New Year's Resolutions

Normally I set a bunch of annual goals rather than making resolutions. And I still might do that some, especially with my business and with ministry. But to be honest, I sense that God is calling me to a different focus this year. Not so much about bettering "me." In fact, a reduced "me" focus is called for. Goals this year will be focused on ways for me to grow relationships (with God and others) and ways I can serve others.

Maybe I'll toy around with heightening all 5 senses, not just physically, but internally:
Focus
Taste
Feel
Hear
Smell
Savor

Let's see how that shapes up this year.

Proverbs 34:8 (NLT) Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

Walls Coming Down!

When I first started this blog in November 2005, I was full of ideas to share with my very few readers (mostly family and friends). My goal for the blog started out simple: to stay connected with those special to me. Then as time went on, I added more to the blog and more reasons for the blog. But about three years ago I started learning "rules" that put a damper on my blog-writing enthusiasm. I became too concerned with what some would think about my posts (too personal, too much drama to be real, too "religious," too too...). And this last year, my blog posts dwindled to almost nothing. In 2010, I'm going to find my blog voice again.

So, today, the walls come down!

What IS Normal, Anyway?

I once heard that "normal" is only a setting on a dryer--not on humans, and I'm beginning to believe that! None of us are untouched by trials or get through life without pain of some kind. Suffering is merely one side of a coin, we each get to experience the other side of the coin as well, if we so choose--peace and contentment.

And really, if you think about it, there's no such thing as a family that ISN'T dysfunctional in some way! Some just know how to function better with the dysfunction than others.

No matter how "normal" I try to act, I realize that I am NOT normal when it comes to my health. Someone called it "handicapable" rather than "handicapped." I don't care what you call it, but it is inconvenient! Today I tried going to the post office. A rather "normal" task, right? Wrong! I had three crates of pre-stamped packages to drop off. I got the bright idea of taking my briefcase roller bag, thinking I could put one crate on TOP of the case, and use the rollers as a way to get the crate inside, allowing my other hand to hold the cane.

Since I thought I was closer to "normal" I had let my temporary handicapped parking placard expire and so I couldn't park in the handicapped parking spot. But I needed that ramp to roll the crate up to the sidewalk. So, I parked on the other side of the parking lot and had to roll the crate across the uneven surface where the cars drive through, to get to the building. Of course in the middle of the busiest spot the wheel caught a bump and the entire crate toppled over, spilling the precious cargo all around my feet. Cars had to stop because of this crazy woman in the middle of the drive, with scattered white padded packing envelopes surrounding me like spilt milk. I dropped my cane to the ground and picked up the packages, placing them back in the crate, and thought I'd try once again to make it to the door, but the roller bag crumpled under the weight.

A Good Samaritan witnessed my plight and came over to carry my crate to the counter for me. What a gentleman! And the postmaster watched my crazy stunt, so when I confessed I still had two more crates of packages to bring in, he loaned me a hand-truck to use. So, I rolled it and the busted roller bag back out to the car, and again worked diligently to position the crate on the cart to roll inside. I forgot to mention there was police tape cordoning off the largest portion of the sidewalk in front of the post office due to the glass getting shot out this week, so I had to go the LONG way to get to the door. No shortcuts in life, right?!

So, each time I made it to the door, more Good Samaritans opened the door for me so I could make it inside. What a sight I must have been, me with my cane in one hand, the cart toting these crates in the other hand, and sweat pouring off the back of my neck.

All of that because I didn't want to admit I'm "challenged" and ask my husband or someone else to drop off these crates at the post office!

Maybe I need to readjust my thinking about my normal status after all!

Kathy Carlton Willis (copyright 2009)

SEATTLE: Personality

Some of the things I wanted to share about our Seattle vacation regard the personality and style of the town. It's like no other town I've been in: liberal politics, alternative lifestyles of every sort, eco-friendly, natural, multi-ethnic, vibrant, colorful, energetic, eccentric, etc.

Clothing styles like I've seen nowhere else in my travels--as ecclectic as the personalities, mixing function, message, and style. Women of all ages and shapes wore leggings under dresses or long shirts or under shorts. You name it, they had on leggings. Some with high heels to rival the space needle, others with tennis shoes that advertised a walking to work pedestrian. If not leggings, the skinny jean.

