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The phoenix was supposedly a bird that, when it died, rose again from it's ashes, or a new phoenix was born from the ashes. This was used to symbolize Christ and the resurrection in early Christian art.
"The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity." Wikipedia This makes me think of the regeneration that God does in our lives, the healing of the hurts and wounds we suffer from the enemy of our souls. It also makes me think of the fact that through Him we have the promise of eternal life. That is not the same thing a immortality as immortality is of the flesh, not the spirit. But it does mean that we will live forever, with Him!
It also speaks to me of the verse Isaiah 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Then too, it was supposedly a bird with gold and red plumes which goes right along with my current handle of redbird.
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Letter To Big Church
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Dec 4, 2006 7:55 am
Mood: frustrated,
715 Views
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Hey, everyone, I wanted to share with you a letter that I have sent to BC. I don't know if any of the rest of you have a problem with this or something similar, but if you do, I would like to encourage you to write to BC and let them know.
I am writing this letter to you, the power’s that be behind this web-site, to ask you to please go back and re-review your decision concerning my post concerning Wal-Mart’s support and advocacy of homosexuality. You have banned it for being a hate post and after reading the remainder of this correspondence it my hope that you will realize that your decision may have been based on mis-information.
I do not hate homosexuals, any more than I hate those who have been divorced, people who abuse other’s, people who drink alcohol, people who use drugs or any number of people in other categories which I consider to be “sin” based on my belief in God and the teaching of the Holy Bible. I do however “hate” sin and do all that I am called to do as a Christian to fight it’s spread in the world.
I hate divorce for it is not what God intended. Yet to hate those who have been divorced would require me to hate myself.
I hate abuse in all of its forms, for I know that God is not pleased with it. It destroys peoples’ lives. But again, to hate the victims or the perpetrators would require me to hate myself for I have been both. We are all guilty of abusing other's in one way or another.
I hate addictions in all it’s forms because God hates it and it destroys people and families. Yet to hate addicts would mean I hate myself, for I have had addictions in the past and still have a few today.
And, yes, I hate homosexuality, for God did not create us to live this lifestyle and it too destroys families. But hating the homosexual would be the same as hating any and every other person on the face of this earth, because all have sinned and fall short of God's glory.
We are called to “Love One Another!”
As a sinner, saved by grace, it is not my place to judge anyone, but I am allowed, even commanded to judge things that are sinful. Even small children are taught wrong from right, to know the difference between them and to avoid doing the wrong.
So hating the sin and fighting, advocating against it’s spread in our families, in our country, in our world, is completely different from hating the sinner.
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16
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WHAT TREE DID YOU FALL FROM
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Dec 3, 2006 1:54 pm
Mood: happy,
557 Views
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WHAT TREE DID YOU FALL FROM?
Find your birthday and then find your tree. This is really cool and somewhat accurate, also in line with Celtic astrology. Then send it to all your friends, including the one that sent it to you, so they can find out what tree they fell from, but don't forget to change the subject line to your tree.
