The Personal Touch

One of my new year resolutions is to begin blogging again, so here goes.........

Two other resolutions are to make more phone calls and write more letters. One reason I made these resolutions is because this new year was very different to those I remember, because of the mobile phone and the computer.

At new year I would normally expected to speak to a number of folk by phone, or welcome them to my home or visit them in their's. This new years day I only spoke to four people, and two of them live with me! The third person I spoke to was my elder daughter who was visiting us for new years day dinner, and the fourth person was her Carer who collected her to take her home (but who did not even come into the house). We received no phone calls. Our first foot was our next door neighbour on the morning of 2 January.

Don't get me wrong - we did hear from folk - and I was very happy to hear from each and every one, and their contact and best wishes are valued more than they know. However, all these messages were via text or Facebook. I miss hearing people's voices. I miss seeing their faces.

I think that both computers and mobile phones are brilliant tools which are invaluable in many areas of life and work. However, have they also taken over areas where a telephone call, letter or visit are more appropriate? Are we in danger of losing the personal touch?

Grumpy Old Woman

It's been a while since I posted anything. Truth is that I'm currently trying to keep lots of plates spinning and this has made me tired and grumpy. Some of this is justified - namely the poor service that I have received from a couple of suppliers - gas and telephone. Shall I name them? Shall I tell the reasons? Maybe not - to go over it all again will only make me even more grumpy.

However, I am horrified at the cavalier attitude of some companies toward their customers. Do they not care that they may lose custom? In today's economic climate should they not be doing absolutely everything they can to keep their customers? If it's not their attitude, then it must be sheer inefficiency, and this makes a joke of the large salaries that their 'management' command. I sometimes feel - call me old-fashioned - that so called progress is sometimes rather cold and faceless.

Pride

...... caught a bit of "Britain's Got Talent Tonight" and there were some very talented young people performing. Their parents were talking about how proud they are of them, quite rightly, and that made me think. I'm proud of our children too. I'm proud of Sarah because she copes, most of the time, with her disabilities with a smile. I'm proud of Catriona because, despite panic attacks, she has achieved so much. I'm proud of Nathan because, although he left school early, he has worked his way up to a manager's post. There are many other reasons that I'm proud of them - but I think they are the people I should be saying this to, so I will!

We're home.

Home - always good to be home, no matter how great a holiday. We had some adventures in Brazil, some brilliant experiences, and I'm going to attempt to put some advice/suggestions on Trip Advisor.
What did we miss while we were away? Joe missed a decent cup of tea - tea, as we know it, could not be found! I missed people. What do we miss about Brazil? The warmth and being right beside the sea.
I'll post some photos soon.

Nostalgia

I'm going away on holiday soon. We're going to Brazil and looking forward to exploring - but after we've had a rest!

For some reason I've been thinking of my holidays when I was a child. They were all spent with my maternal grandparents in a small fishing village on the north-east coast of Scotland. They owned the village's general store, Post Office, bakery, haberdashers, etc - the shop sold everything! I can still remember the smell of newly-dug potatoes, in sacks leaning against the food counter, and the fabulous scent of newly baked bread. There were huge slabs of butter and cheese, which were cut with a long piece of wire, and biscuits were loose in tins and sugar measured into thick, dark blue bags. I can remember the 'bop, bop, bop' sound of Granda stamping the mail before it was collected by the Royal Mail van.

The house was huge and part of the same building, and the ground floor was rented out to a family. There were three bathrooms, all in a row, and three huge attic rooms which we children used as playrooms when the weather was bad - there were boxes of clothes, games and a huge brass bedstead in each room. From the windows you could see the beach and the sea at the bottom of the square and, twice a day, a herd of cows processed through the square on their way to milking. The garden at the back was massive and filled with every kind of vegetable, including curly kale, which fascinated me. There was a huge strawberry plot and a greenhouse with fragrant tomatoes and a vine twining along the roof.

Magical stuff! Although I loved being there all summer, I certainly didn't realise then just what an idyllic sort of time and place it was.

Family Update

I know that I haven't posted anything for ages, but I have been terribly busy and have also been unwell. I had one of those horrible headache, dizzy, nausea 'bugs'.

One of the reasons that I'm so busy is because Joe and I soon go on holiday to Salvador, Brazil. We are very much looking forward to the rest and relaxation, but will also explore the history of the area, and I wonder if there will be turtles on the beach! But there is much to do beforehand. Next weekend I go to Perth for my Christian Workers' Certificate Spring Study Day - these are good days but I'm a bit nervous about giving a ten minute presentation.

Our youngest grandson, Iain Joseph, had his first trip to A&E last weekend! He suddenly decided to do a somersault off the sofa, hurting his head, so his mum and dad decided to take no chances and drove to the hospital. Thankfully he is none the worse for his acrobatics!

Tasha, our lovely old cat, is not very well at all. She now has a bad heart and spends a lot of time sleeping. Tablets seem to help however, and she seems happy enough and is eating, which is always a good sign.

Reasons To Be Cheerful!

