A "Little" February Rambling

Friday, February 1 - Thursday, February 28, 2019

Friday, February 1

We began February with a rush of activities.  This morning we drove to Sulphur Springs to attend a funeral visitation for the mother of a dear church friend.  After the visitation, we drove across town to see what was playing at the movie, and saw that it was "The Upside," a movie that we had seen advertised and thought we'd like.  We went to visit our friend Marilyn at the nursing home, and then returned to the theater complex to watch the movie with cousins Ladd and Angela and stuff ourselves with popcorn...and were very impressed (with the movie AND the popcorn.  This is a movie that we highly recommend for our adult friends!

When we got back home, we buckled down and set to work on our gifts for the children for Sunday's children's sermon.  After all, it IS Friday, and we don't like to wait until the last minute 🤣

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Saturday, February 2

This was a sad day for Mineola as we laid to rest a personal friend and a community icon, Wayne Collins.  Wayne was a hometown man who actually started the Mineola High School band as a student leader when he was in high school.  Wayne was a decorated Navy hero, a community businessman, a dedicated family man, and a faithful member of the trumpet section of the Lake Country Symphonic Band.

Several members of the band played at the service, and I had the honor of sounding Taps for Wayne at the graveside service.

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Sunday, February 3

This morning found us at Yantis First Baptist Church where Jim played with the praise band, and we presented the Children's Sermon, a lesson from John 7 on the 3 R's, or What Will YOU Do About Jesus.

JIM: Those of you who are old enough go to school study what many of us older folks call “the 3 R’s”.  When we think about the 3 R’s, we think about Reading, Riting, and ‘Rithmatic.  The three R’s we’ll talk about this morning stand for the choices that each of us make about what to do about Jesus.

Do you remember that last week we talked about hearing God and listening to him.  Once you hear God calling you, you must make a decision.  Will you refuse to listen to him…will you listen to him, but choose the way you want to live, or will you listen to him and decide to follow him in the way He shows you?  These choices are the 3 R’s we’ll talk about this morning.

The first R is for Reject.  When faced with the choice of what to do about Jesus, many people, just like in Jesus time, choose to reject him.  The Bible says that Jesus came to his own people, but they refused to believe he was the Son of God.  Even today, when God calls, many people don’t believe that Jesus is the Son of God and they choose to reject him.

BARBARA: The second R is for Receive.  When God calls through the Holy Spirit, some people choose to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  The Bible tells us that to those who receive him, he gives the right to become children of God.  That is what will happen when you choose to receive Jesus in your heart.

The third R is for Reflect.  Once you receive Jesus as your lord and savior, you will be able to see and experience the glory of God through the life of Jesus.  Then, you have to make another choice…the choice to keep the good news to yourself, or to reflect it through your words and actions.

JIM: Each week during the school year you go to school to study the 3 R’s.  But, each and every day for the rest of your life you have to decide what you are going to do about Jesus and his 3 R’s.  Our prayer is that each person in this room today will make the choice to receive Jesus in their heart and reflect God’s glory in their lives.

Mrs. Little, what do we have to remind the children of this morning’s lesson?

BARBARA: Our special treat this morning is a cluster of 3 Musketeer candy bars to remind you of your 3 choices in what to do about Jesus…Reject or Receive and Reflect.

JIM: Heavenly Father, for those here this morning who have not yet chosen to receive Jesus and believe in him we pray that they will make that choice today.  For those of us who have chosen to receive him, we ask for the wisdom, strength, and courage to reflect his glory in all we say and do.  We ask this in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Following church we returned home to take a nap before getting up for a meal and an exciting evening of Super Bowl action (the only NFL game we watched all season).

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Monday, February 4

Happy Birthday to Son-in-Law Andy Dondis!!!!!

After all the excitement of the big game last night, we elected to sleep in this morning, then got up and just piddled around the house.

By the afternoon we were tired of being inside, so we took advantage of some rare beautiful February weather and drove out to the Mineola Nature Center to see what improvements had been made since our last visit.  As with almost everything around this small town, the community leaders have done a bang-up job of developing a nature center overlooking the Sabine River that has something for everyone.  We decided the new amphitheater would be a wonderful setting for a Sunday night praise and worship service.

