sail away

Nothing can compare with your first ever cruise.

After my Grandmother Hodie died back in the late eighties,

 my mom and dad took our whole family sailing away to the Caribbean

 for seven glorious days of sun and fun.

The trip was a novelty...

not many people we knew had ever gone on a cruise before.

We had no idea what joys lay ahead.

We went to Puerta Plata, the Cayman Islands, St Thomas, and Puerto Rico.

I can still remember the excitement of that momentous occasion.

Here we are, 

dressed to the nines, 

waiting for the evening meal in the main dining room.

 There were chimes to announce dinner.

This was probably 1989 ~ 30 years ago.

2020 is a big year for Bubba and I.

In April we will celebrate 50 years as husband and wife.

We started saving years ago to take our whole family on a Caribbean cruise.

I began working with Stacey, our travel agent, last March to find the perfect itinerary.

We wanted to try to recreate, as much as possible, that first cruise.

We booked and have waited with much anticipation for almost a year.

We will be visiting Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, the Turks & Cacaos, and a private island.

Excitement is now over the moon.

I get the kids all stirred up every time we are together.

We gave them snorkeling masks for Christmas

and there is talk of a zip line on Amber cove. 

You can just imagine how exciting all of this is for them.

Can't believe this is finally happening.

Paradise here we come!

🌅

happy birthday david

Our little baby boy has turned 46.

We celebrated last night with steaks and cakes and games and presents.

I think this picture perfectly exemplifies the man he has become.

He grew up with Star Wars.

 He needed a new weed wacker.

He and Erika have provided us with five of our seven grandchildren.

whose personalities are all exhibited in this picture.

We couldn't be more thankful for the man he has become.

Sadly, the Lemon Bundt Cake did not come out of the pan in a good way.

It broke apart and crumbled in on itself.

It was made lovingly with lemons from our lemon tree.

No one cared that it did not hold together.

 It was delicious and that's all that matters.

Just another example of how every once in a while life tosses you a failure.

Instead of throwing it away, 

I  adorned it with a glittery Happy Birthday sign and some glowing red candles.

It became the center of attention.

Happy Birthday David!

Great love to you!

Mom and Dad

and three more words to live by...

READ

I don't have fancy bookshelves on which to display fancy books.

I do have these bookshelves in our walk-in attic

stacked full every which way to Sunday with the books I have read in the near distant past.

They are messy and gently used. 

Dog eared and a little bit worse for the wear.

BUT...

I cannot part with any of them.

Want to know why?

If something happens and books can't be printed and published anymore,

I will go back and read them all again,

and maybe even again.

I cannot imagine a world without books.

I ❤️ to read so much that I chose to put READ in my list of words to live by.

God's word, the Bible comes first of course.

I read it every day.

There are also many other things to learn as well.

I love history and biographies and occasionally a good love story.

Reading is a huge part of my life!

REMEMBER

What a joy and gift from God to be able remember.

I have found that a pen and a post it note solve so many of my remembering problems.

They come in a big bundle at Staples and it doesn't take me long to use them up.

I write notes to Bubba and notes to myself.

This method works like a charm!

Of course it doesn't help when I go to a room and forget why I went there. ☹️

God wants us to remember His promises.

He wants us to remember all that is in His word.

He wants us to obey and trust as well.

I also think it is good that we remember our past...

All the people and good times and love from our family and friends.

Also the trials and troubles and how we've grown from them

To REMEMBER is important!

THINK

This little wooden sign has a home on my desk by my computer.

I am big on reminding myself to think...

to stop for a moment,

to draw a breath,

to ask for God's help,

to not rush into writing or speaking before it's time.

God gave us our brains and He wants us to use them wisely.

Most importantly He wants us to think through and put into practice what He tells us in His Word.

God created us perfectly, didn't He.

On top of everything else he gave us our brains and the ability to THINK.

I am humbled just thinking about our amazing God.

To THINK is a gift and a blessing not to be taken lightly.

TRUTH

BEAUTY

LIGHT

READ

REMEMBER

THINK

❤️

three words to live by

Truth

Find yourself a proven source...

a place to run to when you have questions,

when you need answers,

 when you want to be enlightened,

encouraged, challenged, amazed, assured.

A place to go when you are discouraged, worried, lonely, heartbroken, defeated,

filled with anxiety, or afraid of what lies ahead.

