Anybody wondering where I have been? Why it’s been awhile since I have posted a Marla’s Musings?

Well, I have written several of them, but once I finished and then reread them, I thought they are too depressing. So – I spared you. Ha You are welcome. I find myself saying the same thing over and over again. I start typing and I think “didn’t I already write about this?” Lately I feel like I am using this blog as a place only to vent, and to complain, and to let out my frustrations.

Why? CoVid. Texas. Hurricanes. Virtual learning. Wildfires. Anti-vaxxers. Abortion Laws. Afghanistan. Trumpers. Gerrymandering. Variants. Politicians. Climate changes. Deniers.

I actually wrote a whole post last week on bitterness. Hmmm. Wonder where my mind was?!?

Today, if this post sees the light of day (or my Facebook page), I hope it’s to stress many positive things! Let’s see how I do…

I just had a wonderful weekend hanging with my hubby, my daughters and their families, and watching the South Carolina Gamecocks win their first football game of the season! (Oh – and Clemson lost.) I love the family get-togethers and I love the fact that everyone else does too. Even my grandson Logan, who had taken a bad fall on Saturday and required 4 stitches, still wanted to get together – and eat great game snacks!

The weather was fabulous in my little piece of the world. Sunny with less humidity. It was a nice couple of days of beautiful temps and we had good weather for driving to and from Charlotte. It wasn’t bad traffic either because we take backroads and stay off major interstates.

My flowers are hanging in there as we get into September.

I have read some really great books lately. Go to “Goodread.com” and see my latest list. I recommend a few of them that are there. My book club plans to start up at the end of the month and I look forward to seeing the ladies again and catching up on how our summers went.

Although my church still does not have a replacement for our newly retired Music Director, I have joined a handbells group at the local Methodist church and I am ringing again. We have had two rehearsals so far.

Speaking of starting up – I have recently started going to a “Dance Exercise” session every Wednesday at our local rec department. (I keep looking for Leslie Knopf. Ha) It’s been fun, and it’s a pretty good little workout for me! It’s an hour and a half long and we learn steps to songs by Bruno Mars, Michael Jackson, etc. There is usually one country song thrown in – it’s the south. It’s kinda like being at a wedding reception every week. Lots of line dancing. Yes, we do the Electric Slide. We are all ladies, and one very brave man, and we are all ages, young to old.

More music good news: our community band rehearsals continue, and we have a performance this Friday evening. We will be part of a remembrance of 9/11 at a large Catholic Church near by. It is open for all, so if you are local and want to know more, contact me!

The next night hubby and I are going to a “Songwriters in the Round” event, which features Nashville songwriters and up and coming performers. We went to a “Songwriters in the Round” the Fall before CoVid hit and I loved it! It had artists I recognized and definitely songs that I knew well. This year, as in the past, the event is for charity. It is held outdoors – at the home of a wealthy couple who are kind and donate their place for it.

Oh – the pros hit the field starting Thursday! Yes, NFL football is about to start! I love watching every Sunday – oh, and sometimes Monday night and Thursday night too. ha! Can you get too much football?? Hubs and I have also been catching some tennis from the US Open on TV. He and I went to the Open a couple of times when we lived in northern New Jersey. It was worth going to once, to experience it. But it is sure a lot easier and safer (and cheaper) watching from my comfy living room couch.

So… that’s a pretty old list of GOOD things going on. It’s important for us all to work on staying balanced because of the news of the world every day. It can wear you down. The pain of so many dealing with natural disasters, and more Is heartbreaking. The political craziness and the huge divide in our country is sad and scary. Daily shootings. CoVid deaths. No end in sight.

But – God is good. He is forever ‘with us’. We are to be his examples of Christian living. We are people of hope – and love. We are people of inclusion and equality. So, each day we start out holding these values in our hearts – and then put them in our actions. And therefore others will see the goodness in us all.