Dec 23 to Jan 01 - Apple Tree
Jan 01 to Jan 11 - Fir Tree
Jan 12 to Jan 24 - Elm Tree
Jan 25 to Feb 03 - Cypress Tree
Feb 04 to Feb 08 - Poplar Tree
Feb 09 to Feb 18 - Cedar Tree
Feb 19 to Feb 28 - Pine Tree
Mar 01 to Mar 10 - Weeping Willow Tree
Mar 11 to Mar 20 - Lime Tree
Mar 21 (only) - Oak Tree
Mar 22 to Mar 31 - Hazelnut Tree
Apr 01 to Apr 10 - Rowan Tree
Apr 11 to Apr 20 - Maple Tree
Apr 21 to Apr 30 - Walnut Tree
May 01 to May 14 - Poplar Tree
May 15 to May 24 - Chestnut Tree
May 25 to Jun 03 - Ash Tree
Jun 04 to Jun 13 - Hornbeam Tree
Jun 14 to Jun 23 - Fig Tree
Jun 24 (only) - Birch Tree
Jun 25 to Jul 04 - Apple Tree
Jul 05 to Jul 14 - Fir Tree
Jul 15 to Jul 25 - Elm Tree
Jul 26 to Aug 04 - Cypress Tree
Aug 05 to Aug 13 - Poplar Tree
Aug 14 to Aug 23 - Cedar Tree
Aug 24 to Sep 02 - Pine Tree
Sep 03 to Sep 12 - Weeping Willow Tree
Sep 13 to Sep 22 - Lime Tree
Sep 23 (only) - Olive Tree
Sep 24 to Oct 03 - Hazelnut Tree
Oct 04 to Oct 13 - Rowan Tree
Oct 14 to Oct 23 - Maple Tree
Oct 24 to Nov 11 - Walnut Tree
Nov 12 to Nov 21 - Chestnut Tree
Nov 22 to Dec 01 - Ash Tree
Dec 02 to Dec 11 - Hornbeam Tree
Dec 12 to Dec 21 - Fig Tree
Dec 22 (only) - Beech Tree
YOUR TREE (in alphabetical order)
Apple Tree (the Love) -- quiet and shy at times, lots of charm, appeal,and attraction, pleasant attitude, flirtatious smile, adventurous,sensitive,loyal in love, wants to love and be loved, faithful and tender partner,very generous, many talents, loves children, needs affectionate partner.
Ash Tree (the Ambition) -- extremely attractive, vivacious, impulsive,demanding, does not care for criticism, ambitious, intelligent,talented,likes to play with fate, can be very egotistic, reliable, restless lover,sometimes money rules over the heart, demands attention, needs love and much emotional support.
Beech Tree (the Creative) -- has good taste, concerned about its looks,materialistic, good organization of life and career, economical,good leader,takes no unnecessary risks, reasonable, splendid lifetime companion,keen on keeping fit (diets, sports, etc).
Birch Tree (the inspiration) -- vivacious, attractive, elegant, friendly,unpretentious, modest, does not like anything in excess, abhors the vulgar,loves life in nature and in calm, not very passionate, full of imagination,little ambition, creates a calm and content atmosphere.
Cedar Tree (the Confidence) -- of rare strength, knows how to adapt, likes unexpected presents, of good health, tends to look down on others,self-confident, a great speaker, determined, often impatient, likes to impress others, has many talents, industrious, healthy optimism, waits for the one true love, able to make quick decisions.
Chestnut Tree (the Honesty) -- of unusual stature, impressive, well-developed sense of justice, fun to be around, a planner, born diplomat,can be irritated easily, sensitive of others feelings, hard worker,sometimes acts superior, feels not understood at times, fiercely family oriented, very loyal in love, physically fit.
Cypress Tree (the Faithfulness) -- strong, muscular, adaptable, takes what life has to give but doesn't necessarily like it, strives to be content, optimistic, wants to be financially independent, wants love and affection,hates loneliness, passionate lover which cannot be satisfied, faithful,quick-tempered at times, can be unruly and careless, loves to gain knowledge needs to be needed.
Elm Tree (the Noble-mindedness) -- pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not to forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, likes making decisions for others,noble-minded, generous, good
Fig Tree (the Sensibility) -- very strong minded, a bit self-willed, honest,loyal, independent, hates contradiction or arguments, hard worker when wants to be, loves life and friends, enjoys children and animals, few sexual relationships, great sense of humor, has artistic talent and great intelligence.
Fir tree (the Mysterious) -- extraordinary taste, handles stress well, loves anything beautiful, stubborn, spontaneous, passionate, tends to care deeply for those close to them, hard to trust others, yet a social butterfly, likes idleness and laziness after long demanding hours at work, rather modest, talented, unselfish, trustworthy and loyal, has many friends, very reliable.
Hazelnut Tree (the Extraordinary) -- charming, sense of humor, very demanding but can also be very understanding, knows how to make a lasting impression, active fighter for social causes and politics, popular, quite moody, sexually oriented, honest, a perfectionist, has a precise sense of judgment and expects complete fairness.
