  Spiritual
This week: Building New Memories Edited by: Sssssh! I'm not really here.  
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Looking for something to do now that summer is over? How about getting back into the kitchen? The heart of the family and childhood memories begin there ...
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Hello, folks! It is an honor and a pleasure to be your guest editor for this week's Spiritual Newsletter. There is nothing quite like filling a kitchen with friends, family and food. The aromas waft through the air and take us to a nostalgic place of youth. Where have those days gone?
Do you ever think back to those times that were so memorable, warm, loving and purely cherished and wonder how to recapture it? Years ago, extended family was so vital. Today, people are stressed, life is hectic and families are scattered not just in different cities, but in different states.
Recently, I thought about the days of my youth. There were wonderful moments at my French grandmother's home, watching her bake apple pies and French pork and salmon pies by the dozens so all of her children and grandchildren would enjoy them. Those were the first sights and smells of autumn and as I recall, even more exciting than the changing leaves.
There were also many holiday dinners at my Italian grandmother's home. I remember the cousins running from room to room, while the fragrant sauce simmered on the stove and the adults sipped homemade wine and talked about life and times.
As a child, I helped my mother in the kitchen. I learned how to chop veggies, fry, bake, braise, broil and simmer. I also got first dibs on the cookie batter, too.  Time flies, we grow-up and become parents and do our own cooking and baking while our little ones lick the batter and wait with excitement as the first batch of cookies come out of the oven.
Folks, now that the children have moved on with their own lives, living in different towns and states, the cooking has lessened and the memories of a kitchen filled with laughter has faded. I wondered how to bring back some of those sweet moments and suddenly, my mother's face flashed before my eyes. My mom is still alive! Yes, she is getting on in years and cannot do all of those things she did when she was younger. However, she can still make those special dishes that were a part of the good old days.
I asked my mother if Web-Lock and I could visit her on a Sunday and make some homemade Italian sausage together. It wasn't purely a selfish need to eat great sausage, it was, what I thought to be, an unselfish act of making her feel a little more needed, now that she is well into her golden years.
We sometimes don't realize how lonely life can be for our widowed parents. It's worse when most of their olden day's relationships have passed on before them, leaving behind empty tables and memories. Mothers who were used to doing the cooking for everyone became the ones invited to an occasional get-together or holiday dinners. Their kitchen was left behind like a ghost of Christmases past.
My mother's place of retirement is much too small to do any entertaining, so she's become the guest instead of the hostess. Thus, this recent trip to her place to cook with her on a Sunday afternoon, made my mother feel once again, like she was needed and appreciated for her talent at the stove. She was thrilled at the request to teach us this old-time recipe. I could feel her joy just listening to her voice over the phone as we planned the event.
The day we arrived, it was a perfect picture for my eyes. The kitchen table was filled with spices and pork ready to become sausage. We barely had elbow room to maneuver the task before us, but that didn't matter. She was the star of the show with her experienced hands and eye for detail. I saw a look on her face that was fresh, sparkling and more alive than I've seen in years.
Folks, while we live our busy lives, let's not forget those who were once there for us. That special person who nurtured us and introduced us to the heart of the home -- the kitchen. How about putting a Sunday or Saturday aside and placing the grandest smile on a loved one's face? There is someone who misses the closeness of family at an earlier time of life, when there was laughing, kids running, aunts stirring the sauce; uncles stealing the meatballs when her back was turned and a child sticking a tiny finger in that neatly frosted cake.
Do you want to know something? What started off as a visit to my mother to relieve some of the boredom in her life, turned out to be one of the best times I've had in her kitchen since I became an adult. It was Web-Lock and I who felt the spirit of that tiny room come alive again -- just like when we were kids. We've built a foundation of new memories. I don't have to miss my children being far away on Sundays, because I've found the place where I am the child again and my mother is the queen of her kitchen, sharing her heart and recipes and feeling younger than she has in years. It's a beautiful thing, folks!
Merely days after we visited her for our cooking lesson, my mother was hospitalized. She had something wrong with her knee that kept her from walking. The doctors drained the fluid and sent her to a short-term care facility for physical therapy. The night before she was to be released, she nearly went into a diabetic coma. She was unconscious for quite a while before they could revive her. Thankfully, the woman in the next bed got up to use the bathroom and noticed her stillness and very white face. She immediately called for help.
When I think of how close I came to losing her for good, I thanked God for that Sunday visit we had with her. If she did leave us, I, at least, have that beautiful memory of her happiness that day. Now that she is staying with us here on earth, for as much time as God will allow, I look forward to more precious moments like that one. I think we will be making gnocchi, next. 
