The Year Was 1958

In Nov.of 1958 I turned 16! Back in those days you had to be 16 before you got your learner's permit so on my birthday I got my permit.My mother took on the job of teaching me to drive. She was an excellent driver herself so I was in good hands. The car I learned to drive on was a 1955 Pontiac. It was a big old car compared to today's standards; a 3 speed stick shift on the column. So,knowing what that meant,I had to learn how and when to push in the clutch and shift gears smoothly. Mom was a good teacher with lots of patience but one time she nearly lost it! We were coming home from somewhere and I was getting ready to turn the corner when Mom said to use the brake. But mistakenly I stepped on the gas and we flew around that turn! She was a little upset to say the least. She taught me to parallel park out on the street where we lived. I studied the instruction manual and the day arrived for me to take my driver's test. This was no easy task like it is today! We drove into Baltimore City to the DMV where the tests were given. I passed my written exam and eye test with no problems. Then a State trooper got in the passenger side of my car and told me to drive to the corner and make a right turn. We had no blinker's in the cars back then so I had to open my window ahead of time and stick out my arm to make a right hand signal while also coming to a stop! We went around a city block with traffic and when we reached the point where we had started he got out and told me to park the car! Oh! boy! Now the real test of my driving skill was about to be tested. There were 2 posts out on the street that I was to maneuver my car between without knocking them over. If you did it was an automatic failure. The first time I backed up I tapped the pole lightly and it rocked a bit but it didn't fall down. Oh, I was so nervous but I immediately pulled forward and tried again and the second time I parked it perfectly. He passed me with a smile! On the way home I felt so happy and begged my mother to let me take the car to school for the rest of the day. Believe it or not, she did. I cannot describe how wonderful it felt to drive for the first time by myself. There was a wonderful sense of freedom that I experienced that day as I proudly drove into the school parking lot. Of course, all my friends wanted me to drive them home after school and I did drive some of them. The trust that my parents placed in me in allowing me drive the family car was awesome. As I look back over the years (50 now)I believe I've honored the trust that was given me by having an excellent, safe driving record. I've had only 1 ticket and that was dismissed by a judge plus I was in a head on collision that was not my fault. A truck driver crossed over a double yellow line and hit me head on. I had to go the hospital in an ambulance as a result and sustained a fractured sternum, a head bump and some stomach bruises. All in all I still consider myself a good driver. We were a one car family and yet my parents allowed me to take the car to school from time to time. This entailed my Mom taking my Dad to work and then getting back in time for me to take the car to school. All my friends got the benefit of me driving them home on those days. In fact, I don't remember any of them driving to school in their family's car. I guess I was blessed in so many ways back then and didn't even realize it!

On Being A Teen In The 50's & 60's!

