Fort McHenry

Our last day of vacation was spent driving. We had stopped the night before in NJ, and we still had a long way down Interstate 95 to go. I had told Hubby if we were at a good time to break when we passed Fort McHenry in Baltimore I would like to stop. Well, it was perfect timing for a stretch and some lunch, so we stopped off.

 They have a great exhibit about patriotism, our flag's history, and wars we have been involved in. Fort McHenry is where an important battle took place during the War of 1812, and was also the place where Francis Scott Key watched the battle and looked for our flag. When the smoke cleared he saw our banner waving high and quickly wrote down his famous poem. It is now our National Anthem.

 Inside the visitor's center there is a short film explaining what the battle was about and what Key would have seen. At the end of the film, the screen rises and you see the flag, pictured above, flying high in the breeze. The Star Spangled Banner is playing at the same time, and I have to say my eyes were quite wet. I am a patriotic fool. I will cry nearly every time I hear that song!

 Then we quickly toured the fort- very quickly since we were so excited to get back on I-95!- and stretched a little more. There are some cannonballs in the courtyard and a cannon that could have fired them. This is #2's thumb in the plug hole of the cannonball. Imagine how much black powder that could hold! No wonder such a battle made Key wax poetic.

And then we finished driving. It was a good vacation, but home is always a pleasant end to travels, and it was this time as well. I enjoyed reading 4 books (finishing the trilogy of The Giver by Lois Lowry with Messenger and Gathering Blue, a great true story called Same Kind of Different As Me, and a book I picked up one year at a library sale called Never Cry Wolf which turned out to be a great environmental and moral book), spent time relaxing with Hubby, hiking with the kids, seeing sites, and being away from it all.

Boston

After a week in the Berkshires, we decided to take a day trip to Boston before heading back to the South. It was not the smartest decision we have ever made. Boston must be the worst place for tourists that I have ever visited, and I have visited a LOT of places. I plan to write a letter to their governor. There was no signage along the highways, precious little parking, traffic lanes were unmarked and sometimes used by four lanes, when I truly think there should have been two!

 You can see how excited #1 was to visit Boston. He did enjoy seeing the street performers, and #2 got pulled into a show while Hubby and I were in visiting Fanuiel Hall. That was the highlight for them. These pictures are inside the Old North Church. Early churches had box seating instead of pews. The idea was that the high walls around you kept in the warmth from the drafty unheated church. You could take hot bricks or coals with you to church, place them in the middle of your "room" and try to stay warm during worship.

 The clock above is the oldest American-made, still-working clock in existence. #2 was quick to point out that it didn't seem to be quite right. I guess it isn't satellite set! On pedastals next to the clock you can make out some small angels blowing trumpets. They were taken by a pirate who went to church there. After stealing from a ship he found them in the cargo and donated them to the church. Hmmm.

 These two pix are for Auntie. Several years ago she asked what Hubby would like for Christmas. 'Earl Gray Tea' She didn't hear the Earl part and got him a gray t-shirt. We thought this would be a good shirt for her!

 Outside of the church there is a small garden area. Around the corner is the statue of Paul Revere. In the bottom picture you can see the spire where they would have placed the lantern, "One if by land, two if by sea" to signal the British movements.

 We followed most of the Freedom Trail through downtown Boston. The Boston Massacre- which was about 4 people, not what I call a massacre- is marked out with a brick circle in the middle of a walkway. Several things along the trail are just markings like this, but some are actual buildings to go into. We went in the State House, Fanuiel Hall, and the Revere House. By then we were just ready to get out of the horrid place and headed home. More on that later.

Berhsires, Part 4 and Memorials

 Remember this mountain top lake? It looked like paradise. We were so hot and thirsty at this point I was not beyond jumping in, when suddenly #2 hit the path and grabbed into the water. I thought he had given into temptation when he came up with this squirmy fellow. The little guy seemed to think Hell had grabbed him out of Paradise! We made #2 put it back in the water and leave it alone.

