It was a beautiful day to be exploring my wife's home state! 

I Don't Know What To Say About This Post! 

Remembering The Good Old Days

What I thought I would share with the reader today had to do with the picture shown below and the peace that it conveys concerning times when life was more gentle. Those now famous "Good Old Days," that never were! That is the truth! My paternal grandmother was born in 1889 on the prairie here in South Dakota. She was one of 11 children born in a sod, single room house. Some of us in the family recorded her words of wisdom on her 90th birthday(she went home to be with the Lord over 20 years ago) and when asked what she thought to be mankind's greatest advance during her years we waited expectantly for her answer. After all, she had been there through the invention of electricity, phones, automobiles, aeroplanes, radio & television, space exploration, computers and instant communication globally. Her years of experience replied in a New York second, "INDOOR PLUMBING!" The good old days never were! Grandmothers everywhere washed clothes on a washboard. Farmers plowed with a single bottom hitched to a horse. Factory workers put in 12-16 hours daily, 7 days a week. It took weeks, sometimes months to get a letter to someone. Life expectancy, let's not go there. I'm in the process of searching out a publisher for the new book. The CD of all original music is to be released next month. My freezer is full and so is the fridge. Yet, I sit here in my 21st century comfort and sometimes bemoan the fact that things are not as easy as I would like for them to be. Poor me! I like to think of myself as a "rugged" guy. I can travel 5-6 hundred miles a day on two wheels, live in a tent and eat out of a tin can heated over the fire. I can bring down my own dinner with a gun and have it ready to eat 30 minutes later. Talk about "fast food!" So I look wistfully at a picture and think "Ah, for the good old days." They never were the "Good Old Days." Life was hard and the people that lived it were either just as hard or they didn't survive. Which puts me in a totally different head. How about, instead of the time worn, "Good Old Days," we talk about the, "New Good Days." Surely there must be pictures somewhere worthy of depicting the wonderful time we are living. Or, do we have to wait another 90 years before realizing it is the little stuff(remember that indoor plumbing), that sometimes makes the biggest and longest lasting impression on us? It is Sunday, again! Take a moment to count your blessings, and consider what your "New Good Days" have brought to your life. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Photographs And Memories Are All That Remain Of This Vision. 

Dreams, Everyone Has At Least One Big Dream!

Most of my personal dreams in life have already been lived at least once, some more. There is this one, though, that I have not yet been able to get together. I've been on every imaginable type of water vessel known to man, but I have never sailed around the world. That's the dream I have yet to realize. I think about it once in awhile. My wife and I could have done it a few years ago, even talked about it while we were out in the Bahamas aboard the "Southern Cross." The thing is, I don't want to do it on a great big ship with lots of other people around. My vision has us on a 40-45 foot combination fiberglass and traditional wood, sail driven(power below decks in case of a doldrum, of course)ocean going vessel. Sell everything, except for one Harley which goes with, and a vehicle to get us to Aplena, Michigan, where the boat of my dreams will be waiting. Just the two of us and our faithful dog, wandering the seas in search of adventure and someplace that looks interesting enough to pull in and enjoy for awhile. The entire world in front of us and not a single thing to go back for. How does that sound for a dream? I've always liked it! In fact, it is my favorite! Do I think it will become a reality? God only knows. Cheryl doesn't really care too much for the water, and has never learned to swim, but as I've told her, "Swimming is not a required talent for sailing around the world, we'll have a small launch and life preservers! So there is nothing to worry about." The really best "life preserver" I can imagine, though, I already have. My faith in Christ Jesus. After that, this life and everything in it is on a "take it as it comes basis." I love the picture below of the sailing ship, "The Gazel" she looks so inviting, but a little too large for just the three of us. Out on the Missouri river we see sailing vessels every year on our way to the rally in Sturgis, and on the way back. One of these days we need to stop, go down to the docks, wander around and dream together. That is the best part of having someone to share life and it's many experiences with, the dreaming. Just the two of us with the sun setting to the west, feeling the wind come off the water as we move about the deck taking care of the details of managing a boat together, the smell of the salt air, and the wind in our faces. Standing wrapped in each other's arms watching the world as it comes to us. Ahhh, the dream.......God bless, Preacher.

Freedom For The Spirit, Found In Every Human Pursuit! 

Genealogical Roots Versus Ancestral and Cultural Roots!