Hornbeam Tree (the Good Taste) -- of cool beauty, cares for its looks and condition, good taste, is not egoistic, makes life as comfortable as possible, leads a reasonable and disciplined life, looks for kindness and acknowledgment in an emotional partner, dreams of unusual lovers, is seldom happy with its feelings, mistrusts most people, is never sure of its decisions, very conscientious.
Lime Tree (the Doubt) - intelligent, hard working, accepts what life dishes out, but not before trying to change bad circumstances into good ones, hates fighting and stress, enjoys getaway vacations, may appear tough, but is actually soft and relenting, always willing to make sacrifices for family and friends, has many talents but not always enough time to use them, can become a complainer, great leadership qualities, is jealous at times but extremely loyal.
Maple Tree (Independence of Mind) -- no ordinary person, full of imagination and originality, shy and reserved, ambitious, proud, self-confident, hungers for new experiences, sometimes nervous, has many complexities, good memory,learns easily, complicated love life, wants to impress.
Oak Tree (the Brave) -- robust nature, courageous, strong, unrelenting,independent, sensible, does not like change, keeps its feet on the ground,person of action.
Olive Tree (the Wisdom) -- loves sun, warmth and kind feelings, reasonable, balanced, avoids aggression and violence, tolerant, cheerful,calm, well-developed sense of justice, sensitive, empathetic, free of jealousy, loves to read and the company of sophisticated people.
Pine Tree (the Peacemaker) -- loves agreeable company, craves peace and harmony, loves to help others, active imagination, likes to write poetry,not fashion conscious, great compassion, friendly to all, falls strongly in love but will leave if betrayed or lied to, emotionally soft, low self esteem, needs affection and reassurance.
Poplar Tree (the Uncertainty) -- looks very decorative, talented, not very self-confident, extremely courageous if necessary, needs goodwill and pleasant surroundings, very choosy, often lonely, great animosity, great artistic nature, good organizer, tends to lean toward philosophy, reliable in any situation, takes partnership seriously.
Rowan Tree (the Sensitivity) -- full of charm, cheerful, gifted without egoism, likes to draw attention, loves life, motion, unrest, and even complications, is both dependent and independent, good taste, artistic, passionate, emotional, good company, does not forgive.
Walnut Tree (the Passion) -- unrelenting, strange and full of contrasts, often egotistic, aggressive, noble, broad horizon, unexpected reactions spontaneous, unlimited ambition, no flexibility, difficult and uncommon partner, not always liked but often admired, ingenious strategist, very jealous and passionate, no compromise.
Weeping Willow (the Melancholy) - likes to be stress free, loves family life full of hopes and dreams, attractive, very empathetic, loves anything beautiful, musically inclined, loves to travel to exotic places, restless, capricious, honest, can be influenced but is not easy to live with when pressured, sometimes demanding, good intuition, suffers in love until they find that one joy, always steadfast partner; loves to make others laugh.
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22
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Something to Smile About
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Dec 3, 2006 1:28 pm
Mood: silly,
479 Views
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Bits of Wisdom From Groucho Marx
A black cat crossing your path signifies that the animal is going somewhere.
A child of five would understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.
A hospital bed is a parked taxi with the meter running.
A man's only as old as the woman he feels.
A woman is an occasional pleasure but a cigar is always a smoke.
Alimony is like buying hay for a dead horse.
All people are born alike - except Republicans and Democrats.
And I want to thank you for all the enjoyment you've taken out of it.
Anyone who says he can see through women is missing a lot.
Behind every successful man is a woman, behind her is his wife.
Either he's dead or my watch has stopped.
From the moment I picked your book up until I laid it down, I was convulsed with laughter. Someday I intend reading it.
Getting older is no problem. You just have to live long enough.
Go, and never darken my towels again.
Humor is reason gone mad.
I didn't like the play, but then I saw it under adverse conditions - the curtain was up.
I don't care to belong to a club that accepts people like me as members.
I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.
I have a mind to join a club and beat you over the head with it.
I have had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn't it.
I must confess, I was born at a very early age.
I never forget a face, but in your case I'll be glad to make an exception.
