Nana's Garden

10:54:44 PM EDT
Feeling Quiet
Hearing sound of my dryer drying clothes

My how time does fly.  It has been quite a while since I have written in my journal.  Today is Easter Sunday.  We did not have sunrise service at our church but we had Sunday School and regular church services.

I have spent a lot of time this week looking at programs about Mary and Jesus.  I watched most of the old Ten Commandents and a new version of it also.  There is so many mysteries in the Bible.  I wish we had all the answers.  One day we will.

God is continuing to bless all of us.  Tonight is not a good night for me to write in my journal so I will close it out by asking for everone to pray for a miracle in finding our missing teacher Tara Grinstead.  

 

 

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12:49:10 PM EST Look how much they have grown from last year.

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9:35:51 PM EST
Feeling Hopeful
Hearing tv

Today is November 16, 2005.  This year is almost over and time is passing so fast.  It seems like yesterday that Autumn was born but she is now five years old, Eli is three and Ethan is one year old.  This was them last Thanksgiving

I haven't had time to write in my journal lately.  It seems like by the time I get home from work, cook a little supper and clean up it is time to go to bed.  One thing that has kept me occupied so much lately has been the disappearance of Tara.  I cannot imagine how grief-stricken her family must be.  I pray for her all the time.  I just hope that she gets to come home.  This not knowing has everyone wondering who could be so horrible in our little town. 

We were at Jacksonville Beach one 4th of July when Dena got lost from us on the boardwalk.  We were running around looking for her. God was looking out for her.  I have always wondered who the man was that brought her to us.  He walked up to us and asked if we were looking for our little girl.  He was probably some type of security guard.  For those few minutes, we were scared to death that someone had kidnapped her.  She was probably four or five years old.  You can just imagine how many people were on the boardwalk that night. 

Thanksgiving is next week and we all have so much to be thankful for.  We all have plenty of good food to eat and a place to lay our heads at night.  There has been so many hurricanes, tornadoes, wars and other major events to take place this year.  I know that I need to place all my trust in the LORD. 

Everyone who reads my journal, please ask for a special prayer for Tara who is missing.  Please put her name in your prayer request at your church.       

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8:08:54 PM EDT
Feeling Quiet
Hearing sound of tv in living room

My earliest memories of my Mother was when we lived in the little house in front of my grandparents.  I can remember her holding my little brother Tommy near the heat of the fireplace when he had an ear-ache.  I can also remember when I was about four or five when I received a beautiful doll house for Christmas and my Mother and Andy were putting it together for Santa Claus to deliver on Christmas Eve and my brother Jerry held me up to the window to watch them.  In looking at the picture of Mother, I can see so much of her personality in her eyes.  She was one strong woman.  She was not a woman to be pushed around.  She was a small lady, but she had lots of strengths in many ways.  She was liked by all of the neighbors and relatives.  She was always playing beautician to most of the neighbors and as far as I remember didn't receive a dime for this.  That included giving haircuts and permanents to our neighbors.  She was always busy.  She was always making something on her sewing machine.  She had so many talents that it would be hard for me to list them.  She could sew, knit, crochet or even sew up our pets when they got in an accident.

I don't remember her crying too many times.  I do remember her crying when things were rough around my home when my Daddy would be drinking and he was being the typical wife abuser.  I am so thankful that he gave that up before I had my children. 

She always wanted her hair to be in place.  I can remember when she would set her hair in waves with bobbie pins.  She would set it with her fingers and then place a bobbie pin in the wave to set it. She always looked good, even when she was going to work in tobacco.  One thing I remember about her is her fondness for smoking a cigarette.  When she ran out, we made sure that someone went to the store to get her some.

I am sure that we were a sight when we all got on the tractor to go to the movie at Lax when my daddy was away from home with the truck.  She had children on every possible place to put them.  She was never afraid of anything. 

I was talking to my Aunt Edna who will be celebrating 93 years of age tomorrow and she told me that she could remember when my Mother and my Aunt Lila would dive intothe creek behindtheir home.  I am sure they were a beautiful pair of sisters. 

They would often get into a fight about who was the prettiest.  They would fix each others hair and then mess each other up when they would argue about who looked the best.  I am sure that my Grandfather had a time with his girls. 

As all children do, I thought my Mother was the prettiest Mother in the school and also the best cook.  My Mother also made me feel like she loved me the best.  Now that I am a Mother I appreciate all my Mother sacrificed for me and did for me.  She was the best.  I still miss her.  I look forward to seeing her again.   

 

 

 

 

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10:40:01 PM EDT

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10:04:18 PM EDT
Feeling Happy
Hearing sound of my dryer drying clothes

I had no idea the extent that my children and husband and family were planning to surprise me on this birthday.  What a wonderful shock.  They had invited friends that I had lost touch with over the last several years.  They tried to keep everything a secret, but Autumn felt a little bit sorry for her Nana and tried to let me in on the secret.  I guess she felt sorry for me since I talked to her on the phone and she asked what I was doing and I responded that I had spent the day by myself.

