Look Good Feel Better

My article from the January 20, 2016 issue of The Mena Star










Look Good Feel Better is coming to Polk County.  The Look Good Feel Better program is a free public service program created to help individuals with cancer look good, improve their self-esteem, and thereby manage their treatment and recovery with greater confidence. Since its inception in 1989, Look Good Feel Better has served over 800,000 women in over 3,000 locations.

The program is offered through a collaboration of the Personal Care Products Council Foundation, the American Cancer Society, and the Professional Beauty Association.  Each year, the cosmetics industry donates more than one million pieces of cosmetics and skin care products, valued at over $10 million dollars.



Kayla Morgan, of Friends and Company, is the Look Good Feel Better consultant for Polk County.  She has attended training and is certified by The American Cancer Society.  The program is open to all women with cancer who are undergoing chemotherapy, radiation, or other forms of treatment and for up to one year after treatment.

Look Good Feel Better provides patient education through group workshops, free program materials and free makeup kits for each patient participating in a group workshop.  Participants in a Look Good Feel Better workshop learn about the side effects of cancer treatments and how to cope with them.  They learn about wigs and scarves, how to pencil in natural looking eyebrows, and how to apply makeup to compensate for the effects of chemotherapy on the skin.  Every participant in this free program leaves with their own bag of personal care products and make-up.

Through The American Cancer Society, Kayla Morgan is able to provide new wigs for women who are undergoing chemotherapy or radiation. These wigs are provided free of charge after a consultation with Kayla.

“I’m trying to help other people get what they need”, says Kayla, “It’s not about me and trying to build up my business, it’s about giving back to the community and helping others.”  If you or someone you know is in need of a wig or is interested in the next Look Good Feel Better group workshop, you can contact Kayla at 479-394-0813.

Tornado Warnings - 1/13/16

My column, An Arkie's Faith, from the January 13, 2016 issue of The Mena Star.




This past Christmas was a special one for our family. My son and daughter and their families spent several days with us. The house was filled with the happy sounds of four little girls. Christmas morning with its traditional breakfast and presents under the tree was blissful chaos. The weather was warm and beautiful and the girls spent the afternoon playing down by the creek.

Early Sunday morning we were awakened by tornado warnings. We got everyone up and crowded into our safest place, the downstairs hall. The little girls weren't happy to have to get up and go downstairs. They were frightened by the possibility of a tornado. The five year old said that Grandma’s house wouldn’t be fun to come to if the tornado took the roof off. After a half hour of listening to the scanner and tracking the storm on the radar, the warning expired and we all went back to bed.



The next morning after a good breakfast everyone was making plans to head out; my son and his family to Texas and my daughter and her family to Louisiana. While my son was loading up his car, our phones alerted us to another tornado warning.  We headed back to the hall. Our nerves were on edge as we again tracked the storm. The tornado warning passed but the heavy rains continued. We were concerned as my son and his family headed off into the storm.



As the heavy rain fell the creek behind our house flooded and covered the road. Our daughter and her family waited for the heavy rains to lessen before they started for home. When they got to DeQueen, there was a tornado warning for the area. The radar showed that as they turned east they would be traveling away from the storm so they kept going. As they neared Texarkana they were once again under a tornado warning. The only place with any safety they could find was under an overpass where they waited out the warning. Our son and his family also spent time under an overpass, and then found a safe place to wait out a storm in Mount Pleasant, Texas. When all of our family finally arrived at their destinations we were very relieved.


As I thought about how concerned we had been about the storms and how much we wanted safe travels for our children and their families, I was reminded of how much God cares about each one of us. 1 Peter 5:7 (NLT) tells us to, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you”. And in Isaiah 49:15 (NKJV) God says to us, “Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you”.

As much as we love our families and want what is best for them, as much as we are concerned about them and their safety, God loves us and wants what is best for us even more. No one cares more about your life than God. Anything that concerns you, concerns God. Anything that you're worried about, anything that you're afraid of, anything that keeps you up at night, anything that gets your attention gets God's attention. Remember, God cares about you.



God loves you, and not because of what you do. He loves you for who you are; His creation.  You might not think of yourself as anything special, but you are. You are an original. God made you on purpose. You were not an accident of fate or chance. The Bible says that when God created man and woman He “saw everything that He had made, indeed it was very good.” Genesis 1:31(NKJV) You are a creation of God and He is interested in the details of your life.

It’s an amazing fact. The same God who created the stars, the planets, the entire universe, created you. You are His masterpiece and He loves you.

