25 Dec

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

During the Christmas season, I’ve used a lot of photos from Pixabay and Canva to create social media graphics but this one is my favorite. I love the balance of the ages old Christmas story and modern decorations. I added the Merry Christmas message.

All of us at Old Things R New treasure our friends and readers and wish you a most happy and joyful Christmas!

PS We are having a white Christmas here in Western NC! Not a lot of snow but the ground is white and we are excited!

Luke 2:10-16

And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest,
    and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

15 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.

I'm a winner

After my retirement, I decided to re-learn the canning and preserving skills I learned from my mother but hadn’t practiced for twenty years. I titled the blog Old Things R New to chronicle my experience.  Since then I have been blessed to have six other bloggers join me, DiVoran Lites, Bill Lites,  Judy Wills, Louise Gibson, Janet Perez Eckles and Melody Hendrix

In addition to blogging, I work as the publicist/marketer/ amateur editor and general  “mom Friday” for my author daughter, Rebekah Lyn. I also manage her website, Rebekah Lyn Books  where we frequently host the best in up and coming authors.

My 2020 goal is to use my love of photographs and words to be an encourager on social media. You can visit Real Life Books and Media You Tube Channel if you would like to view some of the mini-videos I have created for our church, Gateway Community in Titusville, Fl.

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Mount Rushmore Road Trip Part 9

23 Dec

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

Day 9 Thursday 

9/17/2020 

This morning I headed back into the Black Hills National Forest to visit the Civilian Conservation; Corps (CCC) Museum located in Hill City, SD.  This museum displays photographs and arifacts discribing the men and the projects related to South Dakota between 1933 and 1942.  The museum indicates that at least 30,000 men worked on CCC projects in SD alone with as many as 3-million being involved, nation-wide. during the same time period.

While I was in Hill City I tried to visit Wade’s Gold Mine but it was closed because of COVID-19, so I headed for the Mount Rushmore National Memorial to experience that great patriatic work of art.  A person really can’t imagine just how big the monument is from photos or videos.  When you are standing there looking up at it, the magnitude of the sculpture takes your breath away.  Wikipedia tells me that the project was started by Gutzon Borglum in 1925 with a commision orcastrated by Doane Robinson, known as “The Father of Mount Rushmore.“  The sculpture was completed in 1943 by Borglum’s son Lincoln after his father’s death in 1941.  It is said that some 400 workers were employed during  the 18 years of the project, and amazingly without a single fatality. 

After that exhilarating experience it was only a few miles northeast on US- 16 to visit the National Presidental Wax Museum located in Keystone, SD.  This is an amazing and informative museum with life-size wax figures of all 45 United States presidents, as well as 55 other important figures who have been an influence on our presidents during their years in office.  The self-guided audio narritive highlights the significant events each president, and his administration, are known for.

While I was in Keystone I visited The Big Thunder Gold Mine.  This attraction has it all for those wanting to experience the excitement of the Old West.  There is a guided tour of the mine (originally called the Gold Hill Lode) similar to many others that drew prospectors to the Black Hills area during the gold rush days of the 1890s.  There is a museum filled with antinqe mining tools and equipment used by the prospectors and miners to bring the gold and silver ore from the mines.  And best of all, you can acctually pan for gold in the mine (with all the necessary instruction and equipment provided by trained Big Thunder  staff).

As I was leaving Keystone I drove past Dahl’s Chainsaw Art schulper garden and just had to stop and take a photo or two.  This guy is amazing!  Jarrett Dahl has a huge display of chainsaw art pieces of every size and discription lining Iron Mountain Road (US-16A).  He or one of his team are constantly at work on a new design that you can watch take shape.  You can even request your own design and watch it being carved (for the right price).  Jarrett says his specialties are bears and eagles.

On the way to the motel in Rapid City I stopped to take a look at the Chapel on the Hill located just south of SD-44 in the Canon Lake Park area.  The chapel has an amazing story behind it.  Built in 1969 by Anton A. Dahl, the chapel is an exact reproduction of the famous Borgund Stavkirke in Laerdal, Norway.  A museum on the property is housed in an authentic 1800s Scandinavian log cabin that displays artifacts representing typical Nordic lifestyle of that time period.

