Small Act of Kindness

By Linda Patton ~July 7, 2015

We may never know exactly how one small act of kindness will affect someone’s day. However, occasionally the immediate response to the deed will provide a sense of fulfillment and joy to the person who put forth the effort.  

Just another trip to the grocery store turned into one of those mornings. With my cart half filled, I made my way to the canned goods.  My list ordered tomatoes for making chili. Standing in front of the numerous choices, a woman whom I had never met faced the same dilemma that awaited me. Should I choose diced or whole tomatoes? Which brand would fit my budget? I smiled at her, and happily said, “So many choices” as I reached past her to pick up a can to inspect. She half smiled back and made an attempt at a reply. She apologized and explained that she had been standing there for 10 minutes, but she could not focus.

The next thing I know, there we stood in the middle of that aisle, hand in hand, tears rolling down our faces, as she went on to tell me that she was waiting to hear from her granddaughter who at that very moment fought for her life hundreds of miles away. Severe complications during pregnancy had forced labor and delivery, and the odds of either mother or baby surviving were very low. Does anyone really know what to do in that situation? I did all I knew to do-I listened and prayed with her. After thirty minutes, the tears subsided. She hugged me, gave me another half-smile, and said, “I’m sure they will be ok. Waiting is hard.”

The simple gesture of smiling and speaking to her, had given her the opportunity to tell me of her fears, which in turn helped her to pass the time. I have been through situations where time seems to stop and minutes turn to days, those times when all you can do is wait and pray. I never knew how things turned out for that family, but I knew I had been given a purpose for that day. LOVE NEVER FAILS! 

When Love Didn’t Fail Me

By Linda Patton ~June 6, 2015

       In English, Ms. A assigned us to read and critique our classmates’ essays.  I dreaded judging the work of others. I received a few comments back that helped me tremendously. In these comments, more than one person mentioned that they would like to hear more about some way that I have shown an act of kindness that supports my creed. Tonight, I would like to spend some time exploring two instances that I am considering adding to my essay.

       Many years ago, some of our dearest friends were in a bind. They needed a few hundred dollars to fix the urgent problem they were facing. My heart broke. How could we possibly help? I had $20 which wouldn’t even begin to give them any relief. After praying about it, I remembered the verse in the bible where the man hid the talent so that he wouldn’t lose it. He told the master, “I knew you were an austere man and you reaped where you did not sow. Therefore I hid it that I might not lose it.” The Master was very displeased. With that in mind, I approached the couple with tears in my eyes and explained that I knew it wouldn’t come close to helping, but I needed to offer that. They accepted after graciously trying to refuse. Only a few hours later, they called me in tears. They had received a refund check from something unexpected in the mail that took care of the entire need. With tears rolling, the woman expounded to me. “I know the Lord took that $20 and multiplied it.” That lesson rings in my heart yet today. LOVE NEVER FAILS!

       My brother, his wife, and 4 small children lived in Iowa and we lived in Republic. Complications during a medical procedure left him with MRSA in his arm. He nearly lost his arm and a horrific scar now reminds him of that every day. So much trauma and medical expenses had quite an impact on their budget. With Christmas a short time away, I knew they would struggle. My husband had recently changed jobs and we kept a pretty tight budget. Nevertheless, I saved and put back every dime I could. I intended to make sure those kids had something for Christmas.

       The week before Christmas, our Pastor announced that we were going to adopt 5 families. Their need was great. Being a small church, we knew the congregation well. We were aware that they all faced the same challenges in their budgets. Some struggled with illness, others had lost their jobs, and some took their grandkids to raise. But Pastor felt the Lord had urged us to help all 5 families. I went home and hit my knees. I asked the Lord what we could do to help. I felt urged to take the money I had saved, add some to it, and shop for these families. My heart ached as I prayed “Oh Lord, there isn’t enough to help them all.” I had a pretty good idea what I needed to do, but I began to worry. I finally took a deep breath and gave in, “Lord, I’m going to spend all that I have on these families, will you please take care of my brother’s kids?” And we did just that.

       Sunday morning, we carried wrapped gifts in to each pile in the church. The families had been invited to attend a fellowship dinner with us that evening, where they would get their gifts and hopefully feel as though they were loved. When it came time to leave, my truck decided starting wasn’t on its list of things to do that day, so we said a prayer and stayed home. We later heard of the wonderful blessings the families, as well as the church members had experienced. I was so thankful.

