For all these, I make an act of Thanksgiving this day!
***
I bring to mind all of the warmth of humankind that I have known:
My Mother’s arms,
The strength of my father,
The playmates of my childhood,
The wonderful stories brought to me from the lives of many who have talked of days gone by when fairies and giants and all kinds of magic held sway;
The tears I have shed, the tears I have seen;
The excitement of laughter and the twinkle in the eye with its reminder that life is good.
For all of these I make an act of Thanksgiving this day.
***
I finger one by one the messages of hope that awaited me at the crossroads:
The smile of approval from those who held in their hands the reins of my security;
The tightening of the grip in the simple handshake when I feared the step before me in the darkness;
The whisper in my heart when the temptation was fiercest and the claims of appetite were not to be denied;
The crucial word said, the simple sentence from an open page when my decision hung in the balance.
For all these , I make an act of Thanksgiving this day.
***
I pass before me the main springs of my heritage:
The fruits of the labors of countless generations who have lived before me, without whom my own life would have no meaning;
The seers who saw visions and dreamed dreams;
The prophets who sensed a truth greater than mind could grasp and whose words could only find fulfillment in the years which they would never see;
The workers whose sweat has watered the trees, the leaves of which are for the healing of the nations;
The pilgrims who set their sails for lands beyond all horizons, whose courage made paths into new worlds and far off places;
The saviors whose blood was shed with a recklessness that only a dream could inspire and God command.
For all of these, I make an act of Thanksgiving this day.
***
I linger over the meaning of my own life and the commitment to which I give the loyalty of my heart and mind:
The little purposes in which I have shared with my loves, my desires, my gifts;
The restlessness which bottoms all I do with its stark insistence that I have never done my best, I have never dared to reach for the highest;
The big hope that never quite deserts me, that I and my kind will study war no more, that love and tenderness and all of the inner graces of Almight affection will cover the life of the children of God as waters cover the sea.
***
All these and more than mind can think and heart can feel,
I make as my sacrament of Thanksgiving to Thee,
Our Creator, in humbleness of mind and simplicity of heart.
Sinners that we are, when we come to the Lord and confess these, ask for forgiveness and guidance, we are free, and are given the individual liberty and freedom to Glorify Him in the things we do in this secular world. We create a record in the face of tyranny, in the face of the doom forecast even from our friends.
Rest in Peace
Into this world are born many of great strength and resolve, who become our inspirations in the work of daily life in Glorifying God by the work we do and in our faith in His works. In this post, I would like to remember one such patriot, Ramona Lisa Estrada Docteur, a patriot, a child of God, who left this earth too soon for us, but perfectly in His time.
Ramona Lisa Estrada Docteur
HAMILTON – Ramona Lisa Estrada Docteur, 58, of Hamilton, peacefully went home to Jesus, Monday, March 11, 2013 at 10 p.m. in her cabin around friends. Ramona Lisa Estrada Docteur was born at 6:15 a.m. to loving parents Fred and Mary Estrada on Sept. 30, 1954 in Calexico, Calif. She was a born leader in everything she did from her drill team in high school, regional vice-president for with her independent financial services business and of course the conservative movement here in Hamilton. Mona met Ted Docteur, and he brought her to Darby. They spent 21 years together, and Mona learned to love Montana as much as her then husband, Ted. How her friends will always remember her is her fearless approach to standing for what was right and each person’s God-given sovereignty. It was a privilege to know Mona Lisa Estrada Docteur. Her strength of character, love of God, and passion for personal liberty defined her mission here in this life. In 2008 Mona organized the Bitterroot Valley’s Celebrating Conservatism. This grassroots coalition of everyday folks worked to protect and maintain strong principles of liberty. Her dynamic personality and willingness to mentor leaders inspired other communities to establish similar freedom loving groups.
She is survived by her two older sisters, Cecilia Moons, Olga Valenzuela, her two younger brothers Daniel and Anthony Estrada, many nieces and nephews and her dog Boboh.
