The Power of the Number Nine

The number nine is an amazing little number. It is the only number when multiplied by another number where the sum of the digits in the product will always add up to nine. Example, 9 x 9 = 81 and 8 + 1 = 9. No matter what number you use, it will always come out to 9. It's pretty cool, especially when you do it with a large number. Try it.

Many years ago I took a class in marketing and heard about a different power of the number nine, a psychological power. Go in any store today and you will find items priced at $9.99 instead of $10.00, $59.99 instead of $60.00, and so on. They say when consumers see the price, the brain focuses mainly on the first part of the number. It sees $9.99 as $9.00 and not $10.00. I have done this myself. I wonder if it works the same with age.

Today at 8:20 a.m. I turned 59 years old. This will be the last year I can say I'm in my 50's. I know some people who still say they are 39, refusing to age one more year. There's something about starting a new decade that makes you want to do anything to try to avoid it. I think the only time it doesn't happen is when you are 9 or 19; then you can't wait to get to the next decade.

This whole thing about age is really all in your head. I still think of myself at times as 37, the age I was when I met Rick. It’s only when I look in the mirror that I’m brought back to reality. When I think back to the time when Jeffrey was born, I immediately become that young and naive nineteen year old girl again. You can travel all through your life in your mind by remembering how old you were when…and just fill in the blank. What a fascinating tool God blessed us with, our minds.

Mark Twain was quoted as saying, "Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter." I think I will listen to Mark Twain. It really doesn’t matter how old I get; I can’t stop it from happening, so why fret about it. I will savor my 59th year not because it’s the last year in my 50’s, but because of what it represents – another milestone in my life. I’ll take as many as God will give me and be thankful for each one.

One Act of Random Kindness

Rick and I watched the movie Evan Almighty a couple of weeks ago on tv.  It was pretty funny.  At the end of the movie, after Evan and his family built the ark, saved all those people who were making fun of him, and all the bad men in Washington were arrested, God asked Evan, "How do we change the world?"  Evan answers, "One single act of random kindness at a time."  God replies, "One Act of Random Kindness," while writing A-R-K on the ground with a stick.

One act of random kindness -- that's what someone did for me yesterday.

I had an eye doctor appointment in the afternoon. Because of my diabetes, I try to see the eye doctor every year.  I've been seeing blurry for a while now, but kept putting it off until we had insurance.  I decided I couldn't wait any longer.  I found Greenville Eye Care Associates online.  Dr. Tucker was very thorough and friendly.  As he worked we talked.  I told him my story, that Rick has been out of work since last April, that we move around the country wherever the work will take us, and that we were here in Greenville so Rick could go to school to brush up on his pipe welding skills.  Later after sitting with the person who helps you pick out eyeglasses, I told Dr. Tucker I couldn't purchase glasses from his office because I simply couldn't afford it right now.  He said he understood.  I felt bad because I had received a comprehensive eye exam and I was very satisfied with the services I received.  When it came time for me to pay out, the lady behind the counter said, "You're all set.  See you next time."  I waved my debit card and said, "Aren't you forgetting something?"  She said, "No, there is no charge for your services today."  I couldn't believe what I was hearing.  Tears welled up in my eyes as her words sunk in.  Dr. Tucker had waived $160 worth of services.  He didn't know me from Adam but had compassion for the situation I was in.  What a sweet and very much appreciated A-R-K.

Being kind to someone should be a simple thing.  I don't believe it requires much thought.  I think it is a spontaneous action, something we do just because we know it's the right thing to do.  We all could use and give a little more of it.  Yesterday, I was blessed and I thank God there are kind people in the world like Dr. Tucker.

Getting back to Evan Almighty, there's something else God said that caught my attention.  He said, "Let me ask you something. If someone prays for patience, do you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient?"  Today I will pray for opportunities to change my world one single Act of Random Kindness at a time.  ARK has a different meaning for me now.

I Wonder

My granddaughter, Lexi, will be fifteen on Tuesday. I started wondering how she looks now, all grown up. The last time I saw her was two years ago. Lots of changes occur between thirteen and fifteen.  I know she will have a great birthday party planned by her family.  I wonder who will be there and hate it that I can't be; San Diego is just too far for me to go right now.  All this started me wondering about other people.

It's hard being isolated from friends and family. Not a day goes by that I don't wonder what everyone is doing and how they are. I visit my "friends" on Facebook, I email them and am thankful for their replies, I call periodically to get caught up; but it's not like being there, it's only a glimpse. I wonder when I will get to see them again. The "wonders" are piling up.

