Do you believe in luck?  I don’t until I observe two of my sisters. Then I do.

You see, Ms Julia Margaret is the luckiest person around. She has been for years. We joke that if we want to win a doorprize, write her name on it. Invariably- Dairyman Specialty, James River, and Farm Credit have her number on speed dial after customer appreciation day.  This fall, Julia and her husband traveled to WI to the World Dairy Expo… and out of 70,000 people- guess who’s having UPS back up to the door and unload doorprizes. You guessed it- Mrs Showalter cleaned house. Again.

Now- my dear sweet darling talented sister Emily… Not so much. Poor kid. She has the most popular girls name in the US for over 20 years, and yet she doesn’t manage to really ever get it selected for the big win. or the small win. or any win. It’s depressing, I think.

Enter the Valley Living Magazine, a quarterly magazine that comes out in all our local stores and is celebrating 25 years. This summer, they hosted a photo contest. We take a lot of pics around here. We aren’t anything professional- we just enjoy being click happy. So Mother discovered the contest and suggested that I enter it. “Favorite summertime activity” or something.  Hershey’s family was here and since their children are cuter than most of my photo shoot options (with respect to my family) We had fun taking a few pics. Emily was here too, and we had a brief, mildly heated, sisterly discussion when we discovered we were submitting the same picture. Oooops I thought we were supposed to be more adult than that.

Emily meekly entered a different picture, and guess what?  My adorable watermelon/German Shepherd pic lost to a pair of sneakered feet dangling over a river somewhere… AND Emily’s sparkler girls brought home a grand prize of a wedding photography book. (If you are planning a wedding- Emily is one step closer to being able to perfectly capture the event.)  In the end, Emily and I were not in the same age group of photographers, so I’m not sure what would’ve happened if we’d sent in almost identical entries. But we won’t know. She won. I did not.

The final contest for Valley Living was to send in your life motto. I looked at this, but decided to pass- they didn’t like my entries anyway.

Meanwhile, our local feed company- Rockingham Coop sent out a flyer about a photo contest they were hosting. Julia alerted us to this one. I waited until the 11th hour and sent in a few pics. Julia and I received a confirmation email right away. Emily did not, which I thought was a little strange. But what do you know? Two weeks later, Emily received a phone call that she’d taken second place and there was a $150 gift card waiting on her. Emily sailed to town and without a backwards glance put the prize towards a .308 Ruger All American . She didn’t even care that they gave photo credit to “Melissa Weaver”. “I got the money and that’s all I care about” she said.  Julia lamented telling us about the contest, and I tried to console us that it’s wonderful that since Em has no luck at all, that she can win things based on skill.

It was fun to see the entries that placed. I was shocked to see that two of mine made honorable mention. But there’s no money in placing that way. But what is money? I really don’t need a new gun.

Like Mary of old, I was pondering all these things in my heart, when I received a mysterious email from the editor of Valley Living:

“Dear Joyce, Thank you for your submission to our Life motto contest. Congratulations on being our grandprize winner!”

What?! A quick phone call confirmed that the editor did indeed have the right Joyce in mind. (my parents find it easier to give out my email address, than to check their own account ) and my mom had submitted a quote from Martin Luther King Jr on the sly.

If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great streetsweeper who did his job well.

She was ecstatic with her big win and we all cheered for her.  I told my family that I’m pretty sure I’m a loser in a family of winners. Em wins. Jul wins and wins. My mom wins…

Friday, Emily and Mother were in town and they stopped in to pick up their prizes at the Valley Living office. Emily received her book, and Mother received a painting.