Life was hopping and jitterbugging was the rage! Elvis was the hearthrob of the day as well as Pat Boone and Ricky Nelson. We danced to "At The Hop" by Danny and the Juniors and sooo many other great songs. I still love all of those great 50's hits! High school was a great place to meet new friends and have opportunities to experience life in a broader sense. The school I attended was a good distance from my home therefore, I was able to meet new kids from an area differing from mine. I was 14 when I started high school and in the ninth grade. Up until this time in my life, I was a pretty spoiled young lady! I was a tall and slender brunette (only 113 lbs.) and the oldest and only girl in my family of 3 brothers. We lived in a good neighborhood and our house was one of those 50's type cottages on a street with others of the same style. My Dad held a good job at Westinghouse and my Mom was a stay at home mother. (although she did work sometimes outside the home.) My Grandmother lived with us for as long as I can remember, but in 1958 she passed away. I guess it was because I never knew anything different, I just thought that was how most people lived. I say that I was spoiled because as a young girl and now a young lady, I was never required to help with any of the household chores. Oh yes, I can remember helping to dry dishes from time to time especially on Thanksgiving and Christmas and ocassionally helping with the wash but other than that I was carefree. My Grandmother and Mom did all the housework and cooking. Occasionally, I did pitch in but I would rather be outside. I liked to help my Dad chop wood for the fireplace though! In my neighborhood I came to know about a dozen kids who were around my age and we formed a unique clique and called ourselves the "dirty dozen". Being around 14 & 15 yrs. of age we hung out. We walked to the local drugstore to buy records and drink cokes and then walk back home. We went to movies on Saturday's together and rode the bus from Linthicum to Glen Burnie. Oh what freedom we thought we had as we got away from parental supervision for a few hours. Actually, we never caused any kind of problem and never did anything illegal. We were just kids growing up. We also enjoyed playing baseball out in the street in front of my house and then when we had a snowstorm and were off from school we all went sledding together. It was kind of romantic on these winter outings as one of the kids in our gang was born the day after me (and in the same hospital) {I thought that was soo cool and that we were destined for each other} and he was tall and looked like Ricky Nelson. I had a crush on him! When I was around 15 yrs. old, I got my first job at Keller's Bake Shop. I worked Saturday's and some Sunday afternoon's selling baked goods and cleaning blackened bake pans for .50 an hour. I remember the first year I had my new job that I wanted to give my Mom a special gift for Christmas so, I went into Glen Burnie to a jewelry shop and purchased her a really nice watch on time. Each week I went there to make a payment on my lay/away until it was paid for and it was such a pleasure to give her this gift when I had finally paid it off. Back then, I was not allowed to bring it home till I had made good on my promise to pay.

The first day of high school I found mysef in my new homeroom class with Mr. Baker my Civics and homeroom teacher. He was an older gentleman, nice but not too exciting. As I looked around the room, I didn't see anyone that I knew. Then the girl sitting next to me introduced herself as we left class and we walked together to the next room. (and for the next 4 yrs.!) Her name was Marge Kessler and she is still my friend today! ( to be continued)

at friend's house on a Sat. night

My Dad's '55 Pontiac Learning to back out!

Final Chapter

The early years of the 80's were times of healing and growing. Our oldest son Jim had been a senior in high school when Sharon was injured. Her accident affected him greatly. I believe he felt guilty because he hadn't picked her up from school on that February day. Looking back I wish I had been more sensitive to his feelings and how his sister's condition had touched him. Kellee was away at Geneva College and she had received news through a memo on the bulletin board that her brother had called. Their thoughts are recorded, {I believe on their blogs} if you care to read how the news of Sharon's accident affected them. Our family consisted of 4 children, grandparents, aunts and uncles and cousins. We cared about each other and this accident touched everyone in different ways. So many people reached out to us through prayer, acts of kindness, food, babysitting, phone calls and gifts. During the middle of the 80's, our 2 oldest children were married. Kellee met her husband Kirk while teaching school in Haiti and Jim met Val while at Geneva College. Our first and second grandchildren were born in short order in 1986 & 87. In 1987, Sharon met John Schwab while we attended Faith Bible Church. John showed an interest in Sharon by asking us if he could take her to some concerts at Washington Bible College. Of course we said that she could go with him as we knew him to be a good man and we thought that Sharon would love to get out. This became a regular occurance. Sometimes, John would take her out to eat, other times to various functions around town. As time went on we began to see that Sharon seemed to really like John and we wondered if John was just being kind to her or was there something else going on? So, we did the natural thing and asked John what were his intentions? We didn't want our daughter to be emotionally hurt if what she was feeling was not reciprocated. I hope John didn't mind us being so forward but we had to protect Sharon!! John reassured us that he also felt something more that just a friendship for Sharon. A few months later John asked us if he could marry Sharon!! They were married the end of April 1988 and this past year they celebrated 20 years of marriage. There is much more to the story of how Sharon's life has played out but then, everyone who knows the Lord has a story of how God has led them all the way. I want to say "Thank you Lord for your mercy and grace to myself, Sharon and the rest of the family." Without God's sustaining grace despair would have overcome me. "I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living." (Psalms) I hope you have enjoyed reading about this journey of faith. God has a way of bringing His children to maturity and praise His name, He is not finished yet! Here are a few pictures of the girl in the story. The first one is with her sister and Dad on Kellee's "senior" day at high school. The month is May 1979! Sharon is on the right:>)

8 months before Sharon'saccident

Here comes the bride!

