My great grandma and her family rarely drove 13 miles into town because gas was too expensive and they couldn't all fit into car anyway. When they did go to town, they had to change flat tires every few miles and in winter they froze with no heat in car and frequently got stuck in snow even though they had put chains on tires. As a newlywed, when my grandmother moved to her new home with her new husband, she packed all her belongings into a horse-drawn wagon. As they drove away from her parents' home, she said "I forgot to bring a broom." Her husband replied, "The house we'll be living in has a dirt floor, so you won't need a broom."

This was my grandmother's life. How many of us could live like that and still be happy? Maybe part of reason she could be happy was that she did not have high expectations that we have these days. She expected to lose children to death. She expected to have to work hard and not have much to show for it. She accepted whatever happened and kept going, taking each day as it came. Maybe our problem is that we cannot accept hardship when it comes because we expect our lives to be better and easier than they sometimes are.

When I compare my life to my great grandmothers, I realize that we are very fortunate to have all good things we enjoy in our lives. Let's count our blessings and be thankful!

During this joyous season, when we celebrate fact that God loved us each so much that He was willing to give up his only son to die in our place, we can be very thankful for THAT and for many many other blessings.

Question of Day: How many blessings can you count in your life that you are grateful for?

Marsha Jordan, Director HUGS AND HOPE FOUNDATION A ministry designed to share God's Word and His love with families of critically ill children http://www.hugsandhope.com

Join Us! Together we can make a difference

After several more tries, on December 17, 1903, with a much improved bi-plane, they risked their lives and threw caution to wind. They ended up flying world's first powered airplane.

(Beginning at 10:35 a.m. that day, Orville flew it about 120 feet in about 12 seconds. About 12:00 p.m., Wilbur flew it 852 feet in 59 seconds)!

Johnny Moore, one of five men who helped them that morning drag contraption across frozen sand for positioning, ran to village of Kitty Hawk crying, "They done it! They done it! Damned if they ain't flew."

The birth of aviation!

At this time, Wilbur was 36 and Orville 32. Roughly 24 years had passed since their father gave them that toy!

I got to thinking as we walked around monument (with 40 mph steady winds and pelting sand adding to mood!) of how they never gave up. The exhilaration they must have felt when they realized they'd done it! Their perseverance had paid off.

If you have a dream, work at it. If it doesn't turn out as expected first time, don't give up! Try again! Who wants to live and say somewhere down road, "if only" or "what if?" Stick to what you want to accomplish. Don't ever give up!

"Nothing in world can take place of persistence.

Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.

Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.

Education will not; world is full of educated derelicts.

Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

~~~ Calvin Coolidge

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Mary Holzrichter How to build ANY business you want, just the way you want it, with only pocket money. http://sitetipsandtricks.com/cgi-bin/aff/g.o/win mailto:holzrob3@naspa.net *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*