Grandmothers

Grandmothers

I came across a poem written by poet Pam Brown that goes like this:

"The clock ticks.  The fire sputters.
The cat sings.
There's a knock.  Open the door - and
there is a smile and outstretched arms
and a splodgy kiss and a rush of feet.
And a day transformed."

That is how it was when my grandmother Kate came to visit.  The moment she arrived, suddenly there was more love, more laughter, more excitement and more contentment in our house.

I actually had two grandmothers growing up.  They were at opposite ends of the spectrum.  One was prim and proper, the other filled with hilarity.  One was a tad snobby, the other humble and simple.  One demanded she be served, the other was a giver.  One was tall, one was short.  We called the tall one Big Grandma and the short one Little Grandma.  Big Grandma didn't like that at all.  Little Grandma was cool with it and found it endearing.  Little Grandma was Grandma Kate.

Little Grandma loved to play games.  She invented a game called Ash Can.  I have no idea where she got the name but...it was Yahtzee before Yahtzee was even on the market.  When we kids would spend the night at her house we'd get to stay up late and play games.  Oh my, she would hoot and holler at those dice.  I may have gotten some of my competitive spirit from hanging around her so much.

I remember one time I was at her house for the weekend. While we were at the store I begged her to buy me those little plastic high heel shoes.  She absolutely would not budge from her resounding NO!  I put up such a fuss she actually had to punish me.  She never punished me.  I think I was about 6 or 7 at the time.  It wasn't until I was in my early teens that we talked and laughed about that incident.  She shared with me why she said no.  When she was a little girl she was playing and jumped off some stairs and broke her ankle.  Her family didn't have money to have her ankle set so it didn't grow right and was mishapen.  She had to have special shoes all her life and she had a little limp.  She said she thought those little plastic high heels were dangerous and she did not want to take the chance that I would hurt my foot like she did.  At 7, I would not have understood that, but as a teenager I saw just how much she loved me.  She loved me enough to say no.

Little Grandma did not drink alcohol.  But one very hot summer day she relented and had a Dacquari.  Of course, it hit her like a stone.  The adults were hysterical at her behavior, she was weaving all over the place and giddy and all of a sudden she announced she needed to go to bed.  So off she went and as she rounded the corner the adults started giggling and said to each other, "Grandma is loaded."  Grandma pokes her head out from behind the wall and says in a sing song voice, "I can hear you!"  Then off to bed she goes.

She grew up in the generation that wore stockings, not pantyhose.  Well, she had these big like rubberbands that held her stockings up and when she got comfortable she'd roll them down to just below her knees.  It was the silliest thing you ever saw.  But it was part of who she was.   

Little Grandma had a huge influence on my life.   She taught me to love sewing and baking and she taught me to crochet and she taught me how to polka.  She taught me to love life and have fun.  My mom is a lot like her.  As the only girl in the whole family, the two of them poured themselves into me.  Watching them and learning from them made me the strong, intelligent, creative woman I am today.  My mom has had the same kind of influence on my children and they love her to pieces, just as I loved my grandmother.

Grandmothers play an important role in the lives of their grandchildren.  It's an important job.  I pray I never take it lightly.

Thank You, Little Grandma.  I loved you then.  I love you still.

 

  

   

It's Never Too Late

It's Never Too Late

I am sure you have heard the saying "Opportunity only knocks once."  Personally I think this is hogwash.  The definition of the word opportunity even defies the saying.  In the American Heritage Dictionary, opportunity is defined as "a favorable time or occasion for a certain purpose."

Think about this - if opportunity only knocked once - each mother would only have one child, each salesman would only sell one item, each student would only get to write one research paper - ever!  Hmmmm?  they might like that!!

I believe opportunity often knocks twice or even three or four or more times.  I think it's just a matter of being patient and waiting for that second or third or fourth opportunity to do whatever it is you wanted to do.  It will come eventually.

