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...And along came Martel...

Welcome back, my beautiful readers.
Grab a cup of coffee and snuggle in, I have quite the adventure to tell.

My morning's these days usually starts anywhere between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m., depending on when the Fur babies get me up. This morning, it was 7:30 a.m. All the fur babies were in the yard, doing their morning 'bidness' when Paul comes walking in with a half a decanter of fresh brewed coffee that he made over in the building break room. (For those of you who don't know, we sold our 80 acres, bought a 5th wheel camper, and park outside along one side of a big warehouse building that we rent.)


The temp was looking cool, so I suggested leaving the doors open to catch the morning coolness. With the doors opened, and me snuggled on the couch with a cup o joe he flavored all up for me, Paul was getting ready to head off to work. I asked about rain, as the skies looked, well, rain-ish. He said that rain was coming. About then it arrived, slight at first, so we rolled out the awning just a tad to keep rain from coming in the front door. Then, it came a down-pouring... buckets and buckets of water. Paul looks at the rain and says, well, I guess I'm not leaving yet. He left his phone and coffee over in the building, so I offered him a cup of "my" coffee. He poured, then headed to the back room to use the "facilities."

Next thing I hear, he says "there's a woman walking naked through the cemetery" (we are next door to it.)

Now my 1st thought was 'no way! He's just making a joke!"
"Seriously?!" I asked.
"Yeah, she's either naked or in a bra," he answered.
I happened to look out the window in time to see a woman walk past my view. She sure did look naked up top. So I headed to the front door. From the back, he says, "she's about to the gate (of the cemetery.)"

Sure enough, there she was, again. So I hollared to her if she needed help. Of course, I couldn't here her much from the pouring rain, but she headed my way, and I made out "I could use a phone."
"Well, com'mon," I yelled back.

She slowly made her way towards the gate of the front yard. She was soaked, and I could see that she was not naked, just covered with a camisole that's beige colored  and she's barefooted. I had her get up into the Sandpiper and handed her my phone, then I went after her a towel to cover up in. She asked if she could set on my steps (Leading up into the bedroom) and I said, "go ahead, it can handle the water."

Next, I offered her something warm to drink... yes, coffee, and she gladly excepted it, with cream and sweetener. Paul got her a fold out table to set her cup and the phone while she waited for someone to call her back. Of course, I smiled and said thank you when she next said, "this is a nice "motor home" (not, but I didn't correct her.) I've not see this nice of one before."

Of course, she needed the bathroom. Again, I told her it can handle the water... she was still dripping and soaking wet.

She then asked, "do you have a lighter, mine got wet? My lighter and my cigarettes are wet." I had a long lighter, the one's used for lighting BBQ grills, and she was headed back out the door.

I said, "here, let me roll out the awning so you don't have to stand in the rain," and I rolled it out. She awed over that too. I smiled again. Then I popped the storage underneath and got her out a dry chair to sit in and a table to rest her items, then handed her out her cup of coffee.

Paul and I sat inside, trying to give her privacy. We reflected that for her to have come from up out of the woods, on the back side of the cemetery, from down in the valley, scantly dressed, no shoes, in the pouring rain, she had to have been running from someone.

Later, while Paul had been talking with her, he noticed a cut on her bare foot, so he got her the First Aide kit so she could patch up her wound. That's when she told him that she had slept in the woods last night, trying to find something to sleep under. She even thought she heard pigs rooting around. I told Paul "hey, ya never know." Apparently, the down pouring of rain this morning woke her up.

I decided that she couldn't sit there in them wet clothes, so I got her a pair of sweat pants and a sweat shirt to change into. I set them beside her on the table while she was on the phone. A few minutes later, I noticed she was off with the wet clothes and on with the dry clothes.

Next, I warmed her up a 'bear claw' roll thingie I had gotten yesterday. I figured she needed something to eat. If she had slept in the woods, there was no telling when was the last time she had eaten.

As I was grabbing up her wet clothes to put in the dryer, I overheard her on the phone, trying to get someone to come get her. She sounded so pitiful, distraught, not knowing what to do.

