Christmas is always a good time to remember friends who live too far away to see very often. I had a close friend in high-school and after graduation she worked at the local Bank and I worked at the Drug Store. We later roomed together to help on expenses. I have to laugh when I think of our wages. We would work and be paid at the end of each week. Thankfully everything was pretty much in line with our wages……..so it stretched by being careful.

We both married and went separate ways but managed to keep up with one another. We were there for encouragement, prayers, hope, sympathy or whatever. Over the years it went from letters and phoning to our first computers and cell phones. We are electronic grandma’s now and our writing is more about family, health-issues or passing on news from other classmates.

My friend has some kind of eye deterioration and I can’t remember the name specifically but she is losing her eyesight and there isn’t anything that can be done about it. She has crocheted afghans and little stocking caps and donated them to her hospital nursery for years.

Now she is limited but continues to crochet the two afghan patterns she has memorized. She wears a light on her forehead, and crochets as she listens to books. She was always an avid reader but now checks out audio tapes from the library. She said for a gal who couldn’t walk and chew gum she can now crochet and read at the same time.

She is just one example of finding a way to redefine what could become handicaps. I am proud of her “can do” attitude and the friendship we made the effort to keep. The card she sent had to be read to her but she picked it out and I am proud to receive it.

If we feel limited in any way……..I know there is a way around, under, over, beside, up or down. Nothing can ever deter the human spirit.

Essentially Esther

We are due for a big weather change so I saved today to decorate for Christmas. I surprised myself and did a little cleaning and re-arranging in the garage. I found many things I’d forgotten about……most of which have lost any hope of usefulness and have been relegated for a stop-over in the garage before being dumped.

I found old decorations and items which have been favorites over the years and they always bring joy to the household. I hope my new kitty will behave but I would imagine she will go for the trinkets that are in reach and make herself crazy trying to get the ones that aren‘t.

I have three small trees so they will have to do. George (oldest son) has had the custom of giving Hallmark decorations for the tree every year. My favorite have always been the Village pieces of the Nostalgic Houses and Shops. George tells me I have all of them except the very first one. I never put them on a tree because of our small home but I make a Village out of them on a shelf in the living room. A Christmas tree has to be the small kind……..An old favorite is a ceramic tree George made before he went to the Navy during the Viet Nam era. It has colored lights and does very well for the “town tree” in the midst of the Village.

I have a pin John sent one year…….he just thought I’d like it and it arrived as a bonus before Christmas. It was special because he saw it and thought of me. What mother wouldn’t cherish the pin? A reindeer with a red bow. Jennifer gave me a wreath pin one year, gold, glittery and pretty. Becky didn’t have money to buy gifts one year and made a counted cross-stitch piece…..dear to my heart. It’s those little things that bring joy each time Christmas rolls around.

I have an angel pin the Blue Birds presented to me one Christmas. We were in the living room by the tree and I gave them their little gifts after our cookies and milk. Sitting on the floor with them and the lights shining brightly is a memory I reel in often…..it was a special time for me. When we held hands and sang our Blue Bird song before leaving….they surprised me when they broke into song (We Wish You a Merry Christmas) and presented me with the little gold angel pin. She is holding a Christmas tree and looking very angelic.

Anything I have ever done for anyone has always come back with memories worth keeping. We cannot outdo the grace God pours back when we try to make life better for someone else. He never fails, never forgets, never lets us go beyond what He and we can do together.

Essentially Esther

Yesterday was a Power-Meet at The Firm where Rocky did his weight-training. His coach plans a Team Rockstar once a year as well as other occasions where Rocky is the object of the Meet. There were men from Rolla, Springfield, Mountain Home, and others I didn’t get around to meet and greet. Rocky’s daughter, Holly, and her family traveled from the Western edge of our State.

After the men arrive Coach Rodney sees that they sign in and weigh in. Following that he talks about Rocky and what he meant to the team both as a competitor and as a person. Once he explains the rules the completion begins.

It begins around 10:00am and is usually over by 3:30pm. It is undeniably a long day but it gives us a chance to visit with old friends and family in-between events. They had a good crowd and there are two of the guys who really put on a show. They yell and roar like an animal as they flex their muscles and it stirs the crowd up. It’s a wide open policy to cheer and applaud with some yelling of our own.

Some of the guys come wearing T-Shirts from the beginning of the Rocky Meets clear up to the new one offered yesterday. It’s always good to see some of the Lifters from other areas and this time we had two women who competed.

The next Rocky Memorial Meet will be at Cape Girardeau in September 2011. With the monies donated all year and with money from the T-Shirts we are able to help in several areas. This year we were able to increase Tommy Meyer’s scholarship money which we were happy to do. He is a fine athlete and Rocky was so impressed with him….he goes to Evangel University in Springfield and still trains with the Power-lifting team at “home”……he is currently contributing to the football program at the University and has become quite a star in his own right. He is one of the top 5 Lifter’s in the United States in his age and weight bracket.

Tommy took an opportunity to thank the Rockenbach family for the help we have given him. In his own words, “I have been really blessed for the help all of you have given me.” One look in his eyes would have told me the same thing without him saying a word. He’s a fine young man and I’m as impressed with him as Rocky was.

Essentially Esther