As Everything Develops......

[lLife has its ways of surprising us!! A few weeks ago I visited one of my medical specialists. He concluded that the medication route was not working well for me. It was time for a procedure to make my body work better.

As I thought about all of this, I realized that the problem was not that the medication was not working well. It was, instead, working too well!! It was causing a problem for me!! This meant I needed to get off the medication. I concluded that a surgical procedure that would eliminate the problem I was having may just be the way to get off the medication--for good!!

The procedure was this past Thursday, March 3, 2011, and it seemed to go okay.

The point of all this is that I don't really know what may happen whenever I seek to correct one problem in any part of my life. Interventions always disrupt the current system in some way or ways. Some of these ways are good and some are bad (usually referred to as side-effects).

This applies to all parts of life. Whether intellectual, emotional, spiritual, or physical the effects of any intervention are disruptive in some way or ways.

I am recovering well from the medical procedure so far. How will I recover from other procedures that are currently intervening in the various aspects of my life and the life of my family? Will the effects be positive, negative, or mixed?

Come what may, life is life and I am thankful for it!!

Sooner Than I Thought--Retirement?

Well, a counselor, then a classroom teacher, now a school librarian--all jobs for which I have credentials!!

I will be leaving this school district after the end of this school year!! Retirement is an option!! That is what Claudia wants me to do--totally retire from everything--maybe some part time work at the agency we both work for. This way I can be the work-at-home daddy for our little Gabe.(Last time I did something like this, I found myself saying to Carolyn and Stephen, "You just wait 'til your mother gets home!!! You are in big trouble!!!")

We shall see what is coming between now and the end of the school year, but early retirement looks like a way to get out of the public education mess in this state. The superintendent of public instruction and the legislature appear to be buying into measures that will devastate public education and its providers.

But going on with the family, Gabe is growing and talking more and more and learning to read!! He is scheduled to enter Kindergarten next year. He will be six this summer.

And what about Carolyn's little baby? Lilly is doing well and has gained weight. She is now 10 pounds. How could there be any baby any cuter than this?! We just can't figure out why she keeps throwing up so much of her formula. Claudia and I, having experience in our family with these things, are thinking this is a milk all

ergy. But she throws up the soy formula too?!

Oh Well--she is still darling!

Okay, Okay--so I'm 29!!!

Everyone knows by now--today is my birthday!! I have never made a secret of my age--uh, unless I wanted to play a guess-my-age game with someone to see if I could come out looking younger than I really am. At 63 I am no more wrinkled and ugly than I was last year about this time--just a lot more stressed.

One day last Fall I told my 5th grade class that they have to look at me and listen to me--even if I am old, wrinkled, and ugly. They protested!! "Huh?! Mr. Tigner! You're not ugly!! You're handsome!!"

I guess I came out ahead on that one!!

After nearly half a year of being in my class I am not certain they still agree with themselves on that. I've been a lot more demanding and grouchy lately. But I am so thankful for my honest and caring classroom full of 31 students who are so kind to me!!

I am soooo lucky to have these kids!! They brighten my every work day and I can never stop telling them so!!

I need to thank their parents also--more often than I have!

Such wonderful children--all of them!!

Being 63 is not so bad. After all, I have heard people say that at the moment we are born we begin to die. That is to say that the older we get, the closer to the end of our lives we come.

I just sometimes wish that I had the maturity of a 63 year old. Whenever I say I am now 63, I want to look for my drivers license and check the year I was born to make certain I am correct. I just can't believe I have been on the Earth as long as dirt!

Sixty-three years, stated more correctly, is a very long time for me. I simply do not believe I have lived that long! And yet there is no denying that I have.

Some of Claudia's family came over for a small birthday party this evening. They presented me with a very nice gift, for which I am very grateful. But the biggest present they brought me was their being with us this evening. I needed that!

My older sister has not called yet. That is amazing, in one way: Since I always call her on her birthday (March 15) and harass her about her age, she just can't resist telling me what an old man I am. In another way it is not amazing: She is full of anxiety about spending money on phone calls. I am trying to remember. But I think I usually call her and give her the opportunity to harass me. Maybe she has forgotten my birthday?!

Oh well. I guess I will be calling. But I just want to reiterate a strong belief of mine. That belief is that getting older does not affect our memories so much as the incredible increase of things we need to remember as we grow older and our extended families and our life experiences continue to increase in numbers. It is no wonder we forget so "easily". Our life's experiences have multiplied geometrically and our memories just "fall flat on their faces" trying to keep up!!!