I walked over to the building and Paul and my grandson Drew, were inside talking, about her. I mentioned going to put her clothes in the dryer, and I looked at Paul and said, "don't you leave me alone." He said he wouldn't.

I kinda got the impression that if someone was coming, it was going to be a bit. I didn't want to force anything on her she didn't want, but I told Paul that I would offer to take her somewhere if she needed. The look on her face was so grateful. I suggested we leave as soon as her clothes were dry. About that, why didn't I put her clothes in the washer and spin the out first?

Anywho, Paul and Drew took the wheelchair and ramp off the back of Scooter2 so that I could drive in the rain. I made Paul donate his house slippers to her and I gave her a pair of thick socks... can't have her walking around barefooted.

Paul next pulled Scooter2 out of the building and parked it by the yard gate. And because Squirt almost always gets to go places with me, Paul loaded her up as well. (Squirt is one spoiled Min Pin. She's also my Emotional Support Animal, so she gets extra extra special treatment.) Paul also wanted me to keep him apprised as to destination, in writing, in case of trouble. No problem with that request.

As soon as she was changed back into her warm, dry, clothes, I put the wet ones in the washer while she called her friend to let them know that I was going to give her a ride. Then, Off we drove, in the pouring rain, headed for Radcliff. I turned the radio on to kill the awkward silence. She didn't speak a word all the way there except to give me directions.

At a stop light, I grabbed a pen and a jw.org contact card, and wrote my name and phone number on it. When I pulled into the driveway of her destination, I handed her the card and said "here is my name and number. Your name is... (I paused)"
She offered "Martel."
So I continued, "If you need anything, you call me. If I can help, I will help. I mean it, if you need anything, call me, if I can help I will." She super thanked me. "Do you need anything? Do you have any money?" She paused and said, "Well, I don't have anything." She sounded so desperate, pitiful. So I grabbed out my wallet and said, "Well, I don't normally carry a lot of cash, let me see what I have," and pulled her out a $20. (I almost always have a $20.) With grateful tears in her eyes, she thanked me, several times. Then she got out, and walked through the front door of the house, and was gone.

I went ahead and sent Paul my location via messenger, just to have something in 'writing.' Then put the car in reverse, backed out her driveway, and headed home. My next action was to call Paul to let him know that she was home and that I was heading home, that way he wouldn't have to wonder what was going on.



OK, here's what I read via a couple people she reached out to via text on my phone... You can be the judge, but I am guessing this text was sent to the person that ended up causing her to flee the citation, half dressed, no shoes, and caused her to sleep in the woods last night. And from the looks of it, some sort of substance was involves. Like I said though, that's just me. On a side note, Drew questioned the wisdom of texting an 'aggressor' using the phone of a 'good samaritan.' (Good point, actually.)





Now, this next text looks like she reached out to a friend that might could help her. Her texts are the one in turquoise color.


It kinda looks like this friend she text, this ain't their 'first rodeo' with her and her 'drama.' It kinda makes me wonder what kind of conversation they had on the phone for him to say via text things like "I'm a boot scoot boogie guy myself" and "hes not my responsibility."

It is a sad, troublesome world we live in these days. As one of Jehovah's Witnesses, I recognize the hardships that Satan puts us through.

I really hope that Martel will at one point, go to jw.org website. I didn't really mention the site to her, so she has no idea the comfort that can be found there.

I hope Jehovah moves her heart to do so.
I hope she will.
I hope she will be OK.

Gotta run folks. I do welcome your thoughts on this matter.
Later, gater,
or as my daughter likes to sometimes say, "hasta la pasta."


To my beautiful readers that I haven't talked to in a long long time, I want to welcome you back. I can't say I am going to be a consistant writer again, but I'm gunna try.

As I sit here, watching the prerecorded NFL game of the Brown vs the Bengals, I looked at my last post and realized it dates back to July of 2017, like, what's up with dat?

Anyhooo...

The reason for this blog is to let you know a little bit about this new thing I am trying. Well, I don't know that it's real new, cuz I have been at it for over a year. You see, I get a lot of compliments on my pictures, and people tell me I should sell my work... sooooooo... I thought I would try it. I checked around, asked a few questions, and in August of 2017, I paid for a years memebership to a website, Smugmug, to showcase my work.

