Proud Bumpa

I've had the pleasure of being Bumpa to my four grandchildren and the privelage of spending a lot of time with them. In their own individual ways they all have made me proud. Sometimes by their talents and activities but more often by their character and humanity. Marsha and I treasured every moment we had together with them through the years. It was not that all of them were pleasant, but they all showed us their character and personalities. Forrest now a senior and once agin playing football is the baby of the group but he's no baby. Marsha would have been thrilled to see him playing football. We came up from MA on day trips just to see him practice when he was younger. She once flew to Milwaukee, WI, rented a car, drove completely across the state of Wisconsin to La Crosse to see Laura stage manage her first college play, to get back in the car the next morning and retrace the trip. So many big and little things come to mind as I share time with my grandadults. I'm so happy and proud they are in my life, and I think, if it's heaven for Marsha, she can still smile at all their lives and be the proud grandma she always has been.

Now Forrest hit some one!!!

Kameron Was Here

Kids are funny. My great grandson Kameron was hiding under the towel as so many kids do and like so many before him, he thought we didn't know who it was. He genuinely thought he surprised us when he peeked out. It is that you can't see me if I can't see you belief. As grown ups it often manifests itself in the notion that we can hide from God. God might allow us to go our own way, but He doesn't ignore our choices and actions. We don't need a towel to do our magical disappearing act we just let the fantasy become our reality.

Kids are also immensely curious. It seems like every moment they are trying to figure out something new. It could be the rocks in the driveway or the baby fish in the pond, but they just go from one adventure to another. They seem to have a somewhat sensible feel for what to fear and what is safe. They move a little carefully around new things but they don't generally stop their exploration. I think the unknown is often more of a problem for adults. We can even tend to fear God as if God would be out to get us.

I always said all I wanted to be when I grew up was a big kid, and when I really watch a youngster, I'm still convinced it would have a lot to offer.

Maine Coast

The coast of Maine is filled with rocky cliffs with crashing surf, and beautiful lighthouses on every major point of land. The bays are filled with lobster boats and sail boats and it seems like every one of these points has transportation boats to take people to the hundreds of offshore islands. As you look out from the harbors you see tiny islands everywhere, but you could also find many that are habitable. It makes for gorgeous rides as each harbor is different and unique although with built in similarities.

I have a brother-in-law that collects miniature model of lighthouses and he does have many. I never appreciated the models because I never took the time to see the settings. They are really adapted to the location and are very unique. I showed you two pictures as an example.

I must say I admire the country both in the shoreline and the hills, lakes and mountains, but it is not Myrtle Beach in terms of fitting my lifestyle. I'm glad I get the chance for both, but I'll enjoy home when I get there.

Nature Is Entertaining

The other day i was reclining in my beach chair behind my son's house enjoying the warmth and the serenity in God's creation. I was looking at the clouds and a number of different shapes were visible through a short time of looking up carefully. The camera does not show as clearly as my eye did the head of a falcon or other bird shaped by the cloud. It was just interesting to see how many beautiful images I could see in the clouds. A face appeared, an ocean wave, and more more thing were clearly visible. I went to belfast Maine yesterday and was taking some pictures of the harbor when I spotted the pose in the other picture. The picture is of a cormorant in a karate kid kind of a pose on top of a boat mooring. I don't know why these birds make this pose but I once saw a group of about ten of them all in the same pose. Without my camera this morning at the golf course I was walking toward my ball when I heard a clucking sound ahead of me and in what seemed like a single jump about twenty five turkeys, mostly babies, jumped out of the woods onto the grassy fairway. They just kept grazing as I took a shot not that far away and then walked by them. It seems like daily when I take the time to keep my eyes open I can find something to fascinate me. I lived most of my life in a fast paced trot from one thing to another and I know I missed many more curious and fascinating things in my environment. What else have I missed in my tunnel vision march through life? I'm sure some were far more important than these relatively unimportant observations. At a recent memorial service the song "Slow Down" was chosen to be played. I know the song and I know the thought. I even know the experience as I take quiet time each morning with my Lord, but I think it has been a respite time for me before my ready set run. How do we slow down and yet accomplish the needed tasks of life? How can we be active and reflective at the same time? Retirement is good, but I know God wanted more of this while I was busy.

Comedy

It seems funny that living with Marsha meant not seeing any movies that might called comedy. In certain situations a chick flick or two might qualify as a romantic comedy, but not a laugh out loud straight comedy. It seems funny because my wife could be outrageously funny and you would think she would be the one between she and I that would love comedy. I have remained in the pattern of avoiding comedy just because I don't know why. I agreed to go to the movies with Forrest my grandson and immediately I looked to see maybe Salt or maybe Inception but we ended up seeing a comedy that was laugh out loud funny. It was humorous all the way through but really funny at the end. My son then wanted us to rent a couple of movie an action adventure and a comedy. Again the comedy was extremely funny this time all the way through. I laughed and laughed something I probably need more than most. I tend to be a serious guy and laughter is good medicine for me. I will admit the language in one of those films was not in my liking but the movie was still funny. Maybe I should try it more often.

