A Treasured Book Review

By nature, humans are collectors. Some more than others. I'm not a huge collector, but I do have a few things. As a kid, I collected pencils of all shapes and sizes. I had a box full of "friends" (aka: Fisher Price Little People). My Little Ponies, Strawberry Shortcake, friendship bracelets. Now I have collections of M&M things, Disney's Beauty and the Beast things, and a few carousels. But mostly books. Hundreds of books.

We collect things we like and treasure. I would never think to start a collection of dried flowers. I don't like them. Nor do I care for bubblegum wrappers or scraps of wrapping paper. I horde books because I love them. I love to read them, and smell them, and admire how nicely they sit in perfect rows on my shelves. Simply put, I treasure them.

God also treasures things that belong to Him. Which is everything: rocks, trees, mountains, the cattle on a thousand hills. And us. Especially us.

Treasured by Leigh McLeroy is a book that reminds us how much we are treasured by our Heavenly Father. A simple story, it is beautifully written. Not deep or theological, no, but thought provoking. So many of the words recalled to my mind how much God has done for me, is doing for me, and will do for me. How much I am loved!

So while I added yet another book to my collection, I also remembered another collection I have stored in my heart: the memories of my Heavenly Father at work in my life and His love for me.


Interested in buying this wonderful book? Check it out at http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9781400074815.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Snapshots of Thanksgiving

As promised, here are some snapshots from our week of Thanksgiving. It was a grand success, lots of fun, and even though wearing t-shirts and capris in late November is totally wrong - the weather was pleasant.

My cousin Candy and her fiance Matt

Grandpa and Uncle Ed, who is Grandpa's cousin - see if you can figure that out.

Left to right: Boo (Aunt Diane), Uncle Lorun, Aunt Jacque and Uncle Ed

Success!!!! My first turkey. It tasted as good as it looked.

The oldest and youngest of the Sturm cousins: me and Zak (who is 20 1/2 years younger)

My Huffman cousins: Candy, Alex and Hannah

Let the Holidays Begin!

Well, the first of our guests arrived last night. My cousin Candace (aka: "Candy") and her fiance Matt arrived safely around 6 in the evening. We ate dinner and then sat around and chatted. Candy is forever entertaining. She hates silence, so she fills it. And she talks about just about everything under the sun. Her fiance is a bit more quiet (thankfully!), but he carries on a fine conversation. And he's quite intelligent but not in a, "Oh, you're talking about butterflies? Well, let me tell you everything I know about them - and, believe me, I'm the worlds greatest genius on that subject" like some guys I know. Probably comes with graduating in a few weeks with a degree in construction engineering.

As a working girl, I had to get to bed early last night and get up early this morning, so I didn't spend a great deal of time with them. I'm not sure how tonight will go. The rest of "the gang" arrives which means my aunt and uncle, Boo (real name Diane) and Ed, with Candy's younger sisters Alex and Hannah (ages 19 and 15, respectively). Should be a thrilling night - but I'm going to try very hard to get bed at a decent hour for I still have to wake up early to go to work one more day.

But then the holidays will begin. Lots of cooking, but lots of eating and fun. My aunt, uncle and cousin who live nearby will join us on Thursday (Jacque, Lorun and 9-year-old Zak). Candy and Matt like to play Scrabble. Hooray! Out will come my Scrabble board for the first time since its move south. And I intend to teach my cousins to play Hand and Foot. Who knows what else we'll find to get into? But I'll keep you posted. With pictures, too!

Does Bigger Mean Better?

A Texas acorn.

What is a restful weekend? Who knows exactly. Haven't had one of those since I moved to Texas. I certainly don't come upon Saturdays and face boredom like I used to. Can't say I've had a boring moment since I got here.

But this weekend was great - and greatly needed. Work has been a zoo for the past two weeks. Names, numbers, to-dos all run together in my head. I don't know if I'm coming or going - who's died or who's still living. I've been on the run so much, I sit in bed at night to read and have no idea what the words in front of me really mean. I think I hate that the most. Losing my ability to read and comprehend has got to be the end of the world.

But on Saturday I had plans to go out to a house in the middle of nowhere to visit old friends who live there. Their oldest daughter, although nearly 7 years younger than I, and I have corresponded over the years mostly on account of our love for writing. So I drove out to the country, sat on a front porch, and did nothing but chat about writing, books, and whatever for hours. In between, her six younger brothers and sisters ran in and out to join the conversation or tell me about the chickens, cats, neighbors, and whatever else runs through the mind of kids.

Maybe it was the doing nothing. Maybe it was the lovely day. Maybe it was being with a friend. Maybe it was being with a large family with a baby brother who talks as much as my baby brother. I don't know. But I got back to Denton and felt rested. By then it was five in the afternoon, but I ran an errand, baked pumpkin muffins and banana bread, washed my sheets and towels, and then sat down to enjoy a movie. Production on top of rest!

The next couple of weekends are going to be busy. Thanksgiving is on the way and then the guests arrive. When its all over and I'm exhausted, I've got to remember to take another Saturday and do nothing...well, nothing with a good book!

My Life Lately

With blogging on books and other odd things, I haven't blogged much about my life as late here in Texas. Or maybe I just haven't had time...