Mona was a strong woman of God, meeting weekly with women of faith to minister to each another. Her greatest desire was to glorify God wherever He placed her. She sacrificed time and talents to bless her community through love, education and leadership. To simply describe this spitfire was “Boot decked beauty, packin’ heat and givin’ hugs.” We love and miss you Mona. Let freedom ring and be still and knowing He is God.
Mona left very clear direction on how she wanted her loved ones to honor her life. She only asked each of us to go to God and find out how he wants us to glorify him and then have the courage to do it by following the Holy Spirit as our guide, for that is the legacy she left each of us.
Come celebrate Mona’s life and the life each of us have left to glorify God here on Earth. The funeral services will be Saturday the March 23 at the Assembly of God Church at 1 p.m. Following these services there will be a graveside ceremony at the Grantsdale Cemetery off of Sleeping Child and Cemetery Road in Grantsdale. Immediately following there will be a potluck and barbecue at the Assembly of God Church. All are welcome to this celebration. If anyone would like to contribute they can bring a dish to share. That night to round up the day of celebration we invite you to join us at The Eagles for dancing in Mona’s honor. Thank you to all of you that loved and supported Mona.
Mona we love you we miss you and we honor you for the change agent you were in all of our lives.
“Set against the background of epic dislocation in the financial markets and a supine media, ADMIT THE HORSE is a political thriller about a dark-horse political candidate whose meteoric rise to the pinnacle of power is engineered amidst illegal campaign contributions, voter fraud, and murder –”
😯 My eyes popped open when I read the jacket description of this recently published book written by Paula Abeles, a host of the popular Sins of Omission BTR show at No Quarter. Readers here know that the iniquity of the assault upon our belovedAmerica would also make a great novel…that would unfortunately be based on the truth. 😯
Based upon actual documented events during the 2008 presidential election, the author provides a riveting written documentary of key threads of what we witnessed in the ‘election’ of 2008, and what has since been confirmed as we move toward the 2012 election. The book makes good reading and is a page-turner. Revolution Radio recently hosted author Paula Abeles and the archive of the show is HERE.
This book gives me a sense of gratitude for the understanding of the thing we called it back then. Those of us who love liberty knew that one candidate had the protection and assistance of something far greater than the man himself, and these pages have certainly discussed what those powers might be. There was indeed a Trojan Horse at the door. In novel style, Abeles describes how the horse was admitted. The characters include:
…a detective, retired DEA Investigator, an idealistic venture capitalist, an African-American congresswoman, and a suburban mom volunteering for his opponent.
Join us on Revolution Radio for an exciting discussion and review of this book, and the implications of ourtasks going forward in 2012. Please post any questions you might have for the author in comments! 🙂
This thread is dedicated to the remembrance of those events and people, and to the remedy which will make America renew and be anew in God’s eyes as we have answered that call. Then, Open Thread !
For all these, I make an act of Thanksgiving this day!
***
I bring to mind all of the warmth of humankind that I have known:
My Mother’s arms,
The strength of my father,
The playmates of my childhood,
The wonderful stories brought to me from the lives of many who have talked of days gone by when fairies and giants and all kinds of magic held sway;
The tears I have shed, the tears I have seen;
The excitement of laughter and the twinkle in the eye with its reminder that life is good.
For all of these I make an act of Thanksgiving this day.
***
I finger one by one the messages of hope that awaited me at the crossroads:
The smile of approval from those who held in their hands the reins of my security;
The tightening of the grip in the simple handshake when I feared the step before me in the darkness;
The whisper in my heart when the temptation was fiercest and the claims of appetite were not to be denied;
The crucial word said, the simple sentence from an open page when my decision hung in the balance.
For all these , I make an act of Thanksgiving this day.
***
I pass before me the main springs of my heritage:
The fruits of the labors of countless generations who have lived before me, without whom my own life would have no meaning;
The seers who saw visions and dreamed dreams;
The prophets who sensed a truth greater than mind could grasp and whose words could only find fulfillment in the years which they would never see;
The workers whose sweat has watered the trees, the leaves of which are for the healing of the nations;
The pilgrims who set their sails for lands beyond all horizons, whose courage made paths into new worlds and far off places;
The saviors whose blood was shed with a recklessness that only a dream could inspire and God command.
