Some Gave Some Some Gave All

What does Memorial day really mean to you? Sure, you go and watch parades, salute the flag, put flowers on the graves of your loved ones, but have you ever stopped to consider what this day commemorates to those who have lost loved ones while serving our country so that you ca be free. Young wives who kissed their new husbands good-bye, never to have them return again or returned in a pine box. Parents who watched their children go off to war wondering if they would ever see them again. All of those kids, yes kids, who were drafted or enlisted during Viet Nam, how many do you know that left with smiles o their faces only to return from the war zone beaten and battered with lasting nightmares and effects of the war - a war they supported but returned as not heroes, but hated and despised by their own countrymen? Those patriots of years ago who went off to save the nation, either by joining the Confederacy or the union soldiers, fighting against their own brothers and relatives, defending their right to live in a free country where ALL MEN are created equal. Or even those earlier than that those who fought to make this country free, a country where we could attend the church of our choice and have a vote in our own government. The first and second World Wars were not fought on our soil, but fought in foreign countries, thousands of mile from home, our soldiers defending others' rights and keeping our country free from oppression. We are a free democracy - let us continue to fight to keep it that way. If you see a service person today, shake their hand and thank them for their service. If you see a veteran, probably proudly wearing a hat from their branch of service, shake their hand, thank them for their service and watch the their eyes tear up in thanks to you for recognizing their sacrifice for you. And pray for the families who members never returned. 

The weather is really heating up in S Texas as summer bears own on us. It is the start of the hurricane season, with one already named and gone on already. We keep a watchful eye on the weather and the hurricane watch in order to be prepared to flee to safer areas if necessary. We have been so blessed already and pray that God continues to keep everyone safe form danger. 

Our Tuesday distribution is coming to and end this Tuesday, as Ida is really overwhelmed with taking care of Tuesday and Friday distribution. Those who come on Tuesday to receive the blessing of food and clothing have agreed to come on Friday in order to lighten the load on all of us. Although it will mean more folks will will be poicking up food baskets and checking out donated clothing, we will be able to keep up with them. Summer is more difficult as the kids will be home from school and need to be fed during the day. The schools offer free breakfasts or lunches, but the folks in the colonias have no way of getting their kids to the schools as the buses do not run in the summer. 

Fred will end his extra duties of mowing in the park this week - so will begin to make improvements in the distribution area in the colonias. He and another gentleman, Brother Sandoval, will put down a floor under the area where the ladies fill the baskets (boxes but we call them baskets) so that they are not walking on uneven ground or in the mud when the rains come. It will also give us both time to catch our breaths and listen to what the Lord has in store for us.

Our Sunday School class today focused on Time - how we use the time we have everyday. We often say we did not have time to do this or that, but what we really mean is that we did not make time. One of the reference was Ecclesiastes 3 - "To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven".  We discussed a season - not literally a summer, fall, winter spring season ( oh my - remember Princess Summer Fall Winter Spring from the Howdy Dooty Show?)!! Back to Ecclesiastes - not a season of the year, but really a season in our lives. When we learned how to walk and then run - to talk, to eat by ourselves, all of our school years, our going out in the world alone, our early married year and early parent years. then our empty nest years - many of us are in the final seasons of our lives, perhaps not in mind but certainly sometimes in our body. There is a time for all phases of our lives and all those things that affect our lives. We just need to realize when that time comes and react to it accordingly. We need to  listen to the voice of the Lord as He reminds us of the season changes and embrace the change just as we embrace the changing seasons of the year. Did you realize that it was just in the late 1800's that the world began to adopt the universal time?  60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day, seven days in a week, 52 weeks in a year?? Amazing - France at one time wanted to have 100 seconds in a minute, 100 minutes in an hour, etc. but abandoned that and joined the rest of the world in a universal time. Not the time zones, but a standard for measuring time. Not so long ago was it???  So how do you define time??? We are always checking our watches, checking the time, figuring what time is our next appointment or chore, or bedtime. Make the best use of your time folks - you can never bring back that last minute. 

Summer Heat

Summer has arrived in the RGV with a passion. The days are hot and humid, although the mornings seem cooler and breezier, but even the birds seem to slow down and nap during the heat of the day. In the Northern states, the hottest time of the day was around noonish, while down here on the border the hottest part of the day stats around 3 or so and continues until early evening hours.. How lucky we are now to have A/C where ever we go - all the stores, schools, restaurants, churches, cars and even homes. It is hard to remember how we existed with just fans and open windows. I worked at a manufacturing firm in the office - the only one in the office, which had no air conditioning - and that was in the 80's! I remember having a big fan in my little office blowing right on me. As a kid growing up, we opened the windows of the car and let the wind blow though. There were small vent windows by the front seats that could be situated to blow right on the driver or the passengers in the back seat. A person got out of the car feeling wet and sticky - and cranky! We've come a long way, baby.