But there is a second part to opportunity coming around again and that is keeping your dream alive.  Keeping your eyes open so you don't miss that second or third chance.  I can remember several times in my preschool class when a student would have their sites set on a certain activity - the egg magnets were always popular.  Well, this one little guy really wanted to play with the egg magnets but someone else got to that station first.  Instead of being willing to wait and paying attention to when the magnet area was open for him, he crumpled to the ground, pouted and missed out not only on a chance to play with the magnets, but he let the entire center time slip through his fingers while everyone else was having a grand time.  While this illustration is childish, don't we as adults often crumple to the ground and get down on ourselves when we think we have missed an opportunity.

I say to you, keep hoping, keep watching, keep waiting and keep knocking on that door of opportunity.  I was in a sales seminar once and the key speaker encouraged us to just keep making calls - it might take 49 no's before you get that HUGE yes on call #50.  Just think, what if you stopped making calls on #49.  You never would have had the opportunity to experience that big win on call #50.  As you keep making those calls, your confidence will either build or be diminished.  Work to build it and that might make the difference in call #50.

"Insanity is defined as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Albert Einstein is credited as saying this but I read that their is no real evidence that he said it.  That might be another blog topic, but not for today.  Anyway the point is perhaps you missed that first opportunity (or the first 49) but keep trying and see if there isn't a way to change what you are doing or saying rather than doing or saying the same thing over and over.  Maybe there is even another way entirely to have that opportunity come around again.

Being a Preschool Director has has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember.  In 1997, I had a chance to apply for a Preschool Director position that I was a shoe in for, but fear, stopped me.  About 10 years  later I was offered a position as a Preschool Director at a local preschool.  I was one state requirement short so I couldn't accept the position.  I planned how to meet that requirement and  now, all these years later, opportunity is knocking again for me to be a Preschool Director.   This time the situation is different - it will be my own preschool.  I am choosing a different avenue to follow to reach my goal.  Instead of giving up on the goal, I opened my mind to reaching it another way.

It's never too late to do something you have a desire to do if you are still able  Another chance will come along if you keep hoping, keep watching, keep waiting, keep knocking and you are willing to try another way. 

Don't let your dreams die.  It's never too late!    (Unless, of course, the fat lady has already sung.)

 
     

Littering -- Really??????

Littering -- Really??????

There are a couple things that I would call pet peeves of mine.  To avoid tonight's blog from being a novel I am only going to get on my soapbox about one of them.  Okay, here I go, I'm climbing up on the box...

Littering - really????  Come on...there are trash cans everywhere.  I just don't get why people think it is okay to set their cup down in the middle of a parking lot and drive away.  Or that it is okay to throw things out a car window.  Or, worse yet, be walking down the street and throw a can or straw or anything down on the ground when they could have put it in a trash can in like 5 more steps down the block.  How lazy can a person get??

Seriously, I've seen these things happen and you probably have too!  One time my children were following me like little ducklings through a parking lot and in between parked cars.  As we approached one of the vehicles, suddenly, the person on the drivers side of one of the cars threw a cigarette butt out his open window.  It landed dead on at my feet.  I froze and looked down at the cigarette butt.  My little ducklings froze - (now if this were a funny movie, they all would have crashed into each other) - but this was not a funny movie - no sirree.  I thought I heard one of my children say,"Oh, no, what is she going to do?"  They were right to worry and wonder.  It was drilled into them that God gave us a beautiful earth and it is our job to take care of it and that includes putting trash, no matter how small, into the proper receptical - i.e. a trash can.

Well, the litterbug in question was not going to getaway with this infraction.  I bent down and picked up the cigarette butt (I know gross!!) and I very politely tossed it back into his open window and said, "Shame on you!  You are old enough to know better."  Then my little ducklings and I proceeded to our destination.

It is inconceivable to me that with all the talk about recycling and the state of our earth, that people still litter.  I mean how hard is it to keep a little plastic trash bag in your car.  (Oh, and while we are on the subject - spitting gum out on the ground is the same as littering.)  And all this is not even to mention the animals that are affected by all the trash people leave behind at the beaches, or the fishing lines that entangle a ginormous whale so thoroughly that it can not swim. Yikes, people, think!!!  Think about what you are doing and how it affects our earth, our environment and God's glorious creatures.  Take responsibility for the trash you create and clean up after yourself wherever you are!!  News Flash!!!!  There is no "Earth Maid" that comes around and picks up after you.