Mr. & Mrs. John Schwab

Everyone is so happy for Sharon

Years later at home in Gaithersburg!

Next to Last Segment

Today, I would like to continue my account of how my daughter's accident has affected my life. Sharon began making progress as she slowly emerged from the coma. One of the first areas to return was her ability to speak. She began with complete sentences; but each word was repeated twice. "I I love love you you." Never having traveled down this road before we didn't know what to make of this. We were assured that it was all part of the process. During the time that Sharon was in the Carter Center our five year old son Ben was very sick for a few weeks with inner ear infections and needed surgery for tubes to be put in. He ran a high fever for a few days after the surgery then he finally began to improve. We had to juggle our visits to see Sharon during this time. One early blessing that we received was our daughter praising God as she listened to a Christian music tape. She was physically only half the person that she was before but yet here she was praising God in song and with her "words". We were allowed to take her outside the WPC center for brief visits in her wheelchair. She had not progressed to walking yet. I'm sure she enjoyed getting out of the hospital environment and into some fresh air. A few weeks later we were told that we could take her home. She still had a lot of spasticity in her arm and feet. As she rode home in the car, she kept flipping down the sun visor to look at herself. She was not herself by any means but she was holding promise for much improvement. Her home care involved many people coming and going. Occupational, physical and speech therapists and teachers were common sights at our house. Sharon had to re-learn so many basics. Crawling, walking, speaking, toilet training and controlling her emotions; all these things were major accomplishments. It's amazing that she knew who we were and who she was. I had a friend who was a nurse who came over one day to help me give Sharon a tub bath. What a blessing she was! As the swelling receded in the brain we experienced lots of ups and downs during the next few months. Some of her friends came by initially but as time went on and they saw that she was not the same their visits became less. Sharon was returned to school in September of that same year. She returned in a wheelchair as she was not quite walking yet. And, of course she had to have someone willing to push her to classes. We did not realize that she wasn't really ready to go back to school at this time. We were in a hurry to get her going again and I think we pushed her a little too fast. That fall she began to have small brain seizures which affected her emotionally. Her behavior became very inappropriate. Jim & I both felt that this time during her recovery was worse than the initial first weeks. We actually didn't know what was happening to her. She did and said crazy things and the more we tried to reason with her the worse it got. Finally, we took her back to the hospital and she was examined by a psychiatrist and his diagnoses was "small brain seizures". These were affecting her behavior. He put her on a diuretic and within a few weeks her behavior turned around for the better. She went through a lot of depression but finally things began to stabilize. After trying a number of schooling options she was finally returned to Glen Burnie High School for her senior year. She walked down the aisle and received her diploma on stage! She was a year or 2 behind, but she made the grade. Sharon continued to make progress both emotionally and socially. She had a number of jobs during the ensuing years and actually learned to ride the public transportation system down to Baltimore to some training she was receiving. I actually followed the bus to make sure that she got off and on at the right spot. It was harrowing to say the least. One time a bus driver asked me why I was biting my lip? How could he tell I was stressed? Sharon's life has not been an easy one to say the least. But through it all she has exhibited much grace and strength in the Lord. She has a powerful will that keeps moving her forward. She doesn't look back and bemoan her fate. She does not feel sorry for herself which is a great attribute. She loves people and she thinks the best of others. She doesn't take into account a wrong suffered and doesn't hold a grudge. Did all this come about as a result of the accident? I'm not sure but I think that is just the way God made her. There is more to the story and hopefully next posting will bring us up to date on where she is now and what life has been for her since 1980.

