|
SubscriptionsSites I Read
|
|
|
|
| Two Stories & a Substory
1. Two weekends ago I had the privilege to visit my relatives
downstate & introduce myself to my beautiful new baby cousin,
Israel. :) We also had an opportunity to take my three girl
cousins out to the, affectionately named, "Pirate" Island Park, where
we ran around, screamed like girls, played multiple games of hide &
seek, & spun girls on a tire swing until they started feeling
sick. (Well, one felt sick. The other two couldn't get
enough of it!) During this delightful time of recreation, Anjuli
& I overheard the girls talking about how thirsty they were &
how they wanted to drink out of the river that surrounds the
island. Always quick on my feet (a joke), I came up with the
first good excuse I could think of to deter them from this yucky &
unsanitary feat. I told them that turtles go into the water &
poop in it. Thankfully, this seemed to put the distasteful
thoughts out of their heads & we went on with our games. At
the end of our sojourn, we decided to go walk over one of the bridges
on the island & play "Pooh" sticks, a game we learned in childhood
from my dear Grandma Bill. While Anjuli & the older two girls
found appropriate sticks, Larae & I stuck together to watch the
water from our vantage point on the bridge. It was in this
setting that Larae told me, in all seriousness & with her adorable
three-year-old accent, "I wish the turtles did not poop in the water,
so I could drink it." :)
2. It has come to my attention that God must find it quite
humorous to tease me about my height & looks. Last Wednesday,
my Mom, sister, & I ate dinner at La Senorita. When the
hostess approached us to lead us to our seats, she also asked if we
needed any kids' menus. Out of the three of us, I'm sure you can
guess which one she was referring to. *Sigh* Apparently, it
seems I have not grown out of my 12 year old shell. Now,
for the "substory." Yesterday, here at work, we received a
delivery from FedEx. Well, my sister happened to be standing by
the front door, so the delivery man had her sign for the box instead of
me, who was sitting, unnoticed, only about three feet away. When
he asked for her last name & she answered, he became confused &
asked if there was another Hawkins who worked in the office. She
said, "Yes, my sister also works here." He replied, "Oh,
okay. I knew there was another one, but she's much shorter than
you." And then he went on his merry way, leaving Anjuli chuckling
with mirth & Ariane frowning with disdain. Nevertheless, I
love God's sense of humor & have no problem with laughing at these
situations that I cannot seem to escape. :)
God is good, & I hope you're enjoying Him on this blustery day!
Love, Ariane :)
| | |
| ... oh how i love this day!... not only was i blessed enough to see the
sunrise this morning, with the first sun rays illuminating the leafless
trees with a brilliant pink glow that made me praise God for the beauty
of his artwork & warmed my heart :) ... but it's also the first
official day of the Thanksgiving/Christmas season (in my book, mind
you)!!!.. :) ... which means Christmas music, crazy decorating, gift
ideas, enjoying the company of delightful family members, good food, an
overflow of joy & love, & a celebration of the birth of our
Saviour - my favorite :) ... it's such a beautiful time of year...
especially in the heart... and i'm happy to report that i've started it
off right, listening to some good ol' Harry singing some sweet
Christmas music... :) *happy sigh* :) ... i pray our
Saviour continues to fill you with His love & joy throughout the
rest of this blessed year...
love, ariane :)
p.s. let's play a little game, shall we?... now, i know there are
a number of people who will read this, & i'd really love to get a
little feedback... so, how about you answer this one little question?
:) ... what's one of your favorite parts to this joyful season?... thank you!!... :)
| | |
| ... this passage from "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers
tickled me so much, I had to post it & share it with all of
y'all... enjoy!... :)
"When looking back on the lives of men and women of God the tendency is
to say - What wonderfully astute wisdom they had! How perfectly
they understood all God wanted! The astute mind behind is the
Mind of God, not human wisdom at all. We give credit to human
wisdom when we should give credit to the Divine guidance of God through
childlike people who were foolish enough to trust God's wisdom and the
supernatural equipment of God."
| | |
| "Then maidens will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will
turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow." - Jeremiah 31:13
Today I am one of those maidens. :) Thinking of Doreen
still makes me teary, but I am so glad she is with our Lord, as I know
she is. :)
I also have another good reason for dancing as God has blessed our
family with another child! It's true, I have a new
cousin!!! Haha, I cannot express how delighted I am! My
Aunt Rosa & her husband Camilo have wanted another child for years
now, & until now, the time was not right. But then last
night, they were called about adopting a little boy named Israel.
(Awesome name, although I don't know if they'll keep it.) After
praying about it last night & talking it over amongst themselves,
they decided to adopt the boy!! So, when I talked to Rose this
morning, she told me they were on their way to get him. Haha, how
God truly does turn our mourning into gladness. :)
love, ariane :)
| | |
| Today we received the news that a dear friend & sister in the Lord
had passed away last night. Although I rejoice in the knowledge
that she is now with our beautiful Lord, I am also grieving her loss in
our lives. Her name was Doreen Taylor, & she was a beautiful
woman with a dear, sweet spirit. The last time I saw her was in
the hospital where she was being treated for leukemia. At that
time, she shared with my family & I how God was & always had
been so good to her. Oh, how I'm going to miss her kindness,
humor, & love for the Lord! She told delicious stories of growing
up in England & their different traditions. She made a quilt
for Danny & Steph's wedding, & she gave Anjuli & I
suggestions for the shower. She is & will be truly
missed. But I also choose to rejoice in the fact that I will see
this dear woman again. Hallelujah!
| | |
|