Before getting to the motel, a Taco Bell caught my eye and I stopped in for one of their Mexican Pizzas with one of their desserts.  That rounded out my day with a happy tummy.  After checking into the motel, I recorded my exciting day’s activities and slept like a log. 

—–To Be Continued—–

Bill is a retired Mechanical engineer living with his wonderful artist/writer wife, DiVoran, of 63 years in Titusville, Florida. He was born and raised in the Southwest, did a tour of duty with the U.S. Navy, attended Northrop University in Southern California and ended up working on America’s Manned Space Program for 35 years. He currently is retired and spends most of his time building and flying R/C model airplanes, traveling, writing blogs about his travels for Word Press and supporting his wife’s hobbies with framing, editing and marketing.  He also volunteers with a local church Car Care Ministry and as a tour guide at the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum there in Titusville.  Bill has two wonderful children, two outstanding grandchildren, and a loving sister and her husband, all of whom also live in Central Florida, so he and DiVoran are rewarded by having family close to spend lots of quality time with.

One of Bill’s favorite Scriptures is:  John 10:10

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For the Love of God

21 Dec

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Pixabay

When we moved to Florida in 1965, we went looking for a church in the denomination (religious belief system) we were used to. We found two, but one of them had air conditioning, so we chose that one. We were in for a lot of good surprises because we began to listen and learn. We went to church several times a week and left our children in the nursery. As the years flew by, they graduated into evening classes of their own. 

We kept going because our preacher and his dear wife were so close to God and their family that we wanted what they had. Also, the people in that church were wise, gentle and kind. The first thing they taught was that God loves us. Did you know that? I didn’t. But once we knew, our lives began to change for the better.

The most important thing we learned was that it was good to study the Bible for ourselves and pray alone every day.

While Bill chose to listen to Bible audiobooks on the way to work, I chose to do morning devotions while our two young children watched Captain Kangaroo.  Someday, I’d like to share the routine I have fallen into and what it does for me. 

Being at church is a tremendous help, but it can’t fill all our needs for fellowship with the Lord Jesus. All Christians know that Jesus died on a cross to atone for our sin. That is one thing all Christian churches teach, and there are many other things they agree upon.  

You see, sometimes we believe so strongly that we are in the only church that knows everything about God and the Bible that we think we might suffer if we went anywhere else.  

How do we choose churches to attend out of all the Christian churches within our reach? Most of the time, we stick to the denominations we grew up in. If our parents went to church or sent us to church, we learned what they had been taught, and our children stayed in the denomination or gave up church altogether. 

  But sometimes we may change churches for one reason or another; a move or a marriage can trigger that, and so can the fussing that might get into a church. Sometimes we get hurt and don’t want to go there anymore. 

As important as belonging to a group of Christians is, going to church is not enough. Love, peace, and joy come through the Holy Spirit straight to our hearts. Holy churches, large and small, are almost everywhere, and as Christians, we want to be involved in them and support the wonderful things they do.   

If you need to know where to go to church, ask your Father, who is in heaven and who is in you for yourself. While you’re at it, tell him thank- you for his love. 

DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn.  She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”

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In the Fullness of Time

20 Dec

MEMORIES

Copied from facebook

I presented this post in January of 2017, but would like to re-blog it here for Christmas 2020.  And so…..

IN THE FULLNESS OF TIME

I know that Christmas 2016 is over [Christmas 2020 is approaching]  .  However, I wanted to share something a pastor friend sent to us as a Christmas card.  It touched both Fred and me greatly, and I hope it will touch your heart, as well.  (As way of acknowledgement, I’ve searched and not found this particular paraphrasing of these verses anywhere.  It could have been his own version of it)  It’s the best way to begin a New Year:

Galatians 4:4-5

4 – But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a

woman, made under the law,

5 – To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

As we begin the month of December, our thoughts are about Christmas.  There is a phrase in Galatians 4:4.  This phrase is a powerful statement about the coming of God’s Son to earth.  The phrase in the fullness of the time (Galatians 4:4) refers to that time when the world was providentially ready for the birth of the Savior.

It was the RIGHT TIME for JESUS to come.  Historians tell us that in the Roman world the old religions were dying, the old philosophies were empty and powerless to change men’s lives.  Strange new mystery religions were invading the empire.  Religious bankruptcy and spiritual hunger were everywhere.  God was preparing the world for the arrival of His Son.

