Tell Me A Story

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

WHAT'S THE VIEW FROM WHERE YOU ARE?

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

Link: http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/2015/08/whats-view-from-where-you-are.html

What's the View From Where You Are?
Copyright 2003 Mary Marcia Norwood

"I wish for a train ride for my 9th birthday!" said my daughter, Sarah. "I've never-ever been on a train! Pl-e-e-e-e-ase, Mommy!"

Two of my daughters, Sarah and Faith, and my granddaughter, Megan were dressed in matching blue and white pin-striped overalls and red turtlenecks. We boarded the Amtrak train in Lee's Summit, Missouri, and were off on our adventure to Jefferson City, Missouri's capital city, to make Sarah's birthday wish come true.

"Let's call Mema (my mother) from the train," I said as we neared our destination.

"What's the view from where you are?" Mema asked me.

"We're crossing over a bridge and have beautiful views of the Missouri River. We're about to arrive in Jefferson City." I said.

All three girls chattered at the same time to Mema as they shared what they saw from the windows of the train.

Two weeks later, my mother died. She battled cancer bravely for over two years. The hospice nurses who cared for Mom called her their Hospice Poster Girl. Mom made peace with herself, her family, and with God before she crossed the bridge to Heaven.

If I could talk to Mom today, I would thank her for pouring so much love into me that it continues to overflow into the lives of my own children and grandchildren, and I would ask her:

"What's the view from where you are in Heaven?"

Family Wedding Photos

What's the view from where you are today?

Thanks for stopping by!
Come back often, and invite a friend!

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/

Thursday, August 6, 2015

IN THE MARGIN

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/

I opened my Bible this morning

to the book of Psalms,

and began reading Psalm 1.

My handwritten notes

in the margin of my Bible

caught my attention.

I like to write notes in the margin of my Bible

during my own Bible study time,

and also when I'm sitting under the

preaching and teaching

of GOD's anointed pastors and teachers.

The first note I wrote

in the margin

was a question to GOD

from me:

"What do you see when you look at me?

Do you see your reflection?"

The next note:

"Christmas Carol 1982 -

A body hast thou prepared for me"

is a reference to a Bible quote

on the Christmas song and card I created in 1982.

One note is a quote

from one of my favorite pastors,

Dr. William O Poe.

Instantly I was transported back to 1976.

Dr. Poe's voice echoed throughout the auditorium

and fell on me as I sat in a white pew

at Waldo Avenue Baptist Church

in Independence, Missouri.

"The whole earth is held in His power

by a delicate balance."

Bro. Poe

The quote

in the margin of my Bible

that made me smile and cry

was not in my own handwriting.

The note near the center of the fold of my Bible

was in my daughter, Kristin's handwriting.

"I love you, mom! Love, Kristin"

My beautiful daughter, Kristin,

used my Bible to study a scripture

she memorized: Psalm 1.

Kristin drew a rectangle

around Psalm 1 as she studied it in my Bible,

and my precious little girl wrote a love note to me

in the margin of my Bible

that thrills my heart and soul

just as much today as it did 30 years ago.

"I love you, mom! Love, Kristin"

My firstborn

is now Dave's wife,

and mother

to Joshua, Emily and Caleb.

Joshua, Emily, SANTA, Caleb, Dave and Kristin at Crown Center 2013.

The words from Psalm 1

that Kristin hid in her heart as a child,

continue to guide her and me,

and the next generation of our family.

Psalm 1

BLESSED is the man

that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,

nor standeth in the way of sinners,

nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

But his delight

is in the law of the LORD;

and in his law

doth he meditate day and night.

And he shall be like a tree

planted by the rivers of water,
that bringeth forth his fruit in his season;

his leaf also shall not wither;

and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

The ungoldy are not so:

but are like the chaff

which the wind driveth away.

Therefore the ungodly

shall not stand in the judgment,

nor sinners

in the congregation of the righteous.

For the LORD

knoweth the way of the righteous:

but the way of the ungodly

shall perish.

The Holy Bible

King James Version

What's in the margin of your Bible?

Thanks for stopping by!
Come back often, and invite a friend!

