The Pruning of Trees 

You’ve heard the saying “You can’t see the forest for the trees.”

For us this past week we could literally say, “We can’t see the lake for the trees.”

We have beautiful large trees in our back yard. Big silver maple trees and magnolias reaching for the sky. We have large hickory trees and “live oak” trees as well. Trees and storms do not always play nicely together. If you read my post a few weeks ago about the large tree near the back of our property still bearing the scars of a lightning strike, you know what I mean. If you didn’t catch that one, you can read about that scarred silver maple HERE.

For Reference:
This is Our 
Normal View
 from the House.

The hurricane season is technically June through November. We are in July and yet to see a hurricane develop. We will. It is the way of things.

But even though we haven’t had to deal with a hurricane yet, we are in the midst of our rainy season. We’ve had some spectacular thunder-boomers and not-so-mamby-pamby rainstorms with the thunder, too.

Personally, I like the late afternoon rains. They cool the hot summer days. They slow the pace of life down a bit, and afterward, every blade of grass is a vibrant green.

Last week, late in the evening, Mike and I heard a loud noise. “More rain?”  I asked.

“Sounds like it.” Mike looked out into the darkness. Nothing indicated rain…yet.

The next morning, Mike headed out before dawn to South Carolina to pick up a boat. Later, I climbed out of bed and made my way to the kitchen. 

Something was amiss. I can generally see the lake from our window. It looked dark outside. I turned on the coffee and looked at the clock. Not that late. I figured we were in for another cloudy day. I got my shower before heading back to the kitchen to fix breakfast. As I passed by the window again, I looked a bit more closely. 

Our View
After the Storm

The lake was still there, but a mountain of limbs and branches seemingly stretched from one side of the yard to the other. The oak tree I call “the tool tree” (because Mike props his rake and shovel and such against it) was stripped of some of its limbs. Huge limbs from the hickory tree on the other side of the yard landed over the limbs of “the tool tree.”  Or knocked them down.

We had no damage to the outbuildings or our house. The swing was intact. The fence was not harmed. It was as if the trees simply put up their own gated entrance to the back of our yard and the lake.

Though I sent Mike pictures, he returned late at night so didn’t get to capture the enormity of what happened until the next morning after breakfast. 

Mike Surveying
the Damage

We called a tree service to cut up and remove the large limbs and branches. In the meantime, the squirrels and birds are playing in the brush. And me? I’m praising God no real harm was done to anything… except those beautiful trees.

 

Then again, it makes me think... we all need a little “pruning” from time-to time.

Family

Family

The word family evokes images of gathering around the table for a meal or heading off in the same vehicle for a vacation. Of course, family also means standing by each other in times of turmoil or standing up for each other when under attack. And it means celebrating a life together.

Having my mother living close by is a blessing. This week we had another blessing. Allison, the oldest daughter of our clan and her son, the oldest grandson of our clan came for a short visit. They had been vacationing in South Carolina. While Allison’s husband and younger son headed back to Ohio, Allison and Joshua headed our way. What a treat! 

They arrived on Saturday and left in the early hours Tuesday morning. Although their visit was short, it was a blessing to all of us. 

My mom, GG, Braided Allison's hair 
Just as she did when Allison was a Little Girl!

Mike took us on a long boat ride. We explored our lake and adjoining lakes. We took pictures and showed Allison and Joshua the route we take on the water to go to my mother’s house when we pick her up for dinner via boat.

Our Boat House

The weather was perfect for their visit.

One day, we drove to Rainbow River and poked around the crystal-clear tributary. Allison enjoyed sharing stories of her experiences there when she and her sisters would spend weeks during the summer with my mom and dad.

Oldest Grandson, Joshua,
Getting up the nerve to go "all in" 
Into the Ice cold water of 
Rainbow River

But the best parts of the visit were the sharing of meals, going to church together, and sweet conversations. Mike’s son, Shawn (I claim him, too!) stopped in for a visit. I had three girls so having a brother is pretty cool for all of them.

Family.

The make-up of our family may have changed since Mike and I married, but the essence of what a family means is still there. Together we celebrate the gift of life together and the gift of love God has given us to share with one another. 

I am one blessed woman. And I know it.

