🎕💧 2023 April FROM MY PERSPECTIVE

 

Diamonds are the stone for April.  They are made from coal which has been under pressure for more years than you are old.  They are Earth’s hardest natural substance which are formed about 100 miles under the earth and are carried to the surface by volcanic activity.  They are the only gems made of only ONE element---carbon.  They are found in ever color of the rainbow.  They are a symbol of eternal love, trust, and faith.  They do not know how precious they are.  If you have been under pressure for a long time, imagine yourself as a diamond.  You will survive, and are precious to someone.

Brenduhh came over all irritated.  I asked her what the problem was.  She said, “I don’t know about anyone else, but I think I'm done with relationships for a while. I'm tired of the games, the crap, the lies, and the disrespect. I want something that's real, always have, but what I get are guys who want to play with my heart and pull me along when they can't be honest. This generation needs to grow up!!  She had a very valid point as I have noticed how insincere a lot of the dating people are.  I tried to soothe her ruffled feathers with these words, “It is difficult to find someone who deserves you and your goodness. It's better to be alone than to be with someone who does not appreciate you. Besides, are you really alone if you are in good company with yourself?”  She looked at me.  I could tell she was thinking.  “So who do I talk to if I’m alone?” she asked.  I said, “How about yourself?”  She mentioned she didn’t want to sound silly.  I asked her if she would like more tea. 

If you’ve ever studied a foreign language, you know how challenging it can be at times, especially with the spellings of some words.  Imagine how someone whose first language was NOT English feels when they see some of our words and the spellings.  Here are some examples:  Colonel, champagne, convalesce, eerie, doorjamb, asthma, indict, knead, queue, zucchini, hiccough.  The last one brings me to the “ough” words.  Plough, dough, cough, bought, rough, through.  Six different sounds for the same four letters of OUGH.  Yeesh!!!!

Have you ever remembered what you wanted to be when you grew up?  I don’t think many wanted to be a trash collector, outhouse cleaner, liquid fertilizer distributor/applicator, paper bag maker, bean counter, or crime scene cleaner.  Some people just fell into the job they have.  I hope the outhouse cleaner didn’t.  I wanted to be a judge.  My Beloved told me it was best I didn’t become one.  He said, “Tootsie, only the Queen of Hearts could get away with saying, ‘Off with their heads!’  It wouldn’t fly in a courtroom.”

I’ve met a lot of people in my long life.  As I listened to their life stories, I discovered some of the most interesting and amazing people I’ve met had the most hurtful, soul-wrenching, and painful experiences.  They’ve taught me strength, optimism, and perseverance.  You never know whose life story will teach you something good, nor the impact of your life story to another.  People come into your life for a reason.  Some stay for a moment; some for a little while; and some for a very long time.  Each one gives you something you can benefit from in your life.

Every one of you is richer than you think.  Here is why:  You have someone who loves you, a few good friends, food on your table, clothes on your back, and a roof over your head.  And if you have a cell phone, well-----“HELLO!!”

Education will never become as expensive as stupidity.  Some laugh at stupidity.  I guess it’s mindless entertainment to them.  I see it as dangerous----to you and to others around you.

No matter how badly someone needs to be strangled, it is still illegal.

As I’ve aged, 78 now, it’s become perfectly clear why the very early hours of the morning are called “the wee hours.”

My friend’s hubby was having back pain.  He went to an acupuncture professional and found relief.  My friend asked me if I’d ever had acupuncture.  I told her, “No, I never have, but I’ve been on pins and needles at times.”

My friend, Melodie, took me to one of her favorite furniture stores which specialized in different and unusual chairs and bean bag chairs.  She told me she was going to apply for the phone answering position.  When I saw the name of the store, I told her, “You won’t last here an hour at that job.  You’d laugh yourself silly.”  The store’s name was SHACK OF SIT.

One of the duties of the U.S. president is to greet and make small talk with huge numbers of people in receiving lines. At one such gathering, President F.D. Roosevelt became bored with exchanging little pleasantries. He didn’t think anyone was paying attention to what he said anyway. To prove his point, as he took each patron’s hand, he said “I murdered my grandmother this morning.” Most people smiled and moved on. Only one man actually listened to what Roosevelt was saying—and quickly responded, “She certainly had it coming!”  I had to laugh imaging his twinkling eye and the look on the man’s face.  Daddy did stuff like this; Mother always got so embarrassed.  He’d invite people into the house by saying, “Entrails."    I thought it was a riot, and it reminded me of doing the same thing, but not using the same words.   One time I was in a receiving line for some reason and got bored with the “duty” of smiling and shaking hands with people I didn’t even know.  One woman wearing soft pink, whom I knew to be a most insincere individual, was in front of me.  I held out my hand, smiled and said between clenched teeth, “There’s a booger on your nose.”  She kept on babbling and shaking hands.  Later I overheard her tell another I’d told her she looked like a rose.  Another time, same situation, about the 25^th person stood in front of me.  It was a male.  Well, you know one of the statements men dread hearing is, “Your fly is open.”  I couldn’t resist, and said it.  Expecting to watch him express embarrassment, he fooled me and said with a twinkle, “Well, do you see anything important?”  I came back with, “Important to whom?”  I’m glad I am an English major so I could ask a grammatically correct question.

Recently I’ve had a lot of trials and tribulations.  The Bible tells us to give thanks in the good and bad.  Well, that’s been difficult to do because all that has happened reminds me of a colonoscopy prep you have to drink.  Talk about a whole different meaning to “clean as a whistle”.

All experiences teach us something which we can use. A lot of times the experiences give us tools to use when we influence another who is young. Those who learn from their trials, tribulations, and experiences turn all that into wisdom. Wisdom does not come from nothing; and nothing does not come from wisdom.

I had a friend write me a long message.  Although there were some grammatical errors and some sentences needing revision to have more clarity to what she was saying, I understood what she’d written and sent a message back telling her I did.  She messaged me that she was embarrassed because I was an English teacher and she was “just a hillbilly”.  Here was my message to her, “If your written or spoken words do not make sense to the reader or listener, then there is need for embarrassment.”

Two things to remember in life:  #1. Take care of your thoughts when you are alone; and #2. take care of your words when you are with people.