While this issue has been presented in a slightly humorous light, it is far from humorous. Please take it seriously.  Don't litter.  Please!

Click below to see Peanut's story:
Peanut the Sea Turtle

"The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it."  Genesis 2: 15

Lean On Me

Lean On Me

God never said our lives would be peachy, all lollipops and roses.  No, what He did say was that we would have trials.   Those trials come in many forms - death of a loved one, abandonment, loss of a job, illness, financial trials, even just plain old everyday frustrations are trials.  Everyone has them, everyone!  It's how a person deals with those trials that makes the difference in how they affect that person's life.

Basically you have 2 choices:
                           1. let the trial get the best of you, and bring you down or
                           2. rise above it and/or flow with it
I see it as a sort of battle that rages on in our lives.  The weapon you choose to battle that trial will be
a deciding factor in who wins.  A weapon can be going to an understanding caring friend that will just listen or perhaps has been through the same kind of trial.  They can offer support, wisdom and advise based on their experience.  A weapon can be prayer.  A weapon can be God's Word which also offers comfort and wisdom to get us through.

Under no circumstances do I believe God desires that we go through trials alone.   He wants us to seek out someone to lean on.  And I believe His desire is that we help each other through those rough times.  Give what we can, help as we are able and if nothing else, lend an ear.  Be there to lean on.

The very act of leaning against something shouts of support, strength & solidarity.  So go ahead and lean on someone - don't let pride keep you from finding comfort in your trial.  And allow someone to lean on you if they need it.  It's much easier to step away than to get involved.  But God gave us each other to lean on.  It's a gift really.  He gave us our friends and family to lean on and to do for us what we can not do for ourselves.  Oh, He's there, too, carrying us, walking side by side, holding our hand  but I think He gave us earthly friends and family as a bonus so we would be there for each other to lean on.


Click to see a video and hear "Lean On Me" by Bill Withers.

   
  

  

Love Letters

Love Letters

When my husband and I were high school sweethearts we wrote letters to each other nearly daily, sometimes more than one letter in a day.  This was very typical of teenagers at the time.  Time on the regular home telephone was limited to 10 or 15 minutes by most parents.  There were no cell phones.  So we didn't have unlimited access to our boyfriend or girlfriend via the telephone.  There were no computers or e-mail.  There was no texting or facebook.  We expressed ourselves in the handwritten word - long 3, 4, 5 page letters.  In these letters we wrote words of the heart.  Love letters that confirmed and cemented our feelings for one another.  Love letters that could be read over and over again and each time bring a smile or a warm feeling that said, "I love you." "I cherish you." "I want to share this experience with you."

We wrote about our feelings, but we also wrote about everything that happened that day; the recent math test, the kid that got in trouble in class, the dress the teacher was wearing, the upcoming dance, what was eaten for lunch  - everything.   And we loved it!  We couldn't wait to get a letter. We learned about each other in these letters.  We laid bare our very souls, our very hearts, our deepest longings and desires.  There was a sweetness to our letters that I just can't imagine would ever come through in a text message. 


Some 45 years later, I still have his letters, in a shoe box, in the closet and not buried or hidden, not tucked away out of sight.  I see that box of love letters every day and remember why we are still together.   I remember the sweetness of his words.   I remember why I fell in love with him.

I think love letters may be a thing of the past.  And that is a shame.  It would be nice if I was wrong on that though.  There is something to be said for the written word - it is just different.  It's more meaningful, more thoughtful.  And you can keep it in your wallet for 30+ years until it is so tattered it must be taped together. 

Love letters - handwritten words of the heart.... timeless treasures of love and promise.

 

The Bible is God's love letter to mankind - a timeless treasure of eternal love. 
"But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name."  John 20: 31

 

   

  

 

I Don't Have Girls!

I Don't Have Girls! 

My first child was a boy.  We were young and didn't really have a clue so we didn't know to hope for a boy or a girl.  We knew we would be totally happy with whichever the child was.  And we were.  Though I will admit we only had a boys name chosen.

