70th Wedding Anniversary

Happy 70th Anniversary Poem

Nick

Shirin

Lexi

Frederick

In 1941 they said “I Do” with a kiss

Now its been 70 years of bliss

He married the girl next door

Lillian proved she was no bore

A smile that lit up the room

A laugh that brushed off doom

She liked him too

He was a cool dude

Armond was the Italian man

Who provided for the “fam”

With his hands he worked to the top

Owning a high class hair dressing shop

Soon they had two more pearls

Cecilia and Phyllis, the Pilone girls

1 - 2 - 3 - 4

And not one more

In 1958 they moved from shore to shore

To Carmel California from Long Island New York

The Pilone girls grew up the same

It wasn’t too long when grandkids came

Cecila had three cutie pies

Phyllis did too, I’m telling no lies

3 + 3 = 6

5 girls & 1 boy in the mix

Then came the great-grandkids, so much!

And we are 4 of the whole bunch!

Grandma Pilone likes to pray

She goes to Church each Sunday

Grandpa Pilone drives here there

Without a single moment to spare

She made my blankie

It makes me happy

We love you both and the way you are (s)

Happy 70th Anniversary from 4 of your stars!

Written by Michelle Fozounmayeh on July 24, 2011

Recited by Nick Oldham, Shirin Fozounmayeh, Alexa Oldham and Frederick Fozounmayeh at Armond(94) and Lillian(95) Pilone's 70th Wedding Anniversary party.

Blessed Be Your Name

It's easy to sing a song that blesses the name of the Lord

when things are going oh so well.

The challenge is singing this truth no matter how things are going.

It really becomes an act of submission.

A proclamation regardless of feelings.

Truth that no circumstance can deny.

Today I choose to bless His name!

If I don't, the rocks will.

BLESSED BE YOUR NAME...

Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful
Where Your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be Your name

Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name

Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

Blessed be Your name
When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name

Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, blessed be Your name

The Flying Bat meets Rodger Rabbit

It was close to midnight as Vader’s ship disappeared into the darkness of space.  The flying bat had defeated Darth Vader in the jungles of Jupiter with the lion, cheetah and werewolf.  The lion, named Frank, could tell that something still bothered the Flying Bat.  The Flying Bat had not trusted the lion at first, but now respected him for he fought with courage.  Flying Bat looked into Frank’s eyes and said, “I didn’t trust you at first because when a hard plum woke a sleeping lion on an earlier mission, that lion’s anger caused me to flee all the way to France.”

Frank understood and told him not to fear, the first lion was actually a spy of the dark side, it was his lioness cousin named Sue.  He then told him about a Rabbit who was wise in the ways of the force and could give the Flying Bat everything he needed for his next adventure.   His name was Rodger and could be found in Toontown.

Flying Bat flew all night back and as the sun rose he arrived on the sacred grounds of Disneyland and into Toontown.  There he found Rodger Rabbit having breakfast with his wife Jessica Rabbit.  Flying Bat  went inside the restaurant and told him that Frank had sent him.  Rodger’s whiskers twitched as he informed him that all the secrets of a successful adventure could be found by going on the Rodger Rabbit ride.  Flying Bat waited patiently in line until it was his turn.  Flying Bat climbed on the ride.  About half way through, when the twists and turns made it difficult to focus the ride stopped short and broke down.  He knew it was the work of the lioness, Sue.  The Flying Bat looked over his shoulder just in time to see the lioness.  He took out his light-saber and sliced through Sue.  After she was defeated her body suddenly disappeared.  Flying Bat helped start the ride up again and thanked Rodger Rabbit.  

Just then he looked up and saw a familiar sight... the Bat Signal!  It was time for another adventure...

Gratitude Card

The Gratitude Card

On Feb. 25 2011 I decided to open up some snail-mail that had sat on my counter for a few weeks.  As it kept piling up I just kept putting it off.  Funny how I would never let half a day go by before checking my email, texts or even my Facebook.  Yet I let this snail mail sit on my counter like it was yesterday’s news.  Who really uses snail mail for anything important these days anyways?  As I flipped through the envelopes I came across one from a friend.  Knowing our daughters are in the same class at school I assumed it would be some sort of invitation.  A birthday party, a baby shower for a YB mom or possibly an invite to a gathering she is hosting.  I tossed it to the side assuming I would have to get out my calendar and find time for yet another obligation.  Already feeling like too much was on my plate I decided to ignore the envelope for the moment.  I finished looking through the small stack of snail-mail and almost walked away.

Stopping short, I realized I would see my friend in a couple of hours when we picked up our girls.  I’d have to face her asking if I got the invite and would have to admit I did but didn’t open it.  The fact that it sat on my counter for possibly 3 weeks was bad enough!  “Go back and open it!” I told myself.

