STORYTIME TAPESTRY

The Newsletter devoted to spreading love and cultural awareness throughout the world

May 20, 2005

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

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

Puppies

Bill Walker

wildbill6807@yahoo.com

Puppies are so much fun, I wonder how people that don't have, or never had one makes it in life. Each is different, just like you and I are different. Tinker and Poo had one another to play with, and plot out games and other things with.  All I was good for was to take care of their needs. I still had the fun of watching and trying to figure what the next was those two going to do. They never had a toy, didn't need it, they had one another. They would run one another through  the house, in and under the beds or around a chair. The same games would be played in the yard, just a bit different, but it was I run after you, till you stop and then we roll one another.  People didn't know better they think we going to hurt one another, it just a game. We get tired, we lay down and rest for a few minutes.  We might be watching to see if anyone is watching us also.

I have this Little Girl now, she is all alone. She has toys to play with.  Here is a toy, there is a toy, toy to be found about any where you look. She can walk by one looking for another. I think she knows where she left each, but it is I am looking for a certain one, believe I left it behind that chair.  Yep sure did, here she comes wagging it to you.  Now this is her game, her toy.  She will bring it to you, don't think your going to get it easy. If she lays it down, that means you just try to get it, she will grab and walk away. So just let her walk away, she stops and looks back, your not following?  Well just stay put, in a minute or two you feel it, the toy has almost been thrown at you.  This time you can throw it. She will get it and lick and chew on it like it a bad kid of hers. After a bit here we are to do it all over again. 

I wonder what would happen if I find another for her to play with, be with and share the toys? I think she might say go get your own toys, these mine, all mine. Now the other evening she carried one out doors.  When I went to let her in, no toy. I knew she dropped it to tell the mutts off next door.  I said "toy, where is your toy?"  She turned and ran as fast as her little legs  would go, in a minute here she was with toy.

Sometimes she will take one along for a car ride. We get home, sometimes she leaves it in the car. You can ask if she is going to bring it in.  She looks at it, as if too say, you will be all right here. Other times she will grab it and head for the house. Girls, who can understand them?

About Me:

Well I??™m a story teller, not a writer. Never learned the art of fancy English. I

happen to live in Nebraska, but I??™m still Missouri. Never married, all the Dollies I

ever took a second look at was too smart. Now at 74, just turned that other day, I

figure they all home safe. I love Doggies and Dollies in that order. Lost my two

true friends this year, that be Tinker and Poo. So I found me a new one. This

time a little girlie Peke. She is a normal female. Got a mouth, talks all the time.

She will never be a great writers of stories like Tinker and Poo. They have

about 50 stories on HWS. And now writing back from Rainbow Bridge.

I just try to write about people, places and things best I remember. Have something

over 250 stories on HWS. under three names.   

Today's Queue Stories
~**~**~**~

Party Line

Pamela Blaine

Being a grandmother now, I am sometimes questioned as to what the world was like when I was a child back in the ???old days???.  I explained to my children and grandchildren that things weren??™t really so different back when I stepped down off of the ark.  However, the one thing that has changed a lot in my lifetime has been technology. 

 Telephone technology is one of these things.  It seems that mankind has always been interested in communicating and especially across long distances.  The telephone was a wonderful invention to enable this to happen.  I can??™t remember when there weren??™t telephones but I do remember when we didn??™t have one in our house.

The first telephone I remember was next door at the Mayer??™s house.  It wasn??™t anything like the ones we have today and a far cry from the incessant tingling of cell phones that we now carry in our purses or on our belts. 

 The telephone at the neighbor??™s house was a big wooden box on the wall that was about 10 inches wide x 20 inches tall.  As a child I thought it looked like a face on the box with two bells at the top for eyes and a trumpet-like elephant??™s snout sticking out below the eyes.  The snout was the part that was to be spoken into and most people seemed to shout into it in order to be heard.  The ???Can you hear me now???? expression is probably not new at all.  The receiver had a cord attached and was hung on the side of the box. 

When making a call, the receiver was lifted from the left side and a crank was turned at the right side to signal the operator that you wanted to place a call.  At that time, telephone calls were mostly made for business purposes or because of a need in the family.  Besides, there was no long cord so you had to stand next to the phone or sit on a stool or chair by the phone while talking.

My Granddad owned a feed store in Baring and one day Grandma sent me to the neighbor??™s house to ask to use their phone to call him and tell him he needed to come home for something important.  I was about six years old at the time and when I made the call a voice said, ???Operator???.  I said, ???I would like to talk to my Granddad, please.???  The operator said, ???Is that you, Pamy????  I replied that it was and wondered how that operator knew me even when I was calling from the neighbor??™s house.  There just isn??™t any place to hide in a small town!

There was a lot of excitement at our house the day we got our very own telephone.  Today there are so many choices in telephones that it is mind boggling but when we got our first phone, the choices were: A black phone on a table or a black phone on the wall.  We chose a black phone on the table. 

