Happy Birthday Frankie (fhmmany2)

[Sasha]

Happy Birthday Frankie, to a very special person.  you are such a kind,loving and giving person. I hope some day i have the pleasure of meeting you. I hope you get pampered today you so deserve it.




love
Sasha

[HavinaClayAffair]

Frankie,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

You deserve a very blessed day full of love and laughter with your family and friends!!

You have experienced a deep loss in your life the past few months and yet chose to still be one the OCD members to be there for others. You are fantastic!

I appreciate your magazine information, your news contributions and your solid, sound advice, friendship and opinions. You are one of the good ones Frankie, don't ever let anyone tell you any different!

It is good to "know" you!

Happy Birthday!

Lora

[fhmmany2]

Thank all of you so much for your wonderful birthday greetings, and most of all, for your friendship. 

I just received an email from a another friend - I am going to try to post it - hope it comes through - especially the pictures!  If the pictures do not come through, at least the words will - and  I plan to try to live every one of them!

The other day a young person asked me how I felt about being old.  I was taken aback, for I do not think of myself as old.  Upon seeing my reaction, she was immediately embarrassed, but I explained that it was an interesting question, and I would ponder it and let her know.

Old Age, I decided, is a gift.
 
I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be.  Oh, not my body!   I sometime despair over my body, the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt.   And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror (who looks like my mother!), but I don't agonize over those things for long.


I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly.  As I've aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself.  I've become my own friend.  I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio.  I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.  I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.     
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 am and sleep until noon?     

I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 50's & 60's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and  will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.


They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful.  But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten.  And I  eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been broken.   How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when a beloved pet gets hit by a car?  But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion.  A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turn gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face.  So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.   

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think.  I don't  question myself anymore.  I've even earned the right to be wrong.



So, to answer your question, I like being old.   It has set me free.   I like the person I have become.  I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be.   And I shall eat dessert every single day.     
Author Unknown

O.K. - the pictures did not transfer, but here is my favorite one! 

[Pamela]

Happy Birthday Frankie!!

Best wishes to my fellow Gemini!  I love that list, and especially the sentiment -- and I totally agree!  Thank you for everything you bring to the site Frankie, most of all, yourself.  I hope your birthday is as special as you are.

Love
Pamela

[Spikee]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRANKIE!

I hope that you are having a wonderful day today.  You are one of the nicest people I know.   
I am so happy that we have had a chance to meet you a couple of times, (and hoping for more times).
We are very lucky to have you here at Claymaniacs.

[claydevotee]

Dear Frankie,

Happy, Happy Birthday to a dear lady with an obvious zest for life, seemingly boundless energy and a huge heart of gold!  I can't begin to thank you for all of the cards, PM's and CD's you sent to me during my dark days of chemo and radiation this past winter.   

I hope you continue to enjoy good health, wonderful family and friends and many more opportunities to reach out to all of us.  You are the heart and soul of Claymaniacs, and we are better for knowing you!!! 

Love,
Thea

[wisconsinmaniac]

 

FRANKIE ! 

May all of your birthday wishes come true and may your life be filled with love and laughter!

Frankie, thank you for bringing us the ANN on many mornings!

You are such an interesting and thoughtful Claymaniac!    I would love to meet you!

Birthday Hugs, 

Barbara

[KSChristian4Clay]

Happy Birthday Frankie! Can't wait to see you again shortly. Notice I didn't say soon.  

[Marilyn]

 

 
 

FRANKIE- YOU ARE A VERY SPECIAL PERSON. I WAS HONORED TO MEET YOU AT SEVERAL CLAY GET TOGETHERS, AND HOPE TO SEE YOU AGAIN SOON!

YOU ARE THE BEST PERSON FOR GATHERING CLAY INFORMATION- I SO ENJOY READING YOUR POSTS ON THE ANN

YOU ARE KIND AND GIVING AND WE APPRECIATE ALL THAT YOU DO!!

HOPE YOU HAVE A VERY SPECIAL DAY- 

[PHILLYLUVSCLAY]

Happy Happy Birthday Frankie! 

May all your birthday wishes come true through out the year!

You are an excellent reporter for the Aiken News Network and Big part why Claymaniacs is a special site!

Happy Birthday!

Love Ya

Philly

[geraldine]

HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRANKIE!

            

IT'S BEEN SUCH A PLEASURE GETTING TO KNOW YOU AND SO MUCH FUN. I HOPE YOUR DAY WAS AS SPECIAL AS YOU ARE!
             

[Claygirl]

Happy Belated Birthday Frankie! I am so late posting this, I can't seem to remember to check this part of the board on time!  I do hope you had a wonderful, special birthday! Thank you for all the work you do to help make this site such a special place. ~Kelly~
 

[Jan]

DEAR, DEAR FRANKIE

OF ALL THE PEOPLE ON THIS FORUM I SURE SHOULD NOT HAVE FORGOTTEN YOUR BIRTHDAY. SHAME ON ME.

YOU ARE SUCH A WONDERFUL PERSON AND I WISH YOU A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR.

AND PRAYERS FOR YOUR MOM RIGHT NOW, AND WE MISS YOU A LOT.

LOVE
JEANNE AKA JAN