...Ten Years Ago...Today.

Eyes well up... tears come again...from that day that seems so far away...yet so close.

Heart feels wounded...the scars are still tender.

Bravery seen... understood ... but unexplainable.

Thankfulness felt ... yet unable to say enough.

Strength needed ... so glad for amazing grace.

♥ America

The Night Won't Save Anyone...

The wind moaned and the trailer house creaked. Another Oklahoma thunderstorm was battering our senses. A frequent experience rated somewhere between thrilling and mortifying.

My two youngster's voices became quieter as the storm became louder. Then the lights flickered. Eyes turned to mine, wide-eyed and questioning... not frightened.

Not yet.

And then the lights went completely out. Darkness rushed out of the corners and filled the room.

Alone with two small children... I felt like I was adrift in heavy seas. A feeling that became too familiar as our lives progressed.

Looking for candles. Light the match. Locate the flashlight. How is dinner going to turn out now?

Oh my... I hear their little voices no more.

Night's Darkness brought its friend Fear with it.


"This is just like camping.", I said confidently.

"Now we can pretend we're camping!"


Interjections from the tiny voices soon erupted. Imaginations had changed direction. Good.



To be strong in the face of Night's Darkness... to do this every day... to always be there for everyone else.

I have to ask...

Who will be there for me?



Night won't save anyone.

Let Me...

Let me lie my head against your chest...

Listen to your heart...

Feel your breath.


Let me feel your warmth...

Your gentle touch...

Make me feel safe.


Let me watch the sunset with you...

Hold your hand...

Enjoy the breeze... together.


Let me say silly things..

Tease you...

Laugh.


Let me sing out of tune...

A love song...

And think of you.


Let me cry...

For things lost..

And hold me... please.

A Daydream...

Silently falling through the air...

Floating.

Wafting too and fro as I drift to earth.


I gently land... without notice.

No splash... no sound.

I become one with the flow of the river.


The sound of the rushing waters soothes my soul.

I follow the path of the current...

I glide over the rocks.

I survive the falls.


An eddy.

A quiet place ...

To pause and reflect.


A spot to be one with the river...

But still waters to observe the passing current.


Summer is over... but it seems that life for a leaf isn't?

Maybe... I will enjoy fall...

...after all.

Beauty...

Beauty is like dust... blown away by the wayward winds of life... and time.

Maybe we should spend our time ... not in the spas... the gym... or in the mirror... but spend our time building our character.

uhmm...

Perhaps... better yet... we should spend it building up our neighbors, our friends, and our families.

So that maybe... the beauty of our character will be longer lasting... and perhaps last for generations to come.

This is Where I Come From...

A tear... running down my cheek.

A memory... too sad to keep.

A heartbreak... painful and deep.

A lost dream... afraid to sleep.



Long and winding ... my roads are.

Far and wide... my travels.

Here and there... my thoughts wander.

My history... should I share?



Where do I come from...

It depends ... on where I've been.

My Ocean...

The surface... smooth as glass it is.

ahhh... a gentle breeze... provides a slight movement... a small ripple.

Enough to add interest... curiosity... to hold your attention... provide enjoyment?


Perhaps.


Beneath... a varied terrain exists... mountainous... with deep, deep valleys.

Deep... the valleys are so deep.


I'm not equipped to stay in this world... I can't stay here... not for long at least.


I can't hold my breath much longer... where are you?


I'm alone... on the quiet surface.

And I am tortured ... in the deep.


I'm looking... everywhere.


Where are you?

Happy Mother's Day 2008...

It's the little things...
Of every day life.

Happy times...
A few with strife



The proud moments...
Accomplishments, Achievements.

Disappointments are there..
Try not to despair.



Watch them grow...
And guide and admonish.

Life is layer upon layer...
A foundation is made.

Brick upon brick...
Apply the mortar of love.



Wonder at their uniqueness...
A person is in the making.

God has a purpose...
For your child in this world.

Let them grow, explore...
Fulfill their calling.

Marvel at their beauty...
God gave you a precious little pearl.

The best Mother's Days are the regular "ho hum" days. The "every days", when you realize that your child was thinking of you. Carrie and Parker took a walk to the lake a couple of weeks ago. On their way back home they picked these wildflowers. Parker braved the prickly pear cactus and picked the beautiful rose-like blooms for me. Yes... he did get a few stickers!

Silly boy.

I was quite impressed by the beautiful bouquet that they had collected for me. And it touched my heart. Imagine, a 15 and 17 year old picking wildflowers for their mother.

Carrie proceeded to make some arrangements out of the flowers. She then got the camera and took some pictures of them.

This day, a cloudy cool day in April, was a Mother's Day to celebrate.

