Liz's Letters

Cycle Shoes are actually pretty awesome. I have been reluctant to spend the money on shoes that cost so much extra simply to imprison my foot to a pedal. But, I broke down and did it.... I love them! My son and I went to the local nursery and browsed through (and purchased) gardening plants. What fun! What a gift to be able to share a common interest with my son and his fiance'. Hard work that feels satisfying even when exhausted. I love being tired because I accomplished something and am so grateful to have the opportunity. Friends that I can call when I feel like I don't have a friend. haha! True. One of my biggest temptations in feeling sorry for myself is to feel like I don't REALLY have any friends. But, I know I really do, especially when I can call some of them and tell them that's how I feel and they understand (and love me anyway). Now, THAT is a true friend. Big, fat, burritos on a patio with a couple of those really good friends. A twenty plus year ...

Taking time to be grateful... for Heat. Every Monday since I started my new job, our building has not had heat. This would not be so bad except it has been bitter cold outside, Texas or not. And I REALLY do not like the cold. We don't really know what is going on with the heating system, but today, when I got to work and discovered the cold, I drove home, picked up a blanket, and went back to work. It warmed up as the day went on, so we must have gotten heat, but I am so grateful to be in a heated environment. Friends. Real friends. These gifts surface at exactly the right time, and honestly, there was a time not that long ago that I wondered if there is such a thing as real friends, and if there is...would I really ever have them? Well, I have had them all along. I forget sometimes when I get cynical. But, I have them - that's for sure! And they just get better and better. Reading. I am grateful that I have the ability to read. And I read all day long - various types of thing...

I wish it weren't so difficult for me to stop and take the time to think about the many things that I have to be grateful for. It seems it is when things are going well, dare I say even almost perfect, that enjoying all my blessings hinders my ability to s.t.o.p. and savor them and to thank God for them. My life is a holy experience, filled with the gifts that God showers upon me. My beloved husband, who still, after more than 30 years, leaves me love notes under my pillow when he goes out of town. Pulling into the garage and the door swinging open and my beautiful teenage daughter waiting and hanging out with me and helping me cook dinner. Her singing, and playfulness give me energy even after a long day. And long days, like today, that although long, bring satisfaction and joy at being productive. So grateful to be able to say (and mean it) "I love my job!" My sister-in-law's pathology report coming back with no further malignancy after a double mastectomy. Than...

Reflecting as the month of November comes to a close, it is easy this month to list the multitude of ways that God tells me He loves me. He whispers at times, but this month, He bellowed it from the heavens, in loud, undeniable ways. "I love you, my daughter, Liz! Let me show you!" This week I heard Him. 71. Celebrating. I love holidays and this time of year is like the peak of wonderful for me! It starts with my birthday and doesn't end until New Years. I always feel like it's one big party. 72. Perfect timing. God's timing is so perfect. He brings the right people at just the right time, and as odd as it sounds, He removes people at just the right time. I saw that going both ways this week. Amazing. 73. Silly as it sounds, the fact the the Thanksgiving meal went off without a hitch. I only had a one minute or less panic attack, but otherwise, all the food timed out perfectly, tasted wonderful, and we even tried new recipes! 74. Antibiotics. Both ...

Thanksgiving is this week and gratitude is the hot topic. People are taking time to think about and be thankful for their blessings at work, in worship services, in thier families, and in the media. Let us remember all that we have to be thankful for all year round! Gifts this week - 61. My birthday. I am grateful for having celebrated turning age 49! 62. My husband who knows exactly how to pamper me! 63. Thai Yellow Curry - prepared for me by my son, Aaron, and his girlfriend, Sofi. This was part of thier gift to me and it was fantastic! 64. God's word. It never grows old, it always changes, and it teaches me and challenges me at exactly the right time in exactly the right way. 65. Flowers. I love fresh flowers. They make the most mundane day seem special and the special days even more perfect. A friend who knows me well left a fresh bouquet on my porch on my birthday and they are still filling my home with frangrance and beauty! 66. Spending Saturday morning at th...

God has shown me how much He loves me this week by giving me these great gifts- Diamond engagement rings - and the fact that my son's girlfriend is now wearing one!!!! Fireplaces! So glad to have two beautiful ones in my home - even in Texas! Safe friendships. I have a a couple of different groups of people that I meet with regularly - and they all serve as wonderful safe harbors of love, learning, and acceptance. Knowing how to sew is a great thing! And having learned how to make rag quilts is another great thing! They make wonderful gifts that my 16 year old can make! My husband. He is encouraging and even though he may give me a hard time about some things, he encourages me to do the things that are really important to me. My long time friend, Lori. We have been friends for somewhere around 20 years and I can call her - even at the very last minute - and she will drop whatever she is doing. Plus, she is my very best shopping buddy! I am grateful beyond words that my g...

