November 12, 2018 

I've not written for some time, but the journal prompt that was in Spiritually Hungry's Thanksgiving Challenge, 30 Days of Fostering a Thankful Heart, (link here: https://spirituallyhungry.com/holiday-challenge/)   really spoke to me.    It is:  Think about where you reside and t where God has you.

That’s an easy one!  I currently live in Tucson, Arizona. I moved here in August 2000, so that means I’ve actually lived here longer than any other place, with the exception of Cleveland.  I lived in the house in Rita Ranch longer than any other house, though – 17 years – and that includes all the years growing up in Cleveland. 

There are so many good things about Tucson, for starters – our wonderful weather!  Since I’m writing this in November, I can really brag on what some call “Chamber of Commerce” weather – cool nights, mild days in the 60’s-70’s.  Can’t ask for more perfect weather, especially when I hear of snow and freezing temps in other places.  Yes, it gets very hot here in the summer, but the weather in November-February more than makes up for it.  People have asked me if I ever wanted to move back “home” to Cleveland. And while it would be nice to be around family, the answer is an unapologetic no. 

There is a lot to do here, mostly outdoors.  Hiking in the National Parks, bicycling on the Loop, picnics on Mt. Lemmon.  But there are cultural things as well, with the University of Arizona offering multiple choices for concerts, shows, and theater.  We have the Desert Museum and Reid Park Zoo, the Roadrunner Hockey Team, nationally ranked basketball, sometimes decent football.  There is a vibrant art community here as well, ranging from Native American art to Ted DeGrazia, and more.  Oh, and I certainly can’t leave out two things that definitely put Tucson on the map – the Tour de Tucson, a 105 mile internationally recognized bike race around the perimeter of the town.  It takes place this Saturday, November 17 and brings in huge crowds.  The second is the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show each February.  It also brings in hundreds of vendors and shoppers looking for just that gem or mineral. 

Tucson has its issues. The roads need help, and unfortunately recently a road bond was rejected by the voters, so we will continue to have those problems.  Politics are much the same as everywhere else – contentious! Schools are good in some parts, not so good in others.  There’s lots of history – the Presidio part of downtown, the Mission, Old Tucson. 

Food is another major plus in Tucson.  We have just about every variety of cuisine that you can imagine, starting with the best Sonoran style Mexican anywhere.  Restaurants such as Mi Ni Dito in South Tucson, El Charro – a Tucson icon that has several locations.  Pinnacle Peak, with its western ambiance, where if you wear a tie be prepared to have it cut off!   El Corral, which is situated in a ranch house built in the 1920s, and has the best prime rib.  We also have incredible Italian restaurants – my favorite is Gusto, a small place at the intersection of Tanque Verde and Sabino Canyon, but there are many, many others.  Chain restaurants? Why, when there are so very many other choices that are wonderful?? 

To just touch on the faith aspect – Tucson is a very religious community, but the opportunities to share the Gospel abound.  For many years, Tucson saw an influx of refugees, where God was bringing the world to our doorstep. I was a part of teaching refugees English for several years, and about to venture back into that ministry once again.  Right now for various reasons I’m taking a break from ministry and allowing God to speak into my life instead, but tonight I will be going to meet a woman who wants to sharpen her English skills, and we’ll see where that leads. 

Tucson has been very good to me, and I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. 

Challenges - Oh, so many Challenges

I've not blogged in some time, and a friend told me that I really need to get back to that.  It's hard to know where to begin. Life has taken some very interesting twists and turns, kind of like the quilting that I've suddenly found that I now have time to do again.

I'm going to turn this blog into a quilting/food blog I think. Maybe I'll actually get readers :)    

To catch up - we moved into our new house last February, downsizing from a five bedroom, three bath, three car garage to a three bedroom, two bath, one office, two car garage. But, it's on one story, which is necessary for us now.  After Tom's stroke, I knew it was time to get rid of stairs.  And yard work that consumed so much of his time.  I was still working part-time but was offered a full-time position last June, which I took.  That turned out to be a not-so-good idea, as the job not only became more than I could handle, but there were personnel issues that caused me to ultimately resign. As a result of that, we ended up leaving our church and basically dropping out of everything for some time.  We are attending a new church now, but we aren't getting heavily involved. I'm taking time to just be a "Mary", sitting at Jesus' feet and learning, recovering, refreshing and waiting to see just where the Lord would have me serve. 

