Walnut tree, in the winter, in the fog.
Gratitude #83 - Sweet Biddies!
11 years ago
Saturday, February 20, 2010
on fire
Two local women are in jail in Haiti.
They were detained while working on a project to find homes for orphans. In this case it involved taking a bus load of children to the next country – without much in way of paper work.
The children were in need, some were “given” by their parents, in hope of a better life some way. Of course, I cannot know all of the motives and details. I only know what I read about this story.
But, I have known a good number of souls who are on fire for their god, and wanting to do great things for him, and along the way make themselves a big chunk of profit.
That may not be what is going on here, I cannot know. I am guessing. Sorta.
Years ago a man wanted to hire me as a photographer in a somewhat shady enterprise. He wanted to make a lot of money so he could give a lot to his church. Sounds reasonable, but I was not convinced and turned him down quite abruptly.
If you aren't giving a fair hunk of your low income to your church, I doubt you will give a bigger chunk of your prosperity, but that is my view.
I have worked for and around people who could only be called “sanctified con men.”
Pretty harsh, I guess. But in the search for doing great things for god, somehow it is easy to edge morals and principles a tiny bit, and sometimes even stretch the law more than a bit.
One of the local ladies has a history of either bad business practices or very bad luck. Is that a factor? I cannot know for sure.
Still, I wish them out of jail.
They were detained while working on a project to find homes for orphans. In this case it involved taking a bus load of children to the next country – without much in way of paper work.
The children were in need, some were “given” by their parents, in hope of a better life some way. Of course, I cannot know all of the motives and details. I only know what I read about this story.
But, I have known a good number of souls who are on fire for their god, and wanting to do great things for him, and along the way make themselves a big chunk of profit.
That may not be what is going on here, I cannot know. I am guessing. Sorta.
Years ago a man wanted to hire me as a photographer in a somewhat shady enterprise. He wanted to make a lot of money so he could give a lot to his church. Sounds reasonable, but I was not convinced and turned him down quite abruptly.
If you aren't giving a fair hunk of your low income to your church, I doubt you will give a bigger chunk of your prosperity, but that is my view.
I have worked for and around people who could only be called “sanctified con men.”
Pretty harsh, I guess. But in the search for doing great things for god, somehow it is easy to edge morals and principles a tiny bit, and sometimes even stretch the law more than a bit.
One of the local ladies has a history of either bad business practices or very bad luck. Is that a factor? I cannot know for sure.
Still, I wish them out of jail.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
dams
Today is travel day again.
Leo is going to go stay with daughter 4, who owns him. He may stay there a short or a long time. We will see.
It is a beautiful day. Temps in the low 60's. But temps that warm in February are not always good.
The fruit trees begin to think it is spring and they come out and bloom too early and then a good frost and there is little or no crop.
Today's trip is along side the mighty Columbia river. OK, it used to be a river. Now it is a series of still water lakes held in place by a series of huge concrete dams.
The dams provided cheap electricity for some, but pretty well killed the migration of the salmon back to their spawning areas in Oregon and Idaho.
Way deep in Idaho we have a lake called Red Fish lake. Once upon a time there were so many salmon that the lake was named after them.
Salmon eggs are laid in small streams high in the mountsins. As young fish they migrate down stream and through hundreds of miles of water to the pacific ocean. When it is time to return to lay their eggs the fish migrate all the way back to where they were hatched some years before.
It is pretty amazing, but in our progress we have pretty well eliminated the fish runs.
Even from the hundred foot wide strip of concrete known as Interstate 84, it is a beautiful drive. A more intimate, and slightly slower drive is along the Washington side of the river. That is a nice 2 lane highway that goes through a dozen or more tunnels.
But today we will drive along the Oregon side.
It will be good.
Leo is going to go stay with daughter 4, who owns him. He may stay there a short or a long time. We will see.
It is a beautiful day. Temps in the low 60's. But temps that warm in February are not always good.
The fruit trees begin to think it is spring and they come out and bloom too early and then a good frost and there is little or no crop.
Today's trip is along side the mighty Columbia river. OK, it used to be a river. Now it is a series of still water lakes held in place by a series of huge concrete dams.
The dams provided cheap electricity for some, but pretty well killed the migration of the salmon back to their spawning areas in Oregon and Idaho.
Way deep in Idaho we have a lake called Red Fish lake. Once upon a time there were so many salmon that the lake was named after them.
Salmon eggs are laid in small streams high in the mountsins. As young fish they migrate down stream and through hundreds of miles of water to the pacific ocean. When it is time to return to lay their eggs the fish migrate all the way back to where they were hatched some years before.
It is pretty amazing, but in our progress we have pretty well eliminated the fish runs.
Even from the hundred foot wide strip of concrete known as Interstate 84, it is a beautiful drive. A more intimate, and slightly slower drive is along the Washington side of the river. That is a nice 2 lane highway that goes through a dozen or more tunnels.