Inside I found a card.  The cover picture featured two lady dogs sitting down at a little round table with cups of tea. Ignoring how cute the picture was I started drawing conclusions for a reason the card was send to me...  maybe it is some sort of a lady gathering?  I opened it up and noticed it was a hand written note.  Right away I scanned my brain for a reason for a hand written note... did I give her a gift recently?  We are not car pooling so no recent act of service on my part.  Curious to find out the reason I read the note.  

“Michelle,

I just want to thank you for all you do.  You are such a good friend and an amazing mom.  I’m so glad we’ve had an opportunity to get to know each other better over the last 2 years.  I’m very grateful to have you in my life!”

My friend signed it and that was it.

Wait, that’s it?  I even turned the card around to find the hidden bill.  I read again to make sure I did not miss the real reason for the card.  Where’s the small print?  Really?  It was a thank you card for... just being... me?  For being a friend?  A card of gratitude for nothing more than getting to know someone better?  Right away my heart got this warm and fuzzy feeling.  My lips curved up with a smile.  Showing gratitude is a powerful thing.  For both the one giving it and the one receiving it.  In an instant it can draw two people closer like it did for me and my friend.  And I also felt a little ashamed that my opening it had to come with all these false internal accusations.

So now I’m going to admit something to you.  This is not my strong point, showing gratitude out of the blue.  I love to encourage others and thank people face to face...  I’ll even call or e-mail when someone comes into my brain to tell them I’m praying for them.  But saying the words “Thank You” when it’s not convenient to do so?  How often do I go out of my way to send a message of gratitude for the simple reason of being grateful?  I’ll tell you, not often enough. And I miss the blessings of doing so.

When Jesus healed 10 leopards (Luke 17:11-19) you can imagine that ALL TEN were ecstatic, grateful beyond measure as they ran back to the city they had been ostracized from, eager to see the families they had been separated from because of this horrible disease.  Can you imagine being on that path, each step not being fast enough to return you to the life you were forced to leave behind?  No time for snail-mail!  Only one stopped in his tracks.  He turned around, completely out of the way from his path home, and went back to Jesus to give him a message of gratitude.  Not an over the shoulder remark that would seem much more convenient, but a real thank you from the heart.  Only one did that.  

Gifts are often taken for granted and seldom acknowledged. Especially the simple gift of friendship.  Truth is you have probably forgotten to thank someone for a birthday or Christmas gift at some time yourself.  I know I have!  The proof is in the 3 packs of unopened thank you cards I purchased for 3 of my daughter’s past birthdays and the 3 packs from my son’s.  Not this year!  My husband, Farhad, had our daughter, Shirin, sit down and write those 8-year-old-birthday-party gratitude cards.  The invitations to her party said that there was no need to bring a birthday gift because their gift to Shirin was simply celebrating with her.  Because of that, the thank you cards were messages of gratitude for just being a friend.  Sort of like the thank you I received from my friend.  My daughter took so much pleasure in creating each card, making it special for every friend.  The duty that her daddy gave her became a blessing to her in the process.

Most of us have enough “stuff” that we have lost the good sense to be truly grateful.  One peek in my garage and you’ll see how much “stuff” is crowding out gratitude in my life.  Good thing the gratitude card from my friend did not find it’s way in there before I opened it!  And forget about the blessings of hardship or suffering... it is ingrained in our head that anything hard, or anything that hurts is to be hated and despised and gets in the way of our happiness.  As a society we are completely blind to the good that comes from hardship and how God can use that time to grow us.  The very last response would be gratitude.

Like the 9 leopards, after longing for something and hoping for it, man kind can loose the good sense of gratitude at the single drop of getting what we want.  We tend to possess an, “it’s about time” attitude.  Or a “I’ve waited long enough” spoiled child response and just run right back to our old ways... eager to get back to what we were doing before this snare in our happiness took place.

When I saw my friend at pick up I told her that I received her note and it meant so much.  I also admitted that I had just opened it.  She laughed and confirm it was sent weeks before.  How many times had I seen her and she didn’t ask me about it?  Not opening my mail sooner and almost walking away from the card completely came from a rotten place; a selfish and ungrateful heart condition.  A place where convenience is priority.  A place that avoids stepping out of my way or off my path, to make time for something or someone else.  How thoughtless of me! 

She also said, “I knew I wanted to send that and I’m so busy with work that I had to actually schedule a time to do it.  I put it on my planner to write that.”  My friend was the one leopard and I was one of the 9!

