Miss Ann Says | thoughts from everyday life | Page 8

- One proud mama
  
  Posted at 7:18 pm by missannsays, on September 11, 2015
  
  I am extremely proud of both of my daughters. They have shown grace, courage, determination and compassion through our September 11 journey. I have full confidence that Bruce would be proud of them, too. I have my younger daughter’s permission to share her Facebook post from today. What makes me sad is in 3 years the same thing will be true for my older daughter. She will have lived as long with her Dad as without her Dad.
  
  In the 14 years I knew you, I learned to always finish your plate, work hard, be prepared for the worst and hope for the best. I learned how to read a map, the difference between an oak and a maple tree, to enjoy the outdoors and always know where the nearest exit/fire extinguisher was. I don’t ever remember you being scared and I have lots of memories of you singing and telling stories/jokes. The smell of coffee in the morning and a good piece of crumb cake will always remind me of you. I watched you have compassion on strangers, offer a meal to a passing-through hiker and a helping hand with the neighbors. I loved how you could seemingly fix anything, though you were also a little accident prone (I believe you asked me on more than one occasion “don’t tell mom I broke [fill in the blank]”). You were my playmate, confidant, and hero but mostly just my dad. I’ve been dreading today- 14 years ago, I was 14 & had no idea how my life would change. I love you and am blessed to have had such a Godly example for a father. I am saddened that half my life has been without you but overjoyed to be able to teach your grandson many of the things you taught me. #remembering #FDNY #joycomesinthemorning
  
  One of my favorite photos taken in March 1990 on the occasion of Bruce’s FDNY swearing in.
  
  Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments
- Random Updates
  
  Posted at 2:17 pm by missannsays, on September 10, 2015
  
  In April of 2013 I submitted a mediation to The Upper Room for possible publication. Tomorrow it is the September 11th reading. It has been published in their September – October 2015 devotional booklet. They graciously asked me to submit a blog for tomorrow as well. The meditation will be available tomorrow at http://devotional.upperroom.org/ and the blog at http://devotional.upperroom.org/blog.
  
  I am speaking at Norwin Church of the Nazarene on Sunday September 13 at 10:40am. 110 Clay Pike
  North Huntingdon, PA 15642.
  
  My story “Unexpected Blessings” is in Chicken Soup for the Soul Volunteering & Giving Back. My friend Sonia Agron also has a story in the same book.
  
  Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments | Tagged September 11, speaking, writing
- teaching children about September 11, 2001
  
  Posted at 10:50 pm by missannsays, on September 9, 2015
  
  Through my volunteer work with the 9/11 Tribute Center I have had the amazing opportunity to share my story and story of September 11, 2001 with the next generation. I have spoken to school groups while sitting on the floor in gallery 5 of the Tribute Center or via the internet to classrooms in another state or standing in a classroom in New York or New Jersey. Each time I am struck with what an awesome responsibility it is to tell the facts and person to person history of the day that changed the world. As the 14th anniversary approaches I have included a list of resources that you may find helpful in teaching the children in your life about that tragic day.
  
  9/11 Tribute Center has resources for parents and teachers – http://tributewtc.org/education/resources/for-parents
  
  National September 11th Museum also has resources – https://www.911memorial.org/youth-and-families
  
  Below are some books that appropriate for children. Please read the suggested ages in the book reviews on Amazon before reading a particular book to a child. The first six listed here are appropriate for elementary aged children. The other books are appropriate for older children. Please monitor what information your teens are finding online and don’t forgot to engage in real conversation with your teens about the events of that day.
  
  Related posts –
  
  but why ???
  
  respect in the real world – #2- School group
  
  Posted in books, kid stuff, September 11 | 2 Comments | Tagged 9/11 Tribute Center, National September 11 Museum, September 11, telling the next generation
- Posted at 2:38 pm by missannsays, on September 7, 2015
  
  At the first anniversary there was a sense of needing to do the “right” thing, the appropriate thing, the expected thing. I am so grateful to a friend who said “do what you want to do” and we did. Meghan and I traveled to Quincy, MA to be with Emily who had just started her freshmen year of college. We attended chapel on campus, then drove down to the waterfront and sat and talked about Daddy (Bruce), we prayed, we cried and we wrote in our “things we would have told you” book – a recap of the year. Later, we ventured into Boston for lunch. I remember we stumbled upon numerous television crews at Nathaniel Hall and not knowing if we should laugh or cry, we kept our distance. We wanted to just be a mom and her daughters missing their dad/husband not 9/11 family members. There was something surreal about the day as there has been something surreal about so many days.
  
  As the years have passed the advice of that friend “to do what you want to do” has proven to be excellent advice. Some years I have taken part in local ceremonies in Greenwood Lake or Rochelle Park or attended unique opportunities like ringing the bell at the NASDAQ or the concert at the Beacon Theatre. I don’t venture to the National September 11 Memorial ceremony because I don’t think I can take on the grief of all those people. We don’t always write in the “things we would have told you” book anymore. We aren’t necessarily physically together because one daughter lives in Seattle and the other in PA.
  
