Story of Hope - Finding Hope Amongst Life's Challenges

Six years ago a man came into our jewelry store and asked for a small cash loan on a silver dollar.  I gave him $20. 

"I'll be back in a week to pay you back." Steve was homeless and I didn't expect to see him again.

But, a week later he returned with a $20 bill. We chatted. After graduating from university he lost the love of his life.  He started drinking. 

He has been an alcoholic for 40 years and lost everything - including his family.

A couple of weeks later, he returned with the same request for a $20 loan and this continued every couple of weeks for about a year.  Each time he came into the store we chatted. 

I wanted to know about his life. It was obvious that he was educated. He is an avid reader. Each week he borrows three books from the library and is an encyclopedia of facts - a 'walking Google.'

Story Of Hope 

A couple of years after meeting him, we moved from our home. He helped me pack over 100 boxes and on moving day was an incredible help.  A year later we moved into our new store and he was the chief helper again.

Since moving our store three years ago, he got himself a chair and parked it at the back entrance. For the past three years, he sits in that chair and reads. He has appointed himself our Chief Security Officer. 

When Covid hit, our local food kitchen for the homeless closed. I brought him meals every day and often he came to our house for dinner (but hubby made sure he had a shower first)!

Steve has been in rehab numerous times, has attended AA meetings for years, but nothing seemed to make a difference.

I spent hours encouraging him but trying not to make him feel guilty.

A few months before his 60th birthday he announced that he has had enough and was quitting for good. To celebrate, we invited him to dinner on his birthday - filet mignon, prawns, all the trimmings, and two types of pies. He had FOUR pieces of pie.

Truly An Inspirational Story Of Hope

He is now ten months sober and has ZERO desire to drink. He feels he owes us a great debt but we have assured him that seeing him sober is an incredible gift to us. 

Steve came into our lives for a reason just as we are in his life for a reason. 

How Do You Answer the Tough Questions A Five-year-old Might Ask?

Since I have my office in my home, the only time I 'dress up' is for Zoom calls - full make-up, business attire, and jewelry. If I have to run errands, I rarely bother with make-up. Sunglasses and a mask cover my face! How about you?

Last week I had two interviews the same day and wanted to run my errands between them. One of those errands was to go to the recycle center. I had several trays of recyclables but there was a strong wind outside which made cans and plastic bottles fly out of them and roll down the parking lot. It was a gong show. I would run after one can while another bottle was flying through the air. 

Finally, I got inside the building, cashed them in and left for my next errand. When I turned the corner, my eye caught my right hand on the steering wheel -  with NO ring on it. I freaked. I started to pray out loud as I turned the car around, ran into the center, and searched the parking lot - NOTHING. 

Do I call my husband? What would I say to him? 

I emptied my purse onto the front seat of the car and there it was - at the bottom. How did that happen? Was this one of those times when an angel was looking out for me and put it there?

I called my husband but only told him the first part of the story. Was that mean of me to want him to feel my panic? Half-way through the story I had to say, "Don't worry - everything's okay."

Lesson learned. Don't leave the house dressed up. Go out with no make-up, no jewelry.

Some of you may remember the story of Charlie - my daughter's Bernese Mountain dog that we rescued. Charlie was seven years old and suffered many close calls since we saved her life when she was a puppy. She almost died when her tummy flipped. She almost died when she gave birth and she had other close calls. 

We realized how difficult it was to determine if something was wrong because she lived her life with an incredible attitude. She never showed any indication of pain. She 'smiled' all the time. She was gentle and loving and adored the kids. 

One morning a couple weeks ago, my SIL found her in the woods in obvious distress. He gently carried her home. The local vet was kind enough to make a house call and tell them it was her time. She had run away to die. Charlie was my grandson's best friend.

This was not easy for a little guy who has suffered much loss - heart-breaking at every turn. But, as always, what a trooper he was as he comforted his little sister. Their daddy took them for a walk while my daughter stayed with Charlie.

