Papa's Ponderings

First Date

2011-06-13T22:27:00.003-07:00

Right about now, 45 years ago I was bringing Deanna home from our first date. We went to a church baseball game. I played, she watched. Not much has changed about that. I still play, she still watches. It works for us. I imagine a lot of folks never thought we'd make it throught the summer much less 45 more. We were pretty young. I was 16, she was 17. I was going into my senior year of high school. She was leaving home for college....to find a preacher to marry....Dee's mom was not real big on the idea of us dating, my folks LOVED it. In retrospect, they were both right. Dee's father never made me feel like the kid he obviously knew I was. Words will never express my deep respect and love for him, he was the best. Dad was an invalid, had been since I was 11, but he really loved Dee. Mom made sure I had whatever I needed to date Dee. I'm sure dad knew and approved. Of course, I always knew it would work out. I may have been young, but I knew, I really did. Funny, I set here in my recliner, next to Dee in her recliner beside me. I often reach out my hand, she touches it and I know anew what I always knew from the first time our hands touched 45 years ago tonight...she is the only one for me, always was, always will be.

For the record we currently have 5 married children and 13 grand children with one more on the way...soon we hope. It just keeps getting better and better!

End of an Era

2011-03-08T17:38:00.003-07:00

I have known this day would come since 1996 when they declared my back yard a future mountain preserve. That day came and went with just the posting of a sign, but NOW they are putting in a hiking trail. Let me be clear. I hate the idea of a trail of any kind in MY backyard. It is mine, just ask Graham. While my sister was visiting last week she mentioned they had a 300+ acre horse ranch in California. Graham insisted Papa's back yard was much bigger. Noah corrected him with NO, Papa only has 2.5 acres. Graham rejected the math and explained he could walk behind the house as far as he wanted to! Until now it did not matter. I claimed all 55k acres that are directly accessible from my back door. It has been paradise. We could hunt, shoot, hike or just enjoy the silence and scenery. Now they are putting in a mountain bike / hiking trail only 200 yrds from my back door! Life is over as we have known it and we don't really like it. I could complain a bunch more but you get the point. In all fairness I will admit that the trail is really NICE, well planned and will be a real asset for bikers and hikers. My grand kids will love to run it's paths and ride their bikes on and over the hill. Becasue "Crystal Mountain" (an old gold panning site 100 yrds behind the house and named by Graham) is a historic trail, they really can't tell my grand kids they can't play there. (Off trail travel on the preserve is prohibited) I guess at this point the best choice for me is to embrace the trail and go for a walk with my grand kids...or maybe I'll get a mountain bike!

By Faith through Grace

2011-01-07T10:30:00.002-07:00

Deanna sat on the side of the bed wondering aloud when life would return to "normal". DIL Michelle just left with husband Dusty for a day after eye surgery check up. She is miserable but doing the best she can...Doni is recovering from her surgery last week and at this moment Dee and Becky are with mom and her occupational therapist learning how to help mom (if necessary) take a safe shower. I offered to help out but the girls did not think that was such a good idea! We have known this time would come eventually and we are as prepared as we can be, but the experience is different in ways I could not have predicted. I'm kind of thinking this IS the new normal....whatever "normal" is.

It is similar to my head knowledge of Father and the experience of a growing relationship. I guess I have always known that my relationship with the Father was based on salvation by faith through grace... Martin Luther made that REALLY CLEAR nearly 500 years ago. Problem is most people don't know the reality of that faith and grace because they don't really know the FATHER. Sure, they spend a lot of time talking about Him or listing to others talk about him, but not all that much time actually LIVING IN RELATIONSHIP with Him. The last few years I have concentrated more on the relationship and less on the knowledge and I am finding a deepening sense of relationship, confidence and trust and I am living free in Him and loving it....and I do LESS religious stuff than I ever have in all my life...but there is a joy in my heart that wasn't always there either. For me the turning point has been learning to trust
God to free me by love, not merit. Since I quit trying to earn His love and accept the fact that HE does love me in spite of what I do or don't do, I have a growing sense of his presence and relationship.

