What an amazing session it was today while God’s Spirit was at work. Not one pastor was absent.
“Pastor Paul answered all my questions as he taught us and I never had to ask one of them. He was really Spirit lead today.”
This humbles me because I know that God was touching their hearts through my obedience participating with Him in teaching His word about parent-child relationships.
Another pastor said; “The reason you saw some of us talking among ourselves is because we couldn’t hold back what God was touching upon our hearts what we really didn’t realize before.” He also went on to say; “The reason you were interrupted several times during the sessions was because we needed time to discuss and digest a particular biblical truth to internalize it before we were ready to receive additional truth.”
It must be that many of you prayed for the Spirit of God to be manifested in our midst and for the authority of God’s word to penetrate into our hearts so that it would not return unto Him void. Isaiah 55:10-11. I had to pump these thoughts out on this blog so you would be blessed and encouraged. Your part in this venture of His great commission is well worth the cost.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
An Awesome Day
Wow, it has been five whirlwind weeks since our beach vacation with daughter Pami. We have taught five lessons three times each, served 40-plus pastors a hefty mid-morning snack and hearty lunch each week, and hosted wonderful visitors – Pami and, more recently, friends from my (Patty) home town in California! We have been exhausted and recovered, behind and caught up, and are gearing up for the next visitor, though she will not be our responsibility. During this time we have thought often about the blog and wanted to post time and again.
Current news is that Thursday (yesterday) was a marvelous day! Pami received THE call that THE job was hers – her first hospital job. Yes, she passed her boards and is now a licensed RN! Bobby is in application process for a law enforcement agency and he passed his written exam with a 91. Way to go, Son! Adam, our “adopted son” and ACTION missionary who lives with us, received word that if the Lord is leading him to stay here as a missionary he can do that with blessings from the Director. Lastly is a wonderful story of God’s grace….
My helper is Fely. She has five children, mostly grown, and does all the kitchen work for the pastors three days a week. She cleans our home and does our laundry the other two days. We love her dearly. Her only daughter is 26 and works at a good job. Last summer, Angela suddenly developed multiple sclerosis (MS) and lost sight in both eyes. With good medical care the sight returned to one eye, but the ophthalmologist told them the nerve in the right eye was white and dead. She would never see out of that eye again. Tuesday, after the pastors had left, Fely broke down in tears. Angela's terrible headache had returned and her vision had blurred in the left eye. “I don’t want my daughter to be blind.” I gave Fely money to purchase several days of the medication prescribed by the doctor. I also gave her a bottle of Vitamin D tablets as recent research has shown that MS patients are overwhelmingly deficient in that vitamin. We sent out texts to all our pastors – present and past – requesting prayer for Angela. Thursday morning Fely was in tears again. Angela’s sight had cleared in her left eye AND she could see light and shadows with her right! Wait! That eye is “dead” - “No hope.” Angela is coming to the Life Discipleship class this afternoon so her pastor – one of the members of the class – can anoint her with oil and all the pastors pray for her. Would you join us in prayer? No matter if you read this after the fact. We would love you to pray for complete restoration of both eyes and total healing from MS.
Yes, Thursday was a stellar day. One to go down in the books to the Glory of God!
Oh, and the Thursday class was awesome, too! Lots of discussion and learning.
Current news is that Thursday (yesterday) was a marvelous day! Pami received THE call that THE job was hers – her first hospital job. Yes, she passed her boards and is now a licensed RN! Bobby is in application process for a law enforcement agency and he passed his written exam with a 91. Way to go, Son! Adam, our “adopted son” and ACTION missionary who lives with us, received word that if the Lord is leading him to stay here as a missionary he can do that with blessings from the Director. Lastly is a wonderful story of God’s grace….
