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Childhood Experiences

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A movie theater might seem like an odd babysitter, but in the forties that is exactly what my parents used it for. Every Saturday and Sunday my sister and I paid our seven cents and walked into the theater in Tahoka, Texas, where the smell of popcorn drifted past our noses and made our mouths water. To save money, Mom made our popcorn at home and sent us off to the theater with a bag of it in tow. It wasn’t unusual for a double feature to be playing, and back then you could stay as long as you wanted. We usually did. We watched the movie twice, along with cartoons, newsreels, and action features like Flash Gordon and Superman. That’s when my love for cowboy movies began, and it continues today. Childhood experiences often stay with us long after we grow up. Some are simple memories, like Saturday afternoons at the movie theater, while others are the lessons our parents teach us along the way. Childhood Experiences Childhood experiences always flow into adulthood. If only this trut...
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Words Matter: When Anger Speaks

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Cousins Pat Westbrook and Ronald Westbrook      A bar of soap isn't an item many men would think to carry on a fishing trip. That was not true for my husband's cousin, Ronald. We were fishing at Lake of the Pines with Ronald's family and our family just for the day when, out of the blue, he jumped into the lake, clothes and all. With a bar of soap, he proceeded to bathe. In the past, when he dropped the soap and it sank, it made him angry. He found out if he used Ivory soap, he wouldn't have that problem because it would float. From our experience with him, we learned to take Ivory soap with us on camping trips. While the children stayed back at camp, lingering around the fire and talking, my husband and I would slip into our bathing suits, ease the boat into the lake, and dive into the cool water. Just like Ronald we had our bar of soap in hand to wash off the dust of the day.  The scent of pine and the soft echo of the children's laughter drifted across the water....
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Heaven's Choir

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     Elvis Presley did his basic training at Fort Hood, Texas in 1958.   Once when he needed a haircut, he got his driver to pick up a young lady barber across the street from where I worked and took her to his house to cut his hair.  She could hardly contain her excitement and couldn't wait to tell us all about her experience.  Some of the girls in my high school class tried to sneak into his barracks on post. I never heard what came of that.  For the full six months he was stationed there not once did I see him, his staff, or his car.  Even so, his presence could be felt. Heaven's Choir A young man from Tennessee claimed to be a Christian The songs he sang caused the world to listen. The talent he possessed was truly a gift from God. Being just a man some of his actions were flawed. Even so, I bet he is now singing in Heaven's choir. He's singing "How Great Thou Art" to a Higher Power.                ...
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Are You Ready

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  There we sat in our finest clothes at the funeral home. We arrived early because my husband and our two boys had been asked to be pallbearers for a good friend. Everything looked normal, except we did not recognize a single person. As more strangers filled the room and time passed, it finally dawned on us that we were at the wrong funeral home. Embarrassed, we rushed to the only other one in town. When we walked in, we took a seat in the back since the men who kindly stepped in to replace us were seated in the front. Life was so busy we went to the wrong funeral. Are You Ready Will you be ready when it’s your time to leave this world? Life gets busy as we go about living in a whirl. Often the question is postponed or treated as silly, And faith conversations can feel cool or quite chilly. Won’t you take a moment to hear what I know? Jesus died for your sins; He is the One God chose. The Bible explains clearly what each heart must do, Believe, repent, and have faith, this path is ...
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Set Apart

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                                          The last place someone would expect someone's money to be stolen is at church.  I changed my mind one Sunday morning when my friend and I put our purses on a pew in the sanctuary to save our seats before heading to the foyer to drink coffee and socialize. The choir and music director were on stage practicing their songs for the service, while several people listened to the pre-service music.  Not long after sitting down to drink coffee, my friend needed to get something out of her purse. When she went back to where she had left it, she searched through her purse and discovered her billfold had been stolen. A few days later, a staff member informed her that someone had found it in the ladies' restroom.  She expected her credit cards, driver's license, and money to be gone, yet the only thing missing was her birthday money. Th...
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His Job

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 Photo taken by Gloria Spencer      In 1955, a young person in Texas had to be fourteen before they could work in a store.  That year, mother got me a job at Winn's variety store.  From then on, it was up to me to buy my clothes and necessities.  Not that I'm bragging, but I got pretty good at my job. I could tell when a customer was up to no good.  Take, for instance, when a bunch of boys kept hanging around the candy counter, which was my area of the store.  For some reason, I had counted the bubble gum that had baseball cards inside the wrapper.  I stepped away for a few seconds.  When I came back, some of the packages were missing.  I stopped them from leaving and got the manager.  He gave them a good talking to and sent them on their way. His Job Have you ever thought about what God's job is? Yes, He created the world and all creation. Over time He created you, and you are His. His love goes beyond our wildest expecta...
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The Correct Voice

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                                                                                                                                                  Stepsisters can make dangerous bedfellows.  At least in my case, this statement was true. In the sixth grade, the house we lived in only had three bedrooms. Because there weren't enough for all of the family, my stepsister and I had to share a room.  At night, before we went to bed, we would roll up a blanket and place it down the middle of the bed. Neither of us dared cross the line of separation.  However, one morning, I must have messed up and crossed it.  I awok...
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Truth

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                                                                    The Lawson Clan                                                                                         Snipe hunting sounded like an adventure.  At least, that's how the men at the Lawson family reunion made it seem.  With big grins on their faces, they explained just how to go about our hunt. Excited, my cousin and I went to a field and lay down between rows of cotton. With anticipation, we opened our sacks and waited and waited. After many minutes had gone by, my cousin got up from where he was and suggested we go in....
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Who's in Control