Roads connected city with city, and all cities ultimately with Rome.  Roman laws protected the rights of citizens, and Roman guards protected the peace – THE ROMAN PAX.

The Roman Empire, A.D. 117 – Credit Google Search

Thanks to both the Greek and Roman conquests, Latin and Greek were known across the empire.  He sent His Son to THE RIGHT PEOPLE.  It was no accident that God chose Abraham to be the father of His people!  God promised Abraham a nation to come from his seed (Genesis 12:1-3)

Jesus was born in THE RIGHT LAND.  It was no accident that Abraham left Ur (modern day Iraq) and journeyed to Canaan (present day Israel).  God’s people got off-track and stuck in Egypt, and so God sent a deliverer, Moses!  Then He had to get them out of Babylon and back to THE RIGHT LAND.

THE RIGHT LANGUAGE was available, and it was no accident that a man named Alexander (the Great) came 300 years before Christ, and spread the Hellenistic culture with most people knowing the Greek language and THE RIGHT CULTURE adopted by the Romans. 

Alexander the Great – Credit Google Search

Finally, it was under THE RIGHT LAW.  The new gospel would need to spread rapidly!  By the end of the first century, the Christian gospel had spread throughout the Roman Empire, reaching all the way to Great Britain!  God used the Roman Empire, as He did the Greeks, the Jews, and anyone else to make this TIME in history RIGHT!

JESUS came at the RIGHT TIME, to the RIGHT PEOPLE, in the RIGHT LAND, with the RIGHT LANGUAGE, and during the RIGHT CULTURE, and under the RIGHT LAW!

It was no accident when Jesus arrived in history, but rather God’s perfect timing in preparing our world for His coming.

It was truly in the fullness of time that God sent forth His Son.

With these words in mind, have a blessed Christmas season (and in this case – a wonderful and blessed New Year!).

[ in 2020 I would like to add a bit from Dr. David Jeremiah.  He is pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in San Diego, California. (www.DavidJeremiah.org)   He has a TV program called Turning Point.  I’ve not listened to his radio program, but I suspect it’s called Turning Point, as well.  He preaches God’s word, and we are blest every time we watch his TV program.  His organization publishes a monthly magazine and devotional guide called Turning Points.  I found the following in his daily e-mail, and it touched my heart.  I hope it touches yours, as well:

Because Christ came to earth for a specific time, we can be with Him in heaven for ages unlimited. What an incredible thought! Treasure every moment as you prepare for your eternal home with Him one day.

Judy – 2020

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

Making Christmas Memories

18 Dec

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

Whew! This has been a busy week! Tuesday we hauled the artificial Christmas tree down from the attic along with containers of ornaments, garlands and stockings. After we finished adorning the tree my daughter and I began our Christmas baking.

Christmas baking with my daughter, working side by side in the kitchen, is time I treasure. Making memories of laughter, tasting and collaborating to get the taste just right is one of my favorite holiday things to do.

My daughter made butter cookies in Florida and wanted to make them again for us and we were both craving gingerbread so we added it to the baking list.We follow a Keto eating plan so our deserts and treats don’t always look the same as traditional versions. For instance instead of a dark colored gingerbread, we made a gingerbread bundt cake with a lemon glaze. Without the addition of molasses, the batter lacked the trademark deep rich color and I didn’t want to sacrifice the flavor as well. To try to capture it I added some maple extract and a smidge of expresso powder. Next time I will add a bit more expresso powder. We decided to shave some sugar free pumpkin spice white chocolate on top, then sprinkle with a few whole chips, Definitely not the look of gingerbread but definitely good!

Wednesday arrived rainy and cold. Tuesday we ran out of almond flour, so a trip to town was needed to continue baking. While at the store, I picked up some vegetables to make a pot of beefy vegetable soup. Yesterday we ran out of energy before the Thin Mint cookies my daughter baked were dipped in chocolate so while she dipped, I chopped veggies for soup.

After our supper, (The soup was yummy) we relaxed with soft Christmas music and our TV fireplace. (Don’t judge LOL)

We also watched a livestream of The Little Drummer Boy by King and Country.

