REST AND RENEW

...those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.  Isaiah 40:30-31, NIV

Do you ever feel like you are a part of the movie, "Ground Hog Day" when the character played by Bill Murray wakes up everyday and repeats the same habits and patterns expecting a different result? Finally he learns that in order to achieve something different, one must put their self centered needs aside and try harder to do something different in choices and learned behavior.

This whole concept of watching this kind of thing happen in the lives of individuals you care about can be maddening.  It can take your breath away and stop your blood flow.  Habits of others can pollute the air even in the most perfect setting.  After years of same events, even the strongest of heart with the best intensions cannot stand up to the spills of addiction 100% of the time.  The evils of addiction contain characteristics of deceit, confusion and defeat.  On the positive side, we have to remember to pray the evils away and ask that they be placed "under our feet" and that we be protected in all ways in Jesus's  Name in an effort to keep calm and have some kind of victory over the negative cloud that happens in the lives of people who have to pick up the pieces from the choices others continually make.

At what point do you stop picking up the pieces for people who's "way" has become perverted with addiction?  Perversion applies to many areas of the addict.  Many of us think it's of a sexual nature.  And yes, it can be and usually is, however, Webster's Dictionary provides us with another definition:  "the process of improperly changing something that is good". 

From what I've witnessed, it takes a lot of planning and effort to purposefully change something that is good.  It also takes a mindset of abjection, corruptness, demoralization, dissoluteness, and debaucherty.  All big words in a big world of deceit.

My interest in starting a blog was to write my life story for my kids and grandkids in order beginning with the lives of my Grandparents, Parents, Siblings then ending up with me and my kids and grandkids.  Well, the plan has changed and I've decided to get on with it...writing what is current and blending the past.  I'll still try to keep an order of things from the past as best as I can with photos and such.  But this moment in time makes me reflect on my Mother.  I always looked at her cheery disposition and wondered what had changed inside of her later in life.  I can tell you that I know a little bit of what happened.  It's other people and their choices that effect you and your "constituion".  They help to change your personal limits and tolerance which would otherwise be flexible. Takes a toll on your disposition sometimes. 

But God's promise rings true everytime.  He will renew and restore your strength.  You do not have to compromise what you believe to be true because God is on your side.  And Our Creator is "all-knowing"!  You cannot hide from your Maker, my friend.  In the end, Truth wins!

Today is a new day for all of us.  Be sure to take time to be still and talk to our Heavenly Father...tell him all about what holds you captive in an effort to release the blood flow again...the flow of energy and love.

Summertime

Summertime is here where I live now and the cookouts and sun-kissed iced tea take me back to the memories of the hot and humid afternoons spent on our front porch swing watching my Mom string the fresh green beans she purchased at Artrip's Market, a corner market located close to our neighborhood. 

Artrip's was the only place in our world that stocked fresh tomatoes, corn, half-runner green beans, cucumbers and all the fruit of the Season.  I so enjoyed the trips we made there and looked forward to the smell of green bean steam that permeated the house.  My mouth salivates now as I remember the platter of sliced cucumber, tomatoe and green onions that was placed in the middle of the table to go with the hot cornbread with butter on top.  I could make a meal out of this by itself but Mom would always have the green beans to go along with it.  Dessert would usually be either lime jello with pineapple, cool whip and nuts or angel food cake sliced with strawberries and cool whip.  All met the approval of all either living in our home or stopping by to visit.

Doesn't this sound familiar to those growing up in the Appalachian Mountains?  I guess many across the South could say the same about the smells and tastes of fresh produce treasures simmering in the kitchen. 

Yes, July 4th Holiday has passed but the good feeling inside when we remember the Summers past, the Watermelon Moons and all the fixins will last and last.

Thank you Momma for my favorite Summertime meals prepared with the special ingredient of your love.

PEACE BE WITH YOU!

While I wait for information about my Grandfather Coffman to arrive, I've been finding more special things from the past, my past. 

This morning, while cleaning out a few things from the bookshelf in our guest bedroom, I found one of my first drawings from my childhood.  I remember exactly where I was when this beautiful image came to me...at my Grandmother's home. 