Our food ministries are overflowing again - thanks to God for the great abundance of produce and other commodities we receive. We are only going to serve the Tuesday distribution until the end of this month. Ida will cancel it so she herself can have some free time for a few month before beginning again in the fall. She has a few health issues and needs the rest. The Tuesday distribution is more difficult as it is at ehr church and requires clean up afterwards as it is too hot to have it outside (or it rains).  She is lucky to have lots of help, but it does require a few extra hours of work.We received garlic for the first time - huge healthy looking bulbs with large cloves. I love cooking with garlic - the smell alone reminds me of pizza and pasta! As a child on Chicago's West side, our Italian relatives would come to our house a couple of times a year to make homemade pasta - huge ravioli's filled with meat and sauce or cheese, spaghetti, pizza, you name it. Our kitchen filled the neighborhood with wonderful smells. I especially loved the meat filled ravioli with lots of sauce, followed by a huge helping of spaghetti and meatballs. The pizza was no where near the pizza served today in restaurants - it was a thin, crispy crust loaded with sauce, pepperoni, Italian sausage, even Canadian bacon sometimes, mushrooms, onions, olives of course, and mounds of mozzarella cheese. The adults drank dark red wine (Dago Red perhaps?) and were kids were served a bit of wine watered down with 7 up or sometimes just water. I really do not remember any other kids there except my brother and cousin, Johnny Boy. Perhaps there were, but in the cooking frenzy and the chattering in Italian, arms cooking and waving in the air, it was quite a chaos.  It never seemed that we were in the way - always ready for a first taste of ambrosia.

large garlic bulbssitting on a 1/4 measuring cup to show size


A resident of our park was recently honored by the city of Alamo as citizen of the month. Daniel (Dennis) Tomlinson picks up trash all  along the freeway, the park, and the surrounding roadsides as a sort of daily exercise and a way to help keep Alamo clean. It seems as if as soon as he cleans an area, more trash appears, but he keeps picking up things. When he finds clothes he brings them to me, and I wash them. Most of the time they look almost new and can be donated to the colonias. One day he brought me a beautiful dress for a teen-age girl still on a hanger. Either it blew off someones fence at a yard sale or fell from some one's vehicle. Many thanks to Daniel for his devotion.

Alamo Mayor on the right, Daniel next to her, other aldermen

one of Daniel's awards

Citizen of the month

Park manager, Barbara Hamel and Daniel

We were at the Friday distribution in the colonias when I needed a pocketknife to cut the knot off a large bag of donuts that I needed to re-package. I hollered over to Fred to see if he had his, and I heard another Mexican gentleman who was helping Fred say that he had one. I asked to use it please, and when I looked up he came towards me with a machete!!! Well,  not really that big, but a knife way too large to be in a pocket. Some of the ladies laughed at the expression on my face as he tried to hand it to me. I politely asked if he would cut the knot off - no way was I going to touch that weapon. I have a tiny Texas toothpick pocketknife in my purse which I can handle, but not a huge scary looking knife.

We did make it to church Sunday on a beautiful morning - cool and breezy. But by the time we left Sunday School it was already hot and humid. The sermon was interesting, addressing the obstacle of church! How can a church be an obstacle?? Can we stand in God's way by observing the church's rules and laws and not God's?? Church members tend to sometimes criticize others who want to become members of the congregation based on their looks or actions , not their Christian values or their hearts. People leave churches because of harsh words spoken to them. We need to be welcoming and helpful to all those who attend our churches,  including new members. I remember that church we attended had 3 spinster, farming sisters as outstanding members of the congregation. They attended every function of the church, always sitting according to their age in the same pew each Sunday as also in in their old beat up pick up truck with the oldest always driving or leading the way. A young mother with 5 children always attended every Sunday and sat not too far from the sisters, and us, too. I was busy keeping our 4 girls under control, sometimes changing their seating arrangements when things got out of hand, or seemed to be headed in that direction. The single mom with her children were really well behaved, only getting antsy if the sermon was too long. If one of the children acted up, the sisters would tsk tsk in unison. They commented on the the clothing the family wore, very evidently hand me downs. But Mama was there every Sunday. If I did not have my 4 to contend with, I would have offered to help her with children. But the sisters continue to make noises and comments, not offering to let one or two of the kids sit with them, or sing with them. Soon the Mon quit coming - perhaps it was too stressful getting those kids ready for church,or perhaps she sensed the disdain from the sisters. I missed seeing her and wished I would have tried harder to help her. This is how folks let churches become obstacles in their lives. God is the only one who is able to judge who is able to worship Him and be saved. Our job is to be just welcoming and greeting others with open arms, regardless of anything else. It is impossible not to love others if we love Christ - all of His children not just those we deem worthy to be loved. 