Skype Christmas

2010-12-26T00:07:00.002-07:00

For the first time ever, not all my kids were home for Christmas but we made the best of it with Skype. We started with some greetings in the office with the cousins and then moved the computer into the living room for the rest of the evening. I briefly read the Christmas story for all the grand kids...not sure how well that worked on skype, but we tried. Daniel's family in North Carolina were able to see and hear all we were doing all night. That was better than nothing but I know just how Tori felt every time she reached for the screen to touch Graham or Braxton. Brooks parents were able to go be with them for Christmas except today Daniel stayed home with the kids while Brooke and her folks were given a boat tour of the inland waterway. It is supposed to snow there tonight so I know it is cold! The funny thing though is the boat broke down and last I heard they were paddling it back to a boat ramp. It is not really dangerous. They are on an inland waterway and very close to hundreds of boat docks and piers in the back yards of very nice homes. They can get out anytime they want to....I think...Anyway I did not hear any more so I assume they got home safely. Other than the kids being in North Carolina and Mom in the rehab center, it was a perfect Christmas for me. All my other grand kids and Daughter's in law gathered early in the morning to make our traditional German fare. I spent the day sampling the progress and playing with the grand kids. Watching the girls together in the kitchen was every parents dream come true. They had FUN together and they really helped Dee out a lot. They laughed and teased their way through the day. It was the best present I could ever hope for. What A great Christmas. I hope your day went as well. For the last time this year MERRY CHRISTMAS....and have a GREAT new Year!

Wrapping the Box

2010-12-18T10:30:00.004-07:00

There is a cute commercial running on TV right now. Grandpa is asking Dad on Skype how the baby likes the present he sent for Christmas. Techno savvy teen shows grandpa that the baby is having a ball with the box and ignoring the present. That happens every year. Babies always play with the box, but as they mature the box is just in the way of what they want. Sure they admire it and maybe even open it gently, (ok not with my grandson's but it could happen). Make it as pretty as you want and they still just want what's inside! All that money and effort gone in seconds, reduced to a pile of rubble. As a small child I remember seeing a huge box under my grandfathers tree. How I wanted it to be for me. Something that big must be wonderful to own. My whole attitude about boxes changed when Aunt Helen (I think) opened it. It was a suitcase! What a dumb gift! A box in a box! Of course I was to young to realize that the suitcase was just a way of announcing a future trip...that was the real gift. For fun I once got the biggest box I could find to put my gift to my sister in. It was ear rings. I used as many boxes in boxes with as much tape as I could find to make it hard to open. Now that was fun! Since I had to get her a gift anyway, I might as well make her work for it! That whole Present/box thing is to often a picture of the season. The real gift of the season, the reason for the season is not the box. As a matter of fact I have never seen a BOX that even remotely could contain the real gift the BOX is supposed to represent.....a real, personal relationship with JESUS, . To often Christians get so wrapped up with the box they never get to the true gift. There is nothing wrong with Boxes, just keep in mind they are ONLY BOXES and don't let them replace the real gift of God, a real relationship with His Son.

Grandma's Cookies

2010-12-17T22:47:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd get a jump on the Christmas Nostalgia. Remember Grandma Z's (Anna) German Springerle (sp?) Cookies? This is the crystal bowl she used to make the impressions on the cookies. My sister Annette, gave it to Deanna after my mother's death. To be honest the cookies were not my favorite but the memories are. I didn't care all that much for the hot chestnuts either but I still love the smell.

From The Father's Heart

2010-12-17T10:33:00.003-07:00

It's been a while since I suggested a good book, but I really like the message Charles Slagel bring in this daily devotional. Charles takes a passage of scripture and turns in into a brief letter from God that is in keeping with what the passage says and it totally affirming to all struggling children. In one letter Slagel reminds us that God is never ashamed of us as his children. He gives us time to grow and left infinite room for our imperfections and failures in the process. He reminds us that God's ways are NOT like man's ways (Isa 55:7-10). He is all about forgiveness. I haven't read it all yet, but every letter has blessed and encouraged me. Plus I got it for .99 from Albris.com.

