With the arrival of Facebook, I quit blogging. But here’s the thing - as I read my old blogs, I’m carried away with the memories. Facebook just cannot take the place of a blog where I share my thoughts. 

I started back in February because I couldn’t figure out how to add a recipe to Pinterest from my talk with ChatGPT, so I had to put it here and then link to Pinterest  

Therefore here is another recipe that interested me that I will add to Pinterest and I think I’m going to start blogging my thoughts again  

Curried Fruit

1 very large can peach halves

1 small can apricots,

1 very large can pears,

3 small cans pineapple pieces,

10 Maraschino cherries

Drain fruit and turn into a glass Pyrex pan over which a mixture of 1/3 cup melted butter, 3/4 cup packed brown sugar, and 4 teaspoons curry powder has been poured.

The trick is to bake the mixture slowly, at 325ºF, and to baste it frequently.

Then let the casserole come to room temp and cool and if possible, chill for at least a day and reheat when you are ready to serve. The flavors will bloom.

Curried fruit can be covered with foil and taken straight from oven to table.

 

 

 

I love this salad kit from WalMart and the dressing is fabulous - it’s sweet and just plain yummy. David and I gobbled it up. 

ChatGPT helped me figure out a copycat recipe for the salad and the dressing. If you make it let me know what you think. 

 

Sunflower Bacon Crunch Power Bowl

MarketSide copycat – entrée size

Serves 2 large bowls or 3–4 side salads

 

Sweet Onion Dressing (packet style)

Ingredients

½ cup mayonnaise

3 tbsp white vinegar

3–4 tbsp sugar (start with 3, add more if you like it sweeter)

1 tsp onion powder

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

1 tbsp neutral oil (vegetable/canola)

2–4 tbsp water (until pourable)

 

Optional “make it taste store-bought”

¼ tsp xanthan gum

tiny pinch smoked paprika or celery seed
(shouldn’t taste smoky — just deeper)

 

Directions

Whisk or blend until smooth.
Refrigerate at least 1 hour (huge difference).

 

Greens Mix

2 cups chopped green cabbage

1 cup chopped green leaf lettuce

1 cup chopped kale

¼–½ cup shredded red cabbage

Chop small like the kit.

 

Cheese

¼–⅓ cup grated or shaved Romano/Parmesan
(dry & salty works best)

 

Bacon

¼–⅓ cup bacon crumbles
(Store bacon bits = very close to kit flavor)

 

Crunch

2–3 tbsp roasted salted sunflower kernels

 

Optional extras

small handful shredded carrots

light sprinkle dried cranberries

 

Protein (for power bowl)

Add 4–6 oz per person of:

grilled chicken

crispy chicken

or rotisserie chicken

Warm is best 👍

 

Assembly (restaurant method)

Put greens in bowl

Add cheese

Add bacon

Pour dressing

Toss very well

Add chicken

Add sunflower seeds last

Seeds stay crunchy this way.

 

Café Upgrade Moves (pick 1–2)

squeeze lemon on chicken

extra cheese

flaky salt

fresh cracked pepper

drizzle more dressing

avocado

pickled red onion

roasted sweet potatoes

hot honey

 

If you follow this, you’ll get:

✅ sweet
✅ creamy
✅ oniony
✅ crunchy
✅ salty
✅ filling

 

 Goodness where has the time gone. I'm almost five years older and retired.  I have gone through a very rough year.  

And I have always considered myself tough but this year has knocked me to my knees.  I have had a lot of health issues, some pretty serious and I have not bounced back like a I usualy do.  To the point I have stayed in the bed for days on end, only getting up to go to the bathroom or shower.

I'm now in therapy and it's really helping.  I' also in physical therapy and it is also helping.

I'm going to try to start this blog back and tell my stories.

I made my husband an appointment with a urologist for his prostate exam. He didn't want to go but I said, "okay do want to be peeing in bag like your best friend's daddy?"  He is always so funny when he comes home.....and the thing is he's dead serious.  Here is our conversation:

Me:  How did it go.

