Memorial Day 2012 - Thoughts From Those Who Served

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Today is Memorial Day. Many will be enjoying picnics, parades, and playtime! Nothing wrong with that. But some people aren’t here today. They are overseas in Afghanistan, The High Seas, Iraq, Germany, Japan, etc. Or they served their country in previous wars and are now gone. Let’s not forget. We enjoy our picnics because someone pays the price.


I thought it might be interesting to find quotes from those who have served in the military as to why they joined and what they gained. Below are a list of answers by anonymous people that I do not know and yet respect all the same. Thank you to all who have served, are serving, are will serve. May God help us to work to become a nation that He can bless. 

Beejoyfulquilts

~ Drafted at 20 during the Vietnam war. Didn’t want to go, but avoiding the draft in any way was not a legitimate moral choice. Was the best thing that ever happened to me. I grew up a lot, had the privilege of serving my country, and learned the true meaning of sacrifice. I would strongly encourage any young person to spend a year or two doing something outside themselves either serving the country or the community in some way. It’s not only good for the country but good for the individual.


~ I joined the USAF at age 20, in 1965. I had dropped out of college due to boredom and was working a dead-end job. After my service, I returned to college, with a new sense of the importance of an education. I recommend a tour of duty for all young men. It’s a real experience that is more important than college at that time.


~ My husband joined right out of high school. Got his masters over the years. He has no regrets. Traveled, learned, grew, developed, was mentored, mentored others, and is thankful for the opportunities it affored him and then our family. NO regrets at all. Career man. Military put us where we are today. It was wonderful. More young people should join. Guides their lives, turns some of them around, helps them decide on what they want to do, gives them a focus and makes them strong to face life. It’s a GOOD thing. 


~ 20 years old. A friend of the family was an instructor at the winter survival school for pararescue. So, AirForce was my choice….and a wise one at that. IMO, every American should spend 2 years in the military. It’s the LEAST they can do for our country and will make true men and women out of them. 


~ Joined at 17….to get out of NJ, see the world…..went to Paris Island at 18…stayed in for 11+ years and still miss it (sometimes). Best thing I ever did. Made some friends for life. The Few. The Proud.


~ I joined the US Navy when I was 17. I wanted to serve my country. I volunteered for air duty in Vietnam. I have no regrets and would do it again.


~ Joined USAF in 1960 mostly to try and find what I wanted to do. I was a HS drop out and was really going nowhere. It was the best move I ever made. I finished my HS education (GED) and went on to get a couple of years of college while in the AF and finished up college when I got out in 1964. Even though I griped and moaned the entire 4 years (3 in the UK) they were some of the very best times of my life. The military taught me discipline and how to focus and look past the next beer or day off. I would do it all again and in fact would gladly have gone back after 9/11.


~ I served for awhile in the reserves in the 1980′s, and I’ve recently re-joined to see if I can help out with the global war on terror. For me, the experience has been phenomenal. I got in to serve others, but the real beneficiary is myself, in terms of confidence, fitness and strength. 


~ Enlisted in the Army at 18, wanted to be on my own. Wasn’t quite ready for college, and didn’t want to flip burgers. Taught me respect for country; to this day I cannot listen to the national anthem and not get teary-eyed. Best thing I ever did. When I got out I had almost $30,000 for college. No regrets, and look back with pride.


~ I joined the Army when I was 19, looking for adventure. Found same. There were other reasons of course, too many to list, but ‘the money’ was definitely not one of them. Do I regret it? Not in the slightest. Would I recommend it? Only for those that are willing to risk their lives for their country, their friends, and their way of life. You’ll always have brothers and sisters in the Army if you feel that way. As far as specific recommendations, each service has it’s own personality, and people generally drift towards the one they’re most compatible with. Job selection varies quite a bit, but again, people gravitate towards what they’re good at. I would definitely not recommend the military for everyone. However, I would say that I’ve seen things my civilian peers never will, and am far richer for the experience. (If a little banged up in the process.) I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. 

luvinstitchin4u

Take a moment to reflect, then enjoy your day....because you can. 

The American Cat and Dog

I do believe that to be a cat or a dog in America is probably one of the best, if not THE best, country to live in! Animals rights aren't everywhere. So thank God - and hug your fur friend this weekend!

Determined Kitty!

Do you own a determined kitty? A kitty who is lazy as can be UNTIL he has it in his head that he wants something? Haha! That's what this series is about! 

Happy week to all you determined kitties out there!

