Wrinkles
Congratulations to Annette and Pete Crawford on their 50th wedding anniversary -- a couple who are truly an asset to this community.
Wrinkles' congratulations last week to the Aiken County Council was premature ... they did join the spend-trend group! During the meeting, the council adopted its 2009-10 fiscal year budget, reducing by 20 percent the amount the county provides in aid to the cities of Aiken and North Augusta ... yet the approved budget was amended to include the $100,000 for a state and federal "revenue consultant" - (is that a new name for lobbyist?).
Once again, Wrinkles asks why can't elected officials do their jobs, promote the State and bring home the bacon? Because of job loss, thousands of S.C. residents stood in line in the hot sun last week to fill out an application for a job. Incomes have disappeared, seniors are losing on their investments, prices on essentials continue to rise and yet the spend-trend by politicians continues ... better speak out or be left out!
Every morning before breakfast, we have our daily devotional using "The Upper Room." Following breakfast, I take my second cup of coffee and the cat food and go out, greeting and feeding Meow-Meow on the screened porch. (He continues to call this his home.) Then I move on to the deck for my "nature" devotional ... due to the woods in the back of our house, the deck is very private except for the birds and animals. Sunday morning, looking over the back yard, something moving caught my eye. It was a large butterfly, not flying but moving on the ground. As I watched, it tried jumping and flying to no avail. Remembering the butterfly story of last week, I resisted going to help it. After about 10 minutes of watching the butterfly struggle, I had to do something ... and just as I reached the beautiful creature who had a tear in one wing, he flew up to a leaf on a violet plant ... and then continued to the bird house. Breathing a sigh of relief, I walked away, glancing back to see it slowly flying toward the woods. Meow-Meow was on the picnic table waiting for his morning brushing, then the humming bird came close to remind me its feeder was empty and, when I finally had time to check my tomato plant (which is taller than me), see that the suet was sufficient to feed the woodpeckers and mocking birds for the day, the gold finch were on their stocking feeder and the smaller birds on the large feeder, I took my coffee back to the deck to relax ... as I stood gazing out toward the woods once again, I was surprised to see the big black butterfly had returned, circling around me, flying on a "wing and a prayer." It seemed to flutter his good wing as if to say, "I'm OK," and slowly flew away. It was a glorious Sunday morning.
Think you'll enjoy this one from Barbara Davison:
I met this person recently and he has a motto he lives by everyday. He said listen carefully and live by these four rules - Drink, Steal, Swear and Lie.
I was shaking my head "no," but he then told me to listen while he explained his four rules ... so here they are -
"Drink" from the "everlasting cup" every day.
"Steal" a moment to help someone who is in worse shape than you are.
"Swear" that you will be a better person today than yesterday... last but not least, when you "lie" down at night, thank God you live in America and have freedom.
"God has not called us to see through each other -- but to see each other through."
E-mail mradacj@aol.com/ 803-279-8704