Him: Okay and he said everything is okay and he'll let me know about my blood work later.  I just don't understand with all the advanced technology we have now why a digital exam is necessary.  Surely they could do a CT or ultrasound or something.

Did you holler like you did last time where they could hear you all over the office building?

No, but I did moan.  And I told him this is a new building and I'm pretty sure there isn't any insulation in these walls between exam rooms....AND this exam is right next to where the registration lady sits.  It's just not right.

Love your husband and make his appointment for him!

My daughter, her two children, 3 dogs and grandmother have moved in with us for a brief period. -That's right, my husband's ex-mother-in-law is living with us.  But that is not what this post is about.  I have noticed some trends for those of this household that have my husband's DNA. (That's him above.)
In fact I was lying in the bed last night prior to going to sleep and tabulating these things in my mind. 
Again they are in random order.
They are all delicate sleepers...their sleep is precious to them.  And if you wake them up you better have a darn good reason or you will regret it.
They do not respect your sleep like they expect you to respect theirs.  They think nothing of waking you up to ask you if you ate the last Little Debbie cake.  (Duh David--when it was just me and you, you know I ate it--you are just trying to make a point.) My daughter woke me up at 7AM on Sunday vacuuming.  Vacuuming!  She would have killed me for this.  My granddaughter and grandson are the exact same way.
They don't walk--they stomp.  They walk like baby elephants...and it seems even louder in the morning.
They can't stand phony people.  They can't abide "nice nasty" people.
They can't stand egotistical people.
If they tell you they are hungry--you better feed them immediately.  They get nasty when they are hungry.
They love animals.  Especially dogs.
They love sports.
They are extremely private.  Almost to the point of paranoia.  They would be great CIA agents.  Seriously.  I have never in my life seen people so secretive about "their business."
They are great dancers.
They have superb rhythm, I swear they have little metronomes in their heads.  David is a drummer and I'm always on edge at any performance, because I know he hears every missed beat.  So does my daughter--she was drum major in high school and college.
They have sensitive feet.  Just like a dog they don't want you to even look at their feet, much less touch them.  My daughter would not be caught dead without polish on her toes.  In fact she had surgery on her ankle and would not rest until I had repainted her toe nails immediately post op.
Even though they are blue eyed and blonde they do not sun burn.  I swear, I don't get this.  I'm brown eyed and my hair is dark and I have to be very careful.
They can't get in a car and go anywhere without a drink in the console.  My husband drives 3 miles to work--never ever without a cup of coffee.  That goes for all of them them--I swear it's like packing with a baby.  Everybody takes a drink with them.
They never ever ever ever go barefooted.  Never.  Never.  Not even stepping out of the shower.  They step directly in to their house shoes.
Sigh....more later

Belated Mother's Day Post

The Saturday before Mother's Day as I was lying flat on my 59 year old back vacuuming under the bed, I remembered how much Mama worried about cleaning out from under there.  She was really happy when she found a vacuum cleaner that would flatten out enough to effectively clean under it.

This got me to thinking about other things I learned from her--listed here in no particular order.  There are so many--this is just a few.

Always keep it clean under your bed (and other places people can't see).  People may not be able to see the dirt, but you know it's there.

Be very fastidious about your person.  You never know when you might have to go to the hospital, or you might be in a car accident.  It's okay if you go through the drive-thru with a house dress on or ratty clothes as long as your body is clean.

Always have one very best friend in which you can confide everything and will tell you the truth.

Put flowers on your ancestors/loved ones graves as often as you can, but always on homecoming/Memorial day.

Wear make-up, fix your hair, dress your best when you go to work.

Be on time.

Make sure your shoes are polished.

Know how to make a good potato salad.

Be friendly and speak to EVERYBODY.  Ask how are they doing and always, always ask about their family--especially their children and/or their parents.

Go barefooted.

Tithe--give God His first.

If the church door is open--be there.