One last picture...The finished product: 

On Blogging...

 On Blogging…

When I began my journey as a writer, I attended a writing conference in Wheaton, Illinois. The advice coming from the podium and in nearly every workshop I attended was simple: “If you want to publish, you must blog.” 

That was in 2012. I didn’t even know what a “blog” was…I mean, seriously. To me it sounded like a swamp of words. Maybe it is.

The notion behind “blogging” was to practice writing as well as build an audience for your books. Some people are good at it. 

Some authors blog… Every. Single. Day. Not me. But I did leave that conference with a plan to blog. I have put my blog out every Wednesday since. I called it “A Novel Creation.” I wrote about …writing. I wrote about crafting my first novel. I started to get a following, but to be honest, those first posts weren’t for everybody. They were for writers only. No one else would be interested.

I AM a Novel Creation

When my first book, Breathing on Her Own, was published in 2014, I shared that news on my blog. Not only was it the natural thing to do…it was expected of me by my publisher. 

As I crafted my second novel, I shared recipes I would use in the coffee shop called Libby’s Cuppa Joe on my blog. It was fun. 

My husband, Tom, died in 2014, a few months after Breathing on Her Own was released. I was devastated. I managed to keep the blog afloat with the help of guest authors and such, but it was hard to write. 

I could barely breathe. 

The blog changed when I moved to Kosovo for a year. I wrote about my experiences there. It was a healing time for me. That was in the 2017-2018 academic year. 

Although the blog follows my life and changes as I change, it is still a piece of being an author. 

Since marrying Mike, I have been writing books again. He is good for me and encourages me. I am not only writing, I am  excited about it.

I am now writing a book I consider to be perhaps the most important story I know to tell. It is about a teacher. I spent  twenty years teaching elementary aged students and fourteen and a half years as a professor of teacher education at the university level. 

The best advice any author will give you is to write what you know.

So...If you were to write a story, what would be the focus? What do you know? And what would you put in YOUR blog?

 

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

 

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

This week has been a week of friends… A week of memories.

Mike’s oldest and closest friend, another Mike, and his wife, Sandee, came to our house for dinner. They live in Tampa. Though we have been able to connect a few times at other venues, this was the first time they have visited us since we moved to Inverness. 

My Mike chose the menu. Spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread. Sandee brought dessert. 

Hey, entertaining “decision free” is pretty cool. 

I loved hearing the two Mikes talk about times gone by. 

·   There was the time Mike L. wrecked his motorbike on the gravel road and my Mike’s mom patched him up. 

·   Mike L. told me how he walked with my brother-in-law, Ronnie Waters from Adams Junior High to Bob and Ernie’s Bait and Tackle after school. (the Waters family business)

·   Mike L.’s profession was a horse trainer. Stories of training horses with my Mike’s assistance were fun to hear.

     It was a wonderful evening. That was on Thursday. 

If you read last Wednesday’s post, you know I painted a lake picture. If you missed that, you’ll find it HERE. 

The artist I studied under for that painting, offered to help me frame it at her studio this week. 

It turns out her studio is in Dunellon, Florida on Riverbend Road. Interesting. My parents once lived on Riverbend Road. I took Mom with me.

We stopped for a sandwich at The Front Porch, a longtime favorite restaurant started in 1986 by my mother’s oldest and dearest friends. They no longer run the business, but their fingerprints are all over it. The Front Porch remains a favorite among the locals. 

After lunch, we located Briget’s studio and in short order headed back down the road, my framed painting in hand. The area has grown. Changed. We slowed down as we came to Mom and Dad’s house. It has changed a bit, but the memories haven’t. 

“Do you think we could maybe drive down by the cabin?” Mom asked.

Many years ago, my parents and some friends built on adjacent properties. Mom and Dad’s was a cabin for weekends and such. Ed and Treva build a larger place. My daughters have wonderful memories of that property. They loved to feed the foxes and explore the land. And every afternoon, Mom and Dad took them swimming in the icy cold Rainbow River. 

As we drove, we spoke of old times. It was a wonderful afternoon with my mom.

Like I said…This has been a week to stroll down Memory Lane…well not exactly. 

Memory Lane was the name of the road I lived on during my teen years. Trust me...that would be an entirely different post!