Covid has been horrid but an upside to the isolation is free livestream events. We aren’t concert goers so I am getting to enjoy music I would not have otherwise. One of our favorite Christmas traditions is attending Candlelight at Walt Disney World and that won’t be happening this year. A musician friend is recording “One Beautiful Night, A musical and narrated presentation of the Christmas Story. ” It will go live December 23, 2020 at 8pm. Our daughter, Rebekah is one of the narrators. She managed to work in setting up and recording in between baking.

Thursday the temperature only reached 38 degrees. Too cold for me to be anywhere but indoors. I took it as a sign to stop procrastinating and get the Christmas gifts wrapped. Finishing that, I took on sending out Christmas cards. The internet was down, but I refused to get involved with tech support horrors until I finished my tasks. While I worked on them, our daughter spent time doing rewrites on her latest novel and my husband finished a painting. It was a good day.

Now it’s Friday. I don’t have a plan for the day, but I am sure that will quickly change and I plan to enjoy it all.

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Mount Rushmore Road Trip Part 8

16 Dec

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

Day 8 Wednesday 

9/16/2020 

This morning I had to back track thru Lusk on my way to the Black Hills National Forest in SD.  At Mule Creek Junction I turned off US-85,  onto US-18 and headed east.  In its day, this interrsection served as the north-south Cheyenne to Deadwood stage route, and the east-west Oregon Trail Route.  

Another 20 miles east on US-18 and I visited The Gun Vault located in Edgemont, SD.  This turned out to be a sales and service shop dealing with all types of new and used guns.

As I was leaving Edgemont, I was surprised to see hundreds of diesei train engines lined up in the rail yard.  I stopped to take a photo so I could tell my son, Billy, about them.  This railroad worker came up to my car and ask who I was and why I was taking photos.  I explained and he said, “You need to be careful who sees you taking photos of these engines.”  He went on to explain how the sale of these engines was very contriversial and some ‘people’ could misintruperate what I was doing.  I made a hasty retreat. 

On my way to visit the Crazy Horse Monument, I passed thru Pringle, SD and stopped to take a photo of the “Bicycle Sculpure.“  This is nothing more than a huge pile of rusting bicycles that some people call art.  The pile has evedently taken various shapes over the years (since 1980), but it just looks like a junkyard to me.  

I continued another 15 miles north on US-385 to visit the 4-Mile Old West Town Museum located in Custer, SD.  This old west town and museum consists of 50 buildings assembled in such a mammer as to show guests what life  was like in the 1880s Dakota Territory.  It is a treasure trove of early western pioneer life historical artifacts and memorabilia.

It was only another 5 miles north on US-16 to the Crazy Horse Memorial.  This monument is being carved out of the Thunderhead Mountain (since 1948) to honor the Oglala Lakota warrior, Chief Crazy Horse, who is known for leading the attack against US Army troops at the battle of the Little Big Horn (1876).  A model of the finished monument is shown below, with the unfinished moument in the background.

As I wound my way north thru the Custer State Park, I spotted people stopped along the road and saw that they were taking photos of some buffalo grazing in a medow.  Believe it or not, this was the first free-range (live) buffalo I have ever seen in all my travels!  The next thing I knew some really jagged rock formations appeared.  They looked a lot like the rock formations I had seen at the Garden of the Gods area in Colorado.

I was still headed north on US-16 toward Hill City, but the road was slow going (25 mph) as it twisted and turned thru the park.  Then I came around a curve and the road went thru the Needle Eye Tunnel.  I just had to get a photo of that tunnel.  Luckily, when I came out of the tunnel, there was a turn-off where I could stop and take a picture.

,

Another 10 miles north on US-16 and I found the South Dakota State Railroad Museum located in Hill City, SD.   The museum is located at the old 1880s Hill City Depot and displays local railroad artifacts and memorabilia related to the history of the railroad in the Black Hills area dating from the mid-1800s.  The 1880 Train is also operates out of  the Hill City Depot.  This original steam operated train offers a 3-hour (roundtrip) daily ride in their restored vintage 1800s train cars from Hill City to Keystone.  The 1880 Train also offers special train ride events, including student field trips, during their annual season of operation.