Everybody gossips a little.

Making biscuits and red-eye gravy is an art form.

Keep your yard immaculate and it is reasonable to call your neighbor out if their dog poops in your yard.

You can make fried chicken in the oven that tastes just as good as if fried in a skillet--the secret died with her.

Be frugal-use it up and wear it out.  Save your money--"you never know what you might need."

Tend to your children's business as much as you want to if you see them messing up, do not hesitate to nag them about it.  You almost died having them, the least they can do is live a good life.

It is the mother's prerogative to have first choice to name the baby. "She is the one who will go down in to that deep valley to get them here."

Always wear earrings when you go out.  And of course other jewelry too, but never go without your earrings.  Never.

Unless your gray hair is stunning--dye it.

Do care what people think about you--when you have no possessions left you will still have your good name.

Read your Bible.

Pray without ceasing.

Love you Mama.  Miss you Mama.

More later

I Don't Just Read A Book

I live with it, I devour it, I wake up wondering what the character is doing that day. 
I eat with it, I go to the bathroom with it.  I have even been known to bathe with it.  I go to bed reading it and on weekends I wake up with it and read it. 
I sleep with it in the bed with me, and most of the time the dogs chew on it.
When I am through with a book, it is rarely fit to even give away, let alone resell on Amazon or give to the library.
Case in point.  This is the last book I read.

Notice the edges of the pages are chewed, ripped and torn. The cover is a mess and one of the picture pages in the middle is missing.
If I had taken a picture of the inside you would find various stains---coffee, mustard, mayonnaise, potato chip grease and the DNA of almost every meal I have eaten.
Poor Jackie, I suspect she would be horrified.
I picked up the book at the Salvation Army for a quarter.  And it was a pretty good read although I did tire of Jackie at times and would leave her sitting on my nightstand for days at a time until I started wondering what she was up to.....
The book is around 400 pages and it took me about a month to read, mainly because I kept putting it down and also I am a very slow reader.  The reason I am a slow reader is because as I said earlier I devour the book, I read and re-read paragraphs to make sure that I have digested what the book is telling me.  It has occurred to me that I read as if I'm going to take a test the next day on the particular chapter I'm reading.  I have tried to break myself of the habit of reading and re-reading paragraphs, but I can't seem to be able to do this.
One member of my book club sits down and reads whatever book we choose in one sitting.  That's right, she sits down and reads the book in 3 or 4 hours.  (Unless of course it is like the Steven King book 1963 and is over 600 pages.)
My devouring of books has gotten me in trouble.  On one occasion I borrowed a book from a neighbor who was NOT a reader, but had just bought the book because she liked the cover.  (Really that's what she said, she thought it would look good laying around in her bedroom.)  Soooo, I took it to the beach and devoured it.  It was a good read--about the world of modeling.  And when I gave it back to her she blew me out.  I had ruined her book.  I mean really when she let me borrow it, she acted like she didn't even want it back.....and the cover was still in pretty fair condition.....and she wasn't going to read it....so therefore why was she so upset about the sand inside and the food stains on the pages.  I'm sure the author would much rather have me read it rather than her just look at it...
:-D

Cruel Shoes

The other night I was laying in the bed thinking.  And I was thinking about if there is anything that I'm snobby about. 
I came up with 2 things that I'm snobby about, my purse and my watch. Notice I didn't say purses or watches. I have one purse that I carry everywhere-dress or casual.  I have one watch that I wear everywhere--dress or casual. And they are as expensive as my Coca-Cola salary on champagne tastes will allow. (Which isn't Rolex or Louis Vuitton okay?)  And I'll blog about this later.
Which brings me to one thing that I am totally un-snobby about--shoes.
I am not like other women who have dozens of shoes, for all occasions all seasons.  No not me.  I own 4 pair.  One for work. Two for Sundays.  And one pair of sandals.  That's it. I do not own a pair of tennis shoes.  I hate them.
Now this does not include the "Cruel Shoes" of the title.  I don't consider them shoes.  They are torture devices.  They were designed by a misogynist.
By now you are wondering...so I will explain.
Here they are in all their cruel beauty.
Be sure to click on the video and watch them twirl.....I have the ones in silver. 
I bought them to wear with a dress for Mardi Gras in Biloxi two years ago.  I tried them on for a hot minute and figured they would be fine.  That's the thing with cruel shoes, they trick you.  Their torture only begins to start after you have had them on for about 10 minutes and have walked about 100 feet in them.
Now I have to admit...I looked good. I went all out--big hair. dramatic makeup with false eyelashes, splashy jewelry--you would have had to kill me to tell me I wasn't fine. Here is a picture of David and me. Doesn't David look suave? Don't we look good?

