damichcoop

Another Christmas Season

Fri, 01 Dec 2006 01:19:00 GMT

Here it is November 30th and Christmas is just 25 days away. I've been thinking back about the things that have happened in my life the past few years and the not so good Christmas' we have had. It will be three years ago this Christmas Eve that we lost my grandma from Alzheimer's. She passed away the 24th and her viewing was the 26th. As my mom was going through her Bible to write her death date in it, the following poem fell out and it just so summed up my grandma's life and how her passing was meant to be the 24th. The poem is called "Christmas in Heaven". Now remember, we found this poem the day after Christmas.

CHRISTMAS IN HEAVEN

I've had my first Christmas in heaven
A glorious, wonderful day
I stood with the saints of the ages,
Who found Christ the Truth and the Way.

I sang with the heavenly choir
Just think' I who loved to sing'
And O, what celestial music
We brought to our Savior and King.

We sang glad songs of redemption
How Jesus to Bethlehem came
And how they called His name Jesus,
That all might be saved through His name.

We sang once again with the angles
The song that they sang that blest morn,
When shepherds first heard the glad story
That Jesus, the Savior was born.

Oh darling, I wish you had been there
No Christmas on earth could compare
With all the rapture and glory
We witnessed in Heaven so fair.

You know how I always loved Christmas,
It seemed such a wonderful day,
With all my loved ones around me
The children so happy and gay.

Yes, now I can see why I loved it:
Oh what a joy it will be
When you and my loved ones are with me,
To share in the glories I see.

So, dear ones on earth here's my greeting:
Look up till the day appears,
And O, what a Christmas awaits us,
Beyond all our parting and tears.

Christmas was always a special time in our family and home. I remember as a child, we would get up Christmas morning and we would open presents, and spend that time together as a family, then we would go over to my grandparents house and spend the afternoon/evening with them and my cousins and aunt. I also remember mom baking all kinds of cookies, cakes, pies for the holiday, and no holiday was complete without mom's famous fruit cakes, and now I have taken over the fun responsibility of making them.

The funny thing about holiday is that just when you think it's going to be a better year, something else happens. On September 7th, 2005, we lost my mom to cancer. This past Christmas a new song came out and it's called "Someone is Missing At Christmas" and it's sung by Anne Cochran.

Someone is missing at Christmas
Someone I've loved all my life
Someone I played with and laughed all night long
Someone I think of when I hear that song

Someone is missing at Christmas
Someone has left me alone
Someone so close even though we're apart
someone who'd finish a sentence I'd start

Someone whose love is my favorite gift
Someone whose presence is my Christmas wish
Someone who always was here
Someone is missing this year.

Candlelit snapshots of Christmas gone by
You in your favorite chair
Memories like snowflakes melt in my eyes
I look and you're not sitting there

Someone whose love is my favorite gift
Someone whose presence is my Christmas wish
Someone is missing at Christmas
Wait
Someone is touching my heart
Someone has heard me and answered my call
Someone I love is not missing at all

Someone is with me at Christmas
Someone's right here in my heart
Someone I love is with me this Christmas
And will be each Christmas to come.

---- John C. Chaffee, Jr.

So just when things started to get better for us, they go down hill.

On the 17th of November, my sister and her kids and myself we decorated my Christmas tree, also known as the family tree. There are ornaments on there from my mom's childhood, things she made when we were babies, and stuff we made as kids. It's always a fun time. I put the tree together and put the lights on it, then the kids do the all the ornaments and I come back in and put the garlands on it. We played Christmas music while we did it, and then we all watched the movie "A Christmas Story". I have put some pics in here to show the tree and such.

I was searching online today for some stuff and ran across this last posting...it was an awesome story about the meaning of Christmas. It's called "Lest we forget..."

"Lest We Forget..."

Just a week before Christmas I had a visitor. This is how it happened... I just finished the household chores for the night and was preparing to go to bed, when I heard a noise in the front of the house. I opened the door to the front room and to my surprise, Santa himself stepped out from behind the Christmas tree. He placed his finger over his mouth so I would not cry out. "What are you doing?" I started to ask. The words choked up in my throat, and I saw he had tears in his eyes.

His usual jolly manner was gone. Gone was the eager, boisterous soul we all know. He then answered me with a simple statement.
"TEACH THE CHILDREN!"

I was puzzled; what did he mean? He anticipated my question, and with one quick movement brought forth a miniature toy bag from behind the tree. As I stood bewildered, Santa said, "Teach the children! Teach them the old meaning of Christmas. The meaning that now-a-days Christmas has forgotten."

Santa then reached in his bag and pulled out a FIR TREE and placed it before the mantle. "teach the children that the pure green color of the stately fir tree remains green all year round, depicting the everlasting hope of mankind, all the needles point heavenward, making it a symbol of man's thoughts turning toward heaven."

He again reached into his bag and pulled out a brilliant STAR. "Teach the children that the star was the heavenly sign of promises long ago. God promised a Savior for the world, and the star was the sign of fulfillment of His promise." He then reached into his bag and pulled out a CANDLE. "Teach the children that the candle symbolizes that Christ is the light of the world, and when we see this great light we are reminded of He who displaces the darkness."

Once again he reached into his bag and removed a WREATH and placed it on the tree. "Teach the children that the wreath symbolizes the real nature of love. Real love never ceases. Love is one continuous round of affection."