But today we will drive along the Oregon side.
It will be good.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
my guess
I saw a story yesterday.
We were at the Vets office with Leo. A tall 40ish man and woman with a teen girl came into the office. They were expected and were ushered into an examining room.
The door was closed and locked (a nurse checked the door later and confirmed that it was locked).
In a while, maybe 20 or 30 minutes they came out. The woman's eyes were red with tears, the man smiled recognition at us and the girl clutched a blanket.
Those are the facts. That is all I really know, but here is what I am sure is the other part of the story.
The family had come in to be with a beloved pet who was dying. I am going to guess it was a cat, and that it was a gift to the girl when she was small child.
They paid their loving respects to their beloved pet and left with the memories and the blanket.
That is the story as I guessed it.
We were at the Vets office with Leo. A tall 40ish man and woman with a teen girl came into the office. They were expected and were ushered into an examining room.
The door was closed and locked (a nurse checked the door later and confirmed that it was locked).
In a while, maybe 20 or 30 minutes they came out. The woman's eyes were red with tears, the man smiled recognition at us and the girl clutched a blanket.
Those are the facts. That is all I really know, but here is what I am sure is the other part of the story.
The family had come in to be with a beloved pet who was dying. I am going to guess it was a cat, and that it was a gift to the girl when she was small child.
They paid their loving respects to their beloved pet and left with the memories and the blanket.
That is the story as I guessed it.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Happy Birthday Ben
Ben is our second oldest grandson. He is 25 today.
Where did the years go.
"Ben," I tease," I remember when you were cute."
25 year olds are not cute, but they can be handsome.
old friends
Years ago I did a tile job in the bathrooms of a new fish hatchery.
It was winter, high in the mountains of Idaho and it was cold, like 35 to 45 below zero each night. The car was plugged in at night or it would never start in the morning.
But inside the building, it was warm and we worked good hours.
One day the fish biologist came by. I asked him what he did (he was wearing a uniform). I told him I had a classmate from high school who was a fish guy. “What is his name?”
“Charlie Smith.” “Ahh, he is the authority in this field.”
Neither Charlie nor I would have been voted likely to be successful based on our high school experience. But early in college, Charlie took the right classes and met the right people and had a career plan that plugged into his skills and background. It was one of those perfect matches.
It served him well.
I visited today with him, the first real visit since we were teens in high school. His book shelves are lined with thick books about biology and fish and diseases. This, I reminded myself, is the very same Charlie I used to cut class with.
I am exceedingly proud of him and his success. He worked hard for it and he deserves it.
We have not kept up because we did not like each other. We lived too far away and our paths rarely crossed. It seems, though, that when we can reconnect we really must. It was that way for many of the people in our class.
Thanks for a good day my friend.
It was winter, high in the mountains of Idaho and it was cold, like 35 to 45 below zero each night. The car was plugged in at night or it would never start in the morning.
But inside the building, it was warm and we worked good hours.
One day the fish biologist came by. I asked him what he did (he was wearing a uniform). I told him I had a classmate from high school who was a fish guy. “What is his name?”
“Charlie Smith.” “Ahh, he is the authority in this field.”
Neither Charlie nor I would have been voted likely to be successful based on our high school experience. But early in college, Charlie took the right classes and met the right people and had a career plan that plugged into his skills and background. It was one of those perfect matches.
It served him well.
I visited today with him, the first real visit since we were teens in high school. His book shelves are lined with thick books about biology and fish and diseases. This, I reminded myself, is the very same Charlie I used to cut class with.
I am exceedingly proud of him and his success. He worked hard for it and he deserves it.
We have not kept up because we did not like each other. We lived too far away and our paths rarely crossed. It seems, though, that when we can reconnect we really must. It was that way for many of the people in our class.
Thanks for a good day my friend.
away again
We are in SE Washington State for a few days, visiting family.
Our 2nd grandson was baptized this weekend and tomorrow is his birthday, double celebration. Ahh, and today is Flower day. Even those of us who are not terribly romantic buy flowers today!
The plan is that all of the daughters are going to be here, but I have only seen two so far.
Yesterday in a fit of playfulness one grandson tapped me on the lip and it bled, we all laughed and laughed, but he will not soon be allowed to forget the time he bloodied grandpa's lip!
We go home Tuesday.
Our 2nd grandson was baptized this weekend and tomorrow is his birthday, double celebration. Ahh, and today is Flower day. Even those of us who are not terribly romantic buy flowers today!
The plan is that all of the daughters are going to be here, but I have only seen two so far.
Yesterday in a fit of playfulness one grandson tapped me on the lip and it bled, we all laughed and laughed, but he will not soon be allowed to forget the time he bloodied grandpa's lip!
We go home Tuesday.
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