Soli Deo Gloria! -Kyrie<>< - another 'Dear _____, Love, me' post

Dear Bro. Earl,

May God give you the energy you need and keep your courage up. I love hearing you teach. And it makes my day when you hang around in the morning after teaching your high schoolers' Bible class at the academy and discuss theology with me.


Dear Mrs. Shannen,

I know your load is heavy - may the Lord be your strength.


Dear Bro. Dennis,

You taught me so much. You were my mentor, my friend. I miss you. Please come back.


Dear Mrs. Carrie,

You're still beautiful. May the Lord truly give you the desires of your heart.


Dear Maxwell,

You are growing so fast. I've prayed for you twice as long as you've been alive, and I'm still praying for you. May God make something amazing of your life. 


Dear Austin,

I miss you and Ava so much. Your sunny friendship warms my memories. May God use you greatly where you are.


Dear Ava,

I miss you and Austin so much. What a wonderful heart shines through the wonderful smile you have. Thank you for keeping in touch with us at Victory Rd.! God bless your adventure!


Dear Aron,

I'm so proud of you for how you're striving to be a true man of God. Keep Him at the center of your precious family.


Dear Henley,

You are such a wonderful wife and mother. May the Lord bless your efforts to do what's right. Keep loving your husband, keep loving your boys. Keep experimenting!


Dear Simon,

There's still hope. Come home.


Dear Joy,

The devil wants you, but God is stronger! The little decisions you're making now are setting the stage for the rest of your life. Oh darling! The glittery pleasures that tempt teenagers are so fleeting - the glitter falls off, and years later if God grants you wisdom, you will look at them and wonder how in the world you allowed yourself to give your time and love to that naked junk. How my heart aches over you! God fight for you!


Dear Toby,

Bless your loving heart. Yes, you are human and you've made mistakes. No, I don't agree with you on everything. But I respect you so much. Let the Lord keep making you incredible.


Dear Lindy,

You are a true friend. Stay humble, but don't get too down on yourself. You're on the right track to making an excellent wife - stay Toby's best friend.


Dear Archer,

I think you've found your life's work. If that's the case, pour your whole self into it. But please be so careful - as you're cleaning, it's easy to get dirty yourself. Seek the Lord's advice in EVERYthing.


Dear Law,

Oh my precious, how can I write to you all that's in my heart? I continually praise our blessed Christ for the man He's making you into. God bless you, my dear young friend.


Dear Abigail,

Your happiness makes me happy. I can always count on you for a corny joke or a teasing jab or a tidbit of spiritual wisdom to boost my spirit. Keep singing.


Dear Piper,

I'm continually amazed at your store of patience and your depth of maturity. You still have so much to learn. God make you a great lady, my dearest girl! And don't give up your piano :) .


Dear Bro. S.,

Thank you for loving your wife and trying to raise your kids for the Lord. Thank you for your country simplicity and wisdom. Thank you for being so transparent and honest with your Sunday School class. Thank you for your friendship and for your perceptive encouragement.


Dear Mrs. S.,

Thank you for loving your husband and trying to raise your kids for the Lord. Your knack for putting people at ease and your heart of welcome are both a great example and a special gift; there is a reason everyone loves you - you love everyone.


Dear Trent,

You are growing up so well. Keep your contentment, yet yearn for more of God. Thank you for your down-to-earth country friendship. And for blessing others with your music.


Dear Peter,

I can't believe what a wonderful young man you're becoming. I mean, I can, but I've known you long enough to remember you as a little kid! You are so unconscious of your good looks, and that makes you even more handsome. Keep your sunny disposition - a joyful spirit is a blessing to the owner as well as to those around him.


Dear Trent and Peter's mom,

You are such a blessing to me. Thank you for your advice on photography, your smoothie recipes, your secretarial tips, your humility, and your sweet smile. Thank you for treating me as an equal, even though I'm so much younger.


Dear Lela,

Are you happy? True happiness comes from joy in Christ. Don't waste your life. Btw, I miss you. Remember Chicago?


Dear Mrs. Renae,

I'm so thankful the Lord has allowed us to stay in touch. He is stronger than anything fighting you!


