What I Read in November

The Nazi Officer's Wife: How One Jewish Woman Survived the Holocaust.

This is a must read for history buffs or anyone wanting to understand how one man turned entire countries against the Jewish people. I guess the simple answer to that is....he didn't. He already knew how most of the German people felt and just gave them a pardon for acting on how they already felt. They could lay all they own faults onto someone else. The Germans could take Jewish businesses, houses, and anything that was in either of these places with no penalty of being punished whatsoever. There was one catch though..but I will let you read about that yourself.

This could have easily happened in our country during this same error.

Did the Germans know about the death camps? Most of them did know that Jews were sent to prison or labor camps for the smallest infraction although I don't know if they knew they were death camps until much later in the war.  But I also think they really didn't care one way or the other as long as they were getting what they wanted and were able to live in a lifestyle much better than what they had before Hitler took over the country. The Nazi's cut off most of the communication between Jews in the early days of the Nazi regime, so it was not unusual to not talk to a member of your family for years. At first most of the camps were just prisons for free labor. It wasn't until closer to the end of the war that they turned primarily into death camps. By the time Americans joined the war these labor camps were death camps. You could be sent to prison for anything. Walking on the wrong street, being outside at the wrong house, etc. Once in prison they would sentence you to a few weeks of hard labor. Only those few weeks would turn into years, but you did get back home eventually in the early years of the war. Because of this and because the communication was so bad the Jewish people didn't realize when they didn't hear back from a loved one that they might have been killed.

This story is about one woman's ordeal growing up in Austia during the Nazi regime. What she did just to survive shows what we can do and live through if we have to just to survive. Edith was raised in what would be considered in this era as a middle class family. Her father was a waiter and her mother was basically a stay at home mom/seamtress. Now I know what you are thinking. How could they be middle class if her father was a waiter and her mom didn't work. As explained by Edith herself, back then you had to train years to be a waiter. Kinda weird to think your waiter at your favorite diner trained for years, but you have to keep in mind he was a waiter for a very high end restaurant. He had to anticipate what his customers would want before they wanted it and remember everthing his regulars wanted without them even asking. Sounds like a very stressful job to me.

Edith was arrested and sent to prison for 6 weeks just because she was chosen out of a line. She didn't do anything wrong. She just looked strong enough to do the work they had in mind. That 6 weeks turned into 14 months. She was cold, hungry, and exhausted most of that 14 months. They did get some mail during the early days of the Nazi regime but their food was rationed to such an extreme that a lot of them were hungry most of the time. Without the help of some of her German friends she wouldn't have survived. Not all Germans were Nazi's or believed in their cause.

I won't tell you too much but as you can tell by the title Edith did survive the Nazi regime. Edith inspired me to really appreciate everything I have, but most importantly to pay attention to everyone in politics. Whether I think they are crazy or not. Hitler was thought to be crazy by the intellectual community. That no one in their right mind would believe him much less follow him. The Jewish people had time to get out of the country but they honestly thought that this "insanity" would blow over.

I hope you read about Edith's life and find out for yourself what and how people are capable of surviving. And what people are capable of doing to other people.

P.S. The book I read had pictures of her and her family. That made it a little more real for me. To actually see the pictures of the people she talks about in her book.   

Happy Birthday Grandma Fulton

Today would have been my grandmother's 92nd birthday. My grandfather adored her until the day he died. Their love could be seen by anyone who spent 5 minutes with them. They always had a hug and kiss ready for one of their many grandchildren. She was a wonderful grandmother and she always had something to sweet to eat.

I would always catch the bus at her house. She was usually up cooking breakfast for my grandfather by the time I would get there. I could always grab a biscuit and sausage while waiting on the bus. Grandma was an old fashion housewife. She cooked 3 meals a day, hung her wash on a clothes line, and we always had Sunday lunch as a family. I miss those Sunday lunches.

Every year grandpa planted a garden. I'm not talking about a little garden that he could pittle in. Grandpa's gardens were acres and acres. He plowed it with a mule named Jack. Grandpa and Jack had a very special bond. Jack died not long after our grandfather passed away. Grandma said he died of grief.

I've shelled peas until my thumbs ached and turned purple, silked corn, snapped beans, and picked berries. I couldn't harvest the garden, not that I really wanted to, because of my allergies. I was happy shelling, snapping, and silking in the comfort of grandma's living room. Then came the canning. We canned everything that could be canned, even made catchup one year. At the time I didn't appreciate what we had. What I wouldn't give to go back there now.

I had a wonderful grandmother to show me how to love and care for my own grandchildren one day. If I'm only half as good as she was, then I will be a terrific grandmother for my grandchildren.  I wished my own children could have known her longer. She died when Paige was 5 and Brittany was 3.

Happy birthday Grandma!!

45 and Falling Apart...

A couple of weeks ago I went for my yearly check-up. My blood pressure was up again. I had this happened a couple of years ago but I lost about 35 pounds and got it under control. Although I've gained a little of the weight back, somewhere between 3-5 pounds on any given day, I've managed to keep it off for a couple of years. The doctor decided to put me on a low dose of blood pressure medicine. I now take my blood pressure twice a day. It's getting a little better but very slowly. You may say that isn't so bad but I'm on lots of other medicines too. While I was at the doctor's office they wanted to take a few vials of my blood because I'm also on cholesterol medicine too. My cholesterol is up a little bit. I found out years ago that my body produces it. Aren't I lucky. No matter what I eat I will always have it.

