Beautiful Disasters

The winner of the World's Ugliest Dog Contest at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California has been crowned. Believe it or not, this picture is not the winner. This is Miss Ellie. Miss Ellie is a blind 15-year-old Chinese Crested Hairless and she won the pedigree category but did not take first in the overall competition. Kind of pathetic to be this ugly and not win. Miss Ellie drew the short straw in looks, health, and in beauty. I can't help but wonder what made the owner of Miss Ellie choose her. Was she purchased from a crooked breeder or was she a pound puppy? What made this dog lover choose to adopt this blind, disfigured, homely dog? Agathe Christie, once said, "It is a curious thought, but it is only when you see people looking ridiculous that you realize just how much you love them." I think her obersvation must apply to dogs too. I think that must be why God loves me so much too. I must be so homely and pathetic that He just can't help but love me! :0) My eyes are bad, my skin is aging, I can retain water and be dehydrated at the very same time, and I'm getting clumsier every day. Maybe that's why I like that Francesca Battistelli song so much Free to Be Me. The chorus says, "I got a couple dents in my fender. Got a couple rips in my jeans. Try to fit the pieces together but perfection is my enemy. And on my own I'm so clumsy but on Your shoulders I can see I'm free to be me." So here's to all the Miss Ellies in the world - Smile for the camera! Stand up and be beautiful in your own skin. Be who God made you to be because no matter how pathetic you think you are, to Him, you win first prize!

All My Redneck Friends Are Coming Over Tonight

Well, it seems my redneck friends can read. After reading my blog and hearing me refer to them as rednecks, they decided to get their sweet revenge this weekend at Lake Brownwood. We had a large group of people from Lifepoint drive up there for the weekend for some camping, swimming, kayaking, boating, tubing, great food, and lots of good company. We had to park "Dimples" (that is our rv's new nickname - given because of the large amount of hail damage) away from the group because the park was so crowded this weekend. We set up camp and Phil even managed to pick me up some little lights to hang off our awning that look like little tiny campers. First things first, we decided to put new bike tubes in the tires. We managed to get one finished but the second bike was giving us fits. By the time we were ready to call it a night, the second bike was still upsidedown in the grass with one tire leaning against a chair. It was an eventful night. The wind picked up and started whipping our awning around so at about 1:30 am we decided to go outside and roll the awning in. It was apparent immediately that we had visitors at some point after we had gone to bed. When the sun came up, we stepped out of our camper to find most of our redneck friends sitting in our lawn, drinking coffee, and laughing at us with the most flattering bubba teeth. They had hung a sign at our camp that read "Don't rubberneck at 'da rednecks - Pastor Phil". There was an outhouse in front of the camper with lights on it made from shotgun shells. A goat trough bathtub decked with towel, soap and back scrubbers was close to the outhouse. There was a clothes line with one of the biggest bras I've seen in awhile and some red longjohns hung out to dry. They had made a redneck weather stick and redneck wind chimes and welcome sign to add to the backwoods decor. The crowning jewel was... you guessed it... the upsidedown bicycle that we had left out the night before. It was untouched and fit perfectly. As we took it all in we noticed at least two different park rangers passing our campsite repeatedly. I was wondering if they were going to say something about all the people on the lawn or maybe the toilet seat dangling from the tree when one of my favorite redneck friends says, "Ya know they're just waitin' to see what woman's gonna come out of that trailer that fits that bra!"

Always In The Stands

Saturday evening our firstborn and only daughter graduated from highschool. It was a day of celebration and we wondered if we would make it through the entire day without getting emotional. Bailey completed her senior year in the top 10% of her class of 746 seniors. She graduated with honors and we could not be more proud of her. She hasn't been emotional at all about completing this last year of school. I haven't seen any tears. She's was just so ready to be finished, as were most of her classmates. The graduation ceremony took place at the football stadium and so needless to say, it was a casual event. Friends and family whooping and hollering at the graduates, balloons floating up aimlessly into the stadium lights, parents laughing and snapping pictures of their babies. It was more of an evening of celebration and the thought of the grand step out of a simpler part of their lives into a much bigger, more complicated part didn't seem to be on the mind of anyone. After reading the names of all 746 students and each one crossed the platform to receive their diplomas, the evening finally came to an end with the caps being tossed into the night sky. HOORAY! As the crowds began to exit the stadium and pour down onto the football field to congratulate the graduates, I stood up on my seat so Bailey could see me and we could exit the stadium together. My camera ready to go, I began snapping pictures of the crowd. It was during the mayhem that I saw my sweet, young Bailey fighting her way against the crowd. People moving one way, Bailey moving the opposite direction. She kept looking up into the stands, searching for our faces. All at once, the emotion of that day hit me like a wall of water that began to flow down my cheeks. My baby was being pulled away and she was fighting so hard to get back to me. Her future passed before my eyes as I realized how much she will always miss her childhood and the simpler times of highschool. She will have her memories and they will always penetrate her mind as through the years her friends will move away, get married, have children, and some will pass into eternity long before their time. This part of her life was officially over and she was trying desperately to get back to me. I still weep thinking about that moment. I pray that Bailey will always look to me and her daddy with those same bright eyes that I saw that night. Time will eventually pull her into her own life but no matter where she goes, her momma and daddy will always be standing there in the stands, cheering her on, snapping pictures, and cheering for her success. We love you, Bailey!