Autumn

A is for Autumn.  I really love Autumn and how beautiful  Autumn is. I also like Fall and the colorful foliage. My oldest granddaughter is named Autumn and she is beautiful!

As beautiful as my granddaughter Autumn is, this post is to showcase the beauty of Autumn (the season).  The weather this past week has been extremely hot, with temperatures in the high 90's and even passing the 100 degree mark one day.  The hot weather makes me look forward to Autumn, when things start cooling off.  Autumn is also a very colorful time here in Western Arkansas.  Here are a few photos I have taken of the fall colors over the past few years.













God can make even a junkyard beautiful. I took these photos behind my shop where we keep the vehicles that some people consider junk.









The Kansas City Southern railroad tracks run right behind my shop. I climbed up to the tracks to take these photos.












I'm looking forward to Autumn this year so I can take some more colorful photos!

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

Be Spicy

Do you like your food spicy?  I know that I do.  What is spice and why does it make food taste so good?

According to the dictionary, spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used for flavoring food.  I like my food flavorful!

When Jesus said in Matthew 5:13, “You are the salt of the earth", He meant that we are the spice of this world. We’re here to add flavor, in other words; we are here to make things taste good.

Some Christians seem to pride themselves on being bland, flavorless and boring.  Anything else must be wrong.  And yet Jesus asks us to be salty, to be spicy, to be flavorful.

Job 6:6 asks “Can flavorless food be eaten without salt? Or is there any taste in the white of an egg?”

I love good flavorful food. We use lots of spice at our house. If you don’t like garlic you would have a hard time at our house. We grow our own basil and rosemary so that we have fresh flavorful spices that are much tastier than the dried spices you can buy in the store. Take a quick look at our spice rack and you will find thyme, sage, paprika, oregano, curry, bay leaves, chili powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, cumin, onion, coriander, turmeric, mustard, saffron, and pepper. The purpose of each of these spices is to add flavor.

In Matthew 5:13, Jesus said. “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its salty taste, it cannot be made salty again. It is good for nothing, except to be thrown out and walked on”.

Without salt or spice, many foods are very bland and tasteless. Jesus isn’t looking for bland followers. If you aren’t salty, if you aren’t spicy, if you have no flavor you aren’t good for anything.

In verses 14 and 15 Jesus continues, “You are the light that gives light to the world. A city that is built on a hill cannot be hidden. And people don’t hide a light under a bowl. They put it on a lampstand so the light shines for all the people in the house. In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do and will praise your Father in heaven”.


Light has amazing qualities. One of my favorite qualities is when it passes through a prism and breaks up into the colors of the rainbow. We are to be the light that gives light to the world, but we each one are a different color. We each have different qualities, different flavors, and different spices.

God hasn’t asked us to be cookie cutter copies of each other. He has asked each one of us to spice up our corner of the world. Each one of us has a sphere of influence that no one else has. God has asked us to be a light in our sphere of influence.


When it’s dark, people notice the light. Have you ever seen a searchlight? When I was a kid growing up it seemed like we saw them quite often. Whenever I would see one it was very intriguing.

I haven’t seen a searchlight in years, but I can still vividly remember seeing them. I grew up out in the country where there were no streetlights. When I could see a searchlight it looked like it was the only thing in the sky.

 
Is there any way someone could hide a light like that? No way. There are some lights that just cannot be hid. So if that light is on, then we are going to see it; and if we can’t see it, there’s something wrong!

When we taste our food, if it is salty, then we’re going to taste it.  If there are spices, then we’re going to taste them.  If we taste our food and it is bland, with no salt or spice we probably won't eat it.  And if we do we won't enjoy it.  The spice in our food makes the difference between tasty and bland.

In the same way, Christians should make a difference in this world; we should be just as noticeable as salt and light. We should be the spice of the world, and the world needs more spice.  Be spicy!

Zion

Z is for Zion.  Zion, to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, represents the perfect, just society ruled by Jesus Christ where all the inhabitants live in harmony, equally sharing all things.  Soon after founding the church in April 1830, Joseph Smith stated that he had received a revelation that designated Independence, Missouri as the center of the New Jerusalem, or Zion.

