Thursday, January 7, 2016
*Part of this blog is from a post I wrote in 2013 if it sounds familiar. Also, I am now in the correct year from yesterday's post :)*
On January 7, 1948 a son was born to Ivan and Lois Douglas in a small house on the Douglas property. Kelly Paris Douglas would join a family already made up of two boys. One of the brothers was only 11 months old and Kelly and Lowell have been called "the twins" sometimes. The family would later add four more boys and a baby sister to the family. The Douglas clan lived on 160 acres of land that was owned by the Douglas family. It was a small community of farmers and country folk and the Douglas brothers made quite an impact on the area around Grovesprings, MO. I love to hear the stories and wonderful memories my father has of his boyhood. My father learned to be a hard worker and became a man of prayer at an early age. I am not sure how old my dad was, but there was a time in his life that he feared the government would get rid of all the Bibles and he buried a Bible in a plastic bag and an old mason jar so he would always have access to the Word. I had the privilege of going back to the spot where my dad buried that Bible and I was there when he dug it back up. My dad had a passion to follow the will of God even when it called him away from his small community to attend Free Will Baptist Bible College in Nashville, TN. He has never been to Nashville, and it was not the norm for people in their community to leave, but he knew this is where he was supposed to be so he packed his belongings and set off for Nashville. It would be from this obedience that he would meet my mom and the rest is history:) My dad would later join the Army and would forever be changed when his younger brother, Dale, took his place to go to Vietnam because they would not take brothers. My parents were married and a week later my dad got his orders to go to South Korea for his assignment. After the Army my parents lived in near Detroit, MI where my brother was born. In 1976(?)my parents would make another big decision and move to Kankakee, IL to help John and Vickie Hollis start a home missions church. Within a few years my sister and myself would be added to his family. My dad started working for a company called Erickson Textile. Within a few years this business would be closing, so my dad did the logical thing :) and bought the business. Douglas Net Company was born and I have already shared with how this has impacted my life. When I was in 6th grade my dad would be ordained and become the pastor of the church he still pastors.
I get accused in many situations of being my daddy's favorite. Maybe because I am the baby of the family, but I think it is because I spent the most time with my dad growing up. I have shared many times about dad and I spending time together. As I was thinking about this last night and looking at old pictures there were so many adventures that dad and I went on and I cherish each of those memories. So as we celebrate our dad today I thought of several things that he has passed on to me.
1.) Pray, pray, pray! It doesn't matter how small or large the problem is, pray about it. His life and example has given us complete faith and belief that prayer does change things. He prayed with us before bed almost every night and that made an impact on my life.
2.) Work hard. My dad has been known to be a workaholic, but he showed us the importance of working hard and doing your best. Our strong work ethic is a direct product of our dad. Do your best, show up on time, do what is expected of you and always strive to do it better.
3.) This one might throw him off a little, and maybe I just realized it over the last few years, but I have learned how to listen to people and get to know their stories from my dad. People think sometimes that he talks to much :). He likes to talk, but he also listens. He wants to know people and he wants to know how he can help them.
4.) My freakishly amazing memory. As long as I could remember (LOL), my dad would say, "Do you know what happened __ years ago on this day?" He has the ability to remember dates and events and I have that same gift. On one of our adventures we went through a mega-memory course in the car and so I have him to thank for giving me the ability to remember everything! Now, my short-term memory may be slipping a little :), but the long-term is still going strong.
Happy Birthday Dad! You are a hard-working, prayer warrior, servant of God, mission-minded, caring, loving, Grandpa, business owner, heart of gold, and many other amazing characteristics, but I am most thankful that I can call you Dad. I love you dad and I am thankful that I get to live closer so I can see you more often. Thank you for loving us and taking care of us! Thank you for loving my kids and being a wonderful example of a loving Grandpa!