We really are spontaneous people.  After leaving the nature center we decided we'd drive to Quitman, stop at Dairy Queen for malts, and pick up a Blizzard to take to our church friend Maylene out at Yantis.  We didn't count on it taking us so long to get to Maylene's place way out on Lake Fork, so the Blizzard immediately went into the freezer while we  visited and waited until it was good and dark before returning to Mineola...no one ever accused us of having good sense, either.

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Tuesday, February 5

This started out as just another "day in the life."  We drove up toward Yantis to visit our friend Eldavada.  After the visit we drove up to Sulphur Springs to treat ourselves to Chinese take-out at Panda Express...one of our guilty pleasures.

Back at the house we ate, watched a couple more episodes of NCIS (our latest binge-watching entertainment), and then took a nap.  After all, all that running around was really tiring!

This evening we got a call from the kids in Roswell that sister Carol was again being life-flighted to Lubbock and would be facing surgery.  It was too late for us to do anything other than pack some things for a  few days, and try to get some sleep.

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Wednesday, February 6

Another travel day.  We were up early and on the road for the 8-hour drive to Lubbock.  When we got there, we checked in at the hotel, went to the hospital to see how things were going and found that the surgery had been temporarily postponed.

Since Carol was resting comfortably, we left for awhile to go to the cafeteria, and have some lunch with a friend Becky, a nurse at University Medical Center.

Serendipity came into full play for us today.  As we went through the line in the cafeteria, we heard a voice cry out, "Mrs. Little."  We didn't think we knew anyone there other than Becky, but when we turned around to see who called out, we found one of our former students from Liberal, Kansas.  Lyndsi and her husband have a food truck franchise in Lubbock and today were selling their Cuban food on the serving line at the hospital cafeteria.  We had a short, but great mini-reunion, with promises to come back and do this again sometime.

After an afternoon of eating, visiting, and spending more time with Carol and Teresa, we were more than ready to return to the hotel and get some much-needed sleep.

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Thursday, February 7 - Friday, February 8

Carol's surgery was again postponed on Thursday, so we just hung around the hospital and visited.

Friday was more of the same, except that they finally got the surgery underway, but because of the severity of damage to the arteries in her leg and the damage caused by the medications, they were unable to do all they wanted to do.

All we could do was be there for comfort and support.

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Saturday, February 9

Carol's kids made arrangements to get Carol transported back to Roswell.  Carol was stable and there was nothing left for us to do, so we paid a visit early this morning and then were on the road back to Mineola by 10:00 am.  We got home at 5:30, beating sundown by a few minutes, unloaded the car and went inside to crash and burn for the night.

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Sunday, February 10

We made it to church this morning, but our participation was limited to attending Sunday school and sitting in the congregation during the morning service.  Our emergency travels this week wiped out any possibilities of playing in the praise band or preparing a children's sermon.

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Monday, February 11

Remembering Edith Marie Faulk Little Borsberry (February 11, 1923 - June 5, 2013)

We were going crazy with all the events that have been happening and are getting ready to happen, so we had Alicia, our part-time housekeeper come in this morning and clean while we began packing for our annual trip to San Antonio for Texas Music Educators Association annual convention and our Christmas in February celebration with John, Carol, Randi, Nick, Leah, Ryan, and Kaiden.

This afternoon we drove to the dermatology clinic in Tyler for a follow-up visit about my recent ear surgery.  The doctor was generally satisfied with the progress, but scheduled another follow for a later date.

Once we returned home we did some more packing and checked and double-checked to see that we had everything necessary for the San Antonio trip.

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Tuesday, February 12

Happy 8th Birthday to Granddaughter Ava Corinne Little!!!!!

After a leisurely start to the morning, we got the car loaded and started out on a new adventure.  The drive to San Antonio is always long, but, fortunately for us today, generally uneventful.

When we got to the "big city" we went to the convention center to register and set up the National Band Association booth in the exhibit hall.  The backdrop was brand new and took us longer than expected to set up, but after a couple of hours we "got 'er done" and were ready for business.

Later, we went out for supper at a nearby and new (for us) restaurant, Mexican Manhattan, where we dined outside along the famous Riverwalk and enjoyed the Parade of Lanterns before going off to do some sight-seeing and have some silly time.

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Wednesday, February 13

Today was opening day for the convention.  I took the car and went early to get things underway at the NBA exhibit.  Barbara had a little more leisurely morning before riding the river taxi to the convention center.

