38 Wonderful Years

Today, June 15th is a special day. 38 years ago I said "I do" to my very best friend. The best decision I ever made was to marry the girl who stole my heart when she walked into Mr Brost's History class the beginning of my senior year of high school. I know that high school romances seldom last and that when kids get married when they are in their teens the marriages aren't supposed to last, but we have proven those things wrong. It is still awesome to go through each day with my best friend.



This is the girl that took my breath away when she walked into class that morning. I was too shy to talk to girls, so it was almost a year before she had any idea that I was interested. I think that the good Lord knew that I needed all of the help I could get so he made it so that our paths crossed in a number of ways that year.

Mr. Brost selected five students to work together each week producing learning packets for History class. Gina and I were both in the group.  We met in the library and worked on  producing material to go along with the following weeks lessons.  As I think back on it, that Mr. Brost was a smart teacher.  We helped produce his lesson materials and did it willingly.

We both worked at the Harris Pine furniture factory. I worked on the dresser jig, and she made drawers. I would spend my breaks back with the drawer makers, but she still didn't catch on.  Because she was clueless that I was interested in her and I was far to shy to let my feeling be known we were able to become good friends but that was all.

It came time for our High School graduation and I still had never gotten up the nerve to ask her out. Finally I mustered up every ounce of courage I could find and asked her if she would march with me when we graduated. She told me that she would like to but she had already told Russell she would march with him. If I would talk to Russell she would march with me. I'm pretty sure that she never thought I would actually do it.  Once again summoning up every bit of courage I had, I talked to Russell. He was very gracious and bowed out. I was on cloud nine.

I had a great graduation weekend, but after it was over I didn't know what to do.  I was definitely in uncharted territory.  I guess she figured that I would never ask her out, so she invited me to attend the Porter Hospital company picnic at Elitch Gardens.  I don't handle amusement park rides well, but I wasn't going to tell her so we rode the rides.  My stomach couldn't take it and I ended up throwing up on her.  I was sure that the relationship was over at that moment, but she took me to her home where she let me borrow some of her Dad's clothes while she washed mine.  We then went back to Elitch Gardens but didn't ride anything other than the train.  I definitely knew that she was a keeper.

Our relationship was a long distance relationship for a year. She was attending Union College in Lincoln, Nebraska and I was living in Loveland, Colorado. We wrote hundreds of letters and I called her every Wednesday night while my family was at prayer meeting; the only time I could have any privacy.  The next year I packed up my things and went to Lincoln.  I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with this girl. On June 15, 1975 we were married in the Denver First Seventh-day Adventist Church. The last 38 years have been an interesting and very fulfilling time.  There is nothing I would rather do that take a road trip to someplace I have never been before and spend time with my best friend.  I'm looking forward to the next 38 years together.

Happy Anniversary Gina!

Back Roads

I love driving on the back roads in western Arkansas. I love the scenery. I love the adventure. I love to just take off and explore new roads. When I see a road I always wonder where it goes.  Just last weekend we had an adventure on the back roads of Arkansas.

On our way back home from Dierks Lake, we took a "shortcut" over gravel mountain roads.  Within just a few miles of the highway we came to the Cossatot River bridge that was impassable because there was three feet of water flowing over it.  We had to turn around and go all the way back to Dierks Lake so we could take the paved roads. On our way back to the lake we followed our GPS and were stymied three different times by locked gates across the roads.  After an hour we finally made our way back.

Sometimes exploring a new road can be quite an adventure. When you are traveling a rural Arkansas road you just don’t know where you will end up.


In the fall of 2006 America was transfixed with the story of James Kim. He was traveling home from Portland, Oregon to San Francisco, California with his wife and 2 children. They took a wrong turn onto a logging road in bad weather. The snow became too deep to travel, and they became stranded.



After several days Mr. Kim set out on foot to look for help. He believed the nearest town was located four miles away. The distance to the town was actually 13 miles. He promised his family that he would turn back at 1 p.m. if he failed to find anyone, but he did not. Kati Kim and her two children were found alive when a search helicopter was led to the scene after seeing human footprints in the snow. The three were then rescued, and airlifted out of the area.

Soon after the rescue of Kati Kim and her children, search and rescue teams followed James Kim's footprints back along the road for about 10 miles where his footprints left the road and led into the heavily wooded Big Windy Creek drainage area. James Kim's body was found in Big Windy Creek. He had walked 16 miles looking for help.

Although Mr. Kim had walked 16 miles, he was found about four miles from his vehicle, and about one mile from Black Bar Lodge, a boating outpost. Though it was vacant at the time, it was stocked with food items. What a tragic story!

In Proverbs 14:12 the Bible tells us “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death”. When the Kim family decided to go down that logging road, they had no idea that the road was impassable. Had they known about it, I’m sure they wouldn’t have taken that path. It was supposed be a short cut, but only led them to tragedy.

What about the road you are on in your life? Have you taken any wrong turns in your life? Have you been on any wrong roads? How do you know which road to take?



In Psalms 25:4,8-10 the Bible tells us” Show me the path where I should walk, O LORD; point out the right road for me to follow. The LORD is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray. He leads the humble in what is right, teaching them his way. The LORD leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all those who keep his covenant and obey his decrees.

God has promised to be our guide. He will point out the right road for us to follow. As I have discussed spiritual things with people I have heard the following analogy several times. “You see it your way I see it my way, but there are many roads all going to the same place.”

Jesus has an answer for that way of thinking. We find his words in Matthew 7:13,14. “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway that leads to destruction is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose the easy way. But the gateway to life is narrow, and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it”. You know from experience that all roads don’t lead to your destination. I’m sure that you have been on a road that didn’t take you where you thought it would. James Kim found out this truth in a tragic way.


