Sea View Inn or Bust

 A couple of years ago I met a man who made me promises then broke my heart.  Ok so that is the Hallmark version of what really happened. I highly exaggerate.  But there was a man who did tell me about this place at the beach, showed me the website and told me he wanted to take me there someday.  When this very short lived relationship busted up, I thought I was heartbroken.  Turns out I was just disappointed.  One of the things I was disappointed about was not going to the Sea View Inn at Pawley's Island.  So when a gift of money came my way, I decided I would take myself.  I would show him!!!  Ha!  So I made a reservation for April 2020 and invited one of my besties over in NC (whom I rarely get to see) to meet me there.  Did you catch the part about 2020?  Right it didn't happen last year but this past weekend my dream was realized and I got my weekend at the Sea View Inn.  And it was all I had hoped for and more. 

I bought I t-shirt with a list of  Top 10 Reasons to Stay at Sea View Inn.  I have modified the last three items on my list to reflect my own thoughts.

 1) Showering with your neighbors.  Though the rooms have a toilet and a sink, taking a shower means going down the hall or to the showers below the house.  I took one really cold shower at the end of the hall. 

2) No cell phones or television.  (phone and computer usage are discouraged not prohibited.)  However I turned my phone on airplane mode when I got there midday Friday and did not turn it back on until time to leave Sunday morning. Funny how the world didn't fall apart when I was unavailable by phone.

3) Dinner bells and Tuesday Fried Chicken.  I wasn't there for Tuesday's chicken but I had a lot of other yummy food. Since Covid, the Inn has gone from providing 3 meals a day to serving breakfast and lunch.  Each party has an assigned table and when the bell rings, no one wants to be late. Dinner options are available from nearby restaurants just across the causeway but we found on Saturday that breakfast, lunch, happy hour snacks and our own supply of snacks was more than plenty.

4) Bare Feet on worn wood floors.  Shoes are never required even for meals.  And the weathered wood paneling expanded from floor to ceiling providing a comforting backdrop.

5) It's not in Myrtle Beach.  Pawleys Island has been preserved from commercial expansion and is a delightful quiet place.

6) Happy Hour on the Front Porch.  People bring their own alcohol and stash it in the community fridge. The Inn provides crackers, dips, fruit and veggies for a little snack to be enjoyed in the evening.  It feels like something mom would put out when the family is all in town.

7) Pancakes for dessert at breakfast.  Breakfast was eggs cooked to order with grits, sausage and toast.  There are other cold breakfast items available. THEN they come around with pancakes.  I avoid processed wheat but that did not stop me from having my daily breakfast dessert of pancake and Nutella!

8) The view from the front porch rockers.  I would guess at least 50% of my waking time was spent sitting in a rocker overlooking the ocean.  Pure Bliss!

9) The Daily Quiet Time  The rules are few (and different from most establishments) but my favorite is the quiet time from 2:30 to 4:30 every afternoon. The request is during this time you reframe from making loud noises. I had a great nap Friday on my bed in our coveted (so we learned) corner room with the cross breeze and ocean sounds.

10) Sharing the experience with a like minded best friend. The Sea View Inn does not appeal to all. As one long time visitor said, "people tend to love it or hate it."  With no keys to your room, AC or Wifi, it is certainly not for everyone.  It is akin to sharing your great grandmothers less than modern beach house with a bunch of strangers (who mind you soon become friends.)  When I decided to make this journey, I carefully considered who to invite.  Helen was the perfect person to share it with! She appreciated the environment as well as refreshed my soul with deep conversation and great laughter.

I know it looks like I picked this friend up off a rack for the photo but honestly she's been my friend for close to 30 years and that hanger belongs to the flowers behind!  Not a very well planned selfie but the only one I have!!!

11) (I decided to add another one) Sunrises over the ocean.  My April challenge was to get up at 5:30 AM.  This trained my body to be awake before 6 Am just as the light was appearing on the horizon.  Thanks to great staff, there was coffee in the dining room and I could head out with my camera, coffee and quilt to watch the sun rise.  One day I viewed if from the porch and the other while walking on the beach.  Can't imagine ever tiring of sunrise over the ocean! I loved quietly enjoying this sight each morning.