My Mother and I drove up to Beckley to visit Grandmother Ada for a few days.  It was a quiet evening and the normal conversations were taking place around the kitchen table between the ladies and I was a little bored.  I was probably around 9 years old and needed a little more to do this visit...my Mom suggested I draw something for Grandmother so I asked for paper and crayons or markers so I could begin my art project.  Grandmother did not have any art paper but she did have an enclosure from a package of panty hose.  The 8" x 10" heavy card stock paper was used to secure the panty hose in the day.  It was plain white and perfect for my special drawing that would surely warm the heart of my favorite Grandmother. 

I set out with drawing something I wanted her to look at and feel comfort from after we left.  Something that would make her feel like she was not alone.  I used my favorite colors of markers to cover the pencil drawing and signed it with my name, "Angie Cumbo".  It's funny seeing my handwriting then and my name as both have changed throughout my life.

 

 

 

"Peace be With You"

For Grandmother Ada Baily

By Angie Cumbo

March 18, 1973

 

Where Have You Been My Little Wildflower?

"Where have you been, my little Wildflower?"

You might be asking this very thing about me...I've been away from writing for awhile.  I'm like a patient little butterfly waiting for the bloom to open as  I've been waiting for the opportunity to receive more information about the Coffman side of my family from my eldest Cousin, Charlie Coffman.  He and his wife, Judy, moved recently and I discovered I did not have their new address but trusted I would receive their annual Christmas card with a letter updating us about all they are into these days.  It came in the mail right on time for the Holidays with their new Kentucky return address.  I was thankful for this address and wrote Charlie a letter letting him know about my blog site and the family information I'm in need of before continuing with my posts.

So now, we all wait together anticipating the arrival of an email or letter or photos containing Cousin Charlie's recollection about our Grandfather Coffman.  It will fill in the blanks in my mind about this man whom I know so little about.

You might be thinking that you understand mostly why I choose to be patient and wait...but for those of you who don't, let me explain.

I'm a little bit of an organizer.  This Wildflower likes to keep things in order like when you plow a row of dirt and prepare each hole for a seed, spacing 2 inches apart exactly.  I like this way of doing things.  If things are in order, then I feel like I've really accomplished something.  Do I drive myself crazy sometimes with this behavior? Yes! And I have to ask God to calm my mind.  His Scripture tells us in Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God".  He has it all planned out and I need to be patient. 

As we wait together, lets contemplate what we've been through the last few months and where we are going.  One thing is for certain, God is bringing us through our circumstances and moving us forward.  I like thinking about moving forward in so many areas.  It's time to get things in order and move forward.

Until the next time...hopefully, before too long.

In the Meantime

Zina, Virginia and Cam

In the meantime, while I research the Coffman side a little more, I'd like to pay honor to my memory of Zina's siblings.

Momma's siblings were special.  They were all so close being that their Daddy died when they were youngsters and their success in making it through the tough times was tied to the love and respect they shared for eachother.

Cam was the oldest and became a Civil Engineer...taking after his own Father's career as a Coal Mine Inspector and Real Estate Appraisor that included inspecting the land in the Appalachian Mountain area.  Uncle Cam (to me) married a young lady by the name of Sylvia and had three children who I saw once or twice a year.  Cam worked for the State of West Virginia as a Civil Engineer so he moved to a small area not too far from the Capitol Building located in Charleston called Dunbar, WV.  Momma and I would stop by sometimes on our way to see Grandma Ada which was a half way point in our 2 and 1/2 hour trip to Beckley, WV from Ashland, KY. '
I will share photos of Uncle Cam's kids later in the blog entry devoted to "Cousins".
  



Cam, Ada, Virginia and Zina 1960ish

 

 

 

 

Uncle Cam in later years

 

 

 

 Uncle Cam and wife, Sylvia


 

 

 

 Virginia as a toddler...look at her Asian eyes

 

 

 

Aunt Gin-Gee was one of the quietest kindest young ladies I've ever known.  She smiled alot and and was quite feminine.  Her frame was very thin and petite and I remember her being cold alot so she always wore a sweater.

 

 

 

 

Aunt Gin Gee never married although she was engaged earlier in life.  I'm not quite sure what happened in that relationship but I remember it being a subject we never discussed.  She had a locket from her love and a few other items I now have.  Love can be timeless and never forgotten when it's special and ends too quickly.

