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I'm no longer posting here...

Instead, try KatieSpeaking.com!

Thanks, and I'll see you there!

Katie
3/7/12

The Academy Awards Goes To...

Maybe it's just part of being a working mother, (as if identifying myself as "mother" wasn't descriptive enough) but I honestly cannot remember the last time I watched an awards show-or-any-show from beginning to end.  Unless it's online.  Who's with me on that? YO!!!!

Noah's film making!

Tonight I'm watching the award show for The Academy of Motion Pictures, LIVE simply because my kids are making movies every day.  I kid you not!  ; ) To hear the interviews from the Red Carpet, it's an educational experience!

Don't believe me?  Ok, right this very moment, Noah, age 7 is using the built in camera on a laptop to record a digital image on this electronic game he has.  The image is being recorded and then projected on a wall!  So even though I am at a table across the room, I can see what he's creating!  Crazy!

Gabe and Lego parts!

Gabe, 9, is busy with Legos...  He's running from room to room gathering Legos, creating an Imperial Star Destroyer of Star Wars, which, according to Gabe has a $399 price tag.  Gabe is almost never wrong about prices of desired objects. When he was born, we all said he looked like a little old man.  Now, I think "little old banker!"  Back to film making, the other day, Gabe took my phone and was going from room to room making the sounds of a jet-engine.  When my phone finally landed, there was a great video from the perspective of a jet pilot!  I'd share it if there weren't so many items out of place for the back round!

Oh, oh, oh, and for those of you who loved my 20 Questions and Answers of Going Blonde, actress Viola Davis gave a moving interview from the Carpet about growing out her hair in it's unaltered form.  She said it was her husband who encouraged her to go natural.  On that note, I owe my husband a huge shout out for ALWAYS encouraging me to drop the bottle of hair color and go natural, too.

Oh, my Honey just walked in!  I better go thank him!  The show must go on!  Enjoy!

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

The Days Are Long, But The Years Are Short

Life is just flying by for me and my family!  Sometimes, as homeschoolers, the labor is so intense that we forget how quickly the years pass!  A friend posted this quote, "The days are long but the years are short!"  'Tis true!
I appreciate your readership so very much.  I think about you throughout each day.  I'm always getting ideas and filtering them; "How quickly could I make this into a post?"  It seems it's never fast enough!  


Thank you for reading and sharing the stories you love with those you love!


FYI... Stories in the works:
*Our family's new favorite book: The Invention of Hugo Cabret (It's a GREAT movie, too!)
*Trails and hikes in East Tennessee
*Rethinking the Voting Void... Do our Votes Really Count?
*How Pecan Pie Saved My Marriage
*The Feingold Diet Impact
And more!!!


Much love and thanks again!
Katie

Hobbies and Happiness @ the Living Heritage Museum

Single-Room Pioneer House now on display at the Living Heritage Museum!  Akin to Little House on the Prairie, my kids and I lit up when we saw this part of the museum! Curator Lisa Chastain is pictured here, and she's my new BFF!  Thanks, Lisa, for indulging me with so many wonderful details during the tour!  I love your work!

Click here to listen to my interview with Living Heritage Museum Curator Lisa Chastain!

Don't miss this event!

Saturday, Feb. 18, 10 a.m. Program – Tennessee Sampler Lecture

In the Parlor.

Ex. Dir. Ashley Rush, Cur. Lisa Chastain and me :)

My Aunt has many portraits like these in her home...Perhaps that's why I like them so much!

Lisa said all the kids who visit the museum play "find the two brothers" in this painting!

In the country store! 

A scale such as this may have been used for trading vegetables...  If you've got 1lb carrots and I've got 1lb peppers, let's trade!

Tools of dentistry/torture haven't changed that much! LOL. ;)

All-natural pain killer for before/after the dentist...

And now we're living history!  This still was conviscated from Starr Mountian in 2011!!!  It was the first still to be confiscated in thirty years!  Fact: McMinn County allows for the sale of beer, but no other alcoholic beverages.

Kids are allowed to "camp out" as the soldiers of the Civil War would have done.

It's a RED COAT! Oh, wrong war, lol.

Samplers such as this would be the work of a wealthy man's daughter, you can tell by the complication of skill needed.  Who ever crafted this would have had a lot of time to dedicate to her "work" and probably would have been viewed when a potential husband came for a visit.  (Fact:  My Aunt has Samplers in her home, too!  I never knew what they were called before visiting the Living Heritage Museum.) 