I don't have the shoes on in this picture--why do I know, because my nose is not bleeding!!!
Anyway, I knew something was up when I had to get David to help me put them on. My feet were already starting to swell a little because of all the layers I was wearing....and of course because of those layers I was unable to bend over.
The first layer was panty hose that had a little "support."
The second layer was a spanx.
The third layer was a long line girdle.  (I decided not to use the duck tape at the last minute--to cinch my waist)
And the fourth layer was my dress.
About now you are not wondering about the shoes, but what I did when I went to pee.
More about that later.
David helped me put the shoes devices on. I made it to the elevator and knew I was in trouble.  The devices began to pinch across the top of my foot, and the more I walked the more my instep hurt. I wobbled/hobbled to the lobby of the hotel made it to the door and knew there was no way I could make it to the truck.
David picked me up at the door and helped me into the truck.  (He's such a darling)
He drove up to the door of the event site and let me out so that I could get a head start.  The event was held at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Coliseum and Event Center. Which meant I had to walk the length of a foot ball field in the devices on a slick granite surface to get to the ballroom.
Okay.  I was prepared to die.  After all I have been through a lot in my life, I'm dressed to the nines, David is handsome in his tux and surely I'm not going to let two little torture devices keep me from partying the night away.  If I can just hobble to the ballroom, I can discretely shed the @^%^ things and my dress is long enough no one will know.
But what if I fall on this slick #$#%%@! granite tile?  David is not here to help me get up and I'll have to just lie here till he shows up, and I wouldn't blame him if he walks on by and acts like he doesn't even know me.   There I would be a big purple pile of chiffon.......with big hair and glittering jewels......
Halfway there my feet felt like they were in vice grips, the calf of my legs were aching and on fire and my thighs....oh my thighs--encased in layers of panty hose, spanx and girdle were crying.
I could not make it to the ballroom entrance, I indiscreetly but with the charm of a southern belle (always smile) I slipped them off and carried them in my hand through the ballroom door and to our table. I smiled charmingly at everyone I saw. 
I threw them under the table and danced the night away in stocking feet. And I never put them on again....I walked to the truck in the parking in lot in the cool February night in stocking feet.
My feet, my calves and my thighs were happy that I did not put them back on.
I should have thrown them in the garbage can.....but I didn't......because I tried to wear them the next year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I know I know, I lost my mind.  I thought that the total of (maybe) 15 minutes that I had them on had broken them in.  Or that the year they had spent in my closet alone and forsaken had taught them a lesson.  Not.
The exact same thing happened the next year.
And I still haven't thrown them away.
They sit in my closet.....waiting......maybe.........next.........year........
Oh and I'll tell you how I went to the bathroom in a later post.



I Knew I Was Getting Older, But.....