As a parent and grandparent I realize that my relationship with my family and how I feel about them in a small way lets me know how God feels about me. At Christmas one of the ways that we show our love is by giving gifts. Jesus said in Matthew 7:11 (NLT), “If you know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him”.

Remember, Gentle Reader, that as much as you care for your family, as much as you want to give them good gifts, God cares for you even more and offers you even better gifts. The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 (NKJV)

Love = God

In church today, Pastor Liga had us do an exercise that made an impact on me. It is a short easy exercise. I would like to share it with you. We know that the Bible says God is love.  1 John 4:7,9 (NLT) "Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love."

God = Love

In algebra we have the rule of symmetry: If  a  =  b,  then  b  =  a. So if God = Love, then Love = God.



In the exercise Pastor Liga had us turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 13 and read verses 4-7.   "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance."



Now since Love = God, we were to replace love in the passage with God.  It read like this.

God is patient and kind. God is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. He does not demand His own way. He is not irritable, and He keeps no record of being wronged. God does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. God never gives up, He never loses faith, He is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

What a beautiful picture of God.  I hope that it makes an impact on you like it did me.

One Little Candle - 1/07/16

My column, An Arkie's Faith, from the January 7, 2016 issue of The Mena Star.



The beginning of a new year is a time when many people start new things in their life. This year I’m starting something new, a weekly newspaper column. The Mena Star has graciously given me the opportunity to share some thoughts with you each week.

Let me introduce myself. I am a long time resident of Mena. My wife and I moved to Mena from Colorado in 1981. I love the people of Mena and the friendly easy going way of life here. I have owned and operated my own business since moving here. I enjoy the natural beauty of this part of Arkansas and being out of doors. In 2008 I started writing a blog. A friend was visiting in our home and she showed me her daughter's blog. Because she lived far away from her daughter, she kept up with her through the blog. I had heard the word "blog", but really had no idea what it was all about.

As I was reading the blog, I noticed at the top of the page that it had a link that said create blog. I had to see what it was all about, so I clicked it. One of the first things that had to be filled in was the title. I spent about thirty seconds thinking, and typed An Arkies Musings. Arkie is slang word for someone who lives in Arkansas.



We used to be officially called Arkansawyers, but now the term is Arkansan. During the Great Depression of the 1930's, Arkansas and Oklahoma were some of the hardest hit states. Many people moved to California trying to get jobs. The terms Arkie and Okie were disparaging terms used by the Californians for people from Oklahoma and Arkansas. Now the term Arkie is most often used to describe a native Arkansan and is often still a bit disparaging. It seems to indicate that someone is unlearned and backward. I have lived here for over 30 years. Though I'm not a native, I am proud to be an Arkansan or even an Arkie. You have to admit that An Arkansan's Musings just doesn't roll off the tongue.

Just like that I had my own blog, and I enjoyed writing and posting pictures to it. I had written a little before starting the blog, but definitely not regularly. I had never had a "reason" to write before. Because being a Christian is a big part of my life, many of my blog posts were on religious topics.  I look forward to sharing my thoughts with you.

My resolution is to write in a plain, simple, easily understood style. I hope that I will do a better job with this resolution than I have done with resolutions I have made in the past.



My favorite comic when I was a kid was Peanuts with Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, Snoopy and the gang. I still remember one comic strip I read then. It is January 1st, and Charlie Brown tells anyone who will listen, “The best way to keep New Year’s Resolutions is in a sealed envelope in a bottom desk drawer”.  Charlie Brown knew what you already know if you have made resolutions.  Making and keeping resolutions is difficult, usually ending in failure.

How has making resolutions worked out for you? I don't even want to talk about mine. If you have made and broken resolutions on many previous New Year's days, you may feel that you might as well seal them in a bottom desk drawer and forget them.



If you ask most people about the resolutions they made for the New Year, they will tell you that they are going to cut down on their eating, they are going to exercise more, stop doing unhealthy things, etc. While these are good goals, they focus on self and rely on self. Self-improvement for most people means making themselves more attractive, healthier and happier. They depend on willpower to bring about the changes.

Notice how different our typical resolutions are from the words of Paul in Colossians 3:12-14(NLT) “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony”.



Paul’s words are focused on others. If we are to use resolutions wisely, we need to turn our attention away from ourselves and toward others. We need to get the focus off of ourselves.  What kind of resolutions should we make?

The Bible calls John, “the disciple that Jesus loved”. Jesus had a best friend. I want my resolution to be the words that the best friend of Jesus wrote in 1 John 4:7,8 (NCV) “Dear friends, we should love each other, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has become God’s child and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love”.