I read in the newspapers they are going to have 30 minutes of intellectual stuff on television every Monday from 7:30 to 8. To educate America. They couldn't educate America if they started at 6:30.
I remember the first time I had \bsexo?\b - I kept the receipt.
I was married by a judge. I should have asked for a jury.
I wish to be cremated. One tenth of my ashes shall be given to my agent, as written in our contract.
I won't belong to any organization that would have me as a member.
I worked my way up from nothing to a state of extreme poverty.
I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it.
I'm leaving because the weather is too good. I hate London when it's not raining.
I'm not feeling very well - I need a doctor immediately. Ring the nearest golf course.
I've got the brain of a four year old. I'll bet he was glad to be rid of it.
If I held you any closer I would be on the other side of you.
If you've heard this story before, don't stop me, because I'd like to hear it again.
In Hollywood, brides keep the bouquets and throw away the groom.
It isn't necessary to have relatives in Kansas City in order to be unhappy.
Marriage is a wonderful institution, but who wants to live in an institution?
Marry me and I'll never look at another horse!
Military intelligence is a contradiction in terms.
Military justice is to justice what military music is to music.
My favourite poem is the one that starts 'Thirty days hath September' because it actually tells you something.
My mother loved children - she would have given anything if I had been one.
Next time I see you, remind me not to talk to you.
No man goes before his time - unless the boss leaves early.
One morning I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got into my pajamas I'll never know.
Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.
Politics doesn't make strange bedfellows - marriage does.
Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies.
Practically everybody in New York has half a mind to write a book, and does.
Quote me as saying I was mis-quoted.
Remember, we're fighting for this woman's honor, which is probably far more than she's ever done!
Room service? Send up a larger room.
She got her looks from her father. He's a plastic surgeon.
The first thing which I can record concerning myself is, that I was born. These are wonderful words. This life, to which neither time nor eternity can bring diminution - this everlasting living soul, began. My mind loses itself in these depths.
The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you've got it made.
There's one way to find out if a man is honest - ask him. If he says, "Yes," you know he is a crook.
Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others.
Well, Art is Art, isn't it? Still, on the other hand, water is water. And east is east and west is west and if you take cranberries and stew them like applesauce they taste much more like prunes than rhubarb does. Now you tell me what you know.
When I was young I was amazed at Plutarch's statement that the elder Cato began at the age of eighty to learn Greek. I am amazed no longer. Old age is ready to undertake tasks that youth shirked because they would take too long.
Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?
Whoever named it necking was a poor judge of anatomy.
Why a four-year-old child could understand this report. Run out and find me a four-year-old child. I can't make head nor tail out of it.
Why should I care about posterity? What's posterity ever done for me?
Why was I with her? She reminds me of you. In fact, she reminds me more of you than you do!
Why, I'd horse-whip you if I had a horse.
Wives are people who feel they don't dance enough.
Women should be obscene and not heard.
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2
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Jangle, Jangle
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Dec 2, 2006 11:40 am
Mood: cheerful,
479 Views
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Got this in an e-mail from a friend and thought I would share it with all of you.
Jangle Jangle
(sung to the tune of Jingle Bells)
Trudging through the snow,
With a mule tied to a shay,
The old mule wouldn't go,
We drug him all the way.
The bobtailed fool sat down,
Like he was out of breath,
It took all night to get him home,
And we "bout near froze to death!
Oh... Jangle Bells, Jangle bells,
Oh what misery!
Don't hitch up old Dobbin if
you're coming after me!!!
Jangle bells, Jangle bells
Jangle all the way,
You can have your open shay
I'll keep my Chevrolet!
Sliding down a hill,
On an old ramshackle sled,
Laughing fit to kill
At something someone said,
Forgot to watch the road,
Not looking where we went,
We ran into a barbed wire fence,
Got our Christmas Spirit skint!
Oh... Jangle bells, Jangle bells
I have paid the price,
Busted bones, aches and groans
From falling on the ice...
Jangle bells, Jangle bells,
Dashing through the hills,
All I get for Christmas
Is a flock of doctor bills!