My helper is Fely. She has five children, mostly grown, and does all the kitchen work for the pastors three days a week. She cleans our home and does our laundry the other two days. We love her dearly. Her only daughter is 26 and works at a good job. Last summer, Angela suddenly developed multiple sclerosis (MS) and lost sight in both eyes. With good medical care the sight returned to one eye, but the ophthalmologist told them the nerve in the right eye was white and dead. She would never see out of that eye again. Tuesday, after the pastors had left, Fely broke down in tears. Angela's terrible headache had returned and her vision had blurred in the left eye. “I don’t want my daughter to be blind.” I gave Fely money to purchase several days of the medication prescribed by the doctor. I also gave her a bottle of Vitamin D tablets as recent research has shown that MS patients are overwhelmingly deficient in that vitamin. We sent out texts to all our pastors – present and past – requesting prayer for Angela. Thursday morning Fely was in tears again. Angela’s sight had cleared in her left eye AND she could see light and shadows with her right! Wait! That eye is “dead” - “No hope.” Angela is coming to the Life Discipleship class this afternoon so her pastor – one of the members of the class – can anoint her with oil and all the pastors pray for her. Would you join us in prayer? No matter if you read this after the fact. We would love you to pray for complete restoration of both eyes and total healing from MS.
Yes, Thursday was a stellar day. One to go down in the books to the Glory of God!
Oh, and the Thursday class was awesome, too! Lots of discussion and learning.
Friday, January 23, 2009
crazy days
Lest anyone think our lives are all work and no play I’d like to share about the visit from our daughter. To thicken the plot, we have a young bachelor missionary living with us (Ad) for a few months. It made for crazy days!
Pami arrived on the 22nd of December and left the 21st of January – the prime reason I have not posted since the poem. With just two days before Christmas our lives were filled with cooking and shopping and wrapping – perhaps just like yours. We made the traditional Eggnog Pie to be eaten after the Christmas Eve service at church, and, for Paul, a vegan pecan pie. It was wonderful to have youth in our home for Christmas!
Check out this link to see Ad on Christmas morning...
here
Pami worked at ACTION’s Shalom Christian Bahay Paanakan (Birthing Home) Dec 26-31 as she has just completed her requirements for taking the boards for her RN. She recorded some of her experiences on her blog: http://www.ivleaguersimpression.blogspot.com/ Paul and I did necessary ministry things while Ad was also away with another missionary couple.
New Years in the Philippines is lots of fireworks
– so many the tall buildings near our home disappear from sight in the smoke. We splurged and bought a couple of the bigger ones ourselves – a first for the Ellises. Chickens, we had the guard set them off on the street and gawked at the beauty as they bloomed high overhead.
4 AM January 4 the lights blazed as the 4 of us loaded the vehicle with beach gear and headed to the pier a couple of hours south of Manila. We boarded the outrigger to go to Tamaraw Beach Resort on the day everyone else was leaving – ah, a nice quiet vacation. Wrong! We didn’t count on youthful adults! The boat was nearly empty and they promptly plotted a picture of the unwary senior citizen – the first of many events.
Now “vacation” for the Ellis family has always been a quiet place and several good books. Throw in a little snorkeling now and then, some $4-6 massages on the beach, some sun and we are satisfied. Not this year. It was great! Ad and Pami got some ½ price scuba in – all because the owner discovered that missionaries’ salaries depend on donations received. He was incredulous that we would actually live like that!
We rented two dirt bikes ($16 each) and spent the day riding in the rain and mud - Paul and I nearly went down in one big muddy rut!
We played Frisbee in the surf – I haven’t thrown one of those in years.
We had our massages,
read a few pages of our books,
and ate good food. We laughed
more than we had in a long, long time, played pranks on each other, and put a jigsaw together – at least the part that mattered.
