Almost Heaven

Yesterday I got Chris Fabry's newest book in the mail. It's called Almost Heaven and I tried to cut and paste a copy of the cover here for visual effect. As you see, no could do.......I need help from Mary Bailey on that.

I also had Antioch Garden Club here at my house yesterday. What fun! Fourteen or so lively ladies from our community.....Antioch/Byrdtown. Everyone brought an item for refreshments.......yummo! My MIL, Granny/Edith had the program.

Granny showed the group how to make her famous Olive Roll Sandwiches. If you never knew she was a teacher....you knew it now. VERY precise, she was/is.
We'll see if any members of the group ever go to the trouble to make these jewels. I love them, but they are not for the faint hearted. I guess I should have taken a picture so you could see how awesome they look.

Actually, one of the group, Joy Davis, asked me why I wasn't blogging these days. I told her I didn't have anything to blog about. She saw my Mr. Willie doll on the mantle and said right away......Is that Mr. Willie?

Really I had been feeling like no body but Mary Bailey read this thing and I could just email her and skip writing the blog. Thank you Joy for your encouragement! It got me back to the computer today :)

Now back to the book and the title....Almost Heaven.....it is a really good book and I recommend you buy it ($13.99 including shipping on Amazon) read it and pass it along to whoever the Holy Spirit directs. A bunch of Chris' friends and I are praying it will be an instrument of evangelism so a lot of prayer will go with your gift. It is fiction so you will not be hitting anyone over the head with the Bible.

In my quiet time today, I mused about the title...Almost Heaven. I really feel so blessed these days it is almost like being in heaven....except I am sure heaven is much, much better than earth.

A dear friend went to heaven yesterday.....Betty Tolson Howle. I taught Betty's two oldest boys, Mike and Greg in 1971 when I transferred from Hartsville Junior High to Plainview Elementary School. Mike and Greg had the misfortune of being in my third grade class along with 32 others. I had five sets of siblings...mostly as a result of a brother or sister being held back. I say misfortune because I knew nothing about teaching elementary school. I read Teacher magazine and tried any and every thing they said. I lined up all 35 and paddled them when I was frustrated.

Betty's first husband died and she married an Howle and had her daughter Louise. Then he died. When I came back to Plainview fifteen years later after having a child and teaching Kindergarten in McBee and at Antioch Elementary. I had Louise in my GT class. I remember Betty driving a van to Little River, NC where we got on a pontoon boat and took a field trip to a barrier island......by then I was librarian and teacher of Gifted and Talented and Chapter 1. I remember us flying back to Hartsville because Louise had a softball game....she put her uniform on in the back of the van.

Later, Betty was on the committee that chose me to be the new principal of Plainview Elementary when John Williams left after 20 years. Then she was on the advisory committee the principals in our attendance area met with once a month.

Since I retired, One of Betty's son's came down with Lou Gehrig's disease. The other son had a stroke, her niece got shoulder cancer, and Betty came down with brain cancer. Betty was a hairdresser by profession. She took on a second job to help her son with the cost of treatments.

Today Betty is reunited with her two husbands, countless others....and she will be waiting when her sons cross into heaven. Betty I look forward to seeing your face when I come across......keep an eye out for us Plainview Peeps. I love you girl!