This too is a Sampler, albeit a sample-of-stitches!  It's actually the work of a student at Tennessee Weslayan College when it was a finishing school for women.  (My mother will like that bit of info!)

Little, but not least! I love this alpahbet sampler!  So cute.  Thanks, Lisa for holding the frame for me!   

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

Morgan Johnson, 17-year-old Victim of Suicide Remembered With Love

Since Tuesday when the news of 17-year-old Morgan Johnson's suicide first scrolled across Facebook, I feel as if I carried a ton of bricks.  Almost unable to move with the sadness of this young woman's death.  I didn't know Morgan but my husband taught at her school.  I've wanted so much to do something for this GEM of a young lady, for ALL young ladies ARE GEMS.  Rare and highly valued, as all persons are, I'm reminded that in a dark world such as ours, we need to hear the good news of our "gem-ness." At times we all fear that we aren't worth much.

Community gathered at the L&N Depot, Etowah, Tennessee

I gathered with some spiritual people last night (Thursday) and we spoke of Morgan.  We spoke of our responsibility to love each other, to bear one another's burdens, to do it without expectation of anything in return.  We felt downcast for we were thinking that we are terrible failures at loving this way.  We spoke of the most loving person who ever lived and how our favorite book about him tells us he gave up heaven for us.  HE GAVE UP HEAVEN FOR US.  Because, for him, us knowing him, us knowing his father, WAS what he lived and died and rose again to realize!  His love for us never fails!  He will fill us to over- flowing with love for each other.  We need only look to him!


On Morgan's Facebook page, she says she knows this One Who Loves her most.  Someone had to tell her that.  Someone shared that good news of a hero!  I went to a candlelight vigil for Morgan to represent the One Who Loves. He has a plan in all this.  He works all things together for good for those who know him.  You and I are invited to know Him!

I've wanted so much to do something for this GEM of a young lady, for ALL young ladies ARE GEMS.

Haley Martin, friend of Morgan's and coordinator of the candle light vigil met with me after the event.  I was grateful for her willingness to do something in honor of Morgan.   


We need only look on the One Who Loves to be filled with love...  Let us rest, gazing upon him!  He will be our strength.  He will never leave us nor forsake us, not even in death!  

From the Daily Post Athenian: Authorities looking into whether bullying led to student’s suicide

BREAKING NEWS UPDATE  for  Wednesday, February 8, 2012.

BREAKING NEWS - Authorities looking into whether bullying led to student’s suicide Special to The Daily Post-AthenianThe McMinn County Sheriff’s Department is looking into the possibility that bullying may have led to the suicide of a 17-year-old McMinn Central High School student on Tuesday. While no direct link with bullying has been established, authorities continue to investigate the incident. “I’ve kept in close contact with the young lady’s parents,” said Sheriff Joe Guy. “Neither her parents, school administrators, nor our school resource officers had received any reports that she was a victim of bullying prior to this unfortunate incident. “There have been some allegations made afterward, and we will look into those allegations,” Guy said. “Her parents and I agree that the most important thing is to do whatever we can to prevent another family from having to experience a tragic loss like this. “If any kind of intimidation or harassment occurs in our schools, it needs to be reported before a tragedy happens,” he added. “Students who have knowledge of any issues are encouraged to go to teachers, parents, guidance counselors, ministers and school resource officers. “Our community is committed to dealing with the problem of bullying, but we need people to speak up before, not afterward when it is too late,” Guy said. The incident occurred Tuesday around noon in a church parking lot in McMinn County. The student had not attended school that day. Guy said that he posted two of his chaplains at McMinn Central High School today to assist school officials and local clergy members in counseling students and staff members as they deal with the loss. “Our community has lost a beautiful, intelligent young person with so much hope and promise,” Guy said. “It’s just devastating. Our thoughts and prayers are with her parents, friends and family.” A candlelight vigil is planned for tonight in Downtown Etowah. Read Story

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

Three Little Acts to Change the Future for Better!

Vision Casting Tomorrow, February 4th.  Athens Alive 2035 Event

1.  Attend Athens Alive 2035 tomorrow from 10 AM to 2PM.


Tomorrow, we are invited to the Athens Middle School auditorium, to share our hopes for the future!  I've shared on the air that, "this side of heaven, there is no "heaven"" and that's true.  But until Christ returns, it is our work to redeem the relationships of people to God, and then to be ambassadors of God's love to his creation! 