Kitties are SOOOO cute and fun! These were born at my son's house because a neighbor had been a bit neglectful of his duty to neuter his cats. SO my daughter-in-law rescued them from under her porch, kept them inside with the mom, and actually tamed the mom enough so she could be petted. She plans on getting her spayed soon. The gray and white one is already taken and the two other gray ones are spoken for. So they will have good homes! 

Weekend Skirt Creations!

Some new creations from the weekend! I found this lime green dotted fabric while at my local thrift store on Saturday (which I love). It was a sundress of sorts - rather ugly, actually, with this yucky green lacy stuff all over. But the fabric itself was very cute. So I bought it ,and after washing it, cut it into a skirt. I added some ribbing I had on hand and then mixed some fabric paint Itogether - red, white, and blue - to make the kitties. I had just had a customer tell me the day before that she liked my cat themed clothing in Catcalls, but there were no plus sizes, so this is, hopefully, the beginning of more of those sizes. It was quite fun to make! 

Not to leave my Dogbarks shop out of the fun, I pulled out the left over flannel you see here, and after looking it over, decided a skirt would be a cute creation for this remnant as well. So I did the same thing again, adding pockets and a waistband from a black t-shirt. It's very comfy! 

Just click on the pictures to find more info on them. 

So what did YOU create this past weekend? 

Kitty Art for Sun-Loving Dreamy Cats

It was 80 degrees on Friday (4-20) ...so much like beach weather! The kitties were out having fun in the sun! Finding their favorite 'beam' and settling in for awhile is what makes life so pleasant....ahhh to be a cat....

dreaming about the day when you can float up into the trees and visit those feathered 'friends' and invite them  to share a meal.....oh what a delicacy! 

Enjoy your weather while you have it, kitties - it's cold and getting ready to snow here! 

Art work is available in my Catcalls shop. Click the pictures for more info. 

What we think about Easter determines the course of our lives.

All holidays are meant to be reminders of significant people or events in history. But Easter stands alone in it's potential to personally impact a life.

The story of the birth, life, and death of Jesus Christ would certainly be an interesting tale, full of mystery, suspense, wonder, miracles, crime, love, hate, greed, etc. But if that were the end, that's all it would be - just an interesting tale. I'm sure there would still be a good number of followers, many books written about the selfless martyr, rules to live by based on his teaching, speeches given in his honor to commemorate him, and lots of streets and buildings named after him. But that's all. He would be an idea, a philosophy, a set of teachings that man would attempt to make into a means by which one can become righteous, making him good enough to be accepted into the next life.

But Jesus did more than be born, live, and die. He was resurrected! And His resurrection validated everything He taught while here on the earth, placing it in a class by itself, in the place of TRUTH. There is no other religious leader, good man, or prophet who can lay claim to being the embodiment of Truth. Jesus alone is the Truth. "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father except through  Me." ( John 14:6 New International Version) The Bible is God's gift to us to explain His plan from the beginning of time as to how we may become righteous in His eyes, and the main character is His Son, Jesus Christ.

The one who truly believes this, that a Man has been sent from God to tell us about what lies beyond the grave and how to live in such a way as to experience a relationship with God, will make all his decisions with that truth in mind. He will be like Ezra. "For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel." (Ezra 7:10 New American Standard) The man who believes in the resurrection will think about what God will say to him regarding how he raised his children, how he ran his business, how he treated his neighbor. It will be his goal to emulate the character of Jesus His Lord; to love his enemies, to forgive, to treat others as he himself wants to be treated. When he fails, he will go right to God in prayer, ask for help, and go at it again. All the while he will grow closer and closer to his heavenly Father, taking on more and more of the character of His Savior until that final day when he will be told, "... Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world." (Matthew 25:34 New International Version) The one who believes in Easter with his whole heart has made it his life's goal to know God and please Him above all. 

Easter is not a one-day-a-year holiday to him, it is an every day conscience choice to love the Lord with all his heart, all his soul, all his mind, all his strength and to love his neighbor as himself. It will direct the course of his life.

Easter is a good time to ask yourself if you have ever read through the entire Bible. If it is Truth, then shouldn't we want to know what is in it? And if it is Truth in the form of a person that we can know, shouldn't it speak to us? Many people write off the Bible as outdated stories, irrelevant reading, a crutch for life, old fashioned thoughts that have little meaning for today, but they have never read it for themselves to see. It is a book that stands alone because it it is a living book. "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12 New International Version) Don't let the message of Easter pass you by another year. See for yourself if there really is Truth to follow in this world and Truth to set the course of your life by.