After a year of using Smugmug, I decided to switch formats, and I am really liking my new platform. A friend of mine put me onto Zazzle. I like it, a lot. I can use Zazzle to showcase my work and sell more than just pictures, I can sell products. I simple apply my pictures to different products. Here is what I mean...

This print is available as a canvas wall print and coffee cup.

It also happens to be that this print is the 1st print ever purchased. A customer wanted it as a Canvas Print, and when I opened the shipment, (I used a different format to design the canvas and had to ship it to my home address, then hand deliver it, yes, this customer is a dear friend) and it was the first time I had seen my work I canvas, and I had to admit, I was very impressed!

Other prints are also available as a tote bag, greeting card, and I even designed a blanket! Actually, the possibilities I have not yet completely explored. I am very excited about this! Designing is half the fun. Of course, selling doesn't hurt either. 

I hope to keep y'all up to date concerning all of my products, one picture at a time. In the mean time, please pop on over to my Zazzle store: just4deb3933 and take a look. Let me know whatcha think, and as always, please feel free to share.

And for those of you who enjoy the history of photos, this showcased photo has a unique perspective. It just so happened that while I was taking the furbabies for a walk, I was in the mood to capture 'silhouette' pictures. It was my 1st attempt at it, using my cell phone, and I wasn't really sure how to do it. I had seen others' work, and wanted to try it for myself. What to capture, what to capture? Then I see this tiny little shoot of grass, going to seed, and putting the sun behind it, I started clicking away. Then using an app on my phone, I applied the Black and White feature.

I didn't think to much of the photo, and just for fun, I posted it. Next day, I get this comment on my FB page that my dear friend wants this picture in a canvas. Well, yes ma'am, comin'  right up! And there ya have it, my 1st sell.

When I was reading about photography and trying to get better at it, I read something that really impacted how I take pictures. It said 'don't try to please people by taking pictures you think they want to see. Instead, take pictures of what you like.' And that is what I do. I am not a pizza, I can't please everyone, but my pictures do make me happy.

Thanks for reading, checking things out, buying, sharing.
Until the next photo... have a super day, y'all.






It Was Worth the Wait - Patience



Hello once again, my beautiful readers... Welcome, Welcome, Welcome back!!!

Life here lately has caused me to be oh so busy... but, today, something happened and I just had ta write about it. It is quite the story, to long for texts and messenger, and to short for a phone call.

OK... Here goes...

Y'all know how I am not a very patient person, aye? Well...

A few weeks ago, I received a letter in the mail from the Commonwealth of Kentucky stating that it was time to renew Medicaid benefits for my mom. Being the procrastinator that I am, I put it off a week. Then this Monday, I was thinking 'Ya better get on it, the window for renewal is June 25, 2017 thru July 15, 2017, and it was already the first of July.' So I settled in with a cup of coffee, my banana and I got on my cell phone and dialed in.

At 9:41 a.m., I send Papa this message:

Not explaining, just complaining: I called the Commonwealth of Kentucky at 8:45 am to get going on mum' Medicaid benefits Renewal Interview, spend over 16 minutes on hold, talk to some lady named Lisa for 10 minutes... and my phone disconnects the call... !!! I call back, spend enough time on hold to hang the clothes out to dry on the clothes rack in the bathroom, finally get a person on the phone only to find out their computers are 'down' and they can't do anything or access any info. They recommend I call back in a couple of hours, but they can't promise the problem will be fixed by then!!!

Then at 12:07 p.m. I sent this message:
YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!! 😡😡😡
I finally get through to the Commonwealth of Kentucky after being on hold for 13 minutes, then being transferred to another section because I was at the wrong Q and I got disconnected again!!!
And you know they ain't gunna call me back!!!
I may have to wait till town w better signal, I guess!

I was not early enough getting to town to make the call before my Physical Therapy, and the Commonwealth of Kentucky closes at 3:00 p.m. and my therapy ran me past the 3:00 o'clock hour, so with tomorrow, the fourth, being a holiday, I didn't bother to try to call back.