For me this place would be my Bible,

God's word.

This book that God gave to us has all the answers you will ever need for life.

Demand to know God's truth,

It will set you free.

Beauty

Live in beauty every day.

Beauty surrounds us.

Just look around.

You will see it in God's creation.

The sunrise, the sunset.

A bright blue sky.

The sun, the moon, and the twinkling stars.

The varied colors and shapes and sounds of the changing seasons.

The trees and all of the exquisite flowers.

The deep blue ocean and the winding rivers.

Birds outside your window.

A painting in your house.

The smiling faces of the ones you love the most.

Look for beauty everyday...don't stop until you find it. It's everywhere.

Then take time to stop and thank God for all of the gifts of beauty He has lavished upon us.

Light

God made light on the first day of creation.

He knew how important light was to life.

There would be no life without light.

I love the light that shines into our home in the morning and in the afternoon.

Light is warm and cozy and life-giving.

It makes everything better.

I cannot wait for longer days of light to come.

Jesus is the light of the world.

Jesus gives light wherever He goes.

Jesus' truth brings light and life into our souls.

I love this verse...

"Every good and every perfect gift is from above, 

and comes down from the Father of lights,

 with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning."

James 1:17

13 years because I refused to worry if i was good enough

One day, in June of 2007, I decided to start writing this blog.

That was thirteen years ago.

All total I have written 2,985 posts.

I couldn't be more happy that I "just started" to write way back then,

that I didn't worry if I was good enough.

I just sat down and poured out my heart.

We were sojourning in Washington, DC.

My first post was about Arlington cemetery.

 Bubba got me a fancy camera and I started taking pictures

 which turned into a much loved hobby.

I, with much consternation,

 figured out how to get those pictures loaded on my computer and then onto my blog.

It is, 

looking back, 

quite literally, 

the book of the last 13 years of our life.

The grandchildren were "littles" then...

now we have teenagers.

I have chronicled the good times and the bad times.

Bubba and I have passed from late middle to old age.

We are in our seventies now.

Something, most likely Someone, called me to write back then.

I am still writing!

It brings so much joy!

The pictures are my catalyst, 

but I still don't know what words will come out until I sit here at this keyboard in the afternoon.

I am thankful for spell check,

 Picassa where I edit my photos,

 and a most forgiving blog editor who keeps me straight.

It's not perfect, I make lots of mistakes,

but it's just me writing from my heart .

I hope it is a blessing to those who read.

And thank you for being faithful to follow.

"If you feel something calling you to dance or write,

 to paint or sing, 

please refuse to worry about if you are good enough. 

JUST DO IT!"

I did!

quote by Glennon Doyle

photo by Erika Cleland

are you interested in these things?

"If you want to know whether you are a true Christian

I ask you to face two questions...

Have you seen yourself as a hopeless lost sinner in the sight of a holy God?

Is the Lord Jesus Christ essential to you to deliver you from the wrath of God 

and to reconcile you to God?

Let me put it still more specifically in a third question...

Is Jesus' death on the cross absolutely vital to you?

The Apostle Paul said this to the Corinthians...

'I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.'

I Corinthians 2:2

If you would come within the scope of the things we have heard, 

the death of Christ on the cross will be to you central, vital, absolute.

You say you realize that if He had not died on the cross

 you would have no hope of having your sins forgiven,

 no hope of seeing God, 

no hope of heaven;

 you know you would be destined for hell and eternal misery.

These are the things that are central and vital and essential.

These are the things that were preached in the book of Acts.

Read the sermon that Peter preached on the day of Pentecost.

Isn't this the truth he preached.

isn't it what Paul preached,

isn't it the argument of every one of the New Testament epistles ~

the blood of Christ,

his death on the cross,

 to the Jews a stumbling block, to the Greeks foolishness? 

These men put this message in the forefront in spite of everything.

Why?

Because they had no gospel apart from it.

Are you interested in these things?

I say again solemnly,

 before you begin to consider your happiness, 

before you long to be delivered from worry,

 before you yearn for comfort for your broken heart,

 before you want guidance, 

before you seek healing for your body, 

before you want to get in tune with the infinite... 

Face the fact of your spiritual state.

All of us, we are in a passing, transient world.

We are at this moment a living soul going on inevitably to a final day,

and as you do so,

salvation is your first need, 

the need of knowing God,

 knowing He has forgiven you,

knowing that He is your Father in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Prepare for your latter end.