 At the top of the mountain is a lighthouse that stands to commemorate those who were lost in WW2. It shines from the top of the mountain for 70 miles to help direct those who are on their way up. I would like to also give my thanks to those who served our country and world by helping during dark times to shine a light. Especially thanks to my two dads, all my uncles, and many friends. I appreciate your service.

 Just before you cross the road to the summit there is this engraved rock beside the path. It reads:

"It were as well
to be educated in the shadow
of a mountain as in more classic shade
Some will remember, no doubt,
not only that they went to college,
but that they went to the mountain"
- Henry David Thoreau

Above a sign to show that you are on the Appalachian Trail and below a close up view of the beacon that shines at the top of the mountain.

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For those who are wondering, I did pick up #1 on Friday. He and his buddies were very, very tired. We were about a half hour out when they were both asleep. The third boy had to go on to a weekend Civil Air Patrol training. He is going to be BEAT!

They were pleased with their time in Raleigh. #1 received a reference from the woman he worked under, and we put that right to work the next day looking for a job. Most places are taking applications online, but if we need her we will use her.

The Mountain Top

As we trudged up the hillside, I thought about my own spiritual journey and the journey of those I have encountered. When we first began the hike, we came across a high school group of kids on a field trip. They were fairly fresh, had notebooks for writing down things, and were in small groups and clumps of kids. There was a road a little farther up the mountain, and we thought that perhaps they had been doing some class research and followed it. Whatever it was, it seemed obvious that they did not go all the way to the mountain top.
These kids obviously did not intend to get to the top of the mountain.There are people who don't have the same goal as most of us. Heaven is not their objective. Perhaps research is their main goal, or socializing, or just enjoying nature, but whatever their goal is, it isn't to get to Heaven.
We continued marching stalwartly up the streambed and noticed others who went before us. They had been prepared: water, hiking sticks, snacks, you name it. We were unprepared, bringing a sandwich bag of celery and carrots along to help quench our thirst. This too reminded me of those I travel alongside on my spiritual journey. Some have the background teaching to help them along, others are novice travellers. The climb is seemingly easy for some and very difficult for others.
Along the way we met people who encouraged us to continue on: What a beautiful sight at the top...What a great day to be out...It's worth it! I have also had others encourage me along my spiritual walk: We're praying for you...How are you doing with ________?...This is what I did when I struggled with that...It gets easier!
And then we neared the top of the mountain. It DID get easier! The land levelled off for a little bit, we caught our breath, and we reenergized for the rest of the walk. My spiritual hike to Heaven has been similar, sometimes it is all uphill, and other times it is easier, more natural.
What we all had in common at the top was that we were at the top! We travelled there on different paths. Some were very steep and rugged like ours; some were less steep but had a longer distance. Some travellers had been prepared and some, like us, got there by the skin of our teeth. But we all made it! And that is our journey to Heaven. We are all headed in the same direction, no matter what path we are on or how we prepare ahead of time. And we all enjoy the same stunning vista at the top.

Berkshires, Part 3

This family vacation came about through a Christmas present by Hubby's parents.  They gave us and his brother's family a week at a timeshare they have. Hubby said he would like to go to New England, so that's where we headed. We spent time playing at the resort- ping pong, mini-golf, shuffleboard, hiking the resort trails, watching a movie in their theater- and also wandered around local towns enjoying milkshakes and ice cream.

 The last day that we were in the Berkshires I had the idea of hiking to the highest point in Massachusetts. Honestly, what I thought we would do was drive to the top and look around, hike some short loops at the top, enjoy a picnic, and relax. HUH! The drive to the top wasn't open yet, the ranger told us, but we could walk to the top if we drove around to the other side. It was a 3.5 mile hike. No problem I said, and off we went.

 The scenery was gorgeous. The boys took a break on the bridge to let us catch up. This stream was flowing behind and under the bridge. We became very familiar with a stream on this hike. You see, the trail the ranger suggested was 3.5 miles STRAIGHT UP A MOUNTAIN WALKING IN A STREAM BED!! The guys in my family were plotting a coupe de tat.