More dreadlocks, less deodorant. More walking, less driving. More coffee, less tea. More languages, less litter. More fresh, less canned. More entertainment choices, less church buildings. More Smart Cars, less SUVs.

The weather alone made me happy. The view...happier still.

And for this public relations gal, the palpable BUZZ was thrilling. Maybe it was all that collective coffee drinking (me withstanding).

Here are some photos to tell the tale of Seattle moods:

SEATTLE: Day One, Part Two

So, I realize that there's no way I can write about all the thrilling things we did in Seattle in the detail I'd like to give. I'm going through a type of "boot camp" physical therapy right now and so I'm not exactly riddled with extra time and mental focus after giving my clients first dibs to my brain and creativity. So, I'll have to do the Seattle: Condensed Version report.

The rest of Day One consisted of:

Eating at FareStart (a restaurant where they train jobless, often homeless individuals to learn the various jobs associated with running a 4-star restaurant).


Unfortunately, I had some sort of bug, and so I didn't get to enjoy my meal much. Russ had a BLT w/Haddock.

After resting a bit at the hotel, we walked down to my first peak of Pike's Market. It is amazing. I could go there every day! If I lived in Seattle, I would rarely buy food in a grocery store. Can you imagine cooking with fresh ingredients every day. WOWZER! And this market has a little of everything. We went almost every day of our trip--so I'll share photos throughout the blog posts. Here's a start:





Then, we ate at a French restaurant called the Maximilien at the market. By this time I was hungry and opened with the best French Onion Soup I've ever eaten, then enjoyed the best filet mignon, with gourmet mashed potatoes and veggies and bread with the BEST butter. If we had dessert, I can't remember. The other great part of the meal was the view of the water from our table. And the waiter was French--his accent added to the ambiance of the entire experience!

SEATTLE: Day One, Part One

Waking up in Seattle is a vacation if nothing else happened all day. The view. The air. The weather. Did I mention the view?

Russ found a variety drug store across the street from our hotel while I was stirring, and picked up a Diet Pepsi Max for me and some packaged pastries. Starbucks Coffee in the room. We didn't want to load up too much since we had such a big day planned.

First off, we took the monorail to the Seattle Center to pick take the tour via land and sea on the WW2 Ducks Amphibious Landing Craft. Or Ducks for short. This was one of our favorite activities of the vacation, because the tour guide understood our kind of crazy. He gave us a great tour of the sites, but we also got to sing and interact and just be goofy.

It was during one of these goofy songs (I think it was YMCA, complete with arm motions), that an elderly pedestri-woman shook her head at us in disdain and asked us, "What in the WORLD do you think you're doing?" All the while scolding us with her pointed finger.

Oh well...I guess what sounds like fun to some people sounds like noise pollution to others!



One of the best parts of the tour was when we drove from the road, right into the water and toured the water's edge of Seattle. There are some parts of the town best viewed from the water.

And then, there's the water.

Sun rays warming the face. Moist air cooling the flushed skin. Slight waves rocking the boat. Nature alone is enough.

But there's more. Float planes. House boats. Floating homes (we learned the difference!) Fancy yachts. War vessels. Deadliest Catch ships.

We learned to be able to spot our hotel in the skyline of every tour, of every walkabout.

The tour guide showed us the home of Sleepless in Seattle.

Just so much. Before noon on Day One!

Back on land, almost sad to know we were headed back to headquarters.

Oh...and every time we drove by a Starbucks Coffee (almost every corner), we were coached to shout out "cha ching!" Fun, funny, and so true!

I highly recommend this tour, and suggest you do it early in your vacation so you can get oriented on the Seattle basics. A must do!

SEATTLE: Travel Day

Over the next few days I'm going to write about some of the highlights and insights of our recent vacation to Seattle. Russ and I have traveled many places, but never to the northwestern part of our country, so this was a real treat. We have been planning this trip for over a year now. It was originally scheduled for last August, but a series of events put our trip on hold. So, let's begin!