I don’t know of a better resolution that you could make. If we would all make a resolution to love others, imagine how different the world would be.

My wife's cousin, Jerry Patton, spent 37 years as the second tenor of The King's Heralds Quartet, the oldest continuous gospel quartet in America.  One of my favorite songs that he sang was titled One Little Candle. The lyrics, written by George Mysels and J. Maloy Roach, are great.



“It's better to light just one little candle, than to stumble in the dark. Better far that you light just one little candle, all you need's a tiny spark.  If we'd all say a prayer that the world would be free. The wonderful dawn of a new day we'll see. And if everyone lit just one little candle what a bright world this would be".

My resolution for the New Year is to focus on loving others.  Gentle Reader, will you join me in resolving to love others?  If we would all light just one little candle what a bright world this would be.

PET

PETs are heavy duty hand cranked personal mobility devices designed for use by the disabled in developing countries. PET is an acronym for Personal Energy Transportation.  I am a supporter and a monthly contributor of the organization that produces and distributes PETs 

I first learned about PET's from my brother-in-law.  For over 3 years now he has been volunteering at the PET assembly location in Columbia, Missouri.  PET International is a faith-based, volunteer-powered, humanitarian, and world-wide organization.  PET's mission is to provide appropriate mobility for all of God’s children in need. They work with all groups, religious or secular, and seek to provide mobility first for those in greatest need and with least resources in poor or underdeveloped countries.

PET began in 1994 when Larry Hills, a missionary in Zaire, Africa, told Pastor Mel West of the great need for three-wheeled, hand-cranked wheelchairs for victims of polio and landmines. Mel contacted Earl Miner, product designer and long-time friend and mission partner, and the process of the prototype design began.  In 1995, when prototype development was ready for field testing, four were shipped to Larry Hills with the instructions to put these in the worst place you can find, and see if they pass the test. Larry did, and the PETs did.   Since 1995 PET International has grown from Mel West's one stall garage in Columbia, Missouri to over 20 assembly locations. PETs are in use in 100 countries around the world.

The PETs are assembled by an all volunteer labor force.  The Columbia, Missouri location has about 90 volunteers.  My brother-in-law works there a couple of hours a day.  Many of the volunteers work just an hour or two a week, but this all volunteer work force produced and shipped over 1600 PET's in 2015.  Since 1995, over 53,000 PET's have been built and distributed.

On a recent visit, my brother-in-law took me on a tour of the PET facilities.  I was intrigued by a sign on the wall there.  It says that more than 21,000,000 persons in the world must crawl upon the ground or be carried about because of polio, landmines, leprosy, birth defects, war and work injuries, infection, diabetes and similar causes. If those persons were all put in a line it would be a line of crawling persons 28,000 miles long.  PET seeks to shorten that line.



He showed me the entire process.  Each PET is hand-built by all volunteer labor.  Some of the assemblies are manufactures off site, but each PET is assembled in the building.  My brother-in-law assembles the front fork assemblies.





I find the PET organization fascinating.  They focus on helping a group of people that have been neglected.  Each PET is hand built by a team of volunteers who take time out of their lives to make sure that as many people as possible are given the gift of mobility.  Even though all of the labor is donated there are lots of costs associated with the project and donations are appreciated.  Donations can be made on their website.

PETs are distributed all over the world, and are now in use in over 100 countries.  While I was touring the facilities I took a photo of a white board showing recent shipments that gives and idea of the scope of the project.





PET International is an amazing charity that started with one man learning of a need and giving of himself to try to fill the need.  He had one goal; making life better for the poverty-stricken, neglected, rejected and disenfranchised of the world.  Even though he knew that one man couldn't help everyone in need, he knew he could help someone.  Instead of being overwhelmed by the large numbers of people in the world who need help with mobility, an estimated 20 million,   Mel West and all of those PET volunteers are making a difference in as many lives as they can. They can help even more people with your help.

PET international works hand in hand with many charitable organizations.  PET's are provided at no cost to any agencies that will:

1. Send a preliminary request to PET MO Columbia outlining the nature and extent of the need.

2. That agency will then be sent a more detailed application and begin the communication regarding a possible shipment of PETs.

3. If the application is approved and a shipment is made PET will expect the receiving agency to arrange and pay for shipping from the USA coast to the point of need.

4. As distribution is made, provide PET with the names of each recipient and a brief comment about the nature of their need.