Continuation of Saga

Sharon remained in a coma for about 6 weeks. She was moved from phase one about 10 days after the accident to phase 2. There was absolutely no deliberate response from Sharon to any of our conversation or probing questions. Her eyes were open and she just stared blankly. She never followed any of our movements around the room. Hospital personnel removed the intubation and inserted a trach into her neck. The nurse would come in frequently to suction and it was disturbing to all when they did this. As time went by Sharon continued to fight for her life. Every visit we made we did the best we could to stimulate her to respond. We brought her favorite music (John Denver tapes; Country Home) to play for her and Jim would read scripture to her and explain that God was there and to not be afraid. He took the 23rd. Psalm and explained to Sharon that God was causing her to rest in green pastures. The definition of being in a coma per the hospital was that the patient didn't respond to verbal commands. So far, this was Sharon's condition. After another week or so they moved her to stage 3. This time she was in a room with another patient. I was pretty shocked when I walked into the room that evening after they had moved her to discover that her roomate was a gentleman who was in a sledding accident. Evidently, this was not an issue with the hospital as both Sharon & this man had been severely injured. Charlie Burhman was quite a character. He had facial nerve damage. Jim being the outgoing person that he is went over to his bed to introduce himself. Charlie was propped up with his eyes closed. Jim didn't know what his condition was so he just said hello, I'm Sharon's father, "Charlie lifted his left hand to his forhead and with 2 fingers pulled up his eyelids and then extending his right hand said "glad to meet you, I'm Charlie Burhman". It was in this room that the nurses began sitting Sharon up in a chair. It was like an adult high chair. They would put blocks and rings on the tray to stimulate her mind to respond to verbal commands. So far nothing! One evening while we were there, Charlie had a birthday and birthday cake was being passed around. I had a piece of his cake with yummy icing. As I was sitting next to Sharon getting ready to eat my cake, all of the sudden Sharon reached over and grabbed my cake and started to eat it. I cannot begin to tell you what a thrill that was! I yelled for the nurses to come quickly! They were obviously overjoyed and began the process of removing her trach. It was in this third phase of shock trauma that Sharon slowing began to emerge out of the coma. It was 6 weeks after the accident that the hospital announced that she was being moved to the Walter P. Carter rehabilitation center across the street. Each new change in Sharon's care brought new anxieties to my heart. Questions about the quality of her care constantly plagued me. Sharon was no longer in an acute situation and didn't need the kind of care she had been receiving in Shock Trauma. She needed round the clock nursing care and at the center she began to be integrated into a more normal social experience. It wasn't the most inviting environment to be in but it was where she needed to be at that time. Sharon had a private room and outside this room there was a hallway and across the hallway there was a large room where they would take her for PT, OT and to spend time outside her room. This place unnerved me to some extent as there were all kinds of people there from a toddler who was standing in water in the basement in her house and experienced a severe electrical shock that had caused her brain damage to a young man who was blind and retarded. There were others there but these were the 2 that stand out in my mind. It was there at the WPC center that Sharon began to improve. (to be continued)