I'm so blessed to have Mother's Days throughout the year.

Because having Mother's Day, once a year, is just not enough.

later...

Goodbye, Daddy...

Engrossed with the task at hand, I was subtly aware of the soft silence that had creeped over the noisy chatter of the college classroom. Subconsciously aware that the atmosphere had changed I looked up to survey my surroundings. A student next to me asked, "Who's that man?" I looked in the direction that she referred to and saw a very tall and strong man in blue jeans and a buttoned shirt sporting boots and a cowboy hat. His hands were large and strong looking. His face and arms revealed that he was a person who had spent a lot of time in the strong Texas sun. The stranger's gaze was direct, almost piercing, definitely subjugating all who had turned to look his way. However it was obvious that he was there without malicious intent and held no ill will towards anyone. This tall Texan had a very self-assured stance, and it was clear that he was accustomed to having a commanding presence over all that he surveyed. In fact, one had a sense that this man was God's representative of honor, a person who had surpassed the simplicity of drawing a line in the sand between right and wrong. He was a virtual wall between good and evil, principles and deceit, justice and inequity. I felt a sense of pride and an indescribable sense of safety and warmth wash over me and simply stated, "That's my Dad."

Dad loved the land and appreciated the bounty that it brought forth. He was a dutiful steward of the earth and was a nurturer of the grasses, fields, and animals that were put in his care. A rugged individualist, Dad was an example of self-sufficiency and strength, drawing all that he needed in this life from God and what God had provided. Dad taught his children independence and gave us a sense of individuality, duty, and a strong knowledge of right and wrong.

My father, the protector and spiritual guide of my family, a tireless caregiver, a man of sacrificial love for his wife and children, and a true patriarch passed away Thursday, April 17, 2008, little more than a month before his 72nd birthday.

The heavenly hosts cried out in simultaneous sorrow and joy as they received God's faithful servant into Abraham's bosom. That night the heavens opened up and the welcoming tears of God watered the Texas Hill Country that Dad loved so much. Dad is now in a mansion on the most beautiful ranch that anyone could imagine. Fields full of grain and pastures of tall grasses. Fat livestock graze in meadows watered by gentle rains and they drink deeply from cool clear waters.

I would not want to take your reward away from you, but Daddy, I miss you terribly.

27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."

29 Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food." And it was so.

Genesis 1:27-30 (NIV)

2007's Top Ten Lists...

The Year of Our Lord, 2007, has come to a close.

Our home in Oklahoma is for sale, and the kids and I are staying with Mom and Dad.

There's a lot of stuff that needs to be done and it seems that I run out of time to do it.

My brother, Don, was able to come up and we all dewormed the cattle yesterday afternoon.

So that is taken care of.

We will need to get the goats all up and take care of them as well. We also need to vaccinate the kids and castrate the billies.

But I don't know when we will do that.


I missed my usual timing for my EOY (end-of-year) post. I always try to get it done on New Year's Eve, but it didn't happen last night.


Mom and Dad are taking a nap right now, so I thought that I would at least pull a few things together, today, on January 1st.



Top Ten Lists


I haven't added too many new photographs to my Flickr page, but I still really do enjoy watching the stats on the pictures.

As of this posting, my photographs have had a cumulative total of 4,611 views.


Top Ten Photos

#10

348 views

Timmy the Chihuahua Celebrates Christmas
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#9

362 views

Timmy the Chihuahua is a Christmas Angel
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#8

369 views

Norma Wants to be a Beauty Queen
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#7

383 views

Surgical exposure of a urinary catheter in a feline bladder.
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#6

395 views

Timmy the Chihuahua is a Christmas Angel
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#5

456 views

Norma the English Bulldog wants to be a Beauty Queen
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#4

567 views

Removing Stone from Incised Bladder
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#3

661 views

Norma the English Bulldog is Ready for the State Fair
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#2

1592 views

Norma the English Bulldog Wants to be a Beauty Queen
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

#1

1929 views

Timmy the Chihuahua is a Christmas Angel
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

Timmy the Chihuahua is really excited that he came out as "Numero Uno" this year, beating Norma out by what appears to be a comfortable margin. Of course, he is a lot more excited that he has almost 2000 views as compared to the 144 views that he recieved from last year!

Congratulations Timmy!



I know that I had promised you guys that I would keep a better tally sheet of my top ten posts but...

As ~life~ would have it, I have not been diligent enough to keep up with the sheet.

And...

I'm still too cheap to upgrade my free Sitemeter account to help me keep up with the page rankings.

So I suppose that, in lieu of actual hard core numbers, we will have to go by what I have observed to be the most popular posts that are visited by my search engine visitors. As always, it is my hope that someone was helped in some way or another by the information and/or links that I have provided in these informal articles and blog posts.