It was a full day of meet, greet, and promote the National Band Association and I enjoyed meeting new friends and greeting old friends throughout the day.  Highlights included spending time with one of my former students from my early years of teaching in North Carolina back in the 70's.  Greg Black is the son of Bob Black, with whom I taught at East Gaston High School.  Greg has now become a master designer and builder of mouthpieces for brass instruments, and made his first trip to TMEA to show off his wares.  What a great time we had sharing memories!

And, there were music teacher friends from Sulphur Springs, 45 minutes away from us at home, who we seem to see only when we go to TMEA in San Antonio...always a pleasure to visit with the Lovelady family.

Tonight we did some more sight-seeing via the river taxi as we rode out to the historic Pearl District.

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Thursday, February 14

Happy Valentine's Day!!!!!

While I spent the morning at the exhibit hall, Barbara enjoyed a leisurely time of relaxing and reading...just what she needed after a couple of whirlwind days of supporting and helping me with the exhibit.

We wrapped things up at the exhibit hall a little early this afternoon and spent the rest of the day being tourists along the Riverwalk.  What a great way to spend Valentin's Day!!!

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Friday, February 15

It got busy in a hurry this morning.  We had to hustle around to get breakfast and then pack everything up and take it downstairs to load in the car and get to the convention center for a busy morning of NBA recruiting and then taking time to get out and finally see all the exhibits ourselves (and do a little shopping along the way).

Shortly after noon we started breaking down the exhibit and making arrangements to have it shipped back to Illinois.  It took longer than we expected, but it was finally all done and the exhibit materials were ready to be picked up by the convention decorating company.

Then...It was time to do a little sightseeing before getting across town...W-A-Y across town, to meet John, Carol, Randi, and Nick for dinner and begin our final family Christmas for the season.

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Saturday, February 16

This was a whirlwind day for the group as we spent most of it the San Antonio Stock Show and Fair...a full day of food, fun, sight-seeing, shopping, more food, concerts, etc., etc. etc.
Joining us today were step-son Kris, Taryn, and Rhett and Bowman.

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Sunday, February 17

Remembering Ernie Little (February 17, 1948 - March 17, 2017) on his special day...

This is one of the best photos Barbara ever took, as far as I'm concerned.  This was the last time that Ernie was completely lucid before the cancer and morphine destroyed him.  On this day we talked and laughed like we had many times over many years, as if this was just a bump in the road and we had more laughs ahead of us.  This is how I remember Ernie.

It has been a long and fun week, but today it was time to get the heck out of San Antonio and return home to Mineola.  It's fun attending TMEA, fun having Christmas in February with family, and great to return home to our home in Mineola!!!

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Monday, February 18

Hibernation Day...And that's all we're going to say about it!!!!! 🤣

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Tuesday, February 19

This was a gray, rainy day.  So what did we do with it?  Drive to Tyler for a follow-up appointment with Dr. Meads for my ear surgery, then drive back home through the rain and settle down to an evening of doing not much of anything, except watching the rain.

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Wednesday, February 20

We're slowly, but surely getting back into the routine of life at home.  Everything is now washed, dried, and put away from our San Antonio trip, bills are being paid, and tonight I went to praise band rehearsal at Yantis while Barbara stayed home and worked on photos and collages for the journal/blog.

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Thursday, February 21

Today we had the opportunity to join fellow East Texas Patriot Guard Riders in honoring the life and service of a Vietnam veteran.

Following the service we drove back to Mineola, did some shopping at Wally World to restock the larder, and then went home to put things away and rest up a bit.

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Friday, February 22

Once again it was Friday and we hadn't done anything about reminder gifts for the children's sermon this week, so we put everything else aside and spent the morning focused in the lesson.

This evening we joined Ladd, Angela, and Logan for dinner at Jalapeno Tree and then we went with Ladd and Angela to the Historic Select Theater here in Mineola to see the Lake Country Playhouse cast members in a hilarious presentation of "The Old People Are Revolting."  The evening was made even more pleasant when we found our Kansas/Texas friends, Gene and Michelle, in the audience with us.

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Saturday, February 23

We got a call yesterday afternoon requesting a bugler for a funeral service in Gilmer today.  This morning we visited Leslie at Naturally Nails to get new hairdos, and then drove to Gilmer to stand the flag line with East Texas Patriot Guard Riders before driving to the cemetery for the graveside service, the presentation of the flag to the family, and the sounding of Taps.