As I was leaving the museum, I overheard a couple of guys talking about the diesel locomotive sales.  Finally I asked them about how many locomotives were involved and they told me there were about 1000 at Edgemont and another 2000 in other rail yards in the state.  I was amazed at the enormity of it all.

On the way to the motel I stopped and picked up another “Heat-&-Serve Broccoli Chedder Au Gratin to eat in my room.  It was yummy and I was satisfied to record my days activities and talk to DiVoran for a while.  Then it was off to ZZZ-Land for me after a really long day.

—–To Be Continued—–

Bill is a retired Mechanical engineer living with his wonderful artist/writer wife, DiVoran, of 63 years in Titusville, Florida. He was born and raised in the Southwest, did a tour of duty with the U.S. Navy, attended Northrop University in Southern California and ended up working on America’s Manned Space Program for 35 years. He currently is retired and spends most of his time building and flying R/C model airplanes, traveling, writing blogs about his travels for Word Press and supporting his wife’s hobbies with framing, editing and marketing.  He also volunteers with a local church Car Care Ministry and as a tour guide at the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum there in Titusville.  Bill has two wonderful children, two outstanding grandchildren, and a loving sister and her husband, all of whom also live in Central Florida, so he and DiVoran are rewarded by having family close to spend lots of quality time with.

One of Bill’s favorite Scriptures is:  John 10:10

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Oh Christmas Tree How Hard to Find You Are.

15 Dec

On the Porch

Onisha Ellis

Our daughter arrived at our home in North Carolina from Florida yesterday to spend Christmas with us. Due to watching way too many Hallmark movies, she wanted to experience the fun of cutting a Christmas tree. Monday we set out to do that.

I did some research on Facebook and learned of an “honor” tree farm nearby. I relished the idea of being trusted to cut a tree and mail them a check.

The Facebook post warned the sign for the tree farm was small and easily overlooked but our daughter’s eagle eyes spotted the sign. Feeling adventurous, we drove down the rutted track passing ramshackle abandoned homes, rusting cars, even decrepit earth moving equipment.

When we reached the trees we climbed from the car, not feeling impressed. We walked several yards down a muddy and slippery path without seeing anything one would want to take home. This little tree was the best one we found.

Not to be deterred, I typed Christmas tree farm into our GPS and several popped up. Unfortunately, all but one were already closed for the season… really? On Hallmark movies one can always get a tree the week before Christmas and sometimes the man to go with it! I called the tree farm located an hour from us and they were not open but were making appointments. Yea. But… they were out of tree stands and so were the stores.

We gave up on the Christmas tree search and returned home to drink Holiday blend coffee and watch a Hallmark movie that didn’t have any Christmas tree story lines.

Image by Please Don’t sell My Artwork AS IS from Pixabay 

I'm a winner

After my retirement, I decided to re-learn the canning and preserving skills I learned from my mother but hadn’t practiced for twenty years. I titled the blog Old Things R New to chronicle my experience.  Since then I have been blessed to have six other bloggers join me, DiVoran Lites, Bill Lites,  Judy Wills, Louise Gibson, Janet Perez Eckles and Melody Hendrix

In addition to blogging, I work as the publicist/marketer/ amateur editor and general  “mom Friday” for my author daughter, Rebekah Lyn. I also manage her website, Rebekah Lyn Books  where we frequently host the best in up and coming authors.

My 2020 goal is to use my love of photographs and words to be an encourager on social media. You can visit Real Life Books and Media You Tube Channel if you would like to view some of the mini-videos I have created for our church, Gateway Community in Titusville, Fl.

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Freedom

14 Dec

My Take

DiVoran Lites

Photo credit Pixabay

Beloved, your faith in Jesus covers you in a robe of righteousness. In my eyes you are flawless. I give you celebration and glory. Enjoy true and lasting peace with me. We have a permanent relationship, one where you have access to My kindness. You find yourself becoming increasingly joyful. Keep celebrating and experiencing My glory. Keep remembering that I know what I’m doing. I am the one you can trust no matter what. 

Patient endurance refines your proven character and leads you back to hope. There you experience My endless love cascading into your heart through Holy Spirit who lives there. 

No wonder you don’t give up. For even though your outer person gradually wears out, your inner being is renewed every single day. 

