Saying goodbye to Daddy and family :)

Let the goodbyes begin

This is pretty Gen. She's the gal that's making up for my slack, ha! Well, she and Ali are now doing almost everything I used to do, and I love them for it. Well, not only that, but she also invited Fido and I for a 'farewell/birthday-ish' meal out. Now I REALLY like her (JK, Gen, you know I love you to bits!).Here's Fido, my 'fellow-in-splitting', in the back you can see some of our beautiful property too. And back to Gen, with her beautiful newish channel hair-cut

All three of us girls, eating like...like...like we weren't girls :) Can you guess why Fido looks so happy? Yep, a few more things I'll miss :)

On Crosses and Crowns

Long years ago I planned it all for thee,

Prepared it that thou mightest find need of Me.

Without it, child, thou wouldst not come to find,

This place of comfort in this Love of Mine.

Hadst thou no cross like this for Me to bear,

Thou wouldst not feel the need of My strong care.

But in thy weakness thou dost come to Me,

And through this plan I have won thee.

"I'm the only One stable enough to give the promise that "I am with you always, even unto the end of the world," and "I will never leave you nor forsake you." No one else can promise that. ... That is the guarantee of a disciple. That is the "God factor" that you can believe in, trust in, and even stake your life on."

"These crowns are one of the most highly treasured gifts in the spirit realm. Each crown of life carries with it the very spirit of the Father Who gives life, power, wisdom, strength, and so much more. It is a reward desired and treasured not just amongst those who have lived on Earth, but by all within the spiritual realm. It is a reward given to those who, although they may stumble and fall at times, yet they refuse to stop. They refuse to let go. It is the reward given to those who continue day by day, doing what they can to choose the path they sense Me showing them."

(Me)When I was 17 I was learning and experimenting with the Activated program and Follow-up. Us young people had just put together a Bible class group (using Activated) and someone I had subscribed had just become our home's first AM and tither.

But all was not peachy. It so happened, that on my birthday and rest day we had planned to party a bit. The idea came up to invite all our friends to celebrate it with me. Though it meant I probably couldn't relax as much for my birthday, I consoled myself with the fact that it was worth it to include them, and that the party only began at 9 PM, so I could get some much needed rest and Word time until then.

But as fate would have it, the doorbell rang at 4 PM. You know those sheep who like you a bit too much and are not 'light' to be around. They follow you everywhere you go and are constantly expecting you to be with them, lift them up, etc? Well, I had one of those, and he was at the door bright and early with all the ice for the party, hoping for some extra time to 'hang out' with me.

My dismay was apparant. I didn't want to get the gate. I actually started crying. I ran to Phil and told him I couldn't do this again (things like that happened regularly). I wanted to be alone, to enjoy my birthday, and I felt trapped and claustrophobic.

The next thing Phil said has stuck with Me. Dad said it too. It's one of those quotes you repeat to yourself over and over again. I'll share it with you now. He said: 'They that bare the cross shall wear the crown.'

I didn't understand it fully at the time, but it was enough to give me the strength to make it through that day. Now I see how my sacrifices then were worth it, how they not only benefited the sheep, but me too. Those are experiences I use to gauge things in life now.

So whenever it seems like just too much, remember, 'They that bear the cross shall wear the crown.'

Wanna taste some Turkey?

In case you don't have a chance to visit that wonderful place, Istanbul to be exact, take a lil' glimpse into my stay there and some of the sights I didn't yet post about.

Disclaimer: If my dress code looks positively horrid, it is due to the fact that I have no clue as to how to dress in cold weather - and few options to choose from - plus I was on no make-up mode most of the time. There, whew! I said it! Yes, it was very cold and even humid on top of it - plus it snowed a bit while I was there.

To begin, that's me on a bus on the 'dolmush' (if that's how they say it - a bus that gets there faster than the normal buses :) )