Child number 2 was a boy.  At the time we had our children there were no tests to find out what the sex of the child was so we just had to wait and see.  This added an air of mystery and excitement to the birth.  On the way to the hospital with number 2, we chose a boys name.

When I was growing up I dreamed of being a mom.  And I told people I wanted 10 boys.  I felt like I was on my way to those 10 and was happy as a clam.  I was still very young and still very clueless.   

Child number 3 was - you guessed it - a boy.  He was HUGE!!!  And I knew it!!  OUCH!!  So the pediatrician comes in after checking him over and says, "There is only one thing wrong with him." Immediately I start thinking he is sick or doesn't have all his fingers and toes or something worse is wrong with him.  While I knew we would love him no matter what, it was scary.  I guess the doctor could see the fear in my eyes as I shakily asked, "What's wrong?"   He got this little grin on his face and laughingly said, "He's a boy!"  Oh that!! Yes, another boy.  There was 5 years difference between #2 and #3, so by this time my desires for our family were changing a little bit.  10 boys just didn't seem like a sensible thing to want any more.  I was hoping for a little variety this time around and so I must admit, I was a little disappointed.  But like all mom's, I fell in love with him the moment I held him and the disappointment was forgotten and so was the pain.

Several years later, we were expecting yet again.  Number 4 is on the way.  I determine that I just don't have girls so I do not allow myself too much hope.  But, just enough to pray, promising God if He gives me a girl, I will name her after His Son's mother, Mary.   I think the Bible says we are not to test God or try to make deals with Him, but at the time I didn't know that.  Anyway, we go to the hospital because 'it's time'!  I finally get wheeled into the delivery room, and the new baby, Number 4, is born.

My doctor announces, "It's a girl"!  I, in my infinite wisdom, do not believe him and say, "Quit kidding around, I don't have girls, remember."  He says to me, "No, really, it's a girl!"  I still don't believe him and am nearly in tears because I think he is being so mean.  I say, "That's not funny!"  He takes the baby from the nurse and holds it above my head so I can see the body parts or lack thereof and says, "Look, really, it's a girl!!"   When I finally realize it really is a girl, after giggling in sheer delight, what I think of is my promise and how good God is to answer my small, weak prayer and give me a little girl.  BTW, her name is Mary.

God hears and answers prayer, always.  He's just like that!  It may not be the answer we are hoping for, but it might be. I had a girl!  Just sayin'!    

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests."  Ephesians 6: 18a

"In the morning, O Lord, You hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before You and wait in expectation."  Psalm 5: 3

"For You are great and do marvelous deeds; You alone are God."  Psalm 86:10

"For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb.  I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.  When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your eyes saw my unformed body.  All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be."  Psalm 139: 13-16  

   

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

I knew a family that had one child that was a bit of a goof off.  He was always doing things to make people laugh.  He was always doing things that ended up getting him in one kind of trouble or another.  In a room full of kids that were shooting rubber bands, he's the one that would get called down to the principals office.   Know any families that have a kid like that?  Know any kids like that?

I know so many stories about this child....like the time he decided he wanted to see if he could make his bike fly over a fence - so he got a good fast head start way back from the fence and raced full speed ahead toward the fence and TWHUMP!  -  noooooo, his bike didn't fly over the fence, but he did.  The bike dented the neighbors fence, his parents had to pay for it and he had to work to pay his parents back.  I don't think he'll try that again - at least without a ramp.

Or the time he wanted to see how close to a wood fence he could ride his bike and at what speed - Youser!!  Can you say slivers down the whole left side of his body.

This was the child that had a soft heart for lost or homeless animals - somehow his parents seemed to end up with all his foundlings though.  A friend asked this kid once if he'd watch his puppy while he went on a trip.  The dude never came back.

Then there was the time he asked his mom if he could have some M & M's.  It was close to dinner so of course she said , "No!"  Well it was his turn to empty the dishwasher and the bowl of M & M's was just sitting on the counter calling his name.  Remember he had a soft heart so he had to answer that call and he popped some M & M's in his mouth - just as his mom was coming into the kitchen.  So to hide the mouthful of M & M's he bends down real quick over the opened dishwasher and the two pronged fork sticking up stabs him in the forehead.  What are the odds on that one? 