Reflecting on that day I can say that God really used my friend to speak to me about intentional gratitude.  Too often we come across God in the same way I came across my friend’s gratitude card.  First putting it off because after all, is there really something important to be found there?  I can let a conversation with my maker take the back seat for days or weeks but would not let a week go by without watching an American Idol episode(It’s down to the final 3 for goodness sakes!) or catching up on the news(A beauty pageant-obsessed mom who jabs her 8-year-old daughter with Botox is of high importance!).   Second, I can see gratitude in the wrong light.  It might just require too much of me and my busy schedule.  I have priorities you know!  Finally, I’m a little fearful of the unknown.  It could open a door to ask me to do something that I’m not ready to do or expose an area in my life I’d rather not be challenged in.  When really, we open up the gift of prayer and find there are no hidden agendas but instead relationship and intimacy with our God.

Will you be the one to step off your convenient path?  To be the one leopard that turns all the way around for true gratitude, causing a friend’s lips to curve up with a smile like mine did.  It is good for the giver and the receiver.  And even more importantly, will you abandon your misconceptions and internal accusations?  Will you take time to thank God for all he has done, is doing and will do?  To thank him for walking with you through the thick and thin, the good and bad, the peaks and valleys and for just being your God?  In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 the Apostle Paul exhorts, “Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”  I encourage you to open the gratitude card in your life and see what there is to find!

Poem to Mom in 2002

TO MY MOM ON MOTHER’S DAY 2002

Feeding Time!

But more than food you gave

Closeness and love you saw I craved

As I pinched your hair...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Bleeding Time!

But more than a band-aid you had

“That silly bee,” you saw I was sad

As I sat in the hall...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Shoe Time!

You watched me tie, on the first try

You watched me switch, a bit dyslexic

All the while I sang...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Story Time!

Major exaggeration, you had compassion

“Tell me when it’s fake, but go on and create.”

As my imagination grew...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Drama Time!

After every play, you gave much praise

Noticing God made, helped as you raised

So I proclaimed...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Paper Time!

After you typed for me all night

I got car sick on a rout, what a sight!

I sat in awe...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Laughter Time!

It would come without warning, so very frail

Dashing to the other room, leaving a trail

On the ground in hysterics...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Driving Time!

Friends with the road, there’s always a mode

“It matters to me, I want to come see.”

Feeling so special...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Giving Time!

You can never resist a daughter's plea

“Take this, take that, take all you see!”

Grateful in every way...

“I’m sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God gave me the best!”

Lasting Time!

Everyday I wake up and Pray...

“Thank you Lord for mom

builder her up as she goes along

remind her of who she is

and the gift she is to her kids

No one can take her place

Nothing compares to that face

I’m just sorry for all the rest,

Cuz God... you gave me the best!”

Happy Mother’s Day!

By Michelle Fozounmayeh

May 11, 2002

My Rainbow Promise

My Rainbow Promise 
(It all started with Family Fun) 
Written on April 29, 2009 – 1,193 words 
By Michelle Fozounmayeh 

Yesterday morning my Facebook status read, “Faxing, phoning, dropping off kids, picking up kids”. By early afternoon I had almost everything checked off, only picking up my son Frederick was left. I sat in the pre-school parking lot contemplating my next to do list. It all felt like too much, like a storm of responsibilities were about to over take me. I was reminded of when Jesus and his disciples were in a boat together. He slept below deck as a storm was brewing. The waves came up and splashed against the boat. I imagined the waves with mouths of their own, I’m going to eat you up . . . . . I’m the evaluation you needed to fill out, I’m the traffic ticket you got for talking on your cell, I’m the consistent pain in your back! Playing out the story in my mind I could see the disciples in a panic, “Wake up Jesus!” OK, I thought as I sat in the parking lot. I know you calm the waters Lord but I’m still swimming in my to do list! Suddenly I could hear the faint memory of my son’s voice saying, “Member Pirates Caribbean?” 

My mind wondered off. Three years ago we started regular family fun nights using a box filled with our own ideas. The best ideas came from the kids. Drawing a family picture together, playing Simon Says or having a game night. I could feel a smile creep across my face as I replayed a game of Charades. My husband pretended to be my daughter. She in turn pretended to be my son. And my son pretended to be lots of things unaware that it all looked the same. I could hear the laughter, caught up in the moment I giggled out loud. The sound of my own voice brought me back to sitting in my car. It takes discipline for family fun nights to occur. Sadly I have found myself trying to skip the idea box. With my to do list overtaking my energy, reading books and going to bed early seemed much easier for my brain to process. That faint sound of my son’s voice grew a bit louder, “Member Pirates Caribbean?” 

Allowing this day dream to continue I thought about our number one family fun day, using our annual Disneyland passes. One idea from our box was to have each of us choose one ride. What genuine excitement it created, not to mention eliminating fits for the kids “not getting their way”. My daughter was so thrilled that she became the keeper of the events. My son’s choice, the Pirates of the Caribbean, seemed to make her more excited then he was, “Frederick, we are doing YOUR family fun choice!” 