Maria Garza

I am starting this blog with a sad (yet blessed) note this morning. A worker in our park passed away last Saturday morning. It may sstrange that I would start my blog by the passing of a maintenance worker, but Maria was a very special lady. She and her husband were the children of migrant workers and grew up going North for the growing season every year to earn money for the family. Every family member worked and contributed. Maria was a lady who always had a beautiful smile, a warm hello, and was willing to listen. She and her sister-in-law, Maricela, worked here in the park keeping it sclean and neat. They also worked very hard in the summer keeping the grounds neat, clearing out the lake, what ever was needed and did so without a complaint. The girls also worked on week-ends cleaning trailers here in the park and other parks for extra money. Mary's husband, Lupe, power washed trailers and worked part time  in the park. Together, as parents who wanted better for  their children, they found the means for all 3 of their their children to attend college and get degrees.  Less than a year ago Maria was diagnosed with cancer on her tongue - after further testing it was found that she had cancer elsewhere in her body. Because Maria and Lupe not have insurance, money was raised for her surgery and further treatments by park residents churches, and on face book. Maria had surgery and was just ready to start chemo treatment, when Lupe suffered a heart attack and passed away. Because of their love for their children, she had much family support and started treatments. When it became apparent that the Cancer was terminal Maria stopped treatment and was put into hospice at her daughter's home. Last week our park manager visited with her at which time Maria told her that Lupe was coming soon to get her. She was a wonderful Christian and showed it everyday at her job. It is with great sadness her passing has brought to all of those who loved and knew her, but also a blessing to know that Lupe did indeed come to lead lead her home to the eternal life. Maria (or Mary as we all called her), you will always be in our hearts. She once gave me a very beautiful, colorful Mexican purse to use when  for my keys, phone, coffee cup, whatever when I went to the hall.  Everyday I still use it and think of her with fond memories. We are now just waiting for news of the celebration of her life.

This blog is late this week as Fred and I were both under the weather - really down and out. We both had serious sinus infections - he went to the doctor on Friday for a shot and medication. Me, being who I am, decided to just let my body heal itself. We did almost nothing most of Friday (we did not do our food distribution because of the rain which caused mud issues in the colonias). Again Saturday was spent under a quilt in a chair in the living room, dozing off and on, and watching TV, doing some Bible reading if we could stay alert. Fred was improving, as I was getting worse, a sore throat now appeared for me. Sunday was one of a very few Sundays in many years that we did not attend church. I finally broke down and began taking an antibiotic as my throat was already raw with pain most of the time. Fred fixed me h a hot toddy Sunday night, and I woke up today with NO sore throat.
He claims it was the hot toddy - I believe the antibiotics kicked in - and prayer did certainly do the trick. When our girls were small the begged me not to tell Dad that they were sick - yep- the cure all in our family was his famous hot toddy. I am on the road to recovery and give God all the praise and glory for it (although Fred believes it was his  magic remedy).

I hope everyone Mother's Day was super special for all those mothers, grandmothers, step-mothers, foster mothers, adoptive mothers, mother's of fur babies, and all rest. Mine was super special, even through the illness, because Fred brought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers (he gotthose before he got sick) and all of my daughters called and visited with me. I often think of all the Mothers in the Bible and their feelings of joy and sorrow in raising their children through all of the series of rough times. Eve - the first mother, who had no one to depend on other than Adam, no mother or mid wife to help her through something that she probably did not know or understand, Hannah, who was barren for so long and so much wanted a child, Elizabeth, who at a very very old age bore John the Baptist, Moses' mother who gave him up to save his life, and Mary, the mother of Jesus, who knew she was blessed, and that she was raising Jesus to be be crucified. No matter what our children did growing up, we all know that we would do it over a hundred times just to be able to be called Mother by them, to be proud of them, and love them like a Mama lion. Not everyone was blessed to have a wonderful Mother, but no matter what the situation, she brought you into this world for a purpose - God knew you before you were born and meant for you to be born into whomever you are. No one was an accident or mistake - you were born for a purpose.

