How ironic, as I was finishing up writing my will and personal statement of my final wishes... this meme popped up - too funny, not to share. It's about the character; Debra's , final wishes.. It's hilarious to read. A Normal Family: The Surprising Truth About My Crazy Childhood by: Chrysta Bilton Here is what the book is about: The story of one wildly unconventional family that gains new meaning with each new member. For most of her life, Chrysta Bilton was part of a small, if dysfunctional, family. Her larger-than-life gay mother, Debra, had yearned for parenthood. But in the 1980s, single lesbians had few options. Until one day, when—while getting her hair done in a Beverly Hills salon—Debra met the man who would become Chrysta’s dad. Beautiful, athletic, and from a well-to-do family, Jeffrey Harrison appeared to be Debra’s ideal sperm donor. What Debra could not have known was that there was more to Jeffrey than he let on. A Playgirl centerfold hippie who struggled with drugs and eventual homelessness, Jeffrey would make only occasional appearances at the family home, which grew to include a baby sister for Chrysta. While Debra did not lean on Jeffrey to raise her daughters, she did come to depend on other women, alcohol, and the boom-and-bust economy of ’80s and ’90s California to keep her family afloat. It wasn’t until Chrysta and her sister were young adults that they discovered just how many secrets their parents had carefully kept from them, and each other, including that Jeffrey had made his primary living for almost a decade as a donor to the largest sperm bank in the world. Eventually, they would meet nearly forty siblings—with a new brother or sister appearing every few months—each with their own questions about themselves, their past, and the father they all shared. Normal Family is the story of embracing the family we have, in all its varied forms.

COVENANT, CURRENT & COURAGE The air is crisp but softer today. Not the biting cold of last week — just enough to make the steam rise gently from my coffee as I sit wrapped in a light blanket on the wooden rocking chair outside. The snow is slowly melting. You can see it retreating from the edges of the yard, sliding back into the earth as if winter itself knows it’s time to loosen its grip. The koi pond is moving again. The waterfall is steady. That soft, continuous sound — water over stone — reminds me that life keeps flowing even when everything looks frozen. On the small table beside me rests my Bible, my pen, and my notepad. My Morning Covenant is open in front of me. I’ve been tightening it up lately. Refining the words. Making sure they reflect not just who I am — but who I am becoming. Because covenant isn’t casual. It’s intentional. And as I rock gently back and forth, I find myself dreaming again. About living on a cruise ship one day. About waking up to open water instead of snow. About designing a life that feels free, spacious, purposeful. And I smile because dreaming at this stage of life feels brave. There was a time when survival was the dream. Now, alignment is. Peace is. Purpose is. Provision is. I think about how far I’ve come. How many seasons have melted away. How many versions of me have existed before this one. And I realize something as I watch the snow disappear into the soil — Nothing leaves without making room for something new. Even retirement. Even reinvention. Even the idea of home. The waterfall keeps flowing. The covenant keeps strengthening. And I keep showing up. TODAY’S REFLECTION What you are refining today may be preparing you for a freedom you haven’t fully stepped into yet. PRAYER God, Thank You for seasons that soften.Thank You for dreams that do not expire with age. As I refine my covenant with You, refine my vision. Align my desires with Your design. Help me build a life rooted in faith, courage, and consistency — whether on solid ground or sailing open seas. Remind me that provision follows obedience, and peace follows trust.

LOVE, MIRACLES & A MOTHER’S MEMORY The house is quiet this morning. A softer kind of quiet. The kind that comes when your heart is full before the day has even begun. Today is my daughter’s birthday. And as I sat with my coffee, talking with God, my mind drifted back 53 years… to a small mobile home tucked into the lush valley hills of Dover, Tennessee. I can still see it. Red clay roads. Morning fog hanging low in the holler. A town so small nearly everyone worked at the same place — Ely Walker pants factory, including me. I was pregnant with my miracle. Three doctors had told me I would never carry a child full term. But there I was… sewing belt loops onto men’s blue jeans. Promoted later to ticket clerk in the office. Working right up until two weeks before she was born. Her father, my husband worked at the sawmill with his father — hauling those massive logs that looked a mile long on the back of the hauler trucks. He was an off-bearer then — catching and stacking the lumber as it came off the saw. Hard, honest work. After our shifts, we would go back to the mill and shovel sawdust into 25-pound potato sacks. Load the back of the pickup truck as full as it would go. Drive thirty minutes to Clarksville to Frosty Morn Meat Packing that processed beef and pork, where that sawdust was used on their kill floor. One dollar a bag. That was extra money. That was provision. That was doing whatever it took. And then… three minutes before midnight… my sweet girl entered this world. My love child. My miracle child. The one they said would never be. And here she is today — 53 years later — living proof that doctors don’t have the final say. God does. The world looks so different now. Technology. Noise. Speed. But some things never change. A mother’s love. The sun rising and setting. God’s steady hand over our lives. And as I sit here remembering who I was then… and who I am now… I am overwhelmed with gratitude for every hard season that shaped us. Because nothing was wasted.

Reading books is vital for brain health, stress reduction, and cognitive development, acting as a "shield" against cognitive decline while enhancing imagination and emotional empathy. It builds vocabulary, improves focus, reduces stress, and fosters deep emotional connection and understanding of new perspectives. What are some of your favorite books, that have helped you grow? Here are my top five (5): 1. The Greatest Miracle in the World by Og Mandino 2. How is THAT Working - A Roadmap From Rat Race to Freedom by @Robert Hollis 3. The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason 4. The Code of the Extraordinary Mind by Vishan Lakhiani 5. If It's Going To Be, It's Up To Me by Robert Schuller

Abraham Lincoln had a quiet habit that saved him from many regrets. Whenever he felt offended, misunderstood, or treated unfairly, he would immediately sit down and write a letter. He wrote bluntly. He wrote honestly. No filters. No restraint. But here was the discipline: He never sent it. He would fold the paper, place it in a drawer, and walk away. Days later, when his mind was clear, he would reread what he had written. And more often than not, he would think: “If I send this, I will damage more than I repair.” So he destroyed the letter. Not because he lacked courage — but because he understood a simple truth: EMOTION DEMANDS AN INSTANT RELEASE. WISDOM REQUIRES PAUSE. Lincoln refused to let a passing impulse decide his future. He gave clarity the final word. There’s a powerful lesson in that: NOT EVERY THOUGHT NEEDS TO BE SPOKEN. A quick reply may feel strong in the moment — but it can cost far more later. The pause is where self-control becomes real strength. Wise people are not silent out of fear. They are silent by choice. Here are some my favorite quotes by Abraham Lincoln.