I feel as if I can not breath & my heart is truly broken . My B's Precious puppy Duece was hit by a car this afternoon and he didn't make it. Duece has spent the last few weeks on the patio at the CIG, he could not be left alone because if all of his surgeries over the last 5 weeks. He stole a lot of hearts at the grill he was a precious funny friend that loved us Stephens with his whole heart. I experienced something today that I never have at the grill..... When Duece became loose we ALL ran after him.... Knowing he was in danger, the girls of the grill did everything they could and when he was hit they ALL just took control , for the first time they guided me and helped me. They loaded our precious Duece and went with Shelby to the vet..... I realize through tears and heartache I am truly blessed with amazing strong girls who have amazing hearts. Prayers for my B... Duece you were amazing I so am so going to miss what was to come.... A glimpse of your life truly wasn't enough.
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Good Morning!! Last month a couple came in for breakfast. I stopped by their table to check on their meal, "Everything great today yall?" Their reply was yes & then she started telling me of their journey. They were heading to the East coast to visit their son and grandkids, her excitement was contagious as she shared......"Our son is in the navy and he is being promoted to master chief". Her pride was evident as she talks of HER hero....he is not just a navy guy, he is a great husband and an amazing father of 4, one with a disability, he called and asked if I would be the one to pin his new medal on his beautiful dress white uniform". My heart was so excited for this mom and dad, they were so excited to be apart and celebrate in this very special ceremony..... Tuesday the grill was crazy busy(what a blessing) as I look out in the foyer at the sea of people waiting in line I see a group familiar green fatigues...I make eye contact with my regular that is part of this group, she tells me a table of 6 and I start looking for a place. I got to know this regular through her husband that has been a regular of mine for many years now.....I never knew she served in the US Army, actually the US Army hospital, until last Spring, she started bringing in a group of girls with her, all adorned in the Army green. I got these soldiers a table and proceeded to take care of all the other guest.....a little while later my precious regular comes up to me and asked my permission for her to do something a question I will remember forever..... Happy Beautiful Thursday yall....In the middles of the chaotic, loud, busy grill my regular stood up and spoke in her commanding voice and the grill stopped. She promoted 3 of these soldiers right here in the middle of the dining room. I stood back with tears running down my face as we all watched these soldiers get "pinned" & promoted. My precious regular explained to the 180 guest present that since the government "shut down", there are no ceremonies right now and no venues available for promotion but these soldiers deserved to get recognized and promoted. Oh Mylanta it was an amazing blessing to be apart of this special occasion....it may not have been as grand as the regular that was able to pin her son with the dress uniform on and many family and friend present but it was special and truly a gift. This is the grill....flawed in so many ways & yet our Heavenly Father allows amazing "perfect" things to happen. I am honored to have been apart of these soldier journey.
Good Morning!! The month of October, for the last 5 years, the CIG crew members have shown support for Breast Cancer awareness. I started this Friday tradition in the 10 month to honor my mom that died 20 plus years ago from this disease but now it is so much more than honoring the passing of my mom, it is a celebration of all of the amazing women that have fought and won over this disease . Happy Beautiful Saturday & Happy Race for the cure day.... Yesterday as the crew was decked out in shirts with funny saying and pink everywhere you turned, it was an amazing atmosphere . I have 2 motorcycle policemen that are my regulars, they were sitting in their normal booth but turned around looking as if they needed something, I walk over and ask if all was good..." Yes just trying to read all the great shirts". One of them begins his story ... Actually his wives story, "she is a 2 time breast cancer survivor, she is an amazing women that has beat a horrible disease , thank you for showing y'all's support for a cure and early detection."