Then this morning, Wednesday, I sent this message to Papa:
I am getting ready to call, and be put on hold, and get disconnected from, the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

So once again, with another cup of coffee and a different banana, I dial up and settle in for another long wait on hold. This time Thirty-two (32) minutes into the call, they inform me yet again that I am at the wrong Q and transfer my call with the 'promise' that I might be on hold some more. MIGHT? Try 1:15 worth of 'might.' In that time, I was able to unload and reload the dishwasher, warm up breakfast.

Dude finally gets on the line and starts asking me the appropriate application questions. There are long periods of silence, so I keep freaking out that my call has been dropped again. But alas, my digital counter on my phone informs me that I am still connected.

Then, about 20 minutes into my call with him dude says:

"Your voice sounds familiar to me."
Well, you should have seen the look on my face! I wish I'da seen the look on my face! My brain was trying to compute how my voice is familiar to him. Because I can be a wee bit outspoken, my second thought was 'boy, I sure hope I didn't do or say anything wrong.'
"Do you have a husband named Paul?" he asked.
"Y.e.s." Now I am freaking out! How does he know my husbands' first name!?
"We met in Evansville," he said.
Evansville...??? The only thing I had done recently at Evansville, Indiana was our three (3) day convention of Jehovah's Witnesses.
"I do apologize sir. I am happy that you remember me, but I'm sorry, I don't remember you."
"That's OK, that's what you said to me when I introduced myself to you to in Evansville," and his voice sounded like he was smiling.
My brain is whirling, but, I've got nothing.
"Yeah, the first time we met, you and your husband came down to Madisonville to help us with our Kingdom Hall construction," he explains.
Still silence on my part. Nothing is coming to mind.
"In Evansville," he continues, "I reminded you of when you were in Madisonville and you took my mom's last piece of Pecan Pie."
"OOOMMMGoodness!!! I remember you now!" I says with a smile and much happiness!!! "Oh and by the way, I can still be tempted with Pecan Pie. What is your name again?"
"Chris."
"Well Chris, this just made it worth the wait I had on the phone! It is so good to hear from you and to talk to you again! Wasn't Evansville awesome?"
"Yes it was."

We finished up the application part, then we ended the call with me telling him that it made my day and it was worth all that time on hold to be able to talk with him...again. He said the same thing.

And really, guys, Jehovah blessed my patience by my having been able to find one of my brothers where I was not expecting to find one. To me, calling the Commonwealth of Kentucky was just another hassle of a phone call I had to make. It turned into fond memories, one over a piece of pecan pie, the other over 3 days of spiritual feeding and association with my loving family of brothers and sisters.

There is a good chance that Chris will never get to see this blog, but if he does, I just want you to know, Chris, that you made me remember, (like I would ever forget) what I am most looking forward to in paradise, and that is when everyone I see will all be Jehovah's people and I will not have to wonder if they are my brother or sister... that and 'no power lines,' I truly hope there are no power lines in paradise. IJS...



















Why do you caller it Scooter2?



Hello once again, my beautiful readers. Welcome back.

Let's have a little fun with this blog. Though it does have a spot of serious concern, it is mostly a fun story to share about the name 'Scooter2.'

Question from a reader. Via a text message, I received the following:

Question: Why do you call it Scooter2?

My response: Funny u should ask, though the name Scooter2 has much meaning, it's a looooooong story, but I love to share it. I will try to figure out how to get it to you.

I will tell you this, she's easy to spot in a parking lot, just ask my daughter, she spots it easy in a parking lot w multiple white vehicles.

Are you ready? Well alrightie then. Grab a cup of Joe, snuggle in with your Furbaby, and read along with me...
This is the only pic
 I could find of it.

