Happy Easter morning! Jesus Christ is risen, indeed! I hope allour community was at the Presbyterian church this morning at 7 a.m.to celebrate the most important day of all the year.

It was my privilege to attend the beautiful wedding of DanielHaire and Kristen Newell at Monmouth antebellum home. The outdoorceremony brought many friends and neighbors to Natchez to wish thisprecious couple a long life of happiness. The music, decorationsand the ceremony itself was a true worship experience for me.Congratulations, Daniel and Kristen Haire.

My condolences to the Dorothy Ivey Carpenter family and theMarty Beeson family who are grieving the death of their loved ones.Dorothy Carpenter was a neighbor and friend who taught at UnionChurch and Mississippi College. Our prayers are with bothfamilies.

Susan Gibson, my daughter, came last weekend and we enjoyed timespent on the farm where she grew up. A special blessing was a tripup to the top of the hill where we often packed peanut buttercrackers and read Dr. Seuss. It is also a place where I went manytimes to pray when life became difficult. We rode the back roadsand memories became real as we laughed, talked and cried a little.On Sunday, Becky, Casey, Cherron, Jadon, Hayley and Riley came forlunch and we rehearsed more memories and ate a great lunch preparedby Susan and Hayley. Yes, I am truly blessed.

Introducing Riley to Jessica and Hayden Whitehead’s new baby boyat church was fun to watch, as well as his reaction to DakotaRushing. Babies are such fun, and my Riley is no exception. Makingthe day complete were calls from Cpl. Logan Carr, who is intraining in Florida, and Claire Pitt in Nashville. Claire and I areplanning the next stage of remodeling – a paint job this summer.All our grands have special gifts and I stand in awe of my Creatorwho has gifted every person, little and big.

I also had a wonderful visit from my brother-in-law, CornieHudson and wife, Vernie. They brought me delicious oranges andgrapefruit for Texas where they have been on a mission trip.

Daniel 6:1-23 spoke to us from the guidance of the Holy Spiritand our pastor about “Choices of Life.” In our age we areexperiencing trying and unusual times; there is a rebellion fromwithin. However, Daniel made the choice to pray unashamedly andrisked the lion’s den in order to show respect to the Almighty God.A happy ending to the story follows. I encourage you to read aboutwhat happened next. May we become a people who serve a livingChrist.

As we view the empty tomb, may we remember: “You can kiss yourfamily and friends good-bye and put miles between you, but at thesame time you carry them in your heart, your mind, your stomachbecause you do not just live in a world, but a world lives in you.”Frederick Bulchner.

If you have any Union Church area news to report, contact ErleneHudson at 601-786-3079 or e-mail ehudsonb@aol.com.