We Met This Guy…And He Was Good

   Mayre and I were out the other day, over in Brunswick, at a car dealership, looking around at the used cars. There was a reason.

   Our present car had about 140,000 miles on it, and, although it had been pretty good to us, it was beginning to give signals that there were problems down the road. A balky sensor would beep at us on occasion that the oil pressure was low, and we had better stop immediately to shut it off.

   Well, after we obeyed the command, we would start it again, and it would proceed to run well for another few months. We had it checked and it was determined that the sensor for that function was at fault, and not the engine, so we let it go and put up with the occasional warning light and sound.

   But there was the bumping sound in the rear end and that temperature gauge that would shoot up and then settle down into normal. Little things perhaps, but possibly the sign of future problems that my bank account did not really want to deal with.

   So, here we were, getting out of our car at the dealership, being met by a salesman, not just any salesperson, but a very young one, a teenager really, one that looked like he should be on the bus to high school. "I've got grandchildren older than this, so how could he tell me about cars and steer me to the right one for us?"

   Not only did he know his automobiles, but as we rode around with him and talked, we found he had a story. a remarkable one from our viewpoint, and one that we grew to appreciate.

   You see, he was the oldest of 4, the son of parents who were a little dysfunctional to say the least. One of them was in prison, the other not able to care for them, and these kids had been shuttled around southeast Georgia for a few years.

   This boy that we were talking with had been raised in a Georgia Baptist Children's Home, had lived in at least 4 counties, gone to schools all over, and was being helped by a grandmother. He was also the man of the house, trying to help with the raising of his 3 younger siblings while earning enough to help the family survive.

   How in the world did he get a job selling cars at this auto dealership at his age? In speaking with his manager, I found that he had so impressed him with his story and work ethic, as evident in what he had been able to do over the past few years, that he gave him a chance to succeed there.

   He had only been at this job for a few months, but his attitude and knowledge impressed us.

   There are so many stories out there of kids in trouble with the law, of teens addicted to all kinds of stuff, that this young man was a breath of fresh air.

   Thanks Preston, for giving us faith in a younger generation, who, in the midst of trials, with God's help, can be on the path to a successful and productive life. Your story of faith and perseverance is amazing, and we are privileged to know you.

   And we like the car, too.

One Very Important Question..

   I have enjoyed reading the comments people left me after the post on finishing the courthouse tour and the pictures that accompanied that venture. Read it here if you have not:

http://walkinganewpath-pilgrim.blogspot.com/2015/01/four-years-five-months-five-daysmore-or.html

   But there was one troubling question that kept popping up in those words of encouragement:

   What are you going to do with all of those pictures and stories?

   I've got basically two sets of pictures in this 160 item photo file:

   Pictures of Courthouses that are still in use today. Those are active buildings, still serving as the official county seat of their county. Like this one in Early County.

   Then I have old buildings, such as this one in Baker County, that once served as the courthouse but now has been replaced by a newer structure. In most cases the buildings are used by another entity of that county or by a historical society.

   This one in Baker presently houses the Library.

   The other question that kept coming up was, "why don't you publish something on this?"

   That gets me to thinking of the 5 "W" Questions we were taught to ask in school.

   Who, What, When, Where and Why

   WHAT: What kind of book? What pictures and stories to use? All or a selected portion?

   WHO:   Who would want it? Who would it be targeted toward?

   WHEN: Do it now?

   WHERE: What are the logistics in getting a project like this under way and finished?

   And, it seems to me, the most important question starts with WHY: Why do it anyway? Will it do any good for anyone? Is it just an ego trip for the author?

   So, just a lot of questions, practical, logistical and motivational, but the most pressing one is the one hardest to answer: WHY?

 

 

Wherever We Are In Life...

   I read these words in Psalm 37 today:

"Commit your future to the Lord!
Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf.
6 He will vindicate you in broad daylight,
and publicly defend your just cause.
7 Wait patiently for the Lord!
Wait confidently for him!"

   I know of a recent college graduate looking for a job in the "big city". These are words that you can live by, especially when you just don't know.

   I know of a family that is waiting for one that is a mother, grandmother or great grandmother to them to pass out of this life to the next. They are all in limbo, waiting and wondering.