Thirteen years ago on this same day another important person would be born. Isabel Jane was born 13 years (GASP) ago and was my first niece. I would not realize just a few months after she was born that she would be such a blessing and joy to my life. I have survived many dark nights. There are three times in my life that stand out to me as the darkest and each of these times the Lord allowed me to be close to Isabel to keep me steady through the storm. The day I was diagnosed with cancer my sister and four month old Isabel would make the trip from NC to SC to be with me those few days of uncertainty. It was those days that Isabel was our bright spot in the darkness. Almost a year later the final diagnosis would be surgery and that there was nothing else in the form of treatments they could do. We flew from SC to St. Louis to be with our family and it was once again Isabel that still gave us a reason to smile. Isabel was almost two years old and we were keeping her for the weekend. She had fallen asleep on my lap and while she was in my lap we would get some news that crushed my heart. It was only her presence that kept me steady. That night would be the hardest night of my journey up to that point. I spent the night weeping and the pain was so suffocating I did not think I would survive it. By God's mercy, Isabel was sleeping in the crib that had been sitting empty for months as we waited for God to answer our prayer. I sat in that room that night seeing a glimpse of what God was going to do and this little girl made me realize that there was still good things in life and worth pushing through the pain. Six months after that night, that crib would no longer be empty (well, at least a few hours each night because we all know Samuel would not sleep in a crib), and I would watch the last 10 1/2 years of a beautiful friendship and love form between Samuel and Isabel. I have sat back and admired how courageous Isabel is and has overcome and still overcoming hardships and obstacles in her life. We love you so much Isabel Jane and I love watching you grow into a amazing young lady! I love being your Aunt Kimmy! <3
On January 7, 1948 a son was born to Ivan and Lois Douglas in a small house on the Douglas property. Kelly Paris Douglas would join a family already made up of two boys. One of the brothers was only 11 months old and Kelly and Lowell have been called "the twins" sometimes. The family would later add four more boys and a baby sister to the family. The Douglas clan lived on 160 acres of land that was owned by the Douglas family. It was a small community of farmers and country folk and the Douglas brothers made quite an impact on the area around Grovesprings, MO. I love to hear the stories and wonderful memories my father has of his boyhood. My father learned to be a hard worker and became a man of prayer at an early age. I am not sure how old my dad was, but there was a time in his life that he feared the government would get rid of all the Bibles and he buried a Bible in a plastic bag and an old mason jar so he would always have access to the Word. I had the privilege of going back to the spot where my dad buried that Bible and I was there when he dug it back up. My dad had a passion to follow the will of God even when it called him away from his small community to attend Free Will Baptist Bible College in Nashville, TN. He has never been to Nashville, and it was not the norm for people in their community to leave, but he knew this is where he was supposed to be so he packed his belongings and set off for Nashville. It would be from this obedience that he would meet my mom and the rest is history:) My dad would later join the Army and would forever be changed when his younger brother, Dale, took his place to go to Vietnam because they would not take brothers. My parents were married and a week later my dad got his orders to go to South Korea for his assignment. After the Army my parents lived in near Detroit, MI where my brother was born. In 1976(?)my parents would make another big decision and move to Kankakee, IL to help John and Vickie Hollis start a home missions church. Within a few years my sister and myself would be added to his family. My dad started working for a company called Erickson Textile. Within a few years this business would be closing, so my dad did the logical thing :) and bought the business. Douglas Net Company was born and I have already shared with how this has impacted my life. When I was in 6th grade my dad would be ordained and become the pastor of the church he still pastors.
I get accused in many situations of being my daddy's favorite. Maybe because I am the baby of the family, but I think it is because I spent the most time with my dad growing up. I have shared many times about dad and I spending time together. As I was thinking about this last night and looking at old pictures there were so many adventures that dad and I went on and I cherish each of those memories. So as we celebrate our dad today I thought of several things that he has passed on to me.
1.) Pray, pray, pray! It doesn't matter how small or large the problem is, pray about it. His life and example has given us complete faith and belief that prayer does change things. He prayed with us before bed almost every night and that made an impact on my life.
2.) Work hard. My dad has been known to be a workaholic, but he showed us the importance of working hard and doing your best. Our strong work ethic is a direct product of our dad. Do your best, show up on time, do what is expected of you and always strive to do it better.
3.) This one might throw him off a little, and maybe I just realized it over the last few years, but I have learned how to listen to people and get to know their stories from my dad. People think sometimes that he talks to much :). He likes to talk, but he also listens. He wants to know people and he wants to know how he can help them.
4.) My freakishly amazing memory. As long as I could remember (LOL), my dad would say, "Do you know what happened __ years ago on this day?" He has the ability to remember dates and events and I have that same gift. On one of our adventures we went through a mega-memory course in the car and so I have him to thank for giving me the ability to remember everything! Now, my short-term memory may be slipping a little :), but the long-term is still going strong.
Happy Birthday Dad! You are a hard-working, prayer warrior, servant of God, mission-minded, caring, loving, Grandpa, business owner, heart of gold, and many other amazing characteristics, but I am most thankful that I can call you Dad. I love you dad and I am thankful that I get to live closer so I can see you more often. Thank you for loving us and taking care of us! Thank you for loving my kids and being a wonderful example of a loving Grandpa!
Thirteen years ago on this same day another important person would be born. Isabel Jane was born 13 years (GASP) ago and was my first niece. I would not realize just a few months after she was born that she would be such a blessing and joy to my life. I have survived many dark nights. There are three times in my life that stand out to me as the darkest and each of these times the Lord allowed me to be close to Isabel to keep me steady through the storm. The day I was diagnosed with cancer my sister and four month old Isabel would make the trip from NC to SC to be with me those few days of uncertainty. It was those days that Isabel was our bright spot in the darkness. Almost a year later the final diagnosis would be surgery and that there was nothing else in the form of treatments they could do. We flew from SC to St. Louis to be with our family and it was once again Isabel that still gave us a reason to smile. Isabel was almost two years old and we were keeping her for the weekend. She had fallen asleep on my lap and while she was in my lap we would get some news that crushed my heart. It was only her presence that kept me steady. That night would be the hardest night of my journey up to that point. I spent the night weeping and the pain was so suffocating I did not think I would survive it. By God's mercy, Isabel was sleeping in the crib that had been sitting empty for months as we waited for God to answer our prayer. I sat in that room that night seeing a glimpse of what God was going to do and this little girl made me realize that there was still good things in life and worth pushing through the pain. Six months after that night, that crib would no longer be empty (well, at least a few hours each night because we all know Samuel would not sleep in a crib), and I would watch the last 10 1/2 years of a beautiful friendship and love form between Samuel and Isabel. I have sat back and admired how courageous Isabel is and has overcome and still overcoming hardships and obstacles in her life. We love you so much Isabel Jane and I love watching you grow into a amazing young lady! I love being your Aunt Kimmy! <3
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