       Christmas morning came and my heart was heavy. Finally the phone rang and my mother cried as she told me what had happened. She began with, “The Lord is so good.” A church close by had been given their names and adopted them for Christmas. She related to me how he had cried, humbled by the generosity of the church people. I remember her words plainly. He was still crying when he told her, “But Mom, you can’t imagine. They gave us such nice things. We couldn’t buy those things even if I weren’t sick.” The tears that rolled down my face were filled with joy and humility. The Lord had done even more than what I had asked, and not only that, but He multiplied the love to several more children.  LOVE DIDN’T FAIL!  

       I do not tell these things with any pride, or to be noticed. I tell them because I honestly believe that the Lord took what I had and made something better out of it. I tell this of my experience that LOVE NEVER FAILS!

Threat Neutralized

By Linda Patton ~July 5, 2015

The day finally came. I waited for Ziggy to arrive, standing in the kitchen, knife in hand, with the terror from the previous night laid on the cutting board, awaiting its doom.

He walked cautiously up to the counter, held by his leash, stretching his tiny body as far as he could manage, to get the offender in sight. Rachel reached down and picked him up, holding him closely to the threat. His ears perked up, his eyes danced, and his body tensed as he gazed at the watermelon.

He tilted his head as if to say “What is this? Why is Grammy standing so close? What is that thing in her hand? ” He never raised his voice, he only watched.

I placed the knife at the end of the green skin and sliced. Ziggy froze, his ears perked and his eyes grew larger, as the end fell from the juicy watermelon, revealing a red colored flesh, slightly rolling from the pressure.

Suddenly his demeanor changed, his body loosened, and we noticed something so intriguing that it made us both stop to watch.  His lips parted, and an obvious smile crossed his face. His tongue was hanging slightly out of his mouth, not in the way in which a dog would beg for food or attention, in a way that showed sheer pleasure.

He remembered that watermelon. It had scared him so badly the night before that it left him barking for what seemed like hours. Grammy had captured and was now executing the menace. He watched intently as slice after slice fell from what had once been a very unusual ball.

Rachel took a piece of the red flesh and held it down for him to eat, but he gently sniffed, then refused. Satisfied simply by the fact that the threat had been neutralized.

 LET FREEDOM RING! 

By Linda Patton ~ July 4, 2015

This Independence Day I’m more thankful than I ever before. Everywhere I look I find something else that I have because I live in a Nation where we are FREE!  

We are free to choose whichever god we think is worthy of our praise. I choose to worship the God of the Bible. The “I am” that created heaven and earth. The God who created man, and then sent His Son Jesus to die for our sins, making a way for all who choose to worship HIM. I believe I have this right because I live in the United States of America, just as I believe each individual has a right to choose whom he will serve.

We are free to have families. My husband and I have two children. We have friends who have 1, 3, 4, and even some who have 11. In the United States of America, we are free to make this decision for ourselves.

We are free to choose what house, city, and state we live in. We have lived in town, as well as the country. I love them both. We choose to live in a rural area in Missouri, where we are free to have chickens, goats, dogs, cats, turkeys, and guineas. Our neighbors are free to have their donkeys, cows, horses, rabbits, and any other livestock or pets they like.

We have the freedom to eat what we want, buy what we want, do what we want, and work where we want. We can try our hand at any hobby or activity that makes us happy. We have the freedom to travel anywhere in this Nation to see the mountains, lakes, rivers, oceans, deserts, and many other amazing sights that make up our Great Country.

Today, I enjoyed a wonderful day with my family. I will share tomorrow with a larger part of my extended family, sharing fish that my cousin caught while exercising his right to fish. Others will bring vegetables grown in their gardens, fruit from their bushes, baked goods, and salads, all things that remind me of our freedoms in the United States of America.

We must appreciate the simple things in our lives. These simple things make America worth fighting for.  As we celebrate our independence today, please look around and find the things in your life that remind you of the Glorious Freedom we have been given in this great country - The United States of America.

And by whatever means you choose, please - LET FREEDOM RING!

Threat Detected!

by Linda Patton~July 3, 2015

Today has kept me busy. Outside of homework, I have only checked on my chickens a few times. I had to put one hen in chicken jail because she refused to let the 6 others go to roost. Oh my goodness! They are three times larger than she is. She earned herself a night alone.

While finishing up essay responses, I noticed that my tiny little grandpuppy would not stop barking. Ziggy, the puppy, requires constant attention to keep him from tormenting the world. He will grow out of it-we hope! The barking continued, laced with uncontrollable giggles from each member of the family. I finally stopped to see what could possibly be such a threat.