Photo credit Pixabay

You are covered over with the righteous robe of Jesus. The judgment for your sins fell upon Christ on the cross. It is finished. You will never be judged for your sins because they are as far away as the East is to the West and never to be seen again. The judgment is for the types of rewards you will receive in heaven. 

Romans 5: 1-5, 2 Corinthians 4:16, 1 Corinthians 3:10-15, Romans 14:10-12. Notes on TPT  (Paraphrased)

DiVoran 


DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn.  She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”

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Random Memories of Germany

13 Dec

WIESBADEN – PART 4

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

On our first trip to Holland, we took in the Keukenhof Gardens and their magnificent flowers – mostly tulips, but others as well.  I saw my first Amaryllis there – and couldn’t believe how tall those flower were!

Judy by an exhibit of Amaryllis – 1968

And the different varieties and colors of the tulips were amazing!  For some reason, I really liked the ones that were nearly black – such as Ace of Spades, and Black Beauty.  Wow! 

Ace of Spades

Black Beauty

Because it was April, many of the flowers that grew outside (rather than in the hothouses) and the trees were not in full bloom yet.

But the landscape of the gardens was still beautiful.

We stopped in Leiden at the Treslong Experimental Gardens.  Beautiful.

Treslong Experimental Gardens

Our last visit there was during the girls Spring Break from school in April, and it was cold and wet in Holland.  We almost didn’t go to Keukenhof, but were eventually glad we went, as it was actually warmer within the Gardens.  I guess all the trees provided some protection from the weather!

Later, my Mother came to visit us in Wiesbaden, and we took her to Holland.  Her visit was in May, and Keukenhof Gardens was in full bloom.

Mother (left in the red suit) in the Gardens

Much to our surprise, we learned that many Dutch people had to eat the tulip bulbs to live in 1944-1945 at the tail end of the war.  From a website from The Laidback Gardener:  Most bulbs such as hyacinths and daffodils are toxic to humans, but tulip bulbs are edible if they are carefully prepared.

And from the AmsterdamTulip Museum:  The situation in Amsterdam had grown hopeless, and in December a freeze started that would last for several months. Starvation became extremely common, and many perished. It was here, for the first time, that Tulip bulbs were eaten, along several other agricultural products not typically considered edible (such as sugar beets). 

Growers, unable to export their bulbs, began to sell them as food and market the high starch content. Doctors even began to provide recipes on how to prepare bulbs

After learning all this, we were amazed to see the fields and fields of tulips growing.  It was quite heart-warming to see how the tulip “industry” survived.

Fields of Tulips, picture taken from inside the windmill

One of our favorite places to visit in Holland was den Haag (The Hague).  And in den Haag is Madurodam.  A VERY favorite!!  From the Netherlands website:  

Madurodam provides a perfect combination of an amusement park, historical heritage and world-class nature.  With more than 5,500 miniature trees and 55,000 flower bed plants blossoming all season, the park is known for its scenic beauty.  We spent many hours going through this delightful park with its miniatures, built 1:25 scale.  Amazing!  It was a favorite of our daughters, as well.  We took my Mother there during one of her visits.  We can’t remember whether or not we ever took Fred’s parents there.  

Miniature Cathedral

Miniature Schipol Airport

Miniature windmills and canals

We stayed in a B&B on that trip with the girls.  We always enjoyed doing that on our jaunts around Europe.  The family was lovely, and the accommodations were wonderful!  I had made some chocolate chip cookies for our trip, and we shared them with the family.  I just remember telling them to come visit us in Heidelberg.  But their reply was that, thanks, but no thanks.  They would “stay” in Holland.  There was still a bit of animosity toward Germany from World War 2.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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6 promises when you’re feeling overwhelmed

12 Dec

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

Reblogged December 12, 2020

December 11, 2020

“Enough already.” Have you thought or said those words lately? Most of us have drawn dangerously close to that overwhelmed state because we’re saturated by the ugliness that paints the country and the world.

