My Home Town

Everybody needs a place they call home.

My home was always where Jerry and our sons were at. As long as I was with Jerry and family, I could make any place home.

 

When I went on my trip, I visited my home town, Newburgh, Indiana. It was where Jerry and I grew up. It was a place full of good memories and a place I felt good being there.

Newburgh is a little river town on the banks of the Ohio River. My family moved there when I was in the second grade.

 I attended Newburgh Grade School, an old school built in 1924. I still remember the wooden stairs worn from all the traffic through the years. Every morning we would say the Pledge of Allegiance and as you came down the stairs, there on the wall was the Ten Commandments. One day a week we went to  religious education classes in a church that is still there today. I remember the first verse they taught us was John 3:16. Can you imagine a public school that believed a child should have a day of religious education. It sure was different than today.

When we had fire drills we slid down a big tube on the outside of the building. Fire drills were a lot of fun.

The school is no longer there, but all the memories are.

As I walked around the town, my mind was filled with thoughts of Jerry and growing up in that little town. I was afraid I would feel sad, but I just kept trying to remember all the good times.

 

 

 

 


One of our favorite places is the Newburgh Country Store. It was once the old Catholic School in Newburgh, Indiana. The bus we rode to school would pick up the kids that went to school here and we would drop them off first. It is now a quaint little shop full of nostalgia and memorabilia.

The walls are lined with jars of old fashion candy and homemade fudge with old movie posters. 

 

This is the old Lock and Dam Building. Jerry worked his first job here

 while he was in high school.

 

  

                                                                           Another one of our favorite places is Indian Hill. There was once a beautiful home here that overlooked the Ohio River. We would go up here and take walks and dream dreams.

 

 

 The Ohio River

 

I've had a lot of different places here on earth that I have called home, 

but I am so thankful that someday I'll be able to call Heaven my home.

The Srength of My Life

Psalm 27:1

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?

 the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

 

 

Sunday in Junior Church, my son Neal used this verse as the verse of the week. I thought about how I'm so afraid sometimes to try things and to do things on my own. My husband was always my encourager and gave me strength to do things that I was afraid of.

One of my husband's fears for me was that I would hide myself away in the house after he passed away. Part of me wants to do that sometimes. I know I can't do that. The trip helped to know that I can't do that. I have grand kids to see and love, and family and friends. If I hid myself away I wouldn't be able to enjoy all the wonderful things in the world that God has blessed me with.

 

While I was in Ohio, I had promised my grandson, Ethan, that I would get him some frog legs. His Grandpa and him were always talking about going frog giggin'. I found some and his daddy, Aaron, battered and fried them up. They looked beautiful and Ethan ate them. Aaron ate a little bit. I had tried them before and I am not too fond of them. I think about a frog as green and slimy and something that eats bugs. So I have a hard time eating frog legs.

 

 

 

 

But wouldn't it be sad if we never tried something new in our lives or ventured out from the ordinary everyday things. When Jerry and I were first married I wouldn't try anything new. I grew up eating fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn. That's what my mom ate and so that's what I ate. Jerry kept trying to get me to taste different foods. Well one day I thought I might be missing out on something that I might really like and enjoy.

 

So I started trying some different foods and you know what I decided - there's a lot of good food out there that I had been missing out on. Like fried shrimp, nothing is better than fried shrimp. And then Mexican food and Chinese. And my all time favorite - fried green tomatoes. Give me a plate of fried green tomatoes and a big chunk of watermelon and I'm the happiest person in the world. You might throw in a bowl of blackberry cobbler with a scoop of ice cream.

 

I'm so thankful for a God who is my light and my salvation and who gives me strength to face each day and each new challenge that comes my way.

 

Heading Home Soon

My adventure is coming to an end. I'm planning on heading home on Wednesday.

It's been a great adventure. I've got to spend time with family and friends. I relived old memories and made new memories.

 

I'm feeling good. I'm excited about driving home through West Virginia and enjoying the beautiful fall colors.

Fall is my feel good season. There's just something about fall that makes me feel alive.

 

 I know a lot of people dislike fall because usually winter is not far behind. But I like winter also. I always think of winter as not a time of everything dying, but a time for nature to rest and renew itself. Then in the spring everything comes back renewed, strengthened, and more beautiful than ever.