Another time he was helping his mom with dinner.  She asked him to get the ground beef and put it in a bowl.  This sounds pretty simple, right?  Well it was a little too simple, too boring for this kid - so he picks up the plastic bag the ground beef is in and he starts swinging it around real fast - like a cowboy with a lasso only faster and all of a sudden the bag flies out of his hand goes sailing across the room right in front of his dad and hits the wall with a thud and slowly slides down the wall to land on the floor.  Meanwhile, the kids eyes are about as wide open as they can possibly get - for two reasons - first his dad almost got hit with a 2 pound bag of flying ground beef and second he can't believe how totally cool and funny that was.   The kid looks at mom, mom looks at the kid, they both look at dad.  Dad is not amused and opts to just step away from the ground beef.  Good call!  When Dad is gone, mom and the kid go hysterical.  It was totally cool and funny!!  I am actually laughing about again as I relay the story.

If you haven't guessed, I am the mom and the kid is one of my 3 sons.  These things happened many, many years ago and we still laugh about them.  He could have gotten in trouble for each one of these goofball incidents.  We could have said things that would have humiliated him and given him a complex, but we chose not to sweat the small stuff.  Did we discuss the incidents, yes.  But did we scold or condemn, no!  This was our kid just being himself - a little nutty, a little adventurous, a little goofy and loads and loads of fun.  And just look at the memories he created for us.   Seriously, I could write a book!  My husband swears his hair is still brown because he doesn't know half the stuff our kids did.

As parents I think we have to make judgment calls on how to handle the things our kids do.  Look at  how it affects the child and others.  Look at the motivation behind the incident.  Look at it in the grand scheme of things.  There are so many really big issues that come up as children grow up - like staying pure, avoiding drugs and alcohol and so on.  Know what? - flying ground beef just isn't worth making a fuss over.  Save your sweating for the Big Stuff.

"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." Proverbs 22:6

"Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." Proverbs 16:24

"The wise in heart are called discerning, and pleasant words promote instruction." Proverbs 16:21

"A wise man's heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction."  Proverbs 16:23 

"Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city."  Proverbs 16:32


                                                Once a goof ball always a goof ball!!

About Beauty

About Beauty

Beauty is defined in the American Heritage Dictionary as "a quality that pleases the senses or mind".
How true.

Is not beauty all around us in nature?  Is not beauty in the sound of a babies laughter?  Is not beauty in the words of a poet?  Is not beauty in the voice of the songster?  Is not beauty in the innocence of a child?  Is not beauty in the features of the beautiful people?

These are all forms of external beauty.  But there is more to beauty than merely the external, what we see.  Beauty is found inside - in our feelings, in our thoughts, in how we are.  Beauty is what is in our heart.  The essence of each of us as individuals is either beautiful or not.

I would much rather be beautiful on the inside than on the outside.  I wonder if inwardly beautiful people are born that way or if they learn beauty or become beautiful inside from their life experiences.  Maybe all of the above.  However it happens, it is something that we must continuously work on in ourselves.

I think it is our job also, to find the beauty in the people we meet, the people we associate with and we should appreciate and value them for that inner beauty.  Sometimes you have to look really deep and hard to find it, but I want to believe there is some beauty in everyone.  Mary Kay Ash used to tell her consultants to imagine that everyone they meet is wearing a sign that says "Make me feel special."  When you recognize the inner beauty in a person you can't help but treat them differently.   By recognizing a person's inner beauty you cultivate it and it grows.  Isn't that what we are supposed to do for each other?  Uplift and encourage and show love to each other.

So go out and search for the beauty in your family members, your friends, your acquaintances and your associates.  Just think how the world might be different if we sought out the beauty in each other.  Each of us can make a difference in our own little circle of people.

Is that a challenge I am throwing at you?  Yep!!!  Go for it!!  I am putting my binoculars on and I am ready to seek and find the beauty in each person I come in contact with.  I hope you'll do the same.

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.  Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."   I Peter 3: 3 & 4

"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.  But the greatest of these is love." 
 I Corinthians 13:13







 

Dogs or Cats?

Dogs or Cats?