We flew out of Harlingen, TX around 5 PM Central Time, with a brief layover in Houston. No real time to get a meal there, and we weren't really hungry. But we often experienced the pit-of-the-stomach hunger while flying due to in-air snacks limited to nuts and soft drinks. Risking it, we boarded essentially foodless (a few cookies stashed, just in case). So we were pleasantly surprised when their "snack" consisted of a delicious cheeseburger and fresh green salad, and a chocolate bar for dessert.

We landed in Seattle around 10 PM Pacific Time, after being in the air about five-and-a-half hours total. One thing we realized is the older you get, the smaller and less comfortable those seats in the plane become. So, we walked off the plane a little bit like Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein!

The buses were about to close, and didn't sound all that special to take anyway, with our baggage and my wheelchair. We planned to take a taxi, but when we hailed one, he refused to take us due to my wheelchair, even though we showed him it folds up easily for stowing. He said he could call a van for us from the same taxi line, but it could take a while.



This limo driver kept bugging us to ride with him. Finally he quoted us a price just $13 more than the absent van, and after that long on a plane and desiring to get to our room, we succumbed. So this was our first ever limo ride.



The driver decided to be our first Seattle tour guide as well, so there was no glass window between us and the front to provide privacy for our ride to the hotel. That's okay, it was enjoyable to get a sneak peak at what we had in store for us over the next 8 days. And the city was beautiful at night!



We arrived at the Westin, greeted by the valet. That is the last real memory I have of the night. I know we went to the registration desk. We struggled with our luggage up to the 39th floor. We performed the perfunctory oohs and ahs much like a fireworks display when we viewed our room as well as the room's view. But truthfully, that last 15 minutes felt like sleepwalking as if living out a dream sequence compared to the vivid memories of the days that followed.

We sunk into what Westin calls their "heavenly bed" and "lights out."

RECIPE: Quick Brown Rice Casserole

Okay, I invented this recipe last night when I didn't have the ingredients for a traditional rice pilaf, and didn't have all the ingredients for a baked brown rice.

serves 4-6

1 boil-in-bag Brown Rice (quick rice that cooks in 10 minutes)-cooked
(Brown rice is healthier and has a nice nutty taste perfect for this recipe)

Mix with:
1 small can mushroom stems 'n pieces
1/2 cup or so of frozen seasoning mix (I think its onions, peppers, celery, parsley)
1 tsp. butter
little shake of poultry seasoning, and garlic pepper seasoning, and sea salt
1 egg

Bake for 375 in a convection oven for 10 minutes. Or 375 in regular oven for 15 minutes.

Remove and add about 1/2 cup of grated reduced fat Mexican blend cheese-stir. Pat down with back of spoon. Then sprinkle about 1/3 cup of sliced almonds on top.

Go back in the 375 convection oven for about 5-10 more minutes.

It's all ready in just 30 minutes--most steamed brown rice takes 50 minutes so this is a good time saver, boosts up the taste AND the nutritional values.

YUM!

RECIPE: Spaghetti Sauce

I made a pretty awesome spaghetti sauce last night, if I do say so myself. I made it with just ingredients I had on hand.

This is a small batch since there are just 2 of us. I think it feeds 4.

1 15 oz. can tomato puree
1 15 oz. can petite diced tomatoes, with liquid
1 small can tomato sauce
1 small can tomato paste
Italian Seasoning, crushed up in my hands first
Minced garlic
diced fresh mushrooms
Salt

Cook in large saucepan.

In a saute pan, brown ground beef (I used less than a pound) and towards the end, add chopped onion salt and pepper and cook until onions are transparent. Drain and add to the saucepan. Ten minutes before serving, add a splash of red wine vinegar and a packed tablespoon of brown sugar and let it cook in before serving over your pasta of choice.

Dedicatory Reading

Last July, Hurricane Dolly desecrated our place of worship, leaving our sanctuary in ruins. For the past nine months a rebirth of sorts has transformed the rubble into the awe-inspiring sanctuary we have today. In a previous post below are some photos.

Sunday was our dedication service. Part of the program was a responsive reading we all took part in, to commit together to use this building for God's service and for His glory. I wanted to save it here for us all to reflect on in days to come:

Congregational Dedication:

LEADER: Because we have purposed in our hearts to rebuild a sanctuary to the worship of the true and living God, and to the service of Jesus Christ our Lord, I call upon the congregation to stand for the holy act of dedication. To the glory of God the Father; to the honor of Jesus Christ
the Son; to the praise of the Holy Spirit¬–”

CONGREGATION: We dedicate this House.