While I was there for my blood pressure I told my doctor that I needed to be tested for an aortic aneurysm. This condition runs in my family on my father's side. She set me up for an echo and CT scan. During my exam at her office she noticed a heart murmur. No one had ever mentioned that I may have a heart murmur, including her. I guess she didn't want to scare me but I like to know what is going on with me. While the tech was doing the echo she found a leaky heart valve. She told me it wasn't very bad and that I probably wouldn't even have to have routine check ups for it. Just something that is noted in my chart so that whenever I went in for something else they would know to check it. If it gets worse then I will have to have it surgically repaired.

I should get my results back for the aortic aneurysm by the end of the week. If I do have it, then I will probably have to have surgery as soon as possible. Growing old is FUN, FUN, FUN!!

UPDATE: Just heard back from my doctor. The CT came by normal . I DO NOT HAVE AN AORTIC ANEURYSM!!!!

Watch Out Japan, Here Comes Elizabeth

Today's post is about a good friend of our youngest daughter Brittany. She and Elizabeth met at art class when they were both still in elementary school. They became fast friends even though they went to 2 different schools. Whenever one of them needed the other, the other one was always there.

Brittany and Elizabeth were into Japanese comic books at a very young age. Elizabeth is still fatuated with Japan. So much so that when she was a junior in college she went to study Japanese culture for a year. Her dream job is to teach Fortune 500 companies Japanese culture so they do not accidentally insult the people they are trying to do business with. Step one of this process is living in Japan for another year and teaching English. She can stay up to 5 years teaching English. During this time she hopes to learn to speak the language better and learn more of their culture. She will be living in a rural village and teaching at many different schools.


Good luck Elizabeth and safe journey!!!

    

It's All a Matter of Perspective

I realize Allen and I haven't written in a while but we just haven't wanted to get on the computer lately. We have lots of things going on and I hope to post more in the coming weeks.

My preacher writes a short column for us to ponder every week called Words of Grace. Last week's piece really got me to thinking and I wanted to share it with you.

What's On Your Mind

by Wayne Evans

My friend was waiting in line to order a sandwich at Subway. The man in front of him got angry when the clerk told him they had run out of the Soup of the Day. Things were eerily silent. Then John offered aloud, "My God gives me more blessings than I can ever imagine."

The angry man turned around and looked at John in amazement. John didn't know if the man was going to slug him for intruding or what. Instead, the man's whole expression changed. "You're right, man. I was in the Super Dome after Katrina. My whole family could have died. Here I am and I'm going to have lunch. I will do just fine without the soup." The man then went on to tell John how much God had blessed him.

It's all a matter of perspective. This story got me to thinking:

When did I last turn anybody away from self pity and anger toward gratitude?

What you and I say can make a difference in the way people live. Do we let other people sour our day, or do we lift them up? We get to decide.

Psalm 48:9 says, "We ponder your steadfast love, O God."

Do I do that? Do you?

Well I don't know about you but I don't always do this. More often than I would like to admit I probably let other people sour my day or at least my attitude. I do try to surround myself with Christian people that will uplift me and give me good advice when I need it. But what am I doing to uplift other people that are having a lousy day? What if I'm the person that is suppose to help someone else? For those of you that don't know me personally, I grew up very shy. To the point of being sick if I had to stand in front of a room of people. I rarely spoke to people I didn't know. I'm a lot better now but I've had to make a conscience decision to be better. Maybe that's what I need to do now. Make a conscience decision to make a difference in someon else's life.

#1 Grandson..Ryker

I was told the other day that I haven't posted any recent photos of my #1 grandson...Ryker. So Fonda here's a few photos of him. I need to learn how to post video too. I have one of him laughing at Allen on my Iphone. I will try my best to post it soon. He's down for the count...well, just as long as you don't count too high. He takes lots of little catnaps. Looks like he is shaking his fist and yelling at the TV. He will make a great arm chair quarterback one of these days. He's only about 6 weeks old in this picture. He looks bigger than he actually is but to me he has grown quite a bite since he was born. He is now around 10 pounds and 21" long. He is moving around a lot these days. I don't remember the girls moving this much as such a young age. He won't be 3 months old until the middle of April and you already have to watch him like a hawk. He kicks so much that he will be off the sofa in a heartbeat. No more leaving him on the sofa while you throw a dirty diaper away. If he can get his hands and knees going in the same direction, there will be no catching up with him. Looks like he is picking his nose but he is reaching out to his momma. I've got to say, Allen and I are having a blast with him. He comes to our house every Sunday afternoon to seee us. The first Sunday he came to see us, he was a little fussy but now we are having a wonderful time with him. He loves to watch cartoons as long as they are very colorful, which most are, and there is a lot of action. We keep him about 6 hours then we return him to his mom and Colby at Sears.

Kristen's wedding

Recently a very good friend of Brittany's got married. It was a very lovely wedding at her Aunt's house on the bayou. Above is a picture of Brittany (maid of honor) and the best man, Evan. Brittany looks absolutely breathtaking in her maid of honor dress. In case some of you are wondering, yes Brittany has lost some weight recently. Here is a picture of the bride, Kristen, and Brittany. Kristen was very beautiful in her wedding gown. The whole event was about family. We've known Kristen and her family since she and Brittany were in elementary school together. It's almost like my own daughter getting married except I didn't have to pay or try to organize this one. Much better this way. ha ha