It is the pivotal last day of the month – and I am 2 months behind in putting all my blogs into Word and PDF – but I do plan to do that today and tomorrow because I always promise the Lord that I am not going to be overdue in taking care of His Business with these – not a life and death matter especially because God is forgiving – but I promised myself and promised God that I believe in these writings will outlive me – in some fashion… These are easier to keep (even dust covered) in paper than digital versions that could be deleted so easily (but I have those too)… Paper lasts for a while… and well it and we all will turn to dust one day… but for now – memories of God’s workings in my life that are shared – precious…

And a preacher this morning, in a facebook rabbit hole that I was following, said the exact words that we all need to hear: dust to dust – nothing can you take with you – you will return to dust – but WHAT WE DO FOR CHRIST WILL LAST… And he was not talking in the earthly sense of last – but last heavenly in forwarding the kingdom and serving God’s people…

And so in OTHER will be dust thoughts – I have been “dusting off” some of my family farmhouse dust-covered bags and boxes of photos I have sorted this past week – I found treasures of memories – and decided to simply (with some EXTRAS) glue them down organized – these are but a small fraction of 1980’s and some 1990’s times like ice skating and holiday decorating and farm life – remembering how hard my Grandpa worked – and seeing each other appreciate each other… MEMORIES THAT ARE PRICELESS…

And so, I spent half of the day yesterday doing such – indulged time in this crazy creative idea that came to me at like 5am and I started and worked a few hours (already had all the supplies) – then did regular stuff all day and then finished at night – with watching the evening news (ugh), 2 episodes of 1970’s Barney Miller (talk about throwback and old ugh as the episode was about agent orange and not knowing the effects), and then finished the album off with printing just one photo at 9pm to finish the album – a photo WITH my grandma which was not in this set of extras…  My Grandma died in the early 80’s when I was a teen – she kept her family all together from the 30’s on – I love the older photos of her as a child (that is older family history compiling) – and I love these newer (well 50 year old) photos of ME as a child with my sibling and cousins…  Grandma had an offer by Grandpa to move to a house he built (he built many many houses) but she wanted to stay on that farm – and my mom and aunts and uncle were glad for that too – and I am glad so much – as we had the fun childhood… On Summer break, my aunts who stayed at the farmhouse would watch us like hawks – and we were safe and ever overprotected – but then again that is a Godsend…  We felt the love… We went there during the day – we would stay with them while my mom and dad worked – and we ran through the fields – and we sewed and cooked and ate cookies, sewed embroidery and pretended to be cows in the barn, and watched game shows on TV, had picnic lunch in the tent, caught butterflies and grasshoppers and frogs and and and…. and even got bored – yeah I forget now but we were bored too  as kids (and I thank God for no video games yet) (and boredom creates even more creativity in thinking folks) – and thus cloud watching was a favorite pastime on those summer days – just lay on the ground and watch the clouds… 

(Winter we were outside too – brush off the pond let’s go skating and then have hot cocoa…)

I am grateful – not just in material but in memories – (and in this time to reminisce) – and so this scrapbook may not evoke my memories in everyone – but I can feel them – describe them – love them… (and I will enter the scrapbook to the local agricultural grange fair)…

Likewise – and more so – my writing – which I now will get back to compiling and printing – they are SO TEMPORARY – so much so that I don’t remember what I wrote and yet rereading feels good – and feels in the moment of that time….  Because the ONLY thing that WILL last is God – God is forever – and what we do in Christ for Christ and with Christ will eternally be remembered – and then even so, we will CAST DOWN OUR CROWNS TO HIS FEET – to signify HIS MAJESTY… Yeah – God will last – that is a memory for us now in the future, the past, and well the present… God is with us always from before time – with us now – and will take us Heavenly Home Forever… God bless the thought…  (and will we be bored in Heaven? I doubt it – imagine the memories in advance – wow… and imagine all the great people we will meet – and meet again – but perfected without our earthly worries… Wow that thought in advance is a present…)

The “PRESENT” is a gift that God gives to us. 

Enjoy the PRESENT of this day – it is a gift to know the Gift of God in our lives…

AMEN and thanks for letting me ramble, Lord…  some day I will understand it all…

Amen…