Make certain that you are ready to die,

and that you are ready to meet God,

that you know Jesus Christ, the son of God,

 who came into this world to reconcile you to God by dying for your sins and by rising to justify you.

I promise you if you get to know God like that,

 you can take your other problems one by one to Him with confidence, 

and He will never say nay.

But God forbid that anyone should ever find temporary satisfaction for lesser needs 

without having first of all satisfied the need of the soul for Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

Amen"

From...

A Merciful and Faithful High Priest

by Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Pages 20 &21

I've never heard it put better...

our supreme need for Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

Please read and consider.

cathy

long shadows

Saw this shadow last week.

Ran up the stairs, threw up the window, took this picture.

I immediately decided to find a poem about the long shadows of winter,

but I couldn't.

Most all of the winter poems are about snow, and gloom, and sadness.

We on the other hand,

 live where winter is merely a passing shadow of itself.

So, maybe, I'll write my own.

Haven't tried this in a while.

Here goes...

Winter

In the deep the South

one never knows what a winter day may bring.

Some are drenched with rain,

buffeted by wind,

dark with clouds,

frigid.

Others are brilliant blue skies,

sunlight streaming through the windows,

gentle breezes.

soft white breezy clouds,

balmy.

 Winter days are carpets of brown grass,

stick trees,

golden leaves everywhere,

long shadows at midday,

stark.

Winter days are short.

The whole earth is resting...

getting ready to spring forth with life in a couple of months.

The cycle must complete itself and begin again.

Winter is for rest, for worship, for deep thought.

Winter is exciting for what lies ahead.

Winter is for renewal,

for starting over,

for nesting.

Winter is hope.

by cathy

*I'm waiting with a huge amount of anticipation for the light to come back.

when lucy brings me a gift...

...it makes my heart skip a beat.

On New Year's Eve she was the first one in the back door.

She said, "Hey Gram, this is for you."

The gift was many different things wrapped up with a ribbon and festooned with flowers.

She made me these potholders.

I had asked for them.

I had given her a kit for Christmas just for that purpose.

They are the perfect size and weight.

I am so thankful for them.

The flowers were camellias.

They have a yard full of  bushes.

They are so beautiful.

I went to find my little vases and put them on display.

Here is one of them.

Flowers make me feel so loved!

And here is the best.

She made me a skirt for our cruise.

Isn't it just so perfect!

Bright, tropical colors just like I like.

She made Erika one too.

Now we will have matching skirts on our cruise.

I love this teenager to the moon and back. 

She is a real keeper...

the best granddaughter a Grammy could have.

I ❤️ her!

I'm so glad for the blessing of having grandchildren.

They make getting older such a prime time of life.

Your gifts to me from these kids are too numerous to count.

God I thank you so much!!

By the way...

Do you ever feel that we don't have words adequate to praise our God?

I sure do.

Our praise and worship will be unhindered in heaven.

What a joyous time that will be.

Praises unfettered by sin.

faces & places

This is Walter Bookman Cleland

Walter is cute.

Walter is four years old.

Can you spot Gus?

This exceptionally clever photo was taken by Eli Hollingsworth.

This is Grammy with Jake and Eli.

I like the smiles and how the plaids and Santas all kinda work together.

Jake is fourteen.

Eli is twelve.

I ❤️ them!

Very early on New Years Day I found myself down at Tybee.

I get drawn there,

 sorta like a magnet draws steel.

I have salt air and salt water coursing through my veins.

This is the view from the balcony of our condo...

the place where the beach bends into the convergence of the Atlantic ocean.

A blessing in our life.

A place to go, to meditate, to breathe.

The sun was shiny bright,

 like some of my Christmas tree ornaments.

It was cool, getting ready to warm up.

The wind was blowing but not too much.

It was refreshing!

Being there was a great way to say Hi to the New Year.

There was something about the lines and angles here that took my breath away.

Somehow they accentuated the soft, wispy clouds just above.

I walked on out there,

took it all in.

I breathed deeply.

I smiled.

The world is full of God's wonders just waiting to be discovered.

Here I come 2020.

Excited to see what you have in store.

One thing I know for sure...

God is in control.

That' a promise I can hold on to.

Again. Happy New Year!

May you find peace and rest in Him who was born in the manger and changed the world!