Slipping down a street,
On an old banana peel,
Could not stay on my feet,
They were slicker that an eel,
My feet flew in the air,
And I let out a yell,
Landed on my pocket book
And broke my jangle bells!
Oh... Jangle bells, Jangle bells
Ringing in my head!
Oh, what fun it is to slip and
slither on a sled...
Jangle bells, Jangle bells
Like the wise man said,
"Careful where you slide or
You'll spend Christmas Day in bed!
I've got an old tom cat
And "Santa" is his name,
I keep him nice and fat,
But he hates me just the same.
He got at me today
With those needles in his paws,
And now I'm wearing bandages
On account of Santa's claws!!!
Oh... Jangle bells, Jangle bells
Jangle all the way,
We don't know all the words
But we sing it anyway...
Jangle bells, Jangle bells
A'ringin' loud and gay
We'll be hearing jangle bells
From now till Christmas Day!!!
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6
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Word Games 2
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Nov 30, 2006 10:02 am
506 Views
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Here are the answers to the Word Game I posted last week. Religious Nut got most of the answers right his first try, missing only 2.
Answers: 1. High & Low 2. Rock & Roll 3. Mom & Pop 4. Law & Order 5. Rise & Shine 6. Rough & Tumble 7. Live & Learn 8. Come & Go 9. Hill & Dale 10. Trial & Error 11. Show & Tell 12. Rack & Ruin 13. Lock & Key 14. Hunt & Peck 15. Life & Limb 16. Arts & Sciences
Here is the next game for those of you who would like to have a go at it.
Each word below contains the word GIFT. Using the clues, can you figure out the longer word given?
1. Simply Splendid _ _ G _ IF _ _ _ _ T
2. Andy who was Ron Howard’s “Pa” G _ I _ F _T _
3. Their pectorals are pumped up _ _ _ G _ _ _ IFT _ _ _
4. Mozart Opera, with “The” (2 words) _ _GI _ F _ _T _
5. Of Great Importance
_ _ G _I F _ _ _ _ T
6. A stick In Your Car, Perhaps
G _ _ _ _ _ I F T
7. Praise, as of God G _ _ _ I F _ _ _ T _ _ _
8. Inviolate woodland (2 words) _ _ _ G I _ F _ _ _ _ T
9. Chandelier, for example (2 words) _ _ G _ _ I _ _ F _ _ T _ _ _
10. Toning Up (2 words) G _ _ _I _ _ F _ T
11. Che Guevara, for one (2 words) G _ _ _ _ I _ _ _ F _ _ _T _ _
12. Image Booster _ _ G _ I F _ _ _ T _ _ _
13. A variety of tea (2 words) _ _ G _ I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ F _ _ T
14. Mid-octogenarian’s birthday _ _ G _ _ _- _IFT_
15. Mayflower voyagers (2 words) _ _ _ G _ I _ F _ T _ _ _ _
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11
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Who Likes Word Game?
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Nov 26, 2006 12:16 pm
Mood: happy,
522 Views
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Hidden Phrases
Inside these sets of words, you’ll find a pair of smaller word. By putting “&” between them, lo & behold, you’ll make a familiar phrase.
1. Thighbone/Swallowtail
2. Thermometer/Apoplexy
3. Skyrocketing/Trolleyman
4. Delaware/Bordering
5. Surprised/Trashiness
6. Throughout/Stumblebum
7. Gulliver/Clearness
8. Tragicomedy/ Pentagon
9. Chinchilla/Magdalene
10. Terrestrial/Ecoterrorist
11. Thundershower/Intellectual
12. Firecracker/Misconstruing
13. Blockbuster/Doohickey
14. Shunting/Bespeckled
15. Proliferation/Climbable
16. Heartstrings/Consciences
I'll post the answer's in a day or so. I got this out of an old Reader's Digest.
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9
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My Testimony Part Thirteen
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Nov 23, 2006 10:58 pm
508 Views
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To read My Testimony from the beginning please go to My Testimony and click on the links there.
Disclaimer:
I want first of all to let everyone know that what I am about to reveal is not because I am living in the past or because I am holding on to it. I am not still wearing my grave clothes, so to speak.
