Tuesday’s Show and Tail… A Beautiful Email

Time to share another "Tuesday’s Show & Tail." Angela, over at West Virginia Treasures, has been hosting this meme for several months, and it is always a lot of fun to see all the interesting posts of the people who join in! This is the 35th one that Angela has hosted, it is a meme to share about past or present pets, animal friends we’ve known, or interesting stories about animals. If you’d like to join, here is the link to the Guidelines.

This was just so sweet, I had to share it…

It is not known who replied, but there is a beautiful soul working in the dead letter office of the US postal service.

Our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month. The day after she died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey.. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could so she dictated these words:

Dear God,

Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick..

I hope you will play with her. She likes to play with balls and to swim. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her You will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.

Love, Meredith

We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.

Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith' in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies..' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:

Dear Meredith,

Abbey arrived safely in heaven.

Having the picture was a big help. I recognized Abbey right away.

Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in, so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by..

Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me.. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you.

I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much.

By the way, I'm easy to find, I am wherever there is love.

Love,

God

Honor Their Memory...

I got this in an email and thought I would share it for Memorial Day...

By Capt. Steven Ellison, MD

A MILITARY DOCTOR

I am a doctor specializing in the Emergency Departments of the only two military Level One-Trauma Centers, both in San Antonio, TX and they care for civilian Emergencies as well as military personnel. San Antonio has the largest military retiree population in the world living here. 

As a military doctor, I work long hours and the pay is less than glamorous. One tends to become jaded by the long hours, lack of sleep, food, family contact and the endless parade of human suffering passing before you. The arrival of another ambulance does not mean more pay, only more work.

Often, it is a victim from a motor vehicle crash, or a person of dubious character who has been shot or stabbed. With our large military retiree population, it is often a nursing home patient. Even with my enlisted service and minimal combat experience in Panama , I have caught myself groaning when the ambulance brought in yet another sick, elderly person from one of the local retirement centers that cater to military retirees. I had not stopped to think of what citizens of this age group represented.

When I saw 'Saving Private Ryan,' I was touched deeply. Not so much by the carnage, but by the sacrifices of so many. I was touched most by the scene of the elderly survivor at the graveside, asking his wife if he'd been a good man. I realized that I had seen these same men and women coming through my Emergency Dept., and had not realized what magnificent sacrifices they had made. The things they did for me and everyone else that has lived on this planet since the end of that conflict are priceless.

Situation permitting, I now ask my patients about their experiences. They would never bring up the subject without the inquiry. I have been privileged to an amazing array of experiences, recounted in the brief minutes allowed in an Emergency Dept. encounter. These experiences have revealed the incredible individuals I have had the honor of serving in a medical capacity, many on their last admission to the hospital.

There was a frail, elderly woman who reassured my young enlisted medic, trying to start an IV line in her arm. She remained calm and poised, despite her illness and the multiple needle-sticks into her fragile veins. She was what we call a 'hard stick.' As the medic made another attempt, I noticed a number tattooed across her forearm. I touched it with one finger and looked into her eyes. She simply said, ' Auschwitz.' Many of later generations would have loudly and openly berated the young medic in his many attempts. How different was the response from this person who'd seen unspeakable suffering.

Also, there was this long retired Colonel, who as a young officer had parachuted from his burning plane over a Pacific Island held by the Japanese. Now an octogenarian, he had a minor cut on his head from a fall at his home where he lived alone. His CT scan and suturing had been delayed until after midnight by the usual parade of high priority ambulance patients. Still spry for his age, he asked to use the phone to call a taxi, to take him home, then he realized his ambulance had brought him without his wallet. He asked if he could use the phone to make a long distance call to his daughter who lived 7 miles away. With great pride we told him that he could not, as he'd done enough for his country and the least we could do was get him a taxi home, even if we had to pay for it ourselves. My only regret was that my shift wouldn't end for several hours, and I couldn't drive him myself.

I was there the night M/Sgt. Roy Benavidez came through the Emergency Dept. for the last time. He was very sick. I was not the doctor taking care of him, but I walked to his bedside and took his hand. I said nothing. He was so sick, he didn't know I was there. I'd read his Congressional Medal of Honor citation and wanted to shake his hand. He died a few days later.

