Peacocks That Live With Me

Good Morning sweet family and friends:-)
Today I want to thank those friends that have indulged my Peacock obsession. lol
I have had several friends and family that have given me things with Peacocks on them and I will start with my cousin Wise Wolf ( Linda L Fletcher). One day she contacted me and said, "Kamama, I am sending you something" and immediately like a kid at Christmas, I was excited. I am a hopeless kid at heart with any kind of surprises, be it a tangible thing or something to eat.

The waiting was so hard but a few days later, the most amazing gift arrived. As I took the pieces out of the box, I was over come. It was so perfect, like nothing I had ever seen before and everyone I have shown it to just loves it.

The gift is a bathroom set which consist of cup, soap and toothbrush holder. It is porcelain and has a bit of age on it. I do not use it in my bathroom because I share it with so many people, but if I ever get my own bathroom again, it is going to be used. It is so elegant and beautiful. Thank you so much, Wise Wolf.....

A few short weeks later, Cindy and Gina were out and about and sent me a beautiful Pad of Notes with a Peacock on each sheet. I haven't used them yet because they are just to pretty but one day I will... Thank you for thinking of me, as you go about your day.

I want to tell you something about my cousins Linda L Fletcher (and Dannie), Cindy Womble and Gina Mathis .
I was blessed to meet them all a few years ago and although it was only for a few hours, they are in my heart forever.

We share blood between us and when we met, our spirits knew each other instantly. We looked into each others eyes and felt our ancestors among us. We are tribal sisters and we are friends.

They are so giving to those that they love and care for, whether it is a two or four legged animal. When you meet people that love completely, that little blossom that is your heart blooms.. They made my heart grow and I am so grateful for that meeting. We may never get to see each other again but they will forever be in this pea pickin heart..........

I hope that each of you have or will meet people that make you grow. We tend to shelter our hearts in this day and age but I say give it all that you have. Don't be afraid to love, for life is so short. I know that sometimes it is a big scary world out there, but nothing makes you feel safer than love.

Today, I thank these amazing people that I only met once, but feel like I have known forever. I love you all and you are in my daily prayers. Today's prayer is for Cindy and Gina's fur baby Stone. He is sick, slowing gaining ground and I pray that he will continue to get well. It squeezed Cindy and Gina's heart a couple of days ago when Stone got so sick and people that love animals understand how that feels.

Love to my family and friends today. Open your heart and you will be blessed.. I promise.. Always, Kimmee

Thankful To Be A Sister

I missed my thankful day yesterday. The day just seemed to get away from me,  so I apologize. I wanted to make a thankful post every day until Christmas, and here is my story today.

Today, I want to thank my little sister. I call her my little sister,  but she towers over me. She has always been kind of tall, and I always wanted to be as tall as her, but I am short.

One of my first memories of her was holding her when I was 3 or 3 1/2, and she slid out of my arms onto the floor.  Daddy whipped me for dropping her. I felt terrible, not about the whipping but about dropping my sister. I loved her so much. I wanted to take care of her,  but I was too little.

By the time I was 7, I was taking care of her. We shared a bedroom and a bed. Children did that back then. It was not the days of a room for every child, and no waiting for a bathroom.

Thank goodness,  we had an outdoor bathroom that was a two seater, because there were 6 of us kids.

We had a really hard childhood,  but we always had each other. She depended on me, and I depended on her. She was the shyest kid I have ever known.  If a car came into the yard, she would run and hide until I came to get her. Oftentimes, it was just in the bedroom, but sometimes it was in the closet. That was her safe place.

In her defense, it was a great closet. Huge to us and you could hide in there among the clothes,  and no one could find you. lol.

Once she knew you, though, she would come out and play and talk and laugh. We had this old three wheel trike that I just loved. I would pump my legs as fast as I could, and she would be riding on the step in the back , hair flying in the wind with a big smile on her face. Back them Trikes had a step on the back, and you could ride one or two children if your legs were strong enough.

We made tree houses, climbed trees, swung on ropes, and played in the gully. I tried to protect her as best I could, but she broke her arm one day, and there were numerous other childhood cuts and bruises, which happens when you play outside.

One day, Ernest had her be his target with a bow and arrow. He shot his bow and narrowly missed her eye. She still has the tiny slit where the arrow went. I don't remember her ever flinching. Lordy, she was fearless and brave.

