STORYTIME TAPESTRY

April 15, 2005

Now on to the good stuff..........

Animal awareness series endorsed by Shiloh and Hank our mascots; all stories must receive their approval.

 TEN COMMANDMENTS OF ANIMAL GUARDIANSHIP
.....1.....
When you adopt me my life is likely to last only 15 to 20 years.
Don't forsake me, any separation from you is painful.
.....2.....
Give me time to understand what it is you want from me.
Change can be more difficult for me than for you.
.....3.....
Don't be angry with me for a long time, and don't lock me up alone as punishment.
You have your human family, your friends, your entertainment and I only have you.
.....4.....
Trust me and help me to trust you, it is crucial for mine as well as your well being.
.....5.....
Talk to me . . . even if you think I don't understand your words.
I understand your voice and love when you speak to me and stroke me.
.....6.....
Before you hit me remember that I have teeth and claws and could easily hurt you,
but I choose not to bite and scratch you because I love you.
.....7.....
Be aware, that however you treat me, I will never forget.
.....8.....
Before you scold me, ask yourself if something is wrong.
Perhaps I am sick, or just plain tired, frustrated and weak.
Try to understand what it??™s like to be me, put yourself in my place.
.....9.....
Take care of me when I get old and don't abandon me, for you, too, will grow old.
Notice when I am ill, when I need you to take me to the vet for help, just as you need to see a doctor.
.....10.....
Go with me on the most difficult journeys.
Never say
"I can't bear to watch"
or
"Do it when I leave"
I need you with me even at the end of my journey.
Always do what is best for me even if it is unbearable for you to do so,
because I love you and trust that you will.

Author Unknown

Today's Queue Stories
~**~**~**~ 

Know Your Personal Protection Laws
Mark Crider

Watching Ms. Doogie investigating under the pecan
trees my mind was thinking about dumplings or
squirrel smothered in onion soup mix Bohemian style.

The front door bell rang. I shouted towards the front
to come to the patio here because the bars were
locked on the front door.

A young officer walked around and came upon the
patio  with Ms. Doogie, of course, acting like she was
a 300# Rottweiler in attack mode,,,,all four pounds of
her.
"Good morning officer, what can I do for you?" I asked.

"What's with the shotgun leaning on your door sill?" He
asked.

"Oh, just keeping safe, lot of home invasions lately,
you know about them of course?" I said.

"And the two rifles against the cabinets?" He questioned.

"Those too, I'm never more than three long steps from a
loaded and chambered firearm in or around this house." I
responded.

"Are you aware of the laws about firearms where small
children can have access to them?" He asked.

"Oh yes officer, I'm aware of all laws about personal firearms.
I've had a Concealed Carry permit since they became
available and numerous Class-3 permits as well, why?" I
questioned.

"We thought we heard some gunshots in this area and we
were just checking, have you been shooting?" He asked.

"You know, I think I heard some too, come to think of it.
I'm just glad I've got some law enforcement friends that
have apprised me over the years about my rights to
protect my life and property from all and anything that
might harm or steal from me." I said, not really
answering his question.

"You have Class-3 weapons,,,,why?" He asked.

"Personal protection, you know how it is around here, I
used to be a tail gunner on a bread truck and they were the
tools of my trade." Jokingly I said.

He laughed too and left.

I went down and retrieved the two robbers to get them ready
for the pot or skillet. Pecan robbers anyway.

Mark Crider, picaresque to the core.

Mark @cccoating.com

~**~**~

How To Be a Grandmother

Pamela Blaine

"Grammy, why are butterflies stuck on the bottom of your bathtub?" my granddaughter asked me when I was giving her a bath.

"Because this used to be your Great Grandma's house and she put them there because she thought they were pretty and because they help to keep you from slipping when you stand up in the tub." I explained.

"I 'member Great Grandma??¦can I have some butterflies for my tub Grammy?"  She asked.

Well, of course, my Granddaughter got her very own butterflies to stick on the bottom of her tub at home, but her questions got me to thinking about what it means to be a Grandmother.

Being fairly new at being a Grandmother, I decided to see what I could learn from the professionals so I started checking out the homes of some Great Grandmothers.  After all, they are a generation ahead of me.  As I began my own little investigation, I began to see many similarities that included the following:

-First of all, you need to have family pictures.  Not just one or two pictures but enough to keep guests browsing the walls for a day or so.  There should be pictures of everyone in the family from birth to cemetery.  I believe the professional Grandmother has at least two to three dozen pictures on the wall, along with photographs sitting on tables around the house and several photo albums scattered about the place too.  These pictures are of newborns, weddings, and children in baseball uniforms, just to name a few.  I decided if this is what it takes to be a Grandmother, then I'm off to a good start because I have always been a bit of a camera fanatic and there isn't a shortage of pictures in my house.

