Time to share some love with those around you and rest from your weekly toiling. Have a great day.
I took a ride around the back yard the other day and just did some thinking. Life hasn't changed much since the beginning of time. Mankind has never just "gotten along." Cain got jealous and killed his brother Abel, and that was a long time ago. Since then men have been fighting and messing up on a daily basis. Our technology shrinks our world and we are too aware of what is happening all around us. We can't stand reality, so we create reality which in reality is not reality. No wonder beer sales are up. Just pick any point in history and dive in. Be sure and have your shower ready for use when you decide to come up for air. Not even the diversions we create to take our minds off of the lie that we are "making progress" are free from scandal. Left alone to our own devises we would disintegrate. How has our young nation managed to survive and prosper for these few hundred years? Well, I submit that individuals in this nation from the beginning to the present have acknowledged a power higher than themselves and have had the good sense to seek guidance. And, to the degree that we collectively have recognized our own shortcomings and have been humble enough not to follow our "gut" instincts but instead have followed a higher calling, we have been blessed. I highly recommend that we look upward instead of inward for our salvation. God has a plan. He showed it to us in the person of Jesus Christ. My bible says Christ is the only way to God. Did you ever wish you had the answer in a multiple choice test ahead of time? God gave it to you. The world is giving us all of those other ridiculous answers. Just circle the one with the name of Jesus Christ next to it. My old horse occasionally spooks and tries jump out from under me. I have to rein him in. I'm the same way. God reins me in on a daily basis. I hope you have a great Sunday pondering the World as a whole.
Sometimes we forget God until we get in a real bind. Sundays are made to help us focus on what's important. I hope you rest and spend time thanking God for all the good things He does for you daily.
I thought about saving this poem until later in the Christmas season, but I think it may have more impact if I post it earlier. I hope you remember the reason for the season everyday of the year. 
I am declaring an unofficial cease fire this Sunday. I'm tired. Political forum hosting is a draining pursuit. Besides, I forgot today is the first day of the Fall time change. When I turned on my computer, I was surprised to see my biological clock and my computer clock were an hour off. Now I will have to go around the house trying to remember how to set all those pesky digital clocks who were not smart enough to re-set themselves at 2:00 AM this morning. My Internet browser home page indicates the weather will be absolutely wonderful today. I plan to take full advantage of it. But there is coffee to be made and other morning chores to do so I am going to be brief. Have a great Sunday.
Adrift in the Laguna Madre. That's why I didn't post yesterday. The Laguna Madre is the water between South Padre Island and the Texas mainland. It is part intercoastal waterway, and part tidal flats. My daughter Mandy and a friend, Chris, took Pappy fishing yesterday. I haven't really been fishing in about eight years. I mean in a nice boat with the proper bait , tackle, and a guy who knows fishing. I was up early (I'm always up early) and doing my part for the venture. I brewed coffee and made enough Pappy McMuffins (egg sandwiches with melted cheese) for us all. All I brought otherwise was my cell phone, camera, and knife. Now that's a generous birthday present. We were on the Arroyo Colorado at daylight and headed for the Laguna Madre with a pretty stiff north wind putting a little chop on the water. I chose the front seat so I could have the sea breeze forced into my nostrils with all the attendant particulates present in our air today. I am just a little stuffy and my face is a little flushed from the sun.
This was the view from my perch. Once we located the shallow bays we wanted to fish, Chris skillfully positioned us on the north end and we drifted with the wind while casting. Everyone on board was successful and we brought home some nice fresh Red fish and Speckled trout fillets. My casting arm is sore, and my body is thankful to be seated in a soft office chair, but I am still savoring the experience of yesterday. Many thanks to all who participated in my birthday weekend, and all who came by to say "Howdy" on the blog. Resting on Sunday. That's what it's for and I intend to take full advantage. I was brought back to reality when the little girls (pre-school to early elementary) from across the street (who come by every afternoon for a brief visit) stopped by and wished me happy birthday. The eldest asked how old I was and when I told her sixty one, her mouth fell open, her eyes widened, and she exclaimed, "No way". It was as though she was looking at a living fossil. I can remember when forty looked old.
I hope you have a wonderful Sunday. I love the weather in October and look forward to the crispness in the air. I wrote this poem during my college years, but I think it holds an unending feeling about this time of year.