 We kept on trudging straight up, though, and at this point I took heart. There was a clearing at the top! I know what pure joy feels like now. I also know what pure disappointment feels like too. See the picture below.

 We still had 3/4 mile left to go!! The only thing keeping us going at this point was the need for water which we thought we would find at the top. Remember I hadn't expected to hike like this, so I didn't have water bottles for everyone. Bad idea. (But look! We are on the Appalachian Trail again! At least the boys can say they hiked part of it now too.)

 As we got closer to the top, we came upon a mountain lake. The terrain leveled off here, and we were able to enjoy the hike a bit more. This is actually where we would have hiked if the drive had been open. See, I would have been fine.

We made it! All four of us made it to the top of Mount Greylock. The view of several other states was magnificent. Beautiful, Chilly. But where's the water!!?? The water fountains don't open for two more days we were told. Oh My Word! So off we headed down the mountain to get water at our car, which thankfully I did have.
It took about 2 hours to walk up the mountain and about 1.5 to walk down. We passed people heading up and they asked us how much farther. I am sorry to say we were not very encouraging. Reality is sometimes the better way to go.

Berkshires, Part 2

One of the things we were looking forward to was visiting the little towns in the Berkshires. Last year we had so much fun in a little town in western NC, that we had hoped this would be the same. We were a bit disappointed. A lot of the shops weren't opening until the next week because it wasn't tourist season yet. But we did enjoy some of the architecture in Pittsfield and other towns. This skinny building was built against the railroad tracks on an angular lot. It was wider at the other end where the lot was larger.

There were a lot of churches built with spires and gables. The materials were stone and brick mostly. Even some of the courthouses had interesting buildings. We probably would have enjoyed our site seeing if it hadn't been blowing and raining part of the time. But the towns were small enough to let the boys head off together to explore, and they really enjoyed that. I enjoyed wandering around with Hubby too.

One day we visited the Rockwell Museum. Norman Rockwell is one of my favorite artists. I love the stories that he tells in his pictures. The faces express so much emotion. This room was full of his covers for Saturday Evening Post. The boys put up with visiting, but it was not their favorite part of the trip. Everyone gives and takes on a family vacation!

Berkshires, Part 1

 Hubby and I can now say we walked the Appalachian Trail. The first day of our vacation, we headed over to a state forest to do a little hiking. They had had rain the day before and it was a bit wet, but after 12 hours in the car the day before, I needed to walk! Hubby and I headed out on this trail, not knowing it was part of the AT. The boys didn't want to hang with the old folks, and having heard it might be wet and muddy, they asked to start walking toward home on the road. We had driven more than 5 miles through the forest, so I didn't expect them to get too far and agreed.

 The path was well marked, but very rocky. Every trail we took in Massachusetts was littered with rocks. It reminded me of all of the rocks I picked up out of the garden when I was a kid. You don't have rock problems in Eastern Carolina!

 Speaking of rocks, this overhang was pretty. It reminded me of my first "non-date date" with Hubby. He picked me up to go to Cooper's Rock State Park with the church college group. I thought he was with another girl because she sat in the front seat with him. Evidently, I was the intended date, but she didn't know it. She was dating a guy from another state.

 Signs of beaver were very evident. This was an amazing example of a beaver getting tired and quitting. I had Hubby stand behind it so you could see how big the tree is. Hubby wants me to be sure you know he isn't peeing here.

 They were doing some work on the dam wall of the lake, so the water was down. We could see this lodge really well. I was interested in the entrance holes.

 Above and below you can see some fresh signs of beaver. They seemed to be very busy in the Berkshires. As we drove around to other towns we noticed lodges in the wetland areas near the roadways.

 Below is a lodge that was still in the water, so perhaps it had occupants. I couldn't tell.

The lake we were walking around was built by the CCC in the 1930s. They also built this picturesque bridge. We had a lovely walk enjoying the sights and visiting with each other.