2007's Top Ten Posts


#10

FDA Announces: Melamine in Tainted Pet Foods...

In 2007, I followed the unfolding events of the tainted pet foods and had written several posts concerning the tragedy. While this crisis has certainly passed I do still receive a few visitors on these posts. It is quite possible that this series of posts are number one according to visits because there was one day in which I had over 1000 visits. However, the number of consistent visitors on a weekly basis has fallen sharply, so that is why I have placed this post at Number 10.


#9

Swiffer Wet Jet Rumor is an Urban Legend...


#8

Cytauxzoonosis aka Bobcat Fever...



#7

Today's Mailbag...

The National Scholar's Honor Society must have a HUGE direct mail program. I certainly would not be surprised if this post becomes number one for 2008.


#6

Subcutaneous Emphysema in a Canine Patient...


#5

Metropolitan Who's Who aka Metropolitan Registries, Inc.

I still keep loose tabs on these folks. Can you believe that they were able to get themselves off the the Better Business Bureau's list? This observation of mine is a post in and of itself, because I truly do believe that the BBB was paid off (or something) in order to get MWW's information off of the internet.

And this has got me to wondering...

How honest is the Better Business Bureau really?


#4

Commemorative Speech...


#3

A Bite of Reality...


#2

Bladder Stones in the Canine Patient...


#1

Chronic Renal Failure in Dogs and Cats


I haven't been able to do any extensive research and write any new articles lately. Perhaps 2008 will provide me some of that time.



I really don't have the time today to place my top designs from my little online store at CafePress.

Especially since I have already had to save this one post several times today as it is.

But I will tell you that I am very happy with my little store and that I have actually received a few checks in the mail from them this past year!

**woo hoo**


2007 has been quite a year in more ways than one for me and my family. And I will have to say that I am hoping that 2008 will be very quiet and calm for all of us.


I need to find some time to update my links to fellow bloggers on my sidebar. There have been several who have found that 2007 was the year to quit blogging. I truly do understand why a person would do that. Especially if you are a person who doesn't want to throw just anything out there.

Blogging really can take a lot of time and effort.

And to those who have quit blogging, I would like to say that it was really nice to meet you and I wish you the very best.


Happy New Year everyone and I pray that you and your families are richly blessed.


later...

Two Guinea Chicks...

Two Guinea Chicks
Originally uploaded by itsmetj

I hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving Holiday.

We had some "not-so-nice" weather here with a lot of cold wind and rain. It was really bad for the new kid goats that were being born out in it.

We spent nearly the entire time slopping through the mud and rain looking for wet newborns, then dragging the nannies and the kids underneath the barn so that the babies could be placed under heat lamps to dry off and warm up.

We lost quite a few kids due to hypothermia.

Carrie and Parker were able to see the birthing of several kid goats for the first time. Having seen many animals being born from a much earlier age than they are I think that it made quite a big impact on them both.

Even though I have witnessed the birthing process many times, there's something about the miracle of birth that is still mind boggling to human reasoning. While watching the kid goats being born my mind could not escape the thought of thousands of human babies that are aborted every year in this country. I just cannot wrap my mind around the excuses (yes, I said excuses) that people use to support and allow such a practice on normal, healthy babies.

As I looked at the lifeless bodies of the adorable kid goats I wondered...

How could anyone be in the abortion business?

There is already a frailty in life that none of us will be able to escape...

Death comes to everyone eventually.


The picture was taken a few weeks ago of some Guinea chicks that were hatched out. Those silly Guinea hens were still laying and sitting on eggs this late in the year. Mom gathered the hatchlings all up and brought them into the house so that they could be under a light for about 10 days. She then moved them out to the barn into a little pen with a light out there.

Aren't they adorable?

When they're grown they won't be near this cute and "innocent" looking.

Maybe that's how some people can support and perform abortions on healthy babies.

They look in the mirror every day and reflect on their inner souls and think that everyone else in this world grew up to be just like them...

...unhappy and miserable.

Later...

Reflections...

There are times when we all need to just sit down and count our blessings.

The problems in our lives try to overtake us and keep us preoccupied...

Causing us to miss the important things in life.


And when we try to reflect on the positives it seems that we only look for the "big blesssings".

The things that appear to be of substance...

On the outside that is.

We look at the stuff that could possibly impress our friends...

People at the mall or at work.


We look to money way too often and depend on it for our happiness far too much.


Missing what is truly important.


The loudness of a quiet, hot summer evening...

Cicadas singing in the trees.

We should be thankful that we can hear them.


The cool green leaves of a stout oak that provides us with shade from a dutiful sun.


The joy of water.

It feels so much wetter in August, don't you think?


