Mothers

Mothers
May 7, 2011

Hannah’s Prayer of Praise

1 Then Hannah prayed: “My heart rejoices in the LORD! The LORD has made me strong. Now I have an answer for my enemies; I rejoice because you rescued me. 2 No one is holy like the LORD! There is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. 1 Samuel 2:1-2

I have to admit, I could not remember who Hannah was; I had to look it up. She could not have any children by her husband, Elkanah. His other wife, Peninnah cruelly tormented Hannah. Now, Hannah and her husband went each year to Shiloh so they could worship God. One year she prayed she prayed, "Dear God, if You will only give me a son, I will give him back to You, to serve You all his days." God wasn’t about to deny such a woman who was this faithful to Him. A son was born to Hannah. She named him Samuel and he became a great king.

Being a mother is an important job. One, or so I’ve heard from my friends who are mothers, that is the toughest one in the world. I’ve never been a mother, but I remember all the things that mine did for me, even when I was a less-than-grateful child or adult. She taught me so much and while I did not agree with all her beliefs, I respected my mother for her love through my whole life – even until her last days on earth.

Here is a poem I’ve written about my Mother. I miss her so much. And to all you mothers reading this – I wish you a very Happy Mother’s Day.

Michelle Rose

In Praise of My Mother
Mary Frances Angelini
b. 7/4/1920 – d. 2/19/2000

I’m sure some days
you wondered who I was.
And you may have asked yourself,
Was I the daughter
that you carried for nine months?
Was I the baby that you so lovingly
raised to adulthood?

No, we didn’t always get along,
but there were times we laughed
and cried together over silly,
situations in our lives.

Mom, this poem is challenging
for me to write, since you can’t
read it. It’s difficult, too, since
you can’t see what kind of adult
I’ve become or whether I learned
any of the lessons you taught me.

Maybe your way of encouraging me
to succeed didn’t use the words
I wanted to hear, but you never
stopped believing in me.
.
I want you to know
I’ve become an adult
of whom you’d be proud.
I write poetry
I keep the precepts you taught me
I love plants and gardening
I remember the good times
when you were alive.

If I could say one thing to you now,
it would be that you did a good job
of raising me.
I hope you are proud
of the daughter you bore
and named because it sounded
musical. I hope that the angels
surround you with music that
pleases your ears.

God and the Beasts of the Earth

My cat Sasha, one sweet but spoiled cat.

God and the Beasts of the Earth
April 16, 2011

"If all the beasts were gone, man would die from loneliness of spirit, for whatever happens to the beast, happens to the man. All things are connected. Whatever befalls the earth, befalls the sons of earth." Chief Seattle

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Gandhi

I am your servant, LORD, and you have kept your promise to treat me with kindness. Psalm 119:64-66 Contemporary English Version

Be Still and Know that I AM GOD. Psalm 46:10

So much goes on today that is sad, but that is the world – there cannot be joy without sadness. What makes me the saddest is abuse of women, children, and animals. The abuse of the last two in this group not only makes me sad, but also very angry, since they are the most helpless. I think about the commercial on tv for the largest animal organization in the US. One of the segments has a scraggly looking dog, shivering and looking very sad saying, “Why won’t they stop beating me.” And there are a multitude of animals in equally disheartening situations.

So, what do the above quotes above I know what it is and that is kindness. They are all tied together with a common thread. I’ve always heard the saying, “Practice random acts of kindness.” Well, I believe it’s not just a saying, but a directive to be kind where ever and whenever we can. It’s what God wants for me. I know Jesus treats me with kindness and love? He died for me so that I could be forgiven.

Ok, so many of you know how much I love animals. Why would God create animals if we weren’t to live in harmony with them? Yes, times have changed, but I don’t think God wants us to abuse animal. Notice I said abuse and there is more of that than even I realize. It’s frightening to hear all the news about the way many people treat animals. The destiny of people is inherently tied in with animals and nature. That’s not just my belief. Evidently God believed it to, otherwise why would the Lord have saved all the animals (alive at the time) on Noah’s ark when He destroyed the earth with the Great Flood?

May God rain his blessings upon you, your family, and any furkids you have. I almost sent this God’s Tug out last night, but I was in quite a bit of pain and had to get away from my computer. I’m glad I didn’t. This revised message is more in line with what I wanted to say, than last night’s blog.

Michelle Rose

Shoes...

I've always heard the expression, "Waiting for the other shoe to drop." I'd lost that feeling for a long time, but recently, it came back with a vengeance. I didn't have just the other shoe dropped on me, I had a whole load of shoes unloaded on me.

I had to cancel a gym membership I hadn't even gotten to use. I a short time, I will be unemployed again, and the pain in my back is getting worse. Working out at the gym would have helped with my rehabilitation. It was one of the actions on my list, which now I can't do.

Here it is just 5 days into the new year and I feel like my life is blown to smithereens (to put it nicely). If I can be grateful for anything, it's the fact that now I know what's coming in the days and months to come.

Maybe I'll feel better in a few days, but the way I feel right now - I don't care if I do or not. And what difference would it make anyway? I now this is supposed to be a journal of what I've learned in life and a positive contribution each day, but right at this point that's now how I feel, so why pretend.

michelle rose (at this point, a drooping one)

Take Me Home...

Please God, take me home. I don't belong here. I want to be with Jesus, where I can feel loved and beautiful

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Last night I committed the ultimate stupidity - I got angry. So now, I just don't want to feel any better than I do right at this moment. I really want God to take me home.

On earth, I'm an alien. I'm old, ugly, unwanted, no one, and in the way.

In heaven, I would be ageless, beautiful, wanted, someone, and loved.

Can the choice be any clearer? I'm a stranger on earth. I've always felt uncomfortable here. Today I found a feather, I think it was from a hawk. I made me cry, because I am tied to a life that I hate and that hates me. God, take me home. That will be my prayer for the rest of my unhappy, miserable days.

Michelle, the dead rose