My day dream suddenly cut short by my phone ringing. It was my husband. He asked me how the faxing, phoning, dropping off and picking up were going. I giggled and reported that I was on the last one. As I hung up the phone I was reminded of how easy it was to have the to do list become more prevalent then the list of our family fun ideas. “Member Pirates Caribbean?” 

I wonder what my Facebook status update would have been in August of 2007, days away from my son’s 3rd birthday? I had watched him in the hospital bed next to me. He had been enduring a fight to stay alive and I was in the middle of a storm. The waves had big ugly mouths and were shouting at me, “Did you go to enough specialists? Could you have pushed for more blood work? Did you really listen to your instincts? Did God choose the right mom for this job?” On my way to admit him to the hospital, my gut feeling said this was more then just a 15 day flu. Still I was numb at midnight on that first day in the hospital when I was told that his kidneys were not working. 

For the next few days we were flooded with doctors, specialist, decisions, surgeries and a boy hanging onto life. A storm vastly different then the day to day challenges of a to do list. I wanted to comfort and protect my little boy. I could see him closing off the world to protect himself from the pain and violation he was experiencing, “Maybe if I close my eyes and hide under the covers the monsters will go away.” I never felt such a helpless feeling in all my life. I needed a rainbow promise. Like the one Noah and his family experienced after the largest storm in history. Come on Lord, WAKE UP! 

Lost in the memory, I saw Frederick’s eyes open in that bed just like the day it had happened. I could tell that his wheels were turning. Resisting the urge to say he was doing so good . . . . which is what I had been singing to him for the last few days. Instead I just observed him thinking and pondering. What could be going through his head? He looked up at me. I smiled. And then he spoke to me in a weak voice, words that I will never forget. “Mom.” 

“Yes honey.” 

“Member Pirates Caribbean?” 

I heard it loud and clear. My heart in my throat, “Yes honey, I do remember Pirates of the Caribbean!” 

To think, that God was using our family fun moments to comfort my boy in the midst of the hardest struggle he had ever had to endure. He used them to intervene in Frederick’s anguish, placing hope on his heart in a way that only he could understand. What a beautiful rainbow promise! As Frederick and I reminisced together God also whispered in my ear, you are doing everything right. Don’t fret about what you could have or should have done. You ARE the perfect mom for this boy. I’m on the deck. Take courage, I’m the great comforter! I’m the great healer! 

A car pulled up beside me which jolted me back to the parking lot of my son’s pre-school. I looked at my watch, time to pick up that little guy. I heard again whispers of truth, do the best you can and let me do the rest. Your actions are sweet smelling sacrifices to me. I accept it all and use it for the good of what is to come. “Let go and let God” I told myself as I opened the car door. The daily storms of our life will pass. As I walked to the front gates of Frederick’s pre-school I felt as if Jesus himself had yet again climbed up deck and demanded those waves to stop yelling at me. BE STILL! There were more important things to think about. Thank you Lord for my rainbow promise! Help me take joy in doing the things with and for my family that creates the kind of memories that last. Later that day my Facebook status was not a list of things to do. It read “Islands for Dinner!” It was Frederick’s choice. Family fun night was back! 

Treasures in the Darkness

The words held meaning

Soft and new from across the room

A girl that was paralyzed

Held hostage in a cocoon

Seemed distant I thought

A message I couldn’t quite grasp

A gift far greater?

Saying, “This too shall pass.”?

Those words stayed with me

Like a deposit in my brain

And came up again

When there was something to gain

“Treasures in the darkness

Don’t run, don’t try to escape

There are treasures in the darkness

It’s not a mistake

No matter the struggle

No matter the pain

You will always find

Treasures that change”

You said there was good

And I think it is true

I lived like it was

Then the fire grew

I was forced to stop

Long suffering that breaks

And I found myself asking

Why would I want to embrace?

A body that is halted!

A son that is in pain!

You watched your daughter die

On what planet is that ok?

My treasures were lost

And the bad had taken its place

Of what I knew to be good

Of all my time and space!

Walking the burnt grounds

Where all I had once stood

Reduced to black ashes

My breath took in all it could

Then down at my knees

Something caught my eye

The gift you gave to me

On the day you had died

I understood at last

That a life can be saved

If you are willing to persevere

If you are willing to embrace

I lifted my tear filled eyes

Grasping the gift in my hands

I gave over my pride

For the treasures of a new set of plans

Treasures from the darkness

I can’t run or try to escape

There are treasures in the darkness

It’s not a mistake

Beyond the cocoon

There’s no suffering or pain

The gift is far greater

Treasures that change

Michelle Fozounmayeh

Maundy Thursday 2009

4-9-2009