Peace in the Core

It seems that lately the excercise experts are recommending strengthening your core muscles. If the core is solid and well, your body will be much healthier overall.

The last couple of days I've had to exercise my emotional core, that being my heart. Sarah is heading overseas to Ukraine for 27 months with the Peace Corp. We had to say goodbye to her early this morning at the airport here in Phoenix and send her off for training, and then she'll be sent on her Peace Corp assignment. The reality of the loss in closness to her physically hit my core very hard. Tears were shed, and are flowing freely now. But not tears only of loss and sadness, also tears of pride and joy and love! In fact, mostly tears of pride and joy and love!!

My mind has worked on exercising my core with positive thoughts; memories of years long ago and recent memories made in these past two days while she was here. I've thought of the positive impact Sarah will make on so many lives. And she will grow in this experience. I've prayed, a lot! I am thankful to God for His Spirit giving peace to my core.

And to you, Sarah:

Bless you, Sweet Sarah.

May the peace of Christ dwell in you richly.

Peace in the Core!

Another LONG dry spell!

Hello Readers,

What can I say, it's the desert, the desert has a lot of dry spells.

Today is Sept. 15th and Jim's father, Dwight Berson, is 83 years old today! Hooray!

Another announcement...drum roll please...the arrival of our second grandchild, this time a girl, to parents Eric and Beth and big brother Nolan. Claire Shelby Johnson. Claire arrived on Sept. 2 at 5:17am and is in excellent health. Jim and I were in town the weekend before her arrival, over Labor Day, and I was just dropping him off at the Albuq. airport at 4:45 am when I got a text message from Eric telling me to stay in town. ( I had the car packed and was about to drive back to Scottsdale.) So, the Lord blessed me by being able to meet Claire the day she was born. Jim needed to make his trip, so he caught his plane and I made my way to the hospital. Both of us were able to make the drive to Albuq. this past weekend and attend the baptism.( Sept. 14) We celebrate Claire's birth and baptismal RE-birth in Christ!

Nolan continues to undergo treatment for his cancer. He has had chemo, and is on a break from it now. They were able to successfully take the tumor in his groin out on August 27th
and there were good margins. They are hopefull that they got it all. There is still cancer in his right lung. That will be treated with radiation. Those treatments were supposed to begin today, but had to be postponed. Today brought another medical treatment, however, in the fact that he needed surgery on his stump. The first surgery on his stump (July 28th)was to trim it up a bit so it worked better with his prosthetic. It was just not healing up correctly, so they had to go back in and rework that area.

I know that many of you, dear readers, keep Nolan in your prayers. Thank you for that. I'll try to do a better job of keeping you informed. But over all I can tell you that Nolan is full of LIFE! He just goes and goes and goes. He loves playing and is 'all boy'!! It's just a joy to see him in action. God's love is evident in all.

Time to try to attach a few photos. I'll give you more on the rest of the family another time.

God's blessings to all,
sue