For today's blog we are going to do something a little different.  This inspiration came from Oxnard College sending out a survey to inquire how the Lock Down drill they recently had went.  As I was answering questions, I found I had very definite opinions on certain aspects of the drill and other areas I didn't give two hoots about.  This led me to start thinking that probably most people have either a very strong opinion about something or they don't give two hoots.    And I decided I'd like to know.

In my ASL class the other day my teacher was telling us a very funny story about a time she thought her dog attacked the neighbors bunny so she very slyly snuck into the neighbors yard and put the dead bunny back in the cage after cleaning it off and using a hair dryer to fluff it up again (This is the very, very short version!)  and it turned out the bunny was already dead, her dog had dug it up from it's burial spot and the neighbor could not for the life of her figure out how the dead bunny got back in the cage, clean and fluffy no less!  After this story she proceeded to tell us about some chickens and her cat.  At which time she informed us she really does not like cats and much prefers dogs.   She asked us to raise our hands if we liked cats and not many raised their hands.  You know what happened...this prompted me to wonder if that is typical.

So, here's what we are going to do....

I want to know if each of my readers likes Dogs better or likes Cats better.  If you are so inclined, you can tell me why and anything else you want about your dog or cat - a funny story, a picture, it's name.

If you go to the bottom of the blog there should be a spot to ADD A COMMENT.  I think you can just click in that box and you will be able to add a comment, in this case the answer to this survey question.rdrury@marykay.com. 
  If by chance that doesn't work or is not available to you - someone please let me know.  You can email me at
It may mean I set something up wrong.

Here goes - Which do you like better --- Dogs or Cats?

"God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds .  And God saw that it was good."
Genesis 1: 25

Empty Hands and an Open Heart

Empty Hands and an Open Heart

I read a devotional this morning the began like this:
                  "Come to Me with empty hands and an open heart..."
This was Jesus speaking to the reader.  Really, Jesus gives and gives and gives without expecting anything in return.  That's the "empty hands" part of this phrase.  He wants me (and you) to come to Him - bare, naked, just me - no gifts, no tokens of appreciation, no pomp and circumstance, just plain old simple me.  The next part is even more important - I am to come with an open heart.  Prepared to listen, willing to hear and obey, ready for something.  Which leads me to the second half of the sentence.

It said, "ready to receive abundant blessings."  So the whole sentence was:
"Come to Me with empty hands and an open heart, ready to receive abundant blessings."  (Young, Jesus Calling,  page 122)

I believe Jesus wants to bless us - abundantly.  He is our shepherd and a shepherd takes care of his sheep - day and night - always.  The shepherd doesn't just care for the sheep, no he practically lives with them.  After he has brought all his sheep into the pen, he carefully closes the gate and then he plops his body down and positions himself at that gate to keep wolves and other predators away from his sheep.  How much more will our good shepherd care for us by providing abundant blessing.

I am scheduled to be at a fundraising event tomorrow, a Mother's Day Boutique.  I spent all day today putting together baskets to sell and making signs, etc. to get ready for tomorrow's event.  So when I read that first line of the devotional it struck a chord.   I had to wonder, what is in store for me tomorrow?  Am I going to have abundant blessings?  And if so, what kind?

I have found, that blessings come in all sorts of ways.  For example, at an event I had at my home this past week, I had no sales, no follow ups to do, no future parties booked, plus, because of the circumstances surrounding the event, in some ways I was sort of taken advantage of.  On the surface, this did not look like a blessed event.  However, about half an hour after everyone left, one of my guests, a friend,  called to tell me that a few things I said that night about hearing God's call opened up a conversation between she and the person that she brought.   My friend had opportunity to share  God and how to hear Him and how to pray and listen.  THAT was the blessing that night.  I had asked God to bless our time at this event.  I came to Him with empty hands and an open heart ready to receive. He didn't bless it the way I thought He might, but His way was so much better!!! 

"Come to Me with empty hands and an open heart, ready to receive abundant blessings."  We never can be sure how He will bless but we can be sure that He will.  And those blessings will be abundant!!!

"I will bless them and the places surrounding my hill.  I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing."  Ezekiel 34:26