Back to reality. Classes resumed last week and we had good attendance after three weeks break. The wildness of youthful adults in a sibling relationship continued. Music filled our home late into the night as YouTube videos played across computer screens (Pami has a BA in music). The dribble glass didn’t work as Ad filled it too full and discovered the leaks before lifting it to his mouth, but the wet willies and other pranks flourished. We all participated like kids. Pami got out to a medical clinic run by a missionary doctor and then to Village Handcrafters (http://www.villagehandcrafters.com/) and her alma mater, www.faith.edu.ph/ for a visit. Then it was Pami’s time to pack. Stillness settled over the house as suitcases were weighed and rearranged.
4 AM January 21 the lights blazed as the 4 of us roused from sleep to load the vehicle with the precious cargo of our daughter and her belongings. Good-byes were difficult – it has been such a fun and lively time together. The house is once again quiet. At least quieter - Ad is still here. We are all a little lost. I put on music this morning…copied from Pami’s ipod to ours. It just isn’t the same.
Paul has 17 pastors here this today. Fely is cooking Sweet and Sour Chicken. I’ll make Fumi Salad. Life goes on.
Pami arrived on the 22nd of December and left the 21st of January – the prime reason I have not posted since the poem. With just two days before Christmas our lives were filled with cooking and shopping and wrapping – perhaps just like yours. We made the traditional Eggnog Pie to be eaten after the Christmas Eve service at church, and, for Paul, a vegan pecan pie. It was wonderful to have youth in our home for Christmas!
Check out this link to see Ad on Christmas morning...
here
Pami worked at ACTION’s Shalom Christian Bahay Paanakan (Birthing Home) Dec 26-31 as she has just completed her requirements for taking the boards for her RN. She recorded some of her experiences on her blog: http://www.ivleaguersimpression.blogspot.com/ Paul and I did necessary ministry things while Ad was also away with another missionary couple.
New Years in the Philippines is lots of fireworks
– so many the tall buildings near our home disappear from sight in the smoke. We splurged and bought a couple of the bigger ones ourselves – a first for the Ellises. Chickens, we had the guard set them off on the street and gawked at the beauty as they bloomed high overhead.
4 AM January 4 the lights blazed as the 4 of us loaded the vehicle with beach gear and headed to the pier a couple of hours south of Manila. We boarded the outrigger to go to Tamaraw Beach Resort on the day everyone else was leaving – ah, a nice quiet vacation. Wrong! We didn’t count on youthful adults! The boat was nearly empty and they promptly plotted a picture of the unwary senior citizen – the first of many events.
Now “vacation” for the Ellis family has always been a quiet place and several good books. Throw in a little snorkeling now and then, some $4-6 massages on the beach, some sun and we are satisfied. Not this year. It was great! Ad and Pami got some ½ price scuba in – all because the owner discovered that missionaries’ salaries depend on donations received. He was incredulous that we would actually live like that!
We rented two dirt bikes ($16 each) and spent the day riding in the rain and mud - Paul and I nearly went down in one big muddy rut!
We played Frisbee in the surf – I haven’t thrown one of those in years.
We had our massages,
read a few pages of our books,
and ate good food. We laughed
more than we had in a long, long time, played pranks on each other, and put a jigsaw together – at least the part that mattered.
Back to reality. Classes resumed last week and we had good attendance after three weeks break. The wildness of youthful adults in a sibling relationship continued. Music filled our home late into the night as YouTube videos played across computer screens (Pami has a BA in music). The dribble glass didn’t work as Ad filled it too full and discovered the leaks before lifting it to his mouth, but the wet willies and other pranks flourished. We all participated like kids. Pami got out to a medical clinic run by a missionary doctor and then to Village Handcrafters (http://www.villagehandcrafters.com/) and her alma mater, www.faith.edu.ph/ for a visit. Then it was Pami’s time to pack. Stillness settled over the house as suitcases were weighed and rearranged.
4 AM January 21 the lights blazed as the 4 of us roused from sleep to load the vehicle with the precious cargo of our daughter and her belongings. Good-byes were difficult – it has been such a fun and lively time together. The house is once again quiet. At least quieter - Ad is still here. We are all a little lost. I put on music this morning…copied from Pami’s ipod to ours. It just isn’t the same.