She would do anything the boys would do. We were both pretty fearless back then, I guess. Jumping off the railroad trestle, driving a truck or car over the floating bridge, or swimming next to a whirlpool. Man, oh man..

We played hard roaming those 120 acres that were our playground, and we did it together. I could do on and on about the ways that I am thankful for her, and it would never be enough.

She was the family nurse long before I was taking care of Daddy and Ernest. But I was her protector. I kept her safe and would fight anybody who wanted to talk about it. lol. I was a scrappy girl, unafraid.

Thank you, my little sis, for being my sister. If I could have chosen a child in all the world, I would have chosen you.. Love always, your big sissy....

Thankful For Books

Today I want to focus on books. Yep, those things with pages that we can turn and hear the pages crinkle.

My first memory of a book was when daddy took us down to the old place and we found where people had dumped some of their garbage. In that pile were magazines of True Detective and True Romance. True Detective was a magazine about actual crimes and they showed pictures and talked about what happened. I loved the graphics on the covers, although some of them were pretty scary.

Now Daddy would not have wanted me reading stuff like that so I did the only thing I could. I sneaked those magazines into my room.

Ruby had read to me from the Bible and showed me a few words and by the age of 5 or 6, I could read. When I got an alone moment, guess what I did? I pulled those magazine out from under the mattress and poured over them.

When I finished with them, school started and I went to my first Library. I was stunned when I walked into the room. I did not have any books at home to read. We did not make weekly jaunts to the library. It was a wonderland to me and the librarian was so kind. When she found out that I could read and read well, she let me check out more than two books at a time to read. She knew that two books might last me a day or less if they were small.

I got the only discipline of my life in school, while reading books. It was 3rd grade and my teacher was Mrs. Cannon. She was a tall, dignified character of a woman and one day she asked us to change from our History Book to our Math book and I didn't hear her, because I was immersed in reading about History.

I was concentrating so hard that I missed her walking up to my desk and looking at me. She had called my name to get my attention and still I was reading, When she got to me, she told me that I did not listen to her and change my book. I was mortified that all of the attention was on me. Then she asked me to hold out my hand, which I promptly did. She struck my hand with a ruler and it hurt so bad. It was only once or twice, but man did it sting. I tried real hard not to cry in front of every body and I never missed the book change again.

Even with that punishment, my desire for reading was not quelled. Donna will tell you that I was often found with my head stuck in a book.

Thankfulness can be toward a person or item and I am so thankful that my Sister Ruby read to me because that opened up a whole new world for me. I hope that tomorrow's children will still want to read and that we will let them.

I read yesterday where a school in Virginia took "To Kill A Mockingbird" and "The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn" off the shelves. What a loss that is to the next generation.

Children of today won't know the suffering that African Americans had to go through, if we pull every thing connected to that time away.

If we don't discuss Slavery, the Holocaust. and The Civil War, we do a huge disservice to the next generation. Life is not all rainbows and lollipops for all people.

I will continue to encourage people to read. It helps you discern truth from lies and fact from fiction.

I know that I am surrounded by people that love to read and that makes me happy. So today, I am thankful to that first scribe that put pen to cloth paper and made a manuscript for us to read.... Love to all, Kimmee

Thankful The Rain Came

Today, I think that a lot of us are thankful. The rain was coming down like gangbusters last night and every now and then, we got a huge burst of thunder..

Every time that happens, I always think of Daddy saying, "God's bowling", and when it would rain with the sun still out he would say "The Devil is beating his wife." I have no idea where these old sayings came from but I can imagine that they are from the old country, passed down for generations.

My next thought were our farmers. They needed this rain. I wonder how many of us when we go to the supermarket to shop, thank the farmers?

Without them, no produce would be in the vegetable aisle.

That gallon of milk that you need with your morning cereal, would not be there.

That sweet potato pie that your dear ole Aunt made yesterday, would be a figment of your imagination without the farmers.

I know my own Daddy worked in the sawmill from sun up to almost sun down, then would come home and tend the garden that fed us. The boys helped tend the animals and we gathered eggs for tomorrow's breakfast.

I don't think that I thanked my Daddy enough for all the hard work he did or how many times he must have been tired or ached but I never heard him say anything about it. His reward was to get up the next day and do it again, every day.