The gentleman who served with Merrill's Marauders, the survivor of the Bataan Death March, the survivor of Omaha Beach , the 101 year old World War I veteran. The former POW held in frozen North Korea… The former Special Forces medic - now with non-operable liver cancer the former Viet Nam Corps Commander.

I remember these citizens.

I may still groan when yet another ambulance comes in, but now I am much more aware of what an honor it is to serve these particular men and women.

I have seen a Congress who would turn their back on these individuals who've sacrificed so much to protect our liberty. I see later generations that seem to be totally engrossed in abusing these same liberties, won with such sacrifice.

It has become my personal endeavor to make the nurses and young enlisted medics aware of these amazing individuals when I encounter them in our Emergency Dept. Their response to these particular citizens has made me think that perhaps all is not lost in the next generation.

My experiences have solidified my belief that we are losing an incredible generation, and this nation knows not what it is losing. Our uncaring government and ungrateful civilian populace should all take note. We should all remember that we must 'Earn this.'

Written By CAPT. Stephen R. Ellison, M.D. US Army

If it weren't for the United States Military,

there'd be NO United States of America !

Tuesday’s Show and Tail… Tuffy

Hurray! I’m finally getting the chance to share another "Tuesday’s Show & Tail."  This meme is hosted every week by Angela over at West Virginia Treasures, and it is always a lot of fun to see all the interesting posts of the people who join in! This is the 34th one that Angela has hosted, and I really appreciate the friends I have made through it. Tuesday's Show and Tail gives us a chance to share about past or present pets or furry friends we’ve known. If you’d like to join, here is the link to the Guidelines.

Tuffy is my son’s registered American Quarter Horse. He is 23 years old now, so he gets a pretty heavy winter coat. It always amazes me each year when Tuffy sheds his cream colored winter coat, and turns into the most beautiful golden color you’ve ever seen! It’s almost like a caterpillar turning into a butterfly.

It is Good!

It Is Good...

Sometimes I come across a post on another blog that touches my heart so very much, and I want to share it with all of you.  I JUST figured out how to link to another post so that I could do that.  Please check the above link out as Caryle has a wonderful story to tell that really touched me.  

This is Maxdog's Mom, and I will be posting a link to her good bye to our Dear Maxdog on our Country Corgi Blog, for Max left us this morning, and people all around the world are mourning with Caryle today.

Showers of Blessings…

We’ve had so many “Showers of Blessings” lately that sometimes I’m not sure I should share in case someone thinks I’m bragging… BUT it’s not by OUR doing, it is things that God has been blessing us with, so I decided to share anyway because maybe seeing God's love and faithfulness to us will encourage someone else who is waiting for their showers to start…

A couple of weeks ago, we went to the BIG Fundraiser of the Year for Alpha House, the Battered Women’s Shelter that our church helps sponsor. My Brother In Law does all the cooking each year because everyone in town LOVES his BBQ Tri-Tip and Chicken so just knowing that he is cooking brings in people. After dinner, they have a silent auction and a regular auction. That is always fun too because our “Goofy, but wonderful” Praise Leader from our church does the auctioning off of the things that have been donated.

This year, my hubby was determined that he would win a “Bed and Breakfast” stay at the big ranch that our friends have up in the mountains near here. These wonderful people are the ones Mick cowboyed for, a couple of years before getting married. This picture is of a “flying mount” onto my Cory while up at the ranch during a day of branding. He had run up from behind like the old cowboy movies and jumped on. Anyway, they open their ranch house for a “Bed and Breakfast” stay once a year for the Alpha House Auction.

Mike started bidding, and then another friend of ours also started to bid. Our friend suddenly realized that he wasn’t going to be in town during the times that were available, so he quit bidding and we got it for about ½ the regular price it goes for! Praise GOD!!! 

We had SO MUCH FUN!!! These people are so very dear to us, and we ate such wonderful meals and talked about the Lord and what He was doing in our lives and our kid’s lives. It was WONDERFUL! The worst part of it was that I FORGOT MY CAMERA!!! Can you BELIEVE IT!!! They had so many beautiful wildflowers out all over their place that I missed. They had a bunch of these blue lupine bushes growing all around the area. I got this picture off of the web, but it looks just like it was taken on their ranch!

Anyway, after the auction, Mike wanted to rush home because it was late, but an elderly lady from our church asked him for his help to take some of the things she’d gotten out to her car for her. He did that and then we headed home. About half way home, we came across a big car/truck accident that had happened maybe 5 minutes ahead of us. If Mike hadn’t helped that lady, we could very well have been in the midst of it!