December 25, 2019

We are keeping Sirius Black, 

the Hollingsworth's cat,

 due to a toilet malfunction

 that occurred the week before Thanksgiving.

He is here at our house indefinitely while the repairs are being made.

Jake and Eli were so excited to open their gifts.

Jake is fourteen and Eli is twelve.

In a couple of months Mark and Amanda will have two teenagers in their house.

Amanda got a Minnie Mouse cross body purse from the boys.

This purse caused lots of excitement and the need to take this picture.

Every Christmas Erika makes her delicious cream cheese rolls.

The kids enjoying Christmas morning breakfast.

The Hollingsworth family had matching Christmas pajamas.

Eli quickly ditched his for more comfortable shorts.

It looks like that after Christmas morning stupor has set in with these folks!

Time to start opening gifts.

The perfect time for several cups of coffee to go down.

It took us over two hours.

Archie wore the Santa hat well don't you think?

I love these kids so much!

Gus is hugely into Ninjado.

See that smile?

David got a box of books...his favorite.

Cruise reading!

He was sick as a dog but calmly powered through.

Grammy & Granddaddy.

Erika and Amanda gave me pieces to my Vietre Christmas China.

I love it so much!

Amanda got black suede Birkenstocks embedded with fur.

Lucy gave me another beautiful tree.

I quickly made a centerpiece for our Christmas dinner.

For dinner...

Bubba grilled steaks,

We had a salad with Cathy's famous homemade salad dressing,

and a hash brown potato casserole.

It was delicious.

One last shot of some cute boys.

How can I sum up our Christmas Day?

I would say it was a gift from God.

As He gives good gifts to us, we in turn desire to give to others.

"Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift."

II Corinthians 9:15

The indescribable gift is Jesus.

kylo ren's lightsabar

So, in the big box in the center of the floor was this...

Kylo Ren's Lightsaber.

The sights and sounds of this lightsabar couldn't be more realistic.

Everyone was excited,

but there was one face that lit up more than any other.

It was David's.

When David was growing up he lived and breathed Star Wars.

He had quite the collection of toys.

He had figures and stuffed animals and even a lightsabar,

but nothing like this.

Someone else was impressed too.

Bubba struck a pose and looked quite authentic except for his normal clothes.

Kylo Ren wore black robes and a black mask.

I had hoped that the kids would be able to run around outside after dark playing with this exciting gift,

but Savannah had a deluge of rain that lasted two and a half days.

They had to be content on the back porch.

The magic of Christmas through the eyes of a child!

The magic of Christmas through the eyes of grown men remembering when they were little boys.

The excitement of a gift given a few days before Christmas with a promise of Santa arriving with more gifts on Christmas Day.

Yes!

 Christmas is Magic!

It's hard work but it's magic and it's worth every bit of the effort.

🌝

auld lang syne ~ for old times sake

Yesterday was New Year's Eve.

It was a beautiful start to our celebration.

The sun was shining brightly and it wasn't too cold.

It was just right.

It's the way the sunshine comes in the windows that thrills my soul.

That white chair is where I read my Bible and pray.

It feels like home to me.

I love, love, love to create beautiful spaces.

It's one of those things that well up in my soul to do.

Comfortable, cozy, colorful,

filled with light.

A perfect place to dwell.

We kept this meal simple.

We got some chipped bar-b-que from Jim and Nick's.

I made potato salad and baked beans.

The grand boys love this meal.

For dessert I made from scratch butterscotch bars.

They were delicious with that after dinner cup of coffee.

After dinner the kids opened their gifts...

snorkeling masks for our upcoming cruise.

We are all so excited.

Every time we get together we talk about this adventure that is soon approaching.

They also got a bag of batteries for their Christmas toys and, of course, sparklers.

Then we went outside and had fun welcoming in the New Year with fire in our hands.

Pictures of this part of the celebration commence below.

 David took the Star Wars Light Sabar into the yard and had some fun.

This made for some spooky images of which this is one.

And lastly,

back into the house for butterscotch bars and coffee.

Gus is going through a phase of not only not wanting to smile,

 but also not wanting to even look at the camera. 

I't okay though. I still love him!

Happy 2020 to all of my faithful readers.

Here's to the best new year ever!

Love to all, 

Cathy

Auld Lang Syne means "for old times sake."

It is a Scottish song.

It is by Robert Crawford Burns

(a little bit of trivia)

.