Come Walk with Me

By Daisy Marie

For all of us, daily challenges, struggles, and losses are our reality. Fear can be a paralyzing force. Finding our identity on a obstacle-filled path can be overwhelming. Unfortunately, our challenges do not come with instructions or solutions on how to overcome roadblocks. We struggle, we try, and sometimes we fail. What then?

Daisy Marie has lived it all. Now she invites others on a poignant journey of reflection that, through personal essays and poetry, reveals a story of faith and victory as she learned to work through a personal battlefield of uncertainty and bravely face a myriad of challenges and misfortunes that often left her reeling and relying on friends, family, and God for strength. Through her candid reflections, Daisy Marie offers encouragement that we too can survive any challenge that life throws our way.

Come Walk With Me shares personal essays and poems that offer a testimony to faith and perseverance as one woman reflects on life’s greatest challenges.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 2, 2018
• ISBN: 9781973638520

Daisy Marie

Daisy Marie is a woman of deep faith with a passion for ministry to other women, sharing through her story that challenges can be met and won. She enjoys reading, painting, and creating beautiful journals from old lace and fabric. Daisy and her husband, Tony Gross, have four daughters, ten grandchildren, and five great grandchildren. She is a graduate of Virginia Wesleyan College and resides in Chesapeake, Virginia.

Book preview

Come

Walk

with Me

DAISY MARIE

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Copyright © 2018 Daisy Marie.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-9736-3851-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-9736-3852-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018910373

WestBow Press rev. date: 9/27/2018

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Come Walk with Me

Losses in Life

Planning

Our Best

Life in Tyronza

The Village Blacksmith

Barefootin’

My Tree

Trust

Ugly Shoes

High Places

Pity Party

Amble

Challenges

Tradition

Questions

Hope

Your Path

About the Author

Dedication

To my family.

To Tony, my husband of more than sixty years, you have been my constant support, always encouraging me to be more than I thought I could be. You are my hero.

To Debra, you brought strength to me on many occasions when I felt I had failed. Curling up beside me, you often said, It’s not failing. It’s just the next step.

To Leslie, the song of my heart, your voice has lifted me above pain and disappointments to places of praise and peace. The music you and your sisters bring into our home is such a precious gift.

To Terri, you gave me your joy of laughter on days that were dismal and stormy. I love to hear you laugh. Your laughter is real. You made me smile with those silly, made-up goat jokes! I wonder where the blue goat is today.

To Chessie, you are my fulfillment. You fulfilled our dream of having another daughter. When first I saw you, a beautiful redheaded five-year-old little girl, I knew you belonged to us. You have made our family complete. I treasure your support.

This is the family that has walked with me in this journey. I am blessed.

Acknowledgments

I have been surrounded by such beautiful people as I have sought to share my story. If you simply said, You can do it, then you have been one of those encouraging people.

Brandon Melcher, I could not have put all this together without your help. Thank you is not enough. You have been my computer guru.

Levi Hopler, my editor, friend, and grandson, you corrected my work, made it better, and kept me focused. You were always there for me, and you had an answer for my questions when I was frustrated. Thank you for being someone I could trust.

There were times when Dr. Michael Moro, my physician and friend, talked me down from the ledge. You helped me through difficult physical issues, always encouraging me to keep moving forward. You called me your hero! Thank you for renewing my faith in my abilities.

When four friends learned that I had to cut back and rest more, they each said on separate occasions, Write your story. Beth Garrett, Judy Rorrer, Jean Isom, and Sandy Locklear, you are truly women of faith.

Dr. Jean Isom, you were awesome in helping me get started. Thank you for your planning and organization.

I am grateful to WestBow Press for walking me through the process of turning a manuscript into a book. I greatly appreciated the assistance you gave me.

My family’s support—whether patiently waiting in those times when I was not writing, showing an interest in the subject of my writing, or gently pushing me when I needed to move forward—has been amazing.

None of this would have been possible without God’s leadership and His unfailing love for me. To Him be all praise and honor.

Come Walk with Me

Come walk with me down the country roads of Arkansas. As children, we explore our world, even though that world is small. Life is carefree.

Walk quickly with me as our steps hurry from childhood into the busy teenage world, complete with poodle skirts and saddle shoes.

Walk with me as the road begins to become a bit confusing and not as carefree when we enter our young adult years.

Walk with me as we enjoy the warm sunshine on our faces, reminding us of the brightness of promises to come.

Walk with me as we feel a breeze growing stronger with clouds in the distance. Not to worry. A little rain is not a bad thing.

Walk with me, even though it is not always pleasant. The little rain has become a storm with clouds that are dark and turbulent, bombarding our tired bodies.

Our steps falter—stop.

Stand by my bed in a cold hospital room.

Hold my hand as I process what the doctor is saying.

Don’t leave me. It’s a new world.

Walk protectively by my side as I leave the hospital and return to the busy world.

Walk with me, share with me, stay with me. It’s a long journey.

Losses in Life

The dusty country path we walk on is where I first learned about losing something very dear to me. This peaceful, lazy lane is where I learned of death.

There are many losses in life. Too many. Often we learn at an early age the pain that loss causes. Perhaps these happen to prepare us for future wounds. It’s not that we become used to loss because when it happens, we are once again overwhelmed. Rather those experiences teach us that we can and will move forward.

As a very young child when I about three years old, I had a dog. Not just any dog, mind you. This was Mossy! She was my constant companion. She followed me everywhere I went during the day. Mossy was my friend, my protector, and a wonderful playmate, willingly ready to enter into whatever game that I wanted to play. Daddy was the blacksmith, and the shop was not far from our house. I loved spending time in that old dusty shop with my daddy. I knew not to get in the way, and Mossy made sure I stayed exactly in the spot I had been told to stay.

One morning I was ready to start my wandering way to the shop. I called my faithful friend, but she did not respond. I looked