After the graveside services we said our goodbyes to our PGR friends and started the drive back to Mineola where we spent the evening preparing for church tomorrow.

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Sunday, February 24

Our children's sermon this morning was from John 8:1-11 and was titled, "Don't Throw Stones / Go and Sin No More.

JIM:  Early in the morning one day Jesus went to the temple to teach people.  As he sat down to teach, a group of men brought a woman to him and began to tell Jesus about a crime she had committed.  These men weren’t really interested in what the woman had done.  Instead, they were just being tattle-tales and were trying to trick Jesus into saying something they could use to accuse him in front of either the religious leaders, or the Roman governor.

BARBARA:  Do any of you know what a tattle-tale is?  It’s someone who tells about something that someone has done, but they tell it only to make themselves look good and someone else look bad.  Have you ever tattled just to get someone in trouble, or to make yourself look like a better person?

JIM: Well, these men who brought the woman to Jesus told him what she had done and then said, “Our law says that someone who does this should have rocks thrown at her to hurt her.  What do you say, teacher?”

All the time the men were talking, Jesus was kneeling on the ground and writing something in the dirt with his finger.  When he looked up again, he told the men, “Whoever has not sinned may throw the first rock.”  And then he knelt back down and wrote some more in the dirt.  Now, we don’t know what Jesus wrote, but after a moment, the older men turned around and left without saying a word, and then the others followed them, leaving only Jesus and the woman.

“Where are they”, asked Jesus?  “Has no one offered to throw a stone?”

“No one, sir,” the woman said.

Then I don’t condemn you,” Jesus said.  “Go and sin no more.”

BARBARA: There are really two lessons that we need to learn from this story.  The first is that we are not the final judges of someone, because we have all sinned.  The second is that we are supposed to quit our own sins and live our lives so that we are examples to others of how God saved us and how he wants us to live.

To help remind you of today’s lesson we have a little bag with a rock in it.  On the rock is written the words of Jesus, “He who is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone.”

JIM: Heavenly Father, we thank you for sending your son to grant us a new and everlasting life.  Pease grant us the wisdom and courage to look at our own sins instead of pointing our fingers at others.  We have all sinned and fallen short of your glory, but this morning we ask that you strengthen us to live in a way that sets an example to others of your forgiving grace.  And we pray this in the name of Jesus, Amen.

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Monday, February 25

Happy 6th Birthday to Grandson Jack David Little!!!!!

If it wasn't for Jack's birthday, this would have been a very boring day...just another day of hanging around the house and taking care of business.

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Tuesday, February 26

Happy 50th Birthday, to son John Henry Colwell!!!!!

Trying to explain a mother's heart with words is not an easy task. Robert Browning said it best, in my opinion. "Motherhood: All love begins and ends there."  I am so blessed to be able to call you, "Son." Love, Mom

While we weren't in San Antonio to celebrate with John on his special day, we did get to celebrate watching Aubrey and Rivers as their parents took a little break this afternoon and evening.  These two girls are perfect house guests and s-o-o much fun!

Aubrey and I got some trumpet practice time together to prepare for a special music duet at church in the not-to-distant future.  Meanwhile, Rivers showed Mrs. Little all her latest tricks.

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Wednesday, February 28

Around the house this was just another day, but this evening was spectacular.  The United States Navy Band had a tour concert scheduled in Tyler tonight, so Barbara and I joined Lake Country Symphonic Band director Mike Holbrook and his mother for dinner at Pazzaria on the square in downtown Tyler...

and then made the drive to the University of Texas-Tyler to join a huge throng of folks who came out to hear one of the top military bands the United States has to offer.

The company, food, and concert were superb!

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Thursday, February 28

We closed out February by taking care of the business of business around the house.  Barbara checked all the finances and paid or set aside money for upcoming bills while I plowed through a mountain of paperwork on the desk to sort out little hills of papers related to income tax.  Neither project was fun, but sometimes the have-to's are just have to's, fun or not.

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Celebrating the end of a short, but very busy month...

Love and best wishes to all,

Jim/Dad/Gramps and Barbara/Mom/Grams/Gramsie

A "Little" Beginning to 2019

Tuesday, January 1 - Thursday, January 31

Tuesday, January 1

2019 didn't start off with a bang, but it wasn't exactly a whimper either.  After actually staying up until midnight last night (something new for us in the last few years) we slept in a little and then got up to work in the kitchen and prepare our part of the New Year's dinner for the Little/Thompson families.