The Saga Continues II

On Tuesday morning Feb. 5, 1980 we woke early and called the hospital to see how Sharon was doing. We had not received a call during the night and this encouraged us to know that our daughter was still alive. However, when we reached the nurse's station they told us she was still in critical condition and not to get our hopes up. Jim had to go to work so I was home alone with our youngest child. I prayed desperately during that time of uncertainty. I remember going into Sharon's room and seeing all of her things. Her dresser with her hairdryer laying there, her brush and various little knick knacks and the tall mirror she would use. I pictured her standing there drying her hair. I fell across her bed and cried. How could it be that just 24 hrs ago she was getting ready for school and so alive and healthy? Oh, God had so much to teach me. Looking back, He cut me gently even though He used my daughter to get through to me. In just a couple of hours I would see God work in a very practical way to let me know that He was with me and aware of the situation with Sharon. After feeding Ben and eating a little something myself, there came a knock at the front door. Two women from my church showed up. Virginia Hart and Judy Haynes came to comfort and console me. They told me to take it easy. They went about cleaning up the kitchen from the night before. The chicken was still in the oven and there were dishes everywhere from my previous preparations for dinner. When we left for the hospital I just turned the oven off and left everything. Virginia started in the kitchen and Judy went into the bathroom. Then they made beds and tidied up everything. I went downstairs to a small office/sewing room that we had and sat there in wonder and cried. God was revealing Himself to me in the care of these women. He knew I needed them (actually it was Him that I needed and He showed up in the presence of these ladies.) Tuesday was the day I normally went to my weekly Bible study so Judy and Virginia both encouraged me to go. Judy went along with me and it was good to be around the other women and share what had happened and what the latest news was about Sharon. The word had gotten around and so many were praying. I later found out that during the actual accident the traffic on Ritchie Hwy was backed up in both directions and a number of people I knew were praying for whoever was in that accident. People were in a restaurant and came out to see what had happened and they started praying. Many kids from Young Life were praying and our brothers and sisters in Christ who had heard the news were praying. Virginia also told me the African children's choir who were visiting Faith church were also praying for Sharon. Lots of voices were being lifted up on her behalf. Our daughter Kellee was away at college and when her professors heard what had happened to her sister they prayed also. Another miraculous provision from the Lord was the man who first responded to Sharon laying in the middle of the highway. His name was John Brandenburg.(He actually was a former ambulance driver.) He saw that Sharon was turning blue and had no pulse. He checked inside her mouth and retrieved a large piece of a pretzel that she had been eating when she was hit. After he pulled it out ( it was lodged in her throat) and gave her mouth to mouth resuscitation he said her pulse came back real strong! Then the paramedics showed up and airlifted her to shock trauma. She was already in a deep coma. I truly believe if John Brandenburg hadn't been there at that time that she would have died or been much worse off. I thought it was a pretty sad testimony from the paramedics when they made little of his efforts. They told us he was pretty excitable and in the way and that he didn't save Sharon's life. God knows who are the real heroes in this case and we believe that Mr. Brandenburg was a heaven sent angel. We still had not been permitted to see our daughter but on the next day we were allowed in the first stage of the trauma unit to see her. She was just a form of the girl whom we loved. Her head was shaved, she was rigid in her form on the bed, her left arm was drawn up next to her chest and her feet and toes were in a pointed position. Her eyes were closed and she made no response to us. She had a cut on the back of her head but otherwise she had no broken bones. ( this was good news because they didn't have to operate to set any fractures and thus cause any more stress on the brain) I will continue the account of this story in my next couple of posts. It happened over 28 years ago, so there is obviously a lifetime of stories to be told but I plan on relating what happened immediately after the accident and how the next few years progressed. So, for today this is enough.

