"

I'm in charge of my life

No matter what life throws at you,
No matter who hurt your heart.
Life is worth the effort
If you'll only give a good start

Pain has been in my life for sure
Ones I thought should have loved me
Delivered the worst of sorrow and scars
But my strengths have set me free

He can not hurt me anymore
It has nothing to do with age
I've put it all in it's proper place
Now my life is my own stage

Smiles form inside and out
And yes, sadness is there too
But now I know just where I stand
And it isn't because of just you

I have taken charge of things
My head is not in the past
Determinations and faith are my rocks
And no past will interfer at last.

Swan

Wrinkles

You know there are days when life seems so special. Like your blessings are brought to the forefront of your daily thoughts. It feels a little like I'm starting over in some regards, with my classes, and going to school. But then I think what a blessing it is to have this wonderful opportunity to learn and grow. It doesn't matter that I'm the oldest one in the classroom. :) That's okay! And in many ways it will help me to grow even more. I have already found several opportunities to help others that are there for the first time. It's a wonderful feeling to have maturity. Well at least in mind and numbers. ha ha!
But really, I have had so many lessons and received so many gifts in life. Wrinkles are signs of the lessons in life. Wrinkles are worth the time it takes to get them. Oh, I know....you may think no one really wants those! But I really don't mind. You see, each line etched into my face is a part of an experience. A piece of life that I may have had to work hard for, or maybe life threw it at me when I wasn't looking. Or it may be that fit of laughter when the children are playing "build a tent" in the living room and it all falls in when the cat jumps on top and the kids just start giggling and now no one can stop. Or maybe a tear lined the cheek as the joy of seeing my daughter held up for me to see at the moment of her birth. Or the ones I got when I cried for the loss of my Mother and Husband. Or the ones I got the day I watched my son baptize his little sister. You see, lines form and cross over and over as the experiences continue. We grow, we learn, we teach, and every day, we appreciate the gifts of life, the Wrinkles, that God gives us. I want as many lines as I can hold, because I want to experience all the love, all the joy, all the rough roads and even the trials. Because each stop along the road is an opportunity to etch one more line, or two. One more blessing the Lord has allowed me to experience. Life is giving and we need to give back to God, every chance we get, with gratitude for the Wrinkles we accumulate daily.