For all of these, I make an act of Thanksgiving this day.
***
I linger over the meaning of my own life and the commitment to which I give the loyalty of my heart and mind:
The little purposes in which I have shared with my loves, my desires, my gifts;
The restlessness which bottoms all I do with its stark insistence that I have never done my best, I have never dared to reach for the highest;
The big hope that never quite deserts me, that I and my kind will study war no more, that love and tenderness and all of the inner graces of Almight affection will cover the life of the children of God as waters cover the sea.
***
All these and more than mind can think and heart can feel,
I make as my sacrament of Thanksgiving to Thee,
Our Creator, in humbleness of mind and simplicity of heart.
Thank you, readers, for your kindness, words, and responses to the events of my August post Shelter. Words can never express my gratitude and appreciation.
This post is written in gratitude to all of you who read and comment here, and takes a slightly different course to speak in a personal way of how much this struggle for our liberty means to me…and how it has changed me to the core. The recent loss of my mother, 96, and the despair following has had many unexpected challenges which just are what they are, and fortunately due to God’s grace brought deeper understandings of loss and necessary rebuilding and growth.
My Mother’s parents were both born in the 1880’s, and together with my Mom (b.1915) spanned 130 years of American life…the crucial decades we now analyze and identify the events have led to our present situation in 2011. And it occurred to me one night as I grieved the loss of her life and its meaning, that grief’s intensity also spanned that period of time…during which unscrupulous men and women sewed the seeds of the destruction of America. As I got to that painful yet exquisite core out came the twin realization discerned of needing to grieve and mourn for both. This took my breath away and I fell to my knees in prayer and gratitude.
There are not orderly ‘stages’ of grief, although Kübler-Ross broke necessary and important ground in helping people understand their feelings of loss. It is more of a crazy journey through a wilderness chocked full of sorrow, craziness, anger, fear, deep sadness, and unsteadiness, and it is lonely, uncertain, paralyzing, depressing, physical, uncharted, scary, dark, and dangerous. There are moments of peace, light, relief, guilt, and sometimes forgiveness. The ground is shaken under your feet and the old familiar bearings lost. New signposts must be found, created, and remembered. Almost everything in your own life is revisited, including the events that brought you here to this moment in time.
While grief is the inward process of reconciling and becoming after a loss, mourning is its outward expression, engaged by sharing, listening, action, and ritual. It is necessary to mourn in order to complete the honor, to remember, to grow. Thus the imperative of grief requires work, it is not passive.
Finding America
Into the abyss of grief we have all gone as we watch our America as it has been twisted and turned into something it was never intended to be. The America of before is no more; of the ancestors of my grandparent’s generation, of my mother’s; of yours.
Yet, that we still stand on these pages, in our communities, and before God still hanging on to American principles and foundations is testament to our resilience, love, and holy and human purpose. But we have been hurt deeply, must name this treachery, grieve the loss, and rebuild. Like going all the way back to the core, in the labyrinth of our history, to find our way out again.
While we seldom express it, there is grief about the loss of America and that is why the whole Obama mess and our growing awareness feels so crazy, and we are consumed with worry, anger, fear, sadness, guilt. There is also a paralysis that comes with this overwhelming grief.
Do I feel grief that I lived most of my life not seeing or recognizing this? Absolutely. America gone? 😯 It is as devastating as losing a loved one. Will I let this grief control me? No, but, it is clear that we must name it, understand it, and think outside the box for the solution. What if the solution involved going to our own core and then collectively–without ego–find our way back out again? Restudying history, smashing the vortex, the false labyrinth evil has created?:
We mourn our loss by sharing on these pages, by analyzing history, by marching to Washington, by anger and frustration. We are asking for help and seeking His blessing and grace as we pray. We are calling our ancestors and the Founders of this Nation for help and hope they are rallying to our side. Sleepless nights, restless and troubled dreams when we finally rest.
I have faith that we will find our way home and then rebuild with the vigor and principles that brought us here to this moment…for all of our lives have combined to bring us out NOW. The hope of our children, our Nation, indeed the world rest on us finding this way out of the abyss. And hope is knowing that this feeling, and our grief and paralysis, won’t last forever.