So today, thank a farmer because Lord knows they deserve it. If you have ever worked a farm, it is a pretty thankless task. Farmers do that because they love it and their Daddy loved it and often their Granddaddy loved it.

My Niece is married to a farmer and she is a farmers wife. That is another special breed of person. My family is full of those, thank God.. Love to all, Kimmee

Freedom

Hi my dear family and friends,
It is so hard to come up with one thing to be thankful for today so here is my list.. Please feel free to add your own.. Merry Christmas dear hearts of mine, Kimmee

I am thankful for freedom.. Even though some of us get weird looks when we go out, we can dress how we want, have our hair the color we want, and we can speak our minds without being drawn and quartered. Many men and women have died for us to have that right. Today is Pearl Harbor Day.. God Bless all of those who serve and all of those that lost their lives that day.

I am thankful for Teachers. If it weren't for schooling, I would not have met the most wonderful teacher in the world, Miss Stella Walker. She taught me so many things about how to treat others and she gave me a sense of self in the kindest way possible. We are blessed to have selfless souls still willing to teach our children in this day and age, because it is a thankless, dangerous task at times. God Bless the Teachers and Educators who still care...

I am thankful for food and water.. We sometimes forget in this country that food and water are a given, most of the time. Unless we are homeless, hungry, or cold, we tend to forget just what a blessing it is to have a plate of food in front of us, anytime we choose.
I went through a really rough period a few times in the past 11 years and at times, I was hungry. Every Time, God sent an Angel to feed me and give me all the things I needed. I am so thankful for the people that helped me get by, when I needed it most.. God bless all those Angels lurking behind the scenes to bring joy where it is most needed.. If you know someone in need, take them a meal or donate a toy and become an Angel for someone else.

I am incredibly thankful for my children. I would not have made it through my life without them. I was blessed with 3 very different, amazing children and now have two wonderful grandchildren. They are my heart and spirit each day.
They care for me, make me laugh, help me to remember things that I may have placed aside, and they give me hope for tomorrow.

God bless all of the people in my life that show caring and love every day. It is harder to be positive than it is to be negative. I consciously make a choice to try and share a smile each day. I fail miserably sometimes, but the reward is in the effort.

Much love to you all. May your lives be blessed as mine has been by having you all in it.... Love, Kimmee

Statues of Geese

Sometimes early in the morning before I get my eyes adjusted to being awake, the geese look like statues. LOL.

I hope that this morning will be all that you wish it to be and that tomorrow will be as well!

I am counting my blessings this year. Among them are my family and friends. The road I have been on the past 8 years has taken me places I never thought it would. We have expectations of where we are going and then the road turns for us.

The road turned for me last year when I faced homelessness and again this year when I faced it again.

I had worked most of my adult life, buying my home in upstate NY, educating and taking care of my children, and then illness roared its ugly head into my life. My life changed so much I hardly had time to adjust but I tried not to let life defeat me.

It wasn't easy to wear a smile some of the time but I always remembered what Daddy said, when we complained of tough meat. He said, it would be tougher without, and he was right.

Life could have been easier if I had been able to continue working as a Nurse and retired like I had planned at 55.

But who wants something easily gained?

The life I was given was rewarding and challenging. It kept me always searching and seeking higher ground. It made me grow as a being and made me get rid of things that kept me bound.

It was hard to look at illness as a gift but it has turned out to be just that.

My friend Joan Schaublin gave me something a bit ago called "Sitting with Discomfort" by Jeff Foster and I realized that was what I have been doing most of my life. And I have gained the gifts of that for my life.

Don't run away from hardships. They create who we are. They did it for our parents, our grandparents, and great grandparents.

I just wanted to thank those friends that have walked with me, cried with me, and laughed with me the past few years. I could not have known I would need you; but when I did, you were there.

All my love, Kimmee

Chocolate Covered Cherry Christmas

Morning dear friends,
I casually mentioned to my daughter in law that I used to love chocolate covered cherries at Christmas but that it had been a long time since I had them and this was waiting for me when I got up to have my coffee this morning! What a sweetheart she is..
I am ashamed to say I have already opened the box, but just barely.. LOL. Thank you so much my chosen daughter.
I hope that everyone's day starts off with such joy... Love you all, Kimmee