Folks, don't wait to build the foundation for new memories. Not only will you make someone very happy, your own life will be enriched by it.
That's all she wrote for this edition of the Spiritual Newsletter. Thank you for letting me share my thoughts with you.
Regards,
Web~Witch
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Joy 
Wow, WW, that was a miracle, and I'm so glad you're both all right.
Thankfulness should not be reserved for Thanksgiving, I think. It is a good habit, one I'm finally succeeding to establish, to give thanks at the end of each day before falling asleep for every thing that blesses us during that day, no matter how simple. This, i found out, also gives me an account of my own actions. 
Thanks for an eye-opening newsletter.
I know exactly what you mean, Joy. I am thankful each and every day I have on this earth. Thank you for your feedback, I really appreciate it.
BIG BAD WOLF is hopping 
"Things I've made."
Sometimes spiritual things show up in unexpected places, in strange ways.
You've hit that one right on the head! Thanks for your feedback. 
Helen McNicol 
Phew! So glad to hear someone was looking out for you!!!
Me too! ME TOO!!! 
drjim
Dear WW, this same driver, avoided leaving skid marks on the road & in a panic tried to 'beat us to it' by attempting to drive in FRONT of our vehicle in an attempt head us off 'at the pass'. Seeing he would fail miserably, he took into account that immediately behind us was a telephone pole, an object that he realized would be unforgiving to both him and his white pickup while driving at speeds greater than 70 mph in a 35 mph zone. Best guess? Not only drinking and texting but completely ignoring who was immediately ahead of his truck. No one in the 'hood recalls a guy like this being around. God be thanked, both of us live to see another day, write another poem, critique another's work ... and thank Christ Jesus for being the shield of our faith that warded off the rage or stupidity of another person who might have ended our wonderful relationship we've worked so diligently to build up through faith, love and compassion. Heaven can wait - there is work to be done!
Amen to all of that, Doc! 
embe
To read your miracle
reminds me of a child
five years old.
Bold enough for a hiding
in a tent, singing with the choir,
here attached in a poem.
It was me, embe.
"Invalid Item"
Just lovely, Em! Thank you for the link.
Christine Cassello
Thank you for sharing this terrifying experience with us and the reminder that God is still in control and nothing with happen to us that is contrary to His will of the best for us.
I do believe you are correct in that comment. I will never doubt that He has a plan for us.
The-Delf
Today a Miracle happened...A man fell 39 floors and landed in the back seat of a Dodge charger...
Angels said..."YOU LIVE"...!!!
He was trying to kill him-delf...
God put him back up on that shelf!!!
You remind people that even when an attempt at suicide is taken, it doesn't mean it will be successful! God is still in control and is a reminder that you will go when it is your time to go. This man's attempt makes that very clear. Thanks for your feedback.
GRAMPA ED
Web-witch
Thanks for this article, and I for one know what you are talking about. Over my seventy five years on earth I have had things happen that I know that someone helped me get out of the problem whether it was an angel or someone higher up. You better believe I said THANK YOU loud and clear and I do every morning.
Now someone up above is pushing me into writing and it is all Christian based writing, even the two I wrote that are "X" rated to try to get the un-churched to read the Bible.
Enjoy your life every day.
Grampa Ed
I couldn't have said it better, myself, Grandpa Ed. Faking "X" rated to attract the non-believers or those sorely lacking in Faith? I love it! That's a great way to capture their attention.  I do enjoy my life every day, thanks for commenting.
Steve adding writing to ntbk.
I wonder at the event you do relate. I see that you are being watched over and that is a blessing for we are the recipients of your wondrous writing. Your featured items were all gems and the last one from Embe was the one that touched my heart the most.
You are important to God; therefore you are important to me.
Copenator out!
leader of Copenator's Crew
Thank you so much, Copenator, for your lovely words. I appreciate the feedback.
jogar
I read your near disaster with the white truck . Quite a TRIP! Thank God for miracles. You know that if you look each and every moment is a miracle. I remember finding this occurrence some thirty years or more. Writing and being involved in religious studies, I was amazed by the grace and mercies of God. jogar...
I agree, Joel. Miracles are all around us, we need to just stop, look and listen. Sometimes staying quiet replenishes the soul and spirit. There is so much beauty right before our eyes that should not be taken for granted.
monty31802
This is a great story that can stand by itself, also a fine newsletter.
Thanks for featuring one of my poems.
Thanks, Monty!
You're welcome for the highlight.
Thank you for your feedback, folks. We editors really appreciate it.
Until next time, take the time to appreciate all of the beauty surrounding us and then write about it. 
WW
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Spiritual: October 27, 2010 Issue [#3996]
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