Just had to hop on the old John Deere to come by and say thanks to all of you who prayed for me and expressed concern for my health. I am making good progress and hope to be plowing before too long. I think as my legs get longer, I shouldn't have as much problem keeping my balance. I'll have my own blog as soon as I learn how to type. I hope you all have a great Sunday. Pray for my Pappy, he says he to old for something or other. I didn't really understand because he mumbles sometimes.
After my nap, I got up and decided to be brave and go to Brownsville, TX to see about getting a new barbecue grill. Mine bit the dust this year. Brownsville has a better selection of stores than Harlingen, but it has possibly the worst drivers in the U. S. Part of the problem is that most of the drivers in Brownsville are not supposed to be in the U.S. After about ten minutes in the Academy Sporting Goods store, Bebe and I decided to let the illegals have it. We got back in the car and I drove directly to South Padre Island. After crossing the causeway bridge, I turned right and drove a short distance to the parking lot of Dirty Al's Restaurant, Bar, and Bait shop. We both ordered the fried shrimp basket and enjoyed watching the boats in the harbor as we ate. Afterwards we drove through town and out to the beach for a nice stroll along the water. It's nice to just let it go now and again. We were a little salty and sandy, but very much rested. I hope you have a wonderful Sunday and Labor Day. If you have to work, I'll be thinking about you.
Greetings from the blue collar metropolis of Houston, Texas. I am posting from way up north this morning. The photograph of the water lilies is from the sample photos that come with most PCs. It is appropriate for Houston since the humidity here in the summer is high enough on most days to grow this variety. However, this morning, the temperature is very moderate, and the humidity is surprisingly low. I just sat outside and enjoyed two cups of coffee. I was awakened this morning by the whir of the coffee grinder on the Cuisinart coffee maker. I thought it was the mosquito truck coming by for the nightly spraying, or perhaps my sister-in-law vacuuming in the dark hours before dawn. My mind defogged enough to grasp the significance of the sound and I patiently waited for ten minutes for the smell of coffee to ascend the stairs. I dreamed of blogging last night. I did not post yesterday, and I think it was some symptom of blog withdrawal. I imagined I had done a simple but effective Sunday post and I was going to try and use the image and theme in a clever extension I came up with. I believe most of my dreaming hours last night were spent writing and re-writing the piece. I was disappointed this morning when I couldn't find the image, or remember the theme. All that work and nothing to show for it. Well, this is the best I could conjure up on short notice. Have a wonderful Sunday. I'll plan to be back in the Valley by tomorrow night. Pappy
God knows where you are.
This is a British cow from the region where Wom and Jane Tigley reside. Tom is always providing us with great photos. This girl seems to be smiling at what we've been all worked up about this week. "Oh, I say. So much troubling talk about hurricanes and politics take a break, it's Sunday." All right Gertrude, we'll give it a rest. I hope you were able to exercise your right to free speech if you cared to do so. I also hope that our dialogue was beneficial in helping you cement your position on the things we talk about. I enjoyed all the comments. I know some were timid about saying anything, and I respect your decision in those matters that stir us to action. I think it is important to participate. As a nation we have rarely agreed on anything. That's why we have two political parties. Will Rogers said it very clearly, "The more you read and observe about the politics thing, you got to admit that each party is worse than the other. The one that's out always looks the best." I hope you enjoy the times when we agree to disagree. It's Sunday and I probably won't think about politics today. I am going to pray for those who were not so fortunate during the hurricane and see if there are opportunities for service in this area. I will also pray for our leaders, and our country in these troublesome times. Thanks for all who participate in this strange world of cybercommunication where we meet and discuss our lives with total strangers. Have a wonderful and peaceful Sunday.
I laugh every time I see this picture of Wom Tigley at Bakewell's Church. He did give me permission to use his photos, but he never knows in what context they will appear. Thanks Tom. If you have decided just to lie around this Sunday, you might want to check out the posts by Carey, and Strider. Both are very good devotional thoughts for the day.
Ah, it's Sunday again. I was reminded by Willow, of the churches I attended when I was a kid. Most were Baptist of some variety, one a Plymouth Brethren, and one an Independent non-denominational church. The ones I attended with my grandparents were Missionary Baptist Churches. Old Liberty Church was at Seminary, Mississippi. We had family reunions there some years, and there was always an abundance of good gospel singing. My mother's grandfather was a Baptist Preacher. I have always liked Southern Gospel done in quartet style. The following poem was written to highlight some of the images I recall.