5. Send PET photos of 20% of the recipients.

6. Continue in communication with PET as partners in the provision of mobility.

In one of the articles that founder Mel West wrote about PET he included this quote.   “We all participate in weaving the social fabric; we should therefore all participate in patching the fabric when it develops holes.” Anne C. Weisberg

If you want to help this very worthy charity you can do so by clicking here.

2015 Top 10

2015 is almost over.  Here is a list of the top ten most viewed posts of 2015 on An Arkies Musings.  It is always interesting to me to see what topics other people are interested in.

The most viewed post from 2015 was Caddo Lake.  We spent a weekend in February in Uncertain, Texas on the shores of Caddo Lake.  It was so eerily beautiful and relaxing.  We rented a lovely house on the lake shore called Hoot n Holler.  Caddo Lake is on the border of northeast Texas and northwest Louisiana.  It includes one of the best examples in the southern United States of a mature bald cypress forest, and is one of the largest cypress forests in the world.  The moss-draped cypress groves are beautiful.  You can read the post here.

The second most viewed post was Rebecca Loebe.  In April my wife and I saw Rebecca Loebe in concert at Eureka House Concerts in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.  We first saw Rebecca Loebe in concert at The Blue Door in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  The Eureka Springs concert was in a beautiful old church and there was a potluck before the concert. Rebecca Loebe is an amazing singer-songwriter, but the best thing about her concert was her ability to make you feel like she was just singing to some friends of hers and by the end of the evening you really felt like you knew her. You can read the post here.

He's Alive - a post from April 3, 2015 - was the third most viewed post of the year.  It is a condensed version of a sermon that I gave at the Mena Seventh-Day Adventist Church.  The sermon was inspired by a Don Fransisco song.   Don’s music often tells a story and “He’s Alive” is one of his best. It tells the story of the resurrection of Jesus from Peter’s point of view.  You can read the post here.

As born again Christians, people adopted into the family of God, we are called to form a new kind of community where people show each another the same grace we have received from God. My July 17, 2015 post titled Born Again made it to number 4 for the year.  You can read the post here.

In June of this year, the band Smokey and the Mirror had their album Thin Black Line removed from Spotify because too many of their fans were listening to the album too many times. I was one of those fans. I attended the Album Fundraiser Concert for this album.  My fifth most popular post of the year was the story of Smokey and the Mirror's dealing with Spotify.  You can read the post here.

In Matthew 18:3 Jesus said, "unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven".  My post titled Little Children was the sixth most read post of the year.  You can read the post here.

The seventh most read post of this year was The Effects of Epilepsy.  I had been contacted by Healthline.com and asked if I would share the article with my readers.  They had seen my post on Epilepsy and thought that it would be a great resource for An Arkie's Musings readers.  The article was written by Ann Pietrangelo and medically Reviewed by George Krucik, MD, MBA
You can read the post here.

My eight year old granddaughter Rebekah loves to take photos.  On our trip to Jefferson, Texas, I let her use my camera one afternoon.  As a proud Papa I was impressed with the photos she took and wrote a blog post titled Young Photographer, sharing some of her photos. It became the eighth most read post of the year.  You can read the post and see her photos here.

Number nine for the year is a post from August 22, 2015 titled Pharisees. It is another condensed version of a sermon that I gave at the Mena Seventh-Day Adventist Church. You can read the post here.

The final post in the top ten of 2015 is from September 11, 2015 and is titled September 11.  Every year when September 11th comes again, emotions of Americans are heightened as we remember September 11, 2001. Most Americans can remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard the awful news that airplanes had crashed into the World Trade Center.  But this post is about September 11, 1857 which was the date of one of the worst massacres in American history.  You can read the post here.  

The post Strawberries and Rugs was one of my favorite of the year. The story was written by my daughter Cynda when she was in high school. My Uncle Lloyd Lawry saved the story and included it in a collection of family stories and writings of his own.  You can read the post here. 

I can't wait to see what adventures and experiences 2016 will bring.  I wonder what the top ten posts of 2016 will be.

You can read the Top 10 posts of 2014 here.

You can read the Top 10 posts of 2013 here.

Mother's Christmas Program

While he was at a family reunion, my Dad was given a story written by my cousin, Toni Ehrhardt. The story takes place during the Great Depression and centers around two little girls. Here is a photo of those two little girls.

