IT'S BEEN FOREVER!

Well, it seems like it has been forever since I have been able to sit down and post in peace. October was such a hectic month, it always is for me. It signifies change, and I do not handle change very well. Is that a sign of getting old? If lack of flexibility is an indication, I certainly fit the bill, whether I admit it or not. I did not expect to be as upset by my journal on AOL closing as I was. I procrastinated about transferring it all month while I lollygagged around, thinking I had plenty of time. The month went by so fast that the dreaded day arrived before I was out of denial. Faintly reminescent of my cancer surgery which took place on a Halloween evening some fifteen years ago. (Praise God that I did not put that off too long, as I am in habit of doing! After the ten year time elapsed I finally believed that I was free of it. ) I am digressing from the subject of my lost journal. As I tried to save it on the last day, the tears flowed freely, to no avail. It may be floating somewhere in cyberspace, now, and I am left with my memories of time spent creating it. Strangely, I felt like I had lost a child, an imperfect embryo, but a child of my heart, no less. I grieve. Nuff sed. We, as a nation, are also approaching a new beginning. The outcome of the election, tomorrow, will be a fork in the road. Hopefully, we will not have to regret the road not taken. We will live with our choice for at least the next four years, God willing some unforeseen circumstance. I will pray for the victor, as he faces an awesome responsibility of guiding this nation back to prosperity and peace. May God grant him wisdom and honorable service as he makes decisions that will impact all of us. My daughter is now at the airport in Tennessee to welcome a visiting Senator McCain and she invited me to go. I declined in deference to preserving my voting privacy. As usual, I have not even told the children how I intend to vote. My privilege and they respect it , ( not beyond trying to influence me in this divided family.) I always tell them to just vote their conscience, as I do. On a humorous note, this little tidbit from Halloween. My eleven year old grandson debated about trick or treating this year, but finallly decided to go with his little friend. One street in town is always deluged with costumed kids and notoriously treats generously. (The city blocks this street off as a precaution to autos so it is known to be a safe place to allow kids to treat.) When the two little boys came back to their waiting mothers, the friends mother peered into his plastic pumpkin and said, "Well, Thomas, I think this is the least candy you ever got trick or treating." To which he replied seriously, "It's this dog-gone economy." That sent the mother's into gales of laughter, until they soberly realized that the dire predictions had even filtered down to the children. Next year, they will be too old to go, and I suppose like many, the age of innocence is over all too soon. When they told me about it, I reasoned that the residents on that street, besieged by ghosties and goblins, had to limit their treats. My son had a table set up in the park and his office gave out 800 treats before they ran out. He was some- what overwhelmed by the turnout. Since the churches have gone together (and businesses) to have games and treats in the park (trunk or treat) I do not get the trick or treaters like I did. That is a relief since I worry about the children. Sorrowfully, I heard about a pregnant woman in a nearby town who was taking her small daughter and was killed by a car. I will be glad that my grandson will not be going next year, even though\ wistful at the passing of this tradition. I have never been a fan of Halloween. By the way, my grandson was dressed up as a wolf, so I guess the folks he went to visit really thought that THE WOLF WAS LITERALLY AT THEIR DOOR!