The fare was black-eyed peas with all the traditional trimmings, and good eating and a great time were had by all as we topped off the meal with build-it-yourself ice cream sundaes.

The days of New Year's parades and football games have long been over at our house, so by the time the meal was over, the the dishes stacked, the garbage thrown out, and the telephone call to Travis was made, we were ready for our traditional New Year's Day nap.

Happy New Year everyone...we're off to the races one more time!

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Wednesday, January 2 and Thursday, January 3

These two days were all about taking down the Christmas decorations, boxing them, and carrying them back up to the attic to be stored until next December.  We did do some reorganization of the decorations so that almost everything fit into large plastic tubs, rather than boxes of all sizes and shapes.  We'll see in December if that was a good plan.

Since I had taken down all the non-Christmas house decorations while Barbara was in Lubbock early in December (and forgot to take photos of where they were placed), we voted to Let Leah come over this weekend and arrange everything so it looked new.  In the past, we've always tried to get the taking down, packing up, and redecorating done in one session, but that wasn't going to happen this year.

Thursday night was the first rehearsal of the new year and a new concert for the Lake Country Symphonic Band...lots of heavy duty sight-reading.

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Friday, January 4

Leah and Kaiden came over from Fort Worth for a couple of days, and she immediately went to work taking our old stuff and displaying it so it all looked new.  Leah really has a knack for that sort of thing, and we appreciate her doing it for us.  Other than hauling in things for Leah to look at and either include or exclude from her settings, Kaiden and I stayed out of the way and started cleaning out cabinets in the garage, a task that Barbara and I had put off for far too long.

And yes, there was food, fun, and games before the day was over...

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Saturday, January 5

We made some minor adjustments to the work that had been done yesterday and then set out for a day of fun and family.  Kaiden and I worked in some Taz time while Barbara and Leah shared some mother/daughter time.

This afternoon I got my trumpet and joined fellow buglers across the United States by sounding Taps in honor of a long-time fellow bugler in California who had recently passed away.  Buglers are a unique fraternity whose numbers are dwindling (in spite of efforts by organizations like Taps for Veterans that encourage to the best of their ability to provide live buglers for military veterans when they are laid to rest.  Situations like today raise the question, "Who will sound Taps for the bugler?"

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Sunday, January 6

We had prepared what we thought was one of our best children's sermons and today would be the best time to give it, but Barbara was feeling under the weather and was hurting, so we cancelled our part of the service and stayed home this morning.

Later, I got a call from Mike Holbrook, director of the Lake Country Symphonic Band, informing me that long-time trumpeter and band member, Wayne Collins had passed away, and that there was going to be a memorial service at the theater tonight.  I agreed to sound Taps at the 6:30 service.

However, plans often go awry, and that set of plans went up in smoke when Barbara was hurting so bad that we rushed to the emergency room at the hospital in Quitman to get her checked out and possibly have to go to the hospital in Tyler.

I called Mike to tell him there was no way I could be at the theater tonight, and then we spent what seemed like forever waiting and having tests run.

In the end, Barbara's situation was semi-serious, but not critical, so we went back home, got her in bed, and settled down for the evening.

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Monday, January 8

I called Dr. Martinez, Barbara's primary physician this morning to let him know about the emergency room visit and try to schedule an appointment.  Unfortunately, it would be ten days before he could see her, but she was feeling better.

While Barbara tried to rest and take it easy, I made my Monday run to Yantis to help count the money from yesterday's offering and get it to the bank before returning to oversee the "sick ward" at the house for the rest of the day.

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Tuesday, January 9

Happy 3rd Birthday to Grandson Benjamin Kuper Little!!!!!


We are finding that we are old people who don't have much to talk about except their doctors and ailments.

Today was my turn to see a doctor, Dr. Markle, the surgeon who sliced and diced my arm to remove a malignant tumor back in November.  This was the final follow-up visit as she declared the surgery a complete success and signed off on my release.

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Wednesday, January 9 - Saturday, January 12

These were not noteworthy days.  Barbara was recuperating and getting as much rest as she could and I just piddled around the house.  I really wanted to get outside and work, but the weather wasn't even trying to cooperate, so I stayed inside, did a little housework, and started digging out the "stuff" I would need for filing taxes.