I wonder about my family. I wonder when Rick will get a job; he’s been unemployed since April, 2009. I wonder how well my mom is able to take care of herself, her home and her cats as she is almost 82 years old. I know she’s a strong woman, but I also know she’s getting old. I wish I could be there to help her.  I wonder about the health of my brothers. I know they are getting older and must be feeling their age. My oldest brother, William, had a mini stroke last year. That was scary. I wonder how Debbie is coping since her mom went to Heaven. One day I will be in those same shoes.  I wonder about Sandi as she goes through the process of getting divorced. I wonder if she knows what's in store for her.  I know it will be hard because I've been through it twice, but does she know? I wonder if Jeffrey is losing weight like he said he would. We talked recently about how I was only one year older than he is now when I was diagnosed with diabetes.  I wonder if he took our talk seriously and is doing something about it. I wonder if he will get diabetes. I'm afraid for him.  I wonder about my step-sons, Wes and Kevin. I wonder if Wes, a linguist in the Navy, is happy living a military life. His next assignment will be on a submarine. I wonder how he really feels about that. I wonder if Kevin will ever speak to us again. He stopped about seven years ago and we don’t know why. He won’t answer calls or respond to letters. This might be my biggest wonder of all. 

I wonder about myself too. I wonder what color my hair would be if I didn’t dye it (I’m just wondering, not ready to stop doing it yet…you go Debbie). I wonder if I will be successful at losing weight. I wonder if I will need knee surgery or if weight loss will alleviate the pain. I wonder what my life would have been like if I had taken that $90/week job with the State of New York back in 1970 and not the $100/week job I did take with a manufacturing company that later went bankrupt. I wonder if that $10/week difference in pay was all it took to lead me down this path I’m on. It doesn’t seem like very much to me. I have no regrets about how my life turned out; I just wonder sometimes what would have been different if I had taken a different road.

There are lots of other people I wonder about, people from my past and people in my life today. I am hoping 2010 will be a better year for me and I will be able to cross off my list some of these things I am wondering about.  All this wondering is hurting my brain.

The Written Word

Today I received a birthday card in the mail from my Mom.  It was a cute card with a picture of a sweet kitten on the front (my mom loves cats).  She usually writes a few lines inside telling me she is thinking of me and to enjoy my special day, but this card had more than that.  She wrote some "extra" lines telling me that she was remembering when I was a sweet little girl.  She told me I'd grown into a "beautiful and considerate person" (her words) and that she regrets that we live so far apart and hardly get to see eachother.  These "extra" lines brought tears to my eyes.  Words have the power to do that.

Writing personal notes and letters to people has evolved over the years.  Today, there is a new style of writing: emails, text messages, instant messages.  Letter writing by hand has almost disappeared.  I know myself, with a little bit of arthritis in my fingers, I prefer to type rather than hand write.  But I do see the importance of handwriting a letter.  Famous people have written letters that are kept in museums and libraries.  Do you think they will be saving emails and text messages?  I don't know.

I have a memory box that my son, Jeffrey, gave to me many years ago for Christmas.  In it I keep important papers and things I want to keep.  There are also some cards and notes in there that deserved to be kept.  One was from Rick.  He wrote it on a Post-It note and it says, "Everything will be alright as long as we have eachother."  There is no date on the note and I can't even remember under what circumstance he wrote it, but for some reason I kept that little sticky note.  Whenever I look at it, it always reminds me that no matter what is happening in our life, everything will be ok as long as we are together.  That is comforting to me.

In my memory box I have the original letter to Santa that Jeffrey wrote when he was seven.  It also includes a copy of the letter I wrote to my first granddaughter, Lexi, when she was born; a first anniversary card from Rick (we will be married 21 years on February 3rd) where he expressed his undying love for me; a copy of a letter I wrote my mom for her 80th birthday and the letter she wrote me back in reply.  These are all very precious to me.  I will be adding this year's birthday card to the group.  It will be in good company.

Halle's Story

I'm sitting here at the dining room table.  I just finished my bible reading for today and writing my thoughts down in my bible blog.  Halle, my black female cat, is curled up on the chair next to me with her head on the open bible.  Such a sweet sight.  She is such a precious little cat and I am so glad that I found her.