Psalm 140
For Protection against enemies
Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man, preserve me from the violent man;
Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war
They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders’ poison is under their lips. Selah
Keep me, O Lord,from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.
The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins for me. Selah
I said unto the Lord, Thou art my God; hear the voice of my supplications O Lord
O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou has covered my head in the day of battle
Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked; further not his wicked device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah
As for the head of those that compass me about, let the mischief of their own lips cover them.
Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
Let not an evil speaker be estabished in the earth; evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.
I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and the right of the poor.
Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.
Rosemary for Remembrance
I will honor my Mother and Father by devoting my being to the return of the America they built.
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Water has memory…think of a glass of water in the sunshine, it memorizes the heat and holds it. The water in your body remembers the greeting you did or did not receive when you got home. The water bed remembers your tossing and turning, holding that memory for the next evening. Water remembers energy.
We must recharge; drinking good water with good intention is essential to our health and survival.
As we stand on the eve of one of the most important moments in our Nation’s history, I want to thank you for your courage, commitment, and honor in standing up for the Constitution for the United States of America.
You both have put the safety and security of our Nation above any interest of self, fortune, or career… something I have felt and feel personally. I humbly acknowledge the gift you are giving our Nation…a courage so profound that the only other place it is seen is on the battlefield.
LTC Terrence Lakin
History will write of this time that there were those who stood– unabashedly and with great intellect, fundamental knowledge of our foundation and roots as Americans, and courage–against the tyranny of the usurpation of the White House by a foreign agent aided by enemies within. Your names will be among those who are the true Constitutional heroes.
Standing on Constitutional grounds, you have laid bare the deception, and carved a way to correct it and move forward. Just the way our Founders intended.
And we, the undersigned, pledge that we have your backs no matter what happens…at this grave hour, tirelessly we too will defend our Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, so help me God.
I am inspired to remember one of my favorite artists, Miriam Makeba, on this day. Her dedication to her land and home in the face of all that has happened inspires me in my homeland. There is a struggle we must face, and we can do it with grace.
Thanks to reader Katie, I’m so pleased to announce that TDblog is back in business! So many of us have missed TD terribly and I jumped for joy when I heard the news!!!!! As many of you know, I got my blogging start with and am so grateful for TexasDarlin.
Often the most troubled times can bring out the most brilliant minds, works, strategies, and breakthroughs. Despair is defeated by having the hope, faith and courage to move on despite it.
Alfred Erik Leslie Satie was born in Normandy in 1866 and died in Paris in 1925. An eccentric but brilliant pianist, he produced some of his finest work during most difficult personal and worldly times. As you listen to this piece, and enjoy your day, remember the times you have pulled through when you thought you couldn’t. There is a sadness as to what you have to leave behind, yes? But knowledge that you must.
Ground yourself, because our most brilliant times lie ahead, and, we will rise to the challenge of anything presented to us. No, not everyone; but enough.
….a typical day at the Continental Congress 2009…began for me at 2:30 am, when I went to bed…
Each day at the CC2009 was a long one…beginning at 8 am in the auditorium for learning from experts on various constitutional subjects. We started the day with a prayer, the pledge of allegiance, and the delegate from New Hampshire cheering, “long live the Constitution!” …after gradually getting used to being awake so soon after going to bed, this was our rallying cry to get to work each day.
We Patriots have wolves of our own. Out of the darkness, over the barriers, focused like a laser beam, there is no escape for those tyrannical beings when the people awaken.
We will win because we work when our opponents are asleep. We will win because the birds of wisdom–the owls, hawks, and eagles–have their sharpest vision in the dark, and they mark our path like sentries, while warning us of danger like Paul Revere.
We will win because we love our Country–a key ingredient that our opponents do not have.
We will win because we know that our lives, our rights, and our freedoms come from the Creator, not from government. When we return to that understanding, and acknowledge how far we have strayed, our victory will be complete.
I wish you all a joyous Thanksgiving, grateful for all blessings in this life in whatever form they come. I personally believe even the hardest times bring gifts for which we can be forever grateful.