I really bright spot in the week was Friday when one of our Sunday school members, Carol Smith, brought us some delicious homemade soups and salad...that was better than any prescription! Thank you, Carol!

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Sunday, January 13

Barbara was still contagious and didn't want to be a threat to any of our church members, so she stayed home this morning while I went to Yantis and played in the praise band.  We had to delay our prepared children's sermon yet again because it would take both of us to deliver it.

As if one trip to Yantis today wasn't enough, I returned to the church at 3:30 this afternoon for a called Stewardship Committee meeting to get some background information on some repair issues that will impact our financial status...nothing critical, but enough out of the ordinary that it needed special attention.

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Monday, January 14

It was cleaning day around the house today, but fortunately for us, we found Mrs. Flores to help out a couple of times a month.  She came in this morning and worked like crazy for four hours.  When she left, the house was sparkling and smelled fresh and clean.

Barbara had been cooped up inside the house for 8 days, so we took advantage of a pretty January day to go for a ride and see what the world outside looked like.

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Tuesday, January 15

Happy Birthday to Barbara's Sister, Nancy Perry Hargrave!!!!!

Mary, our church secretary, was out yesterday, so I drove to Yantis this morning to help count money and make the bank deposit.

The weather was especially nice (for January) today, so when I got home I cleaned out the flower bed beside the driveway, and then cleared about a ton of acorns off the driveway.  We have a giant oak tree beside the driveway that is absolutely gorgeous when it is green, but also produces enough acorns during the winter to feed an army of squirrels.

While I played outside, Barbara paid the bills and created photos for journal entries that are way past due.

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Wednesday, January 16

Remembering Jim's Brother, Gerald Steven Little
(January 16, 1948 - November 11, 2015)

Hallelujah!  Barbara finally got to see Dr. Martinez this afternoon.  After an examination he declared her non-contagious and able to get out into the wide world once again.

Following the visit with Dr. Martinez, we undertook the dubious pleasure of paying property taxes and school taxes on the house in Mineola and Our Little Lot at Holiday Villages, before heading over to Jalapeno Tree for some crazy good Mexican food (at least, that's what THEY say).

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Thursday, January 17

"Cleaning" seems to be the word of the week around our place.  Barbara was feeling much better today and decided we needed to defrost, clean out, and reorganize the chest freezer in the garage.

When that was completed, Barbara went back inside to work on photos and collages for the journal while I cleaned out more leaves, cuttings, and acorns from the flowerbed and driveway.

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Friday, January 18

Today was another busy day.  The first thing on the agenda was to go to Tyler so I could see Dr. Smith, our cardiologist, for my annual exam.  Dr. Smith heard something in my carotid arteries that didn't sound quite right, so he ordered an ultra-sound procedure and said they'd let us know when they could schedule it.

After leaving Cardio-Vascular Consultants, we drove to Dallas to join Alexander and Andy and watch Alexander play in a freshman soccer match for Jesuit High School.  We were later joined by Heather and Abby who drove over from their school.

When the game was over (a resounding victory for the Jesuit team) we all went a couple of miles down the road to have dinner at the Maple Leaf Diner, a whole new gastronomic experience for us.

You just can't beat family, food, and fun times!!!!!

We said our goodbyes after dinner and then headed back to Mineola, arriving about midnight and more than ready for bed!

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Saturday, January 19

Just another Mineola Saturday...not nice enough to fire up Taz, even for a short ride, or do any serious yard work, so we just piddled around the house and rested up from yesterday's adventures.

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Sunday, January 20

We had planned all week to finally do our children's sermon that had been on hold since the first Sunday of the month, but found out on Friday that a group from Adult and Teen Challenge of Texas, Azle Campus, would be here for a special presentation this morning.  Since they would have the whole service, we visited with Pastor Craig and agreed that we could wait until next Sunday to resume our children's sermons.

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Monday, January 21

Since today was a federal holiday and the banks were closed, I didn't make my usual Monday run to Yantis.  Instead, we just hung around the house all day.  I was busy taking care of odd jobs, and Barbara was scrambling to get caught up on photos and collages for the journal/blog.

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Tuesday, January 22

Happy Birthday to Daughter-in-Law Kelly Jividen Little!!!!!

Happy Birthday to Daughter Leah Colwell McQuitty

Today I made yesterday's run to Yantis, and then returned to the house.  The rains came in again, so there was nothing to do but stay inside and keep ourselves occupied with whatever interested us in the moment.

