Winding up or winding down?

Well, here I am again...older? (yes), wiser? (hopefully)
Rol and I celebrated our 60th wedding anniversary May 30th.  60 years!  I had trouble believing that I was 60 years old, and now I am 82.
How can it be? I can still drive a car, mow the lawn, make rational decisions (at least I hope they are rational)
Jesus is still the anchor that holds me, the hope that makes every day worth while.

Rol and I went sailing to celebrate our anniversary....I think there must be salt water in our veins.
We sailed on board the largest square-rigger in the world out of Malaja, Spain. It carried us acorss the Mediterranean to the port of Rome, down the coast of Italy, to Sicily and back to Rome. We had a grand time.
It may be our last trip, but it was a wonderful one.
However, Roland just returned from a trip of his own...to the hospital with a return of difficulties with his heart..But he came home in time to celebrate his 84th birthday surrounded by 14 members of our family (may the Lord bless them for coming, working, preparing, and rejoicing with us).

Now, our lives resume again, cautiously but also with faith.  The Lord continues to bless us, protect us, and encourage us...what more can we ask?!

Rainy days are for reminiscing.   and for anticipating.

Five years have passed since I wrote about Millie...She's buried in our back yard in a garden full of roses!  And, when I'm weeding, I talk to her. But the Lord sent us a new puppy and the past seems less painful.

"Shadow" was a wonderful surprise...I'm sure the Lord sent her because we had no intention of filling the "dog hole" in our lives after Millie passed on.  

     We saw her advertised  in the newpaper and decided to "look and see!"
 She quickly left the other puppies, sat down in front of Rol, and spread her little back legs into Millie's "frog position." 
     She had been born on our anniversary and bringing her home was too hard to resist. Suddenly, we were dog-owners, caretakers, trainers, and at peace once again.

     Shadow was supposed to be a Labradoodle.  We met her parents before we said, "yes." 
     Her dad was a very large lab and her mother was a good-sized poodle...We didn't want a lap-dog; but as she grew  we suspected that our "labradoodle" had other family ties. And, one morning as we left Pet Smart with our latest Shadow-food, we ran into what appeared to be her twin..  
     I smiled and asked if, by chance, the approaching puppy was from the same litter as Shadow.....
     There was a short pause, and an insulted response..."Our dog is not a mutt...she is a Irish Wolf Hound"  
     Whoops! they looked like twins. My Shadow had a secret past!   
     She has been growing ever since, but not as much (thank you, Lord) as might be expected from her now-known ancestry.  At 3 she weighs in at 75 lbs.. And she's smart!  Amazingly smart!  She can (and quickly does) identify friends and not-so-comfortable strangers, She "talks to us"  letting us know what she needs, what we need to know, and who she likes!
     She pulls our arms off when we try to walk her on an open leash, but patiently trots alongside of me on a short leash when I need her. 
     When I weed the garden, I still talk to Millie. 
     I've told about her about Shadow and believe that . . .somewhere, some day.. in heaven they will meet and play and delight the Lord who chose to send them both for us.