 The boys would have seen lots of wetlands on their hike home as well as these wildflowers that grew along the side of the road. They were an interesting shape. The boys actually got farther than I expected, walking about 5 miles before we caught up to them. They wanted to continue walking, but it was past lunch time, and we thought they should ride home. It started raining on our way home so it was good that they rode, not in #1's opinion who loves rainy walks, but in his mother's opinion.
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Update on #1...I spoke with the mother who went up last night to check on them. She said they are doing well. They have gone on some tours, and done some community service. They sorted rotten potatoes for a food bank. They now all three have an aversion to potatoes! She also said that #1 walked a girl back at lunchtime to get her wallet. The other guys asked why he did that and he answered that he wasn't letting a girl walk through the streets of downtown Raleigh by herself! I have raised a gentleman after all!! I will call him tonight, but mostly I have tried to stay out of his business. He seems to be handling it well. Perhaps there is hope for the future. ; )

She Is Missed

The water bucket was thrown out a week ago. It sat in the sunroom a month waiting for her to come take a drink. She never came. The water turned green and stagnant, but I couldn't throw it out. It seemed to whisper, "She will return." The food bowl in the barn was moved off the floor up to the cats' bench, but they didn't want to eat out of it. They knew it wasn't theirs.
#1 had a "tattoo" on his wrist the other day, '4-7-12'. "Why do you have that on your wrist?" I asked. He looked at me like I was speaking in tongues. "Well what do you think?! It was the day Kelly died." Yes, I sighed to myself, the day she left us, the day before Easter.
I have been losing chickens since Kelly left. Sunday we found out how. Some stray dogs were tormenting them and killing them. Kelly's markings of the property seem to have worn off, and now strange dogs appear to carry off my hens. I didn't know how much she meant to us, emotionally and physically, until she was gone.
I can't help but think this is symbolically like Jesus and his disciples. They didn't know what they had until he was gone. It was the day before Easter, and they were sad and disheartened. But unlike our dilemma, He returned. He gave them hope, refreshment, joy. Their strength was renewed and their commitment cemented forever. It makes me say,
⁷But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ ⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. ¹⁰I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. - Philippians 3:7-11
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I received text updates yesterday from the mom who took the boys to Raleigh. They did fine, and she sent me a phone picture of the three dressed  up in their suits. Such men already! I talked to #1 last evening and he seemed fine. He is assigned to the Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources, probably because he was in Envirothon this year. Too bad they didn't put him the Dept. of Communications. Today he learns more about his job and also goes to the history museum. He and the other two boys are volunteering along with 7 GIRLS. My friend texted that #1 said he was happy with that arrangement. I bet!

Just Call Me C.

I was walking through the bedroom yesterday when I told Hubby, "Just call me C. (his mother's name)"
"Huh?"
"I feel like your mother. I am unpacking from one trip, washing laundry, and packing for the next trip."
It seems that is all his mother does. They are gone a lot of the time. We were on vacation last week, and when we got back I had to wash laundry so #1 could pack for a week in Raleigh. He left this morning and will be back Friday. He is going to be a Governor's Page for the week. That of course is NOT the highlight for him. He is staying ALONE in a hotel with two of his friends. A mom is checking on them every other night, so we feel pretty safe leaving them, but still it was a little disconcerting this morning as I thought about what it meant.
He has to get himself up, fed and dressed, and walk to work by, I think, 8 AM. The other boys are his age, so we will see how it goes. They have to wear a shirt, tie, and jacket every day. As I helped #1 pick out his ties I told him some didn't match. "Why?" "I don't know why, they just don't match." So I packed the ties with the appropriate shirts, and I hope that he will end up wearing the right ones. I also gave him instructions about which socks with which pants, but since his socks often don't match EACH OTHER I am not too sure that the socks and pants have any hope of matching.
Oh the joys of growing up.
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Vacation pix coming soon, but to let you know... We had a lovely time. It was so nice to be out of the routine and relax. I read FOUR!!! books. Ones I wanted to read, not ones I HAD to read. Pure Heaven.

