Something New

In the blink of an eye, here it is with Memorial Day behind us, graduations, and summer vacations ahead. I'm not sure if it's because I'm getting older that the time passes so quickly or because I'm just busy. I've been blessed to have such wonderful dealers as a part of our Country Roads family. Their displays are fresh, their merchandise is awesome, and they are just a nice group of people. I'm excited to share something new that we are doing at the store. We are in the beginning process of having you be able to shop (in a way, kind of) online. I am in the beginning stages of setting up blogs for my dealers who are interested in having an internet presence. This group of people are interested in you, our customers, knowing not only who they are, but what type of merchandise they sell, what is new and fresh in their spaces and much more. I think as the world changes, we all see more and more things leading to internet presence. We are just in our beginning stages but we are hoping those customers that visit us over the internet will be able to now purchase merchadise from Country Roads. It will involve just a phone call to our store, and a small shipping fee, all which will be paid per use of your credit card over the phone. For more details visit my blog at http //mycountryroads.blogspot.com As many of you know, I sometimes can't get my links to work and you may have to type in the address. You can also visit my blog per the sidebar on your right under "Sue's Stories". The only problem is you won't be able to see my right side bar on the blog which lists particpating dealers. I have high hopes that this new Country Roads online will work out well for both my dealers and our great customers. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me. I wish you all a wonderful, relaxing summer, and promise to stop by more often and keep my site current! I've also included a new "story" below. Take care, Sue

How Have You Changed?

I don t believe that there is anyone left that hasn t been affected by the way of the world these days. Not exactly a picnic in the park, is it? You know, I m like everyone else; there are days I think, as my good friend said to me the other day, if someone would just say all this will be over by a certain date, then I think I could know what I had to plan for . Unfortunately, life keeps us on our toes. I can t even say the e word anymore without wanting to throw up. If any word in the English language has been over used this past year, it is the economy word! As hard as it s been for some, for many, or for none of you, I believe it has been a good lesson for many of us about life. I use to not know what a gallon of milk cost. Why? Because I needed it and wasn t worried about it. Now like many people, you make adjustments in your life. I know my family doesn t go out to eat together as much as we use to. Now we get together still, but may just order pizza than go out for an expensive dinner.

I guess my biggest concern when I ask, how have you changed , is this. I ve always tried to give back or pay it forward, and I still do. There are so, so many people out there these days hurting. A couple of months ago, I was getting off the freeway to go buy dog food at Petsmart. Usually at this off ramp there are people standing with signs asking for money and such. It was raining that day, and overcast and gloomy. The light turned red and I was about four cars back. There was this elderly black man standing in the rain with a simple sign that said, please help . There was just something about him that was different, I can t explain it. I dug in my purse and I had a five dollar bill. As the light changed, before I even rolled the window down in my car, he began walking towards me. I stuck my hand out the window to give him the five dollar bill. He clutched my hand for a moment, that seemed much longer, and looked into my eyes and said, bless you child . His eyes were old, but wise and caring. As I drove off, tears began to stream down my face. I was so touched and moved by our short encounter and what it meant to be. I ve always believed that people are brought into our lives for a reason, for however long or maybe just a brief encounter. Even now, several months later, I m writing about this experience.

So when I ask, how have you changed what is different in your lives today? Are you like me that now knows the cost of milk but still knows you ve got to help people when you can. Or have you changed for the best, beginning to know more now than ever how important it is to reach out to people! You hear it on the news all the time that the food banks are down, and other charitable groups aren t getting the help they use to. But if we try, if we look into our hearts we can all make a difference. Just by having an extra dollar to give to someone that may be hungry, can make a huge impact on someone s life. There is this quote I like by Eckhart Tolle that goes like this Forget about your life situation and pay attention to your life. Your life situation exists in time. Your life is now. Your life situation is mind stuff, your life is real .