It was October 18, 2005.  I was coming back to work from lunch.  As I got out of my car, I heard tiny meows coming from underneath the bushes in front of the building.  They tugged at my heart strings.  Of course I couldn't resist and went searching for sound.  What I found was a tiny 8 week old kitten, totally black, crying out for its mother.  She was too afraid to come close enough for me to grab her.  I just knew she was hungry so I went inside the building to get some food and tried to coax her out from underneath the bushes.  No luck.  She was too scared.  Work calling, I left the food and went back inside the building.

I check on her throughout the afternoon.  She ate the food but still wouldn't come out.  As I left work for the day, I knew I couldn't leave her outside to fend for herself.  I decided I would catch her and bring her home.  We use to be a 2-cat family, but in February of that same year we lost our first cat, Petey, to diabetes, and I thought it was time to find our second cat, Lucky, a playmate.  She was hard to catch, but with the help of a young man who was leaving the building (he asked what I was doing on my knees looking under the bushes), we successfully captured the little thing and I put her in a box and took her home.

She was full of fleas and in need of a bath.  She didn't struggle much as I bathed her, in fact she went rather limp and didn't fight me at all.  I dried her off, put her in Petey's old cat carrier and waited for Rick to get home.  I didn't know what he would say about me bringing home another cat, she would be our third rescue cat.  I had to wait up until midnight when Rick got home from second shift.  I didn't have to say much, he took one look at her and saw how sweet she was.  We were once again a 2-cat family.

Halle's full name is Halle Ween Fuller.  Rick named her that because I found her in October, she is all black like a Halloween cat, and she is as pretty as Halle Berry. 

We were so glad when we discovered she was female as she took to our male cat, Lucky (I'll save his story for another time) rather quickly.  She was the girlfriend he was looking for.  They immediately bonded and life was good for them.

Halle's personality is totally different from Lucky's.  She is a very vocal cat, always answering me when I talk to her.  She is also very loving and always wants to be where I am, like today sleeping next to me with her head on my bible.  She likes to sit on my lap and curl her head down on my chest so I can scratch her under the chin and behind her ears.  This especially endears me to her.  She takes her place in the corner of my bed each night and is content to stay there most nights until morning.  I have certainly been blessed with such a sweet cat and I am glad that God directed her my way and placed her in my care.

Both Halle and Lucky have been good traveling companions, going everywhere we go with only minor complaints from Halle (I told you she is vocal) when she has to ride in the cat carrier.  I don't know how well I would have taken to this journey with Rick if it had not been for them.  There is something about loving a pet, truly loving them with all your heart, that brings peace to your life.  I feel fortunate to have the love of cats in my heart.  You won't understand where I'm coming from unless you have it too.

The Real Me

I took a quiz on Facebook called The Real You. It had ten questions, which I answered honestly. The following is the result of the quiz and what it had to say about the real me.

The Silk Screen - Whether it is to a friend or not, you shield yourself. You hide behind a silk screen whenever you're scared or nervous. You hide from people, especially yourself. You don't know your true self... yet. You believe that if you let people find out the real you, you will soon be betrayed. However, being under a silk screen, people can see what you're truly hiding. Your friends will always be there to talk to, but you just need to work up the courage to tell them what's on your mind. You shouldn't be scared of what's coming up next in your life. You need to embrace your inner self. Take action now. Sooner or later, you will need to face the music.

I was surprised by this description as there is some truth to it. In fact, I was thinking about just this same thing yesterday when I was watching one of my favorite tv show (in rerun), 7th Heaven. Lucy was giving her first sermon since becoming associate pastor of her dad’s church. Her sermon topic was about teen sex. She talked about reasons teens have sex, but what caught my attention was what she said about knowing yourself and finding your passion. I thought, “Do I really know myself?” I had never stopped to think about it. I believe I go through life just accepting what comes my way. Just how do you get to know yourself? A Google search brought up someone’s blog that listed these things: 1) discover your talents; 2) discover your purpose; 3) realize your passions; and 4) empower your beliefs.  Wow, this is deep. 

It's going to take some time, but I think I will begin a new journey and see what I can discover about “The Real Me.”

Twilight

I just finished reading the book Twilight and found it to be a very sweet story. Now don’t get me wrong, I do not give in to stories about vampires and such, but I do enjoy a good love story. I became very engrossed in the lives of Edward and Bella, always wondering how on earth a human and a vampire could coexist, not to mention fall in love. That is the beauty of a story, anything can happen as long as your mind can imagine it.

I went online to find out more about Twilight. In my Google search I found one site that had the definition of the word. I decided to read exactly what it had to say. Of course, most of us know that twilight occurs immediately after the sun goes down, but another definition they listed was “a condition of decline” such as "in ones twilight years.” This definition caused me to think about my Mom.