Let's go all the way back to 2013. Back in the day we could hardly afford to buy a vehicle. It just so happened that we were approached by someone looking to sell their vehicle and wanted, yes wanted us, to buy it. Well... that ain't happening... no $mon$. However, we were able to make payments, and we became the proud owner of an awesome 'mini van,' yep, I said mini van. Oh guys, such a nice vehicle. Quiet. Clean. Roomy. Heated seats. Individual temp settings for driver and passenger. Excellent gas mileage. It was perfect for our Christian Ministry as well. It did have one flaw, when water would get up underneath the hood, it would throw the belt. "Um... van broke down again... Come get me." Yep, I've made that call a few times. HeeHeeHee

Papa's 3 favorite Girls
Fast forward... In 2014, my son returned from 'vacation.' We gave him a job with the company, Coyote Creek Handyman, and the use of the company vehicle, our 1999 GMC Suburban. We bought that Suburban way back on early arrival to Kentucky. Oh, we though we were something special owning a vehicle with heated leather seats. To much class for these country kids, I tell ya.

A view from the 3 floor window
of my mom's apartment of 2 of
the sharpest looking vehicles
in town. ;-)
Though the actual date escapes my memory, approximately 2 years ago, (2014? 2015?) is when this next part all went down, (I think.) As mentioned above, we had a GMC Suburban that we allowed our son to drive. He had recently came home from 'vacation' and had no transportation of his own yet, and since he worked for our Coyote Creek Handyman Service business, we allowed him to use the company vehicle to get himself back and forth to work. No big deal, aye?


Well, one day, while Papa and I were outta town, I don't even remember where we were at, our son gets a call that his girlfriend has been in an accident. Turns out, our son loaned the company vehicle to his girlfriend to use for personal reasons, and she had 2 of her sons with her. On the last leg of the trip back to their house, on a very small single lane road leading to their house, I think, (or maybe a relatives place,) her older son of the two that was with her asks if he can drive. She lets him. And on that single lane road, he gets the Suburban up to around 50 mph, (way to fast for that small road) looses control, the vehicles leaves the pavement, rolls 2 1/2 times, ejecting 2 of the three passengers from the vehicle. The 3rd person, the one in the back seat, was saved because he was buckled up. The other two received sever, life threatening, injures from being ejected. My son's girlfriend got it the worst as when she was ejected, the Suburban landed on her at one point. The one remaining 'ok' person, crawled out of the wreckage and walked a short ways to the house they were heading to, and got help. Both eject-ies had to be Life-Flighted to Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky.


That was the serious part.

We let our son use our Mini Van so he would have transportation up to Louisville. Two or three days later, we made arrangement with the towing company to retrieve the Suburban, (the sooner the better, cuz they charge a daily storage fee that was building up.) Upon arrival at the towing lot, this is what we found.

My only thought was, 'if they'd have been buckled up, she (the Suburban) would have protected them.' Look how much space, head space, was available for the front seat passengers. Plenty of room to survive the 2 1/2 rolls. GMC know's how to build them. Sadly, the two in the front were not buckled up, and the force of the roll 'spit them out!'

We told our son to take all the time off he needed, that way he could be with her in the hospital. She was, I think, on life support, but not remembering for sure. I do know that she was in a coma.

Life went on for the rest of the world. After a month, we were thinking, 'we can't keep driving the 1 Ton Pick-up Truck 'Big Girl,' to the meetings. Big Girl is OK for work, but she's gotta big butt and takes up a lot of room in a parking lot. So Papa and I made the decision to give our son the mini van and get us a new vehicle. It was high time we did that, and we were now in a position financially to do it.

So we headed up to Louisville to our favorite Dealership, Bachman Chevrolet, to pick out a replacement for the mini van. As a Joke, I said, "let's buy whatever vehicle that is in the same parking spot that 'Big Girl' was in when we bought her." Yep, bought Big Girl from Bachman as well. And wouldn't ya know it, there was an awesome Chevy Traverse parked in that same spot. We test drove it, signed on the bottom line and drove her home that very night.

Wow oh wow, this vehicle had so many bells and whistles. Loved my heated seats. Duel temp controls. Roomy. Quite. Good on gas. And she looked oh.so.fine. Yep, felt like we were moving up in the world. I had to admit, I was loving this vehicle. We bought her used and she still had a manufactures warranty, and much to our surprise, we had to use it almost immediately! No big deal, I'll just drive her up to the dealership and they can fix the 'check engine' problem.