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

Sunday, July 19, 2015

THREE GATES

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

Before you speak,

let your words pass through

three gates.

Is it true?

Is it kind?

Is it necessary?

Copyright 2015 Marcia Norwood

When I found this wonderful quote, I immediately thought of all the photos I've taken of gates, so I matched the quote with three of my favorite gates to create the collage.

The beautiful ornate iron green gate

is part of a fence at a historical home in Carthage, Missouri.

This rustic wood door/gate

is part of the edible garden at Powell Gardens,

Kansas City Missouri's Botanical Garden.

https://www.powellgardens.org/

The black iron gate

is part of an antique fence at the

Historical Village in Pella, Iowa.

http://www.pellahistorical.org/

The next time you see a gate, remember...

Before you speak,

let your words pass through

three gates.

Is it true?

Is it kind?

Is it necessary?

Monday, July 13, 2015

HA HA TONKA STATE PARK

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

Permalink

http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/2015/07/ha-ha-tonka-state-park.html

My daughters, Faith and Sarah, treated me to a four day getaway to the Lake of the Ozarks for my birthday. This was one of my all-time favorite birthdays.

We shopped at the Premium Outlets in Osage Beach, Missouri, Ozarkland in Camdenton, and also visited Windermere Baptist Assembly in Roach, Missouri, and Ha Ha Tonka State Park.

As we walked up the path to the castle ruins, I heard a lady say to me: "There's the Tell-Me-A-Story-Lady!"

That was a nice surprise. Maybe she read my previous blog on Ha Ha Tonka!

Here's a link to the previous blog I wrote

about Ha Ha Tonka State Park:

REPAIRER OF BROKEN WALLS

CLICK on the link or COPY & PASTE the link in your browser:

http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/2015/01/repairer-of-broken-walls.html

Ha Ha Tonka is a great place to take photographs.

Here's a link to the previous blog I wrote

about Ha Ha Tonka.

REPAIRER OF BROKEN WALLS

CLICK on the link or COPY & PASTE the link in your browser:

http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/2015/01/repairer-of-broken-walls.html

Check out my previous blog

about Ha Ha Tonka State Park:

REPAIRER OF BROKEN WALLS

CLICK on the link or COPY & PASTE the link in your browser:

http://tellmeastory-marcia.blogspot.com/2015/01/repairer-of-broken-walls.html

Thanks for stopping by!

Come back often, and invite a friend!

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

Friday, July 3, 2015

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, USA 2015

Mary Marcia
America's STORYTELLER
Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

Happy Birthday, USA!

July 4, 2015

I was born about 15 minutes after midnight on July 5th, but we always celebrated my birthday on July 4th. That's when all my family: aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents all gathered for the annual 4th of July celebration.

There was always lots of food, fun, and fireworks, and of course, my birthday cake. I actually thought the entire country celebrated my birthday until I was about five years old, when I discovered it was the birth date of the United States of America.

I like sharing my birthday with my country, although it can be confusing to cake decorators. One year, the greeting on the cake my family ordered for my birthday was misspelled. It said: "Happy Birthday Merica" -- a combination of "Happy Birthday, America," and "Happy Birthday Marcia."

This year, my daughter, Faith, revived the tradition, and ordered a special cake for me that said: "Happy Birthday, Merica." I love her sense of humor!

July 4, 205, we'll be celebrating my birthday, and the birth of our country, and we'll say a prayer that if GOD's people here and around the world, will humble themselves, pray, seek His face, turn from our wicked ways, then GOD will forgive our sin, and heal our land.

Happy Birthday, USA!

Mary Marcia

America's STORYTELLER

Telling Untold Stories in Photographs, Prose and Public Speaking

Tell Me A Story

TELL ME A STORY

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

WHAT'S THE VIEW FROM WHERE YOU ARE?

Thursday, August 6, 2015

IN THE MARGIN

Sunday, July 19, 2015

THREE GATES

Monday, July 13, 2015

HA HA TONKA STATE PARK

Friday, July 3, 2015

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, USA 2015

AMERICA'S STORYTELLER, Marcia Norwood