The lady picked it up, dusted it off and handed it to my wonderful Mother “here this is, we had it on our wall until we got tired of it. Oh, and let’s see, this second place devotional book goes with the first prize…” (Thanks Emily, for reporting this)

So I’ve reached several conclusions:

•  not many people in the Valley have life mottoes.
• maybe it’s not luck, but an inherited gene that causes my sisters abilities to win

AND on a completely unrelated note- my thrift store pile is really growing of late… Stay tuned for chances to enter random contests and become a lucky winner…

Then our mouth was filled with laughter and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them” Ps 126:2

Kendra

I’ve been excited about Emily’s emergency work for years. She has so many intriguing stories like this one from 2013   But I’ve basically never seen her in action. So I put that on my #3o list hoping that eventually the stars would align and I could gain some priceless experience. We tried once last spring during a baking day at our house. We ran out the back door and jumped in Emily’s truck to respond to a drug overdose. Only to discover that running a call was apparently on our canine’s bucketlist too- they were loaded on the truck and hanging for dear life and we were part way out the lane before we noticed them with the wind in their face, grinning from ear to ear. The patient refused treatment and we returned home, unable to cross that one off the list. But we tried.

Silly Benelli, I miss that dog

11:30 We are about a half mile past Clover Hill Fire and Rescue when the call comes in “trauma injuries… ATV accident…” Em says ” I’m going to run that” and I say “can I go with you?” And then like usual, I chicken out and my family insists… So we whip into the station. B is already there preparing to be our fearless driver. The introductions are brief. “Kendra, this is B, he’s our driver. B this is my sister Kendra, she’s here to observe.” Em rides shotgun and runs the sirens and radios. I jump in the back of the ambulance and we are off.

I can’t believe how people hit the ditch for us. We sail through the 33 intersection without a backwards glance. (Except for me, my seat faces backward.) We head for the mountain. Em takes turns thinking about the task in front of her “I’m mentally preparing to stand down Air Care, I don’t think we are going to need them” (apparently it’s common procedure to have the medical helicopter ready to launch in case the patient needs to be flown) “how can they know the name of some boondocks camp ground and not know whether she is conscious or breathing?” And sending KJ a shopping list “can you get cream cheese?” B the driver proceeds to explain that he hates cream cheese.

11:52 We drive and drive and drive and finally come to the intersection where a black Dodge Ram is going to meet us and lead us on. Not there. Squad truck 173 continues on up the mountain and finds the pilot car. We follow suit. I wonder how far they had to go to find cell service to call for help.

12:00 We turn off the main road and start bouncing back a path that goes behind a dam…and over hill and dale and with 2 river crossings… Big discussion over whether the Ford or Dodge ambulance would be more preferable here… Regardless-the Ford is performing just fine

12:20 We turn at a paper mache monkey holding a balloon. A man on a four-wheeler waves us on. We drive past a tent city and back into where the patient is as relaxed as you can be laying on gravel with a back injury for an hour. (Em “stands down air care”)

I jump out and follow Em. There’s no grass growing under her feet as she hurries to the scene “Hello, I’m Emily, did you have a little accident here?” Immediately, she’s on the ground beside the patient, talking, assessing, and preparing for transport. P arrived on 173 and he’s quick to grab any supplies Em needs. A neck brace, and a back board make up a few of the essentials.

12:35 Two massive Great Danes lumber over to where we are and look me straight in the eye. (This may be a little exaggeration, but not much) I discover that I have the ability to not say a single word for over 20 minutes.  But I’m taking it all in-the leaves on the mountain are just starting to change. The forest around us has been recently logged. The patient’s boyfriend has refused to drop her hand for a second. Somebody with some medical knowledge is obviously present-the bandage on her arm wasn’t wrapped by a rookie…

12:40 We are loaded and start the long trek back to civilization. The boyfriend follows about 2 feet behind the ambulance. I watch Em and P interact with the patient. P has a story about a scooter that fell on him one time. Em has visited the Big City where the patient is from. P remembers with fondness the hamburger he left on the grill when the call came in. Meanwhile B is doing the best job possible to get us over this logging trail with the least amount of jolting

13:00 We hit black top again. We all breathe a sigh of relief. Em starts doing a more thorough evaluation of the patient’s injuries. Again I watch silently. She moves around the ambulance ignoring the fact that we are hastening down the mountain, curve after curve. She holds onto the bar above the patient, bracing herself. I thank the Great Physician that her shoulder allows her to do this type of thing again.

