Behold, A Visitor Cometh...

   The phone rings in the condo. A Voice on the other end says "Hey Mom and Dad, I think I'll come down for a visit this coming weekend. Is that OK with you?

   So he came on Sunday, stayed Monday and left Tuesday up in the morning.

   Monday was the only full day that we had, so we made the most of our opportunity.

   We decided to drive up the road to Darien. After all, Dwayne had not had the thrill of being in that little town a few miles north of our home.

   So, what was the excitement offered by this town?

   Places to eat..

   Fried Shrimp for lunch..

   Shrimp boats waiting to launch out again to refill the supply for tomorrow's lunch and dinner..

   Home to take a nap..

   Then out to the beach at sunset to put a cap on a good day..

   It is always great to have family in town, where you can entertain them in South Georgia style.

   Come Again

   Anytime

Petals on the Floor

   Flower arrangements, brought by a friend, arranged in a vase with water and food, are a joy to behold. They bloom and brighten up a room with their colors.

   But, alas, they begin to lose their once bright, but now faded, colored petals.

   Petals fall to the floor, and soon the arrangement has to be thrown out.

   That is the way with the plans for our lives also. They work for a time, they bloom, and then time marches on, and they end up being much different.

   A person gets his house all in order for what he wants to do, even feels like it is a good thing to spend his time on, and then...

   His hours are taken up with other things. There is not time to think and write.

   Not that it is all bad, just not the planned for outcome, but necessity does call and needs to be answered.

   So, this is not a call for "Oh, poor me", no it is an explanation of the dearth of posts on this blog, and a harbinger for the future of writing for awhile.

   My postings will probably continue to be spasmodic, but don't give up on me.

   There are photos to be posted, kids to talk about, new places to write up, Bible verses to relate to, and all sorts of other ideas to fill a page or two now and then.

   Just when is the question...

   From Ecclesiastes 3:

   "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:"

  

When Remembering, Don't Forget...

   As I picked up the paper off the mat by the front door this morning there was this headline right on the front page:

   Woman Killed By Palm Tree Remembered

   A 67 year old lady, walking her dog down by the Village on St. Simons, was killed by a falling palm tree during a wind storm last weekend.

   The situation was tragic, but the word that caught my attention was the one word, Remembered.

   When we age sometimes Remembering is hard.

   That is why I like taking pictures. Pictures are a spur to Remembering and are a point of reference for our times.

   The psalmist wrote in Psalm 78:

   "They forgot his works"

   The Israelites forgot.

   Sure, they did not forget everything, but they tended to forget quickly what God Himself had done for them. They concentrated on the things they did not like right there at that particular moment.

   What do I tend to remember when things get a little rough?

   Do I zero in on my problems of the moment?

   Or do I couch my current situation in the light of all that God has done and continues to do for me each and every day? Do the hard things supercede the accumulation of blessings that span backward from this day all the way back to the Cross and beyond?

   Let my remembering be not focused on me but on Him.

  

Come on Maisie, Do Right...

   How can fiction books, and their characters, affect your moods? Books are read for pleasure aren't they, a way to pass some time, or to entertain?

   I found myself a little down the other day, and realized it was because of some choices the heroine in the current series I was reading aloud to my wife had made that I considered less than the best morally.

   Let me digress a minute:

   For a few months now, Mayre and I have been going through the Maisie Dobbs novels in our reading. We have finished the first 8 books, are currently reading no. 9, and have 1 more to bring the series up to ones published so far.

   These novels have been fun to read so far, with the heroine, Maisie, solving crimes and living life in England in the aftermath of World War I. The exploits of this "30 something" young woman have been entertaining for us, as we watched her grow in her work and life.

   Then in Book 8, she fell into a moral situation that, in my opinion, she did not handle properly. The author did not dwell on this episode, but it was clear that Maisie had crossed a line of moral behavior, and although it seemed inconsequential to the main story, it had bothered me, and, like she was a real person, it had disappointed me.

   Facing a moral choice, Maisie, had opted for the world's way, and, all of a sudden, I wasn't sure I wanted to read more.

   This was not a "Christian" book per se, but this young woman had been doing all the "right" things, then her private life took a turn.

