Below is a letter I found in Grandma Foster’s Scrapbook. It was written in 1940 by Sheldon H. Kinney… the Fosters’ next door neighbor in Pasadena, CA… quite an accomplished young 25 year old. Here is a newspaper article published in the Chicago Tribune about him:
Interesting how they published his parents’ home address, huh? I don’t think we’d see that in today’s press, do you?
While at sea, during World War Two, Sheldon wrote this heartfelt letter to his parents:
How Grandma Foster got ahold of that letter so she could include it in her scrapbook is a mystery. But, it is there… preserved for me to share! I hope you find it as inspiring as I do. Makes me wish I had written something similar to my parents when I was 25! But, did I have the insight at that age to “see my parents as man and woman” the way Sheldon did? I doubt it.
How very precious to read Sheldon’s praise of his parents, and to feel the warmth they must have felt when reading those accolades!
As I continue to sift through the scrapbook’s treasures, I will gladly share others with you. I hope you are enjoying these as much as I am!
May you experience such love, too!!Bob’s brother Bill and MargeOur love for each otherMy cousin, Adrian DeAngelis & LauraBob’s 1969 wrestling student, Kevin with wife, KimTime with in-laws, the Paynes Contact with our DollyWolly, DeDe, in Switzerland Visit with Bob’s nephew, Bryan, and his sweet wife, Michelle … in their beautiful home Opportunity to attend church at Harvest – such sweet memories here!Christmas with granddaughter Faith and her hubbySo proud of our son, Ty, and the life he is living Ty’s wife, Monika, the perfect partner!Great food and precious Mable, our great-granddaughter Time in CA wine country: life can’t get much better!Thank you, Ty & Monika May your life be so blessed, too!!
Hard to believe! BionicBob is 87 today! Happy Birthday to my dear, sweet husband! I’m so glad he is here, hearing, and healing!!
Great visiting with old friends!
Feeling loved and pampered!
Staying with my dear cousin, Adrian & Laura DeAngelisVisiting former students ❤️👍🏽 Yes, this is Kevin from Bob’s 1969 wrestling program!!Time in Placerville with family … precious!Blessed to have each other!
Bob’s surgery (the insertion of a cochlear implant) is done. Lots of prayers for him… and they are really appreciated. Thank you, my WordPress friends. Now, the request is for successful healing and a safe drive home tomorrow (it’s 400 miles) and there’s a possibility of snow.
Bob – after surgeryMe… now… just sitting the sit!
And praying for all this to be worth it. Ultimately- better hearing. Please!
My sermon notes try to capture the essence of what I hear each Sunday. Our pastor, Brian Conklin, delivered this inspiring message last Sunday:
Issues of faith, leprosy, and other skin troubles Are the topics we are looking at today. God is whispering to us to pay attention, Live with humility, and show our gratitude.
Naaman, the man in 2Kings 5, was a man of great wealth Whose skin disease stripped away his power. A small, captured servant girl told Naaman There was a man in Israel, Elisha, who could heal him.
Naaman went to Elisha’s house and was greeted By a servant who told him to go to the Jordan river And dip himself seven time for healing, He does go, after anger and reluctance, and was healed.
It was his listening and obeying God in humility That was his true source of healing. Then, (in Luke 17) there were ten lepers who were healed And only one turned back in gratitude, and was made whole.
Ten were healed, but only one was transformed. Faith is about trusting in the next step, Even in transition, fatigue, illness, and reluctance. Healing is about the restoration of relationship.
God meets us in our obedience, humility, and gratitude. Trust enough to step forward – then healing begins. When you are blessed, do you turn back? Do you stop, remember, and reflect in an Attitude of Gratitude?
Give thanks always, knowing our faithful God Will make you whole in your transformation. Sometimes the solution seems too simple – But if it takes seven dips in the river, do it!
And then, don’t forget to turn back to God And express your heartfelt gratitude For the ways He is faithful and always Answers your prayers with His mercy and compassion.
Amen? Amen!
What answered prayer are you especially grateful for today?
Today’s Prompt was: What positive emotion do you feel most often?
My Response: Gratitude
I’m grateful for the neighbors who came immediately last night when I called them. I was frantic! Kenny, our pup, was crying. We could hear his barks and his whining, but we couldn’t find him. It sounded like it was coming from under the house. Maybe he went under the deck and got stuck on something. Maybe a rattlesnake bit him (years ago we had that happen to our Boston named Angela). We searched high and low for Kenny. No luck!
We were frantic! So we called our friends. They came. Four of them! We all searched. Still no luck.
So, we went into the house (we’d already searched there thoroughly).
When we walked in through the back door, there was a black and white nose sticking out from under Bob’s chair!! Kenny had squeezed under to fetch a toy – and he got stuck!! Whew!!!😥 We lifted the chair to release him. Gratitude? Ah yes!! 👏🏽
Thank You, Jesus!
Thank You, God, Thank You, Jesus! Thank You for neighbors, for answered prayers, for the safety of our pup! Whew!!
Remember that first picture up there of Kenny lying on a quilt? I’m grateful for it, too. Do you have a memory quilt?
I love mine! And no, Kenny doesn’t usually get to lie on it! It was a retirement gift from my teaching colleagues when I retired back in 1999. The sentiments on it and the remembrances are so precious!
Marta Garcia did the stitching and each of my colleagues at school added a piece with their name and sometimes a sentiment. “Stitched with dreams of traveling forever,” Marta wrote.
If you live in Ennis, Montana with the Madison River running through it and the spectacular Rocky Mountains as your backdrop, and people from all over the world coming here to fish and to just relax and enjoy the peace, the open spaces, the wild animals, and the proximity to Yellowstone, then you live daily with an attitude of gratitude, and guess what? Traveling forever is not a daily prayer. We are grateful that you come to us! Keep doing it!