Paul has 17 pastors here this today. Fely is cooking Sweet and Sour Chicken. I’ll make Fumi Salad. Life goes on.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
God's truth that has impact
While meeting with the Tuesday group of pastors yesterday, we discussed deceptions that seem truthful and right for many in today’s churches world-wide. In fact, many believe that Scripture supports such “rightful truth”. Some claim that all such “rightful truths” are God’s truth even though Scripture does not support them. While examining various passages of Scripture during our discussions, some of what many allege as “truth” was clearly exposed. This morning while meditating on II Chronicles chapter 21, a parallel account of II Samuel chapter 24, I came to realize a clear illustration of spiritual along with flesh and blood battles that all servants of the New Covenant face (Ephesians 6:12, II Corinthians 3:5-6). Through David and his mighty men, numerous battles after fierce military campaigns were won against the enemies of God’s people. So Satan himself stood against Israel by inciting David to number the men of Israel who drew the sword (vs. 1-2). Even though David was clearly warned that what seemed right to him was not a command given by the Lord, his determination was to carry out what Satan suggested. The consequence cost the lives of 70,000 men even though they were innocent of David’s serious error (II Chron. 21:17). The conclusion that we came to is that we must be like the Bereans, who examined the Scriptures daily “to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:10-11 ESV).
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Relevant To Life Discussions
Being very busy doing the Word and being engaged in important ministry activities that have meaningful impact on those being ministered to is what loads-up the scheduling of so many pastors. It’s no different for pastors in the Philippines including those attending the three respective weekly Life-Discipleship groups. Patty and I did a review of Rev. 2:2-3 for the weekly groups who are being trained to care for their respective congregations. Although leaders of the Ephesian church were busy being doers of the word and doing all the listed practices in their ministries, they obviously were too busy in order to submissively maintain their first-love relationship with the Lord, abiding in the Vine (John 15:5, Proverbs 3:5-6). We all came under conviction about these issues since any one of us can be so caught up in so much busyness. Other discussions during our sessions had to do with “Temptations”. In themselves, are they sin or not? Hm-m-m-m-m! What do the Scriptures really teach about this? What’s the difference between “trials”, “testings”, and “temptations”? Needless to say, we had rich discussions about these topics as we reviewed the lesson together during the week of December 15-19.
Pami (our daughter from the greater Los Angeles area) is visiting us over here in Metro Manila for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. Being that she just completed her nursing training to become a RN upon her completion of the California state RN examination after she returns, she’s assisting at a birthing clinic for a week.
An interesting situation came up that should be well worth the subject for discussion when our Life-Discipleship groups study the two lessons on marriage relationships. A young woman in her early twenties was brought into the clinic to deliver her baby. She is a mistress of the man and his wife who her brought her in. Both this women and her newborn baby encountered serious problems during the birthing process. She spent more than 20 hours in labor and during that time, the baby was in serious stress. As of last night, the mother was in critical condition. The “father” of this baby remained at the clinic and was very concerned over this whole matter.
Now let’s suppose that the Lord may have allowed this whole situation to be in order to get his attention preparing his heart for the Gospel. And let’s imagine that he prays to receive the Spirit of Christ into his life while undergoing counseling by a local pastor or missionary. This would mean that he would need a local church to take him in for spiritual-nurturing and to disciple him in the Scriptures. If he should grow in the Lord, then what should be done concerning the relationship with his mistress and what limitation should there be concerning his role in that church? Men and their mistress relationships are common among married men in this country. What should be done through the local church leadership for the whole family including the mistress? These are issues that we would like to take up with the pastors being trained in the groups. Please pray with us for the Lord’s guidance on our discussions and discovery of practical biblical principles relating to this matter. The culture in family relationships in this country must also be taken into account.