Saga continues

As we drove into Baltimore city we followed the signs to Shock Trauma. Our hearts were beating wildly, not knowing the condition we might find our daughter. We finally arrived at the UMD hospital in Baltimore, a huge teaching institution. Not knowing where to go to find our daughter, we found ourselves in the back of the hospital in what looked liked a loading dock area with a dumpster. We entered through a door and told someone that we were there to see our daughter. Actually, the hospital did not know who Sharon was as she was brought in with no identification. We had to describe her and then we remembered a ring on her finger and that was significant in helping us to identify her. While we waited for the woman to call upstairs to where Shock Trauma was located I noticed the cement walls surrounding us. It looked like a morgue. Eventually they led us to a waiting area where we were able to sit down. It's been over 28 years ago since all this happened so my mind is a little foggy even as it was then. The doctor began to explain to us the kind of injury that Sharon had sustained as being critical. She had a severe closed head injury. The brain had hit against her skull in what they called coup and re-coup. It meant that the brain was severely bruised and was swelling and they needed our permission to relieve the pressure with a type of shunt. They would not allow us to see our daughter at this time and they gave us a number to call to check on her condition. They were not sure she would live through the night. While we were there at the hospital a number of people came, friends to sit with us and console us. I think one of the reasons that they call it Shock Trauma is that the family members are in total shock over what has happened to their loved one. My tears were being held in check, very close to spilling out and my emotions were exploding inside. Why, why, why did this happen to Sharon? She was a happy, young teenage girl with her life before her. She never hurt anyone and certainly because of some learning disabilities had received her share of affliction. She was in a 10th grade special education class in her second semester at Glen Burnie High and per her teacher was doing well and would probably be mainstreamed into regular classes in the near future. A parent feels such loss when their child is struck down and is made to lie in green pastures. The total picture of where she was at this time did not hit me all at once. (thank God for that) We left the hospital and as we travelled out of the inner city my feelings in leaving my daughter there in the big city at the big hospital were overwhelming. I kept looking back and could see the hospital's outline on the cities horizon and I felt such sadness. The Bible says that we do not know what a day may bring forth and that was certainly true here. The night before Sharon's accident, my husband and I had a small argument over something and Sharon had called from her room for us to stop fighting! We lowered our voices and the next morning before she went to school I had a chance to tell her that everything was ok and at times parents argue but they still loved each other. I am so glad I had said that to her or it would have been an added burden on my conscience. We arrived at home and picked up our 5yr. old. I honestly cannot remember what we said to him about what had happened to his sister. My mind has blocked out so much during those initial hours. I do remember sitting in the living room with Fred Kornis a dear friend and evangelist. He shared scripture with us and we prayed together. There came a knock at the door and it was the paramedics. They stopped by to offer their sorrow over our child's accident and to give us Sharon's shoes and a necklace. They told us the impact was so hard she was knocked out of her shoes, which were not flip flops, but brown tie shoes. This knowledge only added to my despair. Now the scripture that Fred shared was this: Psalms 46. God is our refuge and strength a very present help in time of trouble. therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change and though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; Though its waters roar and foam, though mountains quake at its swelling pride. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, The holy dwelling places of the Most High. Now here is the part that struck me. God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. To my simple way of thinking, I felt hope that God was definitely going to help her early the next morning. We went to bed with anxious hearts only being able to sleep fitfully thinking the phone might ring. We also found out a little later that our former Pastor, Dr. Peper was able to get in to see her and pray for her. This was a blessing to us. (to be continued)

February 4, 1980 ( Another Monday)

It was a cold, sunshiny wintry day as our vibrant, beautiful 15 yr. old left for school.

It seems to me that it was only a year before that Sharon had brought home a book for me to read that she had purchased at a book fair at her junior high school. As I look back over the years I have a much clearer vision of why she had given me this particular book. At the time it looked to be another interesting story about a girl named Sharon who was 15 yrs. old and who had made a miraculous recovery from an auto accident where she had sustained a severe head injury. I believe our daughter bought this book because she identified with the girls name being Sharon and their age was about the same. Little did I know it would be about one year later that my own daughter would be going through an identical head trauma very similar to the story I had read and Sharon would have now turned 15. By the way, the name of the book is, "There Is Hope" by her mother Lucille Glaeser.

My husband was home at the time I got the fateful phone call. We had been busy preparing to have a Young Life meeting/Bible Study at our home that evening and I was getting dinner ready. The chicken was in the oven and I was peeling potatoes. Earlier in the afternoon I had received a call from Sharon asking me to pick her up. She was staying after to help coach a girls running team. Sadly to say I told her no that she would have to find a ride home. I don't know why (looking back) I couldn't have stopped for 15 min and gone and picked her up but I was busy with what I was doing. She said ok. Around 4:45pm I looked at the clock and realized that she hadn't come home yet. There was a little alarm that had gone off in my mind at the time. I felt a little uneasy when I realized that she should have been home by now. Then the phone call came that changed our lives. Bob from Young Life called and asked me if I had heard anything about Sharon being in an accident? "No I hadn't, what do you mean?" He tried to avoid telling me what he had heard but I insisted he tell me why he had asked that question. That's when he said that he had heard that she had been hit by a car on Ritchie Hwy and they had taken her to the hospital. He wasn't sure if this was correct so that is why he hesitated. After I hung up I went into fast motion. My husband was out back cutting wood and as I came out of the house in a frenzy trying to tell him what I knew he immediately got me into the car. We stopped next door and asked our neighbor if they could watch our 5 yr. old son while we ran down to the local hospital. As we arrived at North Arundel emergency room there were two paramedics coming out. They approached us and asked us if we were the Brackett's. After identifying ourselves they then told us the dreadful news that Sharon had been airlifted to Shock Trauma at the University of MD hospital in Baltimore. We knew then that this was serious. (to be continued)