We had such a wonderful Easter weekend at Kilcreggan. I must admit that when I arrived I was feeling pretty frayed at the edges !!!! But, as always, God is good and within 24 hours of having arrived I was feeling rested. By the time we left I felt refreshed physically and spiritually. The house is lovely, the scenery gorgeous - Joe and I took a walk down to the waterfront on the Saturday afternoon (down an amazingly steep hill) - and even the weather was fantastic! The company was brilliant, the food good (and plentiful!) and my bed was right in a bay window overlooking the water - the sunrise on Sunday morning was very beautiful.

We shared times of fun, including a quiz-night and rolling eggs (and people) down a hill on Easter Sunday morning. We experienced a real sense of God's presence during worship and prayer and we soaked in His peace and were 'quietened by his love'. So much more than I can describe here!

As I said, we left on Monday after lunch and even the flurries of snow and the heavy traffic couldn't dampen our spirits! And as we approached home and the 'coming back down to earth with a bump', I looked around and was reminded yet again of what a beautiful part of the world I live in.

Power!

I seem to be full of wee moans these days....... We have just received a letter from Scottish Gas saying that the cost of both gas and electricity is to increase by 15%. That's a lot. The company say that their costs have increased such a lot that they are having to pass on these costs to their consumers. Fair enough I suppose.

However, I'm curious to know what kind of profit the company is currently making and if they are paying-out to shareholders. It is difficult to find the extra money to pay these increased costs, so how are folk on a pension or suchlike coping?

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My News

I've had the 'flu - or something very like it! Feeling a bit better today so heading back to work tomorrow.

My Christmas holidays got off to a good start, meeting some of my friends for a meal. We had a great evening!










On Sunday 23rd we had a lovely Christmas Family Service at church and our Sarah was able to join us. In the evening a number of us from church joined some of our friends at a local housing association for a Carol Service.

Joe was working on Christmas Day and the family celebrating in their own homes - so Joe and I had a quiet Christmas dinner when he got home, and we spent time with the family later in the week. Our youngest grandson is now walking, which is keeping his mum on her toes!

Of course we also had snow, which is very pretty (when viewed from inside!)



Well, I wonder what 2008 has in store for us all? I pray that it is full of good things for everyone.

Computer Problems.

Did anyone miss me? My computer stopped working last week, just after I posted my last blog. However, thanks to Stuart (a scholar and a gentleman) I have a healthy computer once again!!

Family News

At last, our Tasha seems to be back to normal. I was concerned for a while that there was something seriously wrong. However, she's once again eating well and, as you can see, finding the best places to sleep!




Sarah is also sleeping well! I phoned her on Monday evening to be told by her carer that she was already in bed asleep - it was only 7.00pm! Seems a particularly busy day at the local college special unit had exhausted her! Here's a picture of Sarah, with her dad and her nephew.

Young Iain Joseph celebrated his first birthday recently, and his favourite gifts were a box and a balloon! !

Can I come out of my box yet? ......................................................It's my balloon Mum!

Joe will soon be visiting our son, Nathan, and grandson, Stephen, for a weekend, and I only have a few weeks of my work contract left. I can't believe how quickly this year has passed, and now autumn is here! With this sudden, cold weather, despite the stress of its installation, I am very grateful for our new and efficient central heating system! (Even though we still have a leak under the sink........)

HELP!

It has been pointed out that I am not blogging much at the moment. True! I have had a rather fraught couple of weeks, what with the aforementioned installation of a new central heating system and assorted illnesses within the family.


Once all the clearing up was done (well, to be honest, I haven't done all of it yet) I began to prepare for speaking in Church this morning - and things became considerably worse! Somehow, I did something to my back and the pain and immobility yesterday was most inconvenient. Another teething problem from the work on the central heating reared it's ugly head - a veritable waterfall in the cupboard under the sink! This means that the cupboard has to be left empty, so the contents are scattered around the kitchen, added to our pans, mixer and slow-cooker which have become homeless following the removal of the final shelf in the boiler cupboard!

As I have mentioned previously, our cat, Tasha, has been a bit under the weather recently, so we have spoilt her. She is better now, but does not realise that this means the spoiling has come to an end, so she is constantly under my feet. Also mentioned in previous blogs, our ertswhile spasmodically working fridgefreezer now works properly, but only if it is plugged into an extension lead. It is interesting trying to negotiate the obstacle course that is our kitchen, with a bad back and a cat twining itself around your feet!

However, these things are annoying and inconvenient, but they will be sorted out very soon. Compared to many folk, I am very fortunate. I read Graham's most recent post this evening, and I feel bad about my wee domestic rant. I have so much to be grateful for. When life gets fraught, I should always remember that all I have to do is listen to God's "still, small voice of calm". And should life get tougher, then all I have to do is lean on Him and trust Him to guide me through. I wrote the following poem when life was especially difficult.

I've stopped struggling,
I've given in,
Exhausted with the battle
I hand it all to Him.

I'm fully surrendered,
Unable to stand,
He gently scoops me up
In the palm of His hand.

And His love and grace
Come shining though,
His mercy endless,
His promises true.

And I weep
With relief
As I rest
In His care.