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A new adventure - Stay Whole Kyle

From The Blessing Cup: At a New Beginning

Opening Prayer: With hope and fear in our hearts we celebrate a new beginning, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Scripture (Numbers 6:24-26): 

The Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make his face shine upon you,
  and be gracious to you;

the Lord lift up the countenance upon you,
  and giver you peace.

Petitions:

(Response: You Lord, are the beginning and the end.)

Be with Kyle as he moves in a new direction, Lord, we pray.

May the sharing and caring of this family be with Kyle Lord, we pray.

Int he excitement of a new beginning, guide Kyle and calm any anxiety or fears that may arise, Lord, we pray.

Collect: We rejoice in a new beginning which Kyle makes today. Guide and keep him in your care.

Amen

Make it a Great Monday

Good morning Lucy. Glad everyone had safe and uneventful journeys home yesterday. It was a special weekend in Georgia. The water ban was lifted last night in Austin. I am off to LA for a few days. Kyle officially moving to ATX this week! Make it a great Monday and have a wonderful week. - Dad

Potato Salad - G Page Singletary

Potato Salad

Spirited

BeBe was indeed a spirited woman

Gorgeous, witty, and down-right smart

and never let you leave hungry

Never, ever would you leave hungry

BeBe enjoyed the simple things in life

Like humming quiet tunes

While she worked in her yard

Or her kitchen

Or her home

If you close your eyes

And quiet your mind

You can still hear that humming

That soft humming sound

And you will always know

That all is well

Sticks

BeBe loved to pick up sticks

Lots and lots of sticks

Stacked in piles

Neatly stacked . . . sometimes wrapped

In piles

Pine cones

Georgia’s finest pine cones

Were especially important to BeBe

And those too, always gathered

For safe keeping

And just because

  

Or sweep the patios

The porches

The front walks

The kitchen floors

BeBe’s hands, unceasing

Picking up things

Sweeping things

Making things

She was a master at sewing

And she taught her children these skills

And her grandchildren learned as well

How to hum

How to work hard

How to sew

If you close your eyes

You can hear the sounds of the broom

Swish Swish Swish

And the humming

The sweet humming

of her favorite tunes

Hush my little child

Did the sweeping stop?

BeBe now dances

With that same broom

Under a midnight moon

To the humming sound

of her favorite tunes

Gardening

Growing things

Tomatoes

Okra, Corn, Onions

Butter beans, green beans, pole beans

Squash

Cucumbers

And much more

Harvested

Shucked

Snapped

Peeled

Shelled

Canned

These were all things

We too learned to do

Cooking

Oh . .  . could BeBe cook

Let’s just take one dish

And break it down now

Potato Salad

Boil the potatoes

Eggs or not

Celery or not

Hellmann’s Mustard or not

Kraft Mayonnaise or not

Vidalia Onions or not

Sweet Pickles or not

That’s right

Boil the potatoes

A little butter

salt & pepper

Some like a little mayo

Some like a little mustard

Some like eggs

Some do not

So BeBe would make

Potato Salad

About five different ways

Because she wanted everyone to enjoy

And never leave hungry

Puzzles

Gigsaw puzzles

She loved puzzles

And in the end

Is it NOT all just one

big gigantic puzzle?

And we just do the best we can

To hum

To pick up sticks

To sweep

To grow things

To make things

And when that final piece

Is finally put in place

And our time on this earth

is done

There is a picture

of BeBe’s hands

From a wedding that took place

Not long ago

A picture

that says it all

BeBe's Celebration of Life Service - Milledgeville, GA

I am honored to lead us today as we celebrate the life of Barbara Jean Bowman Malcom. My name is Page Singletary. I am Cathy’s husband, and the brother-in-law to Cindy, Chip, Caroline, and Susan. 

In the Gospel of John, Chapter 14, we can be comforted by these words:

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

And also by these words from Psalm 90 . . .

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

LET US BOW OUR HEADS IN PRAYER

Dear Lord. We are here today, gathered as one large, loving family and friends, to celebrate a life well-lived. A life full of laughter, joy, trials, and tribulations. Help us today to remember Barbara Jean (BeBe) and all that she was and all that she meant to each of us. And may the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Barbara was born on January 10, 1936 in Abbeville, Georgia, to Myrtice and John Bowman. She was the oldest of five children and was loved by all extended family members throughout South Georgia. She passed away on September 12th in Florida where she spent her final months surrounded by her children and grandchildren. 

Barbara moved with her family to Macon when she was 13 and graduated from Miller High School. She was a member of Belleview Baptist Church where she met Otis Carl (OC) Malcom, Jr. and married him on November 29, 1953. They were 20 and 17 at the time of their marriage.

For most of their nearly 60 years together, they lived in Macon where they raised their children and served the community. They retired to Lake Oconee where Barbara achieved the Bridge ranking of Silver Life Master. She spent many hours playing in and organizing bridge groups as well as gardening and enjoying the lake lifestyle.

Barbara was a poised Southern lady who enjoyed life best when she was surrounded by her family. She enjoyed cooking fresh from the garden meals, playing card games, dancing, and sewing. 

She is survived by her brother, Jimmy Bowman (Murrell Ann); sister, Sylvia Jackson (Joe); children, Cindy Huser (Jay), Chip Malcom, Cathy Singletary (Page), Caroline Malcom, and Susan Malcom (Dana); and grandchildren, Brett Morris (KyAnne), Drew Morris (Kelly), Sally Wilkinson (Taylor), Emily Singletary, Lucy Singletary, Cali McIntosh, and Mike McIntosh; great-grandchildren, Tyler Morris and Maggie Morris. 