Dear Nicole,

What can I say? There's only one Nicole. Am I still 'one of your best friends'? May the Lord grow you into the woman He wants you to be - don't resist the changes He wants to make.


Dear Russell,

You have the gift of a joyful spirit - what a blessing you are to so many! Use your talent for the glory of God - don't let the bright lights blind you.


Dear Lora, Lindsay, Dolan, and Randy,

I have no idea what happened to you. But I know the One who does. I trust that He is watching out for you. I loved you.


My Dear Brown-Eyed Boy,

Wherever you are, God keep you.


Dear Bro. Mike, Bro. Mike's wife, and Camille,

I'm so thankful for the amazing adventure the Lord is allowing you to live! Don't wait too long to come back for a visit though - it's been so long since that last hug.


Dear Bro. Nick and Lydia,

I'm praying for you.


My Dear Dr. Pepper Kids,

Oh how I hope and pray that you will give yourselves to the Lord! You aren't kids anymore, but a young man and two young women. If you start now with Christ while you're young, life will be better - trust me.


Dear Trissy,

I love you.


Dear others-I'd-wanted-to-include-a-note-to-in-this-post,

I am so sorry, but it's 11:00 P.M. and I've got to be at work right after 7:00 tomorrow morning - I've got to go to bed. But that doesn't change the fact that I love you and hope you will love the Lord. Maybe I can write later.

Most of the others I actually have written will never see their notes. But I needed to write them.


Soli Deo Gloria!

-Kyrie<><

"5 Small Things Friday" No. 114

Go back and read this post for the story behind "Five Small Things Friday".

For this week, here is my list:

1. and 2. Sight and Hearing: This Christmas Video

3. Smell: Old Spice Aftershave

4. Taste: Turkey Sandwich

5. Touch: Orange

The stories behind the list:

1. and 2. Trissy was on YouTube for some reason the other day, and came across this version of "Angels We Have Heard On High". Our family has watched it probably a total of twenty times since, and we notice something new almost every time we watch it. The coordination, teamwork, talent, and creativity are almost brilliant, and the joy and Christmas spirit are undeniably contagious - if it doesn't leave you with a little spring in your step, there may be something wrong with you!

Note: It does have a sort of goofy and completely irrelevant ending. The part I'm bragging on is the beginning of the video 'til the end of the song. Just to clarify :)



3. One of the days I worked at the restaurant this week, an older man came and ordered food. That in itself was, of course, not out-of-the-ordinary at all. What made me notice was the fact that, even though I was not the one who took his order, I could smell his strong after-shave as a breeze blew in the window. I'm pretty sure I can even tell what brand it was - Old Spice. I know, because The Grandfather used to use Old Spice cologne and after-shave. When that scent blew through the open window, suddenly I was a little kid again, standing in the bathroom door, watching The Grandfather carefully scrape white foam off his face. He'd stop occasionally and teasingly offer me a dob of the stuff for my face. He'd rinse the razor meticulously, then go over his face again. He'd finish off the process with a dash of after-shave from the thick-glassed Old Spice bottle with the ship sailing across the front. Sometimes he'd use the electric razor. On those days, I'd hold my hand out, and he'd gently touch the humming little thing to the back of my hand so I could feel it vibrate. I always felt so important when he'd 'shave' my hand! Again, at the end, the heavy little bottle would come out, and I'd look at that simple yet beautiful image of the sailing ship while he smeared the nice-smelling liquid across his face.

4. Thursday Mom and Trissy and I made turkey sandwiches for lunch with the left-over turkey from Thanksgiving. Whole-wheat bread, sweet pickles, lettuce, mayo, and tiny pieces of white meat, heated in a cast-iron skillet on the stove. First sandwich I'd had in quite a while, and boy was that toasty thing good!