Today is Sunday. For those of us who choose to attend an organized church service each week, this will be familiar territory. I never try to defend our occasional lack of spirituality to those who don't believe as we do, because we do have our moments. While we sometimes judge our non-believing friends for their excesses of the flesh, remember, that's all they know. Not only that, we have the same carnal nature alive and well within us. The difference is we have accepted the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and have his Holy Spirit living within that spiritual segment of our being. The problem is we also have the free will to listen to and obey the spiritual urgings, or in rebellion ignore them and revert to our carnal urges. This makes us appear hypocritical in our actions when measured against our words. When non-believers are watching (and they are), we appear insincere. It is a problem that has affected believers since the beginning. On the other hand, when we listen to God's spiritual urgings and instructions, we can experience that fellowship with God that causes us to have a peace that passes all understanding. All believers and non-believers alike have a physical segment - the active body that people see and interact with, a mental segment - where we store and process all the genetic knowledge, emotion, education, prejudice, and results of interaction with others, and a spiritual segment - where the Spirit of God dwells when we believe. The mental and spiritual segments are separated by a "will switch" and can be accessed by an individual's choice. Non-believers have the same spiritual segment, but it is not an active part of their thought process until they believe. I explain this so that those reading who do not believe can understand our occasional wanderings. A hymn writer penned a line in an old hymn that said, "prone to wander Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love, here's my heart Lord take and seal it...." So, on some Sundays believers may walk into the church service with less than adequate spiritual preparation, and ministers may be having a "bad hair day". This may lead to looking around at others for some carnal entertainment, or perhaps nodding off when we should be listening. You will know what my mood was on the Sunday that I penned this little poem.
Special thanks to Tom Wigley of Wigger's World for this beautiful pastoral scene. Tom photographs his area of England for us to enjoy and when I saw this picture, it put me in mind of Psalms 23. Many are probably familiar with this song written by David. I am including it without verse designations using the Living Bible transliteration.
It is Sunday morning, dark outside, and I'm the only one up. The ambient noises are really part of the silence because I've tuned them out. Throughout the week we share scenes captured by camera, or memory and sometimes comment on their significance. Or, we rant about things over which we feel we have very little control and draw some comfort in knowing that others have similar thoughts. I know some of you who come and read here do not share my faith in Jesus Christ, and I know on my most eloquent day I could never convince you otherwise. Just know when you feel like there has to be more to life than what you know, there is. In Psalm 46:10 we find these words; Be still and know that I am God. Words for both the believer and the non believer.
When you have exhausted all your earthly strength in trying to make sense of all you see and hear, that's when you'll find God. The difference in the message of Jesus Christ is, it calls for worship of the Creator. All the other religious messages throughout time have called for worship of some aspect of creation. So today just be still. Quit fighting life. Let yourself go. God has always known who you are, and where you are. My prayer is for all of us to have a peace filled Sunday.
I'm of the opinion this picture illustrates the peace that can be found even in the chaos of construction. I used to travel a lot and I wrote this poem while staying in a motel room in Denver, Colorado. I awoke early and looked out the window before the business of the big city reached its peak. I wrote the following poem to illustrate my feelings. I hope you can find a peaceful place today to think on things greater than yourself.
It's Sunday, and while we get ready to go to the church house we are mentally making preparations for tomorrow's departure for Akumal, MX. For those of you who pray, we would ask you to remember us and ask for journey's mercies. I know many good pilots and have travelled the skies extensively through the years, but I never turn down help from on high. I am changing the procedure this time around. Many of you like to comment when you read the post, so I'm turning off the setting that links to my e-mail. Now you should be able to comment away without overloading my inbox. I am going to try and get some new material while I'm sitting on the beach. I hope you all have a wonderful week.
OBSERVATIONS FROM 30,000 FT.
I observed from a plane, clouds below
like miles and miles of drifted snow.
A polar icecap broken by lakes.
In the distance I could see
giant forms,
icebergs rising from the sea,
geysers billowing steam.
They are soft, I thought,
but feared descent.
These clouds looked hard,
permanent.