GEORGE HARRISON VIDEO - ANY ROAD

One of the last songs that George Harrison recorded was a song titled “Any Road”. The chorus of the song says “If you don't know where you're going any road will take you there”. His words are very true. They describe the kind of roads that I like to explore. I like to drive on them because I don’t know where I’m going. I like to just take off and explore new roads. When I see a road I always wonder where it goes. A number of times I have been completely lost, but eventually I made it home. It can be fun not knowing where you are going.



While it can be fun to explore unknown roads on a Sunday afternoon drive, it’s not a good plan in our spiritual lives. We should know where we are going. We should all have the same destination in mind.

I hope that you know where you are going. Jesus told us that not just any road would take us there. Have you found the road that leads to life? Have you studied the map?
I hope that you and I will be able to say what David said in Psalms 73:23-26. “Yet I still belong to you; you are holding my right hand. You will keep on guiding me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. I have no one in heaven but you; I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever”.

Pleasure Pier in Galveston, Texas

On our recent trip to Texas to see our son and his wife, we took a day trip with them to Galveston.  We decided to check out the new Pleasure Pier.  It is a great new mini amusement park built on a pier.

In 1906 Electric Park opened bringing amusement seeking tourists to Galveston. Located at 23rd and Seawall Blvd., just two blocks from the current Pleasure Pier, this electric amusement park lit up the Galveston sky with thousands of lights. The attractions included a roller coaster, carousel, theater, as well as the park’s prized possession, The Aerial Swing. In the early 1900’s Galveston promoted itself as the "The Coney Island of the South.”

The pier was originally built as a recreational facility for the United States military. In the 1940's it was transformed into the Galveston Pleasure Pier and was the largest of its kind in the country. America’s top dance bands routinely filled the mammoth Marine ballroom. Fishing facilities, a full carnival midway and an aquarium made the pier an iconic family destination. The Galveston Pleasure Pier operated as a tourist destination until 1961 when Hurricane Carla severely damaged the property.

Four years after Hurricane Carla, the Flagship Hotel opened on the once devastated Pleasure Pier and quickly became an icon, offering a one of a kind hotel over the Gulf, staying open for over 40 years. On September 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike made its final landfall near Galveston as a strong Category 2 hurricane and damaged the hotel significantly.  Three months after the hurricane I was in Galveston and took a picture of the Flagship Hotel.

Rather than rebuild the hotel, plans were made to transform the Pleasure Pier into a world‐class amusement park for all ages.  The plans were to  recapture the site’s original purpose as a pleasure pier. The Pleasure Pier opened in May of 2012.

We had a great time at Pleasure Pier.  The day had started out very rainy and we were afraid our day trip would be compromised.  It was still raining a bit when we arrived, but the weather improved as the day went on.  Because of the rain the pier was not busy and we didn't have to wait for the rides.

If you are ever in Galveston, check out Pleasure Pier for great family fun.

Vicksburg National Military Park

Last month my wife and I went on a vacation to Disney World in Florida with our daughter and her family.  On our way home we spent a couple of hours at the Vicksburg National Military Park in Vicksburg, Mississippi.

The park commemorates the campaign, siege, and defense of Vicksburg. The city's surrender on July 4, 1863 split the South, giving control of the Mississippi River to the Union. There are over 1,340 monuments, a restored Union gunboat, and National Cemetery on the 16-mile tour road.



There is so much history in the park. The U.S. Government established the battlefield as a National Military Park in 1899.

The battles of the Vicksburg campaign were some of the fiercest and longest lasting of the war. General Grant attacked the Confederates on May 19, 1863 and again on May 22. The Confederate positions were too strong, and the Union casualties were high. On May 25 General Grant decided on a siege of the city as he had it surrounded and had naval bombardment from the Mississippi. He stated in his memoirs, "I now determined upon a regular siege—to 'out-camp the enemy,' as it were, and to incur no more losses."


By the end of June, half of the Rebel soldiers were sick or hospitalized. Scurvy, malaria, dysentery, diarrhea, and other diseases cut their ranks. Food was almost non-existent, with soldiers resorting to eating dogs, mules and shoe leather. On July 3 General Pemberton rode out of the city with white flags to meet General Grant to discuss terms of surrender.



The most important thing for the Union army was that they now controlled all of the Mississippi River. The side that controlled that waterway controlled a direct route through the Confederacy and would eventually dominate the war. The full campaign claimed 10,142 Union and 9,091 Confederate killed and wounded.

As we toured the park and looked at all of the monuments it was sobering to think of the loss of life and the hardship that occurred in this beautiful countryside.














The ABC Wednesday Meme is a fun way to see some great blogs.

Cardboard Boat Race

Today we had a great time at the annual Arkansas-Louisiana Pathfinder and Adventurer Cardboard Boat Race held at Dierks Lake. My grand daughters and their cousins were participating.  They spent the night before the race at our house and had an cookout and ice cream party followed by a slumber party.

To enter the boat race the kids had to build a boat with only cardboard, duct tape and paint.  It was amazing how durable the girls boats were.   After the race they spent quite some time just paddling around in the boats.  They all had a really good time.

The girls were excited to win trophies and medals for their efforts.

Grandma and Papa had a lot of fun spending the day in such a beautiful place and seeing the girls have such a good time.  After the race we had a picnic and then the kids spent the afternoon swimming.

On our way back home we took a "shortcut" over gravel mountain roads.  Within just a few miles of the highway we came across a bridge that was impassable because there was three feet of water flowing over the bridge.  We had to turn around and go all the way back to Dierks Lake so we could take the paved roads.  On our way back to the lake we followed our GPS and were stymied three different times by locked gates across the roads.  After an hour we finally made our way back.

What an awesome day!