The Latter Day Saints were driven from Missouri in 1838 as a consequence of the Mormon War and Governor Lilburn Boggs' Extermination Order. After this time the concept of Zion as Jackson County, Missouri was no longer taught.  From Missouri many Mormons moved to Illinois where they bought the small town of Commerce and renamed it Nauvoo. They were never at peace with their neighbors. After Joseph Smith's death in 1844, continuing violence from surrounding non-Mormons forced most Latter-Day Saints to leave Nauvoo. These refugees, led by Brigham Young, emigrated to the Great Salt Lake Valley in Utah.

Utah became the new Zion, and the main desire of new Mormon converts was to reach Zion.  One of those new converts was my wife's great great grandmother, Sophie Peterson.  Sophie was born August 17, 1824 in Copenhagen, Denmark.  Sophie married Peter Peterson. When her children were small her husband died of cholera at the age of 39.

In 1855 Sophie was baptized into the Mormon Church.  She sold her homestead and left Denmark on May 4, 1856 with the promise of reaching Zion.  The voyage by ship took forty-one days and she arrived at New York City on June 14, 1856. She traveled by rail from there to Florence, Iowa.  There Sophie and her children became part of one of the most famous journeys across the United States, the journey of the Willie Hand Cart Company.

Sophie joined the Willie Handcart Company and with her children pulled the handcart across the plains. She had plenty of money to get her to Salt Lake, but she trusted two Elders with her money and they betrayed her trust. Sophie had plenty of clothes for herself and her children, but because each person was only allowed 17 pounds of possessions, she had to leave most of the clothes behind when she joined the handcart company.  Even with all of the hardships she faced, she was determined to go to Zion.

The Willie Company was one of ten groups of pioneers from England and Scandinavia that made the journey from Iowa to Utah by pulling handcarts. The trek was disastrous for two of the companies,  the Willie Company and the Martin Company.  These two companies started their journey dangerously late and were caught by heavy snow and severe temperatures in central Wyoming. Despite a dramatic rescue effort, more than 210 of the 980 pioneers in these two companies died along the way. Fortunately for me, Sophie, my wife's great great grandmother, and her son Otto, my wife's great grandfather, survived the journey.

I can't imagine what it would have been like for a single woman with 3 children ages 2 through 10 to pull a handcart west across nearly impassable terrain and with only a few ounces of flour for food each day.  There are journals of the trip that can be read online at The Travels of the Willie Handcart Company.

In 2011, the story of the Willie Handcart Company was made into a movie, titled 17 Miracles.  The movie is based on the actual experiences of members of the Willie Handcart Company of Mormon Pioneers following their late-season start and subsequent winter journey to Salt Lake City in 1856. It is a very interesting movie and can be rented from Netflix or purchased from Amazon.

As I have researched this story, the thing that stands out is the determination of these pioneers to reach Zion no matter what the cost.  I really admire the determination of these pioneers.

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

Red Bud Manor

For our 38th wedding anniversary we planned a weekend trip to Eureka Springs, Arkansas.  We usually spend one or two weekends a year there.  It is less than 4 hours away, and we love the area.  

Eureka Springs is a Victorian mountain village that was founded in 1879. Judge J.B. Saunders claimed that his crippling disease was cured by the spring waters. Saunders started promoting Eureka Springs to friends and family members across the State and created a boom town. Within a period of little more than one year, the city grew from a rural village to a major city of 5,000 people. By 1889 it was the second largest city in Arkansas. With bath house cures falling out of favor, and the depression that hit the nation being particularly bad in Arkansas, Eureka Spring fell into decline during the 30's.

With the end of World War II the era of the family car trip began. Businesses and services moved to the highway, rustic tourist courts and air-conditioned motels were built alongside diners and gift shops. Sights that had been horseback adventure were now attractions to the motoring tourist. The motoring public could turn-off Hwy 62 down 62B into the valley, follow the loop through the historic little Victorian city, and come back out on the highway.

Early in the 1960s Beaver Lake was completed, and shortly after that Pea Ridge Battle Field National Military Park was opened. Northwest Arkansas attractions continued to expand the number of tourists passing through the Eureka Springs area. In the 1970s, the public was looking for a different lodging experience. The bed and breakfast concept was a perfect fit for the public and for Eureka Springs.