All the things that happen when you get older have been happening to me---
I can't see,
I can't hear,
I can't remember anything.
I can't find things I hide from David*
I wear granny panties.
I wear MuMus.
AARP is hounding me to join.
I wear my pants up as high as I can pull 'em.
And---the final clincher, I'm forgetting to zip up my pants.
Yep, I'm like those old men you see everywhere with their pants up under their arm pits...and unzipped.
And of course I'm not a man.  Sigh.
* Some of the things that I hide from David are: Garden gloves, lighters of any and all kinds, garden pruning shears, hammers, screw drivers, glue, hair brushes, combs, tweezers, nail clippers, nails, screws, picture hangers...to name a few.
In fact the other day he needed a pair of garden gloves and the conversation went something like this.
David:  "I ran across a pair of garden gloves and I wondered what they were doing there and then it occurred to me that you had hid them from me.  Do you remember where you hid them?"
Me: "No."
Sooo, I couldn't remember where I had hid them and he couldn't remember where he had found them.
Therefore he had to go and buy a pair.
Sigh.

Where Have You Been AngelMc

Blogger:  So what's the deal?  Where have you been?
Me:  Nowhere really.  Just here at the house, or at work.
What have you been doing?
Oh just the usual...working, cleaning the house.  Swimming in the RNP...
What is an RNP?
Red Neck Pool.  You know they kind they sell at WalMart..
Did you get the eight hundred dollar one?
No, the 300 dollar one...but it's great...float...play with the gkids, get a tan...that kind of thing.
Oh, why no posts?
Oh, just don't get on here much.
Do you get on Facebook very much?  Or Pinterest?
Uhh...well.
Thought so, you've been cheating on me haven't you?
Well...
I want it stopped immediately....I want at least one post a week...
Well I do miss everybody...and my head is kinda filling up with stuff I need to get out.
Okay..good...think something up and have it one here within 48 hours.
Okay.
Any pictures you want to put on here in the meantime?
Uhhh let me check my phone....how 'bout this picture of #4 and Rosie?

Yeah that's sweet.
I know, I love to take pictures of #4 when she is sleeping...
Why?
I don't know she looks so beautiful and sweet...and that is Rosie's favorite place to sleep...under her chin.  Want to see a cute video?
Yeah sure.
Okay..I sent this to her Mama.

 

 

Do you think you will get in trouble for alluding to underage alcohol consumption?

Surely not...everybody knows that I am Southern Baptist from birth...we don't drink, but we do joke about it. Sigh...

More Later

How I Came To Own 7 Dogs

I don't want a dog...I'm really not a dog person.
And I certainly don't want a dog in the house.
And I most certainly don't want a yapping Chihuahua.
Okay were going to get the dog.
His name is Presley, but he can't get on the furniture and he has to sleep in his own bed in the living room.
It's too cold for him to sleep in the living room, he can sleep in his bed in our bedroom.
It's too cold for him to sleep in the bedroom, he'll have to sleep in the bed with us.
He's too little to sleep anywhere but next to me under my arm.
Hand me the dog, he can't jump up here on the bed by himself.
I'll buy him doggy steps so he can get up on the bed whenever he wants.
Why won't he use the doggy steps?  Why do I always have to reach down and get him?
Bring me the dog, you know I can't sleep without him.
Please make him come here and get in the bed with me, he knows I can't sleep without him.
Don't sit there on that part of the couch, that's Presley's place.
My heart is broken, I miss Presley so much.
Of course we are getting another dog...I'm a dog person.  I can't live without a dog.
Her name is Priscilla Loretta.
Priscilla is lonesome during the day, she needs a companion.
Her name is Ginger Marie.
It's amazing how they immediately learned to use the doggy steps and they sleep on my head.
I love it when they sleep on my head.  It's so comforting.
I need a puppy.
Well they were brother and sister and had never been separated.
Their names are Ann Margaret and Fontana Nicholas.
They learned how to use the doggy steps and they sleep on my lap.
I love it when they sleep on my lap.
I need another puppy.
Well two were brother and sister and the other one was born 2 days later and they have never been apart and when I went to get one they were all in the same puppy bed together and I really was just going to get the two girls but the little boy was going to be left by himself and he is so cute and Avery was with me and she was so excited and I just couldn't leave him there by himself.
Their names are Lindi Bell, Rosie Doll and Sumner Hess.
They learned how to use the doggy steps and sleep on my neck, my legs and under my arm.
I'm a dog person.

