Afterthoughts

   Grandmother and I walked down the isle of a small country church tucked between Post and Tahoka, Texas.  Just past the piano we stepped up two narrow steps and took our places beside six other choir members, who had sad faces. As we sang, my eyes drifted beyond the casket to the hand full of people scattered across the pews. I remember wondering why so few had come. At the age of fourteen, the whole thing made quiet an impression on me.  I had never seen a dead body before, and I made sure I didn't that day. Not once did I look into the casket.  I was visiting my grandmother for the summer. Not being a member of the church, I never really understood why she insisted I go. I listened and did what I was told because I didn't want to disappoint her. Are You Listening Like a child who doesn't understand, adults often don't listen to God. Perhaps, they don't care as they go about living life their way. Some are too busy traveling down the many avenues they trod, ...

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...

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....

     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.                ...

  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 t...