There’s a young pastor who’s active in one of the training groups. He’s the same young man who was rather distractive during the beginning sessions with his humor during the beginning weeks of training. But as the weekly ensuing sessions continued and because of the group discussions on very important life-changing biblical principles with many references to the Scriptures, he seems to be growing spiritually based on his interactive participation in the discussions. However, he hasn’t turned in his week-by-week homework lesson assignments as others have done. He did promise that he would be up to date by the next scheduled session after the holidays. Please pray for him that he will have much interaction with the Holy Spirit and the Scriptures while he studies the lesson assignments.
We’re glad that you read this blog offering you an insider’s view of what’s been going on in our lives and ministry here. Thank you so much for taking the time to do this. If you would like to respond offering your comments, feel free to send us an email with your thoughts. lifediscipleship@gmail.com.
Pami (our daughter from the greater Los Angeles area) is visiting us over here in Metro Manila for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. Being that she just completed her nursing training to become a RN upon her completion of the California state RN examination after she returns, she’s assisting at a birthing clinic for a week.
An interesting situation came up that should be well worth the subject for discussion when our Life-Discipleship groups study the two lessons on marriage relationships. A young woman in her early twenties was brought into the clinic to deliver her baby. She is a mistress of the man and his wife who her brought her in. Both this women and her newborn baby encountered serious problems during the birthing process. She spent more than 20 hours in labor and during that time, the baby was in serious stress. As of last night, the mother was in critical condition. The “father” of this baby remained at the clinic and was very concerned over this whole matter.
Now let’s suppose that the Lord may have allowed this whole situation to be in order to get his attention preparing his heart for the Gospel. And let’s imagine that he prays to receive the Spirit of Christ into his life while undergoing counseling by a local pastor or missionary. This would mean that he would need a local church to take him in for spiritual-nurturing and to disciple him in the Scriptures. If he should grow in the Lord, then what should be done concerning the relationship with his mistress and what limitation should there be concerning his role in that church? Men and their mistress relationships are common among married men in this country. What should be done through the local church leadership for the whole family including the mistress? These are issues that we would like to take up with the pastors being trained in the groups. Please pray with us for the Lord’s guidance on our discussions and discovery of practical biblical principles relating to this matter. The culture in family relationships in this country must also be taken into account.
There’s a young pastor who’s active in one of the training groups. He’s the same young man who was rather distractive during the beginning sessions with his humor during the beginning weeks of training. But as the weekly ensuing sessions continued and because of the group discussions on very important life-changing biblical principles with many references to the Scriptures, he seems to be growing spiritually based on his interactive participation in the discussions. However, he hasn’t turned in his week-by-week homework lesson assignments as others have done. He did promise that he would be up to date by the next scheduled session after the holidays. Please pray for him that he will have much interaction with the Holy Spirit and the Scriptures while he studies the lesson assignments.
We’re glad that you read this blog offering you an insider’s view of what’s been going on in our lives and ministry here. Thank you so much for taking the time to do this. If you would like to respond offering your comments, feel free to send us an email with your thoughts. lifediscipleship@gmail.com.
Friday, December 19, 2008
I Think that I'll Crash
Twas the week before Christmas
and all through the days
We bustled and scrambled
in so many ways.
The kitchen was humming
with the sun still in bed.
With yeast set to proofing
For Sugar Plum Bread.
First beat it then knead it
Then set it to rise.
The citron within it
Will make it a prize.
Now make the plain Jello
With coconut cream.
Pour over the cubes of
Red, yellow, and green.
Fill the filters with water
To clean it all up
For coffee or chocolate
Or tea in their cup.
Quick put on some breakfast
Before pastors arrive.
Alas, not the doorbell!
“Lord, help me survive!”
Delayed by the pastor,
Ready or not,
Quick cut up the cookies
The oven is hot.
Gulp down some cereal,
Sweeten the tea,
Punch down the bread dough
And pray, “Lord, help me!”
Set the loaves up to raise,
“Wow! They look great!”