-Grandmothers must always have a cookie jar and if you are a real pro at being a Grandmother, it should never be empty.  After you are a Grandmother for awhile, you may want to study to become a specialist.  Every Grandmother should have an area of expertise.  My own Grandma, for instance, specialized in chocolate cake with pink icing.  She always had it.  It is important to "always" have some certain item that the children connect with you because children love tradition and consistency, especially when it comes to foods that they enjoy. These days the stores make specialization much easier on us Grandmothers.   
For example, you can specialize in Twinkies, Oreos, or Doritos and all you have to do is stop by the store.

-You should have lots of handmade items around the house such as doilies, afghans, and quilts.  There's nothing quite like curling up on Grandma's couch under her Texas star quilt. It's a real plus if you can knit or crochet little covers for your Kleenex boxes or make a little dress for your dishwashing detergent bottle to sit beside your kitchen sink.

- Lots of clocks are good.  The more strange and interesting they are the better.  Great Grandmothers have clocks that chime, sing complete songs, or sometimes they even have educational clocks that have a different birdcall on the hour so you have to learn the sound of the bird to know what time it is.  In addition, when all of those clocks strike the hour at the same time, all of that clamor gives you a real "Twilight Zone" sensation.

-Some of the more professional Grandmothers have pretty shaped bottles filled with colored water.  Many Grandmothers have them but nobody knows why.

-If you desire to be a professional Grandmother, be sure and keep enough fruit and vegetables canned in jars in the back pantry or basement of your house.  I have noticed many Grandmothers have shelves jam-packed (pun intended) and some are dated 1983, (not FDA approved).  Most Grandmothers do have a specialty such as pickles or homemade jelly and the date never gets old on these because everyone begs for more so Grandma works all summer to keep up with the requests.

-You should keep lots of things in your medicine cabinet in the bathroom.  Great Grandmothers have been known to have Aspirin in the medicine cabinet dated 1983, probably last taken after a severe headache from canning all those vegetables that year.  It is also good to have various items that you have never heard of before in your medicine cabinet.  Such things as Cloverleaf Salve, Tincture of Benzoin, Dr. Lyon's Tooth Powder, Hai Karate after shave, or Brill Cream (remember a little dab will do ya?)

-You should have at least one calendar in every room in the house.  Having more than one on the same wall is better and you can get these at local banks, feed stores, and funeral homes.

-Most Grandmothers have plants, lots and lots of plants.  When they get together with other Grandmothers, they talk about their philodendrons and dieffenbachias and whether to repot them in the light or the dark of the moon.  If you don't understand any of this, read up on it in the Farmer's Almanac that Grandma always uses.  See the preceding paragraph for where to pick them up along with your calendars.

-Many Grandmothers have every kind of nightlight imaginable in various shapes and sizes.  I've seen them in various animal shapes, lighthouses, praying hands, or made from seashells.   There's sometimes more than one in a room and it's okay if you have a nightlight on in the daytime but nobody knows why.

-A lot of the professional Grandmothers still have iron skillets and coffee pots that perk.  They are a lot more interesting for children than watching Mr. Coffee drip.

-Almost all Grandmothers have a long list of phone numbers on the wall beside one of those old telephones with a circular dial.  The list of numbers doesn't have to be in any particular order but the funeral home is up there, just in case there is time to call at that last moment, but it's not likely with the extra time needed to spin that dial around eleven times to dial a number.

-Bulletin boards are really good but you need to be sure you have enough pictures and newspaper clippings to cover it.

-There should be lots and lots of magnets on the refrigerator. (Don't forget the magnet that says, "Thou Shalt Not Weigh More Than Thy Refrigerator").  The refrigerator should be covered with grandchildren's artwork with magnets holding their pictures in place.  You can usually get these at health fairs, farm and home shows, or people running for public office.  Just remember it's considered tacky to cover up the faces on the pictures with magnets.  You should be especially careful about placing the little 911 magnet over the face of a cranky relative.

-More pictures, newspaper clippings, Bible verses, and cartoons can be stuck along mirrors and picture frames, doorways, or anything with an edge to hold them.

-It is good to have some objects that have never been seen before anywhere else in the world and you don't know what they are for or what they do but a professional Grandmother can always tell you.

-Having lots of stuff is important.  It doesn't have to be anything expensive.  Empty cool whip containers, plastic bread sacks, string, rubber bands, or even the inside sacks from cereal boxes will do just fine.  Grandmothers save these things and nobody knows why.  If you ask why, the usual answer is, "You never know when you might need them."