World Series excitement! I have never lived in the city where the home team went to the World Series! It is fun to be had! No matter what! I am grateful for baseball this week - even the games that the Texas Rangers lost...it is still fun! Chocolate. Milk Chocolate. Dark Chocolate. Caramel chocolate. You get the picture. Girlfriends who share your birthday month! I am so lucky to have two of my best friends also celebrating their birthday's in November. We start celebrating WEEKS in advance! My wonderful church - The Village Church . After some struggles in finding the right place to be, and being in a few places where I wish I had never been, I can finally say with joy that I love my church, I RESPECT my pastor, and trust the leadership; therefore agreeing to submit to their authority. What a blessing! Eyeglasses. I cannot imagine my life without them. Shoes. Different styles and colors of shoes! What a fun way to change an outfit and express how you feel. I recently purchased 3 d...

Spontaneous conversations - the one's that you wait for but don't know when they will happen. But when they do, it is exactly the right time. Golf. And that I can beat my husband (sometimes) if I really try. (at least a hole or two) Tornado sirens. They warn for protection and my kids actually obey them, even when we are not home. Autumn. The changing color of the leaves that can provide such peaceful entertainment. Fireplaces. A fire, safely contained, also providing peaceful entertainment and even more; comfort, warmth, and just plain ole feeling cozy. Chocolate malts. They make any day a good day. Photographs. What a gift - to be able to record memories by snapping a picture and looking at it later! Mobile phones. I am so grateful that these have been invented because my kids can reach me when tornado sirens sound, even if I am miles and miles away. Music. If you love music like I do, an explanation is not necessary. Comfort food. The way soup makes me feel warm on a cool ev...

21. Time with my precious 5 year old niece! 22. My children's grandparents (my great dad) - who will travel miles to see a football game and a band competition. 23. Marching Band performances that are so outstanding that they make me cry - even the one's that my daughter is not marching in. 24. Dance - the beauty of bodies moving in motion to music and my ability to appreciate watching. 25. Women friends! The group of women who come to my home every other week with the desire to deepen their relationship(s) with God and deepen our relationships with one another. 26. Alanon. This 12 step program has changed almost every way that I live my life (second to my relationship with God) 27. The pictures that hang on my refridgerator, colored with markers with remarkable beauty by my sweet, talented niece. 28. A sister, who I love enough to be honest with and know that love will get us through anything. 29. Tears. What a wonderful way of expressing and releasing emotion that has nowhere...

I know that it is Tuesday. But yesterday, which was Monday, I was enjoying a day at the Texas State Fair with my beautiful daughter. During the day, God gifted me many times, which will be a few of my one thousand gifts. 11. My 16 and a half year old daughter will spend the day with her momma at the State Fair – no friends, just mother and daughter. 12. That my aging body is still able to ride rides that spin, twirl and go real fast. 13. The wind in my hair as I hang upside down briefly, while looking at a crowd of observers on the ground below. 14. Hearing my daughter laugh beside me as we fly through the air, in circles. 15. Fletchers Corn Dogs 16. Frozen Lemonade 17. Clip on sunglasses 18. Cell phones, so we didn’t loose each other while I was in line for tickets and she was in ride for a line. 19. Having the opportunity to be way up high, not feel sick, and see things from a different point of view. (wow…how it must look from God’s perspective!) 20. Bubble baths – wh...

Many years ago, possibly 10 years ago or so, I was challenged by reading an article in an Oprah Winfrey magazine. The article was about a particular type of journal, one that she called something like, "Worth Remembering". Keeping a journal has always been something that I enjoyed, starting way back when I was a young child and was given my first diary. It was one of those small, colorful journals with a flap that included a little lock and small key. As a child, I went through quite a few diaries but did not continue into adulthood. After many years of thoughts and memories escaping unrecorded, I began to journal again around 1990. I have not stopped since. The journals began as prayer journals, and although I keep writing in those daily, I do not hang on to them as records since they are my personal struggles; the conversations I prefer to keep between myself and God. But Oprah’s journal idea grabbed me and I decided to practice it as well. I am not sure ho...