There are many more great things as well as pictures that tell about my weekend at the Sea View Inn but I figure that this is enough for now. Perhaps there will be more pictures and stories later. I  have  booked a room for next April to make it an annual trip with Helen and started my Sea View Inn Retreat fund.\ Already looking forward to it.

I am so grateful to the "Ex" who told me about this place. I am grateful to the giver of the monetary gift that allowed me to go.   Most of all, I am especially grateful to God for refreshing my soul with this delightful place and time to simply be still.

Some Days

 I feel like a Tulip just too tired to stand!  Happy Monday!

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will Give you rest." Matthew 11:28

Tulips

While trekking 80 miles for the Resurrection Run during Lent, I passed by a patch of tulips on a regular basis.  I was compelled to take pictures as I watched the tulips progress in various stages.  I kept pondering the significance or the message  in what I saw.  I don't think I came up with anything super profound.  Perhaps just a reminder that like Tulips this life is cyclical.  Emotion, feelings and experiences shift and change.  But like the tulip there is always the hope of Spring with new beginnings as part of the ongoing cycle.  And for followers of Jesus there is always the anticipation and expectation of the day when the cycle ends and we live in the never ending pinnacle of beauty and delight with Jesus.

Anticipation and Excitement

Fresh Joy

Pinnacle delight and beauty

Drooping Monotony

Petal Dropping Weary

Dismal Death

the catch up list

So it has been many - like close to 50 days since I last wrote on the blog. Why you ask.  I don't really know.  Sometimes I just don't have the energy, time or anything real valuable to say.  Yes I know I write even when its not valuable but that's not the point.  I have written things in my head and stuff has been going on but I didn't feel compelled to put anything in print and blast it into cyberspace.  

Since it has been sooo long I am going to list a bunch of one liners in an effort to catch up. It may be a combination of events, thoughts and pictures.  But I am challenging myself to no long stories.  Now we KNOW that is hard!  It will be good for my brain (and you) if I can just create "small bites".  So here we go.

1) My bible study group broke up with me in January due to busy schedules and it hurt my feelings a little bit but I am continuing to do homiletics on gospel of John alone and that is good.  (how's that for ONE sentence!)

2)I have had a few clients in my little Child Life Coaching business and I've enjoyed meeting with the kids, being a part of the supportive Andrea Cook and Associates team, and might be breaking even over expenses, maybe.

3) Peter has been working at Papa Johns for over 2 months now and has a consistent 6 day a week schedule.

4) Peter currently is not driving due to insurance cost so I (along with Mama Millie and the occasional Lyft) function as his means for transportation.

5) Peter is faithful to his job, taking his meds, and paying off his debts for which I am grateful.

6) Peter is surviving but not thriving and I wish so much for for him.

7) My efforts to get Peter connected with a local outpatient Behavioral Health resource hit a boarded up window and bricked up door and therefor is currently not an option.

8) Mama Millie had 3 specific episodes of AFib between Christmas and St Patrick's Day that resulted in her having an ablation to the heart and a new leadless (teeny tiny) pace maker put in March 23rd.

9) Mama Millie had a fall in February that cause some issues to her legs and made her walking more cautious and intentional.

10) We buried Mama Millie's friend Miss Betty in February in a very small but proper funeral complete with body viewing,  escorted processional down one of the towns main roads, and a sweet graveside service.

11) Mom and I made a Easter House

12) Keeping in tradition, Easter involved a work project.  I installed a fence in mom's back garden.

13) I walked 81 miles during Lent (average 2 miles a day) as part of the 80 mile virtual  Resurrection Run and earned myself a really cool shirt.

14) I taught my preschoolers to follow me in the hallways echoing me as I call out a couple of military chants and its pretty darn cute.

15) I am so grateful for my class of preschoolers as they make me laugh and teach me so very much.

16) I received a really cool vegetarian cookbook from my dear friend Dora for my birthday and have tried quite a few recipes and am turning into a Flexitarian.

17) After YEARS of anti-flossing my dentist told me neglecting to floss would just cost me more money in dental care and I have actually flossed daily for almost 40 days!!!