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Wednesday, January 23

This morning we just piddled around the house.  This afternoon we drove to Tyler (stopping first in Lindale for Barbara to buy some Mary Kay products), for my ultra-sound procedure at Cardio Vascular Consultants.  Now for the "forever wait" to get the results.

When we got back home I got my music and trumpet things together and scooted out to Yantis for praise band rehearsal while Barbara reviewed our bills and bank balance to make sure we were going to be okay through the remainder of the month.

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Thursday, January 24

The biggest news of the day was that we got to see Leslie at Naturally Nails and have her cut our hair,  That may be a sad commentary on the state of our lives this month, but it was exciting for us!

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Friday, January 25

Aside from sending out a batch of Get Well and Sympathy cards to several of our church member friends, today was all about finishing a journal entry and getting it posted.  When push comes to shove, we can usually get the job done, but lately it has taken a lot more push where the journal/blog is concerned.

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Saturday, January 26

Happy Birthday to Son-in Law Jim Farnham (Daughter Whitney's Husband)

This morning we drove to the funeral home in Sulphur Springs to visit with church friends Tena and Jesse during a visitation time.

When we finished at the funeral home, we drove across town to the local theater complex to see the highly acclaimed movie, Green Book.  We had seen some previews on TV about the movie, but didn't have much idea of what it was about; it didn't take long to get involved in the story.  This was a time in our country when we were graduating from high school, and although we in southeastern New Mexico had experienced very little of the effects of segregation in the South, we had family members who, unfortunately, were dragged kicking and screaming into an integrated society.

For me, it brought back a memory from my sophomore year in high school.  Our junior high and high school were fully integrated and no one thought anything about it.  Each spring, the high school band went on a concert tour, playing at other schools in the area.  Mr. Bradbury scheduled an informal meet and greet session with Dr. Gary Garner and his students at Monterey High School in Lubbock.  We were also scheduled to have a band banquet while we were there.  Unfortunately, Mr. Bradbury was informed by the restaurant manager after we got to Lubbock that because one of my best friends and a fellow trumpet player was not allowed to eat with the band at the restaurant because he was black.  Mr. Bradbury asked several of us if we would mind eating at the motel restaurant instead of going with the group.  We said that would be fine with us, so we enjoyed a fun evening at the motel while the others did their thing.  I'm sure Mr. Bradbury had no idea of what was going to happen, otherwise he would never have scheduled an event at that restaurant.

I was fortunate to have grown up in a family that neither practiced nor condoned racial prejudice, but I was also not blind and deaf to what was going on in the rest of the country, and Green Book brought a lot of that back in a very focused manner.

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Sunday, January 27

This morning found us at church with our children's sermon for the first time this month/year, although we had it prepared on January.

Our inspiration for the lesson came during a visit with friends from Liberal, Kansas, when we visited them on Christmas at their home in Searcy, Arkansas.  The title was the words of one of their grandsons who had asked his dad, "How do I know when God is talking to me?"

JIM: Good morning...Today is the first Sunday of 2019 and Mrs. Little and I feel called to present this special lesson to you children.

BARBARA: On Christmas Day, we were having lunch with friends of ours in Arkansas when Ron got a text from his son Doug. In it, Doug told his Dad that seven-year-old Dexter had asked him how would he know if God was talking to him. Doug said he tried explaining that Dexter would know by reading the Bible, going to Sunday School, attending Bible studies, and listening to the preacher.  Dexter’s response was quick and emphatic, “Never mind, I’ll just ask Grandma!”

JIM: Though this was humorous and made us laugh, it also struck a chord with Mrs. Little and me.  It seemed to us like a question that all kids and many adults might have. We know children were very important to Jesus because he said in Matthew 19:14, “Let the children come to me.”  You children are at the very earliest stages of learning about Jesus, but as you grow, you will understand more about hearing God and listening to Him.

So, obviously the first step for you to learn is to believe in Jesus! Once you truly believe in Jesus Christ as your personal savior, then it is important to listen to him speak through the Holy Spirit.  Mrs. Little, would you like to talk about this?