Bridge to Freedom

This last week 4 of us ladies took time off to go to Mexico for a pedicure, as well as picking up a few   medications, and also some Mexican candy.  We drove in rather than walk across the 1/2 mile bridge. Usually we walk in with others, but some of these ladies have a difficult time walking, so this is the option. I do like driving in , but either is OK. Before all this border crisis situation, when walking out, a person could walk freely past the half way mark, leaving Mexico and entering the United States. If a refugee would do this, he or she could than enter the check point building, and tell the border agent they were seeking asylum. They then would be taken to another room for processing. Now there is a check point at the half way mark - anyone without proper papers cannot step foot on American soil.  Because of the large groups of people asking for asylum or freedom in the US they just wait there for processing. For that reason, they are camping out on the bridge with their backpacks, bedrolls, etc. The fences on the bridge hold their clothing that they have washed somewhere (perhaps the public bathrooms on the Mexican side or even the Rio Grande River). This line of people stretches all the way back into the streets of Nuevo Progresso, Mexico. There are even tents pitched there - my only question is where did they get the nice new colorful tents, their cell phones that they are using (which we saw) and better yet where do they charge them? Also, they all were wearing nice, clean clothes and designer shoes. Now I am all for the United States receiving refugees, but why is there such huge groups of caravans all at the same time? Did they all decide to leave their countries at the same time? this has never happened before. What started all of this? Lots of unanswered questions. A missionary friend was talking to them and found out that the majority of them were from Cuba. We welcome immigrants coming for the proper reason - amnesity because of oppression in their countries, fear of death or imprisonment, or to better themselves and their children. But I wonder if there are limitations on the number allowed to enter our county. We are a free country based on the principles of our founding fathers - we can appreciate others wanting the same thing. Anyway, we did have a good time on our ladies day out - a nice breakfast at the restaurant we always go to - (they have the most amazing pastries) as well as a time for fellowship. Don't know when we will go again, as some of ladies are headed back North, and one is going on vacation. We will probably have to postpone this until next fall.

in the background you can see clothing drying on the fence

                           bedrolls on the far side of the walkway all the way from Mexico to the US border  

people sleeping in the sun

if you look really closely at the second opening from the right you will see a charging corhanging from a cell phone - most of the people were on their phones

We were very surprised this week as we went to pock up the vegetables and other commodities for the colonias that there was a large amount - especially vegetables and fruits. There must be an overflow from the producers for which we feel so blessed to receive. We also had to pick up a very nice recliner donated to us - some family is going to be very happy! We leave those decisions to Ida, as she knows the residents in the colonias and who is in need of certain items. We also received very nice bed pillows and bedding. Still a few bags and boxes of food left at our doorstep, which we sort and distribute. Last week we have sparkling water, and diet root beer!!! Also the ever present Cheezis! We will have enough for about two more weeks - will we get more next fall? We have no idea but we  feel blessed on whatever we receive.

Fred will be done mowing lawn for the park then end of this month (he is ready to retire from that job) so he and a gentleman form the colonias are to to improve the area where the ladies put together boxes to be distributed. Some cliche (sort of crushed rock), pallets for stabilization, and plywood over that so the ladies will be on level ground and protected from the rain and mud on their feet.

There were few people in church this morning - perhaps because some on on vacation and some will not be back until fall. I was surprised as it was communion Sunday when more people seem to attend. As I said earlier, I was raised in an Italian Catholic home and attended parochial school the first few years of my life. At that time, taking First Communion was a huge step. My mother made my white dress, and I wore a pretty veil. At that time, we took communion when we were in first grade and were confirmed in 4th or 5th grade, whenever the bishop came around. I still have pictures of myself in the communion dress and veil (professional taken) with a small white prayer book and rosary in my hands ( gifts from a relative I suppose). I still remember that book (don't have any idea what happened to it) as being pearly white with Mother of Pearl Inlays. Strange that I do not remember any of it's contents though.

The sermon this morning was based on oppression - sort of fit into my earlier paragraphs about immigrantion. Oppression is described as unjust or cruel exercise of authority or power. We see this today in other countries, but it brings to mind the horrible oppression of the Jews during the Holocaust. I am reading a book right now about 10 Jewish people who have accepted Jesus as their Messiah and one of these ladies is a Holocaust survivor. She told of a few horrors of her imprisonment and mentioned there were so many more to terrible to mention. As a result of her inhumane treat, she underwent 27 surgeries when she was released. She lived her life with a hatred of the German Nazis until she began to read about Jesus and realized that He was the Messiah mentioned in the Jewish Bible (the old testament). It was at that time that she felt the need to forgive her tormentors. What a beautiful end to  story of oppression. Oppression is an obstacle which produces fear which then affect you spiritually and physically. If you feel depression you feel broken and beaten. Pray about your feelings and rely on the Lord to get you through this part of your life.