I’m A Clubwoman

Our Club has a bit of a tradition, we eat before we meet. It is not my favorite thing, as I am not a fan of brunch, but I do like picnics.

I want to issue an apology for having let so much time lapse since my last blog. My life as I know it has been turned inside out as I have walked away from a business relationship and started up a new enterprise. I figure this is what this blog place is all about: us women as we go through the great challenges of life, and mine is definitely been a challenge over the last three months. I don’t know if I have said anything about this before, but in addition to being mother of three and a GFWC member I also own and operate my own small town newspaper. I write a weekly column as part of the paper and I would like to share with you my first editorial in my newest endeavor. I hope you enjoy it.

Today I rode in a 4th of July Parade. Happy Independence Day! I hope you watched fireworks and a parade somewhere and rejoiced in love for this wonderful country!

Never before have I spent four days with 600 women and had so much fun! (I don’t think I’ve ever spent that much time with that many women — in my life!) AND, never before have I met so many extraordinary women who give so much of themselves to their communities, the country and the world.

I just made my reservations for the GFWC National Convention in Cleveland and look forward to meeting many of you there! This is my first GFWC convention and I’d appreciate any tips you “old-timers” might have.

We have all seen that child…you know the one. He is screaming at the top of his lungs in the grocery store, shading his eyes from the florescent lights, and flapping his hands. I betch you think …why doesn’t that mother punish him? Why doesn’t she spank him or correct him? …What if I told you this child was autistic?

We buried him on February 17th on his 79th birthday.

I have a confession to make. I suffer from a problem that I am sure many women on this website can identify with. It is one of anxiety. Four years ago I left my husband of five years. There were many problems with the marriage, but the main reason was that our then 2 ½ year old son was diagnosed with autism. This news was like a glass shattering. It was devastating as parents and my ex-husband took the news a lot harder than I did. To him he had lost his son, and this was something he could not and to this day still has not recovered from.

Hi Everyone! I am so excited to report on my recent (and by recent, I mean last week) trip to Washington DC! I traveled with a group of clubwomen from GFWC of North Carolina to visit GFWC’s headquarters and see the sights. It was my first time visiting our headquarters and what an experience that was! However, this post is about my passion in life.

Who is my mentor? My life has been influenced by so many great and wonderful women, but one that sticks out is our local Pierian Club president, Mary Lou Gilbreath. Mary Lou has been part of my life for a very long time.

A lot of people walk through your life and some mean more to you than others. Sometimes, just because!

A few people had influenced my life but if I have to pick one person who I consider a mentor, I’ll pick my dad. I don’t know where to begin to explain about his character. He was the best man I have ever met. He passed away about 17 years ago but I still miss him and wish for his wisdom everyday.

Happy Winter!!! I hope you are staying warm! BRRRR. It is positively Arctic here in North Carolina. Nine whole degrees this morning! This is the time to take advantage of the required indoor reading time although my reading time consists of magazines and news updates online!