I can say with certainty that Mom is in her twilight years. She will be 82 on March 31st. I believe if you asked her she would say she has had a good life. She was born in Vienna, Austria in 1928. My grandmother named her Astrid, meaning "Little Star."  She told me once that she was named after Queen Astrid of Belgium who was the wife of King Leopold III.  I must mention here that my mother's brother was named Leopold.  Coincidence?  Maybe.  Maybe not.

I don’t know much about her early life as she doesn’t tell many stories about those times. I do know that times were tough then, that she did not know her father, and that her mother had to work to support them and was forced to leave her in the care of others (foster family and grandparents) from the time she was a baby until she was seven years old.

Back in late 2007 I put together a pictoral history for Mom's upcoming 80th birthday.  She provided lots of pictures and I put them together in a dvd set to music.  In the five months it took me to put this half hour dvd together, I got to know Mom on another level.  They say a picture is worth a thousand words and I had hundreds of pictures, each one with a story to tell.  As I glimpsed moments of time in her life from when she was a baby up to age 79,  I discovered Mom was a beautiful and courageous woman. 

Mom and Dad met in 1946 when she was working for the American Allied Forces and he was in the Army stationed nearby. Dad was with the 24th Constabulary (military police) standing watch at the border between the Russian and American occupation zones.  In 1948 Mom left her home and country and traveled to New York City to marry Dad and join his large Puerto Rician family.  They married on February 3, 1949 (exactly 40 years later Rick and I would be married on that same day).  What courage it must have taken on her part to leave her family behind and come to a country where the only person she knew would soon be her husband.  I admire that courage. 

A few years ago I was in a book store and saw a book on zodiac signs.  On a whim I opened it up and looked up my mothers sign Aries.  It had this to say about the 1928 Aries: "The Fearless Adventurer. You need to be free to experience everything the world has to offer. With your restless and inquisitive nature, you tend to rush forward into unchartered territory. Your greatest strengths are your energy and your courage."  Yep, that's my Mom.

Dad is gone now and Mom has continued on without him for almost twelve years.  She has her cats and her books that take up most of her time.  When you think about it, Mom and Dad are really not so different from Edward and Bella. Both were from different cultures yet both fell in love and took a risk to be with eachother.  And because of that, I am here experiencing my own life and loves.  Thank you Mom and Dad.

Poor Little Doggie

Coming home from the grocery store I came upon a small brown and white dog lying in the middle of the street dead.  I didn't see who hit the dog but I did see a car parked in someone's driveway.  Two people got out of the car.  One was a  lady, she got out of the drivers side, and the other was a teenage boy.  Were these the people who hit the dog or the people who lived at the house just coming home?  I don't know.  As I slowed down to go around the poor animal, I saw the lady walk out to the dog and lift the dog's front leg and begin to pull him to the side of the road.  The expression on the lady's face looked sad to me.  I myself felt sad as I watched her.

I remember the time I killed someone's pet.  It happened about 25 years ago when I was on my way to work.  A little white dog came out of the woods and ran in front of my car.  Thump.  I remember the sound.  I pulled my car over as soon as I could and started to walk back to where the dog was lying about 25 feet away.  Another car also stopped.  It stopped closer to the little dog.  As I was walking towards the dog, the young man from the other car motioned for me to stop, saying the dog was dead and there was nothing I could do for it.  I guess he wanted to spare me the gruesome sight.  I started crying as I walked back to my car.  I cried all the way to work, I felt so sad at what had just happened.  I thought about the people who owned that dog.  Did they love him?  Did he have children to play with?  How would the children feel when they learned their doggie was gone?  I felt so much guilt at the pain they would feel over the loss of their pet, all I could do was cry for them.

It's a sad story but I'm optimistic.  I'm reminded of the movie All Dogs Go To Heaven.  I hope that's true.

Something New

For years my friend Barb has been telling me I should write a journal to keep a record of where I've been and what I've been doing.  This year 2010 was the first time I purchased a journal to handwrite my thoughts.  After seeing Debbie's blog I thought it would be much easier to journal online since typing is so much easier for me than handwriting.  I always seem to grip the pen so tightly that my hand cramps after just a few sentences. 

So here I am...starting the new year as a blogger.  Who would have thought?  Certainly not me.  I can't say how interesting my thoughts will be to you, but they will be honest and sincere.  Thanks for reading them.