Do you remember those nights that rest in your mind and bring you that comfort feeling? You will probably even restfully sign inside. I just want to share with you some of those memories I love to think about and be thankful for. During my childhood most of the time it was Saturday night because my parents were hard workers Monday through Friday. For you and your family it may be Tuesday night or Thursday night. Whenever you choose, just make sure you do! It does not take a lot of money or resources, just some creative brainstorming. Make these memories for your family, because we so often overlook blessings that can be made so easily! Create “Saturday nights” for your family this week!

Ode To Saturday Nights

Couch with pillows.

Ten-thirty rolls around.

Killer bees attack.

Arrows go through our heads.

Playing card games and burgers in the skillet.

Laughs and update.

Jane and Dan.

Rosanna Dana, Buckwheat, and Mr. Robinson.

Falls, calls, and visual vocabulary.

Musical artists not really known.

On the seats of the Ryman,

As the songs put you to sleep.

Bowing our heads as the leader of the band prays for the evening.

Rides on the way home with the music blaring on the radio,

As my head rest in Mama’s lap.

Songs of love, of betrayal, of the times, and of politics.

Fire crackling as we settle into the camp chairs.

Warm throws warding off the chill.

One story starts about the biggest fish,

And ends with the one who has the biggest fart.

The water waves slightly slap the bank.

The smell of oyster stew floating through the air.

The card tables scattered around the room.

Rook hands become the competition of the night.

The snow falls quietly outside in the cold,

As the hearts inside are warmed with laughter and love.

The light slowly goes down.

Blinks of energy appear in the grasses as sparkles appear overhead.

The white, wood swing creaks as it moves forward and backward.

The night sounds put one to sleep.

Then the train whistle can be heard in the distance.

Just one more time around the trees.

Down the drive,

And through the grass.

The bike’s tires flow smoothly over the rocks and the grass.

Making the rider feel like they are gliding through space.

The wind on our faces let us fly.

Just one more time, please!

The aroma of the tilled dirt rises in the air.

As the coolness of the night arrives,

The dirt is warm and soft between your toes.

We pat the rich, brown soil gently around the root and base of the plant.

This warmth and smell is home.

We feel we are dreaming from the sky through the ground,

As the moon ascends across the rows.

Lori Rennae Hickman Chapman

Thank you so much for reading with me this week. I have still continued with some health issues so that is the reason I have not been with you each week. Thank you for hanging in there with me! I hope every night this week is a Saturday night for you!

Love,

Rennae

Family and Traditions

Just remember—Think back to some of the moments in time that were so truly amazing for you. When you were going through an experience that you just cannot understand until later when you remember that particular experience. The people you were with and what you were doing is so special and just makes you realize life is so wonderful! It can be a smell or a picture that takes you back. Next time your mind is stimulated let it go! Go back to that very intimate time. Let the grooves in your brain soak it in. Never forget what God and life has offered you! Never forget the people that cross your life path and bring blessings. And look for those types of memories ahead!

Capping

The dim lights of the kitchen did not need to be bright.

The raised windows allowed the summer breeze to cool the room.

Along with the breeze drifted the sweetest aroma one could possibly experience.

The lush, sweet strawberries gave off the most intoxicating smell

As the cap was popped from the fruit.

The smell was so potent I can still recall that exact scent today.

And when the caps were cut, the gases became stronger.

But you know it wasn’t just the sweet aroma that was so captivating,

It was also the company and the atmosphere.

Mama, Daddy, Mrs. Nell, Mr. Wal, and myself would join around the big table to cap.

Occasionally Sis, our neighbor, or Mama Hick, my grandmother would join us.

The table was always big enough for others to cap.

Mrs. Nell and Mr. Wal were capping just as fast as Mama and Daddy.

Mrs. Nell was found most days with long, elegant gloves cascading up her arms.

Like a model out of Vogue in the 50’s.

Bracelets adorned her wrist while she elegantly puffed her slender cigarette.

She could not have weighed one hundred pounds when she was wet.

Her hair always appeared managed even when tossed in the berry patch.

She and Em taught me to be a lady and a gardener all at the same time.

Mr. Wal, formally Wallace, who was only called this by Mrs. Nell, held his pipe tightly in his mouth.

But he always had a pleasant smile underneath that pipe.

Mr. Wal moved at the pace of poet, contemplating everything he observed in nature.

If I had ever met Aldo Leopold, one of our great conservationists, I would say Mr. Wal was his twin.

He would especially pay attention to the plants, how and where they were growing, and their fruits.

Mrs. Nell and Mr. Wal lived in a stately log cabin sitting amongst trees and fields.

Beside the cabin stretched the strawberry patch.

Before capping every year we would join them in picking the beautiful red fruit.

Then all would gather another night in our kitchen for the capping.

The capping was so exciting!

It was such a treat to participate in the capping process.

