A Big Surprise!

So Troy & I were having a conversation a few weeks ago about I'm not even sure what when I suddenly said, "You know if I was going to learn another instrument, I'd want to learn the Steel Guitar. And I'm not getting any younger....Maybe I should make that a goal for this next year."

Well, a few days later, Troy calls me from the guitar shop & says, "I wanted to surprise you with this but I realized you're going to have to come & pick out your own." I was totally blown away. So, here is a picture of my new Dobro Resophonic Square Neck Guitar! Now I need lessons! This is a finger-picking lap guitar. It is tuned differently than a regular guitar & it is played differently - with a slide & finger picks. I am very excited about this. And was so surprised.

So, thank-you Troy for a wonderful & unexpected birthday gift! You're the best!

Grace Like Rain

As I look out the window this morning, the ground is still covered in a blanket of white. The snow continues to fall - sigh... I thought it was April showers.... Everyone has been grumbling about the snow, myself included, but ultimately I realize that grumbling about something I can't control is a waste of energy.

I am longing for those summer thunder storms. You know the kind - you can feel them in the air for days, hanging there. The air is hot & humid, the sky dark with clouds. And then in an instance, the sky opens up and the rain pours down by the bucketful. The hot, sticky feeling disappears & a time of refreshing sets in.

Todd Agnew's "Grace Like Rain" song is one of my favorites these days. The verses are from Amazing Grace but the chorus is:
Halleluiah, Grace like rain falls down on me.
Halleluiah, All my stains are washed away, they're washed away.

So I can put up with the snow for another week or so because I know that when it melts, things will be green and full of life. I love spring, partially because it is the end to winter & the start of newness but also because it is so short, especially this year! It will give way to summer and summer to fall.

I hope that you all had a meaningful Easter. For now, I will be waiting for the rain.