                                  IRENE AND HENRIETTA


Mother's Christmas Program
by Toni Ehrhardt

My mother,Irene Dannels Woolery was born in 1925 on a small farm near Altoona, Kansas. Times weren't easy at the Dannel's Place nor most other places for that matter. I remember my mother telling me that most of the time, the family had a nice Christmas dinner of baked chicken, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, hot rolls and pumpkin pie. Possibly, they had gingerbread, fudge and mady taff. I'm just guessing they had milk, water or home-made cider to drink.

For Christmas, the kids, (my mom and her sisters and brothers), usually got a nickel, an orange, and some gift my grandparents made for them. For example, my grandpa made little tractors out of spools and rubber bands and my grandma made rag dolls or teddy bears and made outfits for them.

The family went to cut down a Christmas tree and decorated their tree with popcorn, little ornaments they made at home, church, or school and possibly with little pieces of ribbon or bits of lace. They went to school and church programs and especially enjoyed those things as well as big family dinners with lots of cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles.

Times, of course, got even rougher in the 1930's. I remember my mother telling me that my Grandma Zenella Reeve Dannels, had one dress and one pair of overalls. Naturally, the girls didn't have many clothes either but somewhere around 1939 when my mom was about 14, my grandma promised the girls (My mom, Irene and my aunt, Henrietta, who were still in school that she would make them both a nice Christmas dress for their Christmas program at Buffville School.

My mother always loved clothes and shoes, so she was in a rush to get home from school that day to see the dresses that my grandmother, an adequate and basic seamstress, had made for her and Etta. So the two girls hurried in on that cold Winter day anxious to see their new dresses.

The girls ran to my grandmother and asked, "Where are the dresses you made for us for the School Program? My grandmother replied, "I'm sorry, girls. I simply didn't have the time to make any dresses for you. You'll just have to do with your best dress this time. I'm sorry."

My Aunt Henrietta didn't get so upset but my mother was absolutely devastated. She had imagined a new red velvet dress and she was practically sick that my grandmother hadn't made dresses for them. She was mad too, because my grandmother had definitely promised the girls new dresses for this event, which was one of the most important programs of the season.

About that time, the girls heard a car coming and a car horn honking, honking, honking. They ran to see who it was because they weren't expecting anybody and they also had to hurry to get washed up and primped for the program. They were a little surprised to see their oldest brother, Walter Dannels, and his cute young wife, Stelline (Hoobler) Dannels, coming in the door carrying boxes.

"Are you two coming to our Christmas program?" my Mom asked.  "Sure are!" Walter said, grinning. "Now you two girls better hurry and get all fixed up so I won't be so embarrassed that you're my little sisters!" "Come on," Stelline told the two younger girls. "Now get in there and I'll help you fix your hair!"

All three of the girls crowded into the girls' bedroom and my Mom asked, "Hey, Stelline, what's in the box?"  "Never you mind. Just get your school clothes off and hang them up. And you need to hurry. I've made some sandwiches and cookies for us to eat".  Then Stelline started opening the boxes. She pulled out two of the prettiest dresses my Mom and Aunt Etta had ever seen.

"Oh, Stelline, Thank you! Thank you! We had no idea you were making us Christmas dresses! Oh, they're so pretty!"  "I just love mine, too. They are so cute and stylish. Thank you!"  "Now stop blubbering and get those dresses on," Walter hollered.

The two girls got the dresses on, and they fit perfectly. Stelline also whipped a comb and brush through their hair and sprayed on a tad of Evening in Paris perfume. "You two girls will be the belles of the ball" she told them smiling at their happy excited faces.

About that time my grandparents came in with some eggs and a milk pail to leave in the cellar. "You two girls sure look nice!" my Grandma said. "Wasn't it nice of Stelline to make your Christmas dresses when I really couldn't find the time."

My Grandpa Earl Dannels said, "You girls look dandy. I'm really going to feel proud tonight!" "Oh Stelline, you've made this the best Christmas Program ever!" the two girls said, smiling widely.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Note from Toni Ehrhardt: My Aunt Stelline (Hoobler) Dannels passed away in 1968, much too young. She had a special talent of looking at a dress and the person who wanted it and sewing it up in no time. Everything she made looked like it came from Vogue. She also was a very good cook. I remember especially that she made wonderful Turkey Pie. She is sadly missed by her children and family.

Stelline Elizabeth Hoobler was born November 30, 1916 in Jasper, Alabama and died May 13, 1968. She was buried in Evergreen Cemetery, El Centro, California . She married Walter Louis Dannels December 4, 1935 in Erie, Kansas. He was born April 24, 1914 in Altoona, Kansas and died August 19, 1998. He was buried in Evergreen Cemetery, El Centro, California.