... Lunch was crazy yesterday , a lady with a red ball cap answered the #3 for her guest , as I am walking her back to faith she stops, takes off her hat and says "thank you for showing your support", underneath that red ball cap was beautiful short hair growing back since her treatment. Donna is the women center in this picture, she is more than a cherished regular, she is my friend...., I was on her journey of diagnosis, treatment, healing and now being cancer free for over a year. It is an amazing blessing to see these beautiful amazing survivors..... The big pink cross that is on the wall behind all of us girls was a gift from Donna last year, everyday I walk into the Faith and see this beautiful cross and it reminds be of HOPE, not the despair that I use to feel when I thought of this disease. Today and everyday I honor the women that have fought hard and survived & for all if the family's that no longer have their warrior my heart is full of compassion, love & understanding, I get it!! This is the day The Lord has made, we will rejoice!! Good Morning!!The last few months have been extremely hard..... to watch a place I love so much slowing down and my breakfast is barly visible has been a tough one to swallow. As I was trying to accomplish other things to what I thought would make the grill better I allowed others to run the breakfast shifts and then I realized wow they did not have the best interest of the CIG & I have a big FAIL with breakfast and with my amazing guest. The last 4 weeks have brought a lot of staff changes and myself taking ahold of the gift the Lord gave to me, my precense on the floor visible at all times. Yesterday I realized how much I had missed it when two things happened.....The CIG received a call yesterdy morning asking if we would feed a DPS officer that was in town...his journey was one of honor and a heart of service... he was chosen to escort the body of a slain officer that was killed on duty. The person calling knew he had had an exhausting journey and needed to be feed before his journey back home. The answer to feed him was an automatic yes and we waited for his arrival..... Yesterday my manager, Krissy Harrelson, celebrated her 1year of being clean & sober, clothed in a black shirt with the phrase "Party Sober" she was celebrating her huge accomplishment. I never knew a Krissy that wasn't sober but I am so proud of her.....thankful for 2nd chances because of our heavenly father. Many of our regulars share the same journey with Krissy.....addiction controlled them and sobriety has set them free....Happy Beautiful Friday yall..... yesterday the DPS officer was sitting at table 11 waiting for his breakfast, I was watching him, my heart wondering exactly what the last 24 hours had been for him. I scan the grill and I see Krissy talking with some of our precious regulars very much in deep conversation.... and then two things happened almost simultaneously.....The officer received his food and before picking up his fork he folded his hands and bowed his head and proceeded to pray, gosh I wanted to know his prayer...was it for the family of the slain officer or was it simply for the food placed infront of him I come back from daydreaming with Krissy and my Taylor standing infront of me desperate for my attention...."Look at what ___________ gave me!!" I look down at her outstretched hand and laying in the middle of her palm was a coin....A 1 year sobriety coin, our regulars 1 year sobriety coin..... My heart was full and I had experienced something rare that I had not seen in a while, not because amazing things had not been happening, it was because my eyes were not open to it....I had become to busy with other issues to notice......I am a walking poster of things not to do but I am also a walking poster of experiencing Gods grace & love.
I said to y'all 14 days ago this is what I do...I write & over the last 2 weeks I have been virtually silent with my words.... I was given a gift today that I will remember and cherish the rest of my life, my conversation with my daddy. He was released yesterday and was able to go home, 16 days after his surgery. The last few weeks have been extremely tough , honestly I felt my joy was gone and I was holding my breath. My words of fear, sadness & love were said to him with tears streaming down my cheeks. His tears matching mind he claimed it was all our Heavenly Father that he is here. He wanted me to tell all of you, "Thank y'all for your prayers " he felt them and our Heavenly Father heard them.... Yes a miracle has happened. Hundreds of y'all have come into the grill & asked about him and I thank you for your loving concern, kind words & prayers. Over the last few seeks I have written down so many journeys that amazing people have shared with me & I finally feel strong enough and have peace to share them with y'all over the next days & weeks. The thought of my hero healing and gaining strength daily is a feeling I honestly have no words for. Have a beautiful blessed Saturday y'all.... My heart is full.... — with Odis Sutterfield.
Good Morning!! .....Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass...It is about learning to dance in the rain.
Good morning, your comments and prayers are felt to the bottom of my soul.....thank y'all.,... My daddy surgery(knee replacement ) was Thursday and he never really regained clarity. Yesterday a sequence of seizures then MRI , scans and brain scan showed stroke, still no responding to communication and other prob. They put him in ICU waiting on the results to see damage done by stroke...... When I arrived last night my sister greeted me and said it is a blessing his update has changed ..... In the last hour he is talking and alert and most of the time he makes sense... That is prayer y'all .... The prayers that The Lord was receiving from all of y'all!! I'm not sure what this day will hold but yesterday ended with a lot of hope..as I said goodnight to him .."I love you daddy"... He won't open his eyes , but his words "I luv you too my precious daughter" are the words he says all the time and I thought what a gift & blessing, I was able to hear that again. Thank you all for your support, words and prayers. Please continue.