Once over the classroom,
Chairs are all straight.
Oops! Fill up the Igloo,
Put in the ice,
Make sure that the mugs
Are all arranged nice.
My tea’s gotten cold,
My fruit is now hot
But ready for pastors
Is something I’m not.
Not the doorbell again!
“Lord, why today?
Tuesday and Thursday
Were sure not this way!”
The cookies are cooling.
The bread’s in the oven,
How many are coming?
Fifteen or a dozen?
Put my tea on the warmer,
Sit down with a sigh.
Dare I start the computer
Before more arrive?
Tangerines and bananas!
They’re still in the bag!
Put them out, all arranged,
“I must look like a hag.”
Half my breakfast still waiting,
My hair yet uncombed,
Glaze the bread while it’s hot -
It turned out nicely domed.
Devotions. No time yet!
But get them I will.
At the end of this bustle
I’ll take time to be still.
I’m thankful I wakened
Scripture verse in my head.
It sure makes a difference
As I serve up the bread!
It’s the third time this week
That I’ve raced down this trail.
“Lord, I am tired,
But nothing is stale.”
Chinese cabbage half frozen!
What do we do now?
Shall I race to the store?
Naw, we’ll manage somehow.
Cabbage! Mix in with bean sprouts,
We’ll chop it up small
Add some carrots and onions
It’s not bad at all.
Yummy smells fill the kitchen
As chicken thighs bake,
Mix honey, ginger and soy sauce
And use it to baste.
The rice! It’s not cooking!
I wonder why’s that?
The power bar wasn’t turned on!
We’ve now time to chat.
Fely fries Shanghai lumpia,
Serves up the thighs,
We take out the salad
And hear the, “Oh, my”s.
Unmold the Jello onto the plate,
(It looks oh so pretty)
If the pastors don’t eat it
It will be such a pity.
It’s been like this all week,
Been there, done that.
Late nights, early mornings
I think I’ll fall flat!
With homework assignments
To check and record,
And cooking and teaching,
You help me, Lord.
You give me strength when
the going gets tough,
But I’m glad that it’s Friday.
I’ve had enough.
Next week it is Christmas,
Year’s gone in a flash.
But this week has done it –
I think that I’ll crash!
and all through the days
We bustled and scrambled
in so many ways.
The kitchen was humming
with the sun still in bed.
With yeast set to proofing
For Sugar Plum Bread.
First beat it then knead it
Then set it to rise.
The citron within it
Will make it a prize.
Now make the plain Jello
With coconut cream.
Pour over the cubes of
Red, yellow, and green.
Fill the filters with water
To clean it all up
For coffee or chocolate
Or tea in their cup.
Quick put on some breakfast
Before pastors arrive.
Alas, not the doorbell!
“Lord, help me survive!”
Delayed by the pastor,
Ready or not,
Quick cut up the cookies
The oven is hot.
Gulp down some cereal,
Sweeten the tea,
Punch down the bread dough
And pray, “Lord, help me!”
Set the loaves up to raise,
“Wow! They look great!”
Once over the classroom,
Chairs are all straight.
Oops! Fill up the Igloo,
Put in the ice,
Make sure that the mugs
Are all arranged nice.
My tea’s gotten cold,
My fruit is now hot
But ready for pastors
Is something I’m not.
Not the doorbell again!
“Lord, why today?
Tuesday and Thursday
Were sure not this way!”
The cookies are cooling.
The bread’s in the oven,
How many are coming?
Fifteen or a dozen?
Put my tea on the warmer,
Sit down with a sigh.
Dare I start the computer
Before more arrive?
Tangerines and bananas!
They’re still in the bag!
Put them out, all arranged,
“I must look like a hag.”
Half my breakfast still waiting,
My hair yet uncombed,
Glaze the bread while it’s hot -
It turned out nicely domed.
Devotions. No time yet!
But get them I will.