A testimony is simply speaking the truth of what God has done in one's life, personal experience of His love, grace, power, glory. For a biblical example of a testimony please see Acts 26:1-23
Before I go any further with my testimony I want to say right here and now that my husbands did not have it easy. I have told you about my first husband and my problems with him and later I will tell you about my later problems. But right now I want to focus on their problems with me.
I know that it is so easy for us to minimize the fact that it takes the effort of both parties to make a marriage as well as to break it. Yes, that is what I said. It takes TWO to destroy a marriage. I don’t care what anyone says, there are no innocent victims in a divorce except the children.
I am not in any way shape or form justifying spousal abuse. But women are notorious for abusing their husbands just as much as men abuse their wives, they just do it in a different way, sometimes not even intending to do so.
I know for myself that I was one who got mouthy and loud when I was angry or hurt. I had the memory of an elephant and could quote every wrong thing my husband had ever done or said since the day I had met him, date and time, every time we got into an argument. And who among we women have not denied our mates access to our bodies as punishment for some wrong? We can lie to others and say we really did have a head-ache, we can even try to lie to ourselves, but we can’t lie to God.
Over the years, through counseling, I have found that I suffer from various “mental” disorders that explain, not excuse, but explain some of the things that I have done during my marriages. Just in the past 6 months I have discovered that I have BI-Polar disorder, also known as Manic Depression, where one minute I can be in highest heaven and the very next in the very depths of hell itself.
I also suffer from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) due to the abuse I suffered as a child. This was definitely a hardship on my spouse. Imagine if you will, lying in bed asleep at night and turning to cuddle with the one you are married to. Or suppose you get rowdy in the middle of the night and you decide to wake them for a little playtime. Now suppose the result is that they wake up screaming bloody murder, crying and begging you, “Daddy, please don’t!!!”
Dissociative Disorder is another of my diagnoses. The best way I know to describe this one is to say, take the previous scenario and have it launch your spouse into the past in such a real sense that they are actually reliving it. They are no longer, in their minds, in bed with you as an adult. Instead, they have become that child, they are in their beds that they slept in as a child, and the scene that you have awakened from their past is just as real to them at that moment as it was then.
I can only imagine what it must have been like for them, and I shudder to think how hard I made it for them. And not only for my spouse’s but also for my children and other’s who have witnessed these dissociative episodes. I have not had such an episode in years, but then I have been alone for years as well. I have done a lot of healing and growing in these years, but I also wonder if I am or ever will be well enough to deserve a loving, God-fearing mate. For I would never want to put another man through what my ex’s have been through with me, as long as I live.
God is good and He alone knows what is in store for my future. And I know and trust that He will do what is best for me, what is best for my brothers and sisters everywhere. And if He chooses for me to remain alone, then I am assured that He will also provide the strength and the grace I will need to be alone.
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11
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My Testimony Part Twelve
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Nov 23, 2006 8:55 pm
502 Views
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To read My Testimony from the beginning please go to My Testimony and click on the links there.
Disclaimer:
I want first of all to let everyone know that what I am about to reveal is not because I am living in the past or because I am holding on to it. I am not still wearing my grave clothes, so to speak.
A testimony is simply speaking the truth of what God has done in one's life, personal experience of His love, grace, power, glory. For a biblical example of a testimony please see Acts 26:1-23
As you may recall from my earlier testimony, I started out life with ill health. After that initial medical problem I had little in the way of medical problems growing up with the exception of tonsillitis every time the seasons changed. That is until after the birth of my first child.
When my son was about 3 months old, I had to go into the hospital in Japan because something was causing my white blood cells to multiply tremendously, but they couldn’t find the problem. I ended up having to stop breast feeding him due to this and over the next several years it occurred several times more, with the cause never being found.
After I stopped breast-feeding Matt, he too became sick, and I had him in the doctor’s office or the emergency room every time I turned around for projectile vomiting and loose bowels. This continued for 4 months, with each visit ending in the same manner, put him on pedialite.