He then pulled from his bag and ornament of HIMSELF. " Teach the children that I, Santa Clause symbolize the generosity and good will we feel during the month of December."

He then brought out a HOLLY LEAF. "Teach the children that the holly plant represents immortality. It represents the crown of thorns worn by our Savior. The red holly represents the blood shed by Him."

Next he pulled from his bag a GIFT and said, "Teach the children that God so loved the world that he gave..." "Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift. Teach the children that the wise men bowed before the holy babe and presented him with gold, frankincense and myrrh. We should always give gifts in the same spirit of the wise men."

Santa then reached in his bag and pulled out a CANDY CANE and hung it on the tree. "Teach the children that the candy cane represents the shepherds' crook. The crook on the staff helps to bring back strayed sheep to the flock. The candy cane is the symbol that we are our brother's keeper."

He reached in again and pulled out an ANGEL. "Teach the children that it was the angels that heralded in the glorious news of the Savior's birth. The angels sang 'Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace and good will toward men." Suddenly I heard a soft twinkling sound, and from his bag he pulled out a BELL. "Teach the children that as the lost sheep are found by the sound of the bell, it should ring mankind to the fold. The bell symbolizes guidance and return.

Santa looked back and was pleased. He looked back at me and I saw that the twinkle was back in his eyes. He said, "Remember, teach the children the true meaning of Christmas and do not put me in the center, for I am but a humble servant of the One that is, and I bow down to worship Him, our Lord, our God."

Well I think I have gone on long enough, so I'll close for right now. Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a joyful Holiday Season.

My Boring Life

Wed, 22 Nov 2006 00:19:04 GMT

Well here it is Tuesday, 11/21 and I'm sitting here at the LGBT Center in Cleveland. I volunteer here at the desk and love it, it's the highlight of my week. I have two more nights to work and then I'm off Thursday Night, Friday Night, and Saturday. I'm sitting here thinking about my life and how boring it really is. I work 3rd shift so most of my day is spent sleeping, and when I am awake I am working around the house. This past weekend I got the tree up and my sister and her kids came over and helped decorate it. Not really much of anything else is going on right now. I am doing the big dinner for the family on Friday night, and why I agreeded to cook for 20 people, I have no clue. Well I'm just sitting here rambling on, so I guess I'll just end it.

Freaky Friday the 6th

Mon, 09 Oct 2006 01:48:33 GMT

IT ALL STARTED WITH A PHONE CALL. My supervisor and myself were called into work early Thursday night, and the night went freaky after that. About 12:30 AM, we had 3 State Highway Patrol officers in the store, and after they left, a fourth SHP office came in. He had a car pulled over and was involved in the traffic stop. This officer proceeds to tell me about this stop. He pulled a called a car over for making a left hand turn from the forward lane and not having his head lights on. After he pulls this guy over, he is informed that he doesn't have is drivers license. He gave the officer his information....name is Frank so and so, lives at such and such address on Medina Rd, and his Social Security Number, and the he's not real familiar with the area. The officer runs his information and it all checks. He then decides to head to the house and ask some questions because the guy was pulled over very close to his house but he doesn't know the area. The officer then runs the plates on another car that just happens to be pulling out of the parking lot. The car is registered to the guy he just pulled over, so he stops this car. The driver is the guy the car is registered too, and informs the officer that other guy is his brother. The officer then goes after the brother for supplying false information to the officer.

The next freaky thing that happens is...we get an order for food, and I go looking for my supervisor. I think she is in the freezer doing her counts and I go to tell her that she has an order. The freezer door is hard to open, so I start freaking out because I think she is trapped inside and can't open it. She comes running out of the office, because security has called and informed her that there is an alarm going off, and she can't find me on the camera and thinks I'm hurt because it was the pendant I was wearing around my neck. And yet, it gets better.

We then have a guy come in and inform us that he and his wife were in earlier and ordered a bunch of sandwiches and they had hair in the lettuce, and the girl making the sandwiches called his wife a F*&^ing B$*%^. The girl in MTO never wold have said that. My supervisor gave him the money back, and he left.

The phone rings and I answer it. It was a guy calling, and asked to speak to the manager. The shift supervisor comes on the phone and he informs us that Adam, the morning cashier, wouldn't be in because he had food poising. The freaky thing is Adam wasn't suppose to work because he gave his shift to Cindy. Cindy then called about 4:45 and said she was not feeling good, would be in, but would be running late.

When our store manager came in, he pulled the video tape and found that there was no big order and the guy with the sandwiches scammed us.

Cindy showed up for work 25 mins late, which meant I didn't get out of there on time.

I came home and slept. Had things to do that day.

I found out that night, that the day didn't end for my supervisor.

My supervisor was on to her other job, when she rear ended another car. There was no real damage, but they did pull over to exchange information. When she pulled over, she nearly ran her car into a ditch. She then got out the car, and got stuck in the mud. She turned to get herself free, and just at that moment, a truck came flying down the road, and if it wasn't for the guy that she hit, pulling her out the way, she would have been hit by this truck.

Another co-worker informed today at work, that he was riding his bike and a car ran him off the road. He hit a pile of dirt and was thrown from his bike. He hit a cement column head on and split his helmet into 4 pieces, and he was scuffed up from head to toe.

IT WAS JUST A FREAKY FRIDAY ALL AROUND....THINK IT HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE FULL MOON.