Jodie's Journey

       I have always been a collector of quotes and expressions.  I have always kept a journal of some kind.  Writing is a release. I love to write and I love to read about the stories of others. Tonight, I have been reading my Bible and some of my old journals.  Have you every felt like you just needed to see …where you have been? ...what you have been through? ...what you have overcome? …how you have changed?  …how you made it?         It's been a glass half full vs. a glass half empty kind of night for me.  I'm trying very hard to flood my thoughts with positive quotes and scriptures.  I'm typing as I am reading. Here it goes… A mode of conduct, a standard of courage, discipline, fortitude, and integrity can do a great deal to make a woman beautiful.  ~Jacqueline Bisset In the final analysis our most common basic link is that we all inhabit this small planet.  We all br...

Who are the people in our world who inspire you the most?  I admire professional athletes, not because of their talent, necessarily, but because of their work ethic. I am inspired by people with drive and who move through life with self-discipline. Mohammed Ali said, "I am going to show all of you how great I am!"  I have been studying people over the last 4-5 weeks who I think exemplify "goal-driven" lives.   Les Brown After my hospital stay I began listening to you tube videos by a man named Les Brown.  His story is awesome. He is such an inspiration. Les Brown always wanted to be a radio personality.  Les began hanging around his local radio station.  He would talk to the people who worked there.  He would do odd jobs for them, run errands, and take out the trash. Once Les gained their trust, they began showing him how to be a disc jockey. He caught on quickly.  You see, Les Brown was willing to do menial jobs in order to...

What would you do if you could do it for the rest of your life?  That's your passion!  There are several things that I am working towards that may surprise some.  I'm planning to go back to school to get my PhD in Educational Research in the Fall of 2018. Learning and children are my passion.  Now is the time to set yourself up for the next 10 years. Make a declaration! If you want it, go all out.  Expect things to get better because life is cyclic. Whatever your situation, it will pass. There is always a way out. Make a declaration that you are unstoppable. Sometimes I doubt wether or not I'm too old to go back to school.  I worry about how I will pay for college. I know that God will make a way for my dreams to come true.  I just have to make the effort. I must h ave a strategy to change the story I believe about myself. I will always strive to have a positive mental mindset and push away the fear of failure. You don't have to be great...

1 John 3:1 – “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God!” My conversation with the King: Father, Daddy, Abba, Today, and every day, I praise your name. When I read 1John 3:1, I think about the unconditional love that a father has for his children. It doesn’t matter what we do, say, or feel; we are loved and forgiven.   That is not to say that fathers don’t feel disappointment in their children’s decisions from time to time.   I know this. We all make mistakes. Thank you for your grace and mercy.   Your forgiveness is a treasure, diamonds and rubies shining in a sea of coal dust.   My prayer is for health and peace this year. Good health for my family, my friends, my students, and colleagues.   Your love is amazing. With love from your princess, Jodie

Over the last few days I have been blessed in large and small ways by strangers, friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues. Life is about what you can do to make someone else’s life more fulfilling.  When you give, you GET so much more.  One of the hardest things in the world is to be on the receiving end of those precious gifts.  They are God given.  I say that because God pricks the hearts of his beloved and they “pay it forward.” Honestly, I was not excited about Christmas this year.  Last year at this time I was in ICU and on a ventilator fighting to survive.  It was hard. Very hard.  My family missed Christmas. Megan missed Christmas with her mama.  I missed Christmas.  I thought I would feel overjoyed about Christmas. It turns out that Christmas this year was causing me a LARGE amount of stress.  There are several “angels” that have stepped in and made things easier for me this Christmas.  I have so much to be thankful f...

Quote from the movie "Miracles From Heaven": "We constantly wait in anticipation for a miracle to happen in our life, unaware that the miracle is actually life itself." Yesterday, I witnessed the great miracle of birth.  I am in awe of the great and mighty power of God.  The birth of a child is wrought with great physical pain but it quickly subsides when Mama sees the miracle that was formed in her body.  The emotional joy that Mama feels in indescribable.  I have felt this pain and I have felt this joy.  The pain goes away, but the joy remains.   On December 2nd at 4:46 pm, I became a Gamma. Everyone keeps asking how, so here's the scoop. :) After my divorce I met a man and his daughter.  Both had been through a tragic loss. Billy's wife and Taylor's mama had passed away after a motorcycle crash. The daughter, Taylor, was 19 years old.  She was immature, and loud, and spoiled.  Just being honest. :) The long and short of it was I f...