Preparing the fruit and placing these delicious fruits into bags that would stay in the freezer until a winter day when we all needed some fresh scent and sunshine.

As the capping got faster, the laughter and conversation became louder!

You would hear the most wonderful stories.

Some stories cause you to sigh deeply while others cause you to laugh out loud.

The whole atmosphere provided a contentment that you cannot describe.

The experience was sensual and joyful!

Whoever knew capping a rich, decadent strawberry could bring a rich, decadent life!

Lori Rennae Hickman Chapman

Thank you for stepping back in time with me this week. I appreciate you sharing in my experiences. I still to this day can smell a strawberry and remember those wonderful evenings! Find your wonderful life and relish those fabulous times!  But most importantly remember those wonderful souls in your life!

Love,

Rennae

Family and Traditions

I am finally back!!! Technology problems have kept me out of the communication realm. You know how the saying goes—Technology: You can’t live with it and you can’t live without it! I also took some time to be with family. And that is where I want to start today.

I have been so blessed to spend some really quality time with two of my babies the last several weeks. I can hear them now—we are not babies! And they are right—one is 24 and the other is 23. They are beautiful, wonderful adults contributing to society in their own very special ways. It just reminded me that we are given so much from God that we take for granted. We become so caught up in the everyday grind that we dismiss the most precious gift we are given—life and the witness of living! We forget to appreciate those we are given to live with, and we forget to live that life with them. So this week the following writing honors a life given to me 23 years ago. Don’t let 23 years go by without honoring the ones that bless your living!

Surprise From The Stars

You never know what to expect when surprises come along.

Sometimes the surprise is just so wonderful

And beautiful that you know it is surely from God.

One day a surprise in the form of a star fell from God into our family.

Her blue piercing eyes gave a clue to the rich woman that lay inside.

The smile that she showed brought happiness to everyone she met.

She has brought so much joy to all.

Some waited for their deaths from this world just to see her.

Some have learned to live their own lives

Even greater in this world through her.

The curls that she was blessed with make her stand out as one to be reckoned with.

As the curls cascade around her glorious face,

They like her always have a mind of their own.

She has spoken with authority from day one.

She is strong, loving, and caring,

But most of all her heart is for others.

The words she creates are vibrant and alive.

They touch the soul of others reminding them of who they are.

Her imagination reaches into worlds that others could never conceive.

Her personality is one that beams sunshine

And the light of the Holy Spirit.

This star came to our family to provide warmth, honesty, and challenges.

Work to her is simply God’s blessing.

She always expects much more of herself than from others.

That surprise from the stars will forever change this world and worlds to come.

It is so amazing to believe that one could touch so many in such a short period of time.

This amazing person influences all of our lives for now and will through eternity.

As God placed the moon in the dark heaven, he also placed this star here to shine

upon this Earth.

We love you to the stars and beyond.

We love you for eternity.

We could never love a surprise as much.

Shine! Star! Shine!!

Beside the moon and in the flowing dark sky.

Wait for your surprises as we did,

And know you are blessed forever with that wait.

For this world and other worlds are better

By the birth of this great surprise!

Lori Rennae Hickman Chapman

All my love goes out to my two souls that have blessed me with their time and love over the past weeks. Send love to those you share this life with! Thank you for being with me and reading this week. I have really missed living with you! I wish for you blessings and life!

Love,

Rennae

Family and Traditions

Blessing = Love

When we are raising our children, the time is so consumed with day to day care that we just do not see the time passing so quickly. As they learn to walk, ride a bike, or drive a car, we think the time that they will be older is far away. Then one day we wake up and they are adults! 27 years ago this week, I was allowed by God to become the mother of a very special man. He was strong willed while still in the womb, but brilliant and filled with wisdom beyond his years. I have been blessed by the so many parts of his life, and God has let me be there to get to know him. I am proud of everything he has ever done, even the mistakes he has made, because he has taken all opportunities to learn about life. So I celebrate this special man this week. And I wish for many more years to watch him grow and change!

The Man

It is hard to believe the small hand is now a man’s hand.

More than anything,

This young man’s hand has known work, play, and love.

His strong build carries God’s questions forward.

Always wondering.

Always searching for truth.

Yet confident in his steps.

But understanding fear.

A man that knows when to say he is wrong.

A man that calms those that love him.

A man that knows to ask for help.

God has his life stretched in the future.

And the strong hand reaches for each line in the sketch.

Searching to make the way right.

This strong hand gently touches the ones he loves.

God blesses those that are called his friends and family.

I am proud that God chose me to have this man.

When this man touches others,

They will know God’s presence.

God has blessed me.

All will know this man by his strong mind and his strong heart.

Lori Rennae Hickman Chapman

 Take time this week to tell one that has entered your life as a blessing just how much they mean to you. This one will be encouraged and you will receive even the greater blessing! I am so very happy you joined me this week. I hope you are inspired to love this week!

Love,

Rennae

Family and Traditions