Laying silently on the kitchen table was the culprit. The loud, high pitched barking alerted us of the danger to which engaged him in an ultimate stare-down. What should we do? How would we survive this threat; this large round green threat?  This WATERMELON!

My laughter melted in with the rest, as my daughter insisted I bring it toward him. I gently picked it up and headed for the chair. He immediately jumped to his feet, still not breaking eye contact with the large, round watermelon that has been sitting on the counter for 4 days now awaiting the purpose for which it was created…the celebration of our Independence.

The worst was happening, it crept closer to him. He jumped off the chair and under my husband’s feet, still barking ferociously. This poor dog. We have yet to find anything that makes him afraid. He will fight with our giant German Shepherd/Mastiff dog and never flinch. But he is afraid of a watermelon?

His fears will be put to rest tomorrow as my daughter holds him tightly in the kitchen, probably still barking, still engaged in the stare-off,  as I neutralize the threat by slicing a knife through it, revealing its dark red center.  I wonder how he will take it when we put a piece in his doggie bowl?

Mean Aunt Linda

By Linda Patton – July 2, 2015

Kids are so amazing. You just never know what they are going to say. Last night, we had a last minute sleepover with my nieces and nephew who range in age from 4-13 years old. In one of my summer classes, we are discussing chronic disease prevention. After reading the chapter on Cardiovascular Disease, I decided that I was going to have to make some changes in the way my family eats. It doesn’t matter how many vegetables I fix, my husband still doesn’t eat them.

Yesterday, we had a discussion and made a plan to correct this.  When suppertime came, I gave everyone, including the children, a salad to eat while dinner was cooking. “Is this all we are having?” the eight year old asked.

“No,” I replied. “We are going to start something new. This is our clean food. Foods that we eat to help our bodies prevent disease and keep us healthy. We are going to eat it first and then have our supper.” I sat out fresh vegetables and even their favorite dip and salad dressings to make it fun.

Out of five kids, I heard a variety of excuses. “I don’t really want any.” And “I don’t like carrots.”  And my favorite, “I’ll just have french fries.” The more they complained, the more I talked. That’ll teach them. It wasn’t long before they lost track and ate all of their veggies, and some even asked for more. They had a blast thinking they were on a mission to eat clean food. We discussed fiber, and how to make choices, and get a good balance of foods that will help your body do its job.

The game continued this morning at breakfast. After much discussion, we decided on oatmeal with raisins, and Fiber One waffles with nuts added in. We would have to eat our oatmeal first, before we could eat waffles, because oatmeal was our clean food. We giggled and had a big time before they returned home to their parents.  

Their mother came to visit this evening. When the subject of our game came up, she laughed and said, “Well, Everett wouldn’t eat his chicken tonight, because he said it wasn’t clean and it didn’t have fiber in it. He decided that he would just eat beans and corn.” I love these guys so much. They aren’t likely to forget this lesson, I just hope someday we get them to understand what the lesson actually is. 

The Secret Life of Aunt Linda

By Linda Patton – July 1, 2015

I had a funny blog planned for tonight, but under the circumstances, I’m going to switch it up and just do some freewriting as I watch to see just exactly how close this tornado warning is going to come to where we live.

My nieces and nephew ended up at my house for an unplanned, last minute slumber party due to an unfortunate trip to the emergency room for their mom and dad. Everything will be fine, just a few stitches.

I knew it was supposed to rain, and I was dreading more water. So much water! My dread quickly turned the corner to worry, as the tornado warnings started rolling off the television screen.  So my freewriting time will now be spent secretly preparing for the storm that is to come. The littlest one is asleep, and thank goodness for DVR and the Disney channel. That is keeping the older two occupied so that they don’t notice what I’m doing.

·         Phase one-Chicken check. All the hatches are battened down there. If we exceed 5 inches of rain before morning, I’ll be waddling out there and moving a mother hen and her chicks to higher ground. Everyone else is up off the floor. I would do it now, but the babies are too small to fly and I am afraid they will jump down and get injured. She lost one two days ago, and I have no idea why, so I’m not taking any chances.

·         Phase two-all dogs inside. Check. So many dogs!

·         Phase three- Inform my older children and check for close by shoes and flashlights. Check.

·         Phase four-make sure that the younger children have flashlights and shoes close to them, without alarming them in any way. Check. I can’t believe I pulled that off. Again, I must say, thank goodness for Disney channel.

·         Final phase- Tuck everyone in and gather  my own personal flashlight, shoes, and English homework. Check!

Time to get in the boat. Thanks for listening. Safe wishes to everyone tonight.