So, this newly found free time has allowed me to get back to quilting.  Since I quit in August, I've finished two queen quilts, a table runner and a wall hanging.  Now I'm working on one for Amanda - using the fabrics she got in Sierra Leone. It's proving to be a MAJOR challenge!  

Matt's Chevron Quilt in their wedding colors

Dad's Table Runner - another
easy one. The quilting took longer
since I free-motioned a pattern

Christmas Wall hanging - this was a one day quilt, fun and easy!

Dianna's quilt. I had started it long ago and was the first
one that I finished when I had the chance to work on it again.

This is Amanda's quilt - see the challenge?  It's tough, and I'm not sure I'm going to be able to easily figure it out.  I've asked Chuck (oldest son) for help, hopefully between the two of us we can get it.  

Found History

We are in the process of cleaning to prepare for downsizing to a new, smaller house.  When Mom died in 2010, I became the keeper of all of her pictures, computer discs, genealogy research - everything.   I found a disc today that has some interesting history on it.  For my family who is reading this, you might be interested.  I'll post more as I find them but for now - here's a little of Papaw's story:

Notes/Sources - 29 Dec 1995

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FAMILY NOTES

William Andrew SCHULTZ Sr.

Son of William Andrew and Anastasia McKeith

      William was born in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio.  He lived with his grandparents, mother, brother, sister and Aunts. They lived at 1945 West 45th Street.  The 2160 West 62nd.   He lived there until his mother married his father, William Andrew McKeith and moved to Lakewood, Ohio in 1945.   He then went to live with his Aunt, Dolly (Anne Elizabeth Kosa) and Uncle, Herman A. Lande.

      They went to Garfield, Washington and he worked on a ranch all summer. They next lived in Moscow, Idaho with Herman’s parents.  Bill entered the tenth grade in Moscow. At mid-term they moved to Burbank, California where he went to Burbank High School. 

      He held several part time jobs working on the ranch packing groceries, and another job was helping make neon signs.  He would return to Washington to the ranch for the summer.

      In the summer of 1948, Dolly and Herman moved to Texas and Bill followed in September. After his arrival in Paris, Texas he entered Paris High School. He met and eventually married Julia Ruth Ingle. William was employed with Cleveland Deliveries when United Parcel Service bought the Cleveland company. He was one of the original North Ohio Personnel of United Parcel Service when they began their service in 1954. He remained  with UPS until January 28, 1985

I'll continue on with a little about him.  Mom, aka Grammy, aka Julia Ingle Schultz, died in May 2010.  Dad remarried Elizabeth Sweeney in November, 2012 in Tucson, Arizona.  They now live in Louisville, Kentucky. 

Here are some pictures of Dad's family.  There are more pictures that I'll put up when I find them, so watch for a Part 2. 

Anna Marie Kanizsa

Aunt Dolly - Anne Elizabeth Kosa Lande

Another picture of Aunt Dolly in uniform

Aunt Dolly and Uncle Herman's wedding

Aunt Dolly and her plane

Aunt Dolly, Uncle Herman and Dad

Aunt Noni, Uncle Herman and Aunt Dolly

Boniface Kosa, Anna, Verona, Anne Elizabeth and Steve - Dad's grandparents

Boniface Kosa - Dad's grandfather

Dad with Boniface and Anna Kosa

Dad, Aunt Noni and their dog Buster

Florence Schultz and Aunt Bessie (Elizabeth Kosa)

Florence Schultz - Dad's sister

Aunt Noni, Aunt Dolly and Florence

Grandma McKeith - Anastasia Kosa and Uncle George - Dad's older brother

Grandma McKeith with her mother - Anna Kosa

New York World's Fair - Aunt Noni, Dad, Grandma McKeith, Uncle George? 

Dad with Uncle Herman

Uncle George, WW2 AAF

Dad 

Choose Joy

Ecclesiastes 3  

1 There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven—

2 A time to give birth and a time to die;

A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.

3 A time to kill and a time to heal;

A time to tear down and a time to build up.

4 A time to weep and a time to laugh;

A time to mourn and a time to dance.

5 A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing.

6 A time to search and a time to give up as lost;

A time to keep and a time to throw away.

7 A time to tear apart and a time to sew together;

A time to be silent and a time to speak.

8 A time to love and a time to hate;

A time for war and a time for peace.

9 What profit is there to the worker from that in which he toils? 10 I have seen the task which God has given the sons of men with which to occupy themselves.

11 He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.

 From <https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ecclesiastes+3&version=NASB>

This blog entry is kind of all over the board, but when you read it, I think you will understand why.  