State Speech Contest

#2 gave a speech last week at the State SWCD Speech Contest. He looked so handsome standing up there on that stage. I could tell that he was turning into a man before my eyes.

 The speech theme was "Wetlands Are Wonderful". His speech compared his relationship with Best Buddy to the relationship that we should have with wetlands. We should protect each other, enjoy each other, etc. He did a good job. He made Honorable Mention, but in my book he did Excellently! This was probably his best speech performance ever, and it was in front of about a hundred people. He was shaking when he got down off the stage. I think it was the adrenalin rush.

I was very proud of my boy!
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He is definitely growing. I got him new clothes a few days before the contest. By the time he competed he had already outgrown them.

It Feels Better Than It Looks

This is my good friend and her daughter. They caught up to me and #2 as we were sitting on the beach. We invited them to join us.

 The kids had hiked down there last year and knew about a wall of clay. They were hoping to find it and get some clay out of the hillside. Finally we came upon a rocky part of the shore. It looked like sharp rocks were strewn all over the riverbank.

Of course were walking in the water by this time, and we noticed that what looked like sharp little rocks, were actually soft and pliable pieces of clay. Walking along the water was like having a foot massage with thick foam.

We even talked my friend into joining us in the water. She was as surprised and as pleased as we were. Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone joined us in the call of the Potter? "Come in and let me mold you, it won't hurt as much as you think," He calls. Listen to Him. Join Him.

So I went to the potter's house, and sure enough, the potter was there, working away at his wheel. Whenever the pot the potter was working on turned out badly, as sometimes happens when you are working with clay, the potter would simply start over and use the same clay to make another pot.
Then God's Message came to me, "Can't I do just as this potter does, people of Israel? GOD'S Decree! "Watch this potter. In the same way that this potter works his clay, I work on you, people of Israel." Jeremiah 18 The Message

Life After Death

 Continuing to sit on my personal beach, I watched the boats drift past. As I followed this one through the trunks of the trees, I noticed in the distance a dead tree with a nest in the top of it.

 An osprey had built its nest in the still standing tree. It must have once been a magnificent tree, full of branches and leaves, blowing in the wind, raising its arms to God in holy praise. Now, it would seem, it had died, and all of that was over. But no, the osprey had built its nest and was calling to its mate. New life was being formed in the middle of the mess.

You could look at that many ways. The new Christian is transformed from a mess to a masterpiece. Or at the end of this life there will be a new life, better than before. But the message I took that day, was that my life will affect others' lives even after I am gone. Am I living in such a way that I will be a helpful tree in my Father's forest, or will there be nothing left of me to help those that follow?
Help me God to become a strong tree that will offer rest and respite even after I die.

We've Got You Surrounded

I found a secluded little beach area to sit and meditate. It was a cool, shaded beach, surrounded by trees and grasses. I sat down on a log and watched the water for a while. My gaze was interrupted by a sailboat. The Boy Scouts had raised sails on some of their kayaks and were enjoying the day on the water. I loved the bright rainbow colors on this sail.

 Then I noticed the sail overtaken by a bunch of black pirate sails! I felt like I was watching an attack. The bright colors of the rainbow were overtaken and captured by the blackness of the pirates. It looked like it was all over for the good guy.

But look, in the distance, here come more of the good guys! Yeah!! Soon colorful kayaks and sails were outnumbering the blackness. The good guys were winning again!

It reminded me of the story in I Kings 19. Elijah, a prophet of God, is running for his life. All around he sees evil and just knows that he is all alone. He cries out to God and asks why God allows this. God answers him, "So Elijah, now tell me what are you doing here?" Elijah answered, "I've been working my heart out for God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies, because the people of Israel have abandoned your covenant, destroyed your places of worship, and murdered your prophets. I'm the only one left, and now they're trying to kill me!" God answered, "...I'm preserving for myself 7,000 souls, the knees that haven't bowed to the god Baal, the mouths that haven't kissed his image." The Message.

At least I am in great company when I feel all alone. God's mighty prophet felt the same way.