  This Friday will mark the 14th anniversary. I haven’t decided what I want to do this year. This year is a tricky year because my one daughter has now lived 14 years with her dad and 14 years without him and that breaks my heart. It seems harder this year because I have so many Tribute Center friends and I carry their stories as well. A few things that were true on the first anniversary are true on the 14th. I will talk to my daughters and I will tell them how very proud their Dad would be of them and I will remind them that he loved them so much. I will ask them to remember to pray for the other families, and the Squad 41 firefighters. I will thank God for His faithfulness, my family and friends. And we will wish that we were just a mom and daughters missing their dad/husband who died in the line of duty and not 9/11 family members because a personal loss in the midst of a national tragedy adds so many layers.
  
  Memorial at TRCC, Milan, NY
  
  FDNY Memorial, NYC
  
  Memorial at Greenwood Lake, NY
  
  National September 11 Memorial
  
  last column bearing Squad 41 where they found Bruce’s body.
  
  Rochelle Park, NJ Memorial
  
  Albany,NY
  
  Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments | Tagged 9/11 Tribute Center, family, friendship, little things, September 11 Read On →
- Forever Remembered
  
  Posted at 1:26 pm by missannsays, on September 5, 2015
  
  Welcome To My World
  
  There’s no way to avoid it.
  
  It happens every year.
  
  I think about other things
  
  But this day begins to appear.
  
  It happens very subtly,
  
  A song, a picture or two
  
  And then I begin to remember,
  
  A sky … oh so blue.
  
  You woke up that morning
  
  Said your goodbye’s
  
  Little did you know
  
  Hours later you would die
  
  I didn’t know your name
  
  Never met you in fact
  
  But you were with my friends
  
  That were there and never came back
  
  It’s been 14 years since last I enjoyed a blue sky
  
  It’s been 14 years since many of us said goodbye
  
  I’d like to know that you’re okay
  
  Looking from above
  
  Knowing that you are truly missed
  
  By all those you love
  
  Forever Remembered
  
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  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments
- countdown
  
  Posted at 11:16 pm by missannsays, on September 1, 2015
  
  This is a reprint from a blog this time last year. I felt it is worth saying again. This anniversary is fifteen years so the “activities/hype/coverage” will be even greater than a normal year – 3rd, 7th, 13th… I did watch a good documentary on CBNC called “Ground Zero Rising: Freedom or Fear” Lee Ielpi, founder of the 9/11 Tribute Center, was featured as well as a fellow docent, Matt Crawford. Another documentary being shown on PBS on Sunday September 11 is “The Trees” by Scott Elliott. I was interviewed for that film. I will say the thing that makes the countdown even more difficult for people I know is when the days line up and September 11 is a Tuesday. Thankfully this year it isn’t. Side note: September 11 and Christmas always fall on the same day of the week. I know that is a weird thing to know but I do and I would not be surprised to learn that other members of the September 11 community know that as well. Be kind to yourself and be kind to each other. 🙂
  
  For many, September 1 means the countdown to September 11 has begun. The countdown actually starts much early for members of the September 11 community. Maybe it is in July when the letter to participate in reading the names from the National September 11 Memorial Museum arrives in the mail. Or when the emails from various September 11 organizations announcing their September 11 ceremonies start showing up in my inbox. Or when the actual invitation/credentials to attend the ceremony arrive. There is no escaping it.
  
  So I will limit my TV watching until September 12. I won’t be surprised when my husband’s photo randomly shows up on my FB feed. I will listen to the radio expecting to switch channels at anytime. I will pray for those who saw things on September 11, 2001 that no one should see. I will pray for the families of those who were killed that day and have died since from illnesses caused by their efforts in the rescue and recovery. I will decide to participate in the things that help in my journey. I will put one foot in front of the other. Don’t get me wrong I am grateful that “we don’t forget” but for many people myself included there is no way we could forget. Oh and in case you were wondering the countdown for us begins on September 12
  
  Posted in daily life, September 11 | 1 Comment
- Trusted sources
  
  Posted at 1:05 pm by missannsays, on August 4, 2015
  
  Recently I misplaced my “hands free” device that I use when I am driving. I assumed it had fallen out at church as I made a quick stop there to drop off VBS stuff before heading out of town for the weekend. I contacted a friend, who is also the church office manager, to say “if a little silver Bluetooth device shows up, it is mine.”
  
  On Saturday I received a text saying “no sign of it.” I decided to see if my Bluetooth settings showed my device as connected. Voila! It was connected so I went out to my car with the confidence of finding my device. My phone was saying it was connected so it must be there. I looked in all the standard spots – the dashboard, cup holders, that extra little compartment for stuff, under the mats, between the seats. I moved the driver seat all the way forwards, then all the way backwards. I raised the seat. I reclined the seat. I got a flashlight and looked under the seat. Still my phone was saying it was connected. By now, I was a little less confident that my phone knew what it was “talking about” so I went inside and checked my phone in an area I knew was out of range. Bingo! It showed not connected but as I walked within range it was connected. It must be in the car. I headed back out to my car. I repeated all the driver seat maneuvers. No device. I moved the passenger seat in all the same directions. I found a lipstick but no device. Forget it!
  