I'm thankful for my lawn chair...

And my backyard.


It's one of my most favorite places...

And provides me with a respite from the outside world.


It's a place of solitude that provides ample room for soulful reflection.


What a blessing it is to me.


Be still...

Be quiet...

So that you can truly hear.


Find a quiet spot...

Close your eyes...


And listen to the 23rd Psalm like you've never heard it before.





It will bring tears of gratitude to your eyes.



later...

D-Day Prayer...

Today was the 63rd anniversary of D-Day, the Battle of Normandy.

Unbelievable numbers of young men lost their lives on that day.


The United States was unified.


We had a common cause...


A common belief.


We were all Americans.


Today, it seems that many have lost what it means to be an American.


To be an American you must have a strong sense of right and wrong...

And believe in justice.


To be an American you must be willing to help yourself by using your own hands...

Not holding your hands out for free help.


To be an American you must understand what it is to be a neighbor...

And how to be there when you're needed.


To be an American you need to have faith...

For that is what America is, a refuge for the faithful.


To be an American you need to believe in the Constitution...

And have faith that God truly guided the hearts of our Founding Fathers.


To be an American you must be able to pray...

Pray for our country and that our leaders use wisdom.

Pray for the safety of our soldiers...

And pray that we continue to be blessed.


To be an American you must realize what you have...

That your life in the United States is unique and rich...

Unlike any other on earth.


To be an American you must know that you live a life like no other...

Because of those who paid for it.


To be an American you owe a debt that you cannot repay.

America doesn't have a debt that is owed to you.


To be an American you must be respectful...

And honor those who gave you this country.


To be an American you must be willing to do what is necessary in order to guarantee that those who come after you will enjoy the blessings that you have enjoyed.


To be an American you cannot take...

And expect not to give back.



What will you do...

To ensure that the United States of America continues to exist and prosper...

Long after you are gone.

Franklin D. Roosevelt's Prayer

June 6, 1944

My fellow Americans: Last night, when I spoke with you about the fall of Rome, I knew at that moment that troops of the United States and our allies were crossing the Channel in another and greater operation. It has come to pass with success thus far.

And so, in this poignant hour, I ask you to join with me in prayer:

Almighty God: Our sons, pride of our Nation, this day have set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our Republic, our religion, and our civilization, and to set free a suffering humanity.

Lead them straight and true; give strength to their arms, stoutness to their hearts, steadfastness in their faith.

They will need Thy blessings. Their road will be long and hard. For the enemy is strong. He may hurl back our forces. Success may not come with rushing speed, but we shall return again and again; and we know that by Thy grace, and by the righteousness of our cause, our sons will triumph.

They will be sore tried, by night and by day, without rest-until the victory is won. The darkness will be rent by noise and flame. Men's souls will be shaken with the violences of war.

For these men are lately drawn from the ways of peace. They fight not for the lust of conquest. They fight to end conquest. They fight to liberate. They fight to let justice arise, and tolerance and good will among all Thy people. They yearn but for the end of battle, for their return to the haven of home.

Some will never return. Embrace these, Father, and receive them, Thy heroic servants, into Thy kingdom.

And for us at home -- fathers, mothers, children, wives, sisters, and brothers of brave men overseas -- whose thoughts and prayers are ever with them--help us, Almighty God, to rededicate ourselves in renewed faith in Thee in this hour of great sacrifice.

Many people have urged that I call the Nation into a single day of special prayer. But because the road is long and the desire is great, I ask that our people devote themselves in a continuance of prayer. As we rise to each new day, and again when each day is spent, let words of prayer be on our lips, invoking Thy help to our efforts.

Give us strength, too -- strength in our daily tasks, to redouble the contributions we make in the physical and the material support of our armed forces.

And let our hearts be stout, to wait out the long travail, to bear sorrows that may come, to impart our courage unto our sons wheresoever they may be.

And, O Lord, give us Faith. Give us Faith in Thee; Faith in our sons; Faith in each other; Faith in our united crusade. Let not the keenness of our spirit ever be dulled. Let not the impacts of temporary events, of temporal matters of but fleeting moment let not these deter us in our unconquerable purpose.

With Thy blessing, we shall prevail over the unholy forces of our enemy. Help us to conquer the apostles of greed and racial arrogancies. Lead us to the saving of our country, and with our sister Nations into a world unity that will spell a sure peace a peace invulnerable to the schemings of unworthy men. And a peace that will let all of men live in freedom, reaping the just rewards of their honest toil.

Thy will be done, Almighty God.

Amen.

Reflections...

Life is like a slow moving river.

You stare at it...

And it appears to stand still.

Then before you know it...

The water you thought you were looking at,

has made it to the sea.