BARBARA: You know, Mr. Little, it’s not that Dexter’s daddy was wrong.  It’s just that the answer was confusing for a child.  When my own children were little and wanted to know how to tell if the Lord was speaking to them, I’d ask them this question, “Have you ever thought to yourself that you’d like to do something you know you shouldn’t do?  For example, you are in a store and see something that I’ve said you couldn’t have, but you really want it and thought of hiding it in your pocket.  But something stopped you…it was a thought that came into your head,” No, don’t do that,” or “You know that’s wrong.”  To me, those are God moments, times when God is speaking directly to you. It’s important to remember that God will never speak to you and tell you to do something that is wrong or against his Word.

JIM: But, Mrs. Little, I also think the kids need to know that sometimes God tells us when to do something. The one time that comes to my mind wasn’t when I was a child; but when I was much older. I had an opportunity to apply for the principal’s position at the high school in Liberal; you and I talked about it and decided it just wasn’t what we were supposed to do. Remember that, Mrs. Little? But...then the very next Sunday I was filling in as teacher for a senior women’s class and we were studying about the purpose driven life. Halfway through the lesson, I felt like God was not only teaching the lesson through me, but he was also teaching it to me and telling me I had to at least apply for the job.  You were shocked when I told you that after church; but you believed that when God speaks to us, we must listen. To make a long story short, I became principal of Liberal High School which paved the way for us to retire, help build churches, do volunteer work, and eventually wind up here in Yantis giving children’s sermons when we can. That happened because I not only heard God, but I listened to Him.

BARBARA: That’s right, Mr. Little.  That’s why as a special treat we are giving these packets of mints and a can of soda, because, “You are “Mint” to Listen to God, so “Listen-Up!”

JIM: Heavenly Father, we thank you that you are a father who talks to his children and who wants them to talk to him.  We pray for the wisdom to not just hear you when you speak, but to listen to you so we can have your guidance in our daily lives.  We thank you and praise you in the name of Jesus, Amen.

It was a good morning to be in the house of the Lord...great music, wonderful and challenging sermon, and the best of friends!

We had a full afternoon planned and didn't feel like cooking, so we stopped at the Oak Ridge Marina Restaurant  for lunch.  It didn't take long to discover that other church members from Yantis had the same idea.  Baptists DO appreciate good food and fellowship, whether formal or informal.

We had a church council meeting at 5:00 and a church business meeting at 6:00 this evening, so we kept the highways between Mineola and Yantis hot.

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Monday, January 29

We were back in our usual routine this morning.  After setting out all the house cleaning supplies and tools, I went to Yantis to count money.  When I got home, Barbara was gathering things that we no longer had any use for to give to Mrs. Flores when she was finished cleaning, and Mrs. Flores was making our house spic and span.

When Mrs. Flores left, Barbara and I finished cleaning the garage and straightening things up so we could easily park Taz and the car inside without stumbling over boxes, baskets, and miscellaneous furniture.

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Tuesday, January 30 and Wednesday, January 30

These were just basic "taking care of stuff around the house" days.  With tax season upon us there was more than enough paperwork for me to stack, sort, and build new stacks, while Barbara focused on wrapping up another set of journal/blog photos and collages.

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Thursday, January 31

Here we go with another doctor visit.  This time it was me and a surgical procedure to remove a basal cell carcinoma from my left ear.  Dr. Meads is a wonderful surgeon who uses the Mohs procedure, a procedure in which the surgeon makes an educated calculation of the size and placement of the tumor, removes just what he/she thinks will be just enough to show "clean" edges around the tumor, and then sends the material to the pathologist for a report.  If the material has clean edges, the procedure is over except for some cleaning and sutures, if necessary.

This morning Dr. Meads took a larger than expected tumor out, and the pathology report indicated that there was still more, so she dug in for a second time.  Unfortunately for me, the tumor had gone through the skin and was making its way through the cartilage, which necessitated the removal of a significant (to me, anyway) piece of the ear; enough for anyone to be able to see that my ears are no longer a matched set.

After cleanup and sutures, the nurse put a bunch of gauze and bandaging on the ear and sent us home.  Of course, Barbara took a lot of photos at the end of each part of the procedure, but we chose to not share some of the more grisly shots.

When all was done, we drove back to Mineola and I took the first of several doses of X-tra strength Tylenol to stave off the pain I new was coming.  That part seemed to help as we finished off January with Barbara at home watching murder and mayhem on TV while I went to band rehearsal.

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Ushering out January in Mineola, Texas

Jim/Dad/Gramps and Barbara/Mom/Grams/Gramsie