Mom's Accident

2010-12-15T22:27:00.002-07:00

Sorry this is so late, but I just got the data cable to download pics to my computer from my new phone.

Last Thursday a very excited friend of mom's came banging on the door yelling that mom had fallen and was hurt. Sure enough, mom had driven down to the trash and bent over to pick up a nail off the ground, losing her balance and falling/rolling behind the trash can. Her friend did not see her on the way up the driveway but went looking for her when she could not find her in her apartment. Mom fell at 9 AM and was not found until 9:40. Fortunately it was a warm morning. The Fire Dept. crew loaded her into an ambulance at 10:30 for her ride to the hospital. Tests revealed a broken hip...but not pelvis. Emergency surgery the next afternoon replaced the top of the femur where it enters the socket. She came through the surgery well and is now in a rehab center about 20 minuets from the house. We are expecting her to be there a couple of weeks, hopefully no more. When she comes home she will not return to her apartment immediately. She will stay with Dee and I in the main house where she and Poppy lived for a couple of years before we built the apartment. It was always the plan to have mom live with us at some point. Only the Lord knows if this it the time. Thanks for your prayers and concern for her.

Crushed Dreams

2010-11-29T09:14:00.004-07:00

I read this tweeter quote from a pro football player who dropped the game winning pass in the end zone this morning:

"I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!!! THX THO...,"

It reminded me of a moment in my youth. We were the league champs and playing for the CIF championship in So. California. As usual, I prayed with the team before the game and we beat the other team on every front...except the score! It was really disappointing. Crushing actually. In my defeated state I remember commenting to Dee (yes, we were in love way back then), but I prayed! The next morning the LA paper described the loss with the headline "THE CENTER WAS THE CENTER OF THE PROBLEM FOR THE VICTORVILLE JACKRABBITS". You guessed it, I was the center. The writer...who was not at the game...attributed a high snap for a punt and a down field fumble by the quarterback to be my fault and the reason for our losing the championship. There was NO consolation in viewing the video later that week that showed clearly that I had nothing to do with the fumble or the fact that the punter chose to throw the ball to the tackle instead of kicking it. I was really confused and wondered why God did not protect me and help me. I felt just like that pro....I praise you...I prayed...I DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS FROM YOU!...WE HAD A DEAL! That may be what started a downward spiral for a while....no I didn't go crazy and do stupid things, like I said, I was a good kid...I had to be. I had a sizzling deal with God. If I am really good, then nothing bad is going to happen to me. Ok, I was young and stupid...at least I'm not young any more, the rest is open to debate and interpretation. That unsettled state of trust lingered through the winter and into spring. When tennis season rolled around I found myself in the #1 position in the league. I frequently practiced against the coach. He could beat me as easily as I could defeat my team mates. All the same, I struggled in league matches. I still won but everyone around me knew something was wrong inside. My Dad quizzed Deanna, my coaches, my buddies and probably people I didn't know about to find the problem. I remember after one away game in Barstow my dad showed up. After we won the match my dad talked to coach Dudley and I ended up driving home alone with my dad. It was pretty much a silent drive. There were a few questions, like was I worried about being drafted and heading to Viet Nam...a big concern in the late 60's where the drafted the youngest first....What was wrong. Honestly, I had know idea. I know something was wrong but had no clue as to what it was, just that something deep inside was on life support at best. Dad got off the freeway one exit early and drove into the driveway of an elderly and godly black couple, Ma and Pa Phelps. He went in alone and after a few minuets came out to the car and invited me in. Not much was said as I was ushered to an old wooden upright kitchen chair in the center of their one room cabin. I had no idea what was happening until Ma and Pa put their hands on my shoulders and began to pray. I don't remember hearing a word they said or how long we were there. When they finished praying we left. Not much was said after that but whatever the cloud was that had chased me through the winter and into the spring left. Today, I know that it was, at heart, a spiritual problem. For reasons I still don't understand, I was at peace and it showed brightest in tennis. I never lost another match and hardly lost a set. It all began when I was confused about the true nature of God. It ended with the prayers of saints who lived in a one room shanty with little material goods and knew then what I know now. God Loves me all the time whether I am good or not. My current circumstances...good or bad at the moment... are not the measure of His love. Jesus is. I live in relationship with him as friend, not a bartering partner. He can be trusted even if I am confused by the circumstances. There is still a lot I do not fully understand but I don't find that black cloud hanging around very long these days either.

