Memories

I was listening to the Tabernacle Choir sing this morning while fixing breakfast and they sang the song "Oh What a Beautiful Morning". When I heard this song my mind went immediately to my Mom and Grannie. They both made the choice to see the good in everyday even tho they both had every reason to be bitter and negative. I need to find the words to that song and put them up on my mirror so that I can start everyday excited about what is ahead. My mom seemed to live for that excitement, she couldn't wait to see who she would meet, or who she would help that day. Grannie was the same way. She was the perfect person to be at the help desk in the bank. She always had a smile on her face and a hello for everyone that walked in. I am going to try and make this my Choice to work on for the week. I am going to go into the day knowing that the current day is going to be the BEST DAY EVER!!!!

Saying Goodbye to a Good Old Friend

We have had to make a hard Choice this week. We have had to decided what would be the best thing to do for our old and trusted horse SHOOTER. He has been a family friend for a long time. We got him at a time of another loss. Our mare BABE had gotten really sick with sand colic. (that is where a horse will eat rocks and sand, either by accident while they eat or just because they like to eat rocks) Babe had eaten so many tiny rocks that they had filled her stomach and had impacted in her intestines. Anyway dad took her down to Logandale in the middle of the night to see if there was anything they could do, but it was too bad and we had to put her down. Babe had sort of been Allison's "go to" horse so we were now one horse short. We put the word out around Alamo and a good friend, Andy Bailey, called and said that he was looking to sell his rope horse so that he could get a new one. We jumped on the opportunity and a beautiful palomino gelding came to live at our house. Alli fell in love with him as did all of us. He was so dependable that we parent never had to worry about our kids when they were on him. We knew that he would get them safely to the corral at the end of the day. He has been the first horse and only horse allot of our grandchildren have ridden, so there are enough pictures of the old guy around that I know we will never forget him. Anyway, over the past few years he has really gone down hill. He was 28 years old . This past winter was tough on him, we kept him in the barn as much as possible and he never lost his appetite, but he wasn't using anything he ate. Over the last couple of weeks he had started dragging his feet when he walked and he had lost ALLOT of weight, becoming just skin and bones. We couldn't stand to watch him suffer so we made the CHOICE to give him a dignified way out. Dad took him out to to Meghan and Cassidy's this past weekend so that he could be buried out on the range. It was hard and I will miss him but it was an easier choice that to come home and find him gone. The one thing I do know, is that Grandpa Jim and Grandpa Dodge just got one heck of a horse to ride.

Sometimes Life is Just Plain Yucky

Our house has had a rough week. We have been really busy with things, Dad has had his end of the year FFA banquet and I have ended up working almost everyday. I also had to get my application in for the full time job I am going to be getting.( choice to send out positive thoughts) So it has been a bit crazy. Then on top of all of that, Dad was notified that his job was going to be cut to a half time job. This would mean that he would not get any health insurance or retirement paid into the system. Not the kind of news a person wants to hear, especially when jobs are so few and far between. We still can't figure out what people have against dad or FFA program, but it is hard to keep up your spirits when we have had to have this fight EVERY year. It just makes a person tired.
Here is where the CHOICE part comes into play. We all have bad things happen to us and like I have said before what we do with our attitude during these times is the real test of a person. I read a story a long time ago in one of those "Chicken Soup for The Soul" books. It tells about a couple who had been away for Christmas. They had driven all day to get home and had arrived late at night. Instead of unloading the car right then, they had decided to just go in the house and get some sleep. When they got up the next morning they looked out the window and saw that their car had been stolen, with all their Christmas presents still in the car. Now the wife was really upset and was ranting and raving around. The husband, just looked out the window, walked into the kitchen for breakfast and then went to get ready for work. Now that really made the wife mad. When she accused her husband of not caring he simply asked if her getting mad brought their stuff back. That comment made her stop and take a breath. He went on to say that he was going to call the police and report the theft and then call their insurance agent, but him getting upset was not going to make the car come back. If he got upset all it would do would ruin his day and he CHOSE not to have his day ruined.
I love this story, and every time I have been tempted to get upset or let hate and anger take over my life because of a situation ,I think about this story. So, even tho I don't like what people have done to my husband, and I don't like the stress they have put us under. I won't let them make choices for me. I choose to try and find a solution, to not dwell on their pettiness. To look at every positive option and work on those things that will get me to a positive solution. I hope I can help Dad find this Choice in his life. We have lived through this same scenario before and it wasn't pretty, I hope that I can be positive enough for the both of us until he can get a handle on his emotions and make the positive Choices I know he will eventually make.

Past Choices

I know we aren't supposed to look at the choices we have made in the past and feel guilty about them. We are supposed to learn and move forward. But sometimes it is hard to move forward when something happens and you know that if you had made a different choice in the past you would have been in a better situtation in the present. I am going to have to make a choice now that I should have made a long time ago. I am going to apply for a full-time job, so that I can help out here at home. It is going to be hard and I know that I will have to work to over come some feeling I know I will have about not being able to spend as much time with my grandchildren but I really feel it is a choice that I have to make right now. I hope my kids will understand and I hope I can find a job.