The Reason I Bought My 8 Year Old Granddaughter A Razor

All my friends were horrified..you bought your 8 year old gdaughter a razor for Christmas!!!!  Let me explain and then you decide for yourself....it all started about 2 months ago.
#4: Nonna, can I shave my legs?
Me:  Aren't you a little young for that?
#4:  Hallie is shaving her legs.
Me:  What I don't know won't hurt me.
#4: Okay.
Me: Remember, if you Mama finds out you are on your own.
#4:  Okay.
Of course she can't hold water and she told her Mama.  And that conversation went something like this.
Daughter:  Did you tell #4 she could shave her legs?
Me:  No, not really, I didn't tell her she could shave her legs, I told her she was on her own.
Daughter:  But you let her shave them.
Me:  No not really....I told her she was kinda young to be shaving her legs.
Daughter:  I told her not to do it anymore...and if her Daddy finds out...and don't let her blah blah blah....
Me:  What I don't know won't hurt me..besides have you looked at her legs?  They are pretty hairy for an 8 year old..and little girls don't wear tights anymore.
To myself:  She was beyond excited about it..."feel my legs Nonna they are as soft as a baby's butt."  I went way way up on my Nonna points.  (The more Nonna points you have the longer you stay out of the Nursing Home.)
Later...
Me: What do you want me to get you for Christmas?
#4:  A razor and shaving cream.
Me: Okay, but you are on your own if you get in trouble.
Christmas Eve....
#4 opens up a gift to find a colorful zippered bag that holds a pink wet/dry shaver/shaving cream/lotion.  She is delighted.

Daughter glares at me....guest says you got #4 a razor!!!
Me to everybody within earshot:  Well let me explain, it's called pay back....pay back for the time daughter knocked the front end of my car out of line...the time when she was 16 and she asked could she have the check book to go and buy her an Easter outfit...and dumb me thought she would buy something sweet for Easter..imagine my surprise/horror when she comes prancing out of her Sunday School room into the church wearing tight black crop pants and high heels....Easter outfit indeed...I could have killed her.  And I won't even tell you about the time the College Dean called David at work........
Now then...you see what i mean about payback?

Second Chances

I"m so thankful that there are always second chances in life.
I have no birth children.  But because of God's restoration, I have two children I got in my second marriage.
I first married when I was twenty eight. My husband had a four year old daughter.  She was with us on every weekend.  I was immature and jealous of her.  I felt like I was her mother's weekend babysitter.  Her mother didn't work, but I did and I resented spending my every other weekend off "baby sitting."  My husband and I never had a weekend off together to do things.  I tried to talk him into us having her some during the week and every other weekend, but that was a no-go.
So many other things made her and I resent each other.   We didn't really bond until she was about seven years old.
That said, I took her everywhere.  Everywhere but God's house.
A few months after we were married  my husband informed me "if you get pregnant, it  will be your baby, I won't help you."  He didn't want any more children.  That was the beginning of many selfish things he put me through.
I had to have a hysterectomy at age thirty eight and a few weeks later we were separated and then a few months later we were divorced.
I was devastated. No husband. No children and no hope of ever having any.
I prayer for God to restore me.
Then I prayed for God to restore me and find me a good husband.
Then I prayed for God to restore me, find me a good husband that had children.
God put David and me together.  He was raising two teenagers..alone.
Me + David + two children  = 7 seven grandchildren!!!
I did it in reverse, I got the teenagers first and the babies second.
What a blessing.
Second chances.
I'm trying not to mess this one up.
I take them to God's house.
Thank you Heavenly Father for second chances.

Six of seven of my wild monkeys..  :->

Costa Rica...And My Breaking

As you may remember my prayer for the people of Costa Rica was that God would break me for them...The first morning of clinic we got up very very early, launched from the motel, and headed to a remote village. Once again the drive was  interesting. 