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                                                             Artist Caleb Westbrook      When Trump and Biden were running for the 2021-24 presidency, I had a dream.  In my dream a donkey pulled and tugged with all his might to pull an elephant from the creek behind my house. The more the elephant struggled the further into the creek he fell.  With stubborn determination, the donkey refused to give up until finally they both were exhausted and out of breath laying on the bank. Later that year when my daughter and I were discussing politics I told her the Democratics would win the election.  Out of curiosity she wanted to know my reasoning.  After I explained my dream, she understood. Trump had just finished his first term in office, and a lot of people expected him to win however not according to my ...
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Not Alone

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     One of the effects of cancer and having chemo is losing one's hair.  When I had breast cancer and I lost my hair, my hairdresser loaned me a wig. I also received one as a gift. Plus, through the kindness of the Longview cancer center I was blessed with another one. Choosing if I should wear the red, brunette, or blonde wig became an adventure. My mother happened to be in a nursing home for physical therapy at the time.  Each day I would visit her.  On one of my visits, a young man in a wheelchair came to our table and asked, "Where is your sister today?" Thinking he was joking, I told him I left her at home. Later he came back and explained that my husband (who happened to be with me that day) told him that it wasn't my sister he was seeing but me with a different colored wig on.  While we were laughing, a woman in the office had overheard our conversation and informed us that she also thought it was my sister. People treated me different whe...
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The Love Letter

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Pat Lawson Westbrook      Fourteen is an early age to agree to get married.  Even so, I agreed to marry my sixteen-year-old boyfriend.  As the year rocked on, my personality changed dramatically.  I wasn't the same happy, fun-loving person. By the time summer came along, I let him know I had changed my mind. Almost instantly, I became my old self. He even told me how I seemed different. When his family moved to Louisiana, we wrote each other often.  When I got a letter from him, I would put it in a wooden box and lock it.  One day I realized someone had been picking the lock and reading his letters. To let the person who was doing such a thing know I was on to them, I put a note in the box that read ha-ha no letters today. When my boyfriend came to town, I told him my parents were reading his mail.  With a funny look on his face, he told me instead of staying in my home while he was in town he would stay with a friend.  He left and I nev...
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Know the Status

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    Owning a gun is a privilege that people in other countries may not have. Here in Texas, we do.  Even so, one needs to be careful how they are handled. Take for instance the time my husband was cleaning his shotgun.  I had just finished washing dishes at the kitchen sink when I heard a loud bang.  In slow motion, I turned around expecting to see disaster.  Instead, there sat my husband with my young son sitting on the couch. "He stammered; I thought it was empty." Thank goodness the only damage was the ceiling and the roof.        Another time he was checking the scope on his rifle before we went to the river to practice shooting. He pointed the rifle barrel toward the bedroom window. Once again, I heard a gunshot and went to investigate.  This time the supposedly empty gun went off breaking the window.  The bullet proceeded to hit a clothesline post and ricocheted to a neighbor's roof.  Seconds later, the neighbor...
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Golden Words

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    Woodland Hills Baptist Church       Have you ever been in Sunday School and answered a question the teacher asked only to have her dispute where you came up with the answer?  I have.  When I told her the answer came from the bible, the whole class laughed.  Her response made me feel as though she didn't believe me. I left church that day feeling sad and disrespected.  The next time I saw her she said, "The pastor preached on what we talked about in class.  Your answer was correct."      At a different church, I opened my bible to read a bible verse the teacher asked someone to read.  After I finished, a man sitting across from me said, "That's not a real bible because it's not a King James Bible."      The two incidences took place over forty years ago at two different churches.  I didn't leave them because of what happened.  I now attend Woodland Hills Baptist church in Longview, Tex...
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The One

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Sharol Dean Lawson      Latch key kids find all kinds of ways to entertain themselves.  My brother and I were no different than other teenagers.  One summer afternoon, we came up with the idea to ride his motor scooter to Belton Lake seventeen miles from our home in Killeen, Texas.  His best friend also had a scooter.  As it happened, my best friend was his sister.  They were latch key kids also.  The four of us set out for our day of fun.  I don't remember why, but I drove one of the scooters with my friend on the back.  Had our parents been home and we had asked for permission to go they would not have let us have our adventure.   The One You have an Important plan now what do you do? Execute it without consulting the One who's true.        You can do it on your own and face whatever happens.         Or consult the One who watches your very actions.        ...
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A Gift

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The Westbrook Clan      Volunteer work can give a person a since of purpose.  Maybe that's why I signed up to be a Candy Striper at a local hospital.  When a patient asked me my reason for being there, the answer was easy.  I said, "To help people."  Yes, I could deliver juice to patients and help in other ways. One day I saw a nurse coming toward me in the hall carrying something in her hand.  She motioned for me to follow her.  After we went into a nearby room, she began unwrapping a tiny, aborted baby.  It was fully developed and looked like a little doll. Stunned, I stood there starring at the lifeless body. A sadness that is hard to describe filled my heart. After a few quiet moments, we left the room going our separate ways. That day changed how I felt about being there. After one hundred hours of volunteering, I moved on to other things.   A Gift Life begins in the mother's womb. It becomes a precious baby soon. This is ...
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