult this must have been for the hosts. I was in awe of their strength and true level of professionalism and dedication.
Soon, ESPN switched to national coverage on all of it's platforms and we were told we could go home. As I think back to that day, as much as I wanted to be in the comfort of my own home, I was hesitant to leave. I felt great comfort there with my work family and I stayed.
People doing their job. People being proud of doing their job. And people doing what needed to be done, even if it cost them their lives, as we soon learned. It was evident all across our nation that day and in so many ways. In my little corner of the world, I felt pride at what was accomplished by people that I admired.
Pride and admiration because I knew that it was something that I would not have been able to do. I admire people that have the strength, the knowledge and the dedication to do what needs to be done, even when it is so extremely difficult.
Some random thoughts to share1:
I am physically unable to brush my teeth without placing my left hand firmly on my left hip. I tried it once and I fell.
Why don't they just go ahead and make coffee stirrers thicker so people won't need to use 8 of them at time?
After the clothing has been designed and they are deciding where to put the tag, do they hold special meetings to determine where the worst place in the world to put the tag would be? And then decide to make them out of plastic?
Those "Do Not Remove Under Penalty of Law" tags? Go ahead and remove 'em. I did and not a thing happened to me.
The guy changing the sign over four lanes of traffic is definitely not getting paid enough money.
Why aren't people named after other colors? I've yet to meet a Mr. Beige or a Mrs. Magenta.
If you step on one of Missy's toys by accident2, clear your calendar. You just got occupied for the next 20 minutes or so.
Mechanical pencils? Why? Isn't the best part of owning a pencil, the sharpening of the pencil?
Isn't it time we rename the car glove compartment for what it really is? I've got tissues, car registrations going back 8 years, broken sunglasses, expired coupons and a toy for Missy3 in there. It's officially a junk drawer for my car.
I appreciate good food, but if the restaurant has paper and crayons on the tables, I'm going to give it 5 stars. Hands down.
Listening to the "TWACK" "TWACK" "TWACK" every time someone pulls a cart out at Target would put me over the edge of Crazy Town thisquick.
Those hats with fake hair? Dang, they sure do fool me every time.
I lost a pile of my notes with all my "to-do's" on it. The good news is that the rest of 2020 and the first quarter of 2021 has opened up for me.
I never, ever need to buy another candle, lip balm, jar of peanut butter or miniature Mr. Goodbar4 for the next 48 years. But I probably still will5.
After being alive for more than 55 years, being out at night and seeing lights on in a house still gives me a warm and cozy feeling. And if I actually see someone through the window, I feel privileged, like I was invited into their home for that sliver of time.
I believe that Missy believes that dried leaves are potato chips someone sprinkled on our lawn.
"Coincidence" is not strong enough a word for when I hear a word at the same exact moment that I read a word.
Why is it virtually impossible to pass through the dog toy aisle without squeezing at least three of the toys?
Being in a store and hearing a dog toy being squeezed four aisles away will always make me smile.
The first day of the month I'll share some pictures I've taken of the dogs that come to visit 'The Divine Canine'. My friend Taylor owns the shop and I get to see some of the sweetest dogs!
Each and every dog steals my heart! 💗
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| Pixie |
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| Luna |
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| Roxy |
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| Hazel |
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| Ernie |
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| Wally |
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| Dabo |
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| Bacardi |
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| Lucy |
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| Scooter |
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| Breezy |
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| JJ |
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| Lily |
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| Coconut |
We had dinner last night with our good friends, Pam and Tom Fox. Tom works with Bill at Enterprise. Although Bill sees Tom almost every week, it's rare that the four of us get together.
Tom and Pam have a new home on 7 acres of land. The last time we were there, the home was still in the process of being built. It was almost done, but it would be another week or two before they moved in.
Last night we saw the home finished and decorated, and it's beautiful. We sat in the great room, drank wine and got caught up. At one point I looked over at Bill and Tom talking. Tom said something and Bill gave a big laugh. A big, throw-his-head-back-laugh and I thought how much I love this man! And how happy I am that he has found such a good friend like Tom.
It's always been easier for me to make friends and I worried that when we moved to South Carolina, it would be difficult for Bill. Apparently, I didn't need to worry! Bill is retired and works part-time at Enterprise. This allows him to work a few days a week and hang out with guys who are just like him, and he gets to drive. He literally gets to drive for work. And this is a man who LOVES to drive.
On work days, he lets me know where they are off to for the day; sometimes they go to Charleston, sometimes Atlanta and sometimes it's Savannah. He really likes when he gets the long trips. When I ask him who he's with that day and he tells me "Tom", I know it's going to be a good day for him. For them both. Those two knuckleheads will talk, laugh and play pranks on each other all day. I imagine that there will be a lot of 'throw-his-head-back' laughs that day!