   The verses beg the question:

   WHY

   Why should I commit the future to God?

   Why should I wait patiently and confidently for Him?

   Because He Cares

Woody Fails To Show...

   Yesterday, on my early morning walk, I spotted a white form across the pond, walking slowly in the water along the bank. Every once in a while, he, or she, would stop and lower his beak down into the water and wait for a few seconds before moving on.

   I thought from the size that it was a wood stork, as I had seen a couple of them in that area over the past few days.

   But it was pretty dark. I could barely see the big bird in the shadows. How in the world could he see anything in that murky water? It did not appear to be a profitable venture in that before-dawn light.

   So I went back home and Googled him, finding out that wood storks, a lot of the time, just put their open beaks down into the water and wait for small fish to swim by and stir the water. Then they snap them shut and, breakfast.

   But Woody was not evident this morning. I had carried my camera and was ready to catch him in the act. What had happened?

   It was pretty early, about the same time I had been out yesterday.

   The only things on the water were reflections.

   Maybe he had noticed the sign.

   Perhaps he was hiding out in the marsh fog, shyly waiting for me to leave.

   Regardless, he was a no-show, and I had to use a stock picture from the Internet to chronicle the story.

   And I learned something about a big bird's fishing occupation.

   God has made some interesting characters, and some of them live around here.

Four Years, Five Months, Five Days..More or Less

   August 12, 2010, my wife and I took a short trip down I-95 to Kingsland, the county seat of Camden County, Georgia to take a picture of the courthouse.

   That began a multi-year odyssey to take photographs of all 159 county courthouses in the state. What began when Mayre read a story in the paper of a man who roamed the United States looking at old buildings and chronicling them on film, turned into a many mile quest to locate and picture these structures in our state.

   January 17, 2015 found us in the middle of downtown Atlanta. I guess this is fitting since we were so close to the Georgia State Capital building. We had come full circle, from a small town in southeast Georgia to the largest city of the largest county in our state; from one of the smaller courthouses to the largest.

   But we had stood in front of, and walked around 160 courthouses, taking pictures, looking at monuments, reading inscriptions, going inside, talking to people and soaking up the atmosphere to all these places.

   A quick note on the 160 figure since there are only 159 counties:

   There were two counties that ceased to exist when they both merged into Fulton County. On our last trip, two days before we stood before our last remaining courthouse, we passed through the town of Fairburn and found the 1871 building that had served Campbell County until it merged with Fulton in 1932.

   If there was a courthouse in Alpharetta, the county seat of the other merging county, Milton County, I have not been able to determine or locate. Perhaps there is another hidden gem, but for now 160 is the number.

   It has been a journey, but a fun one, and it has been a mutual effort. Sure, I have taken all the pictures, but Mayre has been with me to every one; keeping a lookout for the right places, reading maps, passing me lunch as we drove, and most of all, encouraging me to finish the project when it seemed to drag on and on. We have had a lot of fun, and it was always together. For that I am thankful.

   We have photographed the Hancock County courthouse in Sparta, just months before it burned.

   We have visited the Schley County courthouse in Ellaville, finding out how to pronounce the name and getting tour from a gracious lady who just happened to be the Probate Judge.

   And we have been in old buildings, once courthouses, but now museums or home to various Historical Societies, such as the one in Union County in Blairsville.

   Many buildings, many stories and many memories…

   And I'm sure several of these will find their way into this blog one day.

   We thank God for this opportunity, and only have one question:

   What next?

Car Trouble or Not?

   As we ate breakfast last Thursday morning, in preparation for a 3 day adventure north, I said the obligatory prayer for travelers, "Keep us safe and be with us as we go."

   "Ok, that should put us in good shape, we've covered all the bases."

   As we traveled north toward our first stop, the cloudy skies began to mist and drip. The closer we got to the first place, it came harder. We were out to get some more courthouses, and taking pictures in the rain is not my favorite. But the car was running well, and maybe the rain would slack off.

  Well, we got 5 courthouses that day and were on the way to Marietta to check into the motel when I noticed the engine temperature was beginning to edge up. I had replaced the water pump a year or so ago and recognized the signals. I kept a close eye on the gauge, and it retreated to the normal position, only to jump up again. What will I do now and more importantly, what will I do in the morning as we were headed up into the North Georgia mountains to get 4 more counties?