At the end of this bustle
I’ll take time to be still.
I’m thankful I wakened
Scripture verse in my head.
It sure makes a difference
As I serve up the bread!
It’s the third time this week
That I’ve raced down this trail.
“Lord, I am tired,
But nothing is stale.”
Chinese cabbage half frozen!
What do we do now?
Shall I race to the store?
Naw, we’ll manage somehow.
Cabbage! Mix in with bean sprouts,
We’ll chop it up small
Add some carrots and onions
It’s not bad at all.
Yummy smells fill the kitchen
As chicken thighs bake,
Mix honey, ginger and soy sauce
And use it to baste.
The rice! It’s not cooking!
I wonder why’s that?
The power bar wasn’t turned on!
We’ve now time to chat.
Fely fries Shanghai lumpia,
Serves up the thighs,
We take out the salad
And hear the, “Oh, my”s.
Unmold the Jello onto the plate,
(It looks oh so pretty)
If the pastors don’t eat it
It will be such a pity.
It’s been like this all week,
Been there, done that.
Late nights, early mornings
I think I’ll fall flat!
With homework assignments
To check and record,
And cooking and teaching,
You help me, Lord.
You give me strength when
the going gets tough,
But I’m glad that it’s Friday.
I’ve had enough.
Next week it is Christmas,
Year’s gone in a flash.
But this week has done it –
I think that I’ll crash!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
A Trip to the Bank
We have 33 of our 44 pastors needing assistance with their travel expenses every week. In order to give each one exact fare requires a specific number of each denomination each week. With Monday being the day we are not allowed to use our vehicle in an attempt to have 1/5 fewer cars on the congested roads every day, Tuesday is banking day. Paul is teaching, so the task falls to me, Patty.
Last week I arrived at the bank to find a very long line curling around the interior of the bank. I dutifully took my place at the end of the line, behind a nice grandfatherly (now that I am a grandmother I am inclined to say "great-grandfatherly") gentleman. He promptly turned to ask where I was from. When I told him he launched on a monologue about his life and family that ended only when it was his turn with the teller.
In the meantime, an equally older woman entered the bank and joined the line behind me. She was wearing an expensive cream-colored pants and jacket with a fun little hat with flowers on it - not bad. I sensed that she wanted to talk to me, but since I was already politely listening to the gentleman in front I was not available. She was creative in her attempt to get my attention: She started off in what was probably a professional voice in her prime, "Around the world in 80 days. I traveled on and hope was gone...", loudly serenading the entire bank through all the verses at least five times! The music stopped the moment the gentleman in front stepped to the counter. "And where are you from?"
Today I entered the bank to see a well-dressed lady with a large floppy hat filling out her bank form at the counter. I took a moment to take a closer look and quickly turned around, muttering to the guard manning the door that I would return in a few minutes and took off like lightening!
Last week I arrived at the bank to find a very long line curling around the interior of the bank. I dutifully took my place at the end of the line, behind a nice grandfatherly (now that I am a grandmother I am inclined to say "great-grandfatherly") gentleman. He promptly turned to ask where I was from. When I told him he launched on a monologue about his life and family that ended only when it was his turn with the teller.
In the meantime, an equally older woman entered the bank and joined the line behind me. She was wearing an expensive cream-colored pants and jacket with a fun little hat with flowers on it - not bad. I sensed that she wanted to talk to me, but since I was already politely listening to the gentleman in front I was not available. She was creative in her attempt to get my attention: She started off in what was probably a professional voice in her prime, "Around the world in 80 days. I traveled on and hope was gone...", loudly serenading the entire bank through all the verses at least five times! The music stopped the moment the gentleman in front stepped to the counter. "And where are you from?"
Today I entered the bank to see a well-dressed lady with a large floppy hat filling out her bank form at the counter. I took a moment to take a closer look and quickly turned around, muttering to the guard manning the door that I would return in a few minutes and took off like lightening!
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