Ancient tree?

2010-11-10T00:08:00.005-07:00

Darin, Dustin, Shane and I wandered the desert this past weekend looking for a desert Mulie. Obviously we didn't find one but I found this juniper fascinating. My cell phone photography does not do it justice but if you click on the picture you will see a depth of character that draws you in. It made me wonder what stories it could tell if it could talk. The elements and man have taken their shots at it but it still stands strong, not defiant, but confident, courageous. At one time it's roots were totally protected, deep in the soil, but time has slowly eaten away at its base, exposing much of the life giving roots to the ravages of the heat and the axe of man. Because the roots went deep, the tree lives, scarred for sure, but beautiful in it's own way. At the time it made me stop and ponder the depth of my own roots. Waht is the earth I am rooted to? Clearly it must be bigger than me. Are my roots deep enough to withstand the storms, hacks and erosion of life? There is a rugged beauty to this tree, something that I want to be true in me also. I must be certain to do all my life what this tree has done to survive...keep getting the roots deeper and stronger. King David's Tree in Psalms 1 was rooted well, planted by streams of living water. I guess that's true for trees of all kinds, isn't it?

Noah's Catch

2010-11-08T18:42:00.002-07:00

I was talking to Daniel this evening and he said Brooke was out to dinner with a local pastor's wife and he was going to take the kids fishing off the dock. I asked him to send me a picture.....yes, that's Braxton hooked on Noah's Crappie jig. He had to round up Brooke and head to the ER to get it removed....and a tetnus shot no doubt. I think this is about their 4th trip to the ER. I guess that's one way to meet people. Personally I'd stick with the dinner dates.

Change in Blog

2010-10-19T19:05:00.003-07:00

Do to the increase in spaming and the vile nature of some spam, I have chosen to turn on moderation for all comments. I tried the spam filter, but junk was still getting through. Sorry, I do love to hear from you but I don't want to allow spamers to ruin it.

Hog Heaven

2010-10-15T23:39:00.003-07:00

All the grand kids were over tonight for family night and...well to be honest we wanted a little peace and quiet so we sent them to play on the back patio. Zane came up with the idea of catching a javelina since as I noted in the last blog, they have been visiting frequently this week. David told Zane how to build a pig snare and I secured a rope for him to make it. Evidently David's plan did not suit Tanner and Zane so they devised their own plan. The place the empty Ice Chest at the edge of the lawn, put some dog food in it and around it and tied the rope to it. The plan was to drop the ice chest over on the baby when it went in to feed. We figured that might keep them harmlessly occupied waiting for the pigs to enter their trap. Tori, Tanner, Ty, Zane, Zandi, Ryker and Karsyn sat waiting. After a while Sweetie noted that it was really quiet out side and uncle Dusty got up to check on the trappers. He came back holding a crying Ryker and reported the rest were outside waiting for the baby to enter their trap. Sure enough, the little herd was feasting on the dog food provided by the GK's as they sat mesmerized by the sight 12 feet in front of them. Doni demanded we secure Tori from such a dangerous activity, but it fell on deaf ears. Finally all of us were on the porch watching the pigs do their thing. Doni insisted it was dangerous for the kids to be doing this but when Zane saw a flaw in his trapping system, (Pulling on the rope would cause the ice chest to fall the wrong way) Doni corrected his engineering problem and came back in the house....without Tori! The pigs did not come back but when Jim and Doni were ready to call it a night Jim had to literally wrestle a rope out of Tori's hands and pry her protesting little body out of the chair to get her home. She screamed all the way to the car that she wanted to catch the pig! The anuts and uncles went to a late movie so Zane and Zandi are staying with us till around 1 am. Zane fell asleep propped up on a chair watching out the window for the pigs to come back to his trap. Sorry Zane but I'm not going to wake you if the do come back. I'm afraid you will catch the baby in your trap and I do not wish to have to explain to that mother pig that we mean the baby no harm. I don't think she would beleive me. So that's what we do for entertainment around the Z house on Friday night. (I left the pic's full size so if you click on them you can enlarge it and see the pigs behind the ice Chest.)

