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Friday, December 2, 2011

Merry Christmas 2018
Christmas "miracles" do happen when
our hearts are ready to receive them
---------------------------------------------------- 
UPDATE:  Dec. 8, 2021
I haven't been active in my blog for over a year. The loss of a loved one, Covid with masks and confusion, Vaccine or no vaccine. Let me just say . . . 2020 and 2021 have not been kind to us.
But, I'm mending. Renewing. Restoring, Resting. Resolve that life is good. People are treasures to hold and cherish. 
I'm BAAAAAACK.
Dec. 8, 2021
Happy Birthday Neal
_________________________________________________

THANK YOU, CHARLES WYSOCKI AND
NORMAN ROCKWELL!


Calendars And Lists

My favorite calendars to collect were those we got when Eldon was driving tanker truck for Shell Oil and the company gave away
Charles Wysocki calendars at gas stations across the U.S. .
Wysocki is my favorite artist ..... actually it's a tie between him and Norman Rockwell.
Wysocki died a few years ago
but fortunately his brilliant talent is
saved
on calendars, note cards, coffee mugs and my heart.
I began my Wysocki calendar collection when my children were very young,
saving some of them
but
 foolishly
discarding all but a few.
My calendars weren't works of art to me
way back then.
I wrote in each little square, each month,
every year .............
dentist appointments, school functions, church get-togethers,
happy occassions, adventures and mis-adventures.....
and a few squares were blotched
by tears ........

In recent years, calendars became our favorite Christmas gift to give to our children ..... but not just any calendar!
It had to be a Charles Wysocki calendar ...
(if you look very closely at each beautifully painted
picture you can find
an American flag!)
 Every Christmas 
Eldon and I would fill in the calendars
with yellow balloon shapes or heart shapes signifying
a loved one's birthday or anniversary,
and I gave each family member a Birthday verse from the Bible.

 Our Grandchildren grew up and married.  
Soon we couldn't afford a Wysocki calendar for every family.
We limited the calendars to our adult children and spouses...

Our family expanded
as well as our hearts to include
Grandchildren's spouses and great grand children .....

Eldon and I were
Great-grandparents!
Gifts .... presents ....
at Christmas became a financial impossibility,
not to mention postage for packages to locations from Alaska to the east coast.
And not just Christmas ...
but how to remember birthdays and anniversaries for over 40 loved ones!
People who know me well
know that I have a favorite habit to help remember
important things.....
LISTS!

My "listing" habit gave me a good idea!
And the idea grew ......grew.....grew as our family
expanded!

Each year the calendar changed as family members got married,
had children...or sadly left .....
(but have never left their place in my heart!)
.....................

______________________________________________________
Grandparent's Blessings and Great Grandparent's Joy
Psalm 128:1-6
Special Days come and go, but a heart smiles if someone remembers.
Name       Birthday    Anniversary    Birthday Scripture


and the information is filled in.

At the bottom of the list of birthdays and anniversaries:
There are so many people to love and remember on the special days of their lives. Thank you for continued love, patience, forgiveness, humor, concern, commitment, and prayers. If you read each person's Birthday Scripture you'll be doubly blessed by remembering the face of a loved one, and by reading the scripture you'll see the face of God.
You have blessed me more abundantly than words can express.
All my love and blessings,
Monica Rose Lawson,
Mother, Grandmother, Great-Grandmother
and loved widow of C. Eldon Lawson
...............
Eldon's death in 2009 ..... in remembrance of him.
..............
A Very Special Calendar
In January 2010 I was at the local drug store waiting for a prescription. While waiting I noticed a stack of new 2010 calendars on the counter. They were free so I took a couple. I opened the calendar to January 2010..........
the following email and photos below best describe what happened after I opened to the first month,
January 2010.

E mail correspondence with
The Norman Rockwell Licensing Company


NORMAN ROCKWELL LOOK-ALIKE



Clarence Eldon Lawson
1935-2009
Norman Rockwell Calendar
January 2010
If you knew Eldon 
you can see him in this Norman Rockwell painting.
..........................
I scooped up numerous January 2010 calendars,
sharing them with family members ....
who were as touched and amazed at the likeness
Norman Rockwell painted (many, many years ago)
the likeness of my darling husband Eldon.


Thank you for following my blog throughout the year.
I shared this happy memory as my Christmas gift to you.
May the love and joy,
surprises and blessings be yours
the rest of this year and 
on into 2015.
With much love,
Monica Lawson
The Little Old Widder Woman