Every month, after my wife and I sang at Twin Oaks Assisted Living, our friend Kathleen insisted that we follow her back to her room. Once inside, there was always something special she wanted to show us. First there was her bridal veil, from when she married her husband, Denzel, in 1947, also some dried flowers she pressed into a bookmark, and a wooden duck-call that Denzel custom carved. “D-boy was a quacker, alright,” she said with a wink.
But on this sunny February morning, it was something much newer she wanted to share—a small heart-shaped box of chocolates. “My husband gave me one of these every Valentine’s Day for sixty-three years,” she whispered. “It’s been eight Februarys since he passed, and I buy one for myself–just to keep the streak going.” She gave us another wink, this time with a wry smile.“Would you like one?” she offered.
Standing there, chomping on a piece of chocolate, filled with strawberry cream, I asked “How do you keep going, Kathleen? What’s your secret?
Kind reader, it’s been a few years, but I still remember what she said: “Life itself can’t bring you joy unless you really will it. Life just gives you time and space. It’s up to you to fill it.”
Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Isaiah 35:10b (NIV)
Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Nehemiah 8:10 (NKJV)
Thank you for reading. 🙏❤️ prayers and love.
Davids Daily Dose 
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