Rear View Mirror/Auld Lang Syne

 

  Ahh, times gone by... Learning to live, like learning to drive,  involves the "odd" idea of looking in the rearview mirror.  Very frequent quick glances in the rearview mirror keep the driver in touch with what's going on.  Some say hindsight is 20/20,  but, truthfully, most of us don't do it that well.  We tend to make the same mistakes over and over again.  Maybe we need to look in the rearview more often.  History repeats itself, so if we look in the rearview mirror and see disaster approching, maybe we can avoid it the second time around.
     Looking in the rearview mirror of this past year, watch for the position of key persons in your environment.  If someone leaves the road or changes lanes, you can take notice and be ready for the change. If you look back and see a completely different set of drivers than the last time you looked, be very careful;  someone may be in your blind spot.  And remember, everyone has blind spots.
   

   Try to understand the limited view that you get from the rearview mirror.  Despite your frequent quick glances in the rearview mirror, your primary concern should be with paying attention to what is going on right in front of you.  Driving defensively also involves looking as far into the distance as you can.  Serious accidents can be avoided by looking ahead and planning ways to avoid bad situations.

     So, on this New Year's Eve, take a look in the rearview mirror of your life.  Then take a good look forward.  Plan, pray, and hope for a prosperous and healthy 2011.  Auld Lang Syne.
     What DOES "Auld Lang Syne" mean, anyhow?  I have a little plate hanging on the wall in the kitchen with the words, "Auld Lang Syne" - and some of the music - on it.  And, I always knew that people sang it for  New Year's Eve.  I figured it had something to do with remembering the past and looking to the future...Well, I was half-right...
     Turns out that "Auld Lang Syne" means "times gone by".  So, now you know.  Singing the song, "Auld Lang Syne" is your rearview mirror.

     SHALOM  Y'ALL -  TWYLA

The Cleft of the Rock

my watercolor, "In The Cleft of The Rock"

 
  This morning I went to the opthamologist; then, stopped to buy chicken feed; then, went to vote.  The trip was an interesting experience because the first stop was the eye doctor, where they dilated my pupils, making the rest of my errands interesting to say the least...
     This was my first time to vote in this county.  I thought I knew where to go to vote, so I went to the general vicinity and watched to see where people were parking and what door they were going in and out of. I discerned that a certain annex of the courthouse must be the polling place.  As I entered the parking lot, a lady walked by, and I asked her if I was at the right place to vote.  She said, "Yes.", so I parked and went on in.  (The reader must keep in mind that I couldn't see more than  8 or 10  feet ahead - and  even that was blurry.   I think I must've had an unusual reaction to the dilation drops... I don't remember being THIS incapacitated the last time I had my eyes dilated.)
     So, anyhow, I went in.  Had to wait in one line, then another.  They couldn't find me on their lists.  Not with my maiden name nor my married name.  Hmmmm..... Finally, they looked me up in their computer system and found that I was at the wrong polling place.  I needed to go to the highschool. Thankfully, I know where the highschool is, so getting there wasn't a problem. But, once I got into the driveway, the same dilemna was before me as I looked at the many entrances.  There were posters all over the place, stating such things as "VOTE",  "Vote Here", etc.  Problem was, I couldn't read them until I was practically standing on top of them!  Again, I watched as people came and went; and, decided  on a certain entrance.  It was, again, a good guess.
     There were two lines.  We all  had to go through the first line to have our ID electronically swiped and a voter card issued.  Then,  we waited in the second line  for a computer booth to become available.  It wasn't at all unpleasant.  People around here are friendly and easy to strike up a conversation with.  Although the wait was probably about 45 minutes, it went quickly. After casting my ballot, I wandered back out to the Jeep and toodled on home.  Slowly.  "Toodling" is always slow, y'know?  Nobody in a hurry toodles. Moshe was  mortified, as am I, at my inability to see for these few hours, and to know that I was out driving in that condition! 
     Which brings me to the point of my story.  The painting above is adapted from several photos I took a few years ago when I visited Israel.  I kept seeing  and photographing white doves in various locations.  I saw them at the hotel.  I saw them at the Jordan River where we were baptized.  And I saw them at the Wailing Wall - lots of them, perched on top of the wall, flying about, and this one dove safely settled in the cleft of one of the huge rocks that make up The Wall.
      That's what it's all about.  Next time I need my eyes dilated, I'll make arrangements for someone else to drive.  But today, despite my lack of vision,  the LORD kept me safely in The Cleft of The Rock.

             Shalom Y'all - Twyla

Equal Time for Moxie

     Yesterday I blogged about CassPurr.  Not to be outdone, Moxie turned on the charm and deserves a note in her honor.
     When Moxie first arrived here almost two weeks ago, she was nervous and highstrung.  Of course, she didn't know what was going on.  She didn't know why her previous owners took her on a two-hour drive, stayed a couple days, then  left her here.  She didn't know whether she would be staying with us ten hours or ten minutes. Her anxiety showed.  She cried all night the first night, and would wet the floor at the slightest provocation.  It was her second day here when Moshe decided to let her ride in the truck with him to town.  She hesitantly agreed to get in the truck and cowered in the floorboard the whole trip.  She looked at him as if to say, "I like you okay, but I'm not sure about this riding stuff."  She has since ridden to town  a couple times with Moshe,  got more confident with each trip, but still wasn't crazy about "the vehicle thing".
     So, yesterday, Miss Moxie really surprised me.  I had gone grocery shopping.  I came home, and stopped in the driveway to get the mail. Moxie came running out to meet me.  Moshe hollered to her that it was "just Mommy", and not to bark.  He didn't see what she did, nor did I.  But, when I tried to get back in the Jeep, there was Moxie, sitting in the driver's seat and just a' grinnin'. She had made the big time!  I patted the passenger side and she graciously moved over.  We drove up the driveway, and that was one happy dog!
   And, so it is with people.  Sometimes - perhaps often - when we think an event isn't so great, it turns out to be the day of our life!
                                                                     Shalom Y'all,     Twyla