When he was 7 months old, I went to get him from his crib one morning and realized that every time he breathed out his little chest would collapse. Scared half out of my wits I made a call to the clinic and made an appointment to bring him in. The old pediatrician had been reassigned and the new one was not yet on duty, so I was given an appointment to see a family physician. As I stood in the waiting room, holding Matt in my arms, a man walked past and stopped when he noticed how Matt was breathing. He talked to me a moment, asked me a few questions and told me that he would be right back. Walking down the hall to the office of the doctor I was waiting to see, he took Matt’s chart out of the holder by the door, knocked, stuck his head in and said, “I’ve got this one.”
When he came back down the hall, he introduced himself to me as Dr. Viscardi, the new pediatrician and asked me to follow him. He made a stop by his office to drop off some things he had been carrying and then proceeded to lead me to the pediatrics’ ward where he started barking orders to the nurse’s concerning my son. Turning to me, he said he would be back in 15 minutes to see how things were going, he told me that my son had what appeared to be double pneumonia and that it seemed that his lungs were collapsing every time he breathed. He was at deaths door and they were going to do everything they could to save him.
When the doctor returned it was to find that the staff has spent the past 15 minutes poking my baby first one place then another trying to get an IV into his little arms are legs. I had been relegated to the hallway to listen in anguish as my baby screamed inside the room. In a fury, the doctor tore inside that room and asked what in the Sam Hill was going on. Upon finding out what they had been putting my baby through, he told them all to leave the room, that he would do it himself. Which he did, on the first try, in Matt’s forehead. He wrapped Matt’s little hands up loosely in gauze and pinned them to his diaper so that he couldn’t reach up and tear the IV out. Picking him up gently, he carried Matt into the room they had set up for him, placed him in the crib and closed the oxygen tent around him.
Turning to me, he told me he had been reviewing Matt’s chart and asked why Matt had been so ill with vomiting and loose bowels. I told him that I would like to know that myself and the fact that I kept bringing Matt to the experts should be proof enough for him. He seemed impressed that this 18-year-old mother didn’t back down from him, despite his being a Colonel. He asked my permission to run some tests and see if he could find those answers for both of us, which I gladly gave him.
When the tests came back, Dr. Viscardi came to me, once more in quite a tizzy. He asked me what kind of inept doctors we had around there. I told him that I, not being a doctor, had no clue. He then proceeded to tell me that Matt had a sugar intolerance, to just about every type of sugar there is. That when I had been forced to give up breast-feeding and put him on formula is when the problem had started. And that each time I brought him in and they put him on pedialite (which was just glucose with added minerals and vitamins) they had only made the problem worse. He said that after the second or third time of this they should have suspected what the problem was and done the tests to check it out, but hadn’t. Now my son had extensive damage to his lungs from the double pneumonia that could have easily been prevented, if the doctors had done their jobs.
Dr. Viscardi had me accompany him down to the office of the medical facility’s commanding officer where he walked right into the commander’s office and demanded that the previous pediatrician be reprimanded for negligence on the part of my son. He also asked that the commander review Matt’s file and further reprimands be made against all those that had seen him and didn’t do due diligence in caring for him. Obviously, he and the commander, another colonel, were already fast friends, for him to get away with this, or something.
Only one other time while we were in Japan did I ever have a problem with my children’s medical. Dr. Viscardi was on TDY for six weeks and another pediatrician was TDY in his position for that time. This pediatrician, it seems, was doing research on how parent’s in the military overuse medical privileges or some such. Over the Thanksgiving holiday, both of the kids got sick and I made an appointment and took them in to see this doctor. After seeing them he told me to take them home, there was nothing wrong with them and he wasn’t going to do anything for them. He then proceeded to tell me that I was to make an appointment with the mental health unit because I was using my children to get attention. That if I didn’t get such an appointment he would see to it that the children and I were sent back to the states and never be allowed to accompany my husband on tour again.
All of this he wrote in my children’s medical files and I went home crying with two sick children. And waited for the two weeks until Dr. Viscardi returned to take them back. Matt ended up back in the hospital with pneumonia again and Charity almost had it, she had a severe case of bronchitis. Dr. Viscardi made another trip to the commander’s office, in a fury, with me trailing behind.