18) Peter really isn't doing well as he appears to be in a state of depression the majority of the time.

19) Peter has a telephone doctor appointment Monday that I plan to butt in on and express my concerns once again seeking help for him.

20) Since she started feeling better, Mom with a little help from me is making great progress on her little backyard flower garden spot and we are anxious to finish it along with sprucing up her patio.

21) My April challenge has been getting up at 5:30 each morning which is a great challenge that I have been successful at for 10 days now.

22) I love decorating my porch for the seasons and am working on the after Easter spring version which is still in progress.

23) This was my Easter porch

24) A few weeks ago I was able to spend an hour with 2 of the women who raised me in my post college years and we even managed a selfie!

25) I am still buying and wearing Color Street thanks to friends who hook me up with sales  !!!

26) Encouraged by a co-work and with the help of Amazon, I embarked on Succulent Farming!

27) I still want one of these!

28) I moved some of the back yard fairy garden to the wheel barrow in the front yard so I can see and enjoy it.

29) I am attempting some herb gardening - from seeds. 

30) This month I have three anticipated visits with friends who live far away and I am grateful as well as excited.

Thirty pieces of trivia seem enough for today and pretty much sum things up in my world! 

 

My New Do

Are you familiar with the animated movie Tangle about the fairytale character Rapunzel.  I have to say, there are scenes and music in this film that make it one of my favorite Disney films.  One of my favorite scenes is towards the end where Flynn Rider saves the day by slashing Rapunzel's long locks with a shard of glass to release her from the evil Mother Gothel.  What results is this adorable brunette bob for which I spend the rest of the movie wishing I could get my hair to resemble. 

Now I am smart enough to know that it is going to take more than one swipe with a piece of glass to produce that cute haircut.  Experience tells me it takes someone with skill as well as some maintenance on my part. Due to the low cost of maintaining, ease of daily care and versatility I have worn long hair for a number of years now.  However I often get the itch for an easy breezy short do every now and then, especially after I have seen one of the many viewings of Tangled on Free Form.  Recently this was the case and I started pursuing Pinterest for real life models of the short shaggy bob.  

A couple of years ago a friend gifted me with a free haircut from her hair stylist.  In Berni I met someone whom I believed could make my hair dreams come true.  So after two years of Berni styling my long layers, I went to her armed with pictures telling her I wanted to do something different.  She acted like it was really fun and well she did not disappoint.  It met all the criteria: easy to maintain, extended wear before haircut needed, and it fit my hip preschool teacher vibe.  And when she was through I did feel like it had that Rapunzel brunette bob charm.

Quite a few years ago in another long to short hair transformation, I discovered a group called Children With Hair Loss that take hair donations of at least eight inches or more.  I felt sure this haircut would result in at least that much so I decided to donate again.  When all was said and done, I was able to donate a ten and a half inch pony tail to the organization.  I added some money to the cause so I could receive this really cool shirt.

On the form, it ask if you are honoring anyone with the donation.  This time around I truly did have someone I wanted to honor.   A little boy in my preschool class was diagnosed with Leukemia at the beginning of the school year and has been going through Chemo.  I was able to "honor" Wesley with this donation.  

That all sounds sweet doesn't it.  But I know and I am telling you, it is a façade.  That hair cut was all about me. There was no sacrifice involved.  Yet I was able to take it and twist it to make myself look like some hero. My pony tail is a small piece in comparison to what is needed for a life changing wig.  I basically bought the T-shirt that says - look at me, look what I did.  And putting Wesley's name on a paper really does nothing for him.  The donation, the shirt and the certificate are an attempt to take a self gratification moment and make it look like it is not. 

I can't help but think of the verse Isaiah 64:6 which says "and all our righteousness's are like filthy rags."  So often even our attempts for good really aren't that righteous if you delve down to the core.  There is often a self pleasing motivation behind it. And sometimes we know it and try to do things so it doesn't look like it is really all about us.  