One more thing about growing through life's experiences. I have heard the story about the person whose life was being remodeled by the Lord. I think the person had dream in which the Lord said some work would be done on their home--a nice comfortable, roomy home they had worked very hard and struggled very long to construct, and that for awhile things would get a little rough, but that ultimately everything would get better. Well, the next thing they knew walls were being knocked out and staircases torn down and a big mess made all over the house and it began to look like the house would never recover from all of this and not ever be inhabitable again. The person was very sad and distressed and began to lose hope. After all these years of faithfulness and obedience, how could the Lord do this to them. But they stayed faithful to the Lord, knowing that He had always been their for them. Eventually the person realized that the home was being slowly rebuilt and restructured into an edifice that was much larger and of much more magnificent grandeur--the likes of which the person had not ever known. Happiness and comfort had increased in manifold ways and the new home was beyond their highest dreams in splendor!!

At this point in my life, and with all the events that have transpired within the past few months with regard to my profession as a counselor, I have been very discouraged and confused. But I know the Lord is there and that somehow everything will turn out okay. Somehow, this reassignment to teach instead of counsel (what I had now considered my life's work) will find me in some type of better situation--if I will just let the Lord take the lead and follow his precepts. How can I lose by doing so? I cannot! He will bring me through all of this, as He has previously done in my life. And somehow, dare I say, my house will be re-designed and rebuilt and improved beyond my comprehension.

To all of you out there who may have missed my birthday--you didn't miss much. I haven't changed significantly from last year. I am still me.

Have a wonderful and prosperous 2011!!!

Whaaa?! Where's the Video?!

All I saw after upload was a photo--the beginning frame of the .mp4 I tried to upload. I have now reverted to the old blogspot editor and uploaded the actual video. What gives here?! What does Google think it is doing with this blog? I think I will upload another video, as well. It is longer and preceded the first video chronologically. So..... probably view the second video first. Happy New Year!!!

After Christmas--stayed home from Church--a little ill--drank liquids all day

Well, I stayed home from church today and Claudia got someone else to play for Primary for me. We both stayed home, along with Gabriel.

Claudia's brother, Blake, brought some gifts from her mother this evening. Included was the book, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss, and Claudia had me take photos while she read to Gabriel. I also took a couple of videos. I have posted two of these items here. I think you particularly enjoy the video when you hear what Gabriel says!! Enjoy!!

Christmas Eve at the Clyde & Claudia Tigner Home--What Blessings and Peace!

Christmas Eve this year was in fact very peaceful and wonderful after all. Stephen would have to go to work on Christmas morning and Claudia and He did not want to get up early to open presents. Christmas Eve was our time for exchanging gifts this year, and oh what a blessed occasion! We first had family prayer--my turn. I then read the story of the Savior's birth, as found in Luke, chapter 2. I read it from a Christmas story and music book we have. Interspersed with the story were Christmas Carols, which I would begin singing and everyone else would join in. After Claudia read the story of the Three Wise Men, we began opening our presents to each other. For Gabriel's presents from Santa, we had to wait until this morning.

In my nuclear family we wrapped all the gifts--even those from Santa. In Claudia's family, they never wrapped gifts from Santa--only those they gave to each other. So if I want Santa's gifts wrapped around here, I have to do it myself--she refuses. So Gabriel's gifts from Santa went unwrapped--again.

Our little guy loved all of his gifts, wrapped or not. He didn't even care about that part. We had a fun day with our two sons.

Our little granddaughter now weighs over 6 lbs!! She has been at home for several weeks, but is not allowed to go out anywhere.  She still struggles with how to nurse and she has to get burped really good or she will stop breathing. Carolyn really enjoys her little darling and is loathe to give her up when Grandma Tigner wants to hold her only granddaughter.

Grandpa? An afterthought. I have been able to hold my granddaughter only once so far.

Oh what a wonderful event that was, though!

What more can I say--Everyone have a Happy New Year!!!

How Blessed and Peaceful!

I sang Christmas songs about the birth of Baby Jesus this evening and Gabriel kept wanting more. He eventually fell asleep. How blessed we are in our home. I am so thankful for the love of that tiny holy child!!

Everyone please have a wonderful Christmas!!!