There is a time for everything. I realized the truth of those words in the past few weeks. The Lord has been so good.  There is much to be thankful for, and much to praise God for.  We were tooling along, making gradual changes to our diet and exercising (more about that later), and planning our Florida vacation.  I went to work as normal on Monday, Tom got up early and started working in his home office.  At about 2, I received a text from Tom telling me to come home. NOW.  I arrived to find him on the bathroom floor.  He had been throwing up for an hour. I called 911 and he was taken to Tucson Medical Center.  After some delay he was admitted, in part because his heart rate kept dropping and he was severely dehydrated.  Multiple CT scans, x-rays, lots of blood work and almost being sent home twice, the doctor decided to go ahead with an already ordered - and nearly cancelled - MRI.  He was surprised that the results came back positive for not one, not two, but six strokes. There were six areas in his brain that had cell loss, confirming stroke, not TIAs.  One more test was performed to try to determine where the strokes originated, a test call a trans-esophageal echocardiogram.  That test is similar to an endoscopy, but instead of going into the stomach, the doctor looks at the heart.  The test showed that he has a small hole in between the two chambers of his heart.   We were sent home with an aspirin regime and cholesterol medication, with follow-ups with our primary care physician and the cardiologist. No physical therapy was necessary, because he hasn’t had any residual effects, aside from vertigo.  This is a major praise – with that many stroke areas, the fact that he has no residuals was a relief. Even the neurologist said he dodged a cannonball. 

When we went to the cardiologist yesterday (June 30), we were told that the hole is small, and at this point they are not overly concerned with it. However, if he has another stroke, then the possibility of open heart surgery is strongly indicated. That is the scary news.  In the meantime, he will be going in to TMC soon to have a loop devise implanted in his chest. This loop will constantly monitor and record his heart function, letting the doctor know if he has a-fibrillations, which is another likely cause of the strokes.

But the Lord has been so good throughout this entire ordeal. Pastor Ron is doing a series on Philippians, and his topic for the past few weeks has been Joy in Adversity.  Nothing like a medical emergency to test whether I’m applying the messages or not!  I’ve been really thinking what it means to Choose Joy.  Throughout this ordeal, I’ve been reminded that joy is a choice, and that God is in control. That has brought me an enormous amount of peace.  God is in control, I’m not, and our lives are truly in His hands.  We saw that every time we turned around.  And the fact that Tom has no major residual effects is such a blessing.  I have to say, praying with your boss about your husband's health is not something that is possible when you are working in the secular world, that's a HUGE PLUS to working at a church!   

We had been looking at houses with an eye towards downsizing.  Now that Tom has had the strokes, and there is a very real risk that he could again, downsizing into a one-story house has become a priority.  So, Saturday found us at a sales office for a new development here in Tucson.  We had already looked at the houses once before, and knew we liked the model, but wanted to see it again.  After talking with the sales agent, we returned on Sunday and signed paperwork to build.  Scary, but exciting thought!  Now comes all the paperwork and sorting this house in preparation for moving!

Last Summer - at my heaviest

On a more personal side, in April I decided my weight was out of control. It was time to get serious about my health.  Seeing the doctor and getting put on new blood pressure meds was just what I needed to kick start losing weight.  I tried Spark People and My Fitness Pal, but both of them were just too cumbersome, so I returned to Weight Watchers.  This time, I'm following the Simply Filling plan.  I had been having stomach issues every time I ate pizza and pasta, so I made the decision to cut all simple carbs - pasta, bread, white rice, pizza (boo!).  Immediately, without even trying, I dropped 8 pounds.  Great! A good way to begin!

Then I added in cardio.  We have the oversized space hog sitting in the family room, and it was time to put it to use.  Oh, what is it? It's an elliptical. I started out slow, couldn't go much longer than 15 minutes.  But I pushed on. Then I decided to get on my bike again.  I again started out slow - 7 miles in about 55 minutes.  Weekly bike rides, sometimes both Friday and Saturday, and my strength and stamina have improved.

25 pounds later, and still going down!

So where am I now?  I've lost 25 pounds. I can do 35 minutes on the elliptical, with my heart rate averaging about 132. I have ridden 18 miles, in 90 minutes.  I'm down almost a full size. My clothes are baggy and I don't dare wear pants without a belt, or else! 