[DREW] ROMANS 8: 35-39

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

[SALLY] – A GRANDCHILD’S STORY

[PAGE] - POTATO SALAD

[LUCY] PSALM 23:

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.2     He makes me lie down in green pastures,he leads me beside quiet waters,3     he refreshes my soul.He guides me along the right paths    for his name’s sake.4 Even though I walk    through the darkest valley,[a]I will fear no evil,    for you are with me;your rod and your staff,    they comfort me.5 You prepare a table before me    in the presence of my enemies.You anoint my head with oil;    my cup overflows.6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me    all the days of my life,and I will dwell in the house of the Lord    forever.

CLOSE: AMAZING GRACE

BeBe - A granddaughter's tribute

I am Sally Wilkinson the oldest granddaughter of Barbara Malcom, or as we called her, BeBe and I wanted to share what she meant to us as our grandmother.

We always lived in a different state than Bebe and Pop which made our weeks with them so special and memorable. She made our time count and holds great importance and influence in my life. 

My earliest memories with her involve riding on the boat with an ice cream cone of lime sherbet and a grocery sack tied around my head to prevent wind damage to my ears. The way she would walk out in the yard with a rolled up newspaper to shoe away the geese that Pop had befriended. Tap dancing together to Run Run Rudolph in our kitchen in Philadelphia and watching hours upon hours of Anne of Green Gables.

She was incredibly beautiful and carried herself with elegance in all circumstances. I remember she had the most chic outfit to pick up pinecones on the lawn – a white button down, petal pushers, and a red bandana tied in her hair. She loved to cook and share a meal as a family. It didn’t matter if she was preparing the largest of Christmas suppers or a sliced tomato from the garden with some salt and pepper, she wanted your dining experience to be as perfect as possible. Unfortunately, for our dad and my husband, she taught us all the art of shopping. Not many things made her happier than a good outlet mall and if you happened to pass a garage sale with her, you were most definitely going to stop.

She loved to cheer for an underdog and had an unexplainable love for reality TV. As little girls, we spent many nights in her bed with the QVC channel as our background noise. She was savvy and not easily defeated. When I was in college, we accidentally locked ourselves out of her house and she managed to get us back in with nothing but a credit card.

She did NOT like to be the subject of a joke but was extremely quick witted and funny when she wanted to be. You never quite knew what was going to come out of her mouth which was scary at times but kept us all on our toes.

Bebe had excellent taste, particularly in men, as she spent 60 years with the most handsome man who I know has been patiently waiting for her in heaven. Bebe was bold, resourceful, incredibly intelligent and creative and she encouraged us to be confident young women and men. I am comforted knowing her spirit lives in all of us and will continue to in generations to come.

Most of all, she was an extremely hard worker. A trait that is so evidently instilled in her children as they just finished a week in Florida together (all 5 of them) cleaning up the community after hurricane Michael. I cannot think of a better way to honor Bebe and Pop than you all uniting to help one another. I know they are looking down, together again, and so proud of you all.

Woman Power - NASA Computer Katherine Johnson (recently) Celebrates Her 100th Birthday

Hey Lucy,

I saw this recently and thought it was Woman Power Wednesday worthy! Katherine Johnson is a remarkable person.

It reminds me that I want mom to tell you and your sisters what she learned in a course she took a couple of weeks ago about the aging brain. Some very interesting stuff.

Did you see the movie: Hidden Figures?

Love you,

Dad

Don't take no for an answer!

Lucy,

Here's a story for you. Last Monday night your mom, Aunt Cindy and Aunt Susan made the decision to fly to Jacksonville, rent an SUV, and drive into Mexico Beach, FL (ground zero) to help Uncle Chip and Aunt Caroline after Hurricane Michael completely destroyed their homes and community. They did this even though the media and everyone were saying that you were not allowed to drive into the storm damaged area. But off they went!

Not only were they able to drive into the area with a Tahoe full of supplies (gas, plastic bins, WD-40, masking tape, electrical tape, duck tape, tarps, Clorox and other cleaning supplies) but they spent five days helping their siblings. They ribbed up floors and baseboards, discarded water damaged items, saved water damaged items, cut down and moved trees, repaired windows, tarped roofs, swept up glass, washed clothes and provided much needed moral support.

This is a great example of the fortitude, the love, and the steadfast commitment to family that is a part of your very being.

Make it a Great Monday,

Dad

Can CrossFit fix the healthcare industrial complex?

“There are at least 20,000 of you training in CrossFit boxes”

Lucy,

This is an interesting article about Greg Glassman, who started CrossFit and how he is now looking to change the healthcare industry. Stew Fuller sent this my way. Stew's father-in-law, Alex Moore is a big CrossFit guy and so is Uncle Patton! It is long, but full of great information about fitness, nutrition and our broken healthcare system. Take some time to read it all!

Happy fit as a fiddle Friday,

Dad

P.S. Here is how Glassman answers the question, What's fit?

What’s fit? For powerlifters it’s picking up heavy stuff. For runners it’s quickly covering ground. For Glassman, fitness revolves around the skills humans have needed to hunt and gather for 2 million years. He identified ten in The CrossFit Journal in 2002: endurance, strength, stamina, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, agility, balance, and accuracy. Glassman’s back-to-the-future fitness meant being ready for anything. 

He condensed his thinking in his 100-word definition of fitness: 

“Practice and train major lifts: deadlift, clean, squat, presses, C&J, and snatch. Similarly, master the basics of gymnastics: pullups, dips, rope climb, pushups, situps, presses to handstand, pirouettes, flips, splits, and holds. Bike, run, swim, row, etc., hard and fast. Five or six days per week. Mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense. Regularly learn and play new sports.”