Here I am in front of a monument to Atatürk - my sis and I took advantage to enjoy the tiny bit of sun since most days were pretty rainy and cold. The bus and monument happened as my sis and I did some 'daisy picking' before the show for the refugees. That's my mom and sis inside the Roman cisterns (I'm sure you remember that Istanbul is situated where the Roman capital, Constantinople, was built). From there, the water was diverted to the aqueducts. There are ancient pillars and even a couple statues of Medusa - including her mythological story. There was also a wishing pool. Here we are at the Hagia Sophia. This church was built by Constantine when he built the city. People such as Richard the Lionhearted came through here and are depicted in paintings. Later, when the Ottoman empire conquered it, they turned it into a mosque. When Atatürk took over Turkey he turned it into a museum. Below my sis and I are enjoying the balcony view of the mass -a view that previously was solely afforded to the Empress. Of course, Mom and I also HAD to walk through the huge green door that was reserved only for Emperor Constantine's entry into the church for mass. There I am...enjoying some of the food delights of the country. And you won't believe it ... I can't remember if it's called a Duran or a Donner. Here we are in front of the Hagia Sophia (the church we were in above) And then in front of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque. This mosque is still used daily for prayers - and we managed to get permission to sneak in when visitors weren't allowed anymore since it was prayer time - just enough time to take a barefoot look inside. A beauty! -Pardon the tired eyes. This is at the entrance to one of the exotic palaces where the Sultans lived with their family and harem. That's a palace guard. And you won't imagine how hard I tried to make him laugh, but to no avail. That beautiful piece of work on ivory (my size) was one of the gifts to the sultan. Care for a bath in the Sultan's tub? The most beautifully engraved and crafted marble bathrooms.

Here is the footage of one of the main halls. Two interesting tidbits are that though all the pillars look like they are made of marble or stone, most are actually made of wood disguised as stone! The reason being that the palace was very cold in the winter, and through those pillars the heat from the kitchens could rise into the hall. Another interesting point is that the very top of the ceiling that you can see at the end of the clip, though it looks domed, it's actually flat - a wonderfully skilled optical illusion made in those days. Every rich detail was so skilfully worked (hand carved, hand painted, etc.) that, doubled with the abundance of details, it was intoxicating!

You might have noticed the chandelier in the clip above, but if not, here it is again. This was one of Queen Victoria's gifts to the Sultan of her time. Sorry some of the pix are blurry. I couldn't use flash in the museums if I treasured my camera.

The sun finally came out! My mom sat on the palace steps facing the Bosporus to enjoy it - and I caught her! God is good to us! Due to our job (and the nicest Boss on Earth...or Heaven), we didn't have to pay a cent for sight-seeing that would have cost a small fortune! I love my job! Then we were off to some more good food. This time I have NO idea what it was called, but it was made of Turkish bread with a juicy and tender piece of beef on it. They put a piece of this tasty green pepper on top of the meat, and then poured melted butter with some spices over the pepper. That way there was no burn to the pepper taste, but the taste seeped into the food with the butter. Of course, tomatoes and yogurt came on the side, as usual. Delicious! Who doesn't like being fussed over? I definitely didn't mind it a bit! The hairdressers my sis provisioned took over two hours (including tea, discussing your hair, washing, brushing, cutting, drying, wetting, drying again, rollers, drying one more time, fussing some more, more tea, touching up, pix), and I enjoyed every minute of it. Voila! The end result! Pardon my 60s look. My sis and mom did look amazing though. So ends this post. Who knows, maybe Turkey needs YOU! ;)

About eyes

Everyone knows the saying “The eyes are the mirror of the soul”. Well, if that's the case, the pic below makes me feel naked, ha! I had put together this huge and dizzying selection of my eyes' expressions for someone once (no, I wasn't trying to let him know that I would 'always be watching', lol!). I found it the other day, and I added a few more expressions.

As I thought about it, it came to me that eyes are more than we think them to be. They take in so much of life and show much more than words could. That topic even sparked a song called Lovelight that I wrote with Esther WW, inspired by Dad's letter. I've seen so much in people's eyes, I've felt Jesus look through mine into the eyes of someone who needed Him, resulting in a soul won forever and a rush that is indescribable. I've understood hidden things through a penetrating look into someone's eyes. I've been calmed and soothed by one look into my eyes from someone I trust.

Here are a few 'eyes' quotes (if you have any interesting 'eyes' quotes or thoughts, please send them to me!):

“My eyes are an ocean in which my dreams are reflected.”

“There is a road from the eye to heart that does not go through the intellect.”

“Those true eyes. Too pure and too honest in aught to disguise The sweet soul shining through them”

“The eyes have one language everywhere”

“Eyes are more accurate witnesses than ears”

“Few people get weak eyes from looking on the bright side”

The eyes, like sentinels, hold the highest place in the body.

These last years have brought many emotions to my eyes: smiles and laughs (yes, eyes do that), tears, thoughtfulness, delight, fear, apprehension, relief, utter joy, desperation and love - among others. In all these things I am thankful that they could always look up into His eyes to regain that unique sparkle that comes with loving Him and knowing He loves me too much to not take care of me no matter what.

Yes, the eyes are a mystery and I'm sure that He will use them in many ways in times to come. Keep using yours for Him and may many hearts be touched by the love from your heart which pours freely through your eyes, or shall I say, His eyes.