Z is for Zero

Well, here I am at the end of the A-Z blogger challenge. I can't believe I made it. It was hard sometimes to come up with something good to say. But, I think 25 was my limit. I can't really think of anything good to write about here. I do have a good excuse though. I have been sick with the flu.

Cute cartoon I found on Google Images.

Now, zero is not always bad. It sure adds more value to a number when they are added. Wouldn't it be good to have zero of a few things? Like crimes.

Y is for You're So Awesome

Thanks for being you. You are all wonderful and I am glad you are in my life.

X is for X Chromosome

The X chromosome is one of the chromosomes that determines the sex of a person. XX is female and XY is male. I have heard about this all my life and even have two that I have been carrying around for over 50 years. Little did I know that this little microscopic chromosome would have such an impact on my life. The about picture is a "normal" X chromosome. The one below is not "normal" My x chromosome and my son's X chromosome looks like this. This little abnormality has really caused a lot of problems but has also brought joy and great learning to me.

Anyway, here's to the x Chromosome that has changed my life.

W is for Won't You Be My Neighbor

This is a picture of the back of a house that I can see from my front porch. It is for sale. It is probably a good price because it is a foreclosure.

So, do ya wanna be my neighbor??

V is for Verbs

Here are some pictures of a few of my favorite verbs.

What are your favorite verbs?

U is for Under The Sea

Here are some great underwater pictures I found on Google Images. Wouldn't it be fun to go under the sea and explore?

Here is a cute video about being under the sea. They say that life is better there.

Sunday Will Come Happy Easter

As we all go about this beautiful Easter Day, may we remember the true meaning of this day.

T is for Two Pictures in the Hallway

These are the two pictures that hang in the hallway outside my bedroom door. When I come out in the morning, I see the picture of Jesus and the Rich Young Ruler. This reminds me to give my day to Jesus. Live as he would have me live.

The second picture I see is this one of Jesus in the garden. I see this at the end of the day. It reminds me to be thankful for my day and that Jesus suffered and paid for my sins. Also, any thing else I felt that day. It also gives me hope that I can be forgiven and try harder the next day.
As we go about this Easter weekend, let us be reminded of the sacrifice that Jesus made for us that we might live again. I know that I am truly grateful for the things that Jesus did for me. My life would be so much worse without it.

S is for Subtle

SUBTLE: so slight as to be difficult to detect or describe; elusive.

not immediately obvious or comprehensible.

Allow me to illustrate my point.

Below is just a seemingly ordinary soda cup from In-N-Out

On closer inspection we find.......

Subtle enough for you?

R is for Raggylug

This is a story that my mom would tell us about sometime. Her dad told it to her and her sister many times as a child. Perhaps this is where "Mother is always right" or "You should always listen to your mother" came from.

Raggylug

Once there was a little furry rabbit, who lived with his mother deep down in a nest under the long grass. His name was Raggylug, and his mother's name was Molly Cottontail. Every morning, when Molly Cottontail went out to hunt for food, she said to Raggylug, "Now, Raggylug, lie still, and make no noise. No matter what you hear, no matter what you see, don't you move. Remember you are only a baby rabbit, and lie low." And Raggylug always said he would.

One day, after his mother had gone, he was lying very still in the nest, looking up through the feathery grass. By just cocking his eye, so, he could see what was going on up in the world. Once a big bluejay perched on a twig above him, and scolded someone very loudly; he kept saying, "Thief! thief!" But Raggylug never moved his nose, nor his paws; he lay still. Once a lady-bird took a walk down a blade of grass, over his head; she was so top-heavy that pretty soon she tumbled off and fell to the bottom, and had to begin all over again. But Raggylug never moved his nose nor his paws; he lay still.

The sun was warm, and it was very still.

Suddenly Raggylug heard a little sound, far off. It sounded like "Swish, swish," very soft and far away. He listened. It was a queer little sound, low down in the grass, "rustle-- rustle--rustle"; Raggylug was interested. But he never moved his nose or his paws; he lay still. Then the sound came nearer, "rustle-- rustle--rustle"; then grew fainter, then came nearer; in and out, nearer and nearer, like something coming; only, when Raggylug heard anything coming he always heard its feet, stepping ever so softly. What could it be that came so smoothly,--rustle--rustle without any feet?

He forgot his mother's warning, and sat up on his hind paws; the sound stopped then. "Pooh," thought Raggylug, "I'm not a baby rabbit, I am three weeks old; I'll find out what this is." He stuck his head over the top of the nest, and looked--straight into the wicked eyes of a great big snake. "Mammy, Mammy!" screamed Raggylug. "Oh, Mammy, Mam----" But he couldn't scream any more, for the big snake had his ear in his mouth and was winding about the soft little body, squeezing Raggylug's life out. He tried to call "Mammy!" again, but he could not breathe.

Ah, but Mammy had heard the first cry. Straight over the fields she flew, leaping the stones and hummocks, fast as the wind, to save her baby. She wasn't a timid little cottontail rabbit then; she was a mother whose child was in danger. And when she came to Raggylug and the big snake, she took one look, and then hop! hop! she went over the snake's back; and as she jumped she struck at the snake with her strong hind claws so that they tore his skin. He hissed with rage, but he did not let go.

Hop! hop! she went again, and this time she hurt him so that he twisted and turned; but he held on to Raggylug.

Once more the mother rabbit hopped, and once more she struck and tore the snake's back with her sharp claws. Zzz! How she hurt! The snake dropped Raggy to strike at her, and Raggy rolled on to his feet and ran.