5. Tuesday in after-school, Joy and the two youngest of my 'Dr. Pepper kids' and I went outside and threw a football together for a while, then sat and talked. My Dr. Pepper boy went inside and got a little tangerine (or a small member of the orange family anyway) from his lunch box to snack on. I said something about how delicious oranges are, or how much I love them, or something. When her brother got back up to toss the football with one of the other boys, my little Dr. Pepper girl (the youngest of the three - she's probably about eleven) leaned in confidentially and told me, 'I'll bring you one Thursday.' Sweet dear thing!
Thursday came, and I hadn't thought any more about it. It's not that I didn't want it, or that I doubted her, it's just that I'd forgotten. But she hadn't! In the hubbub that accompanies school letting out, I heard a cheerfully urgent, 'Miss Kyrie!' from the big hall doorway. There she was, hefting her bookbag on one arm and holding the other behind her, her eyes sparkling merrily. She wove her way between people, across the foyer, to where I was standing, looking over her shoulder as if on some secret mission. She came level with me and mysteriously slipped a small round thing into my hands, her eyes shining and her lips forming that pretty little mischievous smirk of hers.
'Aww!' I exclaimed. 'You remembered!'
'Don't let [the Dr. Pepper boy] see it!' she whispered.
I obediently cupped it between my hands. 'Why not?' I asked, leaning in, copying her secretive manner.
'Cause he don't want to give 'em away!' Her shoulders shivered and her dimples deepened as she giggled confidingly. She slipped away into the milling crowd of students.
I looked down at the small round fruit. It was smooth and bright orange, a little bigger than a golf ball. It fit perfectly between my cupped hands. I enjoy oranges almost too much to describe, but the young friend's love that that little fruit represented, meant more to me than a truckload of oranges.
Later, as she and her sister and bother climbed into their mother's vehicle (their mom is a teacher at the academy, and they're usually some of the last to leave), she turned back to where I stood in the school's front door.
"I hope you enjoy your orange." she said, with a mixture of pride and shyness.
I grinned. "I will!"

"5 Small Things Friday" No. 6

Go back and read this post for the story behind "Five Small Things Friday".

For this week, here is my list:

1. Sight: An autumn yard arrangement.

2. Hearing: "Miss Dr. Pepper"

3. Smell: Hot biscuits and gravy.

4. Taste: Cream of Chicken Soup.

5. Touch: A hot shower.


The stories behind the list:

1. The house closest to ours is The Grandfather's brother and sister-in-law's house. They have both past away, and now our neighbors are the youth minister from The Grandparents' church, and his family. They are really nice people!
The yard is beautiful and old-fashioned, and they have added their own touches without taking away from the wonderful old memories of the place. I was driving up to The Grandparents' the other day, and noticed a wonderful autumn arrangement they had made next to the old mailbox, using hay bales, pumpkins, and squashes.

2. I talk alot about the kids at VRCA, but they are such a big part of my life, that many of my recent, treasured memories come from them.
A few weeks ago, I took a can of Dr. Pepper to after-school to use as a prop for some photos I was taking for my Etsy shop (I like to multi-task, and am always taking projects to work on while I watch the kids). Some of the new teachers' kids didn't know my name yet, but when one of the students (who knows me well) thought it would be fun to steal my can of Dr. Pepper, that can began making rounds of the boys' pockets, with the hopes that they could persuade me to forget I had brought it, and they could have it :D ! It was a fun joke, but after that, a couple of the new teachers' kids (a brother and sister) began calling me "Miss Dr. Pepper". The first time the boy called me that, it caught me off guard - I had no idea what he was talking about! But when I asked him he said, 'Cause you brought the Dr. Pepper to school, and I didn't know your name!'
They all know my name now, but that brother and sister still call me "Miss Dr. Pepper", instead of "Miss Kyrie", and I love it.

3. Last Friday night I came in cold, tired, and hungry from school and work, and (we pretty much always go to The Grandparents' house for the evening on Fridays) The Grandmother had made biscuits and gravy for supper. One of my favorite smells in the world. My spirits rose from knee-level to the tree-tops.

4. Last night before Thursday night College Bible Study, Trissy and I opened a can of Cream of Chicken Soup for a quick (and hot) supper on the way out the door. Cream of Chicken Soup has got to be one of my favorite "comfort foods".

5. How often do I take a hot shower for granted! So much of the world does not even enjoy indoor plumbing, let alone hot water. Yet after a long day, I find that a hot shower is one of the most comforting, relaxing, soothing things, and I am taking them less for granted. They are also extremely conducive to creative thoughts. I come up with my best creative writings and ideas while in the shower. Often Trissy has come running to my rescue and slid a piece of paper and pencil under the door for me to make soggy notes on!