Anyone out there ready for a break from all this? Let’s change that mood and find a lighter topic. Here’s my friend’s lighthearted recount to give you a little humor in the midst of the gloom. She stepped into her mother-in-law’s house with a heart filled with the Christmas spirit and with an attitude of kindness. But here’s what she experienced. This is her unedited recount:

This humongous undertaking was under the guise of “helping” (really, read: doing it ALL myself). Put up ALL of her Christmas decorations: 2 full-size trees; a gazillion Santa’s she’s collected over the past 30-plus years of all shapes of sizes; 19 ceramic Christmas teapots (I counted); a dozen Beyer’s carolers, about 500 feet of lighted-green-fake-garland oh-so carefully placed around just about every piece of tall furniture, upper kitchen cabinets, fireplace mantle, even her grandfather clock. (I kid you not!) I could just feel the kilowatt numbers on the electric meter start spinning around like there’s no tomorrow!

Oh, I’m not even finished yet…THEN there was the placement of about 50 battery-operated assorted pillar, votive, and tea-lights on every table, the mantle again (it’s totally jammed between pillars, wise men and carolers), and inside the fireplace—don’t want to actually make a real fire these days, do we now?

I even had to place giant ball ornaments and stuffed-cardinals in ornamental trees (not even Christmas trees) around the house. Oh, yeah, I forget about placing her cutesy Christmas rugs all over the house, too! And my piece de resistance was converting a red, green, and white tablecloth into a shower curtain, using safety pins, so it matched her bathroom accessories.

Here’s a challenge for us. How about if we decorate with the same passion and detail, not our home, but our heart?

Six Promises for You

To avoid reaching the overwhelmed state of our mind, we first check out the divine storehouse of God’s Word. And one by one we pull out His promises. Here are six that deserve an important place:

  1. When broken relationships, strife or animosity bury our peace under the mountain of stress. Wrapped in love, Jesus gives us the perfect present: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to your peace]as the world gives” (John 14:27). The peace that comes when things work out is fleeting. The peace we get from others is false.  But Jesus’ peace when turmoil abounds is true, profound and permanent.
  2. When fear drains our strength, God says, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10). If He will uphold us, nothing can make us fall. If He is God, the Lord of all, what may happen doesn’t alter His promise. If He is indeed the Most High God, what changes come about will find us secure and confident in His protection.
  3. When media reports rob our sleep as we toss and turn at night, each new day rings in fresh hope and with holy boldness. We declare, “In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly” (Psalm 5:3). We wait expecting His plans to be at work. We expect His truth to reign. And His Word never to return empty.
  4. When tension fills the air because of the uncertainty for tomorrow, we remember God is already present in all our tomorrows. “Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. For this moment, for today and for tomorrow, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Walking on that straight path, firm and secure keeps us from the detours of negative emotions.
  5. When income has dwindled, bills pile up and we join the “financially anxious” club, God’s voice is stern: “Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well” (Luke 12:27-31). Anxiety rises only and only when we forget that God knows. He knows what we need, what we lack, what we miss and what we desire. Our “wants” may come last, but our needs are what He meets first. The secret to get them? Seek Him first above all.
  6. If what we face seems impossible. If what we tried got us nowhere. And even what others did for us brought no results, God’s reminder echoes in Matthew 19:26 “Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” That promise brings the glow of hope into our Christmas. The best present to give to yourself is to believe, truly believe that If all things are possible with God,” your situation is too.

But we know none of the promises can be ours. None can be at work. None can make any sense without the power of God expressed by His unending love. He put that love in a crib and named Him Jesus.

Because of Jesus, we’re not overwhelmed. We embrace His Word, believe His power and decorate our life with the color of His promises.

Let’s Pray

Father, this Christmas is different than others. Gloom seems to rule. But we know that Jesus was born, to grow up, to become the light, to bring salvation and to conquer all. We sing the Christmas carol of gratitude with new hope and new confidence. In Jesus’ name.

What decorates your life these days?

Janet

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Did you know I wrote a book filled with words of encouragement, uplifting thoughts and illustrations of real-life triumph to empower you? Its title, Trials of Today, Treasures for Tomorrow: Overcoming Adversities in Life. You can get it HERE.

CLICK HERE for a one-minute inspirational video.

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Janet Eckles Perez

Some say she should be the last person to be dancing. Her life is summarized in this 3-minute video: http://bit.ly/1a8wGJR

Janet Perez Eckles’ story of triumph is marked by her work as an international speaker, #1 best-selling author, radio host, personal success coach and master interpreter. Although blind since 31, her passion is to help you see the best of life.

www.janetperezeckles.com

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