"Good-bye, Charlie"
We will miss her forever

"Mom, I'm sitting here holding Charlie's head in my lap," my daughter said through her tears. "Right up to the last second, Charlie is fighting her demise. She has pulled through so many times. She doesn't want to say good-bye."

William asked me to make a story book with pictures of Charlie and have it printed. I am sure I will have many tears as I do that. 

During spring break, the grands spent the week with me. It is the first time I have had them visit without their mom. I planned activities and enjoyed each minute to the fullest. I'm already excited about the next time they can visit us. 

No, I didn't spoil them. 

.

I bought one of those kits to paint Easter eggs. Can someone explain to me why the dye they use stains everything? We made a huge mess. I had to sit down on the kitchen floor because we were laughing so hard. 

Hunting for Easter eggs this way was a lot more fun
and an advantage over her cousins!

Let the Easter egg hunt begin!

What a great success it was!

Since they were very young, whenever they visited us, they could take two hands full of loose coins from the change bucket. Their hands are getting bigger now and they love counting it to see how much they get. 

Gramma: "Brie, what are you going to do with all that money," I asked.

Brie: "Give it to my daddy, in case he needs it."

Brie: "Gramma, how come you don't paint your nails anymore?"

Gramma: "Because I work from my home office, now."

Brie: "So, Gramma, you really need to get out more."

I was stumped for an answer to this five-year-old.

Brie: "Gramma, I'm five now. Do you think I need a bra?"

        Gramma: Dumbfounded look on my face. 

        

With the time change during spring break, it was not dark at dinner time.

Brie: "Gramma, why are we eating dinner in the morning?"

Gramma: "It's not morning; it's evening."

Brie: "Oh, Gramma. You are so silly. It is never light outside at dinner time." 

William is nine years old but reads at an eighth grade level. He loves books and I teared up when he said, "Gramma, you're an author, right?"

"Sure am!"

"Do you think I could read your books?"

"Of course! But I will expect a review, okay?" That really excited him.

This has been my monthly Fly On the Wall post where a few bloggers share what has been happening behind closed doors in their homes. Have a buzz around and enjoy their stories and laughs.

Baking In A Tornado                 

Menopausal Mother             

Wandering Web Designer     

Do You Know How to Stay Focused During Trauma

Trauma affects us. Period. How it affects us can be either a negative or positive experience. But, turning a negative into a positive is often easier said than done, isn't it?

Sometimes we do not realize we have "been here before" until it's over. Pain works that way. Pain is just that - PAIN. When we are in the middle of it, it feels like a new experience. Yet, it rarely is.

There are many types of pain that we experience in life. There are times when we are blindsided and experience pain on a level we had not realized we were capable of handling. When we look back at those experiences we often wonder how we made it through -- but we did.  And we are stronger for it.

Pain takes on many forms in your life. Rejection, loss, physical or emotional trauma, abuse, divorce, the list goes on.

What Do You Think About More? Your Present or Your Past?

It is quite normal to wonder what would have been different if you had made a different decision. Would it have changed the direction your life took?  Hindsight and reflection are the best teachers. In light of the trauma, anxiety, and stress in many of our lives, it is common to think about the What Ifs and If Onlys. 

If you could go back 20 years for one hour and change the rest of your life, what would you change and why?

My life has been a tumultuous one - on every level, in every arena.  Often the storms would come one after the other but many times they would be happening at the same time.  Every year had turbulence and it would be impossible to attempt changing anything - it's done. Complicated.  Exhausting.  

In the light of a cancer diagnosis, loss of a child, being gang-raped and left for dead, total financial ruin, husband falsely imprisoned and more...it is easy to wish things had been different. HOWEVER, who we are today is a result of what happened yesterday. If we dwell on those setbacks and calamities, we can get stuck in self-pity. But, if we look at each situation as a stepping stone to something better and be thankful for what we learned through the crisis, we will not only survive but will thrive.