How to Say I Love You

2010-10-14T10:49:00.003-07:00

Dee and I have been married for nearly 42 years now and I have noticed something about how she tells you she loves you. Before I met her she had really no interest in guns....truth be told, she still doesn't....it's not my fault, honest. I tried. My first Valentines gift to her (at 18) was a 20 gage shotgun....now if that doesn't say love and commitment, what does? OK her first kill with it was nearly me, but that's another story...(no she would not shoot me, more like wrap the barrel around my neck).Her first (and latest) kill was a side winder rattlesnake she shot with great glee. ( Snakes are the one thing she definitely likes to shoot, but only if they are on the porch. She even practices the shot! ) I think it is the only thing she really enjoys shooting...and she still does shoot them off the porch! But really, wonderful as she is in every imaginable way, she is NOT a hunter, shooter or anything of the sort. Not opposed, just not interested. So how does that explain this candid shot from last week? Zane was here for the weekend and ALL he wanted to do was sit on the lawn and shoot his BB gun. There is NOTHING but desert behind the house for 6 miles so it is safe. Zane expressed a hope to get a shot at a buck, knowing he should not shoot a doe, but none happened to walk into the back yard. He did his best elk call impersonations, a few duck calls and some calls I didn't quite recognize but he was persistant! Maybe the unidentified call was a lizard call. He did bag one of those. Mostly he managed to shoot holes into a few "Indian relics" laying about in the desert behind the house. Zandi collected a few of the undamaged relics for her collection. To me they looked an awful lot like old tin cans but Zandi assured me the ancient Indians had left them behind. Seeing as how they found them in the desert it must be true. Had they been merely old cans, a more responsible person would have put them in the trash! You can't legally remove Indian relics in Arizona so the question being raised, I best leave them lay where they are. In a yet undiscovered corner of the wash is some other "relics" of yesteryear which I was going to remove but am now considering leaving them for the grandchildren to discover. It will be interesting to see how they interpret historical "digs". I digress. If Dee were to have any quality time with Zane, it was going to have to be on his terms....with a gun, thus the picture. Sweetie added a few holes to the relics proving her worthiness to sholder the firearm. Zanw was delighted to the fact that....sorry David...when he saw his dad pull into the driveway something deep inside him moaned, "O no!" Of course Sweetie thought that was the greatest moan she ever heard! Fact of the matter we both laughed and felt very loved. Zane, buddy, I can tell you this for a fact. Your GrammieSweetie, really loves you. I know. She told me she loves me the same way a long time ago. She still does.

One of the things I do NOT understand about Deanna. She says Javalina are UGLY but the other night a herd was enjoying a feast of dog food just outside our glass bedroom door and they had a 2 lb baby with them nursing as mom gorged on Purina. Deanna said the baby was so CUTE! I have pictures to prove the baby is an EXACT copy of the big one, so why is it so cute and mom so ugly?