Tom prepared a fabulous dinner, especially for me I'm told, and it was heavenly. Pam told me that he spent the whole day chopping, cutting and preparing all the ingredients for the Shrimp Spaghetti dinner, Roma bread and Ratatouille. Pam set the table and paid attention to the smallest little detail. It was an tremendous amount of work and time extended into making us feel welcome.
As we sat around the table afterwards drinking coffee, eating cookies and cake, I realized how comfortable and awesome our life had become. How extremely blessed we are to have friends like Pam and Tom in our lives. Moving more than 800 miles away from family and friends has not always been easy, but we have created a good and happy life here.
As we got ready to leave, Pam and Tom walking us out to our car, the moon was almost full, the evening air was a bit cooler and the sky was full of stars. We said "good-bye" and "thank you" and got in our car. I got into the passenger seat; my belly full of good food, my heart full of grateful love and I slipped into a peaceful and content sleep.
I’d like to blame it on my radio business exposure, 11 years as the Office Coordinator at ESPN Radio, but I know that would be a lie. The fact and the truth is that I was quick to judge. I was quick to judge someone based solely on hearing her speak.
About two weeks ago, I got into my car and heard the end of a radio interview. The woman speaking did not have a “radio voice” - it was full of wisps and slurred words. I was interested in the topic, fostering three children with special needs, but I had to admit, I had a hard time getting past her speaking flaws. After all my time at ESPN, I had grown accustomed to voices like the smooth baritone of Dan “The Duke” Davis and the lilted and easy cadence of Mike (Greenberg) and Mike (Golic). When the interview ended and her name was given, I wrote it down - Michele Cushatt.
Michele Cushatt, as I came to discover, is a three-time head and neck cancer survivor. At the age of 39 she had her tongue removed and reconstructed with muscle and skin from her left arm. She then had muscle and skin from her left leg removed to reconstruct her left arm.
As I read her amazing biography, I felt deeply ashamed. Ashamed that I was so quick to judge without knowing all the facts. This woman had a thriving career as a speaker, author and frequent guest on "Focus on the Family" (where I heard her speak) both before and after her cancer.
Why was I so quick to judge her without knowing a thing about her? I’m better than that. Aren’t I? I thought so, I certainly hope so. But I wasn’t. Not this time, and if I am honest, truly honest, not in the many other times in my past. How many times was I quick to judge people because they weren’t like the others?
But as so often the case, by the grace of God, this was a teachable moment. I read more about her struggle and I learned of her amazing strength, courage and determination. I thought my lesson was not to judge so quickly. Got it, lesson learned.
Wait a minute, not so fast. As so often the case, I had more to learn from a gentle God who always, always, always knows what I need and when I need it.
As I listened to two of her books on audio in my studio, “Undone: A Story of Making Peace with an Unexpected Life, and “Relentless: The Unshakeable Presence of a God Who Never Leaves” I found my real lesson. I found the real reason why I heard the interview in my car that day.
Michele Cushatt is not a quitter. She never ever gave up. Oh, no doubt, she felt like giving up a hundred thousand times. She cried and doubted and questioned, but she stayed the course. She kept her eye on the final prize and carried on. Carried on through surgery after surgery, challenges with three foster children, and the diagnosis and death of her father during her recovery. Her strength amazed me. And her strength strengthened me.
This was the lesson. This is what I needed to hear. As I was going through my own rough time, I needed to learn about strength. I needed to learn about determination and patience. I needed to learn about staying the course and doing the right thing, even when it was so very hard.
“There is strength in empty. Not the kind of strength we wish for. We want polished strength, the kind that wears a cape and leaps tall buildings with a single bound. I couldn’t leap or fly or save anyone from catastrophe. In fact, I could barely show up. But I did. Show up. And that ended up being a strength all of its own.”
― Michele
Cushatt, Undone: A Story of
Making Peace With an Unexpected Life
On Monday afternoons, the library I go to brings in adults from a group home nearby. Today on my way out, I stopped in the ladies room. At the sink there was a woman who was standing and staring at herself in the mirror. I think that she was in her early 70's, and her disability was not one that was visible to me.
She didn't move or stop when I came in, but our eyes met in the mirror. I told her she looked lovely, and she did, she was very pretty in purple. She didn't say a word and her eyes never left mine in the mirror, but she smiled one of the the biggest smiles that I have ever seen.