  On Sunday my phone was still showing my device as connected. Really?!? Oh well, I will just have my daughter look when I get to her house. It must be in plain sight but I can’t see it. I got in my car to head to my daughter’s house. I reached up into the glasses holder to switch to my sunglasses and what fell into my lap. You guessed it my hands free device. I laughed.
  
  Since then I have been pondering what I trust as reliable sources of information. My phone kept showing “connected” but the device was no where in sight. I looked because I believed it was correct. When I doubted I tested whether it was correct. And in the end it was connected (and found). 😉
  
  “Now Thomas (also known as Didymus ), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.””
  
  ‭‭John‬ ‭20:24-29‬ ‭NIV‬‬ http://bible.com/111/jhn.20.24-29.niv
  
  Posted in daily life | 0 Comments
- a new landscape
  
  Posted at 3:29 pm by missannsays, on July 25, 2015
  
  Today is a tricky day.(https://missannsays.com/2013/01/18/tricky-days/). Today would have been my husband’s 62nd birthday but it has been 13 years since he celebrated a birthday here on earth (https://missannsays.com/2012/09/10/r-bruce-van-hine/). Actually I surprised myself with a “good cry” this morning. The wondrous birth of my first grandchild back in April has made today harder than it has been in the past. Each year the number of things that Bruce has missed increases. I am grateful for the years we had and I am grateful for the life I have today but…
  
  C.S. Lewis says “Grief is like a long valley, a winding valley where any bend may reveal a totally new landscape.” My life is a totally new landscape now. And in many ways that isn’t a bad thing but it is a different thing. Happy Birthday, Bruce. See you again…
  
  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged family, little things, September 11
- Appalachian Trail and Me
  
  Posted at 2:49 pm by missannsays, on July 18, 2015
  
  The Appalachian Trail and I have an interesting relationship. I am not a hiker. I have no desire to hike anywhere let alone the “A.T.” I will admit I enjoyed Bill Bryson’s book “A Walk in the Woods”. It was one of my husband’s favorite books. My husband was a hiker and he enjoyed hiking the “A.T.”. Through the years I have played a role in making sure his car was where it needed to be so when he finished a day hike he could get home. Other times I dropped him off and at a set time picked him up. I have fed “through hikers” he brought home and welcomed strangers to take a shower and sleep in their tent in our yard. I purchased gallon zip lock bags so he could leave Bibles on the trail. And a few years ago I donated his trail guides to the National September 11 Museum and in June the Museum put his trail guide on display. Yesterday I had a telephone call from a Museum staff person telling me they had written a blog about Bruce’s story.
  
  https://www.911memorial.org/blog/new-view-firefighter%E2%80%99s-appalachian-trail-guidebook
  
  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged Appalachian Trail, Bill Bryson, family, little things, National September 11 Museum, September 11
- Symmetry
  
  Posted at 4:12 pm by missannsays, on July 3, 2015
  
  Symmetry is the word that popped into my head as I drove home from Quincy, MA. In the truest sense it probably isn’t the right word but in my mind it fit the bill. Let me explain…
  
  The voice on the other end of phone asked “I was wondering what your plans are for Kids’ Day?” ” Excuse me, Reverend Bergers I have no idea why you are asking me that question.” Reverend Jay Bergers was the director of our district church camp. At the time, I was the Sunday School Superintendent in my local church and had met him on several occasions during women’s retreat or family camp. My husband had worked alongside “Jay” clearing land at camp but why I was being asked about a district-wide event was a total mystery. At Reverend Bergers’ suggestion I called the district office.
  
  “You made my day” responded Reverend Ken Blish as I explained the confusing telephone call from Reverend Bergers. Obviously a breakdown in communication had happened and no one had informed me that I had been appointed District Children’s Ministries Director. “So how do you feel about that” “Like I should pray about it” Well, to be honest I was stunned, confused, overwhelmed and not sure if I should laugh or cry. My husband was thrilled, supportive and encouraging. Thus began my stint as Children’s Ministries Coordinator for the Metro New York District Church of the Nazarene.
  
  And on Saturday as I checked name tags at the Eastern Field Children’s Bible Quiz at Eastern Nazarene College, a woman walked up to me, introduced herself and said “I think you know my father, Jay Bergers.” We had a lovely conversation. She explained to her spouse and teenage children how she knew me and how the 9/11 memorial at camp was for my husband. Later as I drove home the word symmetry popped into my head. Nineteen years ago a telephone call from Reverend Jay Bergers started it all and on Saturday at my last official act as Children’s Ministries Coordinator Reverend Bergers’ presence and influence was made known again. A beginning and an end suddenly tied with a bow that only God could add.
  
  “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” Hebrews 12: 1-2
  
  Posted in Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged following Jesus, kid stuff, little things, respect
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