Nathan's Grad 2008

Nathan's grad. 2008
4th of July 2008


Our recent rains have made the beginning of July, wet and much cooler. It was so nice to take my morning walk with a cool breeze and overcast sky. I love it when it rains and the winds blow. I had to move a small turtle out of the road and onto the grass as I was coming back. He hid in his shell when I picked him up and wouldn't come back out while I watched. This might sound like I'm tempting the Lord, but I love to experience God's mighty power in the weather. Of course, when the lightening is getting close and streaks across the sky, I run into the house! I'm putting out a few pictures of some recent special occasions in our family for you to enjoy!




4th of July 2008



Katy @ JAARS


During prayer at Jon's church in Boone

Helplessly furious!

California judges have gone too far. Now they want to curtail homeschooling in their state to only those who have teaching certificates. Someone should take a poll of all the homeschoolers who have graduated with excellent grades and gone on to college and great careers. Yes there have been a few who have turned out badly but compare that to the number of public schooled kids who have turned out poorly. I'll just bet that homeschooled kids have a lot more initiative and ingenuity than those who were educated otherwise. Homeschool curriculum is available in many formats and is created and designed by professionals in the field who are aware of how kids learn best. The children receive one on one attention of a parent or other interested third party. They are tested by their respective state board exams and have proven tract records of being high achievers. America needs to wake up and smell the roses! While I'm at it, do not let California lead the way in re-defining marriage. Marriage is and has always been a union between a man and a woman who have made a public commitment of sacred vows. Yes there are failures but through the test of years marriage has worked as the foundation for raising a family. If we would be loyal to each other and work through our differences and quit messing around their would be fewer divorces.

4th of July 2008 prayer

A Prayer for America's Birthday:
Oh Lord, it is reason to celebrate our freedoms here but it is so sad to see the direction our country has taken. This downward spiral will most surely lead to a collapse of our nation eventually. From the inside to the out, we have despised your word to us. We have climbed the ladder to become the greatest nation in the world. Our gov't was formed by men who acknowledged their dependence on you and so they wrote our Constitution and established this great republic. We became known throughout the world for our freedoms. Our laws were based on Your Law. Now, Oh God, just look at where we are! We are a shameful people enslaved, in bondage to our own sin and moral corruption. Your children have allowed this to happen and over time we have become de-sensitized to our own involvement in this way of life. We are a society of ease, want it now, I deserve it, it's mine, know one will be hurt by my choices and on and on it goes. We call good evil and evil good. Marriage is being redefined, abortion is still legal, give me my wishes. Lord, you know where we are headed, you know the future and who our next President is going to be. You are able to direct the heart of the King so I believe whoever is elected you will be able to accomplish your will. I am only one person lifting up and acknowledging my own sinfulness to you. Cleanse my heart, mind and soul today. Have mercy on me Oh Lord. Look upon my children and grandchildren even as Job prayed for his family I pray for mine. That they might walk with you and honor you in all their ways and that they would teach their generation the fear of the Lord. I don't know how long America can survive in the way we are going, but help your people to awaken and get active in pursuing righteousness. Help us to be strong in what we hold dear and to be obedient to you. We need a miracle of your healing grace. America has been known as a free republic, a God fearing Judeo/Christian nation, apple pie and Cheverolet. Yet we've become so lax, so wasteful and prideful. Help us from this day forward to be different, bold in our faith and true to You. Lord Jesus, be magnified in me today. Show me Lord my way. In the most Powerful Name of Jesus I pray. Your daughter, Janice