Thoughts on Family from the Fog

2010-10-07T11:18:00.004-07:00

I copied this off of cousin Ray's (far right, Derold, Left) blog . We didn't get the rest of the clan in the picture but we also were with Randy and wife Kimmie, Derold's wife Janna, and kids Shai and Devon and Dori, husband Steve and children Mat, Mike and Melissia. Randy and the kids had never met Ray and Derold saw him last near 30 years ago. Ray remembered the meeting well. Derold let him drive his new Camero (79), a treat for a farm boy. Things fell into place quickly because we are family. I'm sure we will all find more opportunities to get together as often as possible. I mentioned on an earlier post that I am in somewhat of a fog. A part of the fog is the season of life I am in. Several times on the trip Ray deferred decisions to me as the "patriarch" of the Zimmermann side of family. Technically I am #2 on the list but Derold's father Roland wasn't around so the mantal fell on me. Ready or not, it is that season. Hunting aside, the real motivation for the trip was to get the family together again, there was a longing to do it and I was not in any way disappointed. It exceeded my hopes. I have another kind of family here in Phoenix...and beyond...that I love to get together with too. Some would call it the church, but it is so much more than that. It is a group of people God has put into my life to share His Love with. Some of the Fog cleared this morning as I pondered he success of the trip and my desires for my other family. The trip was successful because we all got together to give, expecting nothing and needing nothing but the joy of each other's company and love. Had I gone looking to GET something, I likely would have been disappointed. I'm thinking that is were families, physical and spiritual, go wrong. Whenever a group gathers to RECEIVE from the family, they are essentially saying that Jesus had not given them enough so they had to find someone else to get it from. Since Jesus CREATED each and every one of us to receive ALL WE NEED from Him alone we will never really find it any were else. When we have received all we need from Him, THEN we are in a great position to really fellowship with all the family and share with them what He has given to us. If this only kind of makes sense to you or you want to think about it more with me, call me, you have my number.

To see Daniels New House via virtual earth

2010-10-05T10:33:00.001-07:00

http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj&FORM=Z7FD1#/t30qxyvzhd47kcp3

In a Fog

2010-10-05T09:40:00.004-07:00

You'll have to get the full story from Darin or Josh or ask to see the video but the short version is Darin and Josh went bear hunting WITH ONLY ONE BULLET. Darin made a good but not perfect shot at 400+ yards and rolled the bear down the hill. When they went to inspect it, it CHARGED to within 30 feet....and they were armed with a knife and a video camera! Darin grabbed his knife and Josh shot video! All I can figure is the bear was camera shy and turned away. Wisely (if that term is appropriate given the circumstances) they left it alone and came back the next AM with another gun and MORE bullets. It had not moved far but it still needed 3 more direct hits to put it down. So tell me Darin, what where you going to do with that knife! Surpirsingly, Sweetie is looking forward to seeing this one made into a rug and mounted on our wall!

I spent last week with my cousins Ray, Derold and wife Janna, Randy and wife Kim hunting deer in New Jersey. Kim runs a company that specializes in hunting gear...a tree harnass to suspend a hunter way up in a tree, it is awesome, but not very practical in the desert or I would have brought one home...Janna doesn't hunt, but boy can she cook! We had not all been in the same place at the same time for 30 years. It was a great time together and the hunting was ok....by New Jersey standards.... (I only shot 4 deer) fantastic compared to any where else. It was warm and very humid part of the time. I have never seen fog in 75 degree weather. Daniel moved to North Carolina while I was gone and I still feel like I am in a fog of sorts. It will clear up in time, it always does. I did hear a great sermon at Derold's church. The missionary preacher said to slay a "giant" in your life: 1) focus on the promises of God, 2) Wait PATIENTLY for what God will do. 3) Believe Jesus has the power to do it all. I loved it becasue ALL the burden for results is squarely on GOD'S part. I need to remember that to slay a few giants right now and get out of my personal fog. Above is a view from one tree stand in Derold's backyard.

