Greetings readers! I am so busy these days that today’s edition of Under the Shade Tree is being written by a volunteer. We sure have had lots of rain lately and that is a good thing for our gardens. The Garland Community Garden is sprouting up nicely and we are looking forward to being able to get back out there soon and do some work. Gardens are a lot of work aren’t they? We enjoy sowing the seeds and seeing them come up. The entire process is such a rewarding thing to those of us with green thumbs. It will be no time before we are harvesting the vegetables and enjoying them on our dinner plates. Good times!

Our Older American’s Day will have come and gone by the time you read this, but we are looking very forward to it this Thursday. A special thank you to Garland commissioners S.J. Smith and Lee Carberry for their donations and help in preparing for this event. It’s the people who give so freely and willingly from their hearts, like our dear commissioners, that make this and all events possible. We have always relied so heavily on the contributions of our angels on Earth. Thank you for all you do to help. We here at the Garland Senior Center appreciate you more than you could ever imagine. Thanks to all the people from our community and surrounding communities who have helped us get ready for Thursday. We don’t know what we would do without you all!

After a day of fun and fellowship on Thursday, we will be enjoying our annual fishing trip. A wonderful day of fishing and fun followed up by a delicious home cooked meal. We always do look forward to the fishing trip as it gives us a chance to catch up with old friends and family and enjoy the simpler things that make life so glorious.

For the past few weeks there have been so many free workshops to attend in the area. I have been trying my best to attend them all and enjoy all the wonderful information they have to offer. We would like to reach out and encourage everybody to come and enjoy these free workshops. All of the information provided is free and beneficial in many ways. The most recent workshop that I have been involved in is a local conference where we are learning the importance of having an advance directive. An advance directive is a written statement of a person’s wishes regarding medical treatment, often including a living will, made to ensure those wishes are carried out should the person be unable to communicate them to a doctor. If you drive a car in the state of North Carolina, then you need an advance directive.

In closing I would like to offer a few words of encouragement: Live your life, laugh as often as possible and love without limits. Be a reflection of what you’d like to see in others. If you want love, give love. If you want honesty, give honesty. If you want respect, give respect. You get in return, what you give. A meaningful life is not being rich, being popular, being highly educated or being perfect. It’s about being real, being humble, being able to share ourselves and touch the lives of others. Don’t be afraid to change. You may lose something good but you may gain something better. Lastly, lessons from a tree: Stand tall, stand proud. Go out on a limb, drink lots of water, enjoy the view and remember your roots.

Marie Faircloth
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/web1_Marie-Faircloth-3.jpgMarie Faircloth

By Marie Faircloth

Under The Shade Tree

Marie Faircloth is the director of the Garland Senior Center.