And my response to that?  Thanks be to God !!!  "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.  There is no difference for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Romans 3:22-24

Now am I trying to say that I think I was wrong or "selfish" to get this cute hair cut or even donate the hair, buy the t-shirt and put Wesley's name on the certificate?  No, not it all.  I am just pointing out the truth.  It's easy to take something we want and try to make it look righteous or give it "super hero status" in an effort to justify our actions or receive applauds from those around.  My hair donation was TOTALLY about me.  I own it.  And I can only hope that in some small way God uses it. Meanwhile I will proudly wear the T-shirt and flip my short locks out of my eyes with a little sassy swoop!

Happy Valentines Day

I spent my valentines divided by time with each of these people whom I dearly love.  Peter and I went out to lunch at PF Changs before he went to work at Papa Johns.  I told him what I wanted for Valentines was a selfie with him where he didn't try to shoot the bird. My attempts of a selfie of the two of us always end up in him adding that gesture.  So this is what I got for Valentines Day from Peter.

After taking Peter to work, I spent the evening with mom. We took care of her honey-do list for me and then we turned a left over Christmas gingerbread house into a Valentine's cottage. 

 It was just as fun as the Christmas one.  I have one more kit for Easter.  Meanwhile I will be on the lookout for more leftover gingerbread kits for Forth of July, Summer, Fall etc. We concluded our evening with Mexican take out and two episodes of Home Town on HGTV.  I am grateful for time spent with both of these very special people.

In the silence

Once again I have been blog silent.  Though the reason is mostly "just busy" primarily I have not thought I had anything valuable or inspiring to share.  But because some of you are kind and simply wondering what is going on, I will give a brief update.  

Peter began working at a local Papa John's Pizza January 25th.  He says it isn't hard work, it has been consistent and he's grateful for a job.  Being between my house and mom's I don't mind helping with transportation as well as I am glad he is away in the evenings. He is still hopeful believing he will be able to get car insurance once he saves up money.

I think it would benefit Peter to be connected with our local Avita - an outpatient mental health program.  I have made an initial phone call and it is a process for sure.  I need to overcome some dread and continue takings steps to try to get Peter connected as I believe it could be beneficial and offer him opportunity to manage his illness with more independence.

Mom has managed to steer clear of Covid thus far and is working on trying to get a vaccine.  This means phone calls and sitting on hold.  Monday she took a misstep and fell back.  Initial assessment was nothing broken or bleeding.  She has been experiencing some leg pain this week that makes walking "more cautious."  Figuring out which doctor to seek out is the current challenge.  

Monday my bible study girls all officially told me they weren't coming any more - too busy.  Won't lie, I took it personal and it hurt my feelings.  But I called a wise friend, hashed it out and got over myself. So now I am continuing to do homiletics on my own and asking God to bring other people along to share it with. And I pray for God to meet these girls where they are.

I have joined a group of pastoral counselors as a Child Life Coach.  I was invited by my friend and former counselor to pursue some training and be a resource for children and parents.  I now have an established self employed business but we are finding getting people to reach out and employ my services has not been as easy as thought.  I have seen one child and communicated with a few other parents who haven't booked appointments.  The truth is I don't really feel that qualified or equipped and who knows that may be the sabotage.  Though I have some "life coach" training I am really pursuing more learning regarding helping children.  There is a stack of books on the side table now.  But I am not a student who loves reading to learn so it isn't coming easy.  I do believe this is something I am to pursue and that God has and will equip me to do it. So I move forward in the belief.

Periodically my body rebels, it says it doesn't want to do the things I want it to do.  It comes in the form of fatigue and aches.  It has been ongoing and connected to auto immune issues most likely.  This week I have experienced it knocking on the door.  I am working on inviting it in for it's God-refining purpose while seeking to do what I need to, to send it on it's way.

In addition, I am plowing through a Vegetarian cookbook, a gift from Dora trying new recipes and trying to regain a healthy eating lifestyle.   I am reducing facebook and phone time as part of a Social Media Fast.  Oh and yes, I am enjoying my storehouse of Color Street nail strips I acquired as a result of supportive friends to my birthday color street party.

So that's me today , and it's time for work.  Thank you for the ways you pray for me and my family.  Thanks for caring and listing to my petty stuff.