As I drove across the country on my way home from the CC2009, I stopped in little cafes, family-owned gas stations, and the regular truck stops that dot the interstate highway system. I wore my “In Solidarity CC2009” pin, which was a magnet for questions and conversation.
In conversations over coffee, in line to pay for items, at the gas pump, I found people hungry for information…some explanation…something is wrong in America and the citizenry are greatly troubled….
It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.–Theodore Roosevelt, April 23, 1910
God Bless our United States Armed Forces, past, present and future. My humble gratitude for your service. God speed our recently departed in Afghanistan.
I was talking with a friend today about our long journey to restoring our Constitutional Republic, and the many roads, trails, and trials which lay ahead of us.
But we remembered, too, that the love held in our hearts for Country, and the principles we hold dear to, are like ‘diamonds’…on the soles of our shoes. They don’t wear out…the road is long, but they don’t wear out.
Diamonds are produced by fire and pressure over time. Keep the fire burning, and keep the pressure up! For your viewing pleasure:
I am posting this video for your viewing pleasure and continued inspiration, h/t Kay and Logistics Monster. Note in the early part of the video, the Dame Truth’s logo flies across the screen!
I have also ‘captured’ this video in my VPOD down below on the right hand side…
I have a profound feeling of gratitude over all time after viewing this, and I hope this inspires you as it inspires me to continue on!
On September 17, 1787, forty-two of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention held their final meeting. Only one item of business occupied the agenda that day, to sign the Constitution of the United States of America. The delegates had gathered daily to work on this document since May 25, 1787.
It had not all been smooth sailing. According to James Madison’s Notes on the Constitutional Convention, on June 28, 1787, the delegates had reached an impasse in the development of the Constitution. Small states wanted one-man, one-vote, while the larger states wanted representation apportioned by population. At this point, the 82-year old Benjamin Franklin stood to plea for compromise, making a motion
… that the assembly institute “prayers imploring for the assistance of heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, (to) be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business.” Roger Sherman seconded the motion.
What a day! While ABC was reporting 60,000 attendees at the Washington, D.C. rally for our republic, this time lapse photography suggests that the number of people in Washington today was nearer to 2 million people.
At 10 a.m., D. C. police estimated the crowd at 1.5 million. By 4 pm, highways into the metro D.C. area were closed to one lane, with buses being turned back. And still there were lines of Patriots marching to the Capitol. The ROAR of the crowd was deafening; thrilling; and ‘across time’.
(I am pleased to present this extremely fine piece which was featured on Constitutional Radio on July 4th, 2009. As we seek solutions to this Constitutional Crisis, it is worth remembering the tools we already have as Americans. Our passion for Country gives us the tools for a thoughtful, reasoned approach to restoring our Constitutional Republic with the courage of our convictions. I hope you enjoy this enlightening and empowering essay! )
There is a revolution brewing in this country, but it is not a call to arms, it is a call to thought. There will be no bloodshed, there will be no violence and there will be no secession. There will simply be a return to the promise of this country and the beauty of its simplistic yet profound message: that all men are created equal and that all men have unalienable rights that include the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness ensured through adherence to a system of government known as a Constitutional Republic that is for and by the people. Oh how those of you in the government have strayed, but how easy it will be for the American People to return to that promise and guarantee because we will heed the call to thought.
(Author’s Note. This blog will focus exclusively on the U.S. Constitution and the use of our founding documents to restore our Constitutional Republic. My interest in the constitution, and my writings on the subject, were inspired and supported by Texasdarlin. Please be patient as this is a new blog…and any assistance in setting this up is welcome!)
Welcome to drkatesview, through which I hope to continue the terrific work of the now temporarily on-break Texasdarlin Blog. In fact, I would like to dedicate this first post to TexasDarlin and to all the readers of her blog.
I do not expect to fill the void of TDblog, no one really can, but I will attempt to keep up the discussion with the same respect and integrity she did in all her reporting.
The contents of this blog are protected under U.S. Copyright Law, United States Code, Title 17. Requests for use of active and archived articles in this blog must be presented in writing in the comment section, and proper attribution is expected. Thank you in advance.
drkatesview 
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