Matt suffered from severe asthma during his childhood and teens due to the damage to his lungs from the bouts of pneumonia. There were many long nights when we sat in the emergency room while he had to have a shot every 15 minutes until his lungs stayed clear, then a last longer lasting shot before going home. I believe the most shots I ever remember counting was 29. Even now, as an adult, certain allergies will cause him to have an asthma attack especially bee or wasp stings or getting into nettle. He is supposed to carry one of those emergency epi pens with him wherever he goes. But despite it all he has always been active, playing all types of sports in school and out. And for the most part, he is as healthy as a horse.
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My Testamony Part Eleven
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Nov 23, 2006 7:15 pm
Mood: grateful,
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To read My Testamoy from the beginning please go to My Testamony and click on the links there.
Disclaimer:
I want first of all to let everyone know that what I am about to reveal is not because I am living in the past or because I am holding on to it. I am not still wearing my grave clothes, so to speak.
A testamony is simply speaking the truth of what God has done in one's life, personal experience of His love, grace, power, glory. For a biblical example of a testamony please see Acts 26:1-23
My marriage to Mike lasted just under 9 years. Shortly after we married I began taking classes to become a Catholic and when the baby was born in December of 1975, we had him christened in the Catholic Church. But try as I might, I could not reconcile the things I knew of the Lord with the things that the Catholic Church taught. I finally confronted the priest that I was going to for classes one day, quoting him scripture to show where what he was teaching me was directly opposed to the word. When we got back home I told Mike that I was sorry and that if he wanted to divorce me for not keeping my promise I would understand. But I couldn’t become a Catholic.
Mike just looked at me in shock and asked me where I had learned all the things I had told the priest. I told him that I had learned it in the Bible. The blood drained from his face as he asked me in amazement, “YOU READ THE BIBLE????” I told him that of course I read the Bible, didn’t he? He told me that they weren’t allowed to read the Bible because they didn’t have the gift of interpretation unless they were called to be priest’s and trained to understand what the Bible said. I couldn’t believe my ears and showed him Php 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. I also showed him other verses in the Bible where it showed that every man must have a one on one relationship with God and that Jesus was our advocate.
We started attending other churches and settled at the Baptist Mission Church in the town there where the base was located. Mike got saved, praise the Lord, and we were happy for the most part, but unfortunately, the abusive behavior did not cease but in some ways actually became worse. For now he became the “head of the household” as so many men do who are Christians or claim to be, and I and the children we ruled with an iron fist. “Wives submit” became one of his favorite verses and I heard it regularly, and if I didn’t submit willingly then I was forced into submission (also known as marital rape) or beaten into submission depending on the circumstances of his demands. Our daughter was born in August of 1977.
After a little over 3 years in Japan and another tour in the states Mike got orders to go to England. The thought of being half way around the world again, away from everything I knew, my family and his, was just more than I could bear. I had stayed with him in hopes that he would mature and grow out of his wrong thinking and behavior but it just hadn’t happened. I couldn’t bring myself to go back overseas with my children with things as they were. So I packed the kids and I up and came home to Texas.
Mike got an extension in the states and ended up remaining for about another year before going to Italy. The kids and I moved back home with him but it just wasn’t working out. Just before he was due to leave, his dad had to have triple by-pass surgery and there was no one to take care of him and Mike’s mom, who didn’t drive. So when Mike left for Italy, the kids and I moved in with my in-laws so that I could take care of dad and mom. After dad recovered completely, I moved into an apartment of my own in the next town, settled in and filed for a divorce. But I had to wait until Mike came home on leave before we could go to court. Our divorce became final on February 29, 1984.
Today, Mike and I are on good terms. He is a minister in the state of New York. He remained single for a good many years, dedicating himself to his work in the military and to drawing closer to the Lord, studying His word, maturing in his walk. He is now remarried with two more beautiful children.
I know in my heart that God is with Mike and is a blessing through him to others. There are times when I am seeking understanding of scripture and I will contact him because I know that he has studied extensively and has a good deal of knowledge of the original Hebrew and Greek. He is my friend and he is my brother!
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