 “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Mark 16:15


Which is why, when Athens Public Works Director, Athens' own Young-Man-of-the-Year and friend Shawn Lindsey wrote the email below, I wanted to share it with you!


2.  Listen for INSPIRATION

"Dear Friends:I was in grade school when my teacher talked to us about the concept of utopia.  I was fascinated with the idea of a perfect place.  It consumed my thoughts and I wanted to learn more and more about it and I have pursued it my entire life and still to this day the idea of utopia keeps me up nights.  For those that may not know what Utopia is Wikipedia defines it as: 

Utopia (/juːˈtoʊpiə/) is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt to create an ideal society, and fictional societies portrayed in literature. It has spawned other concepts, most prominentlydystopia.

 I later read books like Don Quixote by Cervantes who told us a story of a man who decided to see the world as it should be instead of how it was.  I admire this kind of crazy.  I like the fact that there are those among who have the attitudes, the belief in themselves and those around them, as well as the courage to change the world for the better.  Now it seems to me as if we all have that chance this Saturday.   I hope to see you at the Middle School and to be ready to decide the future of the community we all love and the faith to make it happen.  I think it is the time and the place to begin brining an Abundant Life to those we will leave this community to in 2035.  I can’t wait for the journey between now and then and to see the path laid before us as this process is completed.

Please look at the attached and share with your fellow Athenians at work, school, church, and with your civic clubs.

 Sincerely,

Shawn Lindsey

Public Works Director

City of Athens

phone: 423 744-2746

Isn't Mr. Lindsey a great writer?!  You can see why I wanted to share this email.  We thank God for The Lindsey Family and the blessing they are to Mc Minn County!
Tomorrow, our family will not be present for this event.  Our dear Uncle Clarence Croft, who used humor & engineering to redeem many an awkward situation will be laid to rest in Madisonville.  Please remember Uncle Clarence's family in your prayers.
3.  Share your hopes for the future of Athens!

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

Cancer Survivor Hugh Mc Campbell Plays It Forward Through Concert Fundraiser

Tonight we went to a concert, which was actually like a really cool PBS Special.  My very first guest on my radio show, Katie's Community Connection was a man named Hugh "Doc" Mc Campbell.  He's a vet for large animals and has a resume more diverse than the United Nations!  Honestly, I didn't know what to expect tonight!  I know Doc is always full of surprising stories to tickle the funny-bone.  And I know he can play the  piano (he plays at church nearly every Sunday...) And he can play the banjo and sing, (Doc recorded a song that I used for my show's intro theme music!)
Doc went from recognizing veterans, to the pledge, to "God Bless America!" seamlessly.  A favorite funny was the randomly chosen audience/quartet singers who sang a 60's love song, unrehearsed while Doc accompanied on the piano!  A little-known but beautiful piece written by Doc's mom conveyed the close-knit family which Hugh was raised in...
Doc and Marty, his wife of nearly forty-four years have put on this concert annually for the last five years.  It's a community service event in may ways...  First, it's a family friendly, redemptive and entertaining show!  Second, it's a fundraiser for the Mc Campbells' dearly held causes.  Doc is a cancer survivor; some of the money raised goes to cancer research.  A bit of a "pay-it-forward."  The Boy Scouts of America, yes, Hugh was a Cub-Scout AND an Eagle Scout (much like many of the early astronauts), and the third beneficiary of tonight's ticket sales is the Sweetwater Council for the Arts.
After a beautiful reception at the Mc Campbells' home, I finally got my moment with the Star!  "Doc," I said, "This was such a special event...I know you do this and so much more to support the community, you should be Volunteer of the Year!"  After belaboring the point, Hugh walked me back to where there was hung a BIG plaque...  It read:

"Hugh Mc Campbell, Volunteer of The Year 2010".