Over the next few months though, we had to keep going back to the dealer because that pesty 'check engine' light kept coming on, which was a pain because when it was on, the 'auto start' feature wouldn't work. We kept, also, getting notifications from On-Star of problems. Up to Louisville I would go. I didn't mind. I loved the drive.

Well, we were getting on winter time, and that is when I really fell in love with this vehicle. You see, it has all-wheel drive, which translates, loosely, when driving through 3 feet high snow drifts, 'Wow, for an all-wheel drive, she really scoots around!' Hence, I named her Scooter.

But Scooter was destined for the Auction Block as she kept having troubles and it became burdensome to see that 'check engine' light come on again, and again, and again... ya think I'm kiddin'? Nope. The last straw came when that pesty light came on again, and now, our warranty is all used up. Nope. I can't do this any more! So I get on the phone with our salesman, Sam, and explain that I can't take it anymore, and I need another vehicle. (Oh yeah, Sam was well aware of the troubles we were having with Scooter.) He wants to know what kind of vehicle I want. Do I want another Chevy Traverse? Sure. I loved my Traverse. Sam said he'd look the lot over and let us know what he has. I received a call back about a newer Traverse, A white one. NOOO! Not white. But papa and I got into Scooter and headed on up to Louisville anyway.

When we arrived at Bachman Chevrolet, Sam was busy, so we thought we'd walk the lot. We were tossing around the idea of a brand spanking new vehicle. Looking... looking... let's see what's in the used lot... looking... looking... hey, this one looks nice, and it's a Traverse! Get the number off the windshield.
Out with the old
in with the newer.

"Hey Sam, we like this one!"
"That's the one I called you about."
"It's not white!"
(It was a Pearl color. Not white, not pink, somewhere in between.)

We took it for a test drive, oh wow, it has even more Bells and Whistles than Scooter. What? It's not all-wheel drive!? I want all-wheel drive!
"Those are hard to come by" says Sam.

Now, I'm not saying I 'settled,' but time was running out on the day, I had had it up to hear with Scooter and her 'check engine' light coming on, so... yep, I settled. We signed on the bottom line, put a bit more money down, and drove her home that night.

Oh, this was nice. WHAT? The 'check engine' light came on! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! Up to Louisville again! However, it proved to be the only time that light came on. I had faith that this vehicle was going to be OK. They can't all be lemons, aye?

What's in your driveway?
In the meantime, I had gotten so used to calling the first vehicle Scooter, that I was just going to have to come up with a name for this new one, but not Scooter. I don't like to recycle names. However, that proved to be more difficult that I imagined cuz 'Scooter' was stuck on my brain. Sooooooo, she became Scooter2. That's not really a recycle, is it?

We have a friend who owns a business called AutoTrim DesignSigns. I asked them if they would please make me a front personalized plate for Scooter2. I tried having it done at an air painting place at the mall, but the dude made the 't' in Scooter2 look like a cross, which I hadn't noticed when I purchased the plate and took it home and Papa hated it and I took it back and the dude would fix it for an extra $5 so into the trash that plate went.


Now... I get a lot of comments on Scooter2 because I guess the name is catchy. My daughter can spot her in the parking lot very easily. My Crackerpracker calls me Scooter when I go to get my adjustment, and even a biker in Virginia, sitting on the sidewalk in front of his bike, taking a rest, spotted the 2 at the end of the name Scooter on the plate and asked if that was 'Scooter Squared? or our second Scooter?' The latter... and thanks for noticing the 2.

And now you know the rest of the story. (Yep, 'stoled' that from Steve Harvey.)
















Letters to Russian Officials

Hello, and welcome back, my beautiful readers. I hope that life is treating you OK. Y'all probably have your ups and downs, but through it all, we find things in life that bring us happiness and joy. All around me, as I look upon Creation, (#JehovahsCreationIsAwesome) I continually find things to be happy about. I hope the same is for you as well.