13:06 We enter cell phone service. The boyfriend stays 2 feet behind the ambulance, texting frantically. I hope we don’t make any sudden stops.

13:08 Em asks if it’s ok if she starts an IV. “Sure.” I admire how brave and agreeable the patient is. Em jokes that if I faint, everybody is supposed to ignore me. The patient comments “Good luck finding a vein, I’ve been told I have small veins.” I’m still watching everything like a hawk. I can’t help be feel a little proud when Em hits the vein so effortlessly. And a little proud that her squeamish older sis didn’t even flinch. I wonder what I would’ve done if this had been a major trauma case.

I updated Deb on Em’s IV ability via snapchat. but I guess Deb already knows- Em has used her for practice. (!) Not me, brother

13:21 We arrive at the hospital with the texting boyfriend still on our bumper. The stretcher is so cool- they push a button and it automatically lowers the legs. And we are unloaded. The doors of the hospital swing open to meet us. Four nurses immediately follow us into room 8. Em briefs them on the case, there are a few signatures required and this part of our job is complete.

13:31 We exchange the IV box in the EMS Room at the hospital for a new one. The quote “Whenever there is a human in need, there is an opportunity for kindness and to make a difference” stenciled across the wall inspires us as we open the door. Em gathers the supplies she needs, and we return to the ambulance.

13:35 Em and I ride in the back, Em finishes up the report the entire way out of town. And I continue surveying the inside of the ambulance, lost in my silent thoughts. One small vehicle that has, and will continue, to impact so many people. Because of Em and comrades who are spending their lives making a difference…

This was up on the board in the EMS room.

So I speak to Emily, but this is for all of you who bless our community so selflessly :

Thank you for the continual sacrifice this lifestyle demands. For getting up in the middle of the night, going out in the worst weather conditions, skipping meals and sacrificing over and over and over, knowing that you are simply giving your time and energy, not expecting anything in return.

Thank you for understanding-that I don’t understand-when I get grouchy that our supper was delayed or you didn’t show at all, because “I’m on a call”. Supper can and will wait. There are people who need you desperately, NOW.

Really, you are the backbone of the community, because all of us know that if something happens “call 911”. So thank you for giving us peace of mind,  that there will be help should we need it. Because you are using the gifts God has given you.

Thank you for being my hero.

Kendra

 ^{Matt 25:37} “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Recently every spare moment has been spent sorting and sifting and mostly hating my less than organized tendencies. I’ve been going through a million childhood memories. A million memories in general that stretch from before my broken arm in second grade to present day happens. I’ve been reading all sorts of encouraging notes that randomly came my way and been blessed all over again by kindness. I’ve thrown out treasures that would’ve broken my heart to do so in the early years (but really, I have no need for a baseball cap from White Tire) And- cheery news to whomever gets the job of going through my estate- unless I develop a lot less sentimental attributes between now and then- I have retained a number of things that I.just.can’t.part.with.

Sorry, but it’s true. Sentimental fool that I am. (now you know)

Our main moving crew… Detroit rode the entire way balancing on the picnic table on the back of our gooseneck… Grinning from ear to ear

The reality is, that tomorrow is going to be a huge day for me. I am planning to move from Paradise Lane. My parents will be moving soon as well, but I’m rushing off on another adventure, and thought MAYBE it would help ease the fact that I’m glaringly absent if my stuff was taken care of… (Stay tuned for more word on my next trip 😉 )

So, as I reorganize my treasures in their respective boxes, I’m reorganizing a lot of living. I’m sorting through old memories of days that were sunshiny and days that the storm clouds were horribly black and scary. I’m celebrating wonderful times in my past, and I’m praising God for the things that He’s planning in my future.

It’s really no fun to move. I’m telling good-bye to my dairy farmer past all over again. And it makes me sad. But I’m so thankful that God is guiding and this is His idea. And it’s a good one.

So, here’s to the next few weeks of crazy box living and continued sorting as we take the big step to leave our beautiful Paradise Lane that we have loved perfectly for 24 years. Wow almost a quarter of a century. May the next family love you just as well.