I was pleased and so was Doc.  Doc went from frame to frame on the walls, sharing stories.  (He must eat a lot of cucumbers or something because his memory is as good as my nine-year-old's!)  My jaw dropped as I read a personal letter from President George W. Bush to Doc!  (It's seems that I am just one-person removed from the Bush family lately.  See my post about "Let it Rain".) Well, then Doc told me they were cousins and I laughed.  Then he showed me the genealogy map and I wasn't laughing anymore!
Doc and Marty have become dear friends to our family.   In the last six months, Marty has been the driving influence behind a new English-As-A-Second-Language school and two Bible Studies for women.  Doc is contacted regularly to appear on TV or radio for his various talents, and still practices veterinary medicine full time.  They have a growing number of grandchildren; many are homeschooled.
Kudos to everyone in Sweetwater who condoned this event.  As we were leaving, I saw the Mayor of Sweetwater usher a disabled man into his car to give him a ride home from the concert.  What mayor does that?  One I want to re-elect, that's for sure!  What a blessed family we are, what a blessed community we have here in East Tennessee.  I'm so thankful for the Mc Campbells and especially that Doc survived cancer!  Here's to another sweet memory and many successful fundraising concerts!
Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz
P.S. If you would like a CD of Doc's music or would like to support Doc and Marty's fundraising efforts,  send me an email at KatieSmithCommunityConnection@gmail.com

Bring on the Rain, Something BIGGER IS HAPPENING!

Drizzle and cold temps today cannot stop the swell of love...  It is pervasive, like the wind, always moving.

Today in Athens, Tennessee, I took a stroll to the Living Heritage Museum where I saw the VERY FIRST IPAD!!!!  It's called a "Sampler" and you may have seen them without even knowing it! Special thanks to Mary, who hosted my visit! Then, my visit with LHM Exec. Director Ashley Rush blew my mind with ideas and strategy to keep audio and video content coming your way!  (Feel the love??)

I needed to get Thank You Notes for Ashley and I wanted THE BEST for her...  So on my way threw downtown, I stopped at Greek's Bearing Gifts, which is just-Aaaaaaah!  A breath of fresh air!  I'm sure I drove the sales clerk crazy, but she didn't let on, answering question after question about paper!  I wanted just the right colors.  "Blush and Bashful."  If you are a Steel Magnolias devotee as I am then I'm sure you will understand!  (I think "Blush and Bashful" are sorority colors too...Someone can fill me in on that...)

Right next door is the Athens Chamber of Commerce, where Chamber President Rob Preston told me three stories...

1.  Meeting First Lady Barbara Bush and the Secret Police!!!
2. Steve Scheibner, American Airlines pilot originally scheduled to pilot the first plane to hit the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.  He's coming to town in honor of all McMinn County service women.  Mark your calendars for Friday, March 9, 2012.  Tickets are $10. Call 423-745-0334
3. Tanya, who was on my radio show back in December...  I knew Tanya served the homeless.  What I didn't know was that after loosing her regular job, she was so burdened to help the homeless that she just started feeding them, taking them food out in the woods!  I hope to speak with Tanya again soon...

Keep our family in your prayers, too!  We're strategizing and partnering to see and hear and SHARE these stories with you here online.  If you have an idea, comment or would like to sponsor the new venture, please let me know! 

 I'll be staying in touch with you!

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

Gifted Friends...Annie Rose Robinson Releases Her First Music Video!

I am so excited for Annie-Rose Robinson, (Katie's Community Connection guest) a recording artist with Pretty Woman Music!  Here's her first video!  Congrats to all involved and much love!

Connect with Annie Rose Robinson:

FACEBOOK:

http://www.facebook.com/AnnieRoseMusic

TWITTER:

https://twitter.com/AnnnieRose

YOUTUBE:

http://www.youtube.com/user/AnnieRoseMusicTV

REVERBNATION:

http://www.reverbnation.com/annieroserobinson

MYSPACE:

http://www.myspace.com/annieroserobinson

TUMBLR:

http://annnierose.tumblr.com/

Category:

Music

xoxo,
Katie

A Call to Prayer*Local Event By Christian Covenant Church

prayer 
|pre(ə)r|noun
a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God

We've been invited to pray for the broken hearted, for our nation.
And we've been invited to have our hearts broken, for our nation.
In the days of the Civil Rights Movement, I'm sure people had their hearts broken.  Millions were treated unjustly because of the color of their skin.  People prayed and, though painful, God answered those prayers. Again, and now, millions of tiny unborn innocents are being hated.  In this event,  JOEL 2 SOLEMN ASSEMBLY by Christian Covenant Church, we are invited to examine on-going habits in society today; habits which hurt us, not help us.

Won't you join us?

When:  Saturday, Jan. 21, at 6 - 9 pmWhere:  Christian Covenant Church is on County Road 616 (New Zion Rd.) off County Road 750 (Piney Grove/Landfill Rd.)
for GPS: 120 C. R. 616  Athens, TN 37303

"Joel 2:14-16  Who knoweth if he (GOD) will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; ... Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children."