I've found myself thinking about her all day. I wonder what she was thinking as she looked at herself in the mirror. It wasn't sadness that I read in her eyes, but when I think of her now, I feel a sadness for her and it makes my heart ache. I do know that I'm going to look for her next week and see if I can make her smile again.
In the beginning of August we went down to visit with Emil in the afternoon and Missy got her first lesson. Um, so Missy is not really a "will-power" kind of dog. She tried really hard to stay when Emil put the treat on the ground, but she couldn't stand it. We agreed that this may take some work and we both laughed.
Two days later, Emil was in ICU and 17 days later he finally came home.
I brought a picture of Missy for Emil to keep in
his room, and I gave him daily updates on her. He wanted to make sure that she wasn't
forgetting her training. I told him that she remembers her paws, but the
will-power....well, he's got work to do there when he gets home.
I always updated Emil on Missy, and shared pictures
of her; Missy getting a bath, Missy smiling with her bow-tie on, Missy with her
pile of toys. All the nurses and staff who came into the room, knew about
Missy. They knew that Emil was training my 7 year old dog some tricks and they were all very impressed. Emil smiled, very pleased and deservedly very proud with
himself.
One day Emil said that he talked to one of the
nurses about Missy. He told me that if we claimed that Missy was a Therapy Dog, then I
could bring her to visit him. It would have been awesome for Emil to see Missy. I know how much he is missing Missy, but I thought that given the fact that
Missy gets a bit 'over-stimulated', maybe bringing her into the hospital wasn't a good idea. Honestly, we wouldn't even get past the lobby, Missy would be wanting belly rubs from every single person she saw. It would
have to wait.
Emil came home from the hospital yesterday,
Tuesday, afternoon. Richard told me that he was sleeping, but glad to be home.
Without talking to Emil, somehow I just knew that he would be outside waiting
for us this morning. And he was. As weak as Emil was, he set his alarm for
5:30, got fully dressed, got Missy's treats and sat outside waiting for us.
At 6am, our usual time, I started walking Missy. As soon as we got down to his street, I couldn't contain her. Missy started pulling
me and squealing. I had to let her go, I do believe she would have pulled me right across the lawn if I didn't. She saw Emil and ran right up to him sitting on
the porch. Seeing the two of them together after almost three weeks was truly one of the best things I've ever
seen in a long time.
It was just one of those moments. One of those
moments when you sit back, observing how good our God is and how truly blessed you
are to be right where you are here and now.
After catching up with Emil, we agreed that Missy can start her will-power
training... tomorrow.
I went into a QT yesterday to get gas and coffee. There was a young father with two children; a boy, around nine, and a girl, about five. They were standing in front of the glass case that holds pastries. I gathered that their father told them they could each have one.
The little girl made her decision quickly. She
chose the donut with the pink frosting and white sprinkles. But the little
boy...ahhh the little boy was having more difficulties. He had narrowed it down
to the Bear Claw shelf, but there was a problem. This bear claw appeared to be
a little bit bigger than the others. But this one had more nuts. And this one
had the most glaze. He was debating the merits of each and didn't seem to be
anywhere near making his decision when I was done making my coffee. I lingered
to see how this was going to end.
The little girl was anxious to get going, having
made her decision quickly. She was trying to get her brother to hurry up, but
he was not moving. This apparently was not a situation that presented itself
often and the young lad was not going to waste his pick on a Bear Claw that was
not "The Best".
I caught the young father's eye and we smiled.
In that instant I knew that this was a kind father. This was a father who
appreciated children being children. This was a big decision for his son, and
he was going to allow him to make it.
Moments like this are my life's treasures.
Simple and sweet treasures that make up a good and happy life.
Originally posted to Facebook in 2017
We found a seat next to a stunning chocolate mixed lab and her owner. The dog's name was Abby and she was a beauty. I was smitten with Abby and Abby was smitten with Missy. They were nose to nose and Abby was giving Missy kisses and plenty of lovin'. They had the whole room captivated and entertained and it was very sweet to watch.
Miles was born two weeks early and is just a little bit of a fella.
He's been steadily gaining weight, but it's been exhausting for Adrian and
Kevin. First time parenting is hard work, even more so when the baby is
having a hard time feeding. He has been slowly gaining weight, it's only
ounces, but when you are less than 6 pounds, those ounces add up and are
celebrated.
So many mornings, over the last few weeks, I have seen the light in the upstairs window. I know that Adrian and Kevin have worked out a schedule to allow the other one to get the needed rest and it's probably Kevin that is up with Miles. I look up at the light and I feel and know it in my heart that they are good parents. Miles is one lucky little fella. 
