Storyworth

 

One of the best Christmas gifts I have ever received was a few years ago.  Cassie and Ted gifted me with the Storyworth subscription.  Each week for an entire year, a question would appear in my email.  These questions were chosen by Ted and/or Cassie.  It was a prompt for me to write a story about my life experiences.  At the year’s end, all of the stories were printed and bound in a book.  I will always cherish this book with the numerous stories I otherwise would not have told.  One of the questions, for example, was “What was your favorite thing about Jerry?”

With tomorrow (8/27/2025) marking 42 years since I first met Jerry, I thought it appropriate to share what I wrote on my Storyworth as a response to this question.

What was your favorite thing about Jerry?

My favorite thing about Jerry was his enthusiasm.  He was easily excited about the simplest of things.  Not many people have the high energy he had.  His enthusiasm was contagious but also exhausting for me.  He never seemed to run out of energy and therefore accomplished a lot in his short life.  His face would light up as he spoke of the things that delighted him.  He had a sparkle in his bright radiant blue eyes.  His passion for life was noticeable.  He spoke fast and with exuberance when he had a thought to share.  His ability to carry on a conversation with someone and make them feel like they were the most important person in the world was a gift.  He did this with neighbors, strangers, and I’m sure he did this with his clients and coworkers.  This made Jerry very likeable and easy for him to make friends.  I think this trait is what attracted him to me on the day we first met (8/27/1983).

Tammy Harvey

8/26/2025

Sick and Tired

 Sick and Tired of Being Sick

Living alone can sometimes be lonely, but when I am sick it is especially so.  It all started as a really dull headache and pain behind my eye.  Allergies?  Sinuses?  I was still feeling well enough to go do things, but definitely not at my best.  After several days of this, a stuffy nose is added to the list, as well as a pain in my ear.  I am slowing down now, conceding to the fact that I am not well and must rest.  I spend time at home doing absolutely nothing.  After boredom sets in, I get outside to pull a few weeds but immediately find that it is not a good idea.  I binge watch some series, watch movies and documentaries.  I do my Diamond Art until I think my eyes will cross.  I pick up the Crossword Puzzle book and do page after page.  These activities are occupying but not too pleasant with a headache.  I take Tylenol and feel better.  I shop online!  I think I am over it, and the next day I will go to the pool to relax and take in the beautiful sunshine.  I have cabin fever at this point.  After all, it has been several days now. To my dismay, this activity puts me in worse shape, and I wake up with an earache on my other ear and a sore throat.  I “take to the bed” (couch) and sleep the afternoon away.  I am feeling a lot better.  I shop online!  It has been an entire week now.  I am sick and tired of being sick.  If I don’t die from this annoying sickness, I might die of boredom!  Summer sicknesses when the heat index is over 100 are absolutely the worst.  Everyone, take care of yourselves and try to avoid this virus, if you can.  You can still shop online though!

PS-I almost feel guilty writing this scenario because there are so many people I know who are right now battling illnesses so much worse and definitely more serious.  They are the heroes.   

Tammy Harvey  7/29/2025

Sand Dollar Treasure

 

Sand Dollar Seeker

I have always been a shell-seeking and shark tooth-seeking tourist when at the ocean.  I have small boxes of shark teeth that my family and I found during our vacation times.  I have spent hours on the shoreline examining the sand as the tide uncovered the tiny little black jewels or a beautiful seashell.  The shark teeth are very tiny but have a certain luster to them that make them identifiable, but it takes a keen eye.  The last few years I haven’t been very successful at all finding any of them.  This year, I went to Kiawah Island in SC with my son and his family.  At Kiawah, the water from the river meets the ocean to produce rather unique brackish tide pool formations.  To get to the ocean, one had to wade through a sometimes waist high tide pool.  At low tide the tide pools would be only about knee deep or less, which was ideal for my two-year old granddaughter to play in.  It was at this beach, however, that I discovered a new treasure to seek along the shore.  I found sand dollars!  They were plentiful, but not so much that it wasn’t a quest to find them.  Many of them were broken, as they are brittle and delicate.  Flat and sometimes partly covered in sand, they were a real joy to find.  These were 2–3-inch medallions with beautifully star-shaped adornment and five slits magnificently spaced.  These were not alive.  It is illegal to take live sand dollars from the beach.  In the course of a week, I found about 40 sand dollars, cleaned them and brought them home with me.  Seashells, shark teeth and now sand dollars are on my list of shore-seeking treasures!

Tammy Harvey  7/21/2025

I Wonder

 Today's is Ted's 34th Birthday.  I wanted to honor him by publishing a poem he recently wrote:

I Wonder

I wonder what my dad would say,

If he could see our family today.

Or the first thing that my memaw said to him,

When she passed away,

Or if they heard my prayers over them as they saw Jesus

Face to face.

Oh, I never wonder about His unchanging grace.

I wonder if my mother needs her mother when she is unwell,

Or if my uncle losing his twin brother stings like an unending

Ringing bell,

Or if my brothers want to talk about him as much as me,

Oh, I never wonder about His love for me.

I wonder if my grandad’s dementia is somehow a blessing,

Or if he starts each day without knowing and it is refreshing,

Or if he knows how much incredible faith he is showing,

Oh, I never wonder, when he passes, where he is going.

I wonder if my kids will think back on these times 20 years from now,

Or if they will still be looking ahead from life’s bow,

Or if God’s plan will change everything, no matter what He allows,

Oh, I hope they never forget how much they are loved.

I wonder what people do with grief without the Lord,

Bitterness is sure to rock people to the core.

For I am everlasting and eternally assured, in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Written by: Ted Ross Harvey on  7/24/2025