For more information, RSVP and invite others, click here.

http://www.christiancovenantchurch.com/



Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

The Joy of Juicing, The Joy of Doughnuts!

We took the first drink...  My family and I made the Mean Green juice recipe today!  I LOVED the aroma of green apples, lemon, fresh ginger, celery and so on.  I found myself excited at the idea of opening a fresh-juice kitchen or to garden as a lifestyle.  It was that wonderful!  I'm very thankful for a husband who presses me to try life-giving endeavors like this!
We prepared the kids, boys, ages 7 & 9 by watching the documentary Dying to Have Known.  Similar to Fat Sick & Nearly Dead in that it shows the benies of eating "green" as well as all the other colors of the rainbow, but, is different in that the premise is to prove or disprove the Gerson Method for curing cancer.  This had the nine-year-old's attention.  He tried the apple-lemonade and loved it!  Not-so-much for the seven-year-old  "I only eat (fill-in-the-blank-on-any-given-day)" kid.  "To each his own" and "Rome wasn't built in a day!"
Then came the trip to the new Dunkin' Doughnuts.  We live in a very small town, one that just opened a Dunkin Doughnuts.  No Starbucks for 30 miles in any direction.  (Now you know I'm on a mission from God, right?!  I've proven that a citified woman can live without Starbucks.  For heaven's sake, even my language has assimilated to the culture! "Citified!") 
Ahem, feeling so good after my fresh juice, I headed to Dunkin Doughnuts to get some research accomplished.  Dear friends and owners of a national engineering firm have asked me to do some writing for their website!  My mind is aflutter with quippy-quips!  "What goes up, must come down" Naaaahhh.  NOT for a civil-structural engineer's website!  As soon as I sat down I met the nicest older couple and low-and-behold, the husband was a chemist and patent attorney for Dow Chemical, among other nameable companies, in the 60's.  He shared a remarkable story of working conditions in a lab where the scientists had liver problems and were dying.  (Remember the movie Erin Brokovich?!) ...How when he walked outside his place of work, the pollution in the air was so thick it burned his eyes...And how "the men in suits would walk in and out of the lab very quickly."
As we drank our free coffee and yes, even ate doughnuts as we visited I could not help but question what happens to those who cannot choose a different career, those who cannot go back to college?  That makes me thankful to oversee my kids' education.  But ultimately, my hope is not in what I teach, or eat, or not.  My hope, if built on the foundation of my efforts, will be like a ball in the air.  What goes up must come down.  I pray that my hope will be in a sovereign God, in his plans and purposes that exceed my ideals and my life span.  Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End.  Ora et Labora.  Work and Pray!
Or eat wisely and pray?  Love graciously and pray.  Think about the goodness of God all around and in new friends at a coffee shop.  God is calling.  Let us be found listening!

The Book of John, Chapter 1, verses 1 through 4
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men."

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

Join Me! Extreme Home Makeover in Knoxville!

UPDATE:

Extreme Makeover Home Edition - Shift Notification for Katie- Day 10, Thursday 1/19 - 8:00 am - 2:00 pm

From a previous post:
I just love Extreme Makeover Home Edition!  And in just a week or so, they will be in Knoxville, needing volunteers!  If you've ever wanted to be involved in the show or in doing something really awesome for someone else, check out this link: 


Click below to volunteer!
http://www.joinextreme.com/tnvolunteer
If you apply, let me know!  We'd love to hear about your experience!

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

Labels: 

Link: http://www.joinextreme.com/tnvolunteer

Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

Rachel Wrote a Song About Joy and I LOVE IT! *Album release today!

One of my favorite authors, Francis Chan, has five kids.  Francis writes about God's crazy outpouring of love for people.  So when his daughter Rachel wrote a song about the unconditional joy through Jesus Christ,   I wanted to hear it!
(For Rachel's song, EVEN HERE, go to 24:00.)

Francis' preaching is full of hope and awe.  Many preach, but few love God.  Francis loves God and I want what he has in his relationship with God!  Rachel's song helps bring it home to my heart...
Rachel's website
Her album just happens to release today, January 10, 2012!  If you download it or pick it up, let me know what you think!  Or read more about Rachel, her family and her music here.
Thanks and Happy New Year :)
Soli Deo Gloria! ~K. De La Cruz

20 Questions and Answers: Why I'm a Blonde

On my personal FB page, many have asked questions about my recent change of style.  ...I was tempted to say, "well, I'm playing the part of a Russian spy," or "yes, my stylist and I frequently brainstorm style ideas and decided PLATINUM,"  which is partially true as I am the stylist...  The following article is, perhaps TMI.  However, this is what I settled on...  (Haircut by Debbie Davis at Walmart in Athens.)