"Run, Raggylug, run!" said his mother, keeping the snake busy with her jumps; and you may believe Raggylug ran! Just as soon as he was out of the way his mother came too, and showed him where to go. When she ran, there was a little white patch that showed under her tail; that was for Raggy to follow, --he followed it now.

Far, far away she led him, through the long grass, to a place where the big snake could not find him, and there she made a new nest. And this time, when she told Raggylug to lie low you'd better believe he minded!

(Adapted from Mr Ernest Thompson Seton's Wild Animals I have known. (David Nutt, 57-59 Long Acre, W.C. 6s. net.))

from How to Tell Stories to Children, and Some Stories to Tell , by Sara Cone Bryant

Q is for Quiet

Sometimes we just need to be quiet. Sometimes it is okay not to say anything. Being quiet is good for the soul. It helps you to regroup, to think, to concentrate, to ponder and pray. I find myself needing and looking forward to my "quiet time" each day. It helps me to be a better person. It helps me clear my mind and to receive inspiration. So, go ahead and have some quiet time.

P is for Piano

I love the piano. I could sit and listen to it for hours. I also love watching people play it accompanied by an orchestra. The piano is capable of making so many sounds. It has always amazed me how many sounds/notes that can come from a piano with only 88 keys.

This is a song from one of my favorite movies, Easter Parade. Enjoy!

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O is for Optimism

"The essence of optimism is that it takes no account of the present, but it is a source of inspiration, of vitality and hope where others have resigned: it enables a man to hold his head high, to claim the future for himself and not to abandon it to his enemy."

~Dietrich Bonhoeffer~

The funny side of optimism.

Optimism is the tendency to look on the bright side of things and a belief that everything will turn out for the best. So, here's to the bright side.

N is for Nice Knowing You

I had a hard time deciding what to post for this day. Today, April 16, marks the 78th anniversary of my father's birth. He will be spending another birthday in Heaven just like he has spent them since 1985. Wow, that has been a long time.

Even thought he has been gone for many years, I can still feel him by me. The night before his funeral, he stood at the foot of my bed all night. I also have felt him he in my home several times after that.

He was an interesting man but he was good to me. He always had my number. He would say interesting things to me. Like, the academy awards have already been given out, okay Sara Burnheart , and your attitude is piss poor. But, he also would tell me that he was glad that I was his daughter.

He really was one of my greatest cheerleaders and had a lot of influence on me.

Thanks Dad, it was nice knowing you. Happy Birthday in Heaven.

My dad really liked It's It ice cream bars. So go out and have one in his honor. I think I will.

M is for Miracles

"Miracles are retelling in small letters of the very same story which is written across the whole world in letters too large for some of us to see."

~C. S. Lewis~

I feel that many people these days believe that miracles have ceased with Jesus and the Bible. They happened then, but not now. I beg to differ with these people. Miracles occur daily if not every minute of the day. We just have to be "in tuned" to see them.

As I look back on my life, I can see many miracles that have happened. One is the miracle of my husband Tom. (did I ever mention that I love him more than I can say?) Just all that happened in his life and then in my life and what all had to happen for us to meet. It is just mind boggling. So many things had to happen just at the right time.

Another miracle in my life is my son Daniel.(did I ever mention that I love him more than I can say?) He has been a true miracle. It is amazing what he is able to do with so called limited abilities. He is another Bill Gates on the computer. It is also a miracle of all the people that have been placed in his life to help him. (have I ever mentioned the great and wonderful Lori?) For a person who might be considered a "throw away" person, he has brought so much to my life. He has truly given me much.

My family is another one.(have I mentioned how much I love all of them?) They are fantastic people who have molded and shaped my life so much. I am blessed to have been born into the family that I was.

These are all big things but I consider most every thing a miracle. Blogging and computers. All the things that have ever been invented. It just amazes me how people have been able to take existing things and have turned them into amazing and useful things.

Anyway, I hope this all makes sense. By the way, I consider everyone who reads this a miracle too. I am so glad that all of you are in my life.

K is for Knowledge

My dictionary had this to say about knowledge. "All that is known or can be learned." It also went on to say,"Knowledge applies to all that one knows and understands of facts and general truths and principles whether gained from books and teachers or by personal experiences and observations."

In order to obtain knowledge I feel one needs to move. One needs to do something. One cannot just gain knowledge by hoping it stops by one day. Let me tell you a story I heard years ago that illustrates this point.

The great philosopher Socrates was walking along the beach with one of his young students. The student told him that he had such great knowledge and that he wished he had as much. The young student also inquired of Socrates how he could gain such knowledge.

So Socrates being the wise man that he was, put his arm around the young man and started walking into the ocean. After they got a little ways in, Socrates knocked the young man into the water and held him down. Finally after much fighting for breath, the young man was let up out of the water.

Socrates then told the young man that when he desired knowledge as much as he desired that breath of air, that he would have it.

But, is gaining knowledge all there is to it? I think the answer is no. I think you need to have wisdom to know what to do with the knowledge that you obtain. Let me use another story I heard years ago that illustrates this point.

This story was told by a man named George Durrant. He told about 2 men that were out deer hunting. They had shot a deer and need a way to get this deer back to their camp. One guy said that he had heard that if you drag a deer by the way the hair grows, then that makes it easier to drag. So they began dragging the deer that way. Indeed it was easier but then one man noticed that they were getting further away from camp.

So my conclusion is this. In order to gain knowledge we must put ourselves into action to obtain it. Secondly, we must acquire the wisdom to go along with that knowledge. In other words, we need to know what to do with the knowledge that we gain.