When we travel to Eureka Springs we like the experience of staying in a bed and breakfast.  We have met so many nice people that way.  On this trip I was able to get a reservation at Red Bud Manor.  We had driven by Red Bud Manor on previous trips and remarked on how inviting the front porch looked.  Because they only have 3 rooms and have a perfect score on Trip Advisor,  it can be difficult to get a reservation.

Red Bud Manor was built by one of Eureka Springs' famous and historical women, Franciska Massman.  She was a businesswoman who was famous for her clear-cutting and homesteading tactics. According to the St. Louis Republican on September 11, 1879, a large part of Eureka Springs was held in claims belonging to Benjamin Woodruff, William Evans and the well-known Franciska Massman who owned and operated a sawmill on Leatherwood Creek. Franciska's home went on to become one of the first Bed and Breakfasts to operate in Eureka Springs in the 1980's. 

Our room was named Eureka's Hideaway and like the other rooms in the Manor has it's own outside private entrance.  The room was beautifully decorated.  it featured a king sized bed with a beautiful iron headboard, original artwork, and a whirlpool tub.  

The best features of Red Bud Manor are the front porch and the patio in the back.  We enjoyed quiet evenings sitting on the porch and visiting.  The front porch is beautifully decorated and just seems to invite conversation.

We have been visiting Eureka Springs once or twice a year for the last thirty years. Over the years we have stayed at a lot of places and had many good experiences, but our stay at Red Bud Manor was the best that we have experienced. Owner Catherine and innkeeper Randee made sure that our every need was taken care of. They were very friendly and by the time we left we felt like we had spent the weekend with old friends. The breakfasts that Randee and Catherine served were beyond description.  As much of the produce as possible came fresh from the local farmers market.  The wonderful gourmet meals were served in the beautifully appointed dining room on a Chippendale table.

The next time we travel to Eureka Springs, I hope that we will be able to get reservations at Red Bud Manor.  It will be a disappointment if we can't.

Independence

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

These words begin one of the most famous documents in the history of the world.  The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America.  They are some of the most recognized words anywhere.

Unfortunately, most Americans are not well versed in their history.  I love history and am always interested in learning more.  It seems to me that when Americans talk about history it is only in how it relates to their viewpoints today.  There is little study and discussion of history for history's sake.

Maybe it is because our country is such melting pot that so many of us are not well versed in this countries beginnings.  My ancestors in this country predate the Declaration of Independence.   My great great great great grandfather, James Vowels, fought in the Revolutionary War.

According to a document that I found, James Vowels was a soldier in the Army of the Revolution.  James was born in Virginia in 1738. He enlisted in 1776 under Captain George Slaughter of the 8th Virginia Regiment.  He fought in the Battles of Brandywine on September 11, 1777, Germantown on October 4, 1777 and several others.  He wintered with his regiment at Valley Forge and served out the time of his enlistment faithfully.

When his enlistment was up, he came home to Virginia and married Anne Fields in April 1781.  After the wedding he again joined the Army and was at the siege of Yorktown.  After the surrender of Cornwallis on October 19 1781, he returned home to Culpepper County Virginia where he lived until his death on April 17, 1815.

My great great great great grandfather was a part of some of the most important events in American history.  He experienced the hardships of Valley Forge.  He was part of the Army that forced the English General Cornwallis to surrender and end the war.  He helped America gain its independence.  He was a true patriot.  I’m proud to be a descendant of James Vowels.

Philadelphia held the first celebration of independence on July 4, 1777, and in 1781, Massachusetts became the first state to make July 4th an official state holiday.   After the Revolutionary War, Americans continued to celebrate Independence Day every year, in events that allowed the new nation to create a feeling of unity.  The tradition of Independence Day celebrations became even more widespread after the War of 1812, in which the United States again faced Great Britain. In 1870, the U.S. Congress made July 4th a federal holiday.

Today as we barbecue, picnic, go to the lake, shoot off fireworks, or whatever we do to celebrate the day, let's take time to remember the bravery of the men who risked their lives in a time of war to boldly sign the Declaration of Independence.