The problem with hair is that it grows really, really fast!  Then, one who has colored or dyed their hair has "roots."  I am tired of thinking about roots.  My hair started going gray when I was eleven.  I've been in a vicious cycle of "to-color-or-not-to color" ever since.
As I drove to the discount store where a shopper never knows which color will be available, I prayed.  I prayed, "please, two boxes of the same hair color  OR hair-color remover."  (Don't judge!  Someone you know, probably you, have done the same thing. Ok, maybe not.)  I was so excited to be free of coloring my hair!  Anyway, with one box of hair-color remover (no two-boxes of the same color dye) and with my husband's support, I committed to the process of removing hair color and started at the front of my hair line.  Only, there wasn't enough color remover in the bottle to cover my entire head!  I had been swept up in the decision of leaving my brunette hair behind and I did not realize I didn't have enough "supplies" on hand to finish the transition.  Saying something indiscernible to my husband and children, I acted to remedy the situation.  I have managed to get my hair to an almost-white color...  (It was various shades of Mountain Dew and Orange Crush for a while...) Thankfully, it is quickly growing back out.  It's not like I think blondes have more fun or that I wanted a new look.  Really, I was just frustrated with roots.  Since then, I have made a point to ask ladies where ever I go, if they too are growing out roots, why they are doing so.  When I see roots, I know there's a story there.  All creation is awaiting the Great Redemption.  All us ladies with roots are no exception.
An idea I struggle with is what if everyone stopped coloring their hair and instead used that money to END world-poverty...  It could happen!  Have you heard of "58?"  It's a movement to end poverty world-wide, in our generation!  Here's a link!  :  http://live58.org/thefilm/  But that's another blog topic!
I am wrestling, too, with why I should spend so much time and money on my hair when it won't last?  It has no eternal value.  Of course, I felt like an idiot when I had an interview for a gig and had to go with this very bright hair do.  I wanted to dye it dark again, but I'm ready for a break from the every-two-weeks tradition of hair-coloring...  
In any case, God cannot love us more than he already does and he will not love us less.  Whatever we do, may it be an act of faith expressing itself in love.  Something as simple as trusting the almighty sovereign God over the natural color of my hair is not natural to me.  But still, he loves me and promises to complete the good work he started in my heart.  Somehow, this hair-coloring adventure is part, however small a part,  of his plan to make my heart more like his heart.  
While doing research for this post, I met a lady who's son-in-law has cancer. Please pray for their family and for his healing.
  Thanks for reading.  I appreciate your time and welcome your responses.  
God cannot love you more and he will not love you less!
 ~K. De La Cruz

Reason #278, Why I Live In The South by Brad Mizer

I fostered a deep thought today. I gave it room to grow and this is what I came up with. The majority of TN residents are from the south. I didn't grow up helping my father put snow chains on the tires of the family car and shovel the driveway in the winter. When I learned to drive it was 85 degrees in October, thus no snow. I have driven in snow all of 10 times in my life. I enjoy a good 3 inches of snow when everything shuts down and no one goes to work. It is ironic to me that people from the north make fun of us southerners for not wanting to strap into a 2000 pound, rear wheel drive, steel car and drive on summer tires through an inch of snow that we obviously have not been taught to drive in. Who are the real dummies? Is it wise for a bunch of unlearned snow drivers to take to the icey streets all at once just because you did it in northern Ohio or Maryland all the time? Take the day off work, eat a frozen pizza with some hot chocolate and watch Lifetime with your wife. I am proud to be a terrible snow driver. I hate cold weather. That is reason #278 that I live in the south.

Thanks, Brad, for the chuckle and for allowing me to share your Facebook post here!  Brad and his family are the owners of East West Media, a billboard advertising company in East Tennessee.  Their office is filled with amazing advertising artwork spanning a multi-decade time period...  My kids and I loved visiting the Mizers at their office!  P.S.  This is not a paid endorsement of East West Media. 

Soli Deo Gloria!
Latin,  "To God Be The Glory."  Jean Kim of The Cambridge School in San Diego taught me this phrase. ~K. De La Cruz