I noticed all these things as I watched the professionals at work but there is something more that I noticed that is even more important than everything else I have written here.  What I observed that was of the greatest value was when I observed the Grandmothers with their grandchildren. 

The greatest secret of the professional Grandmother is spelled T-I-M-E and L-O-V-E.   I saw a small child lead his Grandmother out into the yard to see the ant he had found that was carrying a crumb across the porch. She didn't say a word about being too busy or wanting to leave the arduous scene of the ant trek.  Instead, she watched and commented to the child about the industriousness of the tiny ant.  I've watched other Grandmothers spending time coloring with a child or laying on a blanket on the ground, pointing out the pictures the clouds made in the sky.  Babies seem to miraculously quiet down and go to sleep in the arms of a Grandmother in a rocking chair as she softly sings the same old lullabies that have been sung to children for generations.

Sometimes Grandmothers are there when a child has no place else to go.  When I was a child, I remember getting angry with my mother and running away from home.  I packed my little suitcase and went down the road to Grandma's house.  Grandma didn't say a word to me about anything but just allowed me to feel welcome and by suppertime I was homesick and ready to go back home.

Being a Grandmother is a great calling and can be quite tiring after the 16th game of UNO in one afternoon but when it's time to go, it's all worth it just to hear, "Grammy, I love you!"

By
Pamela R. Blaine
?© February, 2003 

Pamela Perry Blaine   

pamyblaine @blaines.us
---------------------------------
 
Pamela and her husband live in Missouri. She writes, "Pam's Corner"
for her local newspaper, The Edina Sentinel, that carries many of her
stories. Pam has also contributed to books such as the new book by
2theHeart, People Who Make a Difference, A Tribute To Mom, and The
Miracle of Sons. She plays piano and is an avid reader. She and her
husband, who is a minister of music, have a gospel CD out of songs
written by Pam. More information as well as a clip from the CD is
on her Website: http://blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm

~**~**~

School Lockdown ??“ Freedom?

By Jan Verhoeff

Today
I read a message from a friend, who teaches at a public high school.  She asked that I not reveal her community, but had some interesting thoughts on high school lock down.  A local community college had been robbed, and all the schools in the area were under lock down, which includes children being locked in the classroom with the teacher ??“ away from the windows, and away from the locked door, on the floor, waiting until someone comes to tell them all is clear and they can leave, go home, or get back to class.  The teacher whose daughter was in another nearby school in kindergarten was understandably frightened, but concerned about the children in

 her care, tried to keep the mood light, and an encouraging conversation going.

The children in her care thought about and discussed the events at Columbine School and talked about their thoughts of being ???sitting ducks??™ all lined up in the classroom waiting for ???something to happen??™.

Thinking about the situation, I??™m wondering what could be done differently, and thinking it might not be such a good idea to have lockdown, with the children away from the windows, where they are in full view of someone standing AT a window.  But what would be safer?  Is there any safer alternative?  Children being let out to

 fend for themselves on public streets doesn??™t appeal to me either.

Our schools are not meant to be prisons, or high security bomb shelters either. Teachers are hired to teach our children about life, not intended to have to protect them from it.  As a parent, I sometimes wonder if we??™ve been so protected for so long that we??™ve become stilted to the disasters that could befall our children?  Then I look about and see the freedom that we have enjoyed for so long, and am amazed that we still have it with all the travesties in our world today.  

Freedom has a risk. 

 With
that risk comes responsibility.  We need to teach our children that life isn??™t always kind, there are sometimes bad people in the world, and occasionally we need to trust our instinct and our faith to survive all the wrongs that might happen.  We must teach our children to take responsibility for their own safety, listen to those in authority, and seriously consider their actions in situations such as this.  

I
believe the question of innocence, may actually be the cost of knowledge, and a heaping understanding of reality.  Our world is not the safe place where Beaver Cleaver grew up, and our children have to know how to protect themselves, or keep themselves safe.

Jan Verhoeff

janverhoeff @yahoo.com

More recently, Jan's writing interest leans toward mystery and behavioral humor. Both are included in her latest endeavor due to be released in March 2005 "Out of the Box", a publication about the triumphs and joys of home based education, and the processes she's found that work best with her children and others.

Jan is the Editor/Publisher of Your Hometown News,email to:
your_hometown_news-subscribe@yahoogroups.com NEW ---------- Check out the new website http://windmill29.tripod.com/ Bid til October 31, 2004 on the Golden Lights Original Oil Painting by Southeastern Colorado artist Jan Verhoeff.
janverhoeff @yahoo.com