   But I kept reading on into Book 9, and Maisie is having some second thoughts. I'm not sure how she will handle what she has got herself into, but I hope she realizes the morality of her situation and the influence that she has with others in her story.

   Now, she is not a real person even though her life is a symbol of others of her generation, so should a reader get so caught up in a life that he is disappointed with a novelist's creation? Is that becoming too much involved in what is fiction anyway?

   Maybe, but when I find a character in a story that I can cheer along through 7 books, I want her to continue to the end.

   Come on Maisie, get with the program...

Necessity and Choice...

   Now a lot of folks think that retirement is just sitting in the rocking chair, down by the pier, and watching the world go by, slowly. But sometimes there is more.

 

   There are new lessons to be learned, new skills to be honed. Some by choice and some by necessity, and sometimes the necessity can become a welcome choice.

   When the first thing you think of when awaking in the morning is..

   "What in the world will I have for supper?"

   And the one who has cooked all your meals for the past 50 and more years cannot do it anymore, the necessity kicks in big time.

   So what have I learned in these past few months?

   Sure I have made friends in the frozen section of the grocery store, and I seek the easy recipes rather than anything complex, but there are two things that stand out:

   1. Use a big dish and an ample amount of food that will last for much more than one meal.

   2. Use a simple, easy to understand recipe.

   So one of my favorites is my wife's mac and cheese in a 9x13 dish.

   Make it on a Tuesday and finish it on a Sunday.

   Doesn't get much better than that.

   It is a necessity and a choice

No Matter How Many Times

   One of my favorite places to go here on the Island is Epworth, the Methodist Retreat Center on the western side toward the mainland.

   I've seen a lot of sunsets since we moved here, but there is one thing you can say for sure..

   They are never the same.

   The other night we went over there for a short visit with nature, but ended up for an hour and a half, just watching the changing hues and colors.

   Here are some of the moments I got on the camera.

   The Glory and Majesty of God

58 Going on ....

Happy Anniversary to My Charming Bride

Thanks For All You Have Done For Me

I Love You

A Headline and A Great Memory...

   On the front of the Brunswick News yesterday, a headline with a picture and story..

   "A Georgia Journey"

   (with the additional caption over a picture.."Locals prepare for Bicycle Ride Across Ga.")

   Now I have never ridden in that particular event, but this year their ride will go from Atlanta to Savannah, and that led me to an old memory.

   One fine day, way back in the 90s, my daughter brought home a little red book...

   A book that symbolized two of my loves:

      Cycling

      History

   450 miles from our home right outside Chattanooga to the Atlantic Ocean on Tybee Island, just east of Savannah, GA.

   Dwayne was working in CA at the time and wanted to ride.

   Donna was in school in Athens, GA and wanted to ride.

   Doug was in school in Atlanta, GA and wanted to ride.

   As did their dad..

   I managed to get four tee shirts alike and we became the Powerade Cycling Team.

    Beginning in Apison, TN and cycling through such places as Tunnel Hill, Resaca, Atlanta, Social Circle, Millegeville, Sandersville, Statesboro, Savannah, and ending with our front wheels in the Atlantic on Tybee.

   We were diligent in stopping and reading the historical markers about Civil War events for the first day or so, then became more obsessed with making time. The leader of the 4 person pack at the particular moment when a marker came into view, would point to it as we all sped by, thereby fulfilling the History requirement. It took too much time to read them all anyway..

   Doug broke down right near the house on the first afternoon, and our support vehicle (Mayre in our car with the bike rack and food) took him back to a bike shop in Chattanooga to get it repaired, and all he missed was the first few miles. Other than that mishap, we had very little trouble. One flat as I remember.

   It was a great family time. Riding all day, stopping every ten miles or so when the riders would spot the support vehicle stopped beside the road with food and drinks all set out, staying in motels with good showers every night, and speeding (?) through middle Georgia together.

   It does not get much better than that.

   We have ridden together since that one long ride, but never all together. Whoever could, did, but our first big one was the standard.

   A Memory not to be forgotten and an accomplishment not to be sneezed at.

   And a lot of stories for years afterward.