Along with the happiness, there is sadness, and it is this sadness that has brought me to the point of writing this blog that you're reading now. It's all about choice. There are many choices we make throughout our day, week, month, year, and lifetime - things like what to eat, wear, read, watch, listen to or where to go, live, vacation - and aren't we glad we get to choose instead of being told - things like what to eat, wear, read, watch, listen to or where to go, live, vacation -

Sometime last week, the following came across my desk via Messenger:

MARCH 21, 2017

Jehovah’s Witnesses Mobilize Global Response to Threat of Ban in Russia


Now, I had known for quite some time that my fellow Brothers and Sisters in Christ were undergoing persecution from Russian Official due to the the fact that their religion of choice is Jehovah's Witnesses and the God they choose to worship is Jehovah. It has been a matter of prayer in our congregation as well as other congregations throughout the world. It is quite troubling to hear that the law of the land that you live in, as with those in Russian, for instance, could be changed to make it illegal, yes illegal, to worship. 

The following is taken from jw.org:

On March 15, 2017, 
Russia’s Ministry of Justice filed a claim with the 
Supreme Court of the Russian Federation to label 
the Administrative Center of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia 
as extremist and liquidate it. The claim also seeks to 
ban the activities of the Administrative Center. 


Can you just imagine, my beautiful readers, if the religion of your choice were to be against the law! It is for the reason that - Russia's Ministry of Justice filed a claim with the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation to label Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia as extremist and liquidate it - that I joined millions of my Brothers and Sisters in Christ in writing to the Russian officials to request their intervention in the hope that the Russian authorities will stop the legal action being taken against the branch office and the congregations in Russia so the my Brothers and Sisters can continue to gather peacefully for Christian meetings without interference.


I don't think this is an unreasonable request. After all, it was Jehovah himself that first gave mankind the choice. Think about it, Jehovah gave Adam and Eve the choice to choose 'to, or not to, eat from the tree in the center of the garden' and Jehovah also gave the choice to 'worship him or not' to the Israelites when they were brought up out from underneath the oppressive hand of Egypt. These are just two of many instances where our Creator, Jehovah God, has given us the choice to worship him or worship other gods.

With that appreciation, that gift of 'Freedom of Choice' given to us by our Loving Grand Creator, Jehovah God, and the request of the Headquarters of Jehovah's Witnesses, that I chose to speak up in behalf of my fellow Brothers and Sisters in Russia, and following the instructions, (which are easily downloadable) on the does and don'ts, I made this a matter of prayer, sat down with a hot cup of coffee, my laptop, furbabies all around me, and proceeded to write letters to the Russian officials, pleading for their intervention.

Then last Friday, I carried my letters to my local post office, paid for postage, and mail my letters. It was quite something for me to do as I have NEVER written to a President of a country, and here, I just mailed a letter to the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin.








President of Russia
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin
23 Ilyinka Str.
Moscow
103132
RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Not only did I write to the President of Russia, I also wrote a letter to:

Prime Minister of Russia
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev
2 Krasnopresnenskaya Naberezhnaya
Moscow
103274
RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Prosecutor General 
Yury Yakovlevich Chayka
Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation
15A Bolshaya Dmitrovka Str.
Moscow
GSP-3
125993
RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Minister of Justice
Alexander Vladimirovich Konovalov
Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation
14 Zhitnaya Str.
Moscow
GSP-1
119991
RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Minister of Foreign Affairs 
Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation
32/34 Smolenskaya-Sennaya Square
Moscow
119200
RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Chairman of the Supreme Court
Viacheslav Mikhailovich Lebedev
Supreme Court of the Russian Federation
15 Povarskaya Str.
Moscow
121069
RUSSIAN FEDERATION

(Only once did I write a letter of petition to a Judge, and that was here in Hardin County, Kentucky, USA. Now, here I am writing to 6 Russian Officials!!!)