As I have said many times.... this is what I do I write.. I have 4 Loves of my life... Shelby, Taylor and B. the first love of my life stole my heart 43 years ago, my daddy. Today as I was about to celebrate and amazing record day at the grill, Shelby was receiving a phone call from Dallas, my daddy is having complication from a routine surgery that was performed yesterday. As Shelby took me upstairs to tell me, my heart stop. We have now been on the road 3 hours with updates coming in. I ask for prayers for my precious daddy, he is my hero and he is the one that has shown me how great my heavenly fathers love is for me because he loves me so great. Prayers for my family & strength for whatever is to come.
Good Morning!! I honestly can not believe the CIG is celebrating 6 yrs. This date is actually not the grand opening date, it is the date that the CIG was purchased & named. The first time of what would be many of stepping out on absolute blind FAITH.... 4 weeks later the doors would open and my life would be changed by 100s of amazing people journeys. This is what this place is all about... Journeys. One of my precious regulars said a few minutes ago...Happy Birthday to the CIG Teresa , I can not believe it has been 6 years, "" I can't either but I have realized , the first 5 years were truly spent in an easy bake oven & the last 9 months, the hardest I have ever endured. " as I recall my words now I realize yes hard & full of problems and change but actually the 3 most important things have not changed..... Our heavenly fathers amazing blessings, the amazing hope that is here everyday & the stories that people share that I then have the great opportunity to share. You see it is not me making a difference in so many people's life ... It is y'all sharing your stories with me that is making a difference. Happy beautiful Wednesday & Happy 6th Birthday to the Cast Iron Grill. I feel like a mom that is in the battle grounds of raising a child that I do not realize what it has become and what it will be. Thank y'all for being on this amazing journey..... A journey that is so full I am blessed beyond what words can express & a beautiful promise of Hope from my Heavenly Father. Good Morning!! One of my favorite phrases growing up...."And now for the rest of the story!" of course many of us know that is from Paul Harvey, my dad would always turn up the radio and we would listen intently. A few weeks ago I wrote of an aging soldier that brought me a license plate with a purple heart displayed on it. I did not know, at the time, this soldiers name or his story, I was just honored that he gave it to me.....well now for the rest of His story. Yesterday I was coming from the kitchen, the CIG full of laughter and loudness. I was scanning the dining room to make sure everyone was good, needless to say I was preoccupied, as I made my way down the aisle there is a gentlman walking towards me. I do not instantly recognize him...the closer I get I see tears brimming around his eyes.... " I just wanted to say thank you, you have no idea how special it was to walk in and see that displayed!"..he pointed to the cherished plate hanging on the wall & my heart melted. My tears joined his and we talked. He received his purple heart in Vietnam......he points to his left side where an arm should be and says.."I lost my arm during that time, I came back to the states injured & sense then my life has been to work with soldiers that are injured mentally and physicall & actually I just retired. Happy Beautiful Friday yall..... this precious, brave man, Danny is his name, took a tragic time in his life and has used it to make a difference in so many others life. What an amazing honor it was to visit and learn the "rest of his story"........ We are honoring our Heavenly Father when we allow the bumps and turmoil on our life to make a difference in others. His love heals all wounds!
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AuthorI opened the Cast Iron Grill in October 2007. Lots of changes have happened in the last 5 1/2 years. The CIG started with 55 seats in an office building located at 18th and K. After five years, we were bursting at the seams with now 167 seats, and 24 wonderful co-workers working on top of eachother to make it happen. 2012 the Lord chose a different journey for the CIG. We relocated the CIG and opened our doors on January 2nd, 2013, just four blocks away from the old location! It has changed my world completely! All of these stories are the happenings of the people and the joy and celebration that make the CIG what it is. Archives
May 2014
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