Work has been a zoo. More than one new patient every day for the last two weeks. As if the patients weren't just names and numbers to me before, now I can't even keep the names or numbers straight. But neither can anyone else.

I still play tennis twice a week. It's nice to go out and swing a racquet around. Don't know if I'm improving or not, but it helps relieve stress and I get to know another set of people far removed from nurses, papers and telephones ringing.

Spend some time with friends. Not as much as people seem to think I ought, but my books are my best friends. If I have a quiet moment, I love to spend time with them. Still, one of my closest friends and I walk once a week. I've met another friend for coffee or ice cream a couple of times. Surprise another old friend for her birthday. So, I do have a social life. It just isn't 24/7.

Yes, I keep reading. Never as much as I want. The pile of books always gets taller before it gets shorter. But that's okay. And I write. I'm almost finished with the book I've been plugging away at. Two more chapters! And then? Umm...something that takes a little less research!

And there is a lot to be done for the holidays! For Thanksgiving I have an aunt, uncle, three cousins and the eldest cousin's fiance coming for the week. And then there will be another aunt, uncle and cousin coming for the day. A crowd...but I'm use to a crowd. And I'm having fun playing hostess, although I still have a lot to learn. But at least cooking for that many people is second nature. It's cooking for just Grandpa and I that is a challenge!

Fall has yet to arrive in Texas. Most of the leaves have changed colors. I stomped through them in the yard, which I love to do. But sometimes it isn't quite right when its warm enough out to go to the beach. Next Monday is suppose to get cold - if you call 60 cold. Which Texans do. They act like a blizzard is coming. If only it would get cold enough for a blizzard...

And so that is my life as late. Nothing abnormal. Nothing thrilling. Just everyday life. But that's just as well.

A Book Review

Life is complicated. It's full of twists and turns. We never see around the bend. Joys turns to sorrows. Sorrows turn to joys. Life is hard.

So what do we do about it? Do we try to hide? Sometimes. Do we face it? Not if we can help it. But in the end, the problems in our lives must be faced. And once they are, we often wonder why we made ourselves suffer so long.

White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner is a book about people. People with joys. People with sorrows. Little fires that smolder into bigger fires. Heroism. Fear. All the complicated emotions and thoughts that make humanity what it is.

A wonderful story that searches through the layers of its characters, there is one fault to be found. Where is God in all this? Not until the end of the book do these people cry out to God for help, although they would call themselves Christians. And even then, very little praise is given to the God who is the solution of all our problems.

Interested in this book? http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?isbn=9781400074570

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Unofficial Holidays, Part 6 of 6

Say this two times fast:

"Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers?
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?"

Now say this three times fast:

"A big black bug bit a big black bear, made the big black bear bleed blood."

And if you still have a tongue left, say this four times first:

"A dozen double damask dinner napkins."

And how is your tongue now?

If you haven't guessed yet, today is National Tongue Twister Day. So, before you go to bed tonight get your tongue twisted around a few words. Read Dr. Seuss. And Enjoy!

A Taste of the South Book Review

If you're from the South, you'll know what I'm talking about. Being related to every other person in town. Everyone thinking they know everything about you. Skeletons in the closet. And, of course, sweet tea, pickled vegetables of every type, and fried food. Sounds like my family...

It also sounds like the family of Piper Pickwick. And after skeletons threatened to come out her closet, its little wonder she left the sunny South. A family crisis, however, brings her back to her roots - in more ways than one.

Written with wit, laughter and fun - Leaving Carolina by Tamara Leigh is a delightful light-read full of fun characters and thought-provoking questions on well-kept secrets, forgiveness and restitution. Check it out and enjoy!

http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?isbn=9781601421661

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Life of One's Own

Here's a question for you.

Someone who was very close to me made a remark that I sounded so happy (note the "sounded" as if people can't fake how they speak) as late. She then remarked that I must be so delighted to have "a life of my own".

Let me just say those comments irked me.

For one, I knew she referred to the fact that I've "finally" left home. As if one can't be happy until that happens. Which means we have a lot of unhappy kids in the world, since all of them live at home.

Secondly, its not as if I live all by my lonesome self. For that matter, neither does she. And when you live with someone, you don't live all for yourself. That's the way life is.

Thirdly, I don't go through my day all on my own. I work in a office. The phone rings. I make calls. I talks to a hundred people a day. My boss is in his office. The nurses and aides come in and out. Faxes, e-mails, even old fashioned-mail. If I decided to just cross my arms over my shoulders and live "on my own", they may as well fire me. What use am I to them?

Fourthly, I don't spend my free time all on my own. I play tennis two evenings a week, walk with a friend one evening, go to church on Sundays, and meet friends now and then for shopping, ice cream or coffee. Granted, I like spending time in the midst of the four walls of my bedroom; but I do that A LOT less than I use to.

Now, it must be said that I choose to do these things. Therefore, I guess I do live "on my own" in that perspective. However, I'm a hermit by nature. I'd love more time on my own, but I have people depending on me. And we are called to be servants.

So while I ranted over these comments, one verse came to mind: "...ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Corinthians 6:19b-20)

So what do you think? Do we - should we - get a "life of our own"?