My Take
DiVoran Lites
My grandfather was a “guard” at The Colorado State Pentientiary when I was born. He asked if the shop could make this baby book for me. I wonder about the man who made it there in prison. How did he feel? Was he a family man? How did he come to be a fine worker of metal. I don’t think about his crime. It is enough that he showed that kind of consideration for a new-born three-quarters of a century ago.
I wonder if anyone else has a similar keepsake.
From the Heart
Louise Gibson
We suffer when we are not in control.
It affects our very being.
“Lord, I really wanted a sunny day,
but fog is all I am seeing”
We are prone to create our own little world.
The old “normal” has to fall apart.
“We can’t go forward, Lord,
unless we have a change of heart.”
Accept the present moment.
Be patient, the red light will change.
God uses those “waiting moments”-
Our circumstances He will arrange.
Religion is one of the safest places
to hide from God.
Ego wants to be in control.
Forget about rituals and man made rules.
Make communing with God your goal.
How comforting to know
God doesn’t love you because you are good,
God loves you because God is good.
That’s why I love Him so.
On the Porch
Onisha Ellis
It’s Thursday again and I really( I have been editing so I MUST take out that adverb) don’t have much to write about. I had some thoughts this morning, but dealing with insurance company issues stripped my brain. So when my friend called and suggested going to get some pie, I went.
We nibbled our pie, sipped coffee and talked about all kinds of things from funny to serious. It was a blessed time and I am so glad we made the time for each other.
This morning I read the blog of my cyber friend, Lia. She loves the savior, as we do and is a wonderful author as well. She wrote about her lack of progress on her next novel. The final paragraph in her blog, touched me. She gave me permission to share it here.
When life gets in the way, and we take time to think about what it means, we become deeper, richer human beings. That will pour into our writing. If we give ourselves to others in service with compassion, that will show up in the pages of our blogs, books, poetry or journals. We cannot improve the world around us without improving ourselves, and we cannot improve ourselves without improving our message.
One doesn’t have to be an author to feel frustrated when we don’t accomplish our “to do” list. We may not be writing books, poetry or blogs, but we are writing the story of Christ in our lives. Mike and I have started Tai-Chi with a You Tube instructor. There is a move, that finishes with one pushing their arms forward and releasing their spirit to mingle with other people’s spirits. Well that is too “new agey” for me. As I exhale and push my arms forward, in my mind I say. “I am pushing the spirit of Christ that lives in me into the world, may His light shine through me.
Click here if you would like to read the rest of Lia’s blog. Is Life Getting in the Way? | Lia London Books.
This in not me. I needed a picture!!
A Slice of Life
Bill Lites
The U. S. Naval Academy Museum didn’t take long, and I was on my way east to check out the Air Mobility Command Museum in Dover, DE which had a great collection of both hangered and outdoor static aircraft. They had two C-141s on static display and I recorded the tail numbers so I could ask my friend Dick, when I got back home, if he had flown either one of them during his time in the U.S. Air Force. As it turned out, he had flown one of them.
Next I headed north again to visit the Massey Air Museum in Massey, MD which turned out to be a very small museum with a C-47 sitting in front of one of the hangers and a F4U Corsair mounted on a pedestal next to the rotating beacon tower. The hanger doors were not open and the museum was closed up for the day, (closed at 4:00 pm) so, after a couple photos, I kept moving north.
I had planned to visit the Henry Francis DuPont Winterthur Museum & Library in Wilmington, DE but “Greta” had a hard time recognizing the address, since it was on a rural road, with nothing but a guard station blocking the entrance to the driveway. By the time I finally found the proper address, it was after 5:00 pm and the guard said they were closed. I believe DiVoran would have liked to visit this museum as the estate is used as the location for lectures by famous decorating, clothing and jewelry designers who have contributed to the making of movie and TV series projects such as Mrs. Henderson Presents, The Young Victoria and Downton Abbey. What do you think DiVoran? After a long day of driving, I stopped and had dinner at the “Metro Diner” in Brooklawn, NJ before heading to the motel in Gloucester City, NJ for the evening.
The next morning I left early, driving thru Camden, NJ and across the Delaware River, in time to arrive at the Independence Visitor Center in Philadelphia, PA for a day of touring that historic city. My first problem was finding the underground parking garage. I had to circle several blocks a couple of times before I spotted the garage entrance, and found my way up the elevator to the information center. I picked up a map of the area and got directions to where I could obtain my free ticket for a tour of Independence Hall. As I was heading across the park for the Hall, I realized I had left my camera lying on the counter at the visitor’s center. I rushed back to the counter and asked if anyone had seen my camera, but they said, “No.” I was really upset, but what could I do? Evidently, someone had picked it up and walked off with it, and there went my camera and some 400-500 photos of my trip so far, never to be seen again. It was hard, but I thanked God for the camera loss and asked Him to help me give the whole thing up to Him.