LEADER: Knowing there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved–

CONGREGATION: We dedicate this House to the bringing of the saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ to the unconverted.

LEADER: In obedience to the explicit command of Christ to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature–

CONGREGATION: We dedicate this House to the mission of world evangelization with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

LEADER: Realizing the obligation to bring up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord–

CONGREGATION: We dedicate this House to the sanctity of the home and the hallowing of family life; to the religious nurture and education of children, youth, and adults; to the grace of Christian character and the warmth of Christian fellowship.

LEADER: In obedience to the command of Christ to love our neighbor as ourselves–

CONGREGATION: We dedicate this House to the communion of the saints, to the refuge of weary restless souls, to the peace and hope of the oppressed, to the comfort of those that mourn, and to the happiness of all those of like precious faith.

LEADER & CONGREGATION: We, the members and friends of First Baptist Church, deeply grateful for the heritage that has been entrusted to us, and keenly conscious of those ties by which we are bound to the Lord of all life, and to each other, do covenant together in this act of dedication, offering ourselves anew to the work and worship of our Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Photos of Our Newly Restored Sanctuary

Thanks to Sophia Trevino and Antonio Lovera for these photos:

Channel 4 Covers Our Return to Sanctuary after Dolly

Channel 4 News did a report of our Easter Service back in the sanctuary that was ransacked by Hurricane Dolly 9 months ago. We still have plenty of finishing touches, but this was a nice story.

Video is here after commercial:
CLICK HERE


Article on their site is here:
CLICK HERE

And photos of the before and after are posted here:
CLICK HERE

American Idol April 7th--Adam Won My Vote Tonight

I Worship You by Mary Mary

Dream Bigger!

I'm traveling on a 10-day roatrip with assistant and friend, Gina Stinson. Her husband Bruce asked me one of my favorite questions tonight, and now I can't sleep, thinking about it. He asked me if what I'm doing now is "living the dream" of what I dream of doing in my life. My reply was, all this and MORE. I'm a big dreamer, and God is an even BIGGER dreamer, coming up with all sorts of exciting and challenging plans for my life.

The projects I'd love to work on are ones I sense God leading me to work on--some with church and community ministry, some with business (which is also a ministry).

The hard part is to figure out how to get from Point A (where I am now) to Point B (where I believe God is leading me). I don't want to have a 40-year journey in the wilderness, if I can help it! Just like we used mapquest to figure out our road trip route, taking us from our current position to our destination, I wish I could figure out a way to mapquest my life.

But there really is a simple way. Allow God to dream big dreams for me, and then obey Him as He leads each step. Each decision, each contact, each project, yielded to His direction. Yet, it's not always as simple as it sounds.

But it IS exciting. Maybe, just maybe the journey is as important as the destination. Gina and I are looking forward to the road trip as much as the conference, and maybe my life journey of getting from where I am to each task God has for me is just as important as the arrival. Gina and I will visit in the car as we travel. God and I will fellowship on my life trips to various God-directed tasks and projects. On this road trip we have to trust the map to get us there even on roads we've never driven, and we have to trust the vehicle to function properly. In my life journey, I have to trust to get ahead too. Trust God. And trust that God-given gut instinct He places inside of me.

I'm dreaming big dreams, and I'm determined to enjoy the trip as much as the destinations in this great big life God has for me!

Independence Day

After not driving since August 2008, for the first time by myself yesterday, I drove. Not far (still too weak and too much pain for distance or high speeds), but I drove to the hair salon and back home. FREEDOM!

GIFTED HANDS: The Ben Carson Story

I'm up late watching GIFTED HANDS: The Ben Carson Story. I set my DVR to record it almost 4 weeks ago, but am just now slowing down long enough to sit this still for 2 hours (minus the fast-forwards through commercials). Originally I taped it because Cecil Murphey was the book collaborator for this story, and I'm a big fan of Cec. It doesn't hurt that Cuba Gooding, Jr. stars in the made-for-TV movie. He's also one of my faves.

I have to say, I'm so very touched by this movie. I've heard it pretty accurately depicts the true life of Dr. Ben Carson. I wish I could find a doctor with similar character traits to help tackle the Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy in my lower leg.

