And now!

...an update.

for a summary of 2009, here's an excerpt from my Christmas letter:

Oh, what can be said about 2009? We lost a grandpa and two dear members of our church family. We gained a sister and a nephew. We worked and played and traveled and visited family. We cooked and ate and went to church. We got root canals. We saw the real, live Topol in “Fiddler on the Roof” and enjoyed watching “The Wizard of Oz” at the Orpheum. We talked to crazies both near and far away. We gorged ourselves on Memphis barbecue and treats prepared by the church ladies. We blogged and played video games and read books and debated with anyone who’d listen. We played air hockey. We preached and taught Sunday School and visited people in the hospital. We went to a marriage retreat and got completely and utterly spoiled. We got beat up and robbed in a Meijer’s parking lot. But we’re okay! We celebrated nine years as an old, married couple. Nine years! Has is really been that long?

Above all, we’ve been tremendously and overwhelmingly blessed. Thank God for His mercy toward us.

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The Wizard of Oz was great. We ate delicious salmon beforehand and the singing and acting and effects were very well done. No one beats Judy Garland, but that's beside the point. Happy anniversary to us.

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I baked cookies and fudge and caramels for the church ladies (and church fellas, too). Fourteen hours in the kitchen yielded enough yumminess to serve the entire church. It was fun. Here's hoping nobody dies of food poisoning and I can do it again next year!

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We went to Michigan to spend Christmas and New Year's Day with the family. A wet and rainy and slick holiday. A great time. Visiting with old friends, presents galore and bringing in the New Year with noise and food. Lots of food. And a Snuggie!

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I got my hairs cut! I went from this:



to this:



I highly recommend it. What better way to start a new year than losing a quick couple of pounds?

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Coming soon:

Brian Regan

and

A roast! Check me out Sunday over at Eddie Bluelights place. Little ole me is getting roasted. Hopefully I can smuggle in some ice cubes...

Can You Dig It?

Yes, I can. I've been waiting such a long time. For today...



Que Sarah on holiday. I'll be back next week.

Peace to you...

Listen to the Words

I heard this song for the first time ever recently and was moved. It's taken from a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow after he lost his son in the Civil War and his wife was burned to death when he was unable to save her.

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play
And mild and sweet their songs repeat
Of peace on earth good will to men

And the bells are ringing
Like a choir they're singing
In my heart I hear them
Peace on earth, good will to men

And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on earth I said
For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men

But the bells are ringing
Like a choir singing
Does anybody hear them?
Peace on earth, good will to men

Then rang the bells more loud and deep
God is not dead, nor doth He sleep
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men

Then ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men

And the bells they're ringing
Like a choir they're singing
And with our hearts we'll hear them
Peace on earth, good will to men

Do you hear the bells they're ringing?
The life the angels singing
Open up your heart and hear them
Peace on earth, good will to men

Peace on earth, Peace on earth
Peace on earth, Good will to men

I especially love the stanza that says "God is not dead nor does He sleep." I'm reminded that no matter how unbearable this life seems, no matter how insignificant we feel, God still knows us and loves us.

Aunt Sarah says it better:

"God tells us who we are. He tells us we are unique in the universe. Psalm 139 says he knows our ‘downsitting and uprising.’

It says that he knew me before my birth. Before I was a person, before I gave my first birth cry, God knew me, saw me and was aware of me.

Who am I? Well, I like to read Scientific American. I find articles on astronomy fascinating. Within my lifetime astronomers have learned that the stars we see at night are only from one galaxy out out of many galaxies. And our largest telescopes tell us there are billions of galaxies. And every one of those galaxies can have a billion stars. How many of those stars have solar systems like ours? Our earth is less than a speck of dust in the total of God’s creation.

How can I think of the infiniteness of God? My mind can’t take it all in. I run out of words.

And yet, out of billions and billions of objects and time-years in the universe, there is only one fifth child of Ursula E. MacFarlane and Edward E. Gudschinsky, one named Sarah Caroline Gudschinsky. I am unique in the universe. You are unique in the universe. In all those billions of years, there never was another you and in all the time to come, there will never be another you. You are made by God into a pattern He will never repeat again.