With a picture taken of my letters prior to mailing, I took to Social Media to express why I wrote the letters. The following is what I posted:

Freedom of religion, it should be everyone's right.
I am so glad I live in a country where we are allowed freedom to choose our own religion. Not all on the created planted are as fortunate. It is for that reason that I have made this a matter of prayer and sat down at my laptop and wrote 6 letters to Russian Officials, to include Vladimir Putin, pleading for them to allow my Brothers and Sisters in Christ the freedom to unrestricted worship of the god of their choice, Jehovah God. On April 5th, the Russian Courts will rule on a motion submitted to the courts to outlaw and ban Jehovah’s Witnesses, making the practice of this religion illegal. All Jehovah’s Witnesses were encouraged by the Governing Body to write to 6 different Russian Government Officials pleading them to rule in favor of freedom of religion. I know many of my friends that have done that very thing. I hope Russian gets bags and bags of mail. 

I can't imagine what it is like to live in a country where one is restricted in the matters of choice. I truly am grateful E.V.E.R.Y.... D.A.Y. that I have freedom of choice. I also can't imagine what it would be like if the laws in the country I reside in were to be changed and it would be illegal to worship the God of my choice, Jehovah. As many of my faithful readers know, I was not always one of Jehovah's Witnesses. I was raised in a different religion, and many years into my life, I engaged in an in-depth study of the Bible, Jehovah God's word, and from the pages of the Bible itself, I recognized that the truth was there all along, I just needed Jehovah's people to help me find out for myself, in the Bible. It was for that reason that I CHOSE to become one of Jehovah's Witnesses!

Please, allow me to also share with you the letter I sent.

Mr. _______,

I am writing you this letter to request your intervention in a matter of greatest concern. On March 15, 2017, the Ministry of Justice in Russia filed a claim with the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation seeking “to declare the religious organization, the Administrative Center of Jehovah’s Witnesses, extremist, ban its activity, and liquidate it.” I sincerely hope that the Russian authorities will stop the legal action being taken against the branch office and the congregations in Russia so that Jehovah’s Witnesses can continue to gather peacefully for Christian meetings without interference. I have great appreciation for the laws of the Russian government that guarantee freedom of religion to all citizens. I am also fearful that a decision by the Supreme Court in favor of this claim will have dire consequences for all of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia to include that the Administrative Center and 400 local legal entities used to own or rent Kingdom Halls would be dissolved, resulting in the seizing by the State the branch property in St. Petersburg and Kingdom Halls throughout the country. I also fear that each of the more than 170,000 Witnesses could be criminally prosecuted merely for meeting for worship, reading the Bible together, or talking to others about their faith.

Russia’s “Federal Law on Extremist Activity” is being misapplied to Jehovah’s Witnesses there in Russia. I am sure you can appreciate that Jehovah’s Witnesses strive to be good citizens. We are known world wide for our peaceful activities, and under no circumstances would we ever resort to any activity that could legitimately be construed as “extremist” or criminal in nature.

Also, Mr. _______, the activities of Jehovah’s Witnesses and the publications that we produce encourage love of God and neighbor, love for family, and respect for government. With these positive qualities in mind, it can be said that there is absolutely nothing “extremist” or criminal in such Bible-based publications. I would like to share with you the personal fact that because of these meetings and publications of Jehovah’s Witnesses, our family has benefited greatly. We have personally experienced and practice love for our God, Jehovah, love for our family, and as always, respect for government.

Please allow me to conclude by reiterating that it is my hope that you will intervene in behalf of the March 15, 2017 claim with the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation seeking “to declare the religious organization, the Administrative Center of Jehovah’s Witnesses, extremist, ban its activity, and liquidate it” and please allow them to continue to live peaceably, worship freely, practice love for their God and mine, Jehovah, while always having respect for government.

Thank you so much for your time in this matter.

Sincerely,

Deborah Clark
Cecilia, Ky., U.S.A.


I hold nothing back as I finish this post up and tell you how I feel about it. As I just text a dear friend "This is a subject that is close to my heart as I am thankful I live in a country where we are free to chose."

How about you, what do you think about making religion illegal?
What would you do if your religion was ban?
Would your faith in your god be strong enough to sustain you if now your worship was illegal?

Please, I would love to hear what you think. And please, as always, feel free to like and share this blog. I welcome any help in getting the word out.

Agape