Good Bye

2010-09-20T17:06:00.004-07:00

Daniel, a healthy Pregnant Brooke and the kids have loaded all their earthly goods and are jumping on I-40 east as far as it goes, stopping just short of getting their feet wet. We fully understand and support their moving even though we will miss them more than I can stand to think about right now. They are excited to begin a new adventure in a totally different place and we are excited with them As soon as the get settled....no place to live yet...Dee and I wll go out to see them.

The Shack: 1000 discussion guides

2010-09-03T09:19:00.002-07:00

This morning I reached a milepost when I emailed the 1,000th copy of my Shack Discussion Guide to another reading group somewhere in the world. I have no idea how many may have been copy and pasted off the blog post. The Shack is now well in excess of 10m copies world wide and in a bunch of different languages. People love to hear the story of God's love for them told in such a personal and practical way.

Payson Rodeo

2010-08-21T10:37:00.004-07:00

Yesterday everyone went to the Rodeo in Payson but I had to stay home to work. Dee was disappointed but went without me. I finished up early and got a ride up with David. I decided NOT to tell Dee I was coming. Technically I never lied to her. I told her I was going to find some cute, Hot girl and go to dinner. Can you pick out the one I took to dinner?

Karsyn, Braxton, Zandi and Nate Perkins Daughter with Jodi's Brother Jeremy

Darin and Ryker Nate and Macy Jo

Dan and Cozie

Brooke

Mutton Busters Graham and Zane...They both rode....briefly! Graham got pretty good air time.

Watch Doni's blog for her photographic art of this event.

Hand's down, the cutest and hottest cowgril there....I did get her to come home with me again.....for the past 40+ years

Oregon Trip

2010-08-19T11:59:00.005-07:00

I went on a "business trip" to Oregon with two really good friends, Steve Stanly and Lon Sidel. Lon and I have the same business and he "needed" help at a big FMCA rally in Redmond. Although the pictures don't show it, we really did the show...all three days. We stayed at a house right on the river with deer visiting daily. I took this pic from the couch in the den. Deanna kept asking why I was on HER dream vacation without her. She wasn't buying the work line at all. I dismissed it until I walked up to his spot on the river. Easy access and could not be more beautiful...exactly the way she likes it. By the way, this is what Oregon considers "HIGH DESERT". For some reason they do not distinguish between cactus needles and pine needles. A hint: Cactus needles are NOT green!

Steve tells me he stood in this spot once for 6 hours casting a fly into the same pool! I fished for about 5 minuets then sat under a tree and just enjoyed watching the river go by. He did catch one little one...and released it. Oregon is a great place to be in August. Before I left Phoenix I literally melted the soles off 2 pair of shoes working on pavement that was 167 deg. It felt like the dead of winter to me there! On the way home I spotted some black berries beside the road, so we stopped for lunch. Apparently there is some kind of rule that you have to eat as much as you pick to put in the bucket. I was worried about it but evidenty you cannot overdose on Blackberries. We started the trip gathing blueberries that were growing everywhere. You can't OD on them either. If anyone wants to fly to the area, don't overlook flying to Eugene from Mesa Williams Airport. Tickets are less than $100 round trip.

Escaping the Heat

2010-08-06T12:15:00.002-07:00

Left to Right: Ty, Tori, Graham, Zane, Noah, Tanner, Braxton, Zandi, Cozette (Karsyn, Ryker and Cooper couldn't make the trip). It was just to hot to stay in the valley yesterday and I had a quick errand to run in Prescott so Daniel, Doni, David, Sweetie and I headed off to the cool mountains via the back way through Walnut Grove and a delightful creek for the kids to play in for a while. Sweetie got a little nervous when a magnificant huge black Angus Bull walked up to her holding Tori at the creek. He got within 4 ft. He probably never saw anything bigger than himself so nothing seemed to threaten him. I told Sweetie to just sit still and he passed on by. My theory is why run, I can't outrun anything any way so why try? After we left the creek we went inI to Prescott where the kids all visited the candy store. Everything was really great.....except for Zane gettiing car sick and throwing up about 10 minuits from home. Uncle Daniel had to make a late night trip to his old office to clean the seats, but it was no real biggie. Doni had her camera with her and got some great shots down at the creek which I imagine will show up on her blog soon.