Why on earth, then, am I worried about how I can be somebody? I am somebody, a unique creation of God."

Watch. There's just something about those kids singing "peace on earth."

Wise Men Still Seek Him

So the church is putting on a Christmas play, right? And we were a little short on adults to play some of the parts (like the Wise Men who brought gifts to little Jesus). So sort of jokingly, one of the play workers picked three random men from the congregation and signed them up for the parts.

We had our first run-through yesterday and, lo and behold, they all showed up! I knew two would be agreeable, but the third (we'll call him Mickey, and thank God no one from church knows about this blog, cause Mickey might take offense at being called Mickey) I had just about written off as a lost cause. He is the manliest man I believe I've met! Retired Air Force, this dude has a plane in his garage! He's got a great heart, though, and he sure was a trooper yesterday. I'm just hoping he'll still be gung ho when he sees the costume we've got picked out for him :)

Scrooge? Me?!

I've been away a while, and now here I am with a little rant. I apologize in advance. I'm sure this will be no fun at all to read.

My brothers-in-law have accused me of Scrooginess. Sometimes my hubby accuses me of having a heart that's "two sizes too small."

I think they think it's because I was raised not believing in Santa Claus. You can agree with this practice or not, but one thing I can say is that my parents have never, no not ever, lied to me. We had Christmases filled with family, candlelit church services and caroling.

Just because I get irate if I hear Christmas music at the store before Halloween or am accosted by Christmas trees and mall Santas does not make me a Scrooge.

I also get irate if the Salvation Army bell ringers are deprived of their bells. The Salvation Army gives many people Christmases who would otherwise be forced to treat the holiday like an ordinary day. My grandma was a huge supporter of the Salvation Army and I can't pass a donation bucket without thinking of her (and Uncle John, too, but for a totally different and semi-hilarious reason...story to be told at a later date. Maybe.)

Also, people who gripe over hearing "Merry Christmas." If you don't like it, don't say it back to me. Ignore me. Don't start a petition to have it banned from the world. In my experience, most people don't care if you say it. Most people will smile and say it back. It's something to connect us to strangers, even if only for a moment. Two of my bosses are Hindu and I have a very good friend who is Jewish and none of them have a problem with me celebrating "my" holiday. There must be a small handful of people who want to make life difficult for Christmas-celebrators. Boycotting Nativity scenes, Christmas trees and religious Christmas carols. I don't particularly agree with the history behind Halloween, but I definitely wouldn't presume to boycott the celebration of it.

I'm just sayin...

Thanksgiving Comes First

Today, after the most nerve-wracking, mind numbing day possible, I headed home for some much needed rest and relaxation. Cruising through Memphis, windows open, cool breeze blowing, a great song on the radio and my day is fading behind me when I see it. A monstrosity of a billboard in red and green. CHRISTMAS advertising. In October! The BEGINNING of October! What happened to Thanksgiving? What is wrong with people? Ok, before I get off on a serious rant, let's focus for a minute.

Whether you're a Christian or not; whether you celebrate Winter Soltice, Kwanzaa or Festivus, Christmas was originally meant to celebrate the birth of Jesus. How in the world did we get to the point where we receive gifts on another person's birthday in the first place? Thank God that in the last few years, I've been saved from ultimate Scrooge-dom by the association of Christmas with my annual trip to Michigan to visit the family.

With the absurdity of gift giving aside, don't you feel taken advantage of when you start hearing the commercials and seeing the holiday merchandise in the stores so early? You know you're going to buy gifts for your family and friends and you may even decorate your home, so why do we need it shoved in our faces when Fall has barely even begun? As my dad is fond of quoting, "Love of money is the root of all evil." Advertisers want to take every opportunity they can to panic us in to a shopping frenzy. 84 days til Christmas?! Whatever shall I do???

This year, make an effort to give your hard-earned bucks to retailers who show a little restraint and wait til we've digested our Thanksgiving turkeys before breaking out the Tickle Me Elmos. Take a cue from Suldog and blog about it, or even write letters to your local paper telling them how you feel. It's a small thing, but one that could possibly save us all a little stress.