What's Next

The pictures are from The Saddleback Mountain Bluegrass Festival. We actually sat on the ski slope above the base lodge where the stage was set up. The scenery around us was spectacular. I had my reclining gravity beach chair which is very comfortable and brings a number of comments from people passing by. A couple of those led to conversations and two of them even ended up being about God. I have no idea what God will do with those conversations but it felt like they were part of God's plan for the day. Today at the golf course I also ended up in conversations with two of the course employees. Again God was a significant part of the conversations. One involved a man that has been going through some challenging times with Lyme's disease and polymoralgea (not sure of the spelling). A prayerful life, that is open to God's presence in the moment, finds these things just happening. It seems like life is always full of the what's next, because God will create opportunities to show my love for Him in the moments of every day. It's more difficult for me to believe there will be nothing next than to expect for more to happen. I do smile inside when God is so present, and I thank Him that I don't have to worry about the results if any. That is His business not mine. I just need to follow when He leads in the dance of life.

Bluegrass and Moose

My son and I went off on an adventure yesterday. We headed to the western side of Maine and explored some lakes and streams on our way out to Saddleback Mt. which was holding a Bluegrass Festival. The picture is of David Grissom and the Bluegrass Experience. Grissom has a reputation as the best Mandolin picker in the world. He was amazing I have to say. Another featured performance was by The Del MCoury Band. We left after those acts because it was getting toward dusk and out near the Rangley lakes is a heavy moose area. Most of you know the funny happenings last summer as we travelled to the places where everyone sees moose only to see none. We last evening was success. In the other picture if you look carefully you can see a mother and baby crossing the road in front of the car to get into the woods. They were very close to me as I tried to get the camera ready but two cars came by and moved them away from me and then across the road. I actually saw this mother and baby and also a one year old in a separate place. I must say that moose do exist in Maine and I have seen them. Marsha would be pleased that I finally have completed what we both wanted to do. The moose hunt is over now I will probably see them everywhere.

Animals Animals Everywhere

Two dogs, five cats and a hampster just for fun. I can still find a place to sit most of the time. Last year he had his snapping turtle tank that took up a third of the living room, but the turtles were released this spring. They really were quite big. They all love animals in this place but I like my petless existence. I can pat them and appreciate them for a few weeks but I don't want to take them home with me that's for sure. I watch the people at the dog park in Myrtle Beach and walking the neighborhood, especially the ones with multiple animals and I know for sure that my peaceful free life is more suited to my lifestyle. Sometimes I wonder how they afford all the pet food and other needs to take care of them all. I guess I just like different kinds of entertainment.

Energy

My granddaughter Cassie came over today after I finished playing golf and taking a nap. With her was her son Kameron who is almost three. He is almost two in the picture to the left and has grown so much in a year. He has so much energy it is exhausting. It is a logical question to ask why so much energy is wasted on the young. Perhaps in an earlier time we humans needed to quickly train our bodies so we could survive but today less physical energy might be more helpful so we could sit still and learn. Perhaps the world has changed faster than our ability to adapt. I was sitting in my gravity recliner beach chair aching from some entertaining exercise and he was non stop motion. I haven't seen him since last summer and you can see the change from one picture to the next. He loves sports already and can really hit a baseball. I guess somethings do come naturally. Yesterday he was hitting a golf ball and chasing it, then he decided he would fetch the ball when we through it like the dog retrieves a stick, also using his mouth mind you. He is a cute kid but I am exhausted this morning just thinking about it. He wore me out so much I may not play golf this morning until later.

Maine Woods

I'm back in Maine. Last summer we made a trip to the Maine woods for a wilderness experience without sleeping on the ground. The cabin in the picture is on Chamberlain Lake and you get there by being picked up by boat. It is a truly beautiful place and the cabins were very nice. If you have been reading my blog for a year you know this is the anniversary of my great moose quest that ended in complete failure. This year I have been told by my friend not to come back until I have a picture of a non zoo moose in my new camera. I don't know what I'm going to do because I don't like winter in Maine and I just know I'll never be in the right place at the right time to find that one mythical moose. I do love my new camera but I can't take a picture of what I can't see. My friend Pat said I was not going to be allowed to see a moose because Marsha never did. Pat was the one who sits on the beach in South Carolina a picks out our dolphin sightings. She has not seen one dolphin in over a year since Marsha died. What chance then do I have to take a picture of the mythical moose if Pat the dolphin queen can't see one dolphin. I do want to go home sometime this fall so I must proceed on my desperate moose quest once again. If you happen to see some snow covered old man wandering around the woods of Maine as winter begins saying Myrtle Beach please Myrtle Beach then humor him and find him a moose.

Memories

I came north to Massachusetts a few days ago to the place of many memories. I love my life in Myrtle Beach and I'm getting to create many great memories there, but my memory bank is filled with memories from relationships and circumstances here. I had the honor of presiding at the memorial service of a close friend on Saturday. The picture today was taken in Florida in March on Del Ray Beach. The legs and feet belong to Allen and Cheryl Cornell. Allen was a photographer and on their honeymoon he took a picture like this one. When I went to Florida ti be with them in March he knew he was ill and dying and wanted a picture taken of their feet together like the one on their honeymoon to represent the journey they had travelled together walking through life side by side. He wanted somehow to put the two pictures together in a frame as a symbol of their life together.

One moment after another, the time here has been a remembrance of the journey my feet have walked side by side with so many friends and family members. God has given me many great companions on my path, and placed so many great opportunities in front of me to share with people. I have had late bed times here in Massachusetts because I have been with friends remembering all those memories. Blessings abound in the past and they make me who I am. I carry them with me not to sit and admire them, although that is a treat once in awhile, but because they are the platform I stand on today as I make my choices in life. The good ones I seek to repeat, the bad ones I seek to learn from, but they all make up the platform I stand on today. God uses all of them when I let Him, because they are me and He wants to use all of me. He doesn't want me to live in the past forever, the memories are only the saved up treasure I can continue to use today.