I'm cooking differently, experimenting with different recipes, different seasonings.  For example, tonight we had lean pork chops marinated in teriyaki sauce with garlic and ginger, sweet potatoes, and Asian green beans - green beans, shallots, garlic, and soy sauce.  It was delish!   I'm not depriving myself of much - I have dark chocolate at least once a day and ice cream bars on occasion.  My drink of choice lately is water with a sprig of mint and a slice of lime.  I'll also have water infused with orange, lemon and lime slices. 

Mornings are usually oatmeal with blueberries, nectarines, or apples.  If I work out in the morning, then I'll have an egg, light English muffin and a piece of ham. (All of that is zero points, under the Simply Filling plan!) It's working!  My goal is 150, so I'm roughly 1/3 of the way there.   

The Lord has been good, so good.  I am blessed beyond measure, and I know that whatever He has in store, He will give me the grace to see me – and Tom – through.   I CHOOSE JOY.

Last Full Day in Tepic

Brenda sharing the Gospel

This village can only be reached by boat and hiking. But - see the red roofed building in the lower left?  That is the church. AND they have an AWANA program!

David, Jasson and Clif

Pre Flight Inspection

Yesterday was incredible.  David wanted to take the ladies up in the plane to survey the land see the remote villages that have heard the Gospel. We woke to beautifully clear skies, that turned into fog the closer we got to the airport.  But, as the guys were doing the pre-flight inspection and cleaning out the airplane, God burned off the fog and after instructions about the seat belt and headphones, we were able to take off. 

Erik cleaning the plane

What a beautiful country!  So very green and tropical!  David showed us a village that is reachable only by boat and hiking in. However, God is so good! The village has a number of believers, a church, and an AWANA program! 

We flew over a beautiful lake that stretches 50 miles.  It is a major source of food for the Huichol people.  The ride was wonderful, the mountains are beautiful and we had a great time.  Chris even got to fly for a few minutes, as she had the co-pilot seat. 

When we landed, we went to breakfast at a great little restaurant.  Since those who had wrestled with Montezuma were hungry but still not quite 100%, breakfast for most of them was fairly light, eggs and coffee. Oh, and the coffee was wonderful!  It has this wonderful subtle taste of chocolate!  It's not at all like a mocha, but so much better!

Our Flight Attendant - who forgot the coffee and pretzels!

Becky and Mike, from Casa de Ninos

We then headed over to Casa de Ninos, where we met Becky and Mike, a couple from Missouri, who work with the children.  Becky has a library every Monday, and we spent time with the books we brought reading to and being read to by the children. 

They currently have 13 children, ranging in age from young elementary school up to 20.  We were asked not to show individual pictures of them, but I can share the group picture.

It was back to the room to shower and post tons of pictures to Facebook before heading to the Hunttings for dinner with their family and the pastor of the church, Pastor Martin, his lovely wife Eren, and two sons Jonathan (almost 20) and David (17).  The young men are incredible - Jonathan is very interested in videography; he runs the media for the church, using Easy Worship, a program I am familiar with as we use it in one of our rooms at church.  The things he could do with it rival Pro Presenter :)  I believe he also plans the worship service.  He spent quite a bit of time talking with me about work related things, and then switched to talking to Tom about IBM and the opportunities there.  (All with the help of our wonderful interpreter/hostess/new dear friend, Debbie Mellberg.) 

David is a gifted teacher and accomplished violinist.  He gave the lesson at the Huichol village, and again in AWANA Saturday night.  When asked to share, he indicated his passion was for the children - to see them come to the Lord. 

I was very impressed with both of these young men.  Before they shared what they were doing in their lives, they spoke so highly about their parents, the life they saw lived out daily in their parents' lives.  The love for the Lord first of all, for their family, for the Huichol people is so evident in all their lives.  (Lord, please change me and give me the passion they have!) 

In March, during the week between Palm Sunday and Easter, the church, Pastor Martin, Eren, and Debbie put on a camp for the Huichol people.  They expect to have up to 100 teens.  They shared some major prayer requests for this outreach - first, as they write the curriculum. Debbie, Eren and Pastor Martin will write it, then have it translated into Huichol.  The Huichol pastors who work with them will then teach it.  There is a financial cost of about $30 per person. Because the Huichols are so poverty stricken, funding is difficult.  They provide scholarships, but still the need is great.  Pray for the hearts of the people to be prepared to receive the Gospel.

Today, we are going out for brunch, then heading to Puerto Vallarta.  David and Olivia are going to go with us, and we will be celebrating David's birthday.  We head home on Friday.