The Independence Hall Tour was very interesting and educational from beginning to end. We were reminded that Independence Hall (originally the Philadelphia State House) was completed in 1753 and is primarily known as the building where the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were debated and finally adopted by the colonial representatives. As a side note, the Liberty Bell had its first home in the steeple of the Philadelphia State House.
From the Heart
Louise Gibson
Have you ever seen a collection of sea glass,
also known as beach glass? The varied bits of
colored glass are sometimes pieces of pottery,
but often are pieces of shattered glass bottles.
Originally the glass had a purpose, but then,it
was casually thrown away and became broken.
Our lives are like that. Unexpected events
present challenges, often taxing our emotions
or causing physical pain or injury.
The Great Creator is always busy molding
our character. He truly wants the best for you and me.
He introduces challenges to prepare us for eternity.
“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet.
Only through experiences of trial and suffering
can the soul be strengthened., vision cleared,
ambition inspired and success achieved.”
Helen Keller
(1880-1968)
A Slice of Life
Bill Lites
The next day I misread the opening time for the B & O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, MD so I was an hour early getting there. I parked in the museum’s free parking lot, and took the free “Charm City Circulator” bus to the Baltimore Inner Harbor. Since I had toured aboard other U.S. Navy ships and submarines, I only went aboard the USS Constellation. I did take photos and checked out the USCGC Taney, the submarine USS Tork, and the Lightship Chesapeake, but saved the time going aboard those ships, for another museum down the road that day. While waiting for the bus back to the B & O Railroad Museum, I struck up a conversation with a very nice lady who was on her way to work, and helped me with the number of the bus I would need to catch for my trip back to the RR museum, and my car.
The B & O Railroad Museum is located in the old Monte Clare Station, and with its adjacent roundhouse, was part of the original Monte Clare Shops begun in 1829. The Shops are considered to be the oldest railroad manufacturing complex in the United States. The museum is massive, and has one of the world’s largest collections of 19th century rolling stock. The museum was also the site which received the first telegraph message, “What hath God wrought?” sent from Washington, D.C. to Baltimore, MD on May 24, 1844 using Samuel Morse’s new telegraph invention.
Next I took a quick drive north a few miles to visit the Glenn L. Martin Aviation Museum in Middle River, MD which was a small museum with only a dozen or so outside static display aircraft. I hadn’t planned to stay long (the Robert Frost poem comes to mind again), but I was their only customer and their very knowledgeable tour guide was a little long-winded with nothing else to do. I immediately realized I was trapped. I was afraid he was going to explain all about each of the 20,000 photos covering the walls of the small museum area and finally asked him if I could see the museum’s airplanes. He had to drive me to the static displays and started telling me all about each of the airplanes, and I was trapped again. They had two B-57 aircraft on static display, and I recorded the tail numbers so I could ask my friend Larry when I back to Titusville, if he had flown in either of them, during his time in the U.S. Air Force. I finally convinced him to take me back to my car so I could get on to the next stop. I’m sure I could have learned a lot if I had not been on such a tight time schedule that day.
Now I headed south around Chesapeake Bay to visit the U.S. Naval Academy Museum in Annapolis, MD which is located in the Preble Hall, just inside the Naval Academy premises. I parked and had to walk thru a security check point, and show my ID, in order to access the museum. The museum is a maritime museum started in 1845 and traces U.S. Naval history in the form of three dimensional artwork, paintings, model ships, uniforms and metals exhibits in its four galleries.
—–To Be Continued—–
From the Heart
Louise Gibson
Humor is good medicine;
It has the power to heal.
You can’t laugh and remain sad;
Good endorphins you will reveal.
The Lord is our Heavenly Physician-
He advised “Be of good cheer”
“Lord, I can endure all things
As long as You are near.”
I have learned to accept myself
with all of my limitations and flaws-
“When I raise my sights to you, Lord,
My inner self is filled with “awes”.
( A laugh-at-myself analysis )
I was born a duck,
so I quack like a duck.
Yes, that “quack” came out of me..
No matter how I envision myself a swan-
A duck I will always be!
Ducks hanging out in the herbs
Old Things R New 