I’m excited that our kitchen window will continue to look at the same mountain range. Singers Glen is beautiful, and I like it already. It won’t be hard to make that home. Thank you, God for leading us…

But-Paradise Lane- I will always love you… Now if you excuse me, I’m afraid I need a tissue…

-Kendra

Bonus Pic:

One of my favorite bouquet from the flowers Mother did for cousin Jessie’s wedding over the weekend 🙂

Once upon a time, there was a girl who spent a lot of time watching the world through a windshield and not very much time running. In fact, as a retired dairy farmer- she seldom ran at all.

Fortunately for her, she had a friend named Kim who ran and ran and ran. So when Kim offered to help her run a 5k for her #30for30 challenge, she jumped at the chance and started to train.

The cardinals and squirrels shook their heads as they saw her first attempts to run in the lane. As winter gave way to spring time, the red-bud trees and the purple violets and that brand new calf in the nearby pasture didn’t feel very convinced either.

Fortunately she was blessed with a lot of encouraging friends who took the time- randomly- to check in with her efforts. “Been thinking about you, when’s the big run?”

And today it was.

You know how everybody says you need to take a multiple vitamin? Well, somehow I was really ornery about that, until I discovered gummy vitamins.  I’ve been bragging and bragging to my family the last few weeks, that I’ve been taking vitamins like clockwork this winter, and I have yet to get sick one time . For me that’s impressive. Not even a cold.

Until Friday. Mr Cold hit me with both barrels, and I began to seriously question my brave ideas.

But today went good.

I’ve discovered a lot of parallels between running and the Christian life. Obviously the writers of the Holy Word had that inspiration long ago, as they penned “I press on towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” and “let us run with patience the race that is set before us”. So I press on.

The sun shone brightly on the rambunctious gang of people who gathered to Run/Walk for Young Life. Julia and Emily both kindly joined in the fun. I thought my cold was a problem (really, breathing is overrated) Emily managed to fall down a complete flight of stairs Friday morning- and each step caused her great anguish- but she made it.

And we ran, and walked, over hill and dale and through the woods and back again. There were 7 splatter stations, and we got coated. Hilarious. Especially Kim’s blue goatee…

But now it’s just a memory. Mainly, because the paint powder washed out surprisingly well.

And so, I press on. I don’t know what you’re running through. Maybe you fell down a flight of stairs and have a bunch of sore muscles that nobody know about, or maybe your life has lots of visible splatters that you aren’t sure what to do with… Press on. And I hope that God sends your life encouragers like He has mine…

And Dear Encourager Team: just FYI, I’m really going to need you if I decide to go for a 13.1 Emily? Julia? What do you think? lol

Blessings,

Kendra

Bonus Pic:

My life according to the comics

It so happens that my cousin turns 30 a few months before I do. So, we surprised her with a night at the local Silver Lake Bed and Breakfast.

The B&B has only been open for business within the past year. Before that she underwent an incredible face-lift. I watched with interest as the original rambling white house turned into a beautiful log home. As the progress continued- I couldn’t wait for the opportunity to see inside! So finally that quest has been accomplished!

This morn, as I was a lady of leisure, I stared at the charming imperfections of the exposed beams above our comfortable king bed. I tried to imagine how they had been hewn from the trees around the building sight not quite 300 years ago. I fast-forwarded a few years and looked out the window and expected to see a Confederate soldier ride up on his horse. (I really had too much time to think-lol) I do wonder how she escaped the  dreadful Burning in the Valley. I thought about how many storms this old house had weathered, yet remained so beautiful. I wish I could have heard her stories.

The place had a charming amount of antiques here and there.  And it was so comfortable. The hosts did an amazing job at making us feel like we were visiting old friends.

And so we celebrate the gift of life and of family and God’s goodness through the years- whether it is 30 or 300. What a blessing!

Kendra

Bacon Quiche for the win:)

Anybody know the name of the wood piece of furniture?