She said Nana have you been to the community center, immediately Sherry snatched the phone from her and started the conversation over.  I still wasn't for sure what was going on.  It was the nicest and the best birthday I have every celebrated.  I did not mind turning 60 at all.  I was so proud of all of my children and I felt so blessed by all that they did to make this my day.  I felt like the Queen for the day.  I was especially proud of their singing and the slide show that they had prepared.  They pretty much covered my entire life in pictures and explained a lot about me.  I just hope no-one got bored.  They had enough food to feed an army and everything was so good.  I think I was in shock.  After everything was over with, I thought I should have gotten up and said something, but I don't think I could have done it without crying so we were all better off. 

I am looking forward to the next five years since I hope to retire by then.  I would love to enjoy my grandchildren more and also my children.  They have always been the love of my live.  I loved where they each one said that they knew I loved them the most.  

Before my birthday, I thought about the different cycles in my life.  I thought about the age of 1 to 5 and thought about how much I learned during those years and also I thought about all the happy memories with my brothers, Mother and Daddy and my grandparents and also my cousins.  We were a close knit family during those times.  Back then everyone spent all their extra time visiting each other and enjoying the close relationships.  I don't think most families do that now.  From 5 until 17 I spent trying to learn all I could in school and working on thefarm.  Times were really hard for us during those years.  We went through some trying times with my youngest brother since he had more sicknesses than all of the rest of us combined.  When I graduated from school I started life in the working world.  I worked from in Jacksonville, Fla. for Calvert Fire Company and then transferred with them when they moved the company to Atlanta.  Wish I had time to tell about all the good times I had over those years.  I lived in a boarding house on 15th Street in Atlanta.  I worked there until I married and went to Turkey.  When I came back to the United Stated, it was not long before we started our family.  From that time on, I was trying to raise my family and also work.  I have worked for city hall for 23 years now.  God has always been good to me and my family.  My health has been good through all of these years.  I guess I am just beginning to have the aches and pains that come along with 60 years of life and happiness.  I appreciate everyone's messages wishing me a Happy Birthday.  I also appreciate my children's hard work in making this the best birthday yet.  I also appreciate my husband and his family making it the best birthday ever. 

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3:42:14 PM EDT

All my children were here to help me celebrate!

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11:02:17 PM EDT

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7:43:51 PM EDT
Feeling Quiet
Hearing sounds from the tv

My happiest moments in my Gardens of Life have involved my children.  One thing that really brings me back to the beginning of when I was a young Mother is looking at my grand-children.  Last night when I looked at the smile on baby Ethan's face, I could just picture the way Derek looked when he was his age.  He really does have his smile.  He also looks a lot like his Mother. 

The years have flown by and time has changed a lot of things.  The only thing that has not changed is the love I have for my children and grandchildren.  I started to write about the little baby who was born fifteen months after Derek, but I just couldn't tonight.  All of my children have grown up, but he still remains my baby.  His name was Daryl Ennis Veal.  He died from a lung disease that a lot of premature babys have.  His death was a blow to us.  This was the first major loss in our family.  The doctor told me not to pick Derek up since I had just given birth but his little arms wrapped around me was what gave me the strength to recover.  I really believe that sometimes God asks us whether we want to go on with our life and he gives us this choice,  and I knew I had to go on to raise Derek.

I am so glad I did.  From that time on, I just asked for time to raise my family.  God has brought so many blessings to me.     

     

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11:17:14 PM EDT
Feeling Happy
Hearing tv in background with news of Mississippi and New Orleans

Derek always seems to know what to write, but I don't have the gift of writing like he does.  It seems like as I have gotten older it is harder to me to write.  I wonder if everyone my age feels like that.

It has always been hard for me to let anyone know the real me.  I guess we all have those feelings.  Maybe I can get past those feelings by writing in my Journal, especially since I know others will be reading it. 

I know most of us are thinking about the people in Mississippi and New Orleans and we are all so thankful for what we have but it has made me realize that what I have here in my home does not really mean much and that I could be like those unfortunate people in a heartbeat.  I will be praying for all of them.

My life started in September 24, 1945. 

I was the fourth child of Alice and Willis Harper. 

 I was the only daughter that my parents had.  They had two more boys after I was born.  Most people think that I would have been spoiled, but I don't think I ever was.  We had to work very hard on our farm.  My parents grew tobacco, cotton, peanuts and most of our vegetables.  We had to work from the early morning darkness until about 6:00 P. M. during the summer time.  My Mother was the backbone of our family in many ways.  She was also my hero.  She could do anything she set out to do.  She would stand in line with our tobacco at the tobacco market and always let the buyers know when they got to our tobacco.  They would yell out, help the lady now.  I don't think that helped much tought.  My brothers and I would sell fresh hot boiled peanuts at the tobacco market.  Mother would tell us to yell out, Get your hot boiled peanuts here.  I was bashful and I sure hated to yell that out, but we always sold all we took to the market. 

I lived in Ocilla until I graduated and then I caught the greyhound bus to Jacksonville, Florida where I worked for Calvert FireInsurance Company until they moved to Atlanta, GA and then I moved with the company to Atlanta.  I enjoyed living in Atlanta.  I lived in a very nice boarding house on 15th Street.  There was probably at least 75 more young people living there. 

I will continue my journal tomorrow and I hope everyone is Blessed tonight by the Lord and we can get our country back the way it should be.  It seems like so many bad things are happening every second.

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