Dr. Carson was brought up underprivileged and challenged to make something of his life. He found a whole new world through library books that changed his direction in life. And according to the movie, he overcame an anger problem through a faith in God. By the time he was in college, he had his head screwed on straight and was ready to achieve. And his achievements could fill another book!

What an amazing success story For Dr. Carson. Now I plan to go back and read the book for sure! Perhaps some of you will want to pick it up as well.

Friday--Fried Day

This is the day most workers have sort of a sensation of elation because the weekend is coming. In fact, just last Friday I was singing TGIF--Thank God It's Fun Day! We picked up our new vehicle and acted like teenagers all weekend long.

Well, I guess I'm not young enough to "run the roads" like that (Southern vernacular for cruising or running errands all day or living out of your car). This week it's been ouch-this and oh-that and ugh-the other thing.

Why is when we have the ability to really have fun in terms of means we no longer have the ability to really have fun in terms of energy?!

So today is "Fried Day" but maybe next Friday will be another "Fun Day." A girl can always hope!

Christian Work at Home Moms

I met Jill Hart, founder of Christian Work at Home Moms, at a writers' conference and she stood out to me because she was so genuine and content. I believe that contentment came from the peace-of-mind she had being able to work from home and do what she loves while juggling all else in her life. I may not be a mom, but I certainly can relate to the "work-at-home" part of the equation. It's not a hobby, it's a career. So, I'm pleased to help Jill make this announcement:

CWAHM.com Announces Work At Home 101 A FREE online 3 week course designed to give moms a work-at-home starting place. Most people are curious about working from home. We know others do it, but aren't sure how they do it. CWAHM.com's Work at Home 101 is designed to give you an overview of the choices available that will allow you to work from home. This online course will give you the starting place you've been searching for. Best of all - it's completely free! CLICK HERE! Some of the things covered during Work at Home 101: * Where to Start * Telecommuting * Home-Based Businesses * Avoiding Scams * Entrepreneur Tips *AND MUCH MORE!

Reality Inducers

Well, today reality hit me twice. And you can laugh—it’s okay—I’m laughing too!

The first reality event (and I’m not talking Survivor here, although I’m glad it’s on too) was at Target today. I had my cane with me because we were going to practice at PT, but I needed my wheelchair to shop at Target. No problem, hubby said I could try one of those electric carts. I had always abstained from the electric cart, saying I was chicken that I’d end up playing chicken with an end cap display or a shopper. One of those carts could take down a small child or a medium stack of Pringles cans! Plus...truth be told...I didn’t want to learn to drive one because that would mean I’m disabled and not just having a temporary recovery period from surgery. Surgery was in September and recovery was supposed to be six weeks. This isn’t that. I needed to face it. And face my fears I did—I mounted the cart and proudly powered up and down the aisles at my own pace, well...not exactly. At the pace of a turtle. Not my pace at all. But I was moving, and I was off my feet. And I was FREE! What a nice feeling. In my heart’s mind, the wind was blowing my hair as it was all going in slow motion. Well, the slow mo was right, but the wind was just an active imagination (for that matter, my flowing hair was a fantasy as well!).

The second reality event happened in the comfort of my leather recliner chair at home. For the past three days I’ve been smelling something DEAD while sitting in this chair. At first Russ didn’t smell it. I felt like my nose was fooling me. But I started lighting one, two, three candles. The sickening odor overpowered the spicy scent of “mulled cider” wax. I just KNEW something had taken up residence in our ductwork and expired. By day three, it was WELL past its expiration date!

So, I decided to take matters into my own hands. By this time, I determined a mouse had crawled into my chair and died. I know, you are thinking now I really AM losing it. You should have seen me tipping over my chair to seek a lifeless furry critter. I looked like I was wrestling leather! After the chair was tipped over, I found a little droplet of brown syrupy stuff on the floor. The CSI in me determined it was blood, but not human. At this point, Russ took me seriously and started helping me seek out the offensive odor. With flashlight in hand, a large mouse was discovered in it’s final repose. Then it dawned on me. My XXX-pound behind had single-handedly (or double-cheekedly) killed Mickey Mouse.

I’m sorry, Annette Funicello!