   I honestly did not know what I was going to do. We needed to make this trip since we were up here, so I looked at my options:

   1. Take a chance and leave in the morning on schedule and watch the gauge…

   2. Look for a repair place in a strange town, and see if I had a problem…

   3. Pray…

   I had not even told my wife about the errant gauge as it had settled back into normal before we got to the motel.

   But did I ever pray. I wanted to get on our way. We had photographed 6 courthouses our first day out, but still had 9 more to go.

   First of all I prayed for wisdom as to what to do. I did this several times, in fact it was all I could think about that evening.

   Deciding that I would see what it looked like in the morning, I went to sleep praying for me, for the car, and the next day.

   Then came the morning. Loading the car I continue to question myself and pray for that 2007 car with 135,000 miles on it.

   It started fine, and the gauge edged up to the normal spot and stayed there. OK so far, and as we pulled out and began the trip north, I prayed for help.

   I must have looked at that temperature 50 times in the first 5 miles, and it just stood there, like it was stuck in normal. I also must have said "Thank You" that many times, every time I got through glancing at it.

   The weather was beautiful, the road was 4 lanes, the traffic was light, it was a great day. My reaction: drive, glance, say thanks, and do it again in a minute or two. That way all the way to Blue Ridge, GA, 40 miles north of last night's stop.

   But then we had more mountains, some of it traveled on 2 lane roads. So it was Blairsville, Hiawassie, and Clayton, and it was still normal and "thanks".

   Long story short, we made 7 courthouses that day, had a great day, and pulled into the motel in Commerce with a normal temperature. I don't know the problem, but both Friday and Saturday were filled with normal and my wife was happy.  I was tired.

   My stock phrase "It will all work out" still sounded good, but I realized that Thursday night and all up into the day on Friday, I had not lived up to that "cool" saying. I was worried, and I prayed, a lot.

   I think I will spend more time praying, before I get into that kind of spot again. Maybe I can say with confidence that God is in control and not worry so much about it.

   It did get my attention!

   I try to leave my car out of courthouse photographs, but here it is in front of the old 1825 building in Fayetteville, GA, county seat of Fayette County. Sitting in the front seat is a woman who is not worried, mainly because she does not know….

   But God and I did...

Why Fritter Anyway?

   What is wasting time?

   When I talked about "frittern", I got to thinking about the things that I do that take my time. I like to read, work puzzles, work on photography, play tennis and golf, ride my bike in good weather, and watch some TV. I am even liking cooking and working in the kitchen these days.

   Are any or all of these to be considered wasting time? What is the definition of wasting time anyway?

   Is putting together jigsaw puzzles one of those "frittern" things?

   Now my wife gave me a new puzzle, pictured above, 1,000 pieces, showing a lot of different book covers. It has many pieces, and also a lot of ways to use the words to match up with those pictures used for the cover art. It was fun, but also time consuming.

   My wife knows that I like puzzles. Now, it would not be nice of me to just put that box back into the closet and forget to put it together, would it? A gift not used shows non appreciation and could hurt the giver's feelings. I would not want that for sure.

   But is there a reason why I do all these things? Is it just because I need something to fill the days, or something to keep my mind occupied?

   I read this in Psalm 119 this morning:

"If only I were predisposed
to keep your statutes!
6 Then I would not be ashamed,
if I were focused on all your commands.
7 I will give you sincere thanks,
when I learn your just regulations.
8 I will keep your statutes.
Do not completely abandon me!"

   The psalmist bemoans his incomplete dedication to God's Law and closes with the request, "Do not completely abandon me". It sounds as if he is saying, "Look, I'm trying, God, don't give up on me", which is the way I feel sometimes.

   There is also the sense that if somehow I can keep my mind and body active, I will not atrophy into a man that is completely worthless to God or to someone else.

   So, what may look like "frittern" to you may be my attempt to hang on to a sense of worth and be ready when there are things God calls me to do in this stage of my life.

   Please don't judge my use of time too harshly…it may just be my mental and physical exercise routine.