My Renaissance Man

     My Renaissance man lives in upstate New York, near Binghamton, in a town called Smithville. He has lived there at least as long as I can remember. Summers, when my family lived in Ohio, we would drive to New York to spend some time there. My sisters and I were always excited to go and spend time at his place. He has always had a horse, or two, a garden, and a few acres to explore. We would sometimes go blueberry picking,  fishing, or go to pick corn and ride in the back of his beat up truck.We would bounce happily along in the truck bed, just happy to be there with Uncle Dave! These summers also meant one night with a bonfire popping and crackling as we cooked a local favorite called, Speidis. They are basically marinated chunks of chicken or beef that are grilled and then placed in a piece of soft potato bread and eaten like a sub. No need to add anything to it because the meat is so juicy and flavorful all on its own. It was then we would roast corn on the fire and talk, looking at the stars. The night so clear, compared to the dampening of city lights in the suburbs. It is these memories and many more that endear my heart to him and his place. I remember pictures from the seventies and seeing my cousins and I at the kids table for Thanksgiving! Thank God for those pictures because otherwise I would not remember.
   My Renaissance man, Uncle Dave, or Dave Thatcher is a man of many talents and skills. I am amazed at what he has done and is able to do. He cooks, he cleans, he....oh wait, he isn't a Saturday morning cheap infomercial gadget! Well, you get the idea. He does so much, like caning chairs! He cut down a cherry tree on his property and built cabinets, redid his own kitchen, AND put cherry flooring in the next room! (not to mention putting up fences and building a new porch) I find those skills to be amazing, since I don't have those talents. He also hunts, and knows how to sap Maple trees. (There is an old sap house that sits on his property). He can make maple sugar candy and of course syrup. On one visit as adults my mom and I sampled some homemade wine of his and some pickles he had made. (not together of course!) He is also an avid dancer, specifically swing dancing. He could tell you the different types of Swing, from East coast swing to West coast. He in short amazes me, with all he can and has done.
    I tell you all these things to illustrate the kind of passion and zeal he has had for life, all while facing Prostate cancer. He has been fighting for about seven years, enduring Chemo treatment after Chemo treatment. All the while he as kept dancing, kept cooking, and kept building. Building into my life a desire to not only work but to live and not take a day for granted. To get out of my living room and go, and see, and do, and meet people. He inspires me.
    Since high school my Uncle Dave and I have kept in touch via e-mail. We have written over the years about our daily lives. I have been kept informed on the deer he has shot and how well his garden has been over the years. I tell him about my job, my struggles, and my joys. He has also given me advice, and a little loving chastisement, such as: "You know who you will meet in your living room." He has always had a way of provoking me to action without,well, Provoking me to irritation or anger. He is blunt and straight to the point, one of the many things I love about him. One of the many things I will miss about him. You see he is dying. I say with tears that my Renaissance man is leaving. We were told about two months. He has fought and fought, and now it is time, not to surrender, but to go with grace and strength. To go with the strength that only God can give.
   I can't be there with him to say goodbye. My mom and sister Laurie have the privilege to go and love on him, and show him what he means to us. I am not able to get off of work to go, but I know it will be o.k. God is sovereign. I wish so much to be there to tell him how he has been more like a father to me than an Uncle, but I can't. I don't know that I could say it anyway, so I am saying it here. This post has been long, yet I can't write enough words to show you the humor, zeal, and all that is My Renaissance Man. I love you Uncle Dave and I will never forget or stop loving you.

Going Granola

  Tonight I found myself at Kroger in the Natural Foods section. I never thought I would do most of my shopping there. In fact, I made fun of people who ate gluten free, dairy free, egg free, and taste free food. Funny how life brings us into situations we swore we would NEVER be in. Hmmm, like being single at 33....hmmm that's another blog for another day! Anyway, I have been really fatigued and sleepy for years. I have finally had enough and I am seeking answers. I have been going to an Integrative medicine facility in Atlanta. They check EVERYTHING, and I mean EVERY  THING. They check your poop, your pee, your saliva, and of course your blood. They look high and they look low, for answers to your ailments. This is quite opposite of  Western medicine, which looks in familiar places and in those places only. The protocols are limited and so are the band-aids, err I mean solutions. Most often the answer is drugs, drugs, and more drugs. Now don't get me wrong, I would be a hypocrite if I didn't believe in and condone western medicine. After all, I am a nurse. I just think the focus is wrong. Instead of finding the reason for a disease or symptom western medicine seeks mainly to treat the symptoms and not the cause. Doctors do treat the cause for disease at times, but if the answer is not readily apparent, not much further investigation is done.
     This type of medicine is what I am most familiar in receiving. That is why I am so blown away by the care and protocols at the Integrative Medicine facility. I have now been put on a gluten free and dairy free diet.(It is to give my intestines a rest). I guess they were tired too. It would take me several blogs to explain the rationale and benefits of this diet. I am also on a litany of supplements to help my body heal on its own. This skeptical and cynical nurse has been reduced to a label reading, gluen free, supplement taking "granola" loving fiend. This is all in the hopes of finally not needing two hour naps! Soooo, stick around and see how Granola I can be. I have a feeling I will be doing more things I said I would NEVER do.

Unpacking Boxes

     I recently moved back to Georgia from Tennessee. I moved back in August, and moved into my house in November. Although I have been in my house for months I have boxes left to unpack. It is usually only in desperation that I go to unpack a box. One time early on it was for silver ware! More recently it has been for my blender. It is like a treasure hunt and Christmas all in one. I never know what I will find. There are things I purposely look for and there are things that I happen upon that I have forgotten.
      I feel like I am unpacking boxes in my spiritual life as well. There are things that I feel I desperately need right away, like Faith and Perserverence. Then there are things that I would rather let sit in the garage of life (so to speak). Boxes marked with things like: Things I don't want to admit about myself or Past hurts and losses or my favortite: unfulfilled dreams. At some point, I will have to open these boxes to make room for others. More boxes are made each day with each experience and lesson God teaches me, and with each new person I meet. God has a place and a purpose for the contents of each of these boxes. Some things he wants me to keep, and some He wants me to give away....to lay at His feet. It is only when I have the courage to open the boxes of my heart WITH God, that things get set in order. It is my prayer that I will have the courage to open the boxes back in the back of the garage. The ones that are under other boxes, way in back and hidden from view, hiding in the dark.

My dog Ruby.

Where are you?

      My dog Ruby has separation anxiety. If I leave the room for a few minutes to go to the bathroom she starts to whimper, which turns into a howl the longer I am gone. She also has a bad habit of lunging at the T.V. when animals appear on the screen. This behavior led me to putting her on a leash and attaching it to the end table, hence her inability to find me when I leave the room. This solution has worked pretty well so far. It sounds a little harsh, but when there are scratches on your new 56in plasma screen, no amount of Ceasar Milan advice will do.
      No matter how many times I come back and no matter how loyal I have been to her, she fears I will never return. Recently, (tonight actually) it occurred to me that I am the same way in my relationship with God. As soon as I don't perceive his presence or hear Him speak to me (either through people or circumstances) I panic and think He may not come back or He doesn't hear my prayers. How foolish! Even after His faithfulness to me time and time again, I think: maybe He won't answer this time. As I chided Ruby for doubting my love and faithfulness to her, I reminded myself of God's love and faithfulness to me! Praise God for how he teaches us in the seemingly mundane and ordinary things of life. Praise God for Ruby!