 

Aunt Gin Gee stayed closed to her Mother and lived with Ada until Gin Gee died at the young age of 48.  I remember the story of Grandma finding Gin Gee climbing on the kitchen table and being very confused.  Test results came back that showed "water on the brain", not sure what it actually means and need to research...I will have to make it a point to call my oldest cousin on the Coffman side...Charlie will know.

 Aunt Gin Gee's car...she drove us all around and remember, Ada never had her driver's license so Gin Gee was a big help to her Mother. 

Me and my Sweet Aunt Gin Gee

I remember going to the hardware store to purchase a miniature Barbie with the "green stamps" Gin Gee collected for me.  She asked me if I was ready to go for a drive and we all loaded up and drove downtown to the little store where my little Barbie lay waiting.  When we came back home to Grandma's, I remember taking napkins and pretending they were sheets for Barbie's bed.  It's a good memory to have because I rarely got to choose the very toy I liked or dreamed about.  Those choices were made for me by my Mother, based on what we could affort at the moment.  Times were a little slim for us back in KY so it was a nice time everytime we came to visit our home away from home in Beckley.

At Ada's front door once again...coming or going.

 



A Home on North Oakwood

Momma spent most of her life growing up in the home on North Oakwood Avenue in Beckley, WV.  She was raised in a time and place where innocence was golden and getting caught smokin' cornsilk was a big deal.  I remember a story about Momma and her girlfriends actually sitting in the cornfield that grew atop of the land attached to my Grandmother's land and rolling cornsilks like cigerettes, lighting and smoking them and coughing for hours. 

Thus, Zina Mae did not smoke a thing afterwards.  She didn't drink a drop nor did she wear makeup unless it was red lipstick in the younger days or clear-colored chapstick in the silver years. 

Another funny story I remember her telling me is about the time she and her girlfriends went back up to the garden on the top of the hill and ate some very hot peppers.  She said they couldn't run down the hill fast enough to find something to soothe their burning mouths.  Luckily, Grandma had some fresh cornbread and butter on the table so this was the natural choice to remedy their situation.  Then they cooled their mouths by drinking cold glasses of milk! 

 

Momma was quite a sweetheart and looked much like her Daddy's side of the family.  Especially when it came to her eyes and hair color.  I always felt a little sad for her knowing that she was only 5 when her Daddy passed away.  I'm sure this must have been traumatic for her and her siblings.  But she was the baby of the family and a little girl at that.  Losing her Father at such an early age had an impact in ways that came out later in life.  Momma always spoke highly of her Daddy and I remember Aunt Gin Gee and Momma calling him "Daddy" when speaking about him although they were all grown up at the time of their tableside talks.

 

My Momma's Daddy and My Grandfather

Rufus Campbell Coffman

 

A Sidenote:  The name of Coffman....it just dawned on me that this very name may add a thread of Jewish Heritage to the mix of Italian, French, German, Irish/English previously mentioned.  I'd like to think it's true....Kauffman, Coffman or any other spelling of this name may hold the clue to the origin.  I'd like to think that somewhere in my ancestory, I have Jewish blood, the blood of God's Chosen.  I've always felt particularly cared for and so perhaps this is part of the reason why or perhaps it's because God loves me and He knows me by name.  I'm His Daughter.



The Lily of the Valley

Her favorite flower was Lily of the Valley.  She often wore the scent.  I can still see the cloud of powder from her powder puff as she dusted herself.

It ended in the Chapel where the Hospice Angels, friends and family paid their respects. The life of a woman who almost died having her youngest came to an end in September 2000.

My Mother's life was not quite long enough in my eyes, however, how can I complain?  I had her for 37 years.  I just thought I'd have her for awhile longer. We shared a lot together and it's safe to say, I was her "little Annie" and the apple of her eye.  Maybe she felt so close to me because she almost died having me.  She always wanted me to be just like her.  I was her 3rd C-Section and at the time of my birth, we were Catholic.  When Dr. Neyer came out of the operating room to tell my Dad things weren't going well...the decision would have already been made in the eyes of the Catholic faith.  But God had great purpose for the both of us and I'm thankful He allowed both of us to live.

So lets get started with the rest of the story...perhaps the beginning would be the best place to write about...in Beckley, WV where Zina Mae Coffman was conceived and born on an iron bed that now has a permanent place beside Ada's floorlamp in our guest bedroom.

Little Zina Mae born in the Month of May