Theresa M. Hedrick:  

Life After high school, (and a few other jobs here and there), I worked as a financial secretary while studying interior design. In no particular order, (because all intertwined), I studied and worked in the design field, computer field, medical field and social service/welfare field as a shelter coordinator and counselor for a women's and children's center and counselor for a county children's receiving home. I owned a design business in the late 1970's to the early 1980's. I called out to Jesus one night in 1971 and He dealt with me until I gave Him my old life in 1972... HE then gave me a new life in return. I was a street evangelist for over 13 years, and a missionary and assistant Pastor in Mexico for 6 years. I came to North Carolina in the early 1990's to care for my ailing mother and remarried a year later after one of my aunt's played match maker. My husband is in law enforcement and I am a full time homemaker. As far as the classmates question about other pets goes, there are or had been all the other animals listed around us at any given time except for ferrets, (that I know of). Not that we had all those things as pets, but some yes, fish... love the little creatures but heart broken when they died so I finally quit buying them... goats, our neighbor raised them for awhile... that was really great... we could always get rid of our cuttings... horses, my son and I wanted a horse, but hmmm, didn't happen, could have, but didn't... but our neighbor now raises minature one's, so they are right out at our property line and we feed them apples and carrots occaisionally. Birds, at one time I wanted a parrot, but since they live so long, I decided not to purchase one because if we all went to be with the Lord, I didn't know who I would pick to watch over the bird. So now we just settle for all the wild birds, cardinales, blue birds, and jays, finches of all colors, woodpeckers, hummingbirds, and so many more that I would probably bore you with all their names. Pigs... well, around these parts, there used to be a lot of pig farms... but thank the Lord that they have moved out... don't get me wrong... I like the little critters, but whew, what a smell... gross! (Talking about the farms). Actually, the goats were getting pretty smelly there for awhile... then came the sheep, or was it the sheep, then the goats... well, at any rate, our neighbor's critters keep us entertained as do our own pets. I love to watch the colts chasing each other when they find out that they can run. So cute. We have snakes crawling around now and then... spiders, lizards, turtles, frogs... we had a really clever little frog that used to come and eat the zapped bugs in the evening for two years. There are rabbits running around wild... opposums as well, they ate all our figs one season while I was in California. Rodents, we don't have a problem with them as we once had... four cats now and previously others, they didn't stand a chance... even our dog liked to go after them. There are a lot of other wild critters around here as well, but hopefully no bears, as of yet. Chicken's, no, we don't have any but one of our neighbors does... and what about cows... no, none of them as well... but yes, we have some neighbor's who have them. I saw a deer running across our lawn one day as we approached our home. I thought that was unusual since I haven't seen any that close to home before. (Five miles down the road yes, not unusual). I initially came to classmates looking for my step-brother because our old friend S.F. was looking for him. So funny... I found him living only ten miles from me after I started searching for him. (We both came to NC because of our ailing mother's, and here we are... only ten miles away from each other.) Ok now... I know that the critter stuff above is just a lot of rambling but I hope that you will feel at ease as I talk to you about the most important fact and decision in all our lives... yes, one day, or night, we will each breathe not one more breath, and we will pass onto another place, spiritually. You may or may not believe in the after life, or hereafter... but whether you do or not... please, don't take a chance with eternity and just forget or slough,(sluff), (brush), off these words that I'm about to share with you. First of all... Jesus does exist... He is the Son of God... and they LOVE YOU so very, very much!...Expand for more