“Rejoice in the Lord always. I say it again, Rejoice!”

Philippians 4:1

I like how groups and businesses have been having Christmas parties this season. The people that I have visited with seemed so happy with their experiences. The food and fellowship was meaningful to them. Usually, the Weisbrod Hospital family has their party before Christmas, but this year it was December 30. Jose Hernandez and his sons catered the meal with his delicious Mexican foods. People have liked his foods from his big black food truck that he parks at the roadside park in Eads on Wednesdays. 

Pat (Benner) Roper had such a good time with her adult children, who flew to Denver from other states. Then, a son and daughter drove from Denver to Eads to take her to Loveland, where her children gathered at a son’s home for Christmas. One night, they all dressed up and went out for a fine dinner. Her children brought her back to Eads.

Linda (Delaney) Mann sent a text from Minnesota that her sister, Judy, died. Both ladies were my neighbors and former students of mine when they attended Eads High School.

Last month, Janet (Peterson) Kochis received the Northeastern Colorado Fellow Excellence Award from the American Ag Credit and Rocky Mountain Farmers Union. She and her husband, Virgil, accepted the award at a banquet. She has, “demonstrated personal growth, provided leadership within various dimensions, and was an advocate for people involved in agriculture.” Janet is a graduate of Eads High School, and was an outstanding 4-H member in Kiowa County. Jan traveled to the Weisbrod Hospital in eads for many years to consult with the dietary department.

I have mentioned before how much we Eads citizens appreciate our local businesses. Another example happened last Wednesday night when one of my friends called me from El Paso, Texas. He had taken his last diabetes pill that day and was really concerned because he had called the Kiowa Pharmacy in Eads to have his prescription mailed to Texas about five days ago and it had not arrived. So, he gave me numbers and information. However, before 9:00 a.m. when I was planning to call pharmacist Tom Davis and his assistant, Cameron Crow, my friend joyfully called to say that I didn’t need to call because the post office in El Paso had called and his package was there! He was a happy man!

Last Saturday afternoon, Robin Musgrave and I drove out to Dwight and Tearle Lesssenden’s home by the golf course. It was a very warm afternoon after the snow last week. We could see a lot of golfers, and wondered if Gail Crawford was out there with his son, Mike, of Kit Carson. We are happy that his grandson, Jaxon, will be doing his student teaching in Kit Carson this semester from Fort Hays, Kansas. That will be three generations of Crawford teacher-coaches.

Some people have enjoyed family times by engaging time for a horse-drawn carriage ride. One of my families rented a former transit bus to spend an hour diving around Lamar to look at the lights and then to enjoy pizza together. I heard of a family who spent several days in a resort to enjoy an indoor swimming pool, sports ball games, and good food. 

Some of us were blessed to receive a photo card of Michael and Elissa Archer and sons, Briggs and Barrett. The little boys were on the beach near their home in Pensacola, Florida. In one photo, the boys are standing by a little pine tree that they carried on to the beach. My, we miss that dear family here in Eads, and the parents at the hospital, clinic and school.

Tuesdays, one of my joys is visiting the residents at the Weisbrod Hospital Extended Care Unit, and at Prairie Pines Assisted Living Center. At Prairie Pines, I asked Bob Miller if he grew up in the Trix Miller home on Hickman Street, just two homes from me. He told me the names of three men who constructed it in the 1920’s. I asked him about the tall pretty pine trees that I enjoy from my art room. Bob said, “I planted those pine trees as a 4-H project.” Isn’t that wonderful? Since Bob is 95 years old, we estimate those trees could be about 80 or more years old. Now, I will enjoy and appreciate them even more. The staff invited me to stay for lunch. It is always such a delight to dine there to eat Christina Wolf ‘s meals. She is such a marvelous chef!

There has been a lot of sickness in the community. Wash your hands, and wearing a mask could help.

The Weisbrod Hospital Auxiliary will meet January 10 at 11:00 a.m. for lunch and a meeting at Prairie Pines. We had to cancel the December meeting there because of the snow. 

Senior citizens are invited to bunch at the Eads Senior Citizen Center January 5. Card games nights at center are the first and third Tuesday evenings. The monthly meal and meeting will be January 18 at noon.

At the Treasure Store we met a lady who was moving to Gardiner, Colorado, from Pennsylvania. Store keeper Mike McLoud welcomed her to Colorado. I thought, “Oh, that will be quite change of life style.”

Choose joy … your life will be more pleasant.