 

One of the drivers in the accident was walking around dazed (we stopped to help and put up barriers to stop others from running over the debris in the road and until the emergency crews arrived and we weren’t needed any longer) and he was talking about how he had been having blackouts for a while and was supposed to be getting an MRI the next day to find out why… WHY WAS HE DRIVING THEN!?!? 

He had blacked out and hit the other driver almost head on (which could have been us!) Praise God for His angels (the lady) and His protection (the timing.) Luckily, they had both slowed down enough so that no one was killed, though they still totaled both trucks (a big, raised ¾ ton Pickup and a smaller pickup) Both ended up in the ditches, one on each side of the road. Praise God, in this case, for seatbelts! (The pic was taken on Robert’s cell phone at night)

I also Praise God every time I look out of our windows at our pastures which are so beautifully golden with the grain hay that our neighbors planted for us! That was such a wonderful gift, and will feed our horses for at least 6-8 months!

Another thing that happened last night, also has us so happy! Mike came in after work, with a newspaper classified ad section and said, “Someone has a camper shell for sale for only $75!” We have been wanting one for quite a while so that we could put in a back window from the cab in our truck and make a place so that the corgis could have more room when we go on road trips, and we could take them all instead of only a few of them. They would be able to go back and forth into the back if they wanted to lay down, etc. like they do in the car.

We figured it probably wasn’t in terribly good condition at that price, because we’d priced them and a decent second hand one has been going for around $200 or more. I called and asked if it had windows that worked (expecting that maybe they’d be broken out at that price) and he said yes, the windows were fine, and that it was in pretty good condition, so we decided to go ahead and make the hour trip to the big town and check it out.

When we got almost there, I called to tell them we would be a little later than I’d originally thought, and the lady I spoke to then, said that was ok, and mentioned that her hubby hadn’t been very happy that she had put it into the paper at that price, but she’d been told to put it in since they were moving and she hadn’t known what to put it at. 

About THAT time, I decided to get out some extra money because we didn’t want to cheat anyone. We got there and this thing was gorgeous… looked brand new, matched exactly with our truck (which, if you remember, was sold to us by Mike's Christian boss for only $1000) and was PERFECT! We talked with the guy and he helped us put it onto our truck. 

There was a garbage can open right by where he’d had this SnugTop stored, and it had some artificial turf type stuff in the top of it. I asked him if he’d mind giving that to me as we needed to put something like that on the ramps to give OC more traction, and he gave it to me. I'd thought I was going to have to buy some...

He was really nice and was going to give us everything for the price in the paper, and even helped us put it on our truck. I told him that since the Lord had blessed us so much with such a wonderful gift, that I thought He wanted us to bless him, too, and we gave him $100 instead. That was still half or less than half of what we would have had to pay, and we were able to share some of God’s love with them. Maybe the Lord gave us a chance to plant one of HIS seeds… I know WE got a blessing!

"Tuesday’s Show & Tail" More Birds of Spring

Hurray! I’m finally getting the chance to share another "Tuesday’s Show & Tail."  This meme is hosted every week by Angela over at West Virginia Treasures, and it is always a lot of fun to see all the interesting posts of the people who join in! This is the 32nd one that Angela has hosted and she’s sharing butterflies on hers this week! It is a meme to share about past or present pets or furry friends we’ve known. If you’d like to join, here is the link to the Guidelines. 

I love the spring time when all of the different kinds of birds return to our area. The air is filled with birdsong all day during this time of year. We have a lot of Bullock’s Orioles in this area. This one is a male.

Their hanging nests are all over in our trees. They use the horse’s shed hair and there is a lot of bright orange, yellow, or blue baling twine woven in.

The females aren’t as colorful, having just a small amount of color on their chests. 

We have a lot of doves around all year round. I love to hear them cooing in the trees… I always hate it when it is dove or quail season, and hope that they will come onto our property where they won’t be shot at!

Here is a picture of a weird bird that showed up. It was green with red on it’s chest and looked sort of like a parrot. I guess one could have escaped from somewhere because they aren’t native to this area.

And there are more and more hummingbirds coming back to this area. I LOVE my new camera that can catch this little guy clear up in the topmost branch of one of the trees in our front yard…

And then I can zoom in to where you can see him pretty clearly.