REALLY dumb dog!

2010-07-30T14:31:00.005-07:00

Boomer is my DIL's mixed breed mutt. She told me he is not all that bright but he is really lovable. I keep him locked up far from the house at night because he feels it is his responsibility to comment on everything that happens all night around the house. He barks at everything and even nothing sometimes. You would think he had an opinion about this when I went to let him out this AM. IF he knew it was there, he wasn't saying anything about it! Fortunately I saw it before I stepped on it. It never made a move or rattled. I suspect he lives...with his buddies...under the barn which is about 6 feet away to the left. Gunner, his roommate did bark once but he has been snake broke and is really afraid of Rattlers. Last week Dusty exited the back door to find out what the dogs were barking at and narrowly missed a bite. A snake larger than this one was at the back door waiting...We get up often at night to keep the pigs out of the dog food. This week they moved the latched cargo box full of dog food out onto the lawn and popped the latches....without hurting the box! Still don't know how they did that. Now I put the dog food on top of the kennel at night. So far they haven't figured how to get it down. I was catching the snakes to release elsewhere but my grand kids were getting to fascinated with the captured critters....not something that was very popular with Sweetie. At least it keeps things interesting.

Why am I still here?

2010-07-12T11:14:00.003-07:00

I was reminded this morning of a curious event that happened near 30 years ago. I had instructed a teenager (who had to serve time with me for some modest infraction) to dig a hole to put a pole in the ground for a new volley ball court we were building. He was a really good worker and made great progress until he got down about 30 inches. Some "roots" were blocking his progress, try as he might. I remember laying on the sand and extending my right arm full length to the bottom of the hole and feeling three smooth intertwined roots, each about as big around as my finger. I felt a nick in one root and what felt to me like a metal cable inside. A sinking feeling came over me that it was not a root but a buried electrical cable. I carefully got up and back on dry ground and saw that at the end of the volley ball court was an electric pole that had a big cable come down the pole and disappear into the ground. I felt really fortunate that we....since we were still alive....hit the ground line instead of the power line. I let the water in the hole dry out and indeed the nick had exposed the metal inside the cable. After it all dried out I cleaned it out and used some 50 year silicone and pipe to seal it up. Everything was fine...for about 12 years. The power in the main church building started to act funny and the air conditioners were not working. The Electric company determined there was a problem in the buried line connecting to the building. I remember advising the repairman to begin his search for the break where I had repaired the line years before. He listened to my story and dug where I suggested. Sure enough, my old repair, good as it was, did not account for the moisture in the line that I had sealed in. Over the years it had corroded the metal into powder. He went to the pole to disconnect the power but I told him it was safe, it was just the ground wire that was harmed. He shocked me when he objected saying NO it is a hot line. There is NO ground cable on this three wire cable! I told him when I discovered it and fixed it we were in WATER. Why were we not electrocuted? His dead pan response was "I don't know, You should have been....electricity sometimes does funny things". I don't know if there is a natural explanation to my good fortune or a supernatural one, but I do know that I was protected. Today Paul's reminder "you are not your own, you have been bought with a price" rings very clear. Not only did Jesus literally die to demonstrate his love for me, but he has saved me....litterally...several times in my life from what should have or at least could have been certain death. That memory makes it easier for me right now with all the uncertainty that surrounds me and the future. I know I can trust Him with whatever comes my way. I hope you know that too.

Do The Math

2010-06-24T20:32:00.002-07:00

I was just watching a BP spokesman assuring us that the Oil Spill will be taken care of and that they would cover the wages of those who have lost income. For support he said over 18,000 claims had already been paid for a total of $51,000,000. Sounds impressive IF YOU DON'T DO THE MATH! Each claim was paid $2833.33. No wonder the thing is still leaking!