We were told that our new phone was the latest thing with a rotary dial so local calls no longer required an operator.  The telephone company gave us our very own telephone number, Twinbrook 2-3485, and we were told that we would be on a party line. I wasn??™t sure what that meant but ???party??? sounded like a lot of fun.  We soon learned that a party line meant that the Klataskes, Sykes, Earlys, and maybe others we didn??™t know about were on the same line with us.  

It was a little confusing if we wanted to call someone on our party line because if you dialed their number you??™d get a busy signal because, in a sense, you were calling yourself.  However, if we wanted to talk to one of them, we had to dial their number and then hang up so it would ring their line and then pick it up again to talk.  We thought our new telephone was wonderful and sure beat that long string and two tin cans that my brother and I used to play with. 

It took a little more time to make a call then, since we had to use a rotary dial instead of pushing buttons, but we always got to talk to real people instead of machines. 

Today the phone companies offer a lot of options.  One of them is Caller ID.  We didn??™t need that back then since very few people ever called that we didn??™t know.  If someone called and we didn??™t recognize their voice, we just assumed it was my brother doing one of his voice imitations again and we??™d just tell him to stop fooling around and hang up on him. 

Another option that is offered today is Call Waiting.   Call waiting is not a new thing either because on a party line we had to wait to use the phone if someone else on the line was using it. 

Of course there was always the party line eavesdropper.  Daddy used to tell about when he lived on his family farm and there was a woman who always listened in on everyone??™s conversation on their party line.  One day as he ended a conversation, saying good bye to the person he was speaking with, he quickly added ???and good-bye to you too, Mrs._____.???  He said the phone was slammed down so hard that it hurt his ear!

Yes, telephones have changed a lot.  They may have caused the whole movie industry to change with the advent of cordless and then cellular phones.  That??™s because they can no longer build suspense in a good mystery film by having the villain cut all the phone lines in two in the ???trapped at night in the house alone in a thunderstorm??? scene.   However, it seems like in our fast paced world these days that there is no time for building suspense anyway.

There are a lot of other differences in our world today and I was going to write about it but I??™ll have to save it for another story because I have to answer the phone right now.

Pamela Blaine

?© November 2004

Pam and her husband live in Missouri.   She writes, "Pam's Corner" for her local newspaper, The Edina Sentinel that carries many of her stories. She has also contributed to books such as the new book by 2theHeart, "People Who Make a Difference" 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.  The CD is entitled "I'll Walk You Home".  If you would like one, they are available by freewill donation.  More information as well as a clip from the CD is on her Webpage:  http://blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm

Send me an email and let me know what you thought about my story.

 e-mail: pamyblaine@blaines.us

 My Website:
http://blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm

  ~**~**~

Wilted flowers

Eliie Braun Haley

One often expects to feel good about doing a good deed. Well it does not always happen. The day I set out to do a good deed I was a bit rushed. I had stopped at a grocery store on the way into the office and bought a bouquet of flowers. I had to check five bouquets before I could find one that didn't have wilted flowers (or so I thought). I had brought three very nice vases from home and in the parking lot I separated the flowers, placing some in a vase for our secretary. I brought the flowers in and gave them to her just as a little sunshine gift. As I set them down for her I mentioned that she would need to add some water to the vase.

Her demeanor immediately should have put me on guard that I was about to be shot down by the cutting words of a sharp tongue.  She asked in an abrupt tone, "And just why would you give me flowers and not bother to put water in the vase?"

I was taken aback by her brusque manner and must have stood speechless for at least five seconds before I apologetically explained that I didn't want the water to spill all over my car on my drive into town. I live out in the country and right then our road was a mess of slick mud, causing the car to slide and rattle from one side to the other. I just didn??™t think she would mind adding water to the vase.

"Well", she continued, as if I was a naughty child and she certainly intended to make an example of me, "what kind of gift is this? Look at this flower," she said disdainfully as she tapped the little pink carnation, "it is wilted!???

By now I was shocked at her rough and thoughtless manner and embarrassed at being the center of attention, for a small crowd of employees had stopped in their tracks at the front of the office and just seemed mesmerized by what was unfolding at the front desk. I wanted to fade away from the whole scene.

When the secretary continued I could hear a snicker from behind me and couldn??™t believe that anyone could find this funny. But the secretary seemed to refuel with the attention she was getting and she touched another carnation.

"And what about this one, it looks rather wilted too???? She flicked at it in a condescending manner

Then she continued in a dramatic fashion, while snickering and laughter >from one individual seemed to stimulate her to find more fault with the little bouquet.
She touched another flower and then another and another, ridiculing each one.

"This one looks kind of droopy too and so does this one. Where did you get these anyway? They certainly aren't fresh!???

By now I felt like I was in some ridiculous melodrama as I watched her play out her part. My emotions charged through me in a chaotic manner from embarrassed at the
scene and apologetic for not having found a nicer bouquet to disappointed and then angry at her thoughtless actions and words.

I turned my back on her and began walking out, slowly. I was fighting tears and working to keep my composure. I spoke to her with my back turned >from her.

???I can not believe that you would behave in this manner and be so hurtful when I tried to do something nice for you.??? By now I was only six steps away and I turned and faced the one individual who had been laughing and directed my next remarks to him, ???and I cannot believe that when someone is hurt you would choose to laugh. I feel so badly. How can you see something funny in my feelings being hurt? What is with that anyway????

He looked at me startled, stuttered over a few words, had the decency to look embarrassed and then said, ???I don??™t know.???

I turned away from him and walked into the small open area where photocopying is done and began working the photocopier as I tried to settle down my thoughts. I felt so aggravated at just everything; the store for selling me a bouquet with some flowers wilted; irritated with myself for not finding nicer flowers; then I was annoyed at the individual who laughed, and I was infuriated with the secretary for putting on such a public and demeaning display.

Later I promised myself to never do another nice thing for ???that thoughtless, condescending, insensitive lady.??? This was not the first time her abrupt behavior and thoughtless words had left me feeling hurt and aggravated.

The following day I sat at my kitchen table reading my daily scriptures. The chapters were all about Joseph, this was Joseph, son of Jacob, who had been betrayed by his brothers and sold into slavery to Egyptians.. Joseph??™s life took some interesting turns and though he ended in prison, eventually he ended up in a position second to the Pharaoh. Eventually, Joseph??™s entire family was reunited in Egypt. Joseph was forgiving, gracious and caring even to the brothers who had betrayed him.

The final scripture I read that day left me sitting there stunned, for I felt it was directed at me. ???Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another: for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him the greater sin,

I was chastised for I was holding a grudge and was determined not to do one more nice thing for this lady. Suddenly I knew how important it was for me to forgive the actions of the secretary, and with that realization, my grudge just melted away and was gone.

With this release of anger I immediately began feeling so good, sort of like when you open the drapes and the sunshine just spills in like a carefree toddler, giggling and impervious to anything except the joy of being. Forgiveness is such a blessed gift, I think I just received a smile from God.

Anger is a choice 
Ellie Braun-Haley, shaley@telusplanet.net
Ellie says she is so glad that she kept her composure and later learned the best lesson of the day, that of forgiveness. Ellie is the author of four books.

~**~**~

Poetry Section

                                       ~**~**~

Horizon of Spring

Norma Liles

Springs smells evolve

Raindrops, cut grasses

Floral blooms, new paints

Renewal of life, again.

Chirping of baby birds

Swishing of butterfly wings

Frogs on their lily pads

Gee isn't spring the best?

Fishing poles bob away

Fish swim in a stream

Bait slips onto fertile soil

What a lazy hazy day.

Walking through woods

Wild flowers show themselves

Watch the thorny bushes

Wonders fill the mind.

Take a deep breathe

Clear mind of problems

Enjoy what Creator gives

Another horizon of spring.

NormaLee Liles ?©

**~**~

                                                            What is a friend?

 Norma Liles

A friend is someone

Who thinks you are beautiful

Even when you have egg on your face

Reaches over and cleans the remains!

A friend is someone

Who loves you BECAUSE of your  faults

Since that is what makes you, you

And excuses your faults as you do theirs.

A friend is someone

Who handles your heart with care

Brightens the dark corners

Brings sunshine into a dark room.

A friend is someone

Who is there for you

When all others have left you

To fend for yourself.

So take a hint from me

You are special so special to me

Because not for just today or tomorrow

But for always, you are and will always, be my friend!

Norma Liles ?©

**~**~

She doesn't use an oar

Norma Liles 

Her lifestyle is a chosen one

A little different than most

She loves to live on water

Must be because Jesus walked there?

She lives so many miles away

I'd like to drop right in

To see the home of her sweet home

From Ohio to Calif's beaches.

I treasure all the words she sends

She's thoughtful kind and sweet

It is her wish to be that way

And that is how she seems.

God put her in my line of friends

I am so glad that He did

God bless this lady friend of mine

Who doesn't use an oar.

Norma Liles ?©

In respect of my dear online friend, Bette Tolnai

Writers Feedback 

I remember reading this as a child. It is so nice to see it again and to hear where it came from. Thanks for sharing it with us, Debra!

Dianna

Get  Up And Go ??“ Homer Shiveley - That is something. I remember parts of this from when I was a kid.

Welcome to Bob Raines. What an inspiration he is and his writing is so special.
Barb D.                                                             

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Just letting you know I have a website explaining the upcoming paper, should anyone ask. Thank you for running the ad for it.

www.christianlink.com/publish/mwwj

Thanks again, Jim

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