 

Pictures of Family and Friends

Olivia, Steve, Aleise, and Jennifer Barron (Jerry's sister)

Alexis and Gavin Rice (Grandchildren)

Janine Young and me at the Newburgh Country Store in Newburgh, IN



Dale and Dorothy Taillon

My Brother, Jerry Knight and My Dad, John Knight

Gary and Janine Young (Jerry's Sister)

With Jennifer Barron at the Newburgh Country Store

Reid's Orchard in Owensboro, Kentucky

Judy and Perry Newcom at Owensboro, KY

Bob (Jerry's Brother) and Julie Rice

 

Aaron, Jackie, Emma, Elena, Evan, and Ethan Rice
at Bass Pro in Cincinnati, Ohio

Scott Rice and Lisa in Ohio

At a 50's Diner in Ohio

My Grandson, Greg Rice

 

Two of my sons, Aaron and Scott

A Time of Healing

Wednesday morning  I loaded my car and headed out on an adventure. I decided to go to Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio to see family and friends. I must have a little gypsy in me. I decided to go where my 2005 silver gray Toyota Camry would take me.

 

I decided not to be in hurry, but just to relax and enjoy the drive, listen to music and stop when and where I wanted. In fact, I went the wrong way once and it didn't even bother me. It took me 45 minutes out of my way, but it was a beautiful drive up through Virginia. The trouble was I was headed to Pigeon Forge, TN. So I had to come back down the eastern side of Tennessee.

 

Amy, Kyla, Hayden, and Brylee along with Amy's parents were at Pigeon Forge, TN for a couple of days and I got a room at the same motel they were staying at Wednesday night.  When I woke up the next morning I took my time. I ate breakfast with my little granddaughters and then headed on my way. When I was leaving I stopped at the Old Mill in Pigeon Forge. The Smoky Mountains was one of our favorite places. We had planned on going there on our 50th Wedding Anniversary. It was great memories.

 

I'll have to tell you the story sometime about when we took three teenage sons with us to the mountains on our 25th Wedding Anniversary. Very exciting.

 

Old Mill
Pigeon Forge, TN

In Ecclesiastes 3:3 it says there is a time to heal.  I'm praying that this will be a time a healing for me.  

It's Fall

Good Morning!

 

It's 45 degrees in Greenville, NC. I love it. I'm a cool weather person - not a summer person. The cool weather makes me feel good. I actually woke up at 6:30 this morning and felt like I had some energy.

 

I don't always write about all the feelings that I have sometimes, because I don't want people to feel sorry for me. I do that enough on my own. There are some mornings the last few weeks that I slept until 9:00. I felt like half my morning was over, since I have always been an early riser. It was just hard to get going some days. Even after I woke up I would just sit there and do nothing. And some days I would sit there and cry all day. A couple of Sundays I didn't even make it to Sunday School.

 

It might be  a little depression. Depression is a word I do not like and I do not like to feel that way. Whenever I felt that way I could always fight my way out of it. This time it's been a little harder. I don't think I am as strong as I thought. I know it will get better.

 

They say "Time heals all wounds." I read a quote one time that said after a while the mind just covers the wound with scar tissue to lessen the pain. But the wound still remains.

 

I know I have a God that loves me and I know that He is my comfort and strength.

 

I LOVE YOU AND HAVE A GREAT DAY!!

Fall in West Virginia
We lived there for about two years. The Fall season was beautiful.

A House Is More

We lived in a lot of different places during our life together. They were just buildings. The things I remember about the houses are all the living and activities that happened within those walls.

 

Sometimes my house seems so quiet and empty. It makes me realize that it is only a place. It has no life. It needs voices, Sunday night parties, grand kids, lots of laughter and love to make it come alive. Sometimes I miss Jerry being here so much.

A House is More

 A house is more than walls,

   More than rooms, windows, or halls.

A house is more than floors,
   And more than wooden doors.
A house is a place where families dwell,
   And where there’s lots of stories to tell.
It’s a place where memories are made,
   Throughout the many decades.
A place where children grow,
   And where friends are welcome to go.
And what makes a house all this,
   Is when love and kindness is in its midst.

- Patricia Rice

 

Wonderful Friends

Last week I had a nice visit with some great friends from the wonderful state of Kentucky, Perry and Judy Newcom. Judy and I stayed up past midnight every day talking. It was a good time. Please pray for Judy. She has chronic leukemia and has had to undergo chemo treatments the past few months. They are good friends who have meant a lot to me and Jerry through the years.

My days seem strange. It's almost like I'm not a whole person. It's hard to realize how much I had relied on Jerry for just little things. He was my encourager. I'm really a very shy person. He gave me courage to do things that I wouldn't have done on my own. And he was always there to help make decisions. I do not like making decisions. That's the hardest thing for me. 

The other morning I thought I don't have to make decisions on my own. I have a God who loves me that I can pray to every day, who hears my prayers, and is in control. 

I love you. Please continue praying for me.

Psalm 121:2
My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.