thehereandafter

I found this one special piece of paper tucked in among  some photographs in a box my mama kept. Let me read to you the first part... "Taipei (Taiwan) Oct. 6 It is almost midnite and I just got home. Chuck's (my father) in Kaohsiung and the kiddies are in bed asleep. We're in condition '3' of typhoon Carla and it has been storming since about 4:00 this morning. " It then continues to explain that on this night she was attending a baby shower at a friend's home. She explains that their friends Dean and Gayla arrived and she was happy to see them because mama and another lady were alone from Tien Mow (the city we lived in). " And we thank God again, because on the way home we got on the Shelin Bridge and discovered the T.A.S. (Taipei American School) corner was flooded and we couldn't get home. Dean led the way and we started back up the mountain and home by way of Peitow Chen. There was water over the road, a few trees down and a slide, but

My daughter, Amanda, had a love for baby dolls when she was young. A girl can never have too many babies! That was her motto and she was an excellent Mommy. When she wrapped one of her babies in a blanket to put them down for a nap she would wrap them all up and put them to bed. If she brought out her stroller the whole family of babies went for a walk and when she took her "cozy coupe" for a spin there were babies crammed in like sardines. We were at the mall one day and she saw a baby in the window and refused to walk on. She wanted to go into the store and see that baby. Well, we could have picked her up...probably screaming and kicking or go in the store and see the baby. We chose to take her in the store but laid down some ground rules first. "We are going in to see this baby, to tell it hello but then we...mommy, daddy, and you are coming out of the store and going to finish our business. We are not going to buy the baby and we are going to be obedient when it

Forgive me, and be assured that I will only say this once...well, I will try! Over the course of the last few years, life has been emotional tough and physically draining. I have really tried my best to put on my happy face so many times, on so many days, but it was really just to keep my mama and daddy's moral up. I don't think I managed it very well and somewhere along the way I lost the gift of joy. But Mama!...she never lost her joy and her sense of humor...even to the very last days she was able to show us a smirk, a smile, a raising of her eyebrows...Mama was an amazing mother and woman. She would want her whole family to be joyful, to have their sense of humor, to be able to laugh! And through the grace of God we all will again...Mama, these Fun Friday posts are in honor of you!  When you think you have had a bad day just pull up this post and reread it...puts it in perspective! You Know It's A Bad Day When... You turn on the morning TV news and they're d

My Uncle Stan, who lives in Canada on a lake, gave me this cute plastic duck. It is a duck decoy so it is the same size as a real duck. It has been hanging around the house for years...20+. Easy to care for...no clipping wings, no feeding, no late night worries about some animal attacking it...just a little dusting now and then! LOL! My son-in-law David decided to play a little trick on me one day while doing yard work. He took my duck, Stan, outside and put him in the birdbath. This birdbath is in the front yard just outside the window where my chair sits in the living room. Very view able. I glanced out the window and saw this duck sitting in the bird bath and it fooled me. At first glance I thought to myself that we had a duck right outside the window. I took a second look and realized it was Stan; not real at all. We all had a good laugh but Stan now resides there full-time. My grands love it. When they come to MeMe's house, Aiden always goes to the window and states,"Me

I had the most heartwarming moment the other day. Let me take a minute to tell you about it. Taking a minute to glance through my FB page I came across a video my daughter in law had posted.    She had my little granddaughter, who mind you is not even two years old yet, in her lap, rocking her to put her down to bed. My daughter Ashley was singing to my cupcake Charleston. It was one of those precious moments...Ashley softly singing "How Great Thou Art" when our little Charleston started to sing too! They both,while rocking, were softly and tenderly singing together! Take a minute to watch the short video...or not...this post will continue. https://www.facebook.com/ashley.barnes.56/videos/1782371055109786/ This made me tear up! Not only because I am a grammie but because I know how much God was honored in this small tiny moment in all of time! A mommy and a baby giving adoration to the one that gave them this sweet moment...this wonderful life! And because I was so very

The other day I came across an hour long program on TV highlighting Arnold Palmer and "Arnie's Army". It was quite interesting and being a "Master's Tournament" fan I really enjoy it. Over the next few days that word "Army" seemed to stay in my brain. Several times it popped out at me like it was a neon sign...Ollie's Army, United States Army, Army of Tourist, Army of Photographers.  I figured God was prompting me so I took a few minutes to pray, look through my bible and browse my study notes.   Angels really do exist and the meaning of the word angel comes the Greek word and Hebrew word meaning "messenger".  They really do exist , who are heavenly bodies not bound by human constraints. They exist for the sole purpose of praising God and carrying out his will; to do the will of God, "to be His messengers, guides, providers, protectors, deliverers, encourages, as a means of answering prayers, caring for us at the moment of d