 

 

We stopped in the middle of the road and let cattle go by us on either side, we crossed over a large fast flowing stream with a bridge made out of logs covered with dirt.  I aptly named it the mud bridge.  It had rained the night before and the roads were very muddy and rutty.  We saw iguanas sunning themselves...we saw workers in the pineapple fields, the further we went we saw fewer houses, yet when we drove up, there were around 200 people there waiting on us.
David said, where did all these people come from?  As I mentioned we were in a remote area with few houses and even fewer cars.  The preacher told us that the villagers had gotten up before dawn and walked for hours to get there.
The building that we used was their multi-purpose building...for church, for meetings for school assemblies. The principal had let school out that day so the children could have check-ups.  The building was made out of cinder blocks, had a tin roof and was open for about 3 feet between the cinder blocks and the roof.  This allowed the breeze to circulate, and for some reason  we were unable to use the large fans that were there.  The floor was beautiful ceramic tile.
We sat our clinic up in the shape of a stop sign.  We sat on the inside of the stop sign and had the patent's move around the outside.

The first station was registration, where we obtained their demographic information, took their vital signs and got a brief history and their chief complaint. 
From there they saw the physician, then were either seen by the nurse to have their ears washed out, collect a urine specimen, see the physical therapist or be fitted for a pair of reading glasses.
My station was the last one.  I dispensed their medicine. I gave all the children their first dose of antibiotic and had them to stay for about 30 minutes to make sure that they wouldn't have a reaction.
We dispensed thousands of pills.  Thousands.  David and Ronald became very good at reading the physician's hand writing and pulling the medicine for me.  I would double check the prescription and then dispense it.  We mixed so much Amoxicillin if we had been allergic to Penicillin we would be dead!!  I  marked the medicine cup with a sharpie so they the parents would give the correct amount.  Plus I made sure that they knew what signs and symptoms of an adverse reaction to look for.
Now all this said, you can see where our interpreters were very important.
Now for the breaking part. The only time we stopped was to eat lunch.  Around noon it began to get very hot.  I was guzzling water like there was no tomorrow, I poured water on my head and on my arms, I rubbed alcohol gel in my hair and on my arms to help cool myself off.  I poured water down the front and back of my shirt and on the legs of my pants. 
I went through 5 interpreters.  I noticed that they kept changing out, but I really didn't think a whole lot about it until James (10 years old) said "the interpreters said you are working like a machine."  I didn't realize what he meant at first, but it occurred to me that this old fat nurse was working those young kids in the ground!  God just kept strengthening me I guess.

 

Dr. Rushing's last prescription of the day.

That day we saw 500 patients.  500.

At the end of the day that beautiful tile floor was solid mud, we had dispensed thousands of pills, given out hundreds of toys, clothes, and Bibles, we had drank enough water to float a small boat, and we had shown the people of Costa that because Jesus loves us, we loved them.
Around two o'clock it came a huge thunder storm that blew out a transformer and ended our electricity, but we were able to finish with all the patients.
By this time I had nothing else to give.  Nothing physically, nothing mentally, nothing emotionally, nothing spiritually.  I was broken.  I had given everything that I had.  I had nothing left. I was completely empty.
I realized that despite drinking water all day long, I had not been to the bathroom one single time.
I went into the bathroom, and remember the open air between the cinder blocks and the roof?  I sat down and I could hear the rain on the tin roof, I could see the rain falling, I could feel the gentle mist of the rain on my face and the wind was blowing too....as I sat there this old timey gospel song came to me and I began to sing ..."oh land of rest for the I sigh, when will the moment come? When I shall lay my armor by and dwell in peace at home.  We'll work, till Jesus comes, we'll work till Jesus comes and we'll be gathered home."
A beautiful feeling of peace and refreshment came over me.  I felt the Holy Spirit surround me and strengthen me.  He knew I needed it.  There was still a way to go. 
I